MLB Player News

With Andrew Chafin joining the Tigers on a minor-league deal last month, Hurter's roster spot could be in jeopardy coming out of camp, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

The lefty Hurter pitched well last year during his MLB debut, compiling a 2.58 ERA and 0.88 WHIP across 45.1 regular-season innings. However, the 34-year-old Chafin has a lot more MLB experience, which could lead the Tigers to choose him as a southpaw for their bullpen to complement the likes of Tyler Holton and Sean Guenther. Hurter still probably has a leg up in the competition, though he'd likely feel more secure if he strung together some strong outings to wrap up the spring slate.

The Blue Jays optioned Macko (knee) to Triple-A Buffalo on Monday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Macko will get a late start to the minor-league season after undergoing arthroscopic surgery last month to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee. He's without a clear timeline to make his 2025 debut, but if Macko ends up being sidelined at least two months into the season, Toronto could recall him from Triple-A and place him on their 60-day injured list to open up a spot on the 40-man roster for another player.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that Gil has been diagnosed with a high-grade right lat strain and will not throw for at least six weeks, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Gil will basically be starting from scratch once he's ready to be built back up, so this is going to be a lengthy absence which seems likely to keep the right-hander sidelined for at least the first couple months of the season. Marcus Stroman is the obvious candidate to take Gil's spot in the Yankees' rotation, but Will Warren has impressed during spring training and also appears to be in the mix.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Monday that deGrom will begin the season at "the back end" of the rotation, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.

He's expected to make his first regular season start either March 30 versus the Cubs or March 31 against the Reds. DeGrom is considered healthy, but the Rangers are simply allowing the two-time Cy Young Award winner ample time to build up after he missed most of the last two seasons while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery. The 36-year-old will make his Cactus League debut Friday against the Rockies and will be built up to five innings by his final spring outing.

Scherzer struck out four without walking a batter over 3.2 innings in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies.

The right-hander gave up a solo homer to Kody Clemens in the second inning, but it was the only baserunner Scherzer allowed. The 40-year-old has had a dominant start to camp, posting an 8:0 K:BB through 5.2 innings in two starts, and he seems intent on proving he still has something left in the tank after he was able to work only 43.1 innings for the Rangers in 2024 due to multiple injuries.

Buchanan (ankle) is scheduled to pitch in relief Monday in the Rangers' Cactus League game against the Royals, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Buchanan will be making his Cactus League debut, after he was delayed earlier in camp when he sprained his left ankle during one of the Rangers' first workouts of the spring. The 35-year-old right-hander worked primarily as a starter last season at the Triple-A level between stints in the Phillies and Reds organization, but a relief role likely represents his most realistic path to a spot on Texas' Opening Day roster. Buchanan is still viewed as a longshot to break camp with the big club and will most likely be ticketed for Triple-A Round Rock.

The Rangers optioned Corniell (elbow) to Double-A Frisco on Monday.

The Rangers also reassigned 10 players to minor-league camp, bringing the total of players in major-league camp down to 61. Corniell is recovering from UCL surgery on his pitching elbow and hopes to be game-ready in the second half.

Brown allowed a hit and two walks across two scoreless innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against St. Louis, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Brown was shaky to start the game, with all three of the baserunners he allowed coming in a 26-pitch first inning. However, he noted he felt better in his second frame and threw a perfect inning while hitting 98 mph with his fastball as measured by the stadium scoreboard.

Maeda's $10 million contract "likely gives him an edge" to open the season as the Tigers' fifth starter, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

Maeda had a disastrous first season in Detroit, finishing with a 6.09 ERA across 17 starts and 12 relief appearances. He has looked sharp this spring, showing an uptick in velocity while allowing three runs with a 9:1 K:BB over five innings. Casey Mize and Keider Montero look to be Maeda's chief competitors for the No. 5 spot, while Jackson Jobe remains the heavy favorite to be the fourth starter. Whoever wins the fifth spot in the rotation would, theoretically, be holding it down only until Alex Cobb (hip) is ready, although there's no timetable for Cobb's return.

Baz threw three scoreless innings while striking out two, walking one and allowing two hits in Sunday's Grapefruit League game.

The outing was Baz's spring debut, and he threw 50 pitches -- 33 of which went for strikes. His velocity was also excellent, as he hit 100.6 mph with his first pitch of the game, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Baz will presumably be in the big-league rotation to begin the season, though Topkin did note the team has not committed to its five starters at this point in spring.