MLB Player News

Senga struck out five over three perfect innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins.

The right-hander made short work of a mix of Miami Opening Day starters and minor leaguers, with Senga sitting 96-97 mph with his four-seam fastball and popping 98.6 mph in the second inning to top prospect Joe Mack. Senga was so efficient, firing 28 of 38 pitches for strikes, that he needed to toss an additional 30 pitches in the bullpen after his start, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, in order to stay on track with his buildup. Through 5.2 spring frames, Senga sports a 3.18 ERA and 7:0 K:BB, and he seems locked into a rotation spot as long as he can stay healthy.

Condon's MLB debut is not imminent, despite a strong spring training, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Condon is hitting .419 with three home runs in 16 games this spring, but he is not on the 40-man roster and only played 55 games at Double-A last year and zero games at Triple-A. Additionally, 25-year-old T.J. Rumfield is having an even better camp, with four home runs, five walks and one strikeout in 14 games, and 28-year-old Troy Johnston is also hitting .333 with a .419 OBP in 15 games. If Condon goes to Triple-A and produces up to his recent standards in the Arizona Fall League (.873 OPS) and in spring training, he'll get the call sometime this summer.

Minter (lat) hit 93 mph with his fastball in a live batting practice session Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

That's still a little below his usual velocity, but Minter also worked in his changeup and cutter during the mound session, with the latter pitch getting Francisco Lindor (hand) to exclaim, "That was sick." Minter hasn't pitched in a game since April 26, 2025, but he's hoping he'll be ready to rejoin the Mets' high-leverage crew by late April this season. "Honestly, it feels way better than I expected it was going to feel," Minter said of his repertoire after Friday's session.

Norby appears to be the likely Opening Day starter at third base for the Marlins, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

The 25-year-old came into camp in a battle with Graham Pauley for the job at the hot corner, but Pauley had his camp derailed by a forearm strain, and he has yet to be cleared to play defense in a Grapefruit League game. With time running short before the regular season begins, Norby is in the driver's seat for the spot. His leash could be very short if he isn't able to solve his contact issues, however. Norby has a career 29.0 percent strikeout rate in the majors since making his debut with the Orioles in 2024, and so far this spring he's got an ugly 0:11 BB:K in 29 plate appearances while batting .276 (8-for-29).

The Nationals reassigned Morales to minor-league camp Saturday.

Morales struggled to make an impression during spring training, going 1-for-17 with seven strikeouts across 11 games with the Nationals. He spent the majority of the 2025 season at Triple-A Rochester and will likely do the same this year, though he could make his major-league debut in 2026 if the Nationals require depth at first base. Morales slashed .249/.330/.401 with five steals, 11 home runs and 49 RBI over 433 plate appearances in Triple-A last year.

Springer went 0-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins.

The 36-year-old is batting just .167 (3-for-18) so far this spring in limited action with zero extra-base hits and a 5:3 BB:K. Springer was one of the biggest surprises for the Blue Jays last season during their run to an AL pennant, with his 32 homers and .959 OPS in 140 games being his highest marks since 2019, but regression is very likely in 2026.

Birdsong is getting a second opinion on the forearm discomfort he is dealing with, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Birdsong said he hopes to only miss weeks with the issue, but a second opinion is typically reserved for when surgery has been recommended, so this is an ominous sign. The 24-year-old righty had given up eight runs while walking three batters and striking out two in 2.1 innings this spring, but he says his arm felt fine prior to Tuesday, so the injury isn't to blame for his poor results.

Varsho went 3-for-3 with two home runs and five RBI in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins.

The center fielder took Mick Abel deep for a two-run shot in the first inning before clobbering a three-run homer off Zak Kent in the fifth. Varsho is batting .452 (14-for-31) this spring with eight extra-base hits, including three long balls, and an impressive 1:1 BB:K, an early sign that last year's career-high .548 SLG may not have been a smaller-sample fluke.

Garcia (elbow) threw off a mound Saturday for the first time this spring, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Manager John Schneider noted that Garcia is a "huge part" of Toronto's bullpen and that it was "pretty cool" to see him back up there. It has already been confirmed that Garcia won't be ready for Opening Day, but he will continue his throwing progression and should return to a late-inning role early in the season if he avoids setbacks.

Riley could be surprisingly active as a base stealer this season under the tutelage of new Atlanta baserunning coach Antoan Richardson, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Richardson was the man most responsible for Juan Soto's stunning 38-steal campaign last season, and while Riley has only seven career stolen bases in seven MLB seasons, he's not actually slow of foot -- his sprint speed in 2025 ranked in the 73rd percentile. "He's going to get 20," center fielder Michael Harris said Friday. Riley was successful on his only steal attempt of the spring so far, but until he actually shows more willingness to use his legs, any contribution he makes in steals should be viewed as a bonus by fantasy GMs.