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 morning 10am-12pm ET at playback.tv/pitcherlist as I watch all of the starts with y’all and answer all your fantasy baseball questions.
Major SP News To Know
Zebby Matthews hurt his ankle while covering first. It’s unknown how it’ll delay him in the spring as of now.
Luis Gil will be out for “at least three months“. I wouldn’t label him as the best IL stash given his inefficiencies last year.
The Nationals skipped Mitchell Parker’s Wednesday start due to neck stiffness. Don’t expect this to be a long term problem.
Site News
We’re launching PL 11 in the upcoming days and we’ve outlined everything we’re working on and improved on the site inside this Twitter thread and this Bluesky thread.
Check out all the apps, a tease of the PL Fantasy Baseball Pro Dashboard, our new Live Draft Assistant, and so much more.
Now it’s super easy to see velo changes, movement changes (extra vert from Rodón!), extension, usage changes, locations, etc. It’s incredible, y’all. Get access via PL Pro at 15% off with code SPRINGISHERE
Expected Rotations By Team
Statcast Games – TV
PIT vs. TOR
DET vs. PHI
SD vs. COL
Mitch Keller (PIT) – 3.2 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 3 K. Nothing new here from Keller. I’m still avoiding heavily, even if the four-seamer and sinker combined for seven whiffs. Velocity still matches last year, and the movement isn’t enticing.
Kevin Gausman (TOR) – 1.2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K. There was some hoopla about Gausman yesterday as he sat a tick up with added vert and horizontal on both the fastball and splitter. However, just thirty pitches were thrown between them and I didn’t see the sinker appear. It’s the same Gausman.
Jake Bloss (TOR) – 1.1 IP, 4 ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 0 K. Womp womp. Despite the seven feet of extension and 17.5″ of vert, Bloss struggled with just a 50% strike rate on the 94 mph heater. Figure that out and we’ll talk.
Reese Olson (DET) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 4 K. The velocity is still up at 95 mph (not 96) while we’re seeing the gains stick with his +1.5 inches of horizontal on everything. The changeup has come alive with the sound of music to my ears. I just wish that was a better four-seamer + Olson would focus more on jamming RHB with the sinker (everything was down-and-away, which is great if you can do that always, but generally tougher than anywhere inside)
Matt Manning (DET) – 2.0 IP, 4 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 2 K. Strikes were a problem. The breakers were meh and he’s at 94 mph. This ain’t gonna work out, is it.
Jesús Luzardo (PHI) – 2.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 2 K. This was a disaster. Back-to-back-to-back HRs off different pitches and starting with a Grand Slam. His mistakes get crushed and it’s what drives his volatility, but I’m still in. 6/14 changeup whiffs and 96/97 mph velocity as we hope those moments are few and far between.
Michael King (SD) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 BB, 3 K. He didn’t have his best breakers or fastballs, but the changeup destroyed LHB (5/10 whiffs) and he’s at last year’s velocity. We’re cool.
Antonio Senzatela (COL) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K. Oh dang. Hi. I’m happy that you’re back with your terrible vert and extension and steep arm angle. Doesn’t feel right without a rival, you know? What is Batman without his Joker?
Statcast Games – No TV
MIN vs. BAL
MIA vs. WSH
CIN vs. TEX
CWS vs. MIL
AZ vs. SF
KC vs. SEA
Pablo López (MIN) – 3.2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K. An interesting one here. The changeup got plenty of airtime against LHB with less drop and ride than usual at a slightly lower velocity, leading to just 1/19 whiffs overall. The sinker was rarely used against RHB and the sweeper was fine. Not his best, though 95/96 mph is a cool thing.
Grayson Rodriguez (BAL) – 1.1 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 1 K. The terror here was Gray Rod leaving early after sitting just 93.2 mph and hurling an 89.5 mph fastball in the second frame – he was 96 mph last year. He’s said he’s just getting warmed up, but this does seem a bit more suspicious than usual. I’m worried and maybe that’s unwise. I hope he’s fine. No sign of the sweeper or sinker, sadly. UPDATE: Grayson has “Triceps soreness” and isn’t expected to be ready by Opening Day. I’d wager Cade Povich gets the first crack over Suárez, though Povich has options and Suárez doesn’t. Monitor this – Povich may be a 15-teamer target now.
Albert Suárez (BAL) – 3.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 2 K. With Grayson’s health in question, we may see Suárez once again get starts. The tight movement band between the four-seamer, cutter, and curve likely helps Suárez against RHB, with the two secondaries returning 8/31 whiffs here. Can you get your velocity above 94 mph, though? I like dyou better at 96 mph and more than 16″ of vert, k thx.
Sandy Alcantara (MIA) – 2.2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 BB, 1 K. Sandy was testing out a new slider grip in this outing and it led to 3/8 whiffs on the pitch. You love to see it. I’m having trouble identifying where to put him in my updated ranks next week with Sandy likely going a handful of frames across April and early May before getting unleashed from June onward. I think he’s a stud, but you will struggle with him taking up a roster spot for at least the first month, even if it’s not a dead one with some help in strikeouts and (hopefully) ratios.
Valente Bellozo (MIA) – 2.2 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 3 K. He’s a tick up but does it matter if it’s 90.6 mph?
Shinnosuke Ogasawara (WSH) – 2.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 2 K. Not the best command from Ogasawara here, though I dig the changeup and it’s cool to see some whiffs on the 92 mph heater (17″ vert, 1.2 HAVAA). This is a deep NL-Only play.
Hunter Greene (CIN) – 4.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 6 K. Greene sat 99.6 mph (+1.9) across 28 four-seamers. That’s hot. That wasn’t the best part, though. Greene went 16/16 strikes with his slider. A 100% strike rate. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that on a pitch thrown 15+ times during the season. Too bad the splitty is still not a strong offering, but if the slider earns strikes galore, Greene will impress. Oh, and the 16.5″ of vert is back as he returned 17″ of vert here. Nice. I’m concinving myself into Greene, aren’t I. NOPE. CAN’T DO IT.
Connor Phillips (CIN) – 0.1 IP, 4 ER, 0 H, 4 BB, 1 K. Sigh. This was nearly a replication of that horrid 2023 game where he walked three on twelve pitches and left the game. It’s too bad.
Chase Burns (CIN) – 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 1 BB, 3 K. Oh snap, it’s Burns! The guy who the Reds drafted with their first pick and sat 99.6 mph with 20″ of vert and a 1.3 HAVAA. That is elite. Sliders also fell for 3/4 strikes (and whiffs) and yeah, this guy is legit. Sure, it was just one frame and adrenaline n all, buuuuut yeah. Burns is the real deal.
Tyler Mahle (TEX) – 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K. He’s at 91.1 mph, but at least just one run on the board? I’m not encouraged at all by this, but at least he has 17-18″ of vert and a splitter that lands for strikes…? Yeah, I can’t.
Emiliano Teodo (TEX) – 1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K. He throws 98/99 mph sinkers without exceptional movement, 5.6 extension, and a super steep attack angle. Empty Velocity. That explains the 1/8 whiffs, though it sets up his 86 mph slider beautifully, which did the heavy lifting at 4/6 whiffs. He’s still a longshot to make the pen for Opening Day, but who knows. He could be their closer…
Martín Pérez (CWS) – 3.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 1 K. He’s sitting 88.4 mph (-2.3), which is alarming and also kinda expected for this veteran. I’m not saying it’s a certainty he returns to 90/91, but he shouldn’t be matching it now. Anyway, you don’t want this.
Noah Schultz (CWS) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 1 K. This wasn’t nearly as impressive as his first appearance at 94/95 mph and far less precision. Let’s just say this was a weird day and move on? It feels like the gun was cold on everyone.
Hagen Smith (CWS) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 BB, 1 K. He settled back down to 95 mph after the fun of his debut and this one was all over the place. Rooks, you can’t depend on ’em. We should see him until next year, but if we do get Hagen in 2025, he should be an auto-add.
Tobias Myers (MIL) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K. He was apparently down at 91.2 (-1.8 mph) and it could be a cold gun. The rest is normal, which is not what I want, sadly. Just three changeups and he’s still struggling to get a handle on it, even if there were two solid ones to LHB. We’re not there yet.
Logan Henderson (MIL) – 2.2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 3 K. With both Hall and Ashby on the shelf, Henderson could find himself getting early chances for the Brewers this year and you should know about him. The heater comes in at a wonderful 1.7 HAVAA and 17″ of vert with 94 mph of velocity, setting up a changeup/cutter combo to deal with both LHB and RHB. the slider isn’t impressive, sadly, but that heater should in the upper half + I dig his cutter focus to LHB. There’s a sleeper in here.
Brandon Pfaadt (AZ) – 1.1 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 2 K. Yikes. He located the sweeper well, but the sinker and changeup got trounced. There are not gains to speak of from last year and I’ll say it again, I have no interest draft Pfaadt. I don’t believe this is who he is, but he’s not removed from this pitcher, either. It’ll be a volatile up-and-down year without the true breakout stretch, in my personal opinion. Wait. What are you doing with those eggs. Preparing to put them on your face. BUT THE PRICES ARE SO HIGH! Worth it.
Kyle Harrison (SF) – 1.2 IP, 5 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 2 K. Oh dear. There was a slider here (hey, that’s new!), and I still don’t see anything to get amped about, especially at 91.2 mph (-1.3). If he does this for another start, do the Giants go with Birdsong over Harrison? Probably not…right?
Michael Lorenzen (KC) – 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K. Sure, you’re the #4 for the Royals. For now. The only kinda interesting thing is an extra inch of drop with two ticks less velocity on the changeup, which worked super well for 4/6 whiffs. He’s always had a good changeup, so not much to report.
Kris Bubic (KC) – 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 K. The velocity is STILL THERE at 93.2 mph. He’s continued to keep his gains from the pen, though this was just 38 pitches in total. Meanwhile, the changeup disappeared as he focused on sliders and cutters + testing out a sinker inside to LHB. It wasn’t all that great, but hey, he needs a moment!
Bryce Miller (SEA) – 2.1 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 2 K. He laid off the four-seamer to try out the rest of his arsenal, featuring seven distinct pitches here. Sadly, none of them look to be special, but a cutter to LHB at 92 mph appeared! And I hope that sticks, because he needs it. Just keep trying it out, you’ll get there.
No Statcast – TV
LAA vs. LAD
Reid Detmers (LAA) – 2.2 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 1 K. Sure, I’m not gonna buy in, Detmers.
Chase Silseth (LAA) – 2.1 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 2 K. A Silseth sighting! And sadly nothing reminiscent of his 2023 moment in the spotlight.
Landon Knack (LAD) – 2.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 3 K. Oh right, you exist. I wonder if the Dodgers actually need you to start at all this year. That would be quite the injury-laden rotation, eh?
Ben Casparius (LAD) – 1.1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K. At least it’s more than a single inning?
No Statcast – No TV
HOU vs. STL
BOS vs. TB
MIL vs. CWS
Hunter Brown (HOU) – 2.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 2 K. I sincerely hope Brown is far better than my gruesome Mitch Keller comp. I’m not banking on it, but I really hope to see something that makes him stand out this year.
Miguel Ullola (HOU) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K. Ayyyy no walks!
Sonny Gray (STL) – 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K. Welcome To The Spring.
Garrett Crochet (BOS) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 7 K. AGA.
Joe Boyle (TB) – 2.1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K. That one walk has you thinking, doesn’t it? At the very least, Boyle still hasn’t blinked and has earned three full innings in his next outing, if not more. I’m so curious.
Freddy Peralta (MIL) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 4 K. I’m sorry, those of you who showed up to see Professor Chaos will leave disappointed as he took the day off. Your tickets will not be refunded.
Bryse Wilson (CWS) – 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 3 K. Are you really the SP #5 for the White Sox? Really?!
Justin Dunn (CWS) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 0 K. I wish we could go back to your pre-injury times and take it from there.
What To Watch Today On TV
SPs to watch on TV today #SpringSPnotesGet morning updates to EVERY SP via my daily Plus Pitch Podcast AND SP Roundup article on the Pitcher List site.Erick Fedde – Oh.Aaron Nola – All okay?Gerrit Cole – AGAChris Bassitt – Sup.Dustin May – LET'S GOOOOIan Anderson – Good for SP #5?
— Nick Pollack (@nickpollack.pitcherlist.com) 2025-03-06T18:17:05.861Z
Thank you for your daily dedication to these SP write-ups Nick, so useful