MLB Player News

Blanco didn’t see a whole lot of action this spring. He is organizational depth.

Cole looked extremely sharp in a handful of abbreviated late-spring starts and will continue ramping up his throwing program in the coming weeks. The 35-year-old former fantasy ace figures to be cleared for a minor league rehab assignment at some point in April and seems to be on track to make his season debut by the end of May.

Rodón remains on track to return to New York’s rotation mix at some point in April after undergoing offseason surgery to remove loose bodies from his left elbow. The 33-year-old southpaw will require a couple minor league rehab outings to build up his pitch count and stamina but he’s getting closer.

It’s potentially a brutal development for Toronto’s already injury-depleted rotation if Ponce is facing an extended absence. This one didn’t look good. The 31-year-old righty pulled up while running to field a ground ball up the first-base line and ultimately had to be carted off the field. He exited after allowing one run over 2 1/3 innings. He struck out three and issued one walk. There should be a definitive update on his status following the contest.

Bibee completed a 26-pitch bullpen session over the weekend without any issues and has been cleared to take the ball against the two-time defending World Series champions in Los Angeles. It’s such a daunting matchup that fantasy managers were likely strongly considering alternatives to begin with this week. The positive news is that Bibee won’t require a trip to the injured list after exiting his season-opening start against the Mariners last week with shoulder inflammation.

“We spotted a few things and we’ll be able to get him back on track here for his next outing,” Espada told reporters on Monday. He also confirmed that Abreu isn’t dealing with any physical issues, which is an encouraging development. The 28-year-old high-leverage specialist, who is filling in for injured Astros closer Josh Hader (biceps), averaged just 93.2 mph on his fastball during Sunday’s outing against the Angels in a save situation after averaging 97.3 mph last year. He was ultimately pulled in favor of lefty Bryan King after issuing a pair of walks and recording only one out. It doesn’t sound like the Astros are overly concerned. King would be the clear stash for fantasy managers in the event that Abreu doesn’t turn things around.

Thomson was served an automatic ejection for arguing a first-inning call that was overturned by replay review. The Phillies were trailing 4-0 already when he was booted from the contest. It’s worth noting here because the challenge extended Joey Wiemer’s remarkable on-base streak to nine consecutive plate appearances.

Strider remains without a definitive return timeline after hitting the injured list at the conclusion of spring training with an oblique strain. The polarizing 27-year-old former fantasy ace will need at least a handful of minor league rehab starts to build up his pitch count and stamina before he’s ready to rejoin Atlanta’s injury-ravaged rotation. It’s possible he’ll be ready by the end of April, but that might be an optimistic assumption.

Matt Wallner’s homer accounted for the only damage, even though Bubic surrendered seven other hard-hit balls, walked three and threw a wild pitch. Fortunately, he was facing a Twins lineup that figures to have problems against lefties all season long. Bubic finished with four strikeouts, generating 12 whiffs on 34 swings. He will make another start at home this weekend against the Brewers.

Lucas Erceg and Matt Strahm were both given the day off after pitching the last two days, and Carlos Estévez went unused, presumably due to his ankle injury. Those are supposed to be the Royals’ top three relievers, but the team still got scoreless innings from Daniel Lynch IV, Nick Mears and Schreiber to finish off the Twins. Erceg figures to be the choice to close if the Royals have another save chance Wednesday after the odd day Tuesday.

He gave up five hits, walked one and struck out two. Woods Richardson has shown himself over the last two years to be perfectly competent at pitching five innings at a time, but he just hasn’t demonstrated much upside beyond that, and given that the Twins have a mediocre offense and seemingly a well below average bullpen, pitching five solid innings at a time doesn’t figure to produce many wins. He’ll make his next start Sunday against the Rays.