MLB Player News
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Clarke Schmidt SP | NYY
Yankees' Clarke Schmidt: Could progress to bullpens in March
Schmidt (elbow) is tentatively slated to being throwing bullpens in March and could face hitters in April or May, per MLB.com.
Schmidt is rehabbing from the internal brace surgery he underwent last July. To this point, he's thrown only on flat ground and up to 90 feet, so he still has multiple hurdles to clear on his way back to game action. Should Schmidt continue to progress without setbacks, he could return to a big-league mound shortly after the All-Star break.
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Shane Baz SP | BAL
Orioles' Shane Baz: Fans four in spring debut
Baz allowed two walks in 2.1 hitless and scoreless innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates. He struck out four.
Baz looked to be in midseason form during his spring debut, with his fastball topping out at 98.6 mph. The 26-year-old right-hander should be relieved to move away from hitter-friendly Steinbrenner Field -- he had a 5.90 ERA and 1.46 WHIP over 16 home starts with the Rays in 2025 -- and Baz is lined up as a back-end starter to begin his first season with the Orioles in 2026.
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Ryan Weiss SP | HOU
Astros' Ryan Weiss: Competing for final rotation spot
Weiss delivered 2.1 scoreless innings in Thursday's Grapefruit League matchup with the Mets, allowing a hit and a pair of walks.
It was a solid spring debut overall for Weiss, as he was able to work out of trouble to keep the Mets off the board. The 29-year-old right-hander is competing with Spencer Arrighetti, Lance McCullers and AJ Blubaugh for one of the final two spots in the Astros' six-man rotation. Weiss, who featured a mid-90's fastball paired with three different offspeed pitches, signed a one-year deal with Houston after posting an impressive 2.87 ERA with 207 strikeouts across 178.2 innings in the KBO last year. Weiss figures to start the year as a swingman out of the bullpen, should he fail to crack the Opening Day rotation.
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Tatsuya Imai SP | HOU
Astros' Tatsuya Imai: Efficient in spring debut
Imai started Thursday's Grapefruit League matchup against the Mets, allowing one hit in a scoreless inning.
Imai would face the minimum in his spring debut, ultimately needing just 10 pitches to get out of the frame. After giving up an infield single to Marcus Semien, the right-hander coaxed a pop-up off the bat of Mike Tauchman before getting Bo Bichette to ground into a double play. The 27-year-old Imai is expected to play a big part in an Astros rotation that lost Framber Valdez in free agency. Imai signed a three-year deal with Houston after posting a stellar 1.92 ERA with 178 strikeouts across 163.2 innings in 2025 with the NPB's Seibu Lions.
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Kutter Crawford SP | BOS
Red Sox's Kutter Crawford: Throwing live batting practice
Crawford (wrist/illness) will throw a live batting practice session Friday, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.
It will be the first time the right-hander has faced hitters since he suffered a wrist injury last summer that required surgery. Crawford has been brought along slowly in Red Sox camp post-surgery and also had a bout of the flu. He appears likely to begin the season on the injured list, though the Red Sox have not confirmed as much yet.
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Joey Cantillo SP | CLE
Guardians' Joey Cantillo: Rocky spring continues
Cantillo allowed four runs (two earned) on four hits and one walk while striking out one over 1.1 innings in Thursday's spring start against the Mariners.
Cantillo, competing for a spot in the Guardians' rotation, had a second consecutive rough Cactus League outing. He worked his pitch count to 47 (29 strikes) but for the second straight start, the left-hander was pulled early in the first inning so that he could return for the second. Three first-inning doubles results in two runs, then a second-inning fielding error, compounded by a walk and a single, led to two unearned runs. Cantillo has allowed six runs (four earned) on seven hits and one walk over 2.2 spring innings.
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Keider Montero SP | DET
Tigers' Keider Montero: Middling spring results so far
Montero allowed two runs on five hits with no walks and no strikeouts across three innings during Thursday's Grapefruit League against the Orioles.
Montero has now made two appearances this spring, and he's allowed five runs on eight hits across five innings of work, while striking out two. The righty delivered a serviceable 4.37 ERA across 90.2 regular-season innings last year, working primarily as a starter. However, with the Tigers adding Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander to their rotation in the offseason, Montero will likely have to settle for competing for a long-relief role to begin the year.
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Pablo Lopez SP | MIN
Twins' Pablo Lopez: Placed on 60-day IL
The Twins placed Lopez (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.
Lopez underwent an internal brace procedure Wednesday -- rather than a full Tommy John surgery -- in an effort to shorten his recovery process, but he will still be forced to miss the entire 2026 season. His move to the 60-day IL will create a spot on the 40-man roster for Zak Kent, who was claimed off waivers from the Cardinals on Thursday.
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Caden Scarborough SP | TEX
Rangers' Caden Scarborough: Has melanoma removed
Scarborough underwent surgery earlier in February to remove a melanoma, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.
Scarborough reported to Rangers camp Thursday after recovering from the procedure, so he is a bit behind schedule. However, the 20-year-old will have a normal buildup from here on out and is expected to begin the minor-league season on time. Scarborough emerged as one of the Rangers' best pitching prospects in 2025, posting a 2.45 ERA and 114:21 K:BB over 88 innings between Single-A Hickory and High-A Hub City.
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Zak Kent SP | MIN
Twins' Zak Kent: Claimed by Twins
The Twins claimed Kent off waivers from the Cardinals on Thursday.
After being DFA'd on Saturday to make room for Ramon Urias, Kent will now enter the competition to make a Twins bullpen that has several open spots to fill. The 28-year-old righty posted a 4.58 ERA and 1.42 WHIP over 17.2 innings with the Guardians last season in what was his first taste of major-league action.