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Tom Murphy To Undergo MRI Due To Back Spasms

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The Giants got some frustrating injury news today, as manager Bob Melvin revealed to reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle) that veteran catcher Tom Murphy has been dealing with back spasms throughout camp and is being sent for an MRI today to determine the severity of the issue.

According to Slusser, the club believes that Murphy’s back issue isn’t a particularly serious one. Even so, it’s understandable for the Giants to be cautious with Murphy. The veteran will turn 34 in early April, and catchers often struggle to stay healthy and productive as they enter their mid-30s. What’s more, Murphy appeared in just 13 games last year and 74 games total across the past three seasons. Those struggles to stay healthy have defined Murphy’s career to this point, and last year his injury woes were compounded by difficulties at the plate with a .118/.211/.235 slash line with a 36.8% strikeout rate.

That sample of just 38 plate appearances is impossible to draw meaningful conclusions from, and Murphy slashed a sensational .292/.357/.522 with 9 homers in just 201 trips to the plate across the 2022 and ’23 seasons. On the other hand, the Giants already appeared to be open to other alternatives for the job backing up Patrick Bailey behind the plate even before Murphy’s latest injury. Sam Huff is on the 40-man roster and out of options entering 2025, making him a logical contender to supplant Murphy as the club’s primary backup to Bailey.

Beyond Huff, other options who could be in the mix are non-roster invitees Max Stassi and Logan Porter. Stassi is a particularly noteworthy potential option given that he last appeared in the majors in 2022 due to injuries and the birth of his son, who was born three months premature and spent a number of weeks in intensive care. Prior to his layoff from regular reps in the majors, Stassi had emerged as a solid regular for the Angels behind the plate, slashing .250/.333/.452 from 2020 to ’21 with solid defense behind the plate.

Murphy is in the second year of a two-year, $8.25MM deal that comes with a $4MM club option for the 2026 season. It’s hardly an exorbitant price for Murphy’s services should he be able to get healthy and post numbers anything like the .250/.324/.460 slash line he put up during his time with the Mariners from 2019 to 2023. On the other hand, however, it’s also not the sort of hefty sunk cost that could give the club pause about cutting bait should Huff, Stassi, or Porter emerge as a preferable option this spring. With Murphy sidelined at least for the time being, those alternative options for the back-up catcher job could get an opportunity to give themselves a leg up in the competition if Murphy’s injury keeps him from participating in Spring Training games when they begin next weekend.

Rangers Sign Joe Barlow To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers announced this morning that they’ve signed right-hander Joe Barlow to a minor league deal. The contract includes an invitation to big league Spring Training.

Barlow, 29, was an 11th-round pick by the Rangers back in 2016 and spent parts of three MLB seasons with the club from 2021 to 2023. He shared closing duties with veteran Ian Kennedy in his rookie season and took over as primary closer for the club the following year, though he ultimately lost the role midway through the 2022 campaign. His removal with the closer role coincided with a severe nosedive in performance. The righty sported a phenomenal career 2.15 ERA with a 22.6% strikeout rate and a 3.79 FIP across 54 1/3 innings when he recorded his final save as the Rangers’ closer in June of 2022, but since then he’s struggled badly with a 5.59 ERA, and 5.96 FIP and a strikeout rate of just 14.6% in 19 1/3 big league innings.

Given those disastrous numbers over the course of nearly a year between him losing the closer job and the trade that brought Jordan Montgomery and Chris Stratton to Texas at the 2023 trade deadline, it wasn’t exactly a surprise when the Rangers designated Barlow for assignment to make room for the incoming duo on the 40-man roster. Barlow was claimed off waivers by the Royals shortly thereafter but did not make an appearance with the club, pitching in the minors until he was once again designated for assignment in early September. He was eventually outrighted to the minors and signed a minor league deal with the White Sox last year, though he did not receive a call-up to the major leagues.

Barlow’s struggles after being removed from the closer role may have been health-related. He made multiple trips to the injured list due to blisters on his right index finger during the 2022 campaign after losing his job in the ninth inning, and ultimately ended up undergoing offseason surgery to correct two tendons in his right wrist that were causing the blisters. Barlow then made a trip to the IL in early 2023 due to kidney stones. Upon joining the White Sox last season, Barlow spent nearly the whole 2024 campaign on the injured list with just 12 total appearances at Triple-A. In 30 innings of work at Triple-A with Chicago and Kansas City since departing Texas, Barlow has been torched to the tune of an 8.40 ERA with a 10.7% walk rate against a 23.1% strikeout rate.

Barlow will now have the opportunity to prove he’s healthy and work his way back towards the majors in a familiar environment. The Rangers, meanwhile, will hope he can recapture the form he flashed early in his big league career. Even that wouldn’t be enough to close on a team with playoff aspirations like the Rangers have become, but Barlow could still join the deep group of arms the club has added this winter to help in the middle innings like Jacob Webb and Shawn Armstrong.

Nationals Sign Paul DeJong

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9:51am: The Nationals have officially announced DeJong’s signing. Right-hander Josiah Gray was transferred to the 60-day injured list to make room for the infielder on the 40-man roster.

6:54am: The Nationals are in agreement with infielder Paul DeJong on a one-year deal that guarantees him $1MM, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, DeJong’s deal includes $600K in potential incentives. The Nationals’ 40-man roster is full, but the club has multiple candidates for the 60-day IL who can be placed on the shelf to make room for DeJong once the signing becomes official.

DeJong, 31, was a fourth-round pick by the Cardinals back in 2015 and rose through the minors quickly to make his big league debut in 2017 at the age of 23. DeJong looked quite good in his first season in the majors, slashing .285/.325/.532 (123 wRC+) and clubbing 25 homers in just 108 games while splitting time between shortstop and second base. DeJong finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Cody Bellinger that year, and by the time 2018 rolled around he had established himself as the Cardinals’ everyday shortstop.

Prior to DeJong’s second season with St. Louis, the sides agreed to a six-year extension that ran through the 2023 season with club options for 2024 and ’25 that guaranteed him $26MM. Over the next two seasons, DeJong clubbed 49 homers in 274 games but hit just .237/.316/.440 (102 wRC+) overall as the .349 BABIP that sustained his star-caliber rookie season crashed down to a below average .271 BABIP. Even as his bat fell to something closer to league average, however, DeJong’s strong work on defense was enough to justify his extension and place in the Cardinals’ lineup as an everyday fixture.

DeJong’s offense continued to take a tumble from there, however. While his defense remained respectable, DeJong hit just .200/.273/.352 (72 wRC+) from 2020 to 2023, and ultimately found himself bouncing between the Cardinals, Blue Jays, and Giants in the final guaranteed year of his contract extension. DeJong eventually signed with the White Sox on a one-year, $1.75MM deal last winter, hoping to rebuild his value while taking over for Tim Anderson as the regular shortstop on the south side of Chicago. 2024 turned into a solid rebound season for DeJong, as he ultimately posted a decent .227/.276/.427 (95 wRC+) slash line with 24 homers in 139 games, his best power output in half a decade. DeJong split his season between the White Sox and Royals. He moved to third base in deference to Bobby Witt Jr. upon being dealt to Kansas City and proved to be a superlative defender at the position despite his glove work at shortstop hovering around the league average.

Now that DeJong is set to join the Nationals for the 2025 season, it seems likely he’ll serve as the club’s everyday third baseman. It’s a role that previously seemed likely to go to a platoon of Jose Tena and Amed Rosario, but Tena’s career wRC+ of just 80 does not inspire confidence in him as a starting caliber player while Rosario has the versatility to move around the infield and outfield as needed while playing primarily against left-handed pitchers. It’s possible Rosario could even be tasked with spelling DeJong against some lefties, as while both veterans are right-handed hitters Rosario is a career .298/.337/.460 hitter against southpaws while DeJong actually has reverse splits both for his career and in 2024. In addition to likely serving as the club’s primary third baseman, DeJong gives the Nationals a viable backup to CJ Abrams at shortstop with better defense at the position than either Abrams or Rosario.

The signing should significantly raise the floor for the Nationals on the infield, offering the club a solid defender at third base who has enough pop in his bat to provide 20 homers a year in spite of below-average on-base ability. That’s an undeniably useful player for a Nationals club that saw its third basemen finish third from the bottom in both wRC+ (67) and fWAR (-0.4) last year. DeJong should be able to easily clear both of those benchmarks, and in doing so allow the club to be patient with top third base prospect Brady House as he establishes himself against Triple-A pitchers this season with an eye toward making his big league debut later this year. Once House is ready to take over at the hot corner, DeJong could become impressive bench depth for the Nationals or a potential trade piece over the summer, depending on where the club is in the standings at that point.

Nolan Arenado Discusses Trade Rumors

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Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado arrived in camp with the Cardinals today and spoke to the media, including Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, about an offseason where his name was one of the most frequently mentioned in the rumor mill and what’s in store for him as he heads into Spring Training with a club that actively sought to trade him throughout the winter. Speaking to reporters, Arenado made clear that his sole focus at this point is preparing for the coming season.

“I’m back and I’m ready to go play ball,” Arenado said, as relayed by Goold. “I’m a ballplayer, and I’m a Cardinal, until I’m told I’m not. You know what I mean? And that’s all there is to it. And I’ve got a lot of work to do. I’ve got to be a better ball player, and that’s what I’m focused on.”

While Arenado’s comments did not completely close the door on a trade, it’s become apparent that the Cardinals expect him to be their starting third baseman on Opening Day at this point. Goold notes that there’s currently no momentum towards a deal, and both Arenado and president of baseball operations John Mozeliak seem reasonably comfortable with the idea of the veteran third baseman sticking in St. Louis to start the year. While Mozeliak acknowledged throughout the offseason that trading Arenado was his top priority, his tone regarding the situation has shifted since the Red Sox landed Alex Bregman earlier this week, killing a potential deal between the sides that would have sent Arenado to Boston.

With the Red Sox now off the table as a potential suitor, Mozeliak suggested to reporters (including Goold) that while the door isn’t entirely closed on the possibility of Arenado being moved, he’s no longer seeking out potential trade partners and will instead wait to hear from any teams that might have interest in the eight-time All-Star. That’s a sensible call given that Arenado doesn’t seem motivated to expand the list of teams he would consider a trade to. The veteran indicated to reporters that he’s “not likely” to consider new destinations at this point, adding that he’s not interested in moving his family just for the sake of leaving St. Louis and only wants to leave for a team that’s closer to contending for a championship.

There’s plenty of teams that could be argued as closer to championship-caliber than the Cardinals, but Arenado’s list of teams he would approve a trade to includes five clubs or less according to Goold. Exactly which clubs are included in that list is unclear. The Astros were once thought to be on the list, but Arenado blocked a trade to Houston in December due to concerns regarding the club’s competitive direction in the aftermath of the Kyle Tucker trade. The Red Sox, Padres, and Dodgers are all widely acknowledged as clubs Arenado would likely approve a trade to, while the Yankees, Angels, Phillies, and Mets are among the other teams that have been rumored as potential options Arenado could approve.

None of those teams appear especially likely to make a push for Arenado at this point. The Red Sox closed the hole in their infield by adding Bregman, while the Dodgers, Mets, and Phillies all also have no room for an addition to their infield mixes as presently constructed. The Padres could plausibly add another infielder, but with Manny Machado entrenched at third base Arenado would be an imperfect fit. San Diego also doesn’t appear to have the budget space necessary to add a player like Arenado to the payroll, and the same could be said of the Yankees until and unless they can move veteran right-hander Marcus Stroman. The Angels, meanwhile, are much further from contention than the other clubs Arenado is reportedly interested in joining and recently signed Yoan Moncada to supplant highly-paid but oft-injured veteran Anthony Rendon at third base.

Ty France To Serve As Twins’ Starting First Baseman

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The Twins made their recent signing of Ty France to a big league deal official earlier today, and manager Rocco Baldelli made it clear to reporters (including Bobby Nightengale of the Star Tribune) today that their new addition is taking over as the club’s regular first baseman.

“He’s going to play a lot,” Baldelli said, as relayed by Nightengale. “That’s really the best way of saying it. The kind of hitter that he is, this isn’t a platoon situation. I think he’s going to play.”

The Twins spent the majority of the offseason hoping to find a steady presence at first base after Carlos Santana departed for the division-rival Guardians in free agency, and now it appears they’ll turn to France to be just that. Even as France is coming off a down season in 2024, it’s not hard to understand why they decided to make that bet. After a lackluster rookie season with the Padres back in 2019, France broke out in 2020 and was traded to the Mariners midseason. He went on to have a strong three-year run in Seattle where he slashed .285/.355/.443 (129 wRC+). He made occasional cameos at both second and third base but mostly settled in as the club’s regular first baseman, even earning an All-Star nod at the position in 2022.

Unfortunately, France began to struggle after that. Though he played in 158 games for the Mariners in 2023, his production was only pedestrian as he hit just .250/.337/.366 with a 105 wRC+. Five percent better than league average isn’t bad, but also falls below expectations for an everyday player at a bat-first position for a contending club. It seemed as though France’s disappointing 2023 may just have been a flash in the pan early last year, as he entered 2024 hitting a robust .251/.329/.403 (117 wRC+) in his first 61 games of the season. Unfortunately, France suffered a fractured heel in mid-June of last year that sidelined him for two weeks, and he looked like a different player upon his return as he hit just .225/.285/.336 (73 wRC+) the rest of the way last season.

It would hardly be a surprise to hear that France, who entered the season with a career .309 BABIP but managed just a .255 BABIP following his injury, was hampered by the lingering effects of that injury throughout the latter part of the season. France himself acknowledged the role his injured heel may have played in his struggles last year, but didn’t want to entirely blame his injury.

“When you don’t have a foot, it’s hard to do things,” France said, as relayed by Nightengale. “I don’t want to put all the blame on that. There was a lot that went into it. I tried a different style of training that offseason trying to revamp my swing. It didn’t work out the way I thought it would. This offseason, I spent a lot of time just getting back to the basics of things. When I simplify hitting and just get back to being myself, I’m a pretty good hitter.”

With France seemingly being given a shot to prove himself healthy and effective out the gate in 2025, that leaves the Twins’ plans for Edouard Julien and Jose Miranda in question. The pair are headed into their age-26 and -27 seasons, respectively, and each has had significant success in the majors in the past as well as notable struggles. The duo seemed likely to handle first base for the Twins in 2025 without an external addition, but now that France is in the fold as the nominal starter at the spot in the lineup it’s unclear if either Miranda or Julien will have a path to consistent playing time. Both have experience elsewhere on the infield (Miranda primarily at third base, Julien at second) but are questionable defenders at those spots and may be better suited for a first base/DH role.

Of course, even without a clear path to playing time on Opening Day it’s easy to imagine either or both players getting significant reps this year. Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa, and Royce Lewis have all struggled to stay healthy during their time with the Twins and trips to the injured list for either Correa or Buxton could open up playing time on the infield for Miranda or Julien to take advantage of. A trade of an established hitter like Willi Castro could change the playing time picture in Minnesota, as could under-performance by either France himself or someone like top prospect Brooks Lee.

Kutter Crawford Behind In Camp Due To Lingering Knee Soreness

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Red Sox right-hander Kutter Crawford is behind schedule this spring, as noted by MassLive’s Christopher Smith. The issue at hand is soreness in his right patellar tendon, and Smith notes that the injury actually dates back to early last season, in his third start of the 2024 campaign.

Crawford, 29 in April, made a league-leading 33 starts for the Red Sox last year but faded badly in the second half. The right-hander pitched to a solid 3.00 ERA with a 3.77 FIP in his first 20 starts of the 2024 campaign, but things fell apart after the All-Star break as he struggled to the tune of a 6.59 ERA and 6.08 FIP with an eye-popping 20 homers allowed over the course of his last 13 starts. That rapid drop in production was fairly easy to dismiss as workload related given that Crawford’s 33 starts and 183 2/3 innings of work last year were a huge step up from the 23 starts and 129 1/3 innings he put together in 2023, but this news of playing through a patellar tendon issue casts his second half struggles in a different light.

As Smith notes, Crawford’s fastball velocity was down a tick last year relative to 2023, and the right-hander admits that he was struggling to properly push off the mound with his injured leg last season with fluctuating levels of pain that never fully evaporated throughout the season. That’s continued through the offseason and into Spring Training, resulting in Crawford being a bit behind the rest of the club’s pitching staff. While some pitchers have already progressed to facing live hitters this spring, Crawford is throwing low-intensity bullpens as he works to build up strength in his ailing knee.

When discussing the injury, Crawford made clear that surgery is not presently on the table, though he did acknowledge he and the club may have to “reassess the situation” if the pain he’s feeling continues after he’s finished rebuilding strength in his knee. Even with surgery not currently in the plans, however, Crawford’s availability for Opening Day appears to be in jeopardy. For his part, the right-hander said the decision about his availability for the start of the season is “not really in [his] hands” and that it will ultimately be up to how the team’s trainers want to handle his recovery process. Manager Alex Cora, meanwhile, described Crawford as “behind” in camp while also refusing to commit one way or the other regarding the righty’s status for the start of the season.

Fortunately for the Red Sox, they’re about as well-equipped to handle even an extended absence from last year’s 33-start workhorse as any club possibly could be. The club figures to welcome Lucas Giolito back after he missed the 2024 season due to UCL surgery, and they’ve also added southpaw Garrett Crochet and right-hander Walker Buehler to the rotation mix this winter. Crochet, Buehler, Giolito, and incumbent starts Tanner Houck and Brayan Bello already seemed likely to be part of the club’s starting rotation to open the season, and while a six-man staff including Crawford had been bandied about throughout the offseason there’s nothing stopping the Red Sox from simply going with a traditional five-man staff while Crawford recovers.

In the event the club wishes to use a six-man staff to open the season or another rotation arm gets hurt this Spring, however, the Red Sox do have a solid amount of depth at their disposal. Offseason signing Patrick Sandoval figures to be firmly in the club’s rotation mix when he returns to action at some point in the season half this year, and until then right-handers Richard Fitts, Cooper Criswell, and Quinn Priester could all find themselves in the conversation for spot starts as needed throughout the season.

Tigers Notes: Carpenter, Baez, Maeda

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Heading into 2025, Kerry Carpenter is one of the Tigers’ most accomplished young hitters. A career .276/.338/.512 hitter across 236 games in the majors, Carpenter missed time last year due to a lumbar spine stress fracture but raked when healthy, crushing the ball to the tune of a .284/.345/.587 slash line with 18 homers in just 87 games. For all of Carpenter’s success as a hitter, however, he’s been limited almost entirely to work against opposite-handed pitching. The lefty slugger has just 134 total plate appearances against southpaws during his time in the majors, only 32 of which came in 2024. As noted by Chris McCosky of The Detroit News, that’s an area Carpenter is hoping to get more opportunities in this season.

It’s a proposition that manager A.J. Hinch appears at least somewhat open to, with Hinch noting that Carpenter is “going to get opportunities and probably more opportunities moving forward.” Hinch also cautioned that those opportunities won’t just be gifted to Carpenter once the regular season begins, however.

“But more doesn’t mean every one. And more doesn’t come for free,” Hinch said, as relayed by McCosky. “There is a cost that comes with every decision and we will be weighing that. Last year’s evaluation doesn’t have to be this year’s evaluation. We have an open mind as to how to use our roster. But I stand behind that my job is to use the roster the best way we can.”

Concerns about Carpenter’s ability to produce against southpaws are understandable despite his minimal opportunities against them. He’s a career .202/.286/.303 hitter against lefties in the majors, with a 23.9% strikeout rate, a walk rate of 6.7%, and just four extra-base hits. Those strikeout and walk figures are actually pretty close to Carpenter’s career numbers of 25.6% and 6.9% respectively, but the complete disappearance of Carpenter’s trademark power will need to be overcome in order for the 27-year-old to be a valuable offensive presence against left-handed pitching.

In addition to more opportunities against southpaws, Carpenter is hoping to more frequently work his way into the lineup as an outfielder in 2025 rather than being limited to DH-only duties. Matt Vierling and Wenceel Perez will give Carpenter some competition for that job with Riley Greene and Parker Meadows entrenched in left and center field respectively, but if Carpenter can prove himself a viable option in the field and begin providing at least passable power output against southpaws, the platoon slugger could begin to put together a more well-rounded profile in 2025.

While Carpenter is attempting to carve out a larger role for himself in the outfield, the Tigers are trying to assess the future of veteran Javier Baez on the infield. Baez, 32, missed the club’s surprise playoff push last year after undergoing hip surgery in August. The six-year pact Detroit gave Baez coming off his impressive run with the Cubs from the breakout 2018 season that saw him finish second in NL MVP voting to a 2021 season where he was traded to the Mets and caught fire down the stretch has not gone according to plan.

Since arriving in Detroit, Baez has hit just .221/.262/.347 in three seasons. He remained a plus defender at shortstop for the club in 2022 and ’23, but even his glove took a step back last season and a strong late-season performance from Trey Sweeney as the club’s shortstop has left Baez without a clear role on the team going forward. As noted by McCosky, Baez has resumed swinging at 100% strength but has not yet begun to face live pitching. Even so, he’s on track to begin the season on time, and Hinch made clear that the club is glad to have him healthy and in the fold for 2025 even if his role can’t be determined until after he’s put rehab fully behind him.

One place where Baez appears to be a clear fit for the club’s needs is against left-handed pitching. The Tigers’ offense is heavily left-handed even after adding Gleyber Torres to the lineup at second base, and a right-handed hitter who can help to spell southpaws around the infield like Sweeney and Colt Keith should have plenty of value for Detroit. Baez has been a perfectly acceptable hitter against lefties even during his time in Detroit, slashing .268/.314/.433 (108 wRC+) with a strikeout rate of just 20.1% and 24 extra base hits in 284 trips to the plate against lefties between 2022 and 2023. If he can get back to that level of production against southpaws, Baez could be a key asset for the Tigers this year even if he doesn’t bounce far enough back to reclaim an everyday role.

Baez isn’t the only veteran attempting a comeback after struggling badly in 2024. Veteran right-hander Kenta Maeda is expected to get “every opportunity” to rejoin the club’s rotation after pitching to a 6.09 ERA last year and getting kicked to the bullpen after 17 starts, and news of an injury that will keep veteran righty Alex Cobb off the roster to start the season leaves two open spots in the club’s rotation behind Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, and Reese Olson. Maeda figures to be in competition with Casey Mize, Keider Montero, and Jackson Jobe among others as he tries to earn one of those two spots.

In hopes of proving himself capable the soon to be 37-year-old hurler changed up his offseason routine this winter. According to MLive’s Evan Woodbery, Maeda began his offseason work with eight bullpen sessions during his time in Japan this offseason despite the fact that he’s typically waited until he returns stateside for Spring Training to resume throwing. The early start to his throwing program, Maeda noted, is in order to make sure he’s putting his best foot forward as he tries to recapture his rotation job this spring. In addition to starting his preseason regime earlier than usual, Maeda notes that he believes he’s fixed some mechanical issues he dealt with last year after working with the Tigers’ pitching development staff this offseason.

A return to form for Maeda would be a major help for a Tigers club with plenty of upside but little certainty in the rotation. Dominant as Skubal was in his Cy Young award-winning season last year, he’s dealt with plenty of injury issues throughout his career. The same can be said for Flaherty, Mize, Jobe, Matt Manning, and a host of other potentially key pitchers for the Tigers this year. Maeda’s own injury history is far from clean, but having an effective veteran starter at the back of the rotation should nonetheless be a major help for the club as they look for better results out of a rotation that saw only Skubal make more than 22 starts and only Mize and Olson join him in making at least 20 last year.

Latest On Shohei Ohtani’s Pitching Rehab

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Shohei Ohtani pitched off a mound for the first time this spring today, as noted by Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. The bullpen session consisted of 14 throws, all of which were fastballs. Ohtani’s velocity sat 92-94 mph, which is well below his usual mid-90s velocity but not surprising for a pitcher who is still several months away from pitching in a big league game.

The news that Ohtani has resumed throwing and that he largely looked good doing so is surely heartening for Dodgers fans, but his timeline for a return to the mound remains unchanged. The club’s plan appears to be for Ohtani to join the club’s rotation at some point in May, with a five-man rotation set to be used by the Dodgers until then. As relayed by Ardaya, manager Dave Roberts indicated that Ohtani could resume facing live hitters before the club flies out to Tokyo for an early start to the regular season against the Cubs next month.

While the early returns of Ohtani’s rehab process are encouraging, plenty of questions remain between now and Ohtani’s first official pitching appearance in a Dodgers uniform. Ohtani’s rehab process as a pitcher will have to be balanced against his duties as the Dodgers’ everyday DH, creating a unique conundrum for the Dodgers to try and work through. The Angels dealt with a similar problem when Ohtani attempted to resume pitching in 2020 following Tommy John surgery, and that ended disastrously as he recorded just five outs and turned in his only below-average season as a big league hitter.

That said, it appears the Dodgers aren’t likely to send Ohtani on a rehab assignment before he makes his return to pitching. While rehab assignments are customary for pitchers coming off major surgeries, Ardaya notes that the club has had success returning Clayton Kershaw to the big league mound without a rehab assignment in the past after lengthy stays on the injured list, and he relays that pitching coach Mark Prior emphasized that rehabbing and hitting at the same time “seemed to turn out pretty well” for the reigning NL MVP last year. As an alternative to a rehab assignment, the plan seems to be for the Dodgers to hold simulated games for Ohtani before the Dodgers’ regularly scheduled game for that day begins, allowing him to face live hitters in the form of either players from the big league bench or minor league hitters.

Ohtani and the Dodgers will be looking to strike this balance all while Ohtani looks to put offseason surgery behind him. Ohtani was injured sliding into second base during Game Two of the World Series last year and ultimately ended up going under the knife to repair a torn labrum after dislocating his shoulder on that aforementioned slide. Former Dodgers outfielder Cody Bellinger famously struggled to return to form as a hitter after a similar injury, and Ardaya notes Ohtani has admitted that even as camp opens up he’s still dealing with a somewhat limited range of motion in his shoulder. Still, there’s a month left until the Dodgers begin the regular season in Tokyo, so Ohtani still has plenty of time to get his swing into a good place even as he balances that with rehabbing as a pitcher.

Ohtani wasn’t the only player in Dodgers camp to receive a notable injury update today. as noted by Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, veteran first baseman Freddie Freeman told reporters he was “almost a full player” at this point in his rehab process after undergoing offseason ankle surgery. Freeman has resumed doing everything but running at this point, and while he’s not expected to be ready for the start of Spring Training games later this month Freeman emphasized that he remains on track to start the season in the lineup for the Dodgers in Japan.

Brewers Prospect Josh Knoth Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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The Brewers revealed tough news for fans in Milwaukee today, as Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel revealed today that right-handed pitching prospect Josh Knoth has undergone Tommy John surgery and will miss the entire 2025 season.

Knoth, 19,  was selected in the first round (#33 overall) by the Brewers in the 2023 draft out of high school and made his pro debut with the club’s Single-A affiliate last year. Despite a somewhat pedestrian 4.48 ERA, Knoth struck out an impressive 26.7% of opponents in his age-18 season but was held back by an 11.1% walk rate. Knoth’s solid strikeout rate and youth were enough to make him the #16 ranked prospect in the Brewers system according to Baseball America. The right-hander has a solid fastball that tops out at 96 mph and two plus secondaries in the form of a curveball and a slider, though BA writes that his changeup is somewhat lackluster and his control comes and goes.

The righty missed time late last year due to elbow soreness, making only 21 starts and pitching just 84 1/3 innings, so the surgery isn’t necessarily a surprise. Even so, it’s a disappointing development for the Brewers given Knoth’s mid-rotation potential. It would’ve been something of a shock to see the youngster make his big league debut with the club this year, but even reaching the Double-A level by the end of the 2025 season would’ve put him on the map for a possible debut with the Brewers in 2026.

That sort of timeline for Knoth reaching the majors appears to be all but impossible now, as rehab will essentially push Knoth’s develop timeline back an entire year. Fortunately, however, Knoth is young even by the standard of a recently-drafted high school prospect given that he was just 17 years old on draft day and won’t turn 20 until August. If Knoth manages to return from Tommy John surgery unimpeded in 2026 and move aggressively up the minor league ladder, he should still have the chance to make it to the majors in his early twenties.

Even with Knoth sidelined for 2025, the Brewers’ pitching development looks strong. Robert Gasser flashed exciting stuff in his debut for the club last year, and while he’s currently on the 60-day IL rehabbing from Tommy John surgery the southpaw figures to return and impact the big league club at some point later this year. Perhaps more excitingly, right-hander Jacob Misiorowski is a consensus top-100 prospect who reached Triple-A last year and appears likely to make his big league debut with the Brewers at some point in 2025.

Red Sox Undecided On Infield Alignment Following Alex Bregman Deal

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The Red Sox officially inked star infielder Alex Bregman to a three-year deal earlier today, and the assumption to this point has been that Bregman would slide into the club’s vacancy at second base. While Bregman played third base throughout his time in Houston and won a Gold Glove award for his work at the position last year, he made clear at the outset of the offseason that he was willing to slide over to the keystone if his new team so desired. Incumbent star Rafael Devers is entrenched at third base in Boston and has made his preference to remain at the position plain over the years, so Devers at third and Bregman at second seemed like the cleanest way for the club to sort out its positional conundrum. It may not wind up being that simple, however. As relayed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive, Red Sox manager Alex Cora was noncommittal about the club’s infield plans.

“We’ll talk about that later on,” Cora said when asked where Bregman will play, as relayed by Cotillo. “Right now, there’s a lot of stuff going on as far as we’re going to be roster-wise. We’ll make the decision when we have to make it… He’s a Gold Glove third baseman. He hasn’t played second base in the big leagues. I do believe he can be a Gold Glove second baseman, too. There’s other stuff that comes into play as far as roster construction and what’s better for the team and what can be the best lineup.”

Cotillo reports that Cora’s hesitance to name a defined position for Bregman reflects real uncertainty within the organization about how the club’s lineup with shake out from a positional standpoint. According to Cotillo, the club is making an effort to keep a path open for top infield prospect Kristian Campbell to break camp with the team on Opening Day. Campbell has experience at shortstop and in the outfield but has long seemed best suited for second base with the Red Sox. Cotillo suggests that Bregman could see time at both second and third base if Campbell makes the club’s roster, while Campbell himself could see time in left field in addition to his work at the keystone with Jarren Duran moving over to center. Devers, presumably, would slide over to DH on days where Bregman is at the hot corner.

If Campbell is ready for his big league debut, it’s hard to argue with the logic in keeping an open mind about how to make the pieces fit in the lineup. While Devers has been adamant about his desire to continue playing the field, Bregman and Campbell would likely be a more robust pairing defensively than Devers and Bregman given Bregman’s lack of experience at second base and Devers’s lackluster defensive numbers. It’s also not hard to imagine Campbell providing more on offense than the players who could have their playing time impacted by the decision to roster both Campbell and Bregman. In particular, Cotillo notes that Masataka Yoshida and Ceddanne Rafaela could be at risk of having their playing time reduced or even losing their roster spots if Campbell makes the team out of camp.

Speculatively speaking, it would be possible to get both players in the lineup on occasion even with Campbell in the fold. If the club were to play Bregman at third base with Campbell at second against left-handed pitching, that would likely push Devers to DH and Yoshida to the bench. That would allow Duran to play left field with Rafaela’s superior glove in center. Against right-handers, Devers could reclaim the hot corner with Bregman moving to the key stone, Campbell heading to left field, and Duran sliding over to center with Rafaela on the bench. Yoshida is a career .239/.318/.351 hitter against southpaws and playing him in a strict platoon role may be Boston’s preference regardless of how the decision regarding Campbell shakes out.

The righty-swinging Rafaela has reverse splits to this point in his young career, which would make him an imperfect choice to start primarily against lefty pitchers, but his true calling card is his defense and a combination of Duran, Rafaela, and Rob Refsnyder on the grass against southpaws would give the Red Sox an excellent defensive outfield. With that being said, if the Red Sox hope to develop Rafaela into a true everyday player at some point rather than the super utility role he currently finds himself in, the club may prefer to get him everyday playing time in Triple-A rather than sporadic reps in the majors. It’s also worth noting that carrying all three of Campbell, Rafaela, and Yoshida on the roster would effectively shrink the club’s bench, leaving just one roster spot available for Romy Gonzalez, David Hamilton, and Vaughn Grissom.

Of course, all of this is predicated on Campbell hitting well enough this spring to earn a spot on the club’s Opening Day roster. Should Campbell look over-matched this spring, it seems likely the club would simply allow him more time to develop at Triple-A and use Bregman at second base on a regular basis until and unless Campbell earns a promotion to the majors. Even if Campbell can’t crack the big league roster on Opening Day, however, it seems likely he’ll get his first taste of the majors at some point this year, and this latest reporting provides a meaningful glimpse at what the club’s thought process could look like if Campbell forces his way onto the roster later in the year after not making the cut this spring.

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