MLB Player News

Butto can't be added to the 26-man roster until April 12 without an associated injured list move, and he likely isn't an option to replace Tylor Megill (shoulder) in the rotation when the Mets next need a fifth starter April 9, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

The Mets are caught in a bind when it comes to their pitching staff. With Yohan Ramirez facing a two-game suspension, the team elected to add Reed Garrett to the roster for bullpen depth when Megill landed on the IL, which blocks Butto or Joey Lucchesi from being promoted to plug the immediate hole in the rotation. That gives prospects Christian Scott and Mike Vasil, who aren't yet on the 40-man roster, a leg up to take Megill's spot. The Mets are also said to have interest in signing Julio Teheran. Butto could be added late in the month, however -- New York plays 13 games in 13 days starting Friday and will likely need a sixth starter to get through that stretch.

Corniell will open the season on the injured list at Double-A Frisco with elbow inflammation, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.

This is an ominous injury designation for the 20-year-old righty. Corniell has outstanding control for his age (7.3 BB% in 58.1 innings at High-A) and a quality four-pitch mix headlined by a 94-mph fastball and plus 84-mph sweeper. The fact he was assigned to Double-A before turning 21 illustrates how advanced Corniell is, but this elbow injury could be his first big setback. Per Callis, Corniell is expected back in early June.

Jefferies was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday.

Jefferies was clobbered for nine runs (five earned) over two innings in a spot start Sunday in San Diego and now finds himself back in the minors. He dealt with hip soreness during the outing, but the fact that Jefferies was optioned and not placed on the injured list suggests the hip is a non-issue. He'll go into Sacramento's rotation.

Winn (0-1) threw five innings in a loss to the Dodgers on Monday, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk while striking out six batters.

Winn threw 60 of his 89 pitches for strikes and induced 14 swings and misses, so he wasn't entirely overwhelmed by the Dodgers' vaunted offense. However, the right-hander gave up a pair of extra-base hits that were turned into two of the three runs against him. It's a somewhat positive sign that Winn was able to hang around against one of the league's top offenses, but the right-hander will likely need to show much more to move onto the radar in fantasy redraft formats.

Paxton (1-0) earned the win over San Francisco on Monday, pitching five shutout innings during which he allowed four hits and five walks while striking out five batters.

Paxton put quite a bit of traffic on the basepaths due largely to his five free passes, but he held the Giants to an 0-for-4 mark with runners in scoring position to escape without allowing any runs. The veteran hurler has been troubled by injuries in recent campaigns but looked completely healthy in his 2024 debut, tossing 97 pitches. Paxton hasn't completed more than 100 innings or posted better than a 4.50 ERA since 2019, so he's far from a sure bet to be a reliable starter for the entirety of the campaign, but he appears to have a set spot at the back of the Dodgers' rotation for the time being.

Waldron (0-1) took the loss against St. Louis on Monday, allowing four runs on nine hits and one walk with seven strikeouts over four innings.

Waldron impressed in Cactus League play to win the role of fifth starter to open the campaign, but he was hit hard in his regular-season debut. Three of the Cardinals' nine hits against him went for extra bases, including Wilson Contreras' two-run homer in the first inning. Waldron did strike out seven batters in four frames, but punchouts aren't normally a big part of the knuckleballer's skill set -- he struck out less than a batter per inning at the Triple-A level across 2022 and 2023. Waldron doesn't have the longest of leashes, so he'll likely need to pitch better moving forward to hang on to a big-league rotation spot.

Gibson (1-0) earned the win over San Diego on Monday, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts over seven innings.

Gibson gave up a pair of solo homers, but the Padres otherwise failed to cross the plate against him. The veteran hurler didn't dominate -- he notched just eight swinging strikes and four punchouts -- but he limited traffic on the basepaths and went deep into the contest, throwing 94 pitches. The start was Gibson's first as a Cardinal after he went 15-9 despite posting a mediocre 4.73 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 7.4 K/9 with Baltimore last season.

Nelson (0-1) took the loss Monday against the Yankees, allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits and four walks across 2.2 innings. He struck out two.

The command Nelson showed in spring training went away in his regular-season debut. Just 43 of 76 pitches landed in the zone, and the right-hander was constantly behind and pitching with runners on base. Both Nelson and Tommy Henry have put up troubling starts the first time through the rotation and could be gone before long. Eduardo Rodriguez (lat) could return from the IL within the next few weeks and Jordan Montgomery (recently signed) begins ramping up in the minors this weekend. After logging a 5.31 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP in his first full season as a starter in 2023, Nelson's performance Monday didn't exactly instill confidence for an improved 2024 campaign. He'll face another tough test in his next projected start, which is scheduled to come Sunday at Atlanta.

Gil didn't factor into the decision Monday against Arizona, going 4.2 innings and yielding one run on one hit and three walks. He struck out six.

Gil showed his worth as the Yankees' fifth starter and Gerrit Cole (elbow) fill-in, holding the D-Backs to one hit in his first MLB appearance since 2022. The righty got himself into trouble in the third, allowing a hit and a walk before advancing both the runners on a wild pitch, opening up the opportunity for Ketel Marte to cash in on a sac fly. Still, Gil looks to be a quality option for the Yankees moving forward and will look to keep the ball rolling in his next projected start Sunday against Toronto -- who got no-hit by Houston's Ronel Blanco on Monday.

McKenzie (0-1) took the loss against Seattle on Monday, allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out two batters over 3.1 innings.

McKenzie breezed through his first frame without any trouble, but a pair of one-out walks in the second set the stage for the Mariners' four-run inning. The right-hander bounced back with a perfect third frame before departing with one out and the bases loaded in the fourth. It wasn't a promising campaign debut for McKenzie, as he notched just seven swinging strikes among his 78 pitches and punched out only two batters. The 26-year-old is attempting to get back on track after being limited to 16 big-league innings last season due to injuries.