MLB Player News

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy indicated Sunday that Leclerc has a "strong possibility" of beginning the season as the club's primary closer, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Bochy said at the start of spring training that "there is no pecking order" for the Texas bullpen, but Leclerc apparently showed enough in camp despite giving up two earned runs over 2.1 frames in his three Cactus League appearances. The 30-year-old posted a 2.68 ERA in 57 appearances last season and tallied just four saves, but he also pitched well in the playoffs while saving another four contests. David Robertson signed with the Rangers in January and could quickly enter the mix for saves should Leclerc struggle early in 2024.

Criswell allowed two runs on four hits and one walk while striking out three over four innings in Saturday's spring start against the Orioles.

Criswell made his third spring start and faced a Baltimore lineup that featured six projected starters. He allowed a pair of first-inning runs then settled in, retiring the final eight batters faced. Criswell primarily throws a sinker, slider (Statcast identifies it as a sweeper) and cutter. "The slider has some outlier movement," Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey told Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. "He has a long history of strike-throwing and induces a lot of weak contact." The soft-tossing right-hander, who is in the mix for a rotation spot, has a 3.77 ERA over 14.1 Grapefruit League innings.

Martin (groin) completed a live batting practice session Saturday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Martin's attempt at a live BP session a week ago ended after two pitches due to groin tightness. The righty setup reliever completed this session and is ready for the next step Tuesday, which will either be another batting practice session or his Grapefruit League debut. Martin estimates he'll need four appearances to be ready for the regular season.

Wingenter (leg) is listed as an available reliever for Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Wingenter was removed from his most recent spring appearance Friday against Atlanta after being struck on the leg by a comebacker, but his inclusion on the lineup card two days later implies that he avoided any sort of major injury. The veteran right-hander enters Sunday's contest carrying a 1.69 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and .125 batting average against through 5.1 innings in Grapefruit League play.

Foley (undisclosed) struck out three and allowed one hit over a scoreless inning of relief Friday in the Tigers' 6-1 win over Atlanta in Grapefruit League play.

Foley was back in action for his fourth appearance of the spring and his first since March 7 after he had been shut down for a brief period with what manager A.J. Hinch termed as "mid-camp fatigue." The right-hander had struggled over his first three outings, but the time off appeared to do him some good, as he looked sharp in his return to the mound Friday. Foley should be positioned to open the upcoming season as one of the top setup options in front of closer Alex Lange.

Espino allowed three runs on six hits over four innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees. He struck out four without walking a batter.

The 37-year-old right-hander built up to 65 pitches (47 strikes) as the Blue Jays keep their options open for the rotation with both Kevin Gausman (shoulder) and Alek Manoah (shoulder) expected to miss the start of the season. Espino's posted an impressive 16:2 K:BB through 12 innings this spring, but he's served up three homers, including a two-run shot by Giancarlo Stanton in the third inning Saturday. Bowden Francis seems locked into one of the available rotation spots, leaving Mitch White as Espino's main competition for the other.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Sunday that Winckowski will begin the season working out of the bullpen, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

The 25-year-old was attempting to secure a spot in Boston's Opening Day rotation and pitched well this spring with just one run allowed over 7.2 innings, but the club apparently feels he's better suited to help the big club as a bullpen piece. Winckowski pitched well in that role last season, as he recorded three saves and 18 holds with a 2.88 ERA in 60 appearances.

Rangers general manager Chris Young said Saturday that Bradford will begin the season in the starting rotation, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

The 26-year-old lefty entered camp as the favorite to open the season as Texas' No. 5 starter, and his 2.45 ERA and 9:2 K:BB over 11 spring innings likely helped him secure the role. Bradford worked as a swingman as a rookie last season and had a 5.30 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 51:12 K:BB across 20 outings (eight starts) overall, though he pitched much better in his 12 relief outings with a 2.82 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP in 22.1 frames.

After yielding five earned runs and five walks over his initial 1.1 innings this spring, Joyce has since allowed two earned runs and two walks over his subsequent six frames.

Joyce is expected to be part of the Angels' bullpen on Opening Day, but there may have been some initial doubt about his readiness after he struggled to harness his control in the early portions of Cactus League play. The flamethrower has since settled down, with his most recent outing being a scoreless one-inning appearance against the Cubs on Saturday. Joyce's improved results have coincided with a lowering of his strikeout rate -- over his past five frames, he's struck out a modest three batters. Though he consistently throws a triple-digit fastball, these results may suggest that the key to Joyce's success in the majors may be him learning how to use his impressive heater to generate poor contact rather than always relying on punching batters out.

Thielbar (hamstring) threw a 20-pitch live batting practice session without issue Saturday, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Thielbar hasn't been able to run at full speed with his injury, but he hasn't had issues pitching. There's still time for him to be ready for Opening Day, but he may need to show he can pitch in a major-league spring training game in the next week.