February 12, 2026
Baltimore Orioles right-hander
Kyle Bradish has looked sharp early in camp and was seen striking out first baseman
Pete Alonso on Thursday during live batting practice, according to Jake Rill of MLB.com. Although it was a small sample size of only 32 innings over six starts, Bradish looked outstanding in 2025 in his return from Tommy John surgery, allowing only nine earned runs on 23 hits (three homers) while walking 10 and striking out 47. He struck out nine or more hitters in half of his starts for a 37.3% strikeout rate. The 29-year-old surely won't be that dominant over a full season in 2026, but his work last year was extremely encouraging. Since the beginning of 2023, Bradish has a 2.78 ERA (3.03 FIP) and 1.05 WHIP with 268 K's and 69 walks in 240 innings over 44 starts for the O's. He's a nice No. 2 starting pitcher target in fantasy drafts this spring.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Jake Rill
February 12, 2026
The New York Mets signed
Bo Bichette this offseason to play third base, and The Athletic's Will Sammon writes that he "won't be taking reps at shortstop" following
Francisco Lindor's surgery on the hamate bone in his hand. However, Sammon adds that it could change if Lindor's timetable changes. Early this spring with Lindor sidelined, infielders
Vidal Brujan,
Grae Kessinger,
Jackson Cluff, and
Ronny Mauricio will take spring training reps at the 6. The Mets are hoping that Lindor won't miss time, if any, to begin the 2026 regular season, so they'll keep Bichette locked in at the hot corner. The 27-year-old needs all the reps he can get at third, since he's never played the position professionally. Bichette rebounded nicely from an injury-plagued 2024 campaign to hit .311/.357/.483 with an .840 OPS, 18 homers, and 94 RBI in 139 regular-season games last year. He should have a high ceiling for run production while hitting for a high average and producing around 20 homers, and he'll have dual-position eligibility in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Will Sammon
February 12, 2026
The Los Angeles Dodgers announced on Thursday that they reached a contract extension with third baseman
Max Muncy for one year and $10 million guaranteed, according to Jack Harris of The California Post. The deal also includes a $10 million club option for the 2028 season. Muncy will make $7 million in 2027. The 35-year-old veteran was already under contract for 2026 after the Dodgers picked up his $10 million option. Muncy, a two-time All-Star, has missed significant time with injuries the last two seasons. But when he's healthy, he continues to be a strong left-handed power bat with excellent plate discipline in the best lineup in baseball. In 100 regular-season games last year, he hit .243/.376/.470 with an .846 OPS, 19 home runs, 67 RBI, 48 runs, and four steals in 388 plate appearances. Muncy does struggle against lefties and will almost certainly miss time with injury, but he's still an acceptable third base target in fantasy in the mid to late rounds of drafts.
--Keith HernandezSource: The California Post - Jack Harris
February 12, 2026
Chicago White Sox right-hander
Drew Thorpe (elbow) has hit what he described as "road bumps" in his recovery process, according to Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Thorpe visited Dr. Keith Meister last week and was told that his ligament looks solid. Doctors believe his pain is coming from some tendinitis in his elbow. The 25-year-old was placed on the 60-day injured list last March and missed all of 2025 after undergoing Tommy John surgery. The former second-round pick by the New York Yankees in 2022 out of Cal Poly made his major-league debut with Chicago in 2024 and had a 5.48 ERA and 1.26 WHIP with 25 strikeouts and 21 walks in 44 1/3 innings over his nine starts. Thorpe wasn't very sharp in his first taste of the majors, which wasn't exactly a surprise after he skipped Triple-A. While he could be ready for the start of the 2026 season, fantasy managers in dynasty/keeper leagues shouldn't expect Thorpe to contribute until maybe the second half.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Scott Merkin
February 12, 2026
Texas Rangers shortstop prospect
Sebastian Walcott (elbow) will undergo elbow surgery and will likely miss most, if not all, of 2026, according to Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. Walcott was expected to start the season back in the minors, but he almost certainly would have made his major-league debut this year had he been healthy. The 19-year-old is ranked as the No. 7 overall prospect at MLB Pipeline after hitting .255/.355/.386 with 13 home runs and 32 stolen bases in 124 games last year at Double-A Frisco. Despite being the youngest qualified hitter at Double-A in 2025, Walcott posted a 110 wRC+. He also showed improvement with his strikeout rate, walk rate, and swing rate. The 6-foot-4, 190-pounder has plenty of maturing to do, but he has one of the highest fantasy ceilings of any young position-player prospect in the game. Unfortunately, his timeline has been extended by a year.
UPDATE: Walcott has a UCL tear in his elbow.--Keith HernandezSource: The Dallas Morning News - Evan Grant
February 12, 2026
Philadelphia Phillies top pitching prospect
Andrew Painter has no restrictions in spring training, and the Phillies are hoping he wins a rotation spot in camp, according to John Clark of NBC Sports. It's been a long road for Painter to this point after a tear in his UCL was discovered three years ago, which led to Tommy John surgery.
Cristopher Sanchez,
Jesus Luzardo, and
Aaron Nola are locked into the team's top-three rotation spots, but there's a clear opening for Painter now that we know
Zack Wheeler (shoulder) won't be ready for Opening Day. In his first full season back from TJ surgery, Painter struggled, posting a 5.40 ERA and 1.55 WHIP in 22 starts at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The good news is that his stuff looked fine, and he threw a combined 118 innings at two levels. If the 22-year-old is a little sharper than he was last year and he stays healthy, he will most definitely be in play in all fantasy formats as long as he is locked into a rotation spot in Philly.
--Keith HernandezSource: NBC Sports Philadelphia - John Clark
February 12, 2026
New York Yankees pitcher
Luis Gil will throw live batting practice as he looks to get ready for a full 2026 season. Gil will face
Aaron Judge,
Amed Rosario, and
Paul Goldschmidt out of the gate. The 2024 American League Rookie of the Year got a late start to 2025, making his season debut in early August. He went 4-1 with a 3.32 ERA and 4.63 FIP with 41 strikeouts in 57 innings in the regular season. Gil is expected to compete with
Clarke Schmidt for the fifth spot in the rotation for the Yankees this spring training, and the 27-year-old from the Dominican brings a high ceiling if he can return to his 2024 form. In 2024, he had 10.15 K/9, but that dropped all the way to 6.47 K/9 in his limited work last year, causing his FIP and xERA to climb even though his ERA remained low. His progress will be important to watch, and it's a great sign that he's ready to throw live BP this early in the spring.
--Zach ThompsonSource: Gary Phillips
February 12, 2026
Baltimore Orioles first baseman/third baseman
Coby Mayo was the subject of plenty of trade rumors this offseason after the O's signed
Pete Alonso to play 1B on a five-year deal. Mayo has been an elite power prospect for the last few seasons, but he hasn't really established himself in the majors yet. He played 85 games for the O's last year, hitting .217 with 11 homers and a .303 wOBA. He and
Ryan Mountcastle will both be looking for playing time after the Alonso addition, but space could be opening up with 2B
Jackson Holliday (hand) needing surgery and
Jordan Westburg (oblique) behind schedule in his ramp-up to Opening Day. Mayo could be part of the solution to fill in for Holliday, since he could play 3B, while Westburg slides to 2B. Mayo played 1B mostly last season but came through the minors at 3B, where he was working out on a backfield in Orioles spring training on Wednesday. If Mayo can build on his strong September and have a strong spring at the plate, he could earn an Opening Day roster spot, and his power potential is intriguing enough to make him worth watching as a late-round flier.
--Zach ThompsonSource: Andy Kostka
February 12, 2026
Atlanta Braves pitcher
Grant Holmes (elbow) was diagnosed with a partially torn UCL last season and shut down at the end of July. He opted not to undergo surgery, instead resting and rehabbing, and now he wonders if it was a pre-existing condition, based on his quick recovery so quickly. The 29-year-old righty has no restrictions coming into spring training and could end up in the starting rotation that has already lost
Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow) for an extended period of time to start the season. Holms will join Reynaldo López,
Spencer Strider, and
Chris Sale as the established rotation pieces, with
Bryce Elder,
Hurston Waldrep, and
Joey Wentz competing for the fifth spot. Holmes went 4-9 with a 3.99 ERA, 4.40 FIP, and 123 strikeouts in his 115 innings last season. How well his elbow responds to the spring workload will be critical to monitor to see if he breaks camp in the starting rotation for the Braves.
--Zach ThompsonSource: Mark Bowman
February 12, 2026
Washington Nationals starting pitcher
DJ Herz (elbow) will continue to rehab from his Tommy John surgery to start the season and won't be available until mid-season at the earliest. He underwent the procedure last April, so he could return at some point this season, depending on how the recovery goes. The young lefty showed some upside as a rookie in 2024, with 106 strikeouts in 88 2/3 innings, going 4-9 in 19 starts. His main issue was control problems in his rise through the minors, and he'll need to regain his control after the procedure if he wants to make an impact this season. He's not someone you need to worry about in drafts in almost any format, but he could be a midseason pickup or streaming option late in the year as he looks to return to fantasy relevance for 2027.
--Zach ThompsonSource: Mark Zuckerman
February 12, 2026
Free-agent relief pitcher
Julian Merryweather is joining the Twins bullpen mix by signing a minor-league deal with an invite to camp. The 34-year-old righty has pitched for the Blue Jays and Cubs over the last six seasons, with his best year coming in 2023, when he went 5-1 with a 3.38 ERA and 3.52 FIP in 69 games out of the bullpen while racking up 98 strikeouts in 72 innings. He has battled injury since then, though, and only pitched in 33 2/3 innings over the last two seasons with reduced velocity resulting in a 6.15 ERA and 4.25 FIP. With the Twins bullpen still very uncertain, Merryweather i sanother name to track this spring training to see if he can earn a role in Minnesota.
--Zach ThompsonSource: Dan Hayes
February 11, 2026
Free-agent right-handed reliever
Liam Hendriks signed a minor-league deal with the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday that includes an invitation to major-league spring training, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Hendriks, a three-time All-Star, has only made 19 relief appearances since the start of the 2023 season due to injuries. The 37-year-old veteran Australian missed time last year with hip and elbow injuries and pitched in only 14 games for the Boston Red Sox, allowing 11 runs (10 earned) on 12 hits (two homers) while walking seven and striking out 12 in 13 2/3 innings. The Twins certainly could use the experience in their bullpen, but Hendriks is going to have to pitch well this spring and stay healthy to earn an Opening Day bullpen spot in Minnesota. Hendriks has 116 career saves in 14 major-league seasons, but fantasy managers should be looking to ignore him for now.
--Keith HernandezSource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
February 11, 2026
Free-agent right-hander
Chris Bassitt and the Baltimore Orioles agreed on a one-year, $18.5 million contract on Wednesday night, sources told Jeff Passan of ESPN. The 36-year-old now joins an overhauled Orioles rotation that also includes
Shane Baz,
Zach Eflin,
Kyle Bradish,
Trevor Rogers, and
Dean Kremer. Bassitt will stay in the American League East after going 11-9 with a 3.96 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 166:52 K:BB in 170 1/3 innings over 32 regular-season outings (31 starts) in 2025 with the Toronto Blue Jays. The veteran hurler isn't overpowering (career 22% strikeout rate), but he does an excellent job at avoiding hard contact. Bassitt was in the 85th percentile last year in average exit velocity and the 80th percentile in hard-hit rate, and he's made at least 30 starts each year since 2022. At his age, fantasy managers know what they are getting: a safe, dependable back-end starter with a limited ceiling.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Jeff Passan
February 11, 2026
The Denver Post's Kyle Newman writes that new Colorado Rockies outfielder
Jake McCarthy "could very well end up starting in right field" to begin the 2026 season over
Mickey Moniak. McCarthy can play all three outfield spots and will be the fastest Rockies player with a sprint speed in the 99th percentile. The 28-year-old finished fourth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting back in 2022 and played in a career-high 142 games in 2024, but he dealt with injuries and slumped to the tune of a .204/.247/.345 slash line with a career-worst .591 OPS in 67 games (222 plate appearances) last year. McCarthy faces significant competition in Colorado's outfield, but if he bounces back, he could make the left-handed-hitting Moniak expendable. Speed is McCarthy's greatest asset, and although he doesn't have much power, he's a more intriguing bench stash in deeper fantasy leagues now that he's in Colorado.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Denver Post - Kyle Newman
February 11, 2026
The Pittsburgh Pirates placed right-hander
Jared Jones (elbow) on the 60-day injured list on Wednesday to make room on the 40-man roster for recently signed right-hander
Jose Urquidy, according to Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Jones' placement on the 60-day IL was expected, as he's not projected to make his 2026 season debut until sometime in late May after he had surgery to fix a torn UCL in his right arm last May. We'll have a clearer timetable for the 24-year-old once he begins to ramp up his throwing program. Despite the surgery, Jones has lots of long-term potential in Pittsburgh after impressing in his rookie campaign in 2024. In his first 22 big-league starts, the former second-rounder went 6-8 with a 4.14 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and 132:39 K:BB in 121 2/3 frames. At best, Jones will be a speculative late-round selection in fantasy drafts this year, with the Bucs most likely handling him with extreme caution when he's finally back.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pittsburgh PG - Colin Beazley
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