Brewers Notes: Priester, Henderson, Quero
Quinn Priester has battled lingering wrist soreness throughout the spring. The Brewers will place him on the 15-day injured list to begin the season. The timeline beyond that isn’t entirely clear, but Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports that Priester will visit a specialist on Wednesday to try to identify the source of the problem.
Priester described the injury last week as intermittent soreness rather than any acute injury. It traces back to the second half of last season. Priester has been able to continue playing catch but hasn’t pitched in a game this spring. They’ll hope that tomorrow’s evaluation can give them a clearer path forward. There’s no indication yet it’s a serious injury. According to the MLB.com injury tracker, the team is still hoping he’ll make his season debut at some point in April.
Manager Pat Murphy said last week that Jacob Misiorowski and Chad Patrick were the only locks for the Opening Day rotation. Brandon Woodruff will obviously be in there as well if he’s sufficiently built up from last year’s lat issue. He threw two innings and 32 pitches in his Spring Training debut over the weekend. Priester would have been a lock if healthy after turning in a 3.32 ERA across 157 1/3 innings last year.
His injury leaves at least two spots up for grabs to begin the season. Logan Henderson has a good chance to win one of them after pitching to a 1.78 ERA while striking out a third of opponents over his first five career starts.
Henderson, who finished last season on the injured list with elbow inflammation, reported minor elbow discomfort over the weekend. Fortunately, the Brewers don’t seem concerned. McCalvy relays that the 24-year-old is feeling better and scheduled to return to mound work tomorrow. He could be back in Cactus League action as soon as this weekend. Henderson has pitched four innings of two-run ball with one strikeout across two spring appearances. It’s a situation to monitor but one that isn’t currently trending towards an IL stay.
Offseason trade acquisitions Brandon Sproat and Kyle Harrison are probably competing with Henderson and lefty Robert Gasser for the rotation jobs. Murphy has also left open the idea of using Aaron Ashby or DL Hall as starters, though they profile better in relief roles.
Hall and Harrison — each of whom has only logged three Spring Training innings so far — are the respective scheduled starters for the next two games. Sproat has surrendered three runs despite striking out seven of 21 opponents. Gasser has been hit around for seven runs on a trio of homers across 6 1/3 frames.
The Brewers also made a few camp cuts this week, most notably optioning catching prospect Jeferson Quero. He’ll begin the season back in Triple-A, where he hit .255/.336/.412 across 250 plate appearances last season. That was the expectation after the Brewers signed Gary Sánchez to a cheap one-year deal to work behind William Contreras.
Non-roster invitee Reese McGuire is also in camp but has an uphill path to a roster spot barring injury. He has gone 2-14 with a homer and six strikeouts. Sánchez has also struggled, hitting .208 without an extra-base knock in 27 trips to the plate. Contreras, Sánchez and Quero are the three catchers on the 40-man roster. McGuire, who cannot be sent to the minors without his consent if he secures a 40-man spot, could attract interest from another team with more flexibility in the backup role later in camp.
Latest On Angels’ Rotation Mix
The Angels entered camp with three-fifths of their rotation set. Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano and Reid Detmers were locked in. Offseason reclamation pickups Grayson Rodriguez and Alek Manoah started the spring as the favorites for the final two spots.
Neither has made a great first impression. Rodriguez has allowed seven runs with a 7:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio through eight innings. He has at least had encouraging velocity, averaging 95 mph on his fastball. He’s a wild card after missing the past season and a half to shoulder issues.
Manoah has had an even tougher time, giving up five runs with eight walks and only four strikeouts through 7 1/3 frames. The former Cy Young finalist, who also hasn’t made an MLB appearance since 2024, has been in the 91-92 mph range with his fastball. His velocity was in a similar spot last season in the minor leagues. Manoah threw 93-94 on average before undergoing elbow surgery two seasons ago.
Both pitchers still have a pair of minor league option years remaining. Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com writes that Manoah’s struggles, in particular, have opened the door to him beginning the season in the minors. That’d obviously open a rotation spot for someone else. Jack Kochanowicz and Sam Aldegheri seemingly represent the top two challengers.
Kochanowicz was arguably the worst regular starter in MLB last season. Among pitchers with 100+ innings, no one had a higher earned run average than his 6.81 mark. Only Erick Fedde had a lower strikeout/walk rate differential. Kochanowicz finished the season on optional assignment to Triple-A Salt Lake.
The sinkerballer has put a stronger foot forward in camp. Kochanowicz has only allowed two runs in 8 2/3 innings spanning three appearances. He has recorded five strikeouts with one walk while keeping the ball on the ground at a 60% clip. That shouldn’t outweigh last year’s struggles, but it could be enough to jump the struggling Manoah on the depth chart.
Aldegheri is one of the team’s more talented pitching prospects. He has been knocked around for a 6.41 ERA in his first seven big league appearances but is coming off a 3.78 ERA season in Triple-A. Aldegheri has only made two Spring Training outings for the Halos. His most impressive performance to date came for the surprisingly undefeated Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic. Aldegheri struck out eight over 4 2/3 scoreless frames against Brazil (admittedly one of the worst teams in the tournament).
Mitch Farris has had a slight velocity uptick this spring, but he has been rocked for 12 runs in six innings. Caden Dana is behind in camp after an offseason mononucleosis diagnosis. Walbert Ureña has made one career Triple-A start, while Victor Mederos has already been optioned out of MLB camp. Prospect George Klassen leads their group of non-roster invites. The 24-year-old has only made one Triple-A start but has bigger stuff than any of the depth pitchers on the 40-man roster.
It’s a rough group, but the Angels showed little interest in making a significant free agent upgrade. That’s essentially off the table at this point. Lucas Giolito, whose previous brief stint as an Angel couldn’t have gone worse, is the only unsigned starter who’s guaranteed to command a big league contract. Patrick Corbin and old friend Tyler Anderson are probably looking at minor league deals as they enter their respective age-36 seasons.
Rays Bullpen Notes: Uceta, Gómez, Rock
The Rays have had a fairly uneventful camp so far. They haven’t lost anyone to what appear to be major injuries. Their expected rotation is on schedule, while the majority of their projected starting lineup has been locked in since the beginning of camp.
The bullpen is the one area of the roster that’s more in flux. They announced a couple weeks ago that middle reliever Steven Wilson will begin the season on the injured list with a back issue. Meanwhile, righty Edwin Uceta has yet to pitch this spring after being delayed by shoulder inflammation.
Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times unsurprisingly writes that Uceta is not expected to be ready by Opening Day. The 28-year-old doesn’t appear to be facing a long-term absence, however. Uceta has been playing catch without issue. It’s not clear if he’ll make it into an exhibition game before camp closes. He shouldn’t need a ton of time to build up for regular season game readiness after that.
A season-opening injured list stint for Uceta would open another middle relief spot. Tampa Bay has three locks for high-leverage relief roles: Garrett Cleavinger, Griffin Jax and Bryan Baker. No one else is firmly locked into the Opening Day mix. Righties Cole Sulser and Yoendrys Gómez are out of minor league options. They need to break camp or be exposed to waivers.
Gómez was an offseason trade pickup alongside Wilson in a deal that sent outfielder Everson Pereira to the White Sox. The Rays wouldn’t have made that trade if they didn’t expect Gómez to have a strong chance of breaking camp. His case for a roster spot is bolstered by his ability to work multiple innings.
Topkin writes that the Rays plan to carry multiple long relievers to begin the season. That’ll give them some cover for starters Shane McClanahan and Steven Matz. McClanahan hasn’t thrown an MLB pitch since 2023 because of various injuries. Matz is building back to rotation work after pitching out of the bullpen for the Cardinals and Red Sox last year. He only threw 76 2/3 innings. They’ll be in the rotation, but the Rays will exercise caution with their workloads early on.
Gómez made nine starts in 21 appearances a season ago, tossing 62 2/3 innings overall. He threw five innings of two-run ball over his first four appearances this spring. Gómez stepped away from the team to pitch for Venezuela during pool play of the World Baseball Classic. He tossed two scoreless innings with three strikeouts against Nicaragua on Monday.
Although Venezuela qualified for the quarterfinals, Gómez returned to Rays camp this week as he tries to nail down a roster spot. Ian Seymour and Joe Boyle are also capable of shouldering multiple innings out of the bullpen or working as rotation depth at Triple-A Durham.
Left-hander Joe Rock worked as a multi-inning depth arm last season. The 25-year-old tossed 7 2/3 innings of two-run ball over his first three big league appearances. He had shakier numbers in Triple-A, where he allowed a 5.21 earned run average across 96 2/3 innings.
Rock will begin this season back in Durham after being optioned out of MLB camp this afternoon. He’ll do so in a different role, as Adam Berry of MLB.com writes that the Rays are converting the former second-round pick to short relief. Rock worked exactly one frame in each of his five Spring Training appearances. He struck out nine and only allowed three hits and one run, though he walked six of the 23 hitters he faced.
Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates went into the winter with a lot of pitching and almost no hitting. They spent the offseason smoothing out that imbalance and the team looks better going into 2026. Is it enough to get them back to the playoffs for first time in over a decade?
Major League Signings
- 1B/OF Ryan O’Hearn: Two years, $29MM
- DH Marcell Ozuna: One year, $12MM (includes $1.5MM buyout on $16MM mutual option for 2027)
- LHP Gregory Soto: One year, $7.75MM
- RHP José Urquidy: One year, $1.5MM
2026 spending: $35.25MM
Total spending: $50.25MM
Trades and Claims
- Claimed RHP Dugan Darnell from Rockies (later lost to Tigers via waivers)
- Acquired OF Jhostynxon García and RHP Jesus Travieso from Red Sox for RHP Johan Oviedo, LHP Tyler Samaniego and C Adonys Guzman
- Claimed OF Marco Luciano from Giants (later lost to Orioles via waivers)
- Acquired RHP Jaiker Garcia from Rangers for Rule 5 pick Carter Baumler
- Acquired 2B Brandon Lowe, OF Jake Mangum and LHP Mason Montgomery from Rays in three-team trade, with RHP Mike Burrows going from Pirates to Astros
- Acquired IF Francisco Loreto from Phillies for RHP Chase Shugart
- Acquired IF/OF Tyler Callihan from Reds for RHP Kyle Nicolas
Option Decisions
- None
Notable Minor League Signings
- Joe La Sorsa, Noah Murdock, Beau Burrows, Ronny Simón, Davis Wendzel, Dominic Fletcher, Chris Devenski, Noah Davis, Mike Clevinger, Carson Fulmer
Extensions
- None
Notable Losses
- Andrew McCutchen, Tommy Pham, Jack Little (waivers), Ji Hwan Bae (waivers), José Castillo (waivers), Liover Peguero, Cam Devanney (released and signed in Japan), Colin Holderman (non-tendered), Dauri Moreta (non-tendered, still unsigned), Alexander Canario (non-tendered and signed in Japan), Johan Oviedo, Mike Burrows, Chase Shugart, Jack Suwinski (waivers), Kyle Nicolas
The Bucs have been stuck in a rebuilding pattern for a while. They haven’t made the playoffs since 2015 and haven’t topped 82 wins in any season since then. They flirted with contention in recent seasons, though in the era of the expanded playoffs, that just means they floated near .500 for parts of the summer.
They have graduated a lot of exciting pitching prospects to the majors in recent years but have struggled to hit. The 2025 team scored 583 runs, lowest in the majors. The team had a combined .231/.305/.350 batting line, which translated to an 82 wRC+, indicating the squad was collectively 18% worse than league average. The only guy on the team with a wRC+ greater than 101 was Spencer Horwitz, who started the season on the injured list due to wrist surgery and did most of his damage in the second half.
Despite the clear deficiencies on the roster, there was a case for making a strong push this offseason. Paul Skenes has just four years of club control remaining and may not spend all of that in Pittsburgh. His salary will increase via arbitration in 2027 and he may not sign an extension, so he could be traded before reaching free agency, currently slated for the 2029-30 offseason. Konnor Griffin became the top prospect in baseball in 2025 and put himself in position to make a major league debut in 2026. If you’re not going to invest around these stars, then when?
The club has not been active in free agency historically. They have never given a free agent $40MM in franchise history. Since Ben Cherington took over as general manager in 2019, he had never signed a free agent to a multi-year deal or signed a one-year deal worth as much as $11MM. But in the early offseason, Cherington suggested they could add $30-40MM to the payroll. That wouldn’t be too exciting for a lot of clubs but would be an increase for the Bucs. There was also the trade market, as they appeared to have enough starting pitching that flipping some for offense seemed possible.
Given the weakness of the lineup, the Bucs had the freedom to target almost any bat, regardless of position. Quickly, it became clear that Cherington’s words weren’t completely hollow, as he went after some of the top available guys. It was reported in mid-November that the club had made a strong offer to Josh Naylor before he had re-signed with the Mariners and they were also in the mix for Kyle Schwarber. Signing either would have required shattering their $39MM franchise record for a free agent deal. They were also connected to guys like Kazuma Okamoto and Jorge Polanco in the early offseason.
Their first notable move wasn’t for a surefire lineup boost, but it did feature the pitching-for-hitting framework that was expected. There were five players in the deal but the headline was that the Bucs sent righty Johan Oviedo to the Red Sox for outfield prospect Jhostynxon García. Oviedo had shown some promise in 2023 when he posted a 4.31 earned run average over 32 starts. He missed 2024 due to surgery, returned in 2025 and put up a 3.57 ERA with more strikeouts but also more walks.
Oviedo has two years of club control remaining and may have some upside but the Pirates had enough starting pitching talent to part ways with him. By doing so, they added an intriguing but unproven outfielder to their roster. García has been on some top 100 prospect lists but has just five big league games under his belt. He should have a chance to earn some playing time but his path would eventually be crowded by the rest of Pittsburgh’s offseason moves.
The Schwarber dream died on December 9th, when he returned to the Phils on a five-year, $150MM deal. The Bucs reportedly offered him a four-year deal in the $120MM range. That obviously wasn’t enough but it signaled that there was indeed some change in the pocket.
On the same date that the Schwarber news dropped, the Bucs did get a deal done, but with a reliever. They agreed to a one-year deal with Gregory Soto worth $7.75MM. Soto had a 4.40 ERA over the past three years but with perhaps more interesting numbers under the hood. His 9.4% walk rate was around average for a reliever, while his 25.9% strikeout rate and 48.4% ground ball rate were a few ticks better than par. A .325 batting average on balls in play and 67.7% strand rate seemed to hurt him, which is why his 3.55 FIP and 3.55 SIERA were more optimistic. If his ERA trends closer to those other metrics, it could be a nice bit of business for the Pirates.
A little over a week later, the Pirates made their first surefire upgrade to the lineup. Like the Oviedo-García swap, this one would see the Bucs trading from their rotation depth. In a three-team trade, they sent Mike Burrows to the Astros in order to receive infielder Brandon Lowe, outfielder Jake Mangum and left-hander Mason Montgomery from the Rays. Burrows was a steep price to pay, as he has six years of club control remaining. But the Pirates had several such arms in their rotation mix and didn’t have room for all of them.
The biggest upgrade for 2026 is Lowe, though he is just a rental, since there is one year left on his contract. But he’s one of the top power bats at the second base position. He has 81 home runs over the past five years. Only four primary second baseman have more. The four guys ahead of him all played a larger sample of games in that span, which speaks to some injury trouble Lowe has had, which is the main knock against him. Though he doesn’t count as a free agent, the Bucs are taking on his contract and will pay him $11.5MM this year.
Mangum and Montgomery are more complementary pieces of the trade but still potentially impactful. Mangum’s first year in the big leagues saw him steal 27 bases and get strong grades for his glovework. His bat was a bit below par but he was still useful on the whole. He has five years of club control and a full slate of options. Even if he’s just a fourth outfielder type, he has value. If his bat finds a new gear, then that’s even better. Montgomery has huge strikeout stuff but poor control. He’s a project but one with upside if things break right. He also comes with five years of club control and has options.
The Bucs were clearly not content to stop after Lowe. In the coming days, they would be connected to guys like Eugenio Suárez and Yoán Moncada. Just before the holiday break, they pulled the trigger on a free agent addition, a two-year deal with Ryan O’Hearn worth $29MM. While a notch below the Schwarber/Naylor pursuits, it was still somewhat notable as the biggest free agent deal of Cherington’s tenure.
O’Hearn isn’t a superstar but has been solidly above average at the plate. Over the past three years, he has 46 home runs, a .277/.343/.445 line and 121 wRC+. He has some ability to play the outfield but is more of a first baseman. It initially seemed like he and Horwitz would share first base and the designated hitter spot, but this would change in the coming months.
The Pirates were still hunting for more offense, getting connected to various bats throughout January. They also showed some interest in Framber Valdez as he lingered unsigned, though that seemed like an odd fit and he eventually landed with the Tigers.
They did apparently have room for one arm in the rotation after their recent trades, as they landed José Urquidy on a one-year deal worth $1.5MM. The Bucs usually sign a cheap left-hander late in the offseason. Since PNC Park is so tough on righty power, those lefties can usually outperform their contracts. Urquidy is right-handed but is basically filling that role since he has reverse splits in his career.
There was one more clear lineup boost to come, as the Pirates signed Marcell Ozuna to a one-year, $12MM deal in February. It’s a bit risky since Ozuna is 35 years old and coming off a down year, by his standards. His season was weighed down by a summer slump which coincided with him battling a hip injury. Perhaps he can bounce back with a full season of health but that’s no guarantee at his age.
In addition to the risk, the addition also gummed up the lineup a little bit. Ozuna is just a designated hitter at this point in his career. He didn’t play the field at all in 2024 or 2025 and was in the outfield for just 14 innings in 2023. If he’s in the DH spot most days, Lowe is at second and Horwitz is at first, that means O’Hearn will have to be in the outfield almost every day. He’s never started more than 23 games on the grass in any season of his career, so that will be new for him, but it seems the Bucs are willing to make that compromise as they try to add as much thump to the lineup as possible.
In addition to displacing O’Hearn, there are other ripple effects. With Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz in the other two outfield spots, guys like García and Mangum will be pushed to fourth outfielder roles or maybe even the minors. It also effectively closed off any chance of another reunion with Andrew McCutchen. He seemed frustrated by the situation but eventually moved on, signing a minor league deal with the Rangers.
The Bucs added one more guy into the depth picture with a spring trade. They sent reliever Kyle Nicolas to the Reds in exchange for infielder/outfielder Tyler Callihan. Nicolas is almost like a righty version of Montgomery, with big stuff but poor control. If he puts it together in Cincinnati, this one could sting, but it’s also possible that doesn’t happen. Callihan has just four big league games under his belt but strong minor league numbers. He played first base, second base and left field last year, so he provides depth in a few spots.
It was a busy offseason and it feels like there’s more optimism surrounding the Pirates than there has been for quite some time. When combining free agents and the money they took on in the Lowe deal, they added roughly $50MM to the 2026 payroll.
Despite trading away several arms, they project to have a rotation including Skenes, Mitch Keller, Braxton Ashcraft, Bubba Chandler and Urquidy. Jared Jones will return from his surgery rehab at some point, perhaps as early as late May. Prospects Thomas Harrington and Hunter Barco will be lurking in Triple-A.
The lineup will need incumbent guys like Reynolds and Cruz to bounce back but the Bucs have added Lowe, O’Hearn and Ozuna as three everyday upgrades. Guys like Garcia, Mangum and Callihan will be pushing for jobs over time. The left side of the infield feels like a weak spot but Griffin should be up to take over shortstop at some point, maybe as soon as Opening Day. That would leave guys like Jared Triolo, Nick Gonzales and others fighting over third base.
Is this enough to get them over the hump? The National League Central is in fairly healthy shape. The Cardinals are rebuilding but the Brewers, Cubs and Reds all made the playoffs last year. Did the Pirates add enough to leapfrog someone?
How would you grade the Pirates' offseason?
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Dyer, Imagn Images
Bryce Miller May Start Season On Injured List
Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller may not be available for the start of the season. Per Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, Miller felt some soreness in his left side today and didn’t finish his bullpen session. “He’s definitely behind,” Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said. “It’s the type of injury where it seems wise not to push him too fast. Obviously, we won’t make any decisions until we need to.”
Miller was slowed by some left side soreness about two weeks ago. An MRI revealed some inflammation and he was given a platelet-rich plasma injection. His planned bullpen session today was part of a ramp-up that could have seen him stretched out for the start of the season. This setback appears to put that in jeopardy. He is not being fully shut down, as he will still be playing catch and doing some other activities, but the Mariners will want the soreness to clear before he fully lets it fly from a mound again.
It doesn’t seem like this is a major issue but it could be an early test of Seattle’s rotation depth. The Mariners have a strong starting group when everyone is healthy, as they have Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Luis Castillo and Miller. Once they have to dip into their depth, things get a bit more questionable. Divish mentions Cooper Criswell and Emerson Hancock as the two guys most likely to step up if Miller does miss some time.
Criswell’s best season to date was his 2024 showing with the Red Sox. He tossed 99 1/3 innings in a swing role, allowing 4.08 earned runs per nine. His 17.2% strikeout rate was subpar but he only walked 7.3% of opponents and induced grounders on 50.3% of balls in play. In 2025, the Sox added some arms and Criswell was mostly blocked, only making seven big league appearances. He had a decent showing in Triple-A, throwing 65 2/3 innings with a 3.70 ERA, 24.5% strikeout rate, 10.1% walk rate and 49.4% ground ball rate.
Despite the passable numbers, Criswell exhausted his final option in 2025, pushing him to fringe roster status. The Sox signed him to a 2026 deal with an $800K salary, a bit above the $780K league minimum, even though he hadn’t yet qualified for arbitration. The plan seemed to be to pass him through waivers, allowing him to serve as Triple-A depth even though he’s out of options. That plan didn’t work, as the Mets claimed him off waivers in December. When the Mets nudged him off their roster, Seattle sent some cash to Queens to get him from DFA limbo.
Criswell’s number are fine but there’s a bit of risk there. His velocity doesn’t reach 90 miles per hour, making him a soft-tosser in this era. He has been able to get guys out regardless, but it’s a fine line to walk.
Hancock is a former sixth overall pick but his big league performance hasn’t lived up to that status yet. Over the past three years, he has given the M’s 162 2/3 innings with a 4.81 ERA, 15.6% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and 40.1% ground ball rate.
One thing that may perhaps work in Criswell’s favor is that Hancock still has an option, so he could be sent to Triple-A to stay stretched out there. Since Criswell is out of options, he needs to either be in the rotation or the bullpen. If Criswell does end up with the rotation spot, that would help alleviate the pressure in the bullpen. Seattle’s eight projected relief arms are all out of options except for Matt Brash and Jose A. Ferrer, who are too good to be sent down.
If Hancock and Criswell are both up in the big leagues, Blas Castano would be the only optionable depth starter in the Triple-A rotation. He has just one major league appearance on his track record and posted a 5.19 ERA in Triple-A last year. The Mariners have Dane Dunning, Jhonathan Díaz, Randy Dobnak and Casey Lawrence in camp as non-roster invitees with some big league experience.
Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images
Orioles Notes: Mountcastle, Mayo
Orioles first baseman/designated hitter Ryan Mountcastle was lifted from the eighth inning of today’s Grapefruit League contest after being plunked on the right hand, but the team has already announced that initial x-rays came back negative. Mountcastle will presumably be considered day-to-day for the time being.
A fracture or any sort of notable injury would only have piled on to what’s been an injury-marred camp for the Orioles this spring in Sarasota. Baltimore has already lost Jordan Westburg (partial UCL tear), Jackson Holliday (hamate fracture) and Andrew Kittredge (shoulder inflammation).
The offseason signing of Pete Alonso pushed Mountcastle out of an everyday role in Baltimore, but he’s still in the mix for DH reps and occasional time at first base. Injuries to Westburg and Holliday have thrust Coby Mayo (third base) and trade acquisition Blaze Alexander (second base) into likely starting jobs. Those injuries create more opportunity for both Mountcastle and catcher/first baseman Samuel Basallo at the DH spot.
Of course, that assumes Mountcastle breaks camp with the club at all. He didn’t seem like a lock to be tendered a contract coming off an injury-ruined season in 2025, but the O’s passed on their chance to cut him loose. After tendering him a contract, they agreed to a one-year deal worth $6.72MM — a contract that includes a 2027 club option that gave the O’s control over what would’ve been Mountcastle’s first free agent season.
The O’s shopped Mountcastle throughout the offseason and have continued to discuss him during spring trade scenarios. The injuries elsewhere on the roster perhaps make a Mountcastle trade a bit less likely, but an injury of his own would have all but eliminated the possibility. With today’s clean bill of health, it seems like an eventual move could at least plausibly be on the table. MLBTR’s Anthony Franco took a look at some logical landing spots for Mountcastle just last week.
The early spate of injuries has already prompted the Orioles to pump the brakes on a potential trade of the aforementioned Mayo. He’s seen his name kicked around the rumor circuit for the better part of 18 months, but Mayo now appears poised to open the season at the hot corner. Kyle Goon of the Baltimore Banner takes a look at the wild ride Mayo has been on over the past year, being asked to change positions multiple times and slowly feeling as though his standing in the organization was slipping.
Mayo played shortstop prior to being drafted, was quickly moved to third base, and was told following the 2025 season that he should prepare strictly as a first baseman — the position he played down the stretch with regularity last year. He then watched the Orioles sign Alonso to a five-year contract, retain Mountcastle in arbitration and effectively ensure that Basallo would be on the roster moving forward by signing him to an eight-year extension.
“I think you just have to remember that there’s a plan out there for you, no matter if it was with the Orioles or with another team,” Mayo said of the tumultuous run he’s had over the past year-plus. “I’m gonna always do what I can to help myself out and get better. There’s nothing to gain out of sulking and being upset about moves a team has made. Going into the spring, who knew that we were gonna have two guys go down in a weeklong span? Like, we had no idea.”
New O’s skipper Craig Albernaz tells Goon that he’s “more than comfortable” opening the year with Mayo as his primary third baseman. In all likelihood, that’ll be the plan. Mayo has made three errors back at the hot corner but has hit well enough to overshadow those concerns for the time being. He was out of the lineup today, but Mayo is 13-for-26 with three doubles, a homer and only one strikeout in 28 spring plate appearances. He also hasn’t taken a walk, leading to an oddball line with his OBP checking in south of his batting average: .500/.464/.731. (Mayo has two sacrifice flies on the spring, hence the OBP discrepancy.)
Kyle Teel Out Four To Six Weeks With Hamstring Strain
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 right hamstring strain and could be out anywhere between four and six weeks, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com. He’ll open the season on the 10-day injured list.
Teel, 24, suffered the injury last night when legging out a double in Italy’s upset win over the United States in the World Baseball Classic. He ran hard out of the box and pulled up limping shortly after rounding the first base bag (video link). Teel was visibly frustrated when standing on second base, clearly aware that he’d an injury of some note. He left the field with the training staff, albeit under his own power.
It’s a sour note on which to end Teel’s WBC run and on which to begin his 2026 season. The 2023 first-rounder headlined the prospect package the White Sox received when trading Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox last offseason and quickly broke out as what looks like Chicago’s catcher of the future. Teel played in 78 games last year, tallied 297 plate appearances and batted .273/.375/.411 with eight homers, 11 doubles and a huge 12.5% walk rate. His defense could use some improvement, but the lefty-swinging Teel looks the part of a big league catcher with strong offense for the position.
With Teel sidelined, the South Siders will open the season with Edgar Quero and Korey Lee as their catching tandem. Quero, like Teel, is a trade acquisition and former top prospect, coming to the Sox by way of the 2023 Lucas Giolito/Reynaldo Lopez trade with the Angels. The Cuban-born Quero is a switch-hitter who logged a respectable .268/.333/.356 slash (95 wRC+) in 403 plate appearances last year, though his glovework drew particularly poor grades; he caught only 15.8% of attempted thieves on the basepaths and graded as one of the worst pitch framers in the game.
Teel’s injury means Quero will open the season in a starting role and look to improve on both his power output and his defensive acumen behind the plate. Lee is another former first-round pick whom the Astros added in a trade (Kendall Graveman, 2023). He profiles strictly as a backup at this point, having slashed .195/.237/.325 with 14 homers in 504 plate appearances with the Sox — but only a 5.2% walk rate and a gaudy 29.6% strikeout rate. Lee has nabbed nearly one-quarter of runners who’ve attempted to steal against him since being traded to Chicago, but he’s drawn below-average grades for his framing and his efforts to block balls in the dirt.
The injury to Teel allows the White Sox to kick the can down the road a bit when it comes to a decision on their catching corps. Teel and Quero seem like the clear long-term candidates at the position, while the 27-year-old Lee (28 in July) is out of minor league options. He’ll now have at least a bit of runway to make a case that he deserves to stay on the roster once Teel is healthy, but Lee’s hold on a roster spot alongside a healthy Teel and Quero looks tenuous at best. Drew Romo, a former top prospect with the Rockies, is also in camp as non-roster depth if the Sox incur further injuries among their catching group.
Yankees’ Brock Selvidge Undergoes UCL Surgery
Yankees prospect Brock Selvidge underwent an internal brace procedure on his left elbow and will miss the 2026 season as a result, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.
Selected by the Yankees with their third-round pick back in 2021, the now-23-year-old Selvidge isn’t on the team’s 40-man roster and went unclaimed in December’s Rule 5 Draft. He was still a candidate to make his big league debut at some point in 2026, having gone through a second stint at Double-A in 2025, where he logged a 4.68 ERA, an 18.9% strikeout rate and a 12.2% walk rate. He tossed two scoreless spring innings with a 4-to-1 K/BB ratio.
Baseball America ranked Selvidge 12th among Yankees farmhands heading into the 2026 season, labeling him a potential fourth or fifth starter who sports a five-pitch arsenal that includes an average or better four-seamer, cutter and sweeper.
Injuries aren’t necessarily new for Selvidge. He was named to the 2024 roster for the Futures Game, held annually during the MLB All-Star break, but had to pull out of the event due to a pinched nerve in his left biceps. He’d worked to a 3.25 ERA with a 24.6% strikeout rate in his first dozen starts that year but was rocked for 17 runs over his final 21 innings (7.29 ERA) before landing on the injured list in early July. He wound up requiring surgery in Sept. 2024 and was out until late May last season while recovering.
The 2026 season will be Selvidge’s third straight year in which an arm injury has limited his workload. By the time he’s cleared to throw off a mound in 2027, he’ll be facing a three-year period where he’s thrown 167 2/3 innings despite regularly working as a starting pitcher.
Selvidge isn’t on the major league roster, so he won’t land on the 60-day IL and accrue big league service or pay. He wasn’t likely to be an early-season option anyhow, but he’s now out of the running for a look later this summer
The Yankees already have Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt opening the season on the injured list. Veterans Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn give the Yankees a pair of swing options behind Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Ryan Weathers, Luis Gil and Will Warren, and out-of-options DFA pickup Osvaldo Bido gives them a third candidate for such a role. Young righties Elmer Rodriguez and Carlos Lagrange are among the top pitching prospects in the sport and could debut in 2026 as well.
Marlins’ Adam Mazur Undergoes UCL Surgery
12:05pm: Mazur underwent a UCL reconstruction (Tommy John surgery) and had an internal brace installed, reports De Nicola. The estimated timetable for his return from that hybrid procedure is 13 to 14 months.
9:00am: Marlins righty Adam Mazur will undergo elbow surgery today and miss the entire 2026 season as a result, MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola reports. Mazur wasn’t locked into Miami’s rotation but was among the top depth options in the event of an injury to one of Sandy Alcantara, Eury Pérez, Chris Paddack or likely fourth and fifth starters Max Meyer and Braxton Garrett. It’s not yet clear which type of procedure he’ll require. Mazur recently reported elbow discomfort to the team and was quickly sent for an evaluation with renowned surgeon Keith Meister.
Mazur, 24, came to the Marlins alongside infielder Graham Pauley, top pitching prospect Robby Snelling and minor league infielder Jay Beshears in the 2024 trade that sent lefty Tanner Scott and righty Bryan Hoeing to the Padres. He’s a 2022 second-rounder who posted big numbers up through the Double-A level but has run into some trouble at both the Triple-A level (5.03 ERA, 168 1/3 innings) and in more limited major league work (6.22 ERA, 63 2/3 innings).
In 2025, Mazur split the season between Triple-A Jacksonville and Miami, tossing 107 1/3 innings with a 4.36 ERA at the former and 30 innings with a 4.80 ERA with the latter. He turned in solid strikeout and walk rates in Jacksonville but was far too homer-prone to keep his ERA down. Homers were less of an issue in his six big league starts, but he recorded a bottom-of-the-barrel 13.7% strikeout rate in his 30 MLB frames.
Having traded Edward Cabrera to the Cubs and Ryan Weathers to the Yankees, the Marlins entered camp with Alcantara, Pérez and free agent signee Paddack locked into rotation spots. Meyer and Garrett have both pitched only four official spring innings, but they’re both former top-10 picks and top prospects who have experienced success in the majors previously.
Garrett notched a 3.63 ERA in 247 2/3 innings from 2022-23 before a 2024 UCL surgery wiped out his entire 2025 season. Meyer has a 5.29 ERA in 25 career starts but has had big starts to his season in both 2024 and 2025. Miami optioned him in 2024 despite that big start, keeping him down for months and leaving Meyer six days shy of the service time he’d have needed to be a free agent following the 2028 season instead of the 2029 season. In 2025, a hip injury surfaced and eventually required season-ending surgery.
Depth options on the 40-man roster include swingman Janson Junk (4.17 ERA, 110 innings in 2025), Ryan Gusto (acquired from the Astros in last summer’s Jesús Sánchez trade), Bradley Blalock (acquired from the Rockies in January) and 2020 second-rounder Dax Fulton (healthy again after multiple injuries, including a June 2023 internal brace procedure). The aforementioned Snelling and fellow left-hander Thomas White are the two most notable rotation arms in waiting; both rank among baseball’s top 100 prospects, but neither has needed to be added to the 40-man roster just yet. That’ll very likely change in ’26, as both are considered nearly MLB-ready. White is the more touted of the two but has a bit less experience in the upper minors, given his status as a 2024 draftee compared to Snelling, a 2023 draftee.
Since Mazur is on the 40-man roster, has big league experience and was in major league camp at the time of injury, he’ll be placed on the major league injured list. If and when Miami needs an additional 40-man roster spot, he’ll be placed on the 60-day IL. Mazur will accrue a full year of service time and retain the lone minor league option year he has remaining. Miami will be able to control him via arbitration through at least the 2031 season.
Poll: Who Will Be The Braves’ Fifth Starter?
The Atlanta rotation has had a rough go of it this spring. Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep both hit the injured list before Spring Training games even began, and now they’ve been followed by the loss of lefty Joey Wentz to a season-ending ACL tear. The timelines for Waldrep and Schwellenbach aren’t yet clear, but they figure to miss significant time following surgeries to remove loose bodies from their elbows. (Schwellenbach is already on the 60-day IL.) That leaves the Braves with a lot of uncertainty in the rotation. Grant Holmes and Reynaldo Lopez are coming off injury-marred 2025 seasons, but they’ll be relied on for mid-rotation innings behind Chris Sale and Spencer Strider.
There’s still one rotation spot open. Wentz was in position to make a play for that spot and had a decent spring showing: two runs, three hits, four walks, one hit batter, six punchouts in 5 2/3 innings (3.18 ERA). His injury opens the competition up to a larger group.
The on-paper favorite is likely to be right-hander Bryce Elder, who made 28 starts for the Braves last year. Elder is still just 27 years old and was an All-Star back in 2023 thanks to a big first half, but in his past 52 starts he’s posted a 5.63 ERA with a below-average 18.4% strikeout rate against an 8.3% walk rate. Metrics like SIERA (4.56) and FIP (4.76) have been a bit better kinder, but Elder is approaching 300 innings with an ERA north of 5.50 over the past two and a half calendar years.
Elder’s status as the presumptive favorite is more about incumbency, being on the 40-man roster and being out of minor league options. He hasn’t made a strong case this spring, turning in a lackluster 6.48 ERA in three starts. That leaves the door wide open for someone else to grab the job.
Left-hander José Suarez is also out of minor league options and on the 40-man roster. He has an uneven big league track record but pitched well between 61 2/3 minor league innings and 19 1/3 major league frames for Atlanta last winter. He’s allowed four runs in 6 2/3 spring innings. Suarez gave the Angels 207 1/3 innings of 3.86 ERA ball in 2021-22 before being tagged for a 6.91 ERA in 86 innings across a pair of injury-marred seasons in 2023-24.
The most prominent non-roster veteran in camp is southpaw Martín Pérez. The lefty has allowed only one run in five spring innings and is coming off a season where he posted decent numbers (3.54 ERA, 4.24 FIP) in 56 innings for the White Sox. Flexor and shoulder injuries shortened his 2025 season, and the days of Pérez’s blip of All-Star-caliber work with the Rangers (2.89 ERA, 3.9 fWAR in 2022) are likely behind him. Still, he has the potential to be an effective back-end starter.
Those aren’t the only options for the role. Veteran Carlos Carrasco is in camp, but after posting a 9.88 ERA in three starts for Atlanta last season and allowing nine runs on 11 hits in 6 1/3 spring innings this year, he seems unlikely to be the top choice. Didier Fuentes made his MLB debut last year and has tossed four scoreless innings this spring, but he won’t celebrate his 21st birthday until June and might be better served with more time in the minors. Top pitching prospect JR Ritchie enjoyed a strong season at Triple-A last year and has looked good so far this spring (3.38 ERA in eight innings). He’s not yet on the 40-man roster.
Another possibility that can’t be entirely ruled out is an external addition. Lucas Giolito remains available and seems like an obvious fit — despite an apparent lack of interest on Atlanta’s part thus far. Other veterans like Tyler Anderson and Patrick Corbin remain unsigned, too. Any of those pitchers could be added to the mix with the intent of them eventually taking over the fifth starter job, but the team would likely need to trade for a player that’s already been pitching for another club in order to add someone who will immediately be ready to join the rotation at the start of the season. A free agent like Giolito would surely need to get work in at extended Spring Training at this point.
How do MLBTR readers think the Braves will round out their rotation? Will they give the job to Elder and hope for better results than last year? Will they go with a young prospect like Fuentes or Ritchie, or perhaps a veteran like Pérez or Carrasco? Perhaps they’ll eschew all those options for an external addition? Vote now in the poll below: