MLB Player News

Bassitt struck out nine batters in 5.1 innings during Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates, allowing one run on three hits and a walk.

The veteran right-hander faced a Pittsburgh lineup that only included a handful of regulars, but aside from a solo shot by Oneil Cruz in the sixth inning, Bassitt had little trouble carving up the opposition. He built up to 73 pitches (47 strikes) and looks just about ready for Opening Day, having posted a 14:1 K:BB through 14.2 spring innings. Should Kevin Gausman (shoulder) not be quite ready when the regular season begins, it's not out of the question that Bassitt takes the mound for the Blue Jays' opener.

Elder gave up five runs on five hits and three walks over 4.1 innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles. He struck out three.

He did manage to keep the ball in the yard, something his Baltimore counterpart Cole Irvin failed to do, and Elder got closer to being fully stretched out, but there otherwise weren't many positive takeaways from this performance. The 24-year-old right-hander saw his control erode in the second half last season -- he posted a 4.0 BB/9 after July 1, following a 2.6 BB/9 over the first three months of 2023 -- and those issues have persisted this spring, as he's managed a 13:6 K:BB through 12 Grapefruit League innings. Elder remains in the mix for Atlanta's fifth starter role, but Reynaldo Lopez appears to be the favorite to begin the season with the job.

Kelly allowed two runs on five hits and struck out four over three innings in Wednesday's spring start against the Rockies.

Kelly emptied the entire arsenal of pitches Wednesday, throwing 47 overall. He worked on his changeup leading up to his second Cactus League start, after featuring a developing slider the first time out. "I've thrown my changeup for a long time now, it's kind of been the pitch that I've gone to when I needed something," Kelly told Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports. "The slider is obviously something that I want to make more consistent and more into a usable pitch, so the emphasis coming into spring was on the slider and sometimes when you do that the feel for the rest of the pitches kind of isn't as sharp." Kelly will get two more starts to work up to 75-80 pitches before the regular season opens.

Paxton isn't expected to join the Dodgers for their season-opening two-game set against the Padres in South Korea, though he's physically fine, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Paxton isn't dealing with any sort of injury, but he wouldn't be pitching in any capacity for either of the two games in Seoul, so the Dodgers are opting to have him work on building up at home rather than making the long trip overseas. Though an unspecified health issue resulted in a reduction of the guaranteed portion of the contract Paxton signed with Los Angeles in January, the left-hander has looked healthy while getting in limited work this spring, allowing just one run on two hits with a 7:2 K:BB over four innings. Paxton is lined up for a spot at the back of the Dodgers' rotation for the upcoming campaign.

Contreras walked six batters across four innings of work in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.

Contreras is in competition for a rotation spot but has had an unimpressive showing this spring. Across four outings and 10.2 innings, he has just a 4:10 K:BB while giving up nine earned runs. Assuming he fails to secure a rotation spot, Contreras's tenure in Pittsburgh may be over as he is out of minor-league options.

Fedde appears to be in line to start for the White Sox on Opening Day against the Tigers, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Fedde emerged as the frontrunner to start Opening Day after the White Sox traded Dylan Cease to the Padres on Wednesday in exchange for a haul of prospects. Fedde's last season in the majors came in 2022, when he accumulated a 5.81 ERA and 1.63 WHIP while striking out 94 batters across 127 innings. He spent last season in the Korea Baseball Organization and won the league's MVP award after posting a 2.00 ERA, and the 31-year-old righty has has been OK in spring training thus far. Fedde's recent success should be enough to warrant cautious optimism from fantasy managers heading into the new season.

Flaherty tossed four scoreless innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. He allowed one hit and struck out five.

Flaherty came into the contest having allowed five runs across 3.2 innings this spring, so this was a step in the right direction. The righty struggled last season, posting a 4.99 across 144.1 innings with St. Louis and Baltimore, but he should be locked into a rotation spot in Detroit after agreeing to a one-year, $14 million deal. Fantasy managers may want to wait and see if Flaherty can string together a few good outings to start the regular season before investing too much, however.

The Padres traded Iriarte, Drew Thorpe, Steven Wilson and Samuel Zavala to the White Sox on Wednesday in exchange for Dylan Cease, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.

Iriarte split time between High-A and Double-A last season, recording a 3.49 ERA and 1.28 WHIP alongside a 128:45 K:BB across 90.1 innings between the two levels. The 22-year-old prospect earned a spot on the Padres' 40-man roster during the offseason and had been in contention to make the Opening Day roster, but Iriarte was optioned to Triple-A after throwing three shutout innings during spring training. With the White Sox, Iriarte's chances at cracking an Opening Day roster are renewed given Chicago's weak MLB pitching staff, though it's possible the Sox keep him in Triple-A to continue his development.

The Padres traded Thorpe, Jairo Iriarte, Steven Wilson and Samuel Zavala to the White Sox on Wednesday in exchange for Dylan Cease, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.

Thorpe had been part of the package that sent Juan Soto to the Yankees in December, and he will now be rerouted to the White Sox with only a couple of weeks remaining before the regular season. Thorpe emerged as a top RHP prospect last season, posting a 2.52 ERA and 0.98 WHIP while striking out 182 batters over 139.1 innings between High-A and Double-A. Now with the Sox, Thorpe will likely return to Double-A to begin the season, but he could see a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte relatively quickly if he remains dominant in 2024.

The White Sox traded Cease to the Padres on Wednesday in exchange for Drew Thorpe, Jairo Iriarte, Steven Wilson and Samuel Zavala, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

After recent pushes from the Rangers and Yankees to acquire Cease, the right-hander will ultimately end up in San Diego, giving a much-needed boost to a Padres rotation that lost Blake Snell, Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo during the offseason. Following his brilliant 2022 campaign, Cease took a big step back in 2023 with a 4.58 ERA and 1.42 WHIP across 33 starts, though he still was able to rack up 214 strikeouts in 177 innings. Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove have already been penciled in as the Padres' starters for their season-opening series versus the Dodgers in South Korea next week, but Cease could make his Friars debut when the team return to North America for its first domestic series with the Giants from March 28 through 31.