MLB Player News

Brubaker gave up three earned runs on three hits and one walk in five innings Wednesday, striking out six Atlanta batters, DK Pittsburgh Sports reports.

The Pirates will almost surely rely on Brubaker as part of their rotation with Steven Brault (arm) sidelined for at least two months. In 2020, the righty seemed destined for bullpen work with only two effective pitches -- a fastball and a slider -- but he's throwing a curveball and changeup more than he has in the past, and he whiffed batters with three different pitches Wednesday. Brubaker struck out 48 batters in 47.1 innings last season and offers the potential to serve as a streaming option in fantasy this year.

Lorenzen (shoulder) is expected to resume throwing soon, but it's still unclear whether he'll be able to avoid a trip to the injured list, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Lorenzen and Tejay Antone (hip) entered camp as the favorites for the Reds' fifth starter job. Sonny Gray's back issues will temporarily open up a second spot in the rotation, but both Lorenzen and Antone have injuries of their own. It's already been announced that Antone is expected to open the year in the bullpen, and it now seems as though Lorenzen may not be ready to start right away either. The Reds are confident he'll be able to build up his innings once the season begins, but the team may need to turn to pitchers like Jeff Hoffman or Jose De Leon for some spot starts in early April.

DeGrom will throw about 90 pitches in a simulated game Friday as his final appearance of the spring, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

This will allow the right-hander to get an extra day of rest prior to his Opening Day assignment while also preventing his first regular-season opponent, the Nationals, from getting an extra look at him in exhibition play. DeGrom will finish Grapefruit League play with a dazzling 0.66 ERA and 21:3 K:BB over 13.2 innings as he prepares to take a run at another Cy Young Award.

Lucchesi is penciled in as the Mets' No. 5 starter after Jordan Yamamoto was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Manager Luis Rojas has mentioned this spring that he could potentially use an opener on occasion, so Lucchesi may not officially get every start when his turn comes around, but for now, he's set to follow Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Taijuan Walker and David Peterson in the rotation. Lucchesi is likely just keeping a spot warm until Carlos Carrasco (hamstring) is healthy, but if he outperforms Peterson, he could retain a starting role beyond that.

Soroka (Achilles) threw another simulated game Wednesday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Soroka has been building up carefully as he works his way back from Achilles surgery. His return timeline still isn't entirely clear, but it's possible he returns before the end of April.

Strasburg tossed 83 pitches over four-plus innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros, allowing four runs on three hits and five walks while striking out one. Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

While it was encouraging to see Strasburg get stretched out to a point where he seems ready for the regular season, the results in his return to action from a calf injury were downright ugly. The veteran right-hander blamed mechanical issues more than his calf for his difficulty finding the strike zone, but the latter seems likely to have contributed to the former. Strasburg also admitted after the start that his actual injury was a ruptured plantaris tendon -- which isn't necessary for everyday function and often gets used as the replacement for the UCL in Tommy John surgery -- so he should be able to pitch effectively without it in the long run. He'll get one more Grapefruit League start before the regular season begins, and he's lined up to start the second game of the season for the Nats on April 3 against the Mets.

Fried was named Atlanta's Opening Day starter Thursday and will get the nod April 1 against Aaron Nola and the Phillies.

Fried could be pushed for the role by a healthy Mike Soroka (Achilles) or Ian Anderson in the future, but he's the obvious choice this season coming off a year in which he cruised to a 2.25 ERA. Fried's xFIP (4.05) and SIERA (4.32) tell a very different story about his 2020 season, however, as it took a .268 BABIP, an 82.0 percent strand rate and a 4.9 percent HR/FB rate to get him to that excellent ERA -- all of which should all regress a fair amount this season. If he slides toward those ERA estimators this season, he'll be more of a mid-rotation starter than an ace, but he'll still be a useful arm for Atlanta.

Wainwright allowed an earned run on two hits and a walk over six innings in a Grapefruit League tie with the Nationals on Tuesday, He struck out seven.

Wainwright worked up to 76 pitches in what projects as his penultimate spring turn, and likely his last one of comparable duration. The right-hander now has a 1.83 ERA over 19.2 innings this spring and lines up to take the ball after Opening Day starter Jack Flaherty against the Reds in the first series of the regular season.

Buehler pitched five innings in Tuesday's Cactus League contest versus Milwaukee, allowing nine runs on 10 hits and one walk while striking out five.

Buehler hurled 83 pitches in the outing, so there is at least some solace in knowing that he is built up to something near a regular-season pitch count. The right-hander couldn't keep the ball in the park Tuesday, however, yielding four long balls -- including three in the first inning. Buehler has struggled this spring with a 7.94 ERA and .351 BAA, but his 16:2 K:BB is promising and he clearly has the arsenal to again be one of the NL's top starters.

Wood (back) will throw a bullpen session Thursday, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

The 30-year-old completed a bullpen session Monday and was expected to progress to live batting practice later this week, but he won't face hitters quite yet. Wood is returning from an ablation procedure in his back and seems unlikely to be ready for the start of the season with only eight days until Opening Day.