MLB Player News
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Gerrit Cole SP | NYY
Yankees' Gerrit Cole: Scoreless frame in spring debut
Cole (elbow) allowed two hits in one scoreless inning against Boston in a Grapefruit League game Wednesday. He did not walk or strike out any batters.
Cole pitched in a game for the first time since he underwent Tommy John surgery with an internal brace last March. While he allowed two singles (one came on a bunt), he faced just four batters due to a caught-stealing. Cole threw 10 pitches and topped out at 98.7 mph on his fastball, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. Though it was a short outing, this was a significant step for the 2023 AL Cy Young winner in his quest to rejoin the Yankees' rotation. He's expected to continue to gradually ramp up, with late May a reasonable expectation for his regular-season debut.
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Trey Yesavage SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Trey Yesavage: Will open season on IL
Yesavage will open the season on the 15-day injured list due to a right shoulder impingement, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.
Manager John Schneider said Thursday that Yesavage came to spring training with the injury, which explains his slow build-up throughout camp. The Blue Jays don't expect Yesavage will need to stop throwing, but he needs more time to get ready for the regular season. The plan is for Yesavage to throw off a mound again next week. With Yesavage, Shane Bieber (forearm) and Jose Berrios (elbow) set to miss the beginning of the season, Cody Ponce, Max Scherzer and Eric Lauer figure to join Dylan Cease and Kevin Gausman in the rotation.
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Erick Fedde SP | CHW
White Sox's Erick Fedde: Earns rotation spot
Fedde will begin the 2026 season in the White Sox's rotation, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.
Fedde has only thrown 8.2 innings this spring, though he's limited opponents to three earned runs paired with a 7:2 K:BB. He'll likely appear in at least one more game this spring before lining up to make his regular-season debut at Miami during the team's second series.
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Mitch Spence SP | KC
Royals' Mitch Spence: Optioned to Omaha
The Royals optioned Spence to Triple-A Omaha on Wednesday.
The Athletics traded Spence to Kansas City in February, and after surrendering eight earned runs over seven innings during spring training, he will report to Triple-A to begin his tenure with his new organization. The right-hander owns a 4.77 ERA and 1.40 WHIP across 236 innings in his big-league career and may be recalled later in the season to provide long-relief help.
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Connelly Early SP | BOS
Red Sox's Connelly Early: Another strong showing
Early allowed one hit and two walks while striking out seven over five scoreless innings in Wednesday's spring start against the Yankees.
The three-way competition for the fifth starter's job rages on, and Early submitted another piece of evidence that he's ready for the job. The left-hander has allowed four runs (three earned) over 17 innings (1.59 ERA) with five walks and 16 strikeouts in the Cactus League. The other contenders have been equally effective. Payton Tolle threw four scoreless innings of relief Tuesday, lowering his spring ERA to 2.53, while Johan Oviedo, perhaps the frontrunner, has matched Early's 1.59 ERA with 13 strikeouts over 9.2 innings. All three pitchers have minor-league options.
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Jose Berrios SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Jose Berrios: Out with stress fracture in elbow
Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Wednesday that Berrios has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right elbow and won't be available for Opening Day, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.
Schneider noted that Berrios is pain free, and the hope is that the right-hander will resume throwing soon with the intention of pitching through the injury. With Shane Bieber (forearm) opening the season on the injured list and Trey Yesavage being brought along slowly to monitor his workload, Berrios could still have a significant role this season after finishing the 2025 campaign in the bullpen, but first he'll need to show he can be effective despite the elbow issue.
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Bailey Falter SP | KC
Royals' Bailey Falter: Strong relief outing
Falter allowed no hits or walks across three scoreless innings in Tuesday's Cactus League loss to the Dodgers. He struck out five.
Falter was originally slated to start Tuesday's contest, but manager Matt Quatraro instead deployed the southpaw out of the bullpen to evaluate his versatility and adaptability, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports. Falter responded with his best outing of the spring, entering in the fourth inning and striking out five of the nine batters he faced while averaging 93.6 mph on his fastball, up from 92.1 mph last season. The 28-year-old appears to be on the outside looking in for a spot in the Royals' rotation, especially if the club sticks with a traditional five-man group, so his ability to pitch effectively in relief could boost his chances of making the roster as a left-handed bullpen option.
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Joe Boyle SP | TB
Rays' Joe Boyle: Battling for bullpen spot
Boyle allowed two runs on two hits and four walks in three innings during Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees. He struck out six.
Through four Grapefruit League outings (two starts), Boyle now has a 3.72 ERA, a shaky 1.66 WHIP and 16:8 K:BB covering 9.2 innings. The 26-year-old right-hander is in contention for a bullpen spot with the Rays this spring as a long reliever, but he's not in position to begin the year in Tampa Bay's rotation after closing 2025 as a starter. Last year, Boyle recorded a 4.67 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 58:28 K:BB over 52 regular-season frames (nine starts).
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Bailey Ober SP | MIN
Twins' Bailey Ober: Velocity drop continues
Ober allowed a run on two hits and two walks while striking out none during Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. According to Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic, the right-hander averaged 88.2 mph with his fastball and generated just three swinging strikes.
Ober has surrendered just two runs across 8.2 frames in his three Grapefruit League appearances, but he has only three strikeouts and has seen his fastball velocity decrease in each spring outing, with him not cracking 90 mph even once Tuesday. The 30-year-old's average fastball in 2025 was a career-low 90.3 mph, and he had the worst season of his career with a 5.10 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 27 starts. Ober doesn't have much time to right the ship with Opening Day a little more than a week away.
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Carlos Rodon SP | NYY
Yankees' Carlos Rodon: Unlikely to pitch in spring game
Manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday that Rodon (elbow) is not expected to pitch in a Grapefruit League game this spring, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
Rodon has been throwing side sessions and batting practice this spring and most recently threw 30 pitches across a pair of simulated innings over the weekend. However, there's just not enough time for Rodon to get into Grapefruit League contests. He's still building his arm up following offseason surgery to remove a bone spur from his left elbow. According to Phillips, Rodon is on track to make his regular-season debut sometime in April.