NORTH PORT, Fla. -- With how last season ended, and how important he could be to the Tampa Bay bullpen, all of José Alvarado's Spring Training outings will be heavily watched.

The left-hander wasn’t able to finish his inning during his first outing of the spring, but over his last two outings, Alvarado has looked like every bit of the reliever who the Rays became accustomed to watching during the 2018 season.

“He was really good today,” said Rays catcher Mike Zunino. “There wasn’t a [radar] gun out there, and I’ve only caught him in one bullpen, but it was fun.”

Alvarado’s biggest focus this spring has been to fill the strike zone, and he has certainly done that over his last two outings. Alvarado threw 14 pitches, eight for strikes, in one perfect inning in the Rays’ 5-2 win against the Braves on Tuesday, and he has now struck out five of the last six hitters he has faced.

Even without having readings on velocity, Zunino said Alvarado’s two-seam fastball was “firm.”

“I’m very excited because I’m feeling my power again like at the start of Spring Training in 2019,” Alvarado said. “I’m working on my whole body and I don’t want the same situation as last year, because I know my team needs me and I need to pitch.”

Alvarado said the biggest difference over his last few starts has been an adjustment with his back leg that pitching coach Kyle Snyder and he talked about. That has resulted in more power, which is exactly what Alvarado has been searching for.

On Tuesday, Alvarado was able to work his way back into counts, providing another good sign. The command wasn’t as good as it was on Saturday, as he fell behind Austin Riley and Johan Camargo, but Alvarado was able to strike them out with his two-seam fastball, both coming on 3-2 counts.

“He didn’t really get his breaking ball into the equation as much as maybe he will deeper in camp,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “But still, another really, really encouraging outing.”

Whitley update
Cash said Garrett Whitley, who was hit by a foul ball on Monday, suffered multiple facial fractures and is expected to miss time. Cash added that he spoke to Whitley, who is understandably upset about suffering another injury in his career. Whitley will visit a specialist in order to determine what the next steps are in the recovery.

Whitley was one of a handful of Minor Leaguers who made the trip to Sarasota, Fla., on Monday and was hit by a foul ball in the fourth inning. Whitley took to Twitter to thank people for the support.

“Thank you to everyone that reached out with well wishes today,” Whitley tweeted. “I truly appreciate every single one of you.”

Injury updates
Blake Snell played catch on Tuesday for the first time since receiving a cortisone shot in his left elbow last Friday. Snell threw from 60 feet and is expected to throw from 90 feet on Wednesday and Thursday. If that goes well, Snell will throw a bullpen session on Friday.

“Felt good” Cash said. “I don’t think he felt great, not bad, but he’ll throw [Wednesday].”

Cash also said Brendan McKay (left shoulder soreness) “felt good” after throwing a bullpen session on Tuesday, and the hope is that he makes his spring debut on Friday against the Twins.

Lowe’s offseason home
Brandon Lowe, who has an offseason home in the Nashville, Tenn., area, said his home is OK following a destructive tornado that touched ground overnight. Lowe said he has checked up on friends in the area, but they seem to be OK as well.

Up next
Tyler Glasnow will make his second start of the spring on Wednesday against the Blue Jays at Charlotte Sports Park, with first pitch set for 1:05 p.m. ET. The right-hander threw a scoreless first inning in his first start and is expected to pitch at least two innings on Wednesday. Trevor Richards, Diego Castillo, Colin Poche, John Curtiss and Ryan Sherriff are also scheduled to pitch for Tampa Bay.

Here is the expected full lineup:

Austin Meadows, LF
Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, 3B
Manuel Margot, RF
Ji-Man Choi, 1B
Hunter Renfroe, DH
Brandon Lowe, 2B
Kevin Kiermaier, CF
Daniel Robertson, SS
Michael Perez, C