MLB Player News

Cease is scheduled to start the White Sox's second game of the season Saturday in Detroit, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Cease wasn't a lock to get a start during the White Sox's season-opening series, but Lance Lynn's imminent knee surgery erased any doubt that the 26-year-old would make his 2022 debut in Detroit. The right-hander enjoyed something of a breakthrough campaign in 2021, going 13-7 with a 3.91 ERA and 1.25 WHIP over 165.2 innings while ranking fifth among all qualified pitchers with a 31.9 percent strikeout rate. Cease's mediocre 33.3 percent groundball rate and 9.6 percent walk rate were less than desirable, however, and until he makes improvements in those areas, he probably can't be counted on to take a major step forward in the ERA and WHIP categories.

Sears was told Monday that he's made the Yankees' Opening Day roster, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Sears was protected from the Rule 5 draft in November, and he'll be available to make his major-league debut to begin the 2022 campaign. The southpaw progressed to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last year and posted a 2.87 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in 53.1 innings across 10 starts. He should be able to serve as a bulk reliever or spot starter in the big leagues.

Gausman threw in the bullpen following Monday's Grapefruit League start and ultimately threw about 80 pitches between the two sessions, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Gausman allowed two runs on three hits and no walks while striking out three in six innings against the Tigers on Monday, reaching 68 pitches in the start. Monday's appearance was his lone spring start this year, but he appears to be built up nicely and expects to be ready to throw between 95 and 100 pitches during his first regular-season start. Jose Berrios has been named Toronto's Opening Day starter, so Gausman lines up to make his 2022 debut at home against the Rangers on Saturday.

The Yankees optioned Gil to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday.

New York is expected to open the season with a traditional five-man rotation, and with Nestor Cortes having a leg up on that role based on his strong finish to the 2021 campaign, Gil was facing an uphill battle to crack the Yankees' Opening Day roster. Gil and Deivi Garcia have both had positive moments when given trials in the big-league rotation over the past couple of seasons, but both will have to bide their time at Triple-A and wait for an injury to one of the Yankees' five starters before getting another opportunity in the majors.

Kremer has allowed nine runs (eight earned) on 15 hits and three walks with 11 strikeouts in nine innings across three Grapefruit League appearances.

The Orioles' rotation remains in flux with Opening Day looming, but Kremer is likely to be on the big-league roster to start the season. It's unclear if he'll ultimately work as a traditional starter or in a tandem, though it'll likely be the latter. The right-hander struggled to a 7.55 ERA, 1.64 WHIP, 47:25 K:BB and 0-7 record across 13 starts with the Orioles last season. General manager Mike Elias called out some of the young arms in the organization to step up this season, so Kremer will need to make significant progress to stay in the team's plans long-term, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Jobe will open this season at Low-A Lakeland and will have his innings limited, the Detroit Free Press reports.

After going third overall in the 2021 Draft, Jobe didn't get into any minor-league action last year, but he's impressed as usual this spring. With a high-90s fastball, a slider with wicked spin and a refined changeup, he's well ahead of your typical 19-year-old. Jobe has ace upside, so the real question is whether he can stay healthy and maintain his command as he climbs through the minors. Don't count on seeing him in Detroit until 2024 at best, though.

Espino has impressed this spring despite not pitching in any major-league games, ESPN's Jeff Passan reports.

Actually, Passan characterized scouts' take on Espino's recent start against Reds minor leaguers as a "religious experience." His fastball exceeded 100 mph, he showed off a hard slider and a 12-to-6 curveball, and apparently his changeup is coming along as well. Still just 21 years old, Espino hasn't yet pitched above High-A -- where he recorded an insane 16.2 K/9 across 10 starts last season -- but he's got some of the best stuff in the minor leagues. There's a chance we could see him in the majors at some point this year, but it's more likely that the Guardians will keep him in the minors to refine his offspeed offerings. Once the likes of Grayson Rodriguez and George Kirby graduate this year, Espino will quickly enter the conversation for the best pitching prospect in baseball.

Kikuchi will work an intrasquad game Wednesday at the Blue Jays' spring training complex before making his first start of the season Apr. 12 against the Yankees, Laura Armstrong of The Toronto Star reports.

The rest of the team will break camp and head north Tuesday, but Kikuchi will stay behind to get in a bit more work. The southpaw has an 11:4 K:BB through 8.1 innings this spring but has also served up four homers, leading to a bloated 6.48 ERA in Grapefruit League action as he heads into his first season with Toronto.

The White Sox announced Monday that Giolito will start Friday's season opener in Detroit.

Giolito became the easy choice for the Opening Day nod after the White Sox announced Sunday that Lance Lynn will be sidelined for at least the first month of the season while recovering from right knee surgery. The 27-year-old righty took somewhat of a step back statistically in 2021, but his 11 wins, 3.53 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 201 strikeouts over 178.1 innings made him far from a disappointment for those that invested in him hoping for a Cy Young-caliber season. The White Sox will be counting on him to anchor the rotation while Lynn is on the mend.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Monday that Crawford clinched a spot in the team's Opening Day bullpen, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Crawford made one underwhelming spot start in his big-league debut last season when Boston was down multiple members of the rotation due to injury and COVID-19-related absences, but he otherwise split the 2021 campaign between Triple-A Worcester and Double-A Portland. Heading into spring training, he was considered a long shot for the Opening Day roster, but he ended up earning his spot in the bullpen after striking out eight and allowing one earned run and one walk over four innings during Grapefruit League play. Cora said he envisions the hard-throwing righty serving as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen, with most of Crawford's opportunities likely to be limited to lower-leverage spots early on.