MLB Player News

Chirinos is a leading candidate to enter the Rays rotation in the absence of Tyler Glasnow (oblique), Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Chirinos has thrown just 18.1 innings since the 2020 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He did make a spot start toward the end of the 2022 campaign, delivering four scoreless innings against the Blue Jays. After rejoining the Rays on a one-year deal this offseason, Chirinos looked like a fringe candidate to make the roster out of spring training. However, he could now be in line for a far more significant role.

McClanahan allowed one hit and one walk while striking out two in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against Atlanta.

McClanahan was on the mound for game action for the first time in 2023, and his outing was a success based on the stat sheet. Per Dawn Klemish of MLB.com, McClanahan worked through adjustments related to the pitch clock, as he noticed he was working too fast and his control was suffering as a result. The issue doesn't currently pose any reason for concern, as McClanahan specifically pointed out he was using the exhibition season to adjust to the new rule.

Musgrove (toe) is expected to miss at least two regular-season starts, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Musgrove will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks after fracturing his left big toe when he dropped a kettle ball on his foot while working out. When exactly he'll be ready to rejoin the Padres' rotation seems like an open-ended question, as he'll surely need additional X-rays to see how the bone is healing. The Padres had been leaning toward going with a six-man rotation at the start of the season, but those plans are now up in the air.

Lodolo threw two scoreless innings in his spring training debut against the Dodgers but struggled at times to adjust to the pitch clock, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "Biggest thing was the pitch clock," Lodolo said. "Once or twice it got me there. I think it was in the stretch in the first inning, I was like, 'I got four seconds, we've got to go.'"

Lodolo came into the outing wanting to work on his changeup, but at times his competitive juices took over and he didn't remember to work on that pitch until the second inning. You can expect to hear similar reports about other pitchers, especially at the beginning of spring training.

Ashcraft allowed two runs over two innings on three hits, a walk, a wild pitch and a hit batter in his spring training debut against the A's on Wednesday, striking out two. A primary focus for Ashcraft was working on his slider, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Ashcraft threw his slider just over 27% of the time during his rookie 2022 campaign and got better results than when using his cutter or sinker. "It's come a long way. I threw 10 out of 15 [sliders] over the plate for strikes. It's hard to complain," Ashcraft said. "We've still got a little bit to go with it. We're going to see what happens with it."

Sale (wrist) is officially scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut Monday versus the Tigers, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

Sale threw a successful live batting practice session Wednesday and is now ready for a taste of real competition. The 33-year-old left-hander was limited to 5.2 major-league innings (two starts) last season due to a range of different injuries, but he entered this spring with zero limitations and might just be ready to return to ace-like status in 2023.

Cortes (hamstring) said Wednesday he'll throw a live batting practice session Friday before potentially making his Grapefruit League debut in the middle of next week, Marly Rivera of ESPN.com reports.

Cortes was forced to withdraw from pitching for the United States team in the World Baseball Classic after straining his right hamstring in a workout early on during spring training, but the injury doesn't look as though it'll threaten his availability for Opening Day. He's already been able to throw multiple bullpen sessions and noted Wednesday that his hamstring responded well to pitchers' fielding practice, so he'll take the next step forward in his recovery by facing hitters Friday. If all goes well for Cortes, Rivera noted that the southpaw could be a candidate to start the Yankees' March 8 Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals.

Berrios gave up two hits and a walk over two scoreless innings while striking out two in Tuesday's split-squad game against the Phillies.

The 28-year-old right-hander is coming off the worst full season of his career, posting a 5.23 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 19.8 percent strikeout rate over 172 innings, so a good spring would go a long toward reassuring fantasy GMs considering whether to gamble on a rebound. Berrios is still locked into a rotation spot for the Blue Jays, but if his 2023 begins the way his 2022 ended, his leash could be fairly short.

Cantillo (shoulder) completed a throwing session last week on the back fields at the Guardians' minor-league camp, SI.com reports.

Cantillo was added to the Guardians' 40-man roster over the winter and is attending big-league camp, but he has yet to make his Cactus League debut. His absence from Cleveland's spring pitching schedule is likely more of a reflection of the fact that he's not a serious candidate to make the Opening Day roster, as the 23-year-old lefty looks to be healthy again after shoulder soreness sidelined him for the final two months of the minor-league season. Cantillo submitted a 1.93 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 87:28 K:BB in 60.2 innings for Double-A Akron before succumbing to the shoulder injury.

Rogers gave up two hits and struck out four over two scoreless innings in Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox.

He fired 22 of 32 pitches for strikes and got all four of his K's on his changeup in a strong spring debut. Rogers regressed to a 5.47 ERA and 1.50 WHIP last season, losing over six points off his K% from 2021 (28.5 percent down to 22.2 percent), but the Marlins are counting on the 25-year-old southpaw to rebound and serve as a mid-rotation staple for them this year.