Spring Training has arrived and as I’ve been writing daily notes for myself to recap all spring training starting pitchers for the Plus Pitch Podcast, I realized I should publish them on the site for quick access.
I’ll be livestreaming every weekday morning 10am-12pm ET at Twitch.tv/pitcherlist, as I watch all of the starts with y’all and answer all your fantasy baseball questions.
Major SP News To Know
Merrill Kelly is expected to start the season on the IL after featuring lower velocity than expected on Friday.
Expected Rotations By Team
On TV
ARI vs. KCR
SDP vs. ATH
NYY vs. ATL
BAL vs. PHI
USA vs. CAN
CHC vs. CWS
TEX vs. COL
KOR vs. DOM
HOU vs. STL
LAD vs. SEA
MIA vs. NYM
MIN vs. TOR
Merrill Kelly (ARI) – 1.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 1 K. He was a tick down and has since said he expected to be on the IL to start the season. Bummer. He may still be a discount in drafts if he debuts around the middle of April.
Aaron Civale (ATH) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 9 H, 0 BB, 3 K. Do not draft Civale. Please.
Didier Fuentes (ATL) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 5 K. That’s a 97 mph heater at 6.8 feet extension, 15/16″ of vert and a flat attack angle. Soooo, is that a good fastball? It’s a great fastball. The question is if he can find proper support for it, and he currently has an 87 mph gyro slider that is oddly getting labeled as a sweeper. It’s fine, but I want something a little better to pair with the four-seamer, especially when Fuentes doesn’t have the best feel to get the heater upstairs. But the splitter! Don’t. Not right now.
Cade Povich (BAL) – 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 1 H, 5 BB, 4 K. Blegh. Not the best Povich outing, but he has been changing a lot of elements of his arsenal, from a slightly lower angle that is adding a ton of extra movement to his secondaries. Sadly, the velocity hasn’t spiked at just 92 mph, and he’s far from the rotation at the moment.
Michael Soroka (CAN) – 2.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 1 K. He’s 1-2 ticks up, though that may have been a product of the moment vs. USA. I adore the new cutter at 90 mph that was so badly needed, and his sinker returned a whopping 19″ of ride in this one. I gotta say, if this were a proper start in-season, I’d be all over Soroka as a streamer. I expect it to be a little worse in his next spring outing.
Davis Martin (CWS) – 4.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 4 K. Not a whole lot is new, save for extra depth and sweep on his slider without sacrificing any significant velocity. That’s cool. Not quite enough for me to buy in, but it’s cool.
Jose Quintana (COL) – 3.1 IP, 5 ER, 4 H, 6 BB, 5 K. Oh you poor thing.
Cristopher Sánchez (DOM) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 8 K. He’s at 95 mph (not 96 mph, which I’d expect in an emotional game like this one), and I’m happy he has the same gains on his sinker’s drop from last year. There is a significant drop in extension here, though, down to 6.3 feet from 6.9 feet on his slider. Pretty strange, but then again, he’s getting four more inches of drop on that pitch alone, so maybe it’s intentional…?
Michael Wacha (KCR) – 3.1 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 6 K. Wacha is down 1-2 ticks and it sure feels like he’s getting awfully close to the cliff…
Noah Cameron (KCR) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 8 H, 0 BB, 2 K. I’m glad to see him stretched to 68 pitches, though 91.7 mph isn’t the most exciting mark. The command is still there, especially with his changeup, which featured nearly four inches of extra drop. I wouldn’t worry about it.
Hyun Jin Ryu (KOR) – 1.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 1 K. WELL HOT DANG, HOW ARE YA?!
Landon Knack (LAD) – 2.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 4 K. He’s up to 45 pitches and, sure, there’s a possibility the Dodgers look to Knack before River or Wrobleski or Sasaki, but really? Him?!
Chris Paddack (MIA) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 2 BB, 3 K. I wasn’t too impressed with his cutter in this one, but maybe it’s good enough as he jammed a fair number of LHB with the pitch. Ehhhh.
Mick Abel (MIN) – 3.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 4 K. Not the most impressive outing you’d want from Abel, but I still love the guy, who is getting over two inches more sweep on his slider, sweeper, and curve, and nearing the edge of the y-axis with his four-seamer at 6″ of horizontal. He’s at 96 mph with a flat attack angle, too, and I love the guy. Please Twins, just let him regularly start and I know he’ll find his way across the season.
Kodai Senga (NYM) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 5 K. Well how about that. Senga sat 96.5 mph on his four-seamer with 17″ of vert…in 38 pitches. We didn’t see a whole lot of the ghost-fork here (2/3 whiffs though!) and the cutter was fine as the mix-up pitch, but if Senga can hold 96 mph, then we’re cooking. Alright, I guess I’m cool with Senga again.
Clay Holmes (NYM) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 6 K. Am I underrating The Adobe? No, it’s the children who are wrong. He threw a ton of strikes with everything but the sweeper, which either landed down the heart of the plate or missed badly. I still see the same unreliable arm, though I applaud him for adding two inches of ride on his sinker.
Ryan Weathers (NYY) – 3.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, 0 BB, 4 K. He got bamboozled in the first with four runs, but his velocity is still up at 98+ mph across 67 pitches. It’s the dang command that is pulling him down and all we can do is hope he gets it together.
Andrew Painter (PHI) – 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 4 K. I’m still not quite sold on Painter. He doesn’t command particularly well and his breakers have too much lift for me to get excited. He’s a bunch of meh to me right now, but maybe it’ll click in-season? At the very least, he’ll get opportunities early in the year.
Michael King (SDP) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 5 K. The king without a crown. The sweeper is looking generally good and the changeup earned a bunch of whiffs (6/20!), while a near 30% called strike rate on sinkers is fine by me. He still seems a little too hittable, though, and not as polished as we want him to be. I find myself wishcasting with King more than I’d like at the moment.
Triston McKenzie (SDP) – 2.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 5 K. Yes, it was very exciting seeing Sticks hurl super hard in the spring, well now he pulled back and was able to throw a few more strikes. It’s still super erratic, though. This really isn’t going to be what we want it to be.
Kade Anderson (SEA) – 3.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K. The southpaw prospect isn’t impressing me a ton, but 17/18″ of vert at 93 mph with a good-not-great slider and developing change could turn into a proper starter in a year or so. I don’t think it’s enough right now.
Kyle Leahy (STL) – 4.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 5 K. There are elements of Leahy I dig – 7.2 feet extension, 17″ vert, 90 mph slider, etc. – but I really question his command. It’s hard to see an executed game plan in his strikzone plots and it comes through during games. I think this is too volatile for me.
Jacob Latz (TEX) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 6 K. The feel to get the changeup down has improved, with far fewer misses well off the plate armside. I wish I liked the rest of his arsenal more, though. The fastball at 93 mph (a tick down) with meh extension, arm angle, and 17″ of vert could be good enough if the changeup completely takes over, but I get the sense he needs something else to get him over the hump. The sub 79 mph curve and 84/85 mph slider do not appear to be fantastic breakers.
Cody Ponce (TOR) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 4 BB, 2 K. I dig the 96 mph four-seamer and 90 mph cutter, with good intent to LHB, but he really didn’t have his overall feel in this one, especially with the splitter (go figure). I still like Ponce, but he’s not a guy that I’m circling and making sure I go for at the end of drafts. There are a lot of interesting names down there.
Logan Webb (USA) – 4.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 5 K. Yep, that’s Webb. Aces gonna ace.
Not on TV
ATH vs. MIL
TBR vs. BOS
CIN vs. SFG
SFG vs. CIN
CLE vs. LAA
PIT vs. DET
NYM vs. WSH
Gage Jump (ATH) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K. I really wish Jump got a shot instead of Civale. He’s up to 59 pitches now and sitting 96+ mph on his four-seamer with a fantastic 85 mph slider as a southpaw. Yes, I want a changeup to make it all come together, sure, but this looks like a solid arm already.
Luis Medina (ATH) – 1.1 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K. Jump has the inside track on Medina, clearly, with 35 pitches here and an appearance after Jump. It makes sense given the wonky command, but 97 mph is always going to make you lean forward in your seat.
Johan Oviedo (BOS) – 3.1 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 5 K. Despite all the excitement I’ve displayed about Oviedo’s potential, I still haven’t seen it realized. He’s still far too inconsistent for my taste.
Chase Burns (CIN) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 2 K. I’m not sure why they put Burns in relief for just two innings and 24 pitches. I also don’t like a pure two-pitch mix, despite facing left-handed batters. Where is the changeup?! What a weird outing.
Brady Singer (CIN) – 4.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 2 K. Singer started this one and, well, was the same guy he’s always been. Sinker/slider with a sprinkle of experimentation that barely matters.
Joey Cantillo (CLE) – 4.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 6 K. He’s fully stretched out now and there’s nothing new here. Lots of low changeups, poor fastballs all over the place, and he faced few LHB to expose his weakness.
Casey Mize (DET) – 3.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 2 K. We saw a report that Mize wasn’t locked into his mechanics, as if you needed another reason to be down on Mize right now. He sat 93/94 mph in this one (down a tick), and I guarantee you there’s a better option in whatever league you were considering Mize. The answer will always be Anthony Kay.
Grayson Rodriguez (LAA) – 4.2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 4 BB, 5 K. Grayson is now sitting 94 mph with low velocity secondaries. Yeaaaaaah, I’m not interested in this.
Kyle Harrison (MIL) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 4 K. Trouble in paradise?! A sub 60% strike rate on both his changeup and curveball is a problem, yet not a major surprise. Don’t consider Harrison a safe upside pick, but also don’t let this game deter you. I’d at least give him a shot out of the gate and hope he can at least get the four-seamer upstairs.
Carl Edwards Jr. Jr. (NYM) – 4.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 1 BB, 4 K. Whoa. I haven’t seen CEJ go 60+ pitches in a long time. He still has absurd cut on his 93/94 mph four-seamer (17/18″ vert with -1″ cut!), but that’s really all there is to him. The curve isn’t a big stuff offering, and the changeup is fine.
Landen Roupp (SFG) – 3.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 4 K. I adore the lean into cutters up-and-in to LHB. The sinker at a 44% strike rate? Not so much. I want to chase Roupp, I really do. That said, I wish I had more to point to that outlines success out of the gate.
Blade Tidwell (SFG) – 1.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K. And now Tidwell is allowed to throw just eighteen pitches. Womp womp. See ya in a few months?
Carson Whisenhunt (SFG) – 3.2 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 6 K. The velo is still up at 94/95 mph, but the control is still in question. The slow ball held a poor 50% strike rate (14/28 thrown) and he’s trying to figure out how to keep the velocity without losing the precision. Monitor his development in the minors, and hopefully we’ll be confident when he eventually gets a start later this year.
JT Brubaker (SFG) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 5 K. Oh snap, “Coffee Cakes” is here?! That’s fun. Welp, see ya later.
Drew Rasmussen (TBR) – 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 4 K. Six hits?! I honestly cannot remember the last game Rasmussen allowed six hits in one game. But seriously, he’s testing out a changeup along with the sweeper and curve and we all know he’s just going to go two fastballs and a cutter. And that’s completely fine.
Zack Littell (WSH) – 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 2 K. He tossed just 39 pitches in his first game of the spring after signing with the Nationals earlier this week. Velocity is down 1-2 ticks across the board and it’s not too surprising after signing so late. Not that I was in on Littell beforehand, but I wouldn’t be interested in letting him fly for his first start, at least.
Who To Monitor Today
SPs on the mound today #SpringSPnotesGet morning updates to EVERY SP via my daily SP Roundup article on the Pitcher List site.Alex Clemmey – Fun Nats prospect!Trevor Rogers – #SWATCHWATCH2026Carmen Mlodzinski – Could be SP #5…Jake Woodford – The Amish Mustang? ON A SATURDAY?!
— Nick Pollack (@nickpollack.pitcherlist.com) 2026-03-14T14:12:25.251Z
