Max Scherzer, TOR
Scherzer is currently dealing with a sore right thumb and will not be making his scheduled start on Thursday. The Blue Jays are hopeful that this is a short time issue and that the former ace will still be fine for the start of the season. 2024 was a difficult campaign for the 40-year-old, as he only made starts for the Rangers and posted a 22.6% K% that is well below his normal level. It's fair to question if the veteran has anything left in the tank, but he has been phenomenal so far this spring, allowing 2 ER's in 9 IP with a 14:0 K:BB. His ADP is currently outside the top 250 so assuming he's healthy, he could be worth a flier at the end of drafts.
Brayan Bello, BOS
Bello (shoulder inflammation) will not be ready by Opening Day for the Red Sox, although the team is hopeful that he will only miss one or two turns in the rotation. Bello has had some strong stretches over the course of his three year career, but overall, he has compiled a 4.42 ERA and 1.42 WHIP across 376.2 IP. His 8.12 K/9 and 3.25 BB/9 are both middling, although he does have a strong 53.9% GB%. Bello's lifetime 3.92 xFIP suggests that we could see some improvement coming his way, but we shouldn't anticipate him becoming a frontline starter.
Lucas Giolito, BOS
Giolito was forced to leave his first spring training start after one inning on Tuesday as he felt discomfort in his hamstring. The Red Sox believe that the issue is minor, and that this shouldn't put Giolito in danger of opening the season on the IL. The right-hander missed all of last season with an elbow injury, and posted an ERA near 5.00 in each of the prior two seasons, while walking roughly 3.5 batters per 9 innings during that stretch. He was dominant for the White Sox from 2019-2021, but he will need to prove that he can pitch at that level again before fantasy owners can give him their trust.
Cooper Criswell, BOS
With Brayan Bello and Kutter Crawford expected to open the season on the IL, Criswell has a shot to be considered for the Red Sox rotation. He pitched in relief on Wednesday and struck out 4 in 3 shutout innings. He only struck out 6.61 per 9 IP last season so his 8 K's in 6.2 spring innings are a welcome sign. He owns a strong 49.3% GB% and doesn't walk a ton of guys, so he could be a solid back of the rotation option for Boston.
Bobby Witt, KC
Witt was hit in the wrist by a pitch in Wednesday's game against the Mariners, but x-rays came back negative and he is currently dealing with a forearm contusion. This news comes as a relief to the Royals and fantasy owners who are counting on Witt to be one of the top players in baseball this year. Witt is rightfully going as a top-3 player in fantasy drafts, coming off a season in which he hit .332, and reached the 30-30 mark for the 2nd straight season. He cut his K% to a career best 15.0% while raising his HardHit% to a career high 48.1%. He's likely to see some BA regression (he had a .354 BABIP like season) but he should be still counted on as a five category contributor who should once again find himself in the MVP discussion.
MacKenzie Gore, WAS
Gore had a strong outing against the Astros on Wednesday, striking out 6 across 5.1 shutout IP, while allowing 2 hits and walking 3. Through his first 2 spring appearances, he's at 8.1 scoreless innings with 10 K's to his name. Strikeouts have never been an issue for Gore, who has averaged close to 10 K/9 each of the past two seasons. But he's had trouble putting it all together as he's never had a BB/9 below 3.50, and his 3.90 ERA last season was the lowest of his three year career. Ultimately, he's produced just 22 QS in 72 tries across his career. He has shown flashes of dominance, but until he shows more consistency. He can only be relied upon for K's.
Masyn Winn, STL
Winn went 0-3 against the Mets on Wednesday, and is now hitting a sluggish .094 (3-32) with no XBH's and 10 K's across 11 spring games. Winn operated as the Cardinals primary leadoff hitter for the final four months of 2024 and he appears set to fill the same role this season assuming he doesn't play himself out of that role. He was solid but unspectacular last year, chipping in double-digit HR's and SB's to go along with 85 runs and a .267 BA. He struck out at a 17.1% clip last season, and he'll need to keep that number low since he doesn't hit the ball particularly hard. The volume should be there for a solid floor, but he still has a lot to prove.
Bryan De La Cruz, ATL
De La Cruz went 1-2 with 2 BB's, 2 runs and a SB against the Orioles on Wednesday as he tries to carve out a role on the Braves roster. He's had a solid spring thus far, hitting .333 with 2 doubles and just 2 K's across 24 at bats. De La Cruz has provided some run production over the past couple of seasons averaging 20 HR's and 73 RBI over the past 2 seasons. But he doesn't walk much and last year his K% ballooned to 27.3% which hampered his overall numbers. The likeliest scenario is that De La Cruz opens the season with a part-time role in Atlanta, but that could always change due to performance or injuries.
Bo Naylor, CLE
Naylor homered again for the Guardians on Wednesday, giving him 3 HR's through his first 10 spring games. The catcher was terrible offensively last year, hitting just .201 with a 31.4% K%, although he still chipped in 13 HR's and 6 SB's across 123 games. We wouldn't want to read too much into spring numbers, but if Naylor could cut his strikeout rate a bit and keep up the power output he's been showing, he could easily end up being a fantasy worthy catcher.
Joc Pederson, TEX
Pederson hit his 3rd HR of the spring against the Reds on Wednesday and has now driven in 9 runs in 9 spring games for the Rangers. Pederson has quietly been quite productive the past few seasons compiling a .262/.365/.485 slash line since 2022, including a .393 OBP last season. The problem is that he hasn't reached 500 PA's in any season since 2019. He typically sits against lefties and for good reason; he owns a career .630 OPS against southpaws compared to .844 against righties. He can be useful fantasy option if you can afford to sit him when he's out of the lineup.
Joey Cantillo, CLE
Cantillo struck out 9 in 3.2 IP against the Giants on Wednesday, although he did still allow 4 ER's on 6 hits and 1 BB. He is coming off a rookie season in which he struck out 44 in 38.2 IP for the Guardians, and the strikeout ability is still clearly there. He is battling for a spot in Cleveland's rotation after posting a 4.89 ERA across 9 MLB appearances (8 starts) last season. That came with a 3.46 xFIP, and he may have the most upside of the Guardians' rotation hopefuls if he is indeed able to crack the opening day rotation.
Kris Bryant, COL
Bryant went 0-4 with 2 K's against the Padres on Wednesday and is hitting .143 through 8 games this spring. It's easy to forget that Bryant is still an active player, and that just 4 years ago, he hit 25 HR's with an OPS of .834. And that he's actually still just 33 years old. But in three years with the Rockies, he's played in just 159 games, and hit just 17 HR's. His K% jumped up to 31.0% last season. We're hoping that Bryant can finally have a healthy season in Colorado but he shouldn't be on the radar in fantasy drafts right now.
Sean Bouchard, COL
Bouchard continued his scorching spring on Wednesday, going 3-4 with a double, a HR, and 3 RBI against the Padres. He is now hitting .379 with a 1.138 OPS through 11 games this spring. He hasn't had a ton of success yet at the big league level, but the hot spring may help give him more consideration for the Rockies' opening day roster.
Bryan Woo, SEA
Woo struck out 5 in 3 IP against the Royals on Wednesday, allowing 1 unearned run and 3 hits without a BB. He now has 11 K's in 7 IP this spring and has yet to allow an ER. Woo was solid last season with a 2.89 ERA (3.75 xFIP) although injuries limited him to 121.1 IP. His strikeout numbers were mediocre, but his 0.96 BB/9 was sensational. He could be a very strong option for a pitcher who's going around the 13th round.
Julio Rodriguez, SEA
Julio went 2-3 with a HR an 4 RBI against the Royals on Wednesday giving him 3 HR's this spring. Rodriguez was a surefire first round pick in 2024 fantasy drafts but an off year last season has him dropping to the 2nd round in many of this year's drafts. He did have a much stronger 2nd half in 2024 and is still a good bet to approach 30-30 season, so getting him in the 2nd round could end up being a very good deal.
