MLB Player News

Lugo pitched two scoreless innings, allowing a hit, a walk and a hit batsman while striking out one in his Cactus League debut Monday versus the Cubs.

Lugo admitted to some nerves before the game, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports. Lugo is embarking on his first season with the Royals after spending his first seven major-league campaigns with the Mets before pitching with the Padres last year. The right-hander projects to be one of the Royals' top starters after pitching to a 3.57 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 140:36 K:BB over 146.1 innings last year, his first as a full-time starter since 2017.

Kremer is scheduled to make his first Grapefruit League start Wednesday versus the Twins, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

After the Orioles acquired Corbin Burnes in a blockbuster deal with Milwaukee earlier this month, Kremer looked poised for a back-end role in the Baltimore rotation, but he could end up opening the regular season as the team's No. 2 or 3 starter due to Kyle Bradish (elbow) and John Means (elbow) both seemingly being ticketed for the injured list. Kremer's overall numbers from 2023 (4.12 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 157:55 K:BB in 172.2 innings) weren't particularly eye-catching, but he was at his best down the stretch while helping the Orioles clinch the AL East crown. Over his final nine starts, Kremer pitched to a 2.83 ERA over 47.2 innings, though most of his peripherals during that stretch (4.06 xFIP, 12.7 K-BB%) suggest that his late-season surge wasn't quite as strong as the ERA would indicate.

Kikuchi gave up one hit and struck out three batters over two scoreless innings in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates.

The southpaw tossed 19 of 30 pitches for strikes. Kikuchi is coming off his best MLB season to date, posting a 3.86 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 181:48 K:BB through 167.2 innings in 2023, but per Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic, he's looking to take another step forward by ditching his splitter for a circle change, a pitch that should have more separation from his mid-90s fastball. "His delivery was awesome, stuff was really good, too," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said after Monday's game. "Changeup's going to be a big pitch for him - especially against those righties. I thought everything that he set out to do today, he did. Fastball command was there, slider was sharp - really, really good first outing for him."

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Monday that Gausman is expected to make his Grapefruit League debut at some point next week, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Gausman's delayed entry into the Blue Jays' spring pitching schedule isn't the result of an injury; instead, the veteran right-hander prefers to build up early in camp with a few live throwing sessions before he pitches in a game. Coming off a 2023 season in which Gausman finished third in the American League Cy Young balloting, the Blue Jays are more than happy to let the 33-year-old dictate how he readies himself for the upcoming season. Toronto hasn't formally named an Opening Day starter, but barring an injury developing during the spring, Gausman will almost certainly be toeing the rubber March 28 in Tampa Bay.

Berrios is scheduled to start Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Berrios had initially been expected to make his spring debut Wednesday, but the Blue Jays opted to push him back a day, likely so that he can stay more closely aligned in the pitching order with top-of-rotation arms Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt. After submitting a bloated 5.23 ERA and 1.42 WHIP over 32 starts in 2022, Berrios delivered a return to form last season, bringing those ratios down to 3.65 and 1.19, respectively, while bumping his strikeout rate back up from 19.8 to 23.5 percent. Set to turn 30 years old in May, Berrios doesn't look like he'll ever emerge as the staff ace some envisioned he would become during his early years in Minnesota, but aside from the disastrous 2022 season, he's largely been a dependable arm for fantasy pitching staffs throughout his career.

Gipson-Long (groin) began a throwing program over the weekend, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Working his way back from a left groin strain, Gipson-Long will continue to ramp up his throwing progression and conditioning this week. It will be a while before he's cleared for Grapefruit League action, and the injury might be enough to rule him out for an Opening Day roster spot.

Whitlock is expected to build up to five-plus innings even if he's not a projected member of the starting rotation, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.

Boston is being put to work immediately out of the gate with 23 games in 25 days across five cities. As such, a sixth starter could be needed during the first month of the season. Both Whitlock and Tanner Houck will be prepped for five-plus innings.

Houck threw two scoreless innings in Monday's Grapefruit League start against the Phillies.

Houck induced three groundouts, two infield pop flies and one line-drive out over two perfect innings. The performance was a good first step toward securing the final spot in the rotation. "We played good defense behind him," Boston manager Alex Cora told Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe following the game. "That's what it's going to take with him. He can pound that sinker down to righties and we have to make plays." Houck is healthier than he was last spring, when he came off back surgery. He's in the mix for the last rotation spot along with Garrett Whitlock, and to a lesser extent, Josh Winckowski. In reality, Boston may need more than five starters early in a schedule that has them playing 23 of 25 days in five cities. The Red Sox are not expected to deploy a six-man rotation, but an extra starter could be needed during April depending on how hard the rotation works. Both Houck and Whitlock will be built up to five-plus innings, so they'll be available in any role.

Winn allowed one run on two hits and a walk while striking out one over 1.2 innings in Monday's Cactus League start against the White Sox.

Winn ran into early trouble in the form of a walk, a single and a wild pitch, giving up a run while struggling to control the count. He was pulled with two outs in his second frame after bumping up against a 40-pitch limit. A first-round pick in the 2018 First-Year Player Draft, Winn's career stalled at Triple-A Round Rock the last two seasons to the extent the organization moved him to the bullpen. However, strong stint as a starter in the Puerto Rican Winter League put him back on a path to a rotation spot.

Gray threw two innings in an intrasquad game Tuesday, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports. He allowed one run on two hits and a walk while striking out three.

Gray is set to occupy a spot on the rotation while the Rangers cope with injuries to Jacob deGrom (elbow), Tyler Mahle (elbow) and Max Scherzer (back). The 32-year-old Gray sparkled in the first half of 2023 but became inconsistent and eventually landed on the injured list with forearm tightness. His plan during the offseason was to adjust his pitch mix in 2024. Normally a heavy fastball-slider hurler, Gray plans to add more changeups and curveballs to the mix. "Hopefully we go from using them two or three times [per game] again to closer to 10," he said. "So just trying to show the slider and fastball less... It'll make the fastball and slider a little bit better." Gray threw well out of the bullpen during the Rangers' postseason run, but he should get a long run in the rotation until the injured starters return. Scherzer is due back in June while deGrom and Mahle are projected to make their 2023 debuts in the second half of the season.