MLB Player News

The Pirates optioned Ashcraft to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday.

Ashcraft made two appearances for the Pirates this spring, giving up two earned runs on five hits while striking out four batters across 3.2 innings. He'll ultimately miss out on Pittsburgh's Opening Day rotation, but if the 25-year-old righty can put up a number anything close to the 0.44 ERA he logged over 20.1 frames in Indianapolis last year, he could be on track to debut sometime in 2025.

The Phillies optioned Abel to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday.

Abel started Tuesday's Grapefruit League contest against the Red Sox and will head to minor-league camp after giving up four runs (three earned) over 1.2 innings. The right-hander had a 6.46 ERA in 24 starts last season in his first full year at the Triple-A level, and he'll likely need to improve upon those numbers to have a chance of making his MLB debut in 2025.

Giolito (hamstring) is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Wednesday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

The 30-year-old said after departing Tuesday's spring game that he believed the hamstring tightness to be a "very minor" injury, but he's still headed for medical imaging. Giolito may not miss much time if the MRI comes back clean. If the MRI reveals anything concerning, Giolito would likely begin the season on the injured list.

Scherzer will no longer make his scheduled Grapefruit League start Thursday against the Orioles due to right thumb soreness, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The soreness came about following Scherzer's last outing Saturday versus the Tigers. Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that the Blue Jays are "just being extra careful" with Scherzer, and the skipper expects to know more about the veteran right-hander's status in the coming days. Scherzer has been terrific this spring, posting a 14:0 K:BB over nine Grapefruit League innings.

Mahle was scratched from Tuesday's scheduled start versus the Angels due to right forearm soreness, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

The Rangers are saying the move was made out of an abundance of caution. Still, given that Mahle just returned from Tommy John surgery last season, the news is disconcerting. Jack Leiter will start in Mahle's place Tuesday and would be one of the candidates to fill his regular-season rotation spot if Mahle needs to miss time.

Giolito believes the left hamstring injury that forced him from Tuesday's outing against the Phillies to be "very minor," Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Giolito felt his hamstring tighten up on the first pitch of the game, but he remained in to complete one inning, allowing two runs on one hit and two walks. The righty has had hamstring problems in the past and said this one feels mild compared to the others, but it's not yet clear when he might be able to pitch again. Currently, Giolito is slated to make his season debut March 31 against the Orioles.

Lord has been sitting 95-96 mph with his fastball in camp this spring, a significant improvement on the 92-93 mph he averaged in the minors last season, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.

The Nationals have had some impressive success in the last couple years turning unheralded prospects into major-league arms, and Lord might be the next hurler to join that list. An 18th-round pick in the 2022 First-Year Player Draft, the 25-year-old right-hander pitched at three levels last year, finishing his breakout campaign with a 3.93 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 57:20 K:BB over 55 Triple-A innings. His success largely came from the deception in his nearly sidearm delivery, but if Lord has developed a legitimate fastball, it could position him for a spot in the big-league bullpen at some point in 2025.

Canning gave up only one hit over 3.2 scoreless innings in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals. He struck out five without walking a batter.

The right-hander built up to 55 pitches (37 strikes), and Canning is all but locked into the Opening Day rotation with both Sean Manaea (oblique) and Frankie Montas (lat) set to begin the season on the IL. Canning flashed quality stuff at times during his tenure with the Angels but was never able to put it all together, with injuries and inconsistency both playing roles in his struggles. He's looked good so far in camp for the Mets however, posting a 0.00 ERA and 7:1 K:BB in 5.1 innings.

Giolito was lifted from Tuesday's Grapefruit League outing against the Phillies due to left hamstring tightness, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Making his first start since last year's internal brace procedure, Giolito yielded two runs on one hit and two walks over his lone inning of work before departing. It's not clear at this point whether his removal was precautionary or if he might need to miss some time. Currently, Giolito is projected to make his regular-season/Red Sox debut March 31 against the Orioles.

Alcantara gave up two unearned runs on four hits over 2.2 innings in Monday's split-squad game against the Nationals. He struck out three without walking a batter.

The right-hander tossed 57 pitches (33 strikes) as he continues building up ahead of an Opening Day assignment for the Marlins. Alcantara missed the entire 2024 campaign while recovering from Tommy John surgery, but he worked over 180 innings each of the prior three seasons, and manager Clayton McCullough indicated over the weekend that Miami's ace would not face a hard innings limit in 2025. Alcantara hasn't done anything this spring to suggest he needs one, posting a 0.00 ERA and 8:2 K:BB over 8.1 innings.