MLB Player News

Brown also struggled with his command in this one, issuing three walks while striking out six. He threw only 52 of his 83 pitches for strikes, getting 10 whiffs and posting a CSW of 34 percent. The damage done against him all came in the third inning as Liam Hicks and Nathan Matroella drove in runs with RBI singles and Juan Matheus plated another on a ground out. Brown finishes the spring with a solid 2.84 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and a 20/7 K/BB ratio over 12 2/3 innings in his four starts. He’ll do battle against the Angels as the Astros kick of their season on Thursday.

Kirk will get a day of maintenance for the first Sunday — and likely many Sunday’s after — of the 2026 campaign. Tyler Heineman will get the start behind the plate and hit ninth in Kirk’s absence.

Abrams was away from the team due to a death in his family for Saturday’s game. Nasim Nuñez will get the start at second base after filling in at short for that contest, and Luis Garcia begins Sunday’s contest on the bench.

Estévez was rocked for six runs and blew Saturday’s save against Atlanta, and it’s very plausible that the ankle injury didn’t help. Royals manager Matt Quatraro hinted that Estévez likely wouldn’t be available, but if he is, also suggested that he would be used in a “lower-leverage” situation. Estévez’s velocity was down all spring, and fantasy managers need to pay close attention to this situation. Lucas Erceg would likely be next man up for closing games.

Mederos gets the boot from the 40-man roster with Shaun Anderson having his contract selected. The 24-year-old could see interest on the waiver wire, but if he goes unclaimed, he’ll likely remain in Triple-A Salt Lake.

Anderson gets the nod after the Angels’ bullpen gave up 11 runs in the loss to the Astros on Saturday. He’ll likely be a multi-inning option if Jack Kochanowicz isn’t able to go work deep Sunday.

Ureña was awful Saturday, and while none of his six runs allowed were earned, he’ll still head to Triple-A to create room for a fresh arm in Shaun Anderson. Ureña should be up again in the coming weeks, assuming he pitches well in Triple-A.

This wouldn’t be as notable if not for the fact that Butler also didn’t get the start Saturday, and he underwent offseason surgery to repair a partial tredion tear and debridement of chronic scar tissue in his knee. It’s feasible this is injury-related, but there’s no word as of yet. Brent Rooker is the right fielder for Sunday’s bout, with Shea Langeliers the designated hitter and Austin Wynns getting the start at catcher.

Rutschman will get his first breather of the season. The 28-year-old retreats to the bench with Samuel Basallo getting the nod behind the plate and Pete Alonso serving as the designated hitter.

Yelich will get a breather for Sunday and also with left-hander Anthony Kay on the bump for Chicago. William Contreras will operate as the designated hitter with Jeferson Quero getting the start behind the plate.

Peña was given a day of rest Saturday as he’s still not 100 percent from his fractured finger, but he’ll be back at the top of the lineup against Jack Kochanowicz and the Los Angeles pitching staff.