MLB Player News

Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday that Strasburg (ribs/shoulder) experienced a nerve-related setback during a recent offseason bullpen session and is currently rehabbing in Washington, D.C., Bobby Blanco of MASNSports.com reports.

The report follows one earlier in the day from Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com, who noted that Strasburg's name was absent from the list of 34 healthy pitchers at Nationals camp in Florida. Strasburg reached the point in his offseason rehab program where he was able to complete one bullpen session without incident, but Martinez said the right-hander had trouble following the second session. The nerve-related issue can be tied to Strasburg's ongoing struggles with thoracic outlet syndrome, a condition he addressed through surgery in July 2021. The veteran is without a clear timeline to join the Nationals following the setback, but he now appears on track to begin the season on the injured list.

Strasburg (ribs/shoulder) is not included among the list of healthy pitchers in Nationals camp, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com.

There are 34 pitchers on that list, and Strasburg's name is absent. He has also yet to be spotted at the Nats' spring training facility in Florida. It's becoming quite clear that the 34-year-old right-hander is not going to be ready for the start of the 2023 season as he continues to work through thoracic outlet syndrome and a stress reaction in his rib cage. He's thrown just 31.1 major-league innings since the start of the 2020 season.

Gore (elbow) threw a bullpen session Wednesday and appears to be entering spring training as a full participant, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

After being shipped to Washington last July in the Juan Soto blockbuster, Gore didn't get a chance to make his Nationals debut while he recovers from left elbow soreness and inflammation. The 23-year-old lefty was at least able to make four minor-league rehab starts in September, and he likely would have been ready to pitch for the big club in October had the season lasted another week or two. With a full offseason to further heal from the injury, Gore should open camp with a good shot at claiming a back-end spot in the big-league rotation. During his first taste of the majors with San Diego in 2022, Gore submitted a 4.50 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 72:37 K:BB across 70 frames.

Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer told reporters Wednesday that Hendricks (shoulder) is likely to miss the start of the season, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

While the club is preparing for Hendricks to miss the start of the season, Hoyer notes that the team isn't ready to place the right-hander on the 60-day injured list at this point. Although the 33-year-old is obviously behind in his program, it is expected that he will be able to start throwing off the mound soon as he recovers from the capsular tear that sidelined him for the second half of the 2022 campaign. Hendricks wasn't particularly effective in his time with the Cubs last season while posting a 4.80 ERA in 84.1 innings, and there's more risk than reward in his fantasy potential at this stage in his career.

Wacha's new deal has the potential to be worth up to $24 million, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Rosenthal calls the deal "complex," as it contains both player and team options and allows the Padres to protect themselves and lower his AAV for purposes to lower the luxury-tax hit. The right-hander should pitch near the bottom of the San Diego rotation to open the year, but the San Diego offense should give him plenty of chances to pick up wins when he is on the bump in 2023.

Lugo is expected to open the season as part of the Padres' six-man rotation, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Lugo signed with the Padres with the intent of joining the rotation and that evidently won't change even after the club added Michael Wacha. The former Met hasn't started a game since 2020 and hasn't been a full-time starter since 2017, so it makes sense to ease him into things as part of a six-man rotation. Nick Martinez -- who made 37 relief appearances and 10 starts last season -- will also open 2023 in the rotation. The Padres could eventually go back to a traditional five-man setup, but initially each starter will get extra rest in between outings.

Wacha is in agreement on a contract with the Padres, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Rosenthal reports the deal can earn him $24 million over four years, but that it's a complicated structure that includes player and teams options. AJ Cassavell of MLB.com notes that with the addition of Wacha, the Padres are likely to implement a six-man rotation at least at the beginning of the season. It would help to ease the burden on Nick Martinez -- who split time between starting and relieving in 2022 -- and Seth Lugo -- who hasn't been used as a regular starter since 2017. Wacha is coming off a nice 2022 season that saw him post a 3.32 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 104:31 K:BB in 127.1 innings across 23 starts.

Freeland's agency announced Monday that he has been named to the Team USA roster for the World Baseball Classic.

Freeland is the replacement for Nestor Cortes, who will miss the World Baseball Classic because of a Grade 2 hamstring strain. The left-hander could be in line to make starts for USA coming off a 2022 campaign where he recorded a 4.53 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 131:53 K:BB in 174.2 innings over 31 starts with the Rockies. He's expected to pitch near the top of the Colorado rotation in 2023 after competing in the WBC.

Sanchez (shoulder) told Daniel Alvarez-Montes of ElExtraBase.com on Friday that he's lost about 46 pounds this offseason.

This takes "best shape of your life" to a new level, although it does raise the question of just how much weight he'd put on the last couple of years while sidelined. Sanchez hasn't pitched in a game at any level since 2020, having undergone shoulder surgeries in July of 2021 and again last October. The right-hander said Friday that he's progressed to throwing bullpen sessions and he's hoping to be part of the Marlins' Opening Day roster. That might be a stretch given how much time he's missed, but it's clear he's found another gear when it comes to his motivation. At the very least, he'll be someone to keep a close eye on this spring.

Soroka (elbow) will not play for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic as he focuses on competing for the fifth spot in Atlanta's rotation.

Soroka hasn't made a major-league appearance since 2020 due to a pair of Achilles tears and more recently some elbow soreness. He's coming into spring training without any physical limitations but has, understandably, opted to remain in Atlanta's camp rather than pitch in the WBC. Soroka's main competition for the No. 5 spot in the rotation is Ian Anderson.