MLB Player News

Newcomb may be the slight favorite to open the season as the Red Sox' fifth starter, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Richard Fitts will handle the fourth spot, while Newcomb looks to have a bit of an edge over Quinn Priester for the final opening in the rotation while the Red Sox deal with multiple pitching injuries. It's been an unlikely re-emergence for Newcomb, who boasts a 0.63 ERA with 13 strikeouts and three walks over 14.1 Grapefruit League innings. The lefty hasn't been used as a regular starter in the majors since 2018.

Fitts is likely to open the season as the Red Sox' fourth starter, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

With Brayan Bello (shoulder), Lucas Giolito (hamstring) and Kutter Crawford (knee) all expected to open the season on the injured list, the Red Sox are needing to dip into their rotation depth. Fitts has earned the opportunity by collecting a 2.45 ERA with 14 strikeouts and six walks over 14.2 spring innings. Sean Newcomb and Quinn Priester are fighting for the final spot in Boston's rotation.

The Red Sox reassigned Fulmer to minor-league camp Friday, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

Fulmer pitched well this spring after missing the entire 2024 season following UCL revision surgery, posting a 0.79 ERA with 12 strikeouts over 11.1 innings, but it wasn't enough to make Boston's Opening Day roster. His minor-league contract does not contain an opt-out clause, so Fulmer will begin the season at Triple-A Worcester.

Sandlin walked one and struck out two in a scoreless inning during Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays.

The former Guardian was dealt to the Blue Jays in January and appears locked into a bullpen spot, albeit likely only in middle relief to begin the season. Sandlin has posted an 8:3 K:BB through five spring innings with a 3.60 ERA, but he's behind Yimi Garcia and Chad Green in the pecking order for setup work in front of closer Jeff Hoffman.

Bigge is not expected to be included on the Rays' Opening Day roster, Ryan Bass of FanDuel Sports Network Sun reports.

Bigge has had a good spring, allowing just two runs with a 6:1 K:BB over seven innings, but having minor-league options remaining worked against him. The hard-throwing right-hander still has a good shot to handle high-leverage situations in the Rays' bullpen at some point this season.

Newcomb allowed one unearned run on four hits while striking out three over 4.2 innings in Thursday's spring start against the Twins.

Newcomb has flown under the radar for much of spring training, but injuries to Brayan Bello (shoulder), Lucas Giolito (hamstring) and Kutter Crawford (knee) opened up a need for two pitchers to fill temporary holes in the rotation. Richard Fitts appears to have one of them locked up, while Newcomb, Cooper Criswell and Quinn Priester vie for the other one. Newcomb has a 0.63 ERA with 13 strikeouts and three walks over 14.1 Grapefruit League innings.

Wesneski will undergo X-rays after being struck on the left foot by a comebacker in a minor-league game Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The X-rays seem to be precautionary, as Wesneski was spotted participating in drills Friday. Assuming testing doesn't uncover a more serious issue, the right-hander is slated to open the season as the Astros' fifth starter, an assignment that became more important when Luis Garcia was shut down Thursday after experiencing further soreness in his elbow.

Ort (oblique) is not likely to be on the Astros' Opening Day roster, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Ort first suffered the injury early in spring training and has resumed throwing off a mound. While it's very likely he'll begin the season on the injured list, general manager Dana Brown said he expects Ort to return at some point in April

The Blue Jays optioned Walker to Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday.

Walker signed a one-year deal with the Blue Jays in December. He entered spring training with a chance to secure a bullpen spot in Toronto, but he will begin his season in Buffalo. The southpaw posted a 3.86 ERA and 1.14 WHIP across eight innings in Grapefruit League play before being optioned.

The Blue Jays optioned Tate to Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday.

Tate didn't sign with the Jays until March 10 and hasn't appeared in a spring game since then, so he'll head to Triple-A to build up for the season. The 30-year-old reliever finished 2024 with a 4.66 ERA and 1.47 WHIP across 36.2 innings, but he may be called up a few times over the course of the season to provide Toronto with a fresh bullpen arm.