MARCH 1 • SACBEE.COM
Cubs Starting Pitcher to Miss Beginning of Season Chicago Cubs pitcher Javier Assad will miss the start of the 2025 campaign due to an injury.
Cubs' Javier Assad ruled out for beginning of the season — what that means for rotation battle Notes: Reliever Luke Little threw his first live batting practice of the spring on Saturday.
MARCH 1 • SUNTIMES.COM
Javier Assad - Won't return by Opening Day Assad (oblique) will begin the season on the injured list, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.
Impact Assad is aiming to resume throwing off a mound sometime next week, but the Cubs have determined that he won't have enough time to work his way back before the beginning of the season. With Assad now out of the running, Colin Rea, Jordan Wicks and Ben Brown will spend the rest of camp competing for the fifth spot in Chicago's Opening Day rotation.
MARCH 1 • ROTOWIRE
Gage Workman - Blasts second spring home run Workman went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Friday's Cactus League game against the Rangers.
Impact Workman is off to a strong start this spring, as he now has two home runs and six RBI in only 17 at-bats. The 25-year-old was selected in the Rule 5 draft from Detroit back in December and has a shot to make the Cubs' Opening Day lineup, particularly if he continues to impress during the Cactus League slate. Workman has yet to appear above the Double-A level, however, so he may get returned to his original team if Chicago feels he's unready for the jump.
MARCH 1 • ROTOWIRE
Justin Steele - Might throw changeup more Steele could incorporate his changeup more often in 2025 after throwing it 3.3% of the time last season, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.
Impact While 3.3% isn't a particularly high rate, it did mark a new career high for Steele, who threw his changeup 2.1% of the time in 2022 and just 1% of the time in 2023. The lefty mostly utilizes a fastball-slider mix, but working in his off-speed stuff more frequently could help him keep hitters off balance. Expect Steele to continue to work on the pitch in spring training, and if he develops confidence in it, he could increase his usage during the regular season. The 29-year-old missed some time due to injury in 2024 but was effective when healthy, posting a 3.07 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 135 strikeouts across 134.2 innings.
MARCH 1 • ROTOWIRE
'He's ready to go': deGrom checking boxes ahead of '25 spring debut SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Friday will be a notable day for the Rangers’ spring, as Jacob deGrom is slated to make his Cactus League debut against t...
MARCH 1 • MLB.COM
Rangers Announce Trade on Saturday The Rangers are making moves...
MARCH 1 • KANSASCITY.COM
