Justin Verlander To Throw Another Bullpen Sunday

Houston Astros right-hander Justin Verlander (shoulder) will throw another bullpen session in camp on Sunday, and the Astros will determine Verlander's next step after that. The next step in his progression will be to get cleared to face live hitters, but the Astros aren't going to rush the 41-year-old, especially given all of his injuries […]

Gunnar Henderson Taking Live Batting Practice

Baltimore Orioles third baseman Gunnar Henderson (oblique) is taking live batting practice in camp on Friday for the first time since dealing with a sore oblique muscle early in spring training. Henderson said it shouldn't be much longer before he makes his Grapefruit League debut. Barring a setback of some sort, the 22-year-old youngster will […]

Kerry Carpenter To Run The Bases Friday

Detroit Tigers outfielder Kerry Carpenter (hamstring), who has been facing live pitching on the back fields at camp, will continue his return-to-play progression by running the bases on Friday. Carpenter has been dealing with a left-hamstring strain that he suffered last week. While the 26-year-old has been held out of Grapefruit League games, he could […]

Tarik Skubal To Start On Opening Day

Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal will start the team's Opening Day game on March 28 against the Chicago White Sox, according to manager A.J. Hinch. Skubal only made 15 starts for the Tigers last year after he got a late start to the season due to flexor-tendon surgery on his arm, but he was strong […]

Red Sox Add C.J. Cron On Minor-League Deal

The Boston Red Sox have signed veteran first baseman C.J. Cron to a minor-league contract, and he's expected to compete for a roster spot. Cron is a former All-Star (2022) known more for his power, hitting 28 and 29 home runs in his last two full seasons in Colorado. Last season, Cron missed time due […]

Slow Start For Ozzie Albies Continues Thursday

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies went 0-for-3 on Thursday in a 5-0 Grapefruit League win over the Minnesota Twins. Albies is now 0-for-7 in three spring games with two strikeouts. Hopefully the 3x All-Star is just shaking off the rust. As the No. 1 second baseman coming off draft boards, managers would like to […]

Andres Munoz Strikes Out Two In Spring Debut

Seattle Mariners closer Andres Munoz made his spring debut on Thursday in a 6-5 Cactus League loss to the Chicago White Sox. The righty pitched one inning, needing just eight pitches to get through it. He got Peyton Burdick to pop out on the first pitch he saw and struck out both Brett Phillips and […]

Free College Baseball Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions (3/1/23)

We have an incredible weekend of games on our hands with many spectacular matchups. Two in-state rivals will match up as we have battles of the ACC and SEC between Miami and Florida and Clemson and South Carolina. We also have three round robins at Globe Life Field, Dodger Stadium, and Minute Maid Park. This […]

Top 10 Baltimore Orioles Fantasy Baseball Prospects (2024)

Welcome to my 2024 team-by-team prospect rankings. Over the next few months, I'll be going through all 30 MLB farm systems, ranking my top 10 in each system, and discussing the profiles and long-term outlooks of these players. Per usual, this Baltimore system is absolutely loaded, primarily on the hitting side where they currently have […]

How To Use MLB Prospect Rankings Lists to Win Fantasy Baseball Leagues

There are many excellent sources to get prospect information for MLB fantasy leagues. Some, like Baseball America, have been putting together prospect lists for 30+ years. Others are fairly new to the game but have excellent writers and evaluators to offer plenty of insight. What does all of that mean for your fantasy league, though? […]

Framber Valdez Could Call His Own Pitches

Houston Astros left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez will experiment with calling his own pitches via the PitchCom technology this spring, according to Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Citing a desire for increased control over his outings, Valdez sought permission from pitching coach Josh Miller to make his own pitch selection decisions via PitchCom; he will implement […]

Elehuris Montero Could Force His Way Into Regular Playing Time

Colorado Rockies first baseman Elehuris Montero went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer during Thursday's Cactus League game against the Chicago Cubs. MLB.com's Thomas Harding relayed that manager Bud Black sees Montero as a candidate to play first base or designated hitter in 2024. The veteran skipper also mentioned the club could occasionally play Kris Bryant […]

Dakota Hudson Competing For Rotation Spot

Colorado Rockies pitcher Dakota Hudson is competing for a spot in the starting rotation at the MLB level, according to Thomas Harding of MLB.com. He worked around two walks and one hit to toss a shutout inning on Thursday. Cut loose by the St. Louis Cardinals this past offseason, Hudson posted a 5.06 FIP, 4.98 […]

Alex Bregman Working To Develop More Power

Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman has been working to add more power to his game this offseason, according to Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. Earlier this offseason, Bregman was approached by hitting coach Troy Snitker who had an "intriguing proposition [...] aimed at helping the third baseman produce more power in the upcoming […]

Patrick Wisdom Dealing With Quad Tightness

Chicago Cubs corner infielder Patrick Wisdom (quadriceps) was scratched for precautionary reasons in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Colorado Rockies due to right-quadriceps tightness, according to the team. Wisdom's injury doesn't sound very serious, but Chicago could choose to hold him back for another day or two just to be safe early in spring […]

Emmet Sheehan Should Be Ready By Late March

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that right-hander Emmet Sheehan should be starting to throw around plyo balls soon at camp. There's a chance that he's not ready to go for the two-game series against the San Diego Padres in Korea on March 20-21, but Sheehan shouldn't be behind schedule for domestic Opening Day […]

Christian Walker Has Right-Hand Contusion

Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker (hand) has been diagnosed with a right-hand contusion after being hit by a pitch on his hand and leaving Thursday's Cactus League game early against the San Francisco Giants. Apparently X-rays came back negative on Walker's hand after he was hit by a pitch, so he should be considered […]

Max Kranick Down For A While Due To Hamstring Strain

New York Mets right-hander Max Kranick (hamstring) is dealing with a left-hamstring strain and will "be down a while," according to manager Carlos Mendoza. It effectively takes Kranick out of the competition for the fifth starting spot to open the 2024 season. The 26-year-old could eventually join the Mets' rotation eventually, but he's going to […]

Osleivis Basabe Expected To Return This Weekend

Tampa Bay Rays rookie infielder Osleivis Basabe (head), who injured his head in the Grapefruit League game on Tuesday against the New York Yankees while sliding into third base, is expected to be available to return to spring training action on Friday or Saturday, according to manager Kevin Cash. It sounds as though the 23-year-old […]

Nick Lodolo Throwing Live Batting Practice Thursday

Cincinnati Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo (leg) is scheduled to throw a live batting practice session in camp on Thursday, which could be an important step as he tries to get ready for Opening Day in late March. "If today goes well, he's going to be in good shape. More importantly, if he wakes up tomorrow […]

Miles Mikolas Working On His Slider

St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas was an All-Star in 2018 and 2022, but he struggled to a 9-13 record, 4.78 ERA (4.27 FIP) and 1.32 WHIP with a league-high 226 hits allowed, a league-high 107 earned runs given up, 39 walks and 137 strikeouts in 201 1/3 innings over 35 starts. The 35-year-old topped […]

Christian Walker Leaves Early After Being Hit By Pitch

Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker (hand) left the team's Cactus League game early on Thursday against the San Francisco Giants after being hit on the hand by a pitch. He'll presumably be taken for X-rays, and we'll have the results of those X-rays when they become available. Hopefully, the 32-year-old avoids any breaks in […]

David Villar Seeing Extensive Playing Time In Camp

San Francisco Giants infielder David Villar is once again in the team's Cactus League lineup on Thursday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, starting at first base and batting cleanup. This is already Villar's fifth game in spring training, and so far he's gone 2-for-7 with two doubles and a run scored in Cactus League action. The […]

Jimmy Lambert, Joe Barlow Dealing With Shoulder Soreness

Chicago White Sox relief pitchers Jimmy Lambert and Joe Barlow are both dealing with shoulder soreness in camp. Lambert will be sideline for 10 to 14 days, while Barlow could be out even longer. Lambert has not pitched since making his Cactus League debut on Feb. 25 and is going to be out for some […]

Angels Want Logan O'Hoppe To Catch 125-135 Games

Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington said that he'd like to see catcher Logan O'Hoppe catch roughly 125 to 135 games this year. The Angels are fully expecting O'Hoppe to be their regular backstop in 2024 despite the fact that he missed almost four months in 2023 with a torn labrum in his left shoulder. […]

Ryan Mountcastle Out Sick Thursday

Updating a previous report, Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said that first baseman Ryan Mountcastle (illness) was scratched from Thursday's Grapefruit League lineup against the Pittsburgh Pirates because he was under the weather. Mountcastle is fine and should be back in the lineup in spring training games soon. The 27-year-old right-handed-hitting first baseman missed a […]

Paul Skenes Flashes Triple-Digit Heat In Spring Debut

Pittsburgh Pirates pitching prospect Paul Skenes, the first overall pick in last year's draft, hit 102 mph twice with his fastball in a scoreless first inning in his Grapefruit League debut on Thursday against the Baltimore Orioles. Baltimore catcher Adley Rutschman, a fellow first overall pick, took a 99 mph Skenes fastball to the warning […]

Andres Gimenez Records First Spring Hit On Wednesday

Cleveland Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez picked up his first hit of the spring on Wednesday in an 8-6 Cactus League loss to the Diamondbacks. The hit was a single in the bottom of the sixth inning and he later came around to score. The 2022 All-Star is now 1-for-8 in the spring with one […]

Yasmani Grandal The Starter Over Henry Davis?

When asked if catcher Yasmani Grandal was the team's starting catcher, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton suggested that Grandal would be the starter, but that he would have his workload limited over the course of the season. "Yaz is going to catch. Yas is also 35 years old, so whoever our C2 is is going […]

Brennen Davis In Concussion Protocol

Chicago Cubs outfield prospect Brennen Davis (concussion) was hit by a pitch in Tuesday's Cactus League game and is in the concussion protocol. He will be sidelined until he's able to clear the league's protocols for head injuries. The 24-year-old's concussion is considered mild, so hopefully he'll be able to get back to work sooner […]