The Spring Signal, March 12th
The latest breakouts, news, and injuries
STANDOUT SPRING PERFORMANCES
TANNER BIBEE
The Cleveland Guardians’ starting pitcher tossed 3.2 innings Tuesday, allowing 4 hits but striking out 6 and walking none. Bibee has fallen into the realm of a non-sexy pitcher the last couple of seasons. A fall from grace, once pitching at a 25.5% K-BB%, to now living at or below league averages. But all that can change this season if he can rekindle his 2021-2022 self. At least on Tuesday, it looked like he could.
Generating whiffs on his cutter, fastball, sinker, and changeup is a great sign. Commanding his breaking stuff to complement the primary pitches will propel him even further in fantasy. I wouldn’t put too much stock into this since it was a weak Giants lineup, but some confidence can go a long way.
JACOB DEGROM
Also on Tuesday, DeGrom kept dealing against a decent Cubs lineup, pitching in 3 innings and striking out 5 Cubbies. Jacob relied on his slider, generating a 33.3 SwStr%. His fastball consistently hitting 97 MPH was a great sign to see as well, since last year was his first full workload in quite some time. Let’s see how his body rebounds and whether he can put up another fantastic season.
TAJ BRADLEY
Last season, Taj relied much too heavily on his fastball. It was getting hammered, sporting a .519 SLG% and .388 xwOBA. He seemed to keep this same game plan going so far this season for some reason.
As we can see, the fastball generated some whiffs, but if he were to rely more on his cutter, he could miss a few more barrels, according to the data. Taj is trying to make his case to occupy a spot in this Twins rotation.
KYREN PARIS
Does everyone remember Kyren’s blazing hot start to begin the 2025 season? It was short-lived; he went from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows within a month. That’s baseball for ya. But the kid swiped 3 bags yesterday in Cactus League play while walking once and getting a couple of base knocks. For fantasy purposes, I would highly advise NOT picking up Kyren unless you are in unheard of super duper deep leagues. He will be a waiver wire pickup at most if he can prove to hit for a decent average and learn how to walk and steal a few bags.
FANTASY NEWS
Bailey Ober
Not looking great for Ober. He started his second Spring game today and topped out at 90 MPH once… consistently lived at 88 MPH. The guy is a full-on fade for me, as he took a steep nosedive in velocity and performance last year.
Lawrence Butler
This could probably classify as injury news, but I’m putting it here cause Stone Cold said so. As I reported earlier this spring, Butler has the knees of a 40-year-old man, and both have received medical attention this off-season. Butler has still not started a game this Spring. The A’s said they were slow-playing him, and they meant it. Colby Thomas could fill in for Butler if he is delayed at all, but Colby was dealing with a sore elbow and is now cleared to play.
Sean Manaea
Not a great sign for Mets pitcher Sean Manaea. He is currently projected to begin the season in the rotation, but the Mets have a loaded farm system with pitchers. Should Manaea not perform well or suffer another injury, they have reinforcements in Jonah Tong, Christian Scott, and Jack Wenninger to fill his role.
Manaea mostly relies upon his fastball and sweeper (combined 95% of the time). If his fastball is easier to hit, his effectiveness goes down the drain. The only thing that really saves him is the funky arm angle and delivery. Manaea would be a likely candidate to move to the pen should he struggle in the starting role.
INJURY NEWS
Francisco Lindor
Back in action, playing in minor league games, and is close to taking live BP. Seems more likely he will not miss Opening Day.
Bryce Miller
NOT shut down from throwing but felt discomfort in the oblique again during the bullpen session, sounds like he will be left off the Opening Day roster.
Kyle Teel
Teel suffered a grade 2 hamstring strain while playing for Italy during their Tuesday night win over the Americans in WBC action. Could this injury be related to this vigorous offseason explosion training..? Edgar Quero will now be lined up to catch for the first few weeks of the regular season while Teel rehabs.
Hunter Greene
As Jon and I previously covered, to remedy Hunter’s elbow soreness, he had bone chips and loose bodies removed from his right elbow. At this time, a July return is scheduled.
Jose Berrios
Dealing with “different inflammation” in his right elbow now. Per Keegan Matheson, Berrios feels good and will continue throwing.
Brooks Baldwin
Has not played since March 6th and is day-to-day with elbow discomfort. Felt soreness in his elbow while throwing in workouts last week. Should he miss time, Luisangel Acuna will have a less cumbersome runway to playing time.
Yandy Diaz
Per manager Kevin Cash, Yandy is dealing with a sore left hand but is slated to return to Spring games tomorrow.
Quinn Priester
The young right-hander looked to be a lock to begin the season in the rotation. Per Adam McCalvy, Quinn has been dealing with wrist soreness since the end of last season. He’s been playing catch every day, pushing through it, but cannot pin down the cause of the soreness. They’re at the point where Priester is meeting with a Dallas wrist specialist to help solve the issue.
The Brewers are thinking more of making sure Quinn can make it the majority of the season rather than rushing him to make Opening Day. I would expect a 10-day IL stint as the best-case scenario.