MLB Player News

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Lorenzen (groin) is uncertain to make his final Grapefruit League start, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Specifically, Hinch said he had "no idea" whether Lorenzen -- who is dealing with a mild left groin strain -- would be able to make one more start this spring. If Lorenzen is unable to pitch before the end of the Grapefruit League slate, the right-hander surely wouldn't be ready for his first turn through the rotation during the regular season, either. Hinch wouldn't offer any hints as to who the potential fill-in for Lorenzen would be, but Joey Wentz and Beau Brieske would likely represent the top alternatives.

Wright gave up four runs on five hits over 2.2 innings in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays. He didn't walk or strike out a batter.

Seeing his first game action of the spring after recovering from a shoulder issue, Wright got taken deep by Brandon Lowe in the first inning and Yandy Diaz in the second, but per Mark Bowman of MLB.com the right-hander's fastball touched 95 mph and he felt fine afterward. Wright will make one more Grapefruit League start before working a simulated game against minor-leaguers after camp breaks, and if he avoids any setbacks he won't miss a turn in the rotation to begin the season, although his workload could be capped in his first start.

Lorenzen has been diagnosed with a mild left groin strain, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

The injury caused Lorenzen to be scratched from a Grapefruit League outing Monday. He'll be shut down from baseball activities for now but will ramp things back up as his symptoms dissipate. It doesn't sound like the injury should keep Lorenzen down long, but his Opening Day availability is in doubt.

The Nationals are expected to place Strasburg (ribs/shoulder) on the 60-day injured list to begin the season, a source tells Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post.

Considering Strasburg hasn't been taking part in spring training workouts after experiencing a nerve-related setback during an offseason bullpen session, the news that he'll likely be sidelined for at least the first two months of the 2023 campaign comes as little surprise. Since experiencing renewed complications in his ongoing recovery from the thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he underwent in July 2021, Strasburg has sought out multiple medical opinions on his next steps, but the Nationals have yet to publicize what sort of treatment strategy the 34-year-old right-hander is following. Since earning World Series MVP honors in 2019 and then signing a seven-year, $245 million contract extension with Washington, Strasburg has made just eight starts over the first three seasons of the deal.

Paxton (hamstring) threw a bullpen session Tuesday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Paxton returned to the mound with a bullpen session Saturday and it's a good sign that he was ready for another one three days later. The left-hander will not be ready for Opening Day due to a right hamstring strain, but he's trending toward a return sometime in April if he continues to progress.

Mule was diagnosed with a torn UCL in his right elbow Tuesday and will undergo Tommy John surgery next week, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Mule was selected 113th overall by the Cubs during last year's draft and has yet to make his professional debut. The 18-year-old has shown potential as a two-way player, but he'll now be sidelined until next summer, at least from pitching.

Dunning allowed five runs (four earned) on 10 hits and struck out four over six innings in Monday's spring start against Cleveland.

Dunning was the first Rangers hurler to work six innings, but Texas manager Bruce Bochy won't need him in a starting role. The right-hander appears to be ticketed for a bullpen/long-relief role, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. The Rangers have a couple of starters -- Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi -- that were delayed in camp and won't be stretched out to go deep into games. That leaves Dunning and lefty Cole Ragans as a potential piggyback options early in the season.

Cueto's scheduled Grapefruit League start Monday against the Cardinals was pushed back after he experienced unspecified soreness, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald reports.

Where Cueto was experiencing the soreness isn't clear, but the hope is that he'll be ready to throw a bullpen session Wednesday, so it doesn't sound overly serious. If that happens, the veteran right-hander should be able to get in one more Grapefruit League start before the beginning of the regular season. Cueto is slated to open 2023 toward the back end of the Miami rotation.

Springs has thrown 9.2 scoreless innings while maintaining a 16:1 K:BB in Grapefruit League action.

Springs was initially brought along slowly during the exhibition season, though he worked 4.1 frames in his start Thursday. He enjoyed a breakout 2022 campaign by maintaining a 2.46 ERA and 1.07 WHIP across 135.1 innings and is a lock for the Rays' rotation so long as he remains healthy.

Gilbert was credited with a win in Monday's Cactus League victory over the Brewers, firing four scoreless innings during which he allowed three hits and recorded five strikeouts.

Gilbert's most impressive spring training outing yet saw him match the four innings he'd worked his last time out against the Royals, except the right-hander kept his scorecard free of any runs after giving up to two to Kansas City. Gilbert now has a 3.55 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 12.2 innings in Cactus League play, and Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports the 25-year-old was particularly happy with how his new split-changeup continued to progress. "That was probably one of the best days I felt with it," Gilbert said of his new pitch. "If it stays where it was today, I would be thrilled with it for sure."