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  • Joe Ryan SP | MIN

    Twins' Joe Ryan: Won't pitch for Team USA

    Ryan will no longer pitch for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

    Ryan was in the pitcher pool for the WBC, but Team USA elected to add Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman to the roster instead. Ryan made his spring debut Tuesday after recovering from a back injury that flared up in mid-February. The 29-year-old right-hander is projected to serve as the Twins' starter for Opening Day against the Orioles on March 26. He tossed a career-high 171 innings across 31 regular-season games in 2025 and finished with a 3.42 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 194:39 K:BB.

  • Mets' Justin Hagenman: Lands on 60-day IL

    The Mets placed Hagenman on the 60-day injured list Saturday due to a rib fracture.

    Per Max Goodman of NJ.com, Hagenman started feeling soreness in his ribs after his last outing against the Nationals on March 5 and underwent imaging after the injury got worse. Hagenman's placement on the 60-day IL means he won't be available to make his 2026 regular-season until late May, but manager Carlos Mendoza relayed Saturday that the 28-year-old right-hander doesn't have an exact timeline for a return. In a corresponding move to bolster the bullpen, the Mets claimed southpaw Richard Lovelady off waivers from the Nationals.

  • Zack Littell SP | WAS

    Nationals' Zack Littell: Works three frames in spring debut

    Littell allowed one run on three hits over three innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets. He struck out two without walking a batter.

    Facing a split-squad lineup headlined by younger players like Brett Baty and top prospect Carson Benge, Littell tossed 28 of 39 pitches for strikes in his first spring start since signing a one-year deal with the Nationals on March 8. The veteran right-hander should be able to make two more starts prior to Opening Day, which likely won't be enough time to get fully built up, but Littell would likely be stretched out enough to factor into Washington's first turn through the rotation. If he needs to be held back, Brad Lord appears to be the most likely candidate to make a spot start in Littell's place. Over a career-high 186.1 regular-season innings in 2025 between the Rays and Reds, Littell posted a 3.81 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 130:32 K:BB.

  • Kodai Senga SP | NYM

    Mets' Kodai Senga: Perfect in Friday's start

    Senga struck out five over three perfect innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins.

    The right-hander made short work of a mix of Miami Opening Day starters and minor leaguers, with Senga sitting 96-97 mph with his four-seam fastball and popping 98.6 mph in the second inning to top prospect Joe Mack. Senga was so efficient, firing 28 of 38 pitches for strikes, that he needed to toss an additional 30 pitches in the bullpen after his start, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, in order to stay on track with his buildup. Through 5.2 spring frames, Senga sports a 3.18 ERA and 7:0 K:BB, and he seems locked into a rotation spot as long as he can stay healthy.

  • Kevin Gausman SP | TOR

    Blue Jays' Kevin Gausman: Named Opening Day starter

    The Blue Jays announced Saturday that Gausman will be the team's Opening Day starter March 27 against the Athletics in Toronto.

    The announcement doesn't come as much of a surprise, considering Gausman has been the Blue Jays' ace since joining the franchise in 2022. He's coming off a 2025 campaign in which he pitched a career-high 193 innings during the regular season (32 starts) with a 3.59 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 189:50 K:BB. Gausman will lead a Blue Jays rotation that also features Dylan Cease, Shane Bieber (forearm) and Trey Yesavage.

  • Justin Steele SP | CHC

    Cubs' Justin Steele: Faces live hitters Friday

    Steele (elbow) faced live hitters Friday for the first time in 11 months as he continues his recovery from UCL revision surgery last April, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

    Steele only threw 19 pitches, but it was still an important milestone in his long road back following surgery. The lefty has been ramping up his throwing during the winter and early spring, and he's tentatively targeting a May or June return to the majors. Steele was fairly sharp in his session Friday, recording three strikeouts and two flyball outs, and he said he felt good afterward. The team will surely be cautious with the southpaw, though it looks like he'll be able to help the rotation at some point this year.

  • Johan Oviedo SP | BOS

    Red Sox's Johan Oviedo: Makes fourth spring start

    Oviedo allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out five over 3.1 innings in Friday's spring start against the Rays.

    Oviedo was dynamic in the first inning when he struck out the side before a two-out walk in the third extended the inning and led to two runs. "The first inning was the highlight of his outing," Boston manager Alex Cora told Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. "His stuff is really good. We cannot deny that. And when we throw it over the heart of the plate, there's a lot of outs. So we've just gotta keep doing that consistently." Through four Grapefruit League starts, Oviedo has allowed two runs (1.59 ERA) on eight hits and six walks over 11.1 innings.

  • Casey Mize SP | DET

    Tigers' Casey Mize: Hit hard Friday

    Mize allowed six runs on six hits and four walks across three innings in Friday's Grapefruit League contest against the Pirates. He struck out two.

    This was easily Mize's worst start of the spring slate, as he came into the contest having allowed three total earned runs across 8.1 Grapefruit League innings. He said after the contest that his "mechanics are off," per Jason Beck of MLB.com, which is somewhat concerning at this point during spring training. The righty should still be locked into a regular-season rotation spot, though the Tigers did bolster their pitching staff in the offseason with the additions of Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander, so Mize may be knocked down the pecking order a bit. He stayed mostly healthy last year and posted a 3.87 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 139 strikeouts across 149 regular-season innings.

  • Joey Cantillo SP | CLE

    Guardians' Joey Cantillo: Makes fourth spring start

    Cantillo allowed three runs on three hits and one walk while striking out six over 4.2 innings in Friday's spring start against the Angels.

    Cantillo had a couple of shaky stretches but overall pitched well in his fourth Cactus League start. He opened the game by issuing a walk to Zach Neto and then balked him to second before the runner eventually scored. The lefty then retired the next eight batters before allowing a two-run home run in the fourth inning, which he followed by setting down the next five batters. He left the game after throwing 74 pitches (45 strikes). Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt is still evaluating Cantillo, Logan Allen, Slade Cecconi and Parker Messick for the final three spots in the rotation.

  • Merrill Kelly SP | ARI

    Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly: Expects IL stint

    Kelly (back) said Friday that he expects to be on the injured list to open the regular season, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

    Kelly spoke about his chances of making the Opening Day roster following his Cactus League debut Friday. "I won't go into depth on what the tentative plan is right now, but yeah, as of right now, not very good," the pitcher said. That's the bad news; the good news is that Kelly's back held up over 1.2 innings (36 pitches), which was the priority of the day. Stints on the IL can be backdated three days, which means Kelly would miss at least the first 12 days of the regular season. He would be eligible for activation in time for April 7 against the Mets.

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