Mariners' James Paxton: Velocity encouragingly back

Paxton, who recorded eight strikeouts over 4.1 innings in his Cactus League debut versus the Brewers on Sunday, saw his fastball top out at 97 mph during the outing, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports. "This is what I've been working for," Paxton said. "Last year was tough for me. I didn't have any of the velo, my body wasn't in the right place, but I went to work this offseason and I feel like I'm in a really good place now."

Paxton had been putting in work exclusively on the back fields of the Mariners' spring complex due to a now-resolved visa issue, so Sunday marked his first time facing opposing hitters since Aug. 20 of last season while with the Yankees. The left-hander battled back and flexor injuries last season, which led to the average velocity on his fastball dropping to a career-low 92.2 mph. That made his form in Sunday's outing, during which Paxton struck out exactly half of the 16 hitters he faced and yielded just two hits, particularly encouraging. Paxton likely lines up for one more Cactus League start before the end of spring training.