13 must-watch pitchers in Spring Training

3:00 AM UTC

The nastiest pitchers in the world are about to be back on the mound.

With pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training this week, let's highlight some of the arms who are worth keeping an eye out for.

These could be the top pitching prospects in the Majors, stars with new teams, players coming to MLB from overseas, future aces on the rise or former aces coming back from injury. Whatever the reason, we'll be tuning in to see them this spring.

Here are 13 pitchers to watch at Spring Training 2026.

1) , Mets

McLean is now the top pitching prospect in baseball, and MLB's No. 6 prospect overall, after his sensational big league debut down the stretch last season. We only got eight starts of McLean in 2025, and we're ready for a lot more. He's a future ace. Everything he throws is nasty, from his heater to his curveball and sweeper to his changeup. Catch him while you can at Spring Training, because he's pitching for Team USA at the World Baseball Classic, too.

2) , Astros

Imai is the latest Japanese ace to come to the Major Leagues, following Roki Sasaki in 2025, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga in 2024 and Kodai Senga in 2023. The former Saitama Seibu Lions star looks a lot like Mariners All-Star Luis Castillo as a pitcher, but there's only one way to say for sure: Watch Imai at his first Spring Training with Houston, where he'll play a major role in 2026 with Framber Valdez departing for the Tigers.

3) , Rangers

There were a few big trades for starting pitchers this offseason -- including five others on this list -- but we're particularly interested to see Gore in a Rangers uniform in 2026 after the left-hander's breakout with the Nationals. Texas is the perfect place for a young, high-upside power pitcher. Gore will join Jack Leiter in learning from the best, Rangers ace Jacob deGrom.

4) , Pirates

Speaking of young, high-upside power pitchers … While Paul Skenes is off dominating at the World Baseball Classic, keep your eyes on Chandler at Pirates camp. Chandler (No. 11 overall in MLB) is the next-best pitching prospect after McLean, and we want to see him build on the flashes he showed in his 2025 debut. The 23-year-old has an explosive fastball that averages 99 mph, and two nasty secondary pitches in his 92 mph changeup and 89 mph slider. Both of those pitches held hitters to a sub-.100 batting average last season.

5) , Reds

Burns is a big 2026 breakout candidate in Cincinnati. He's just electric. The right-hander might've had a rocky rookie season (4.57 ERA), but he's already striking out the world (13.9 strikeouts per nine innings, 36% strikeout rate). The 23-year-old has a lethal fastball-slider combo, with his heater often reaching triple digits and his slider sitting in the low 90s and getting whiffs on nearly half the swings against it. Between him and Hunter Greene, the Reds could have one of the most overpowering duos in the Majors.

6) , Dodgers

Sasaki is one of the biggest mysteries of the new season. He was baseball's No. 1 overall prospect when he arrived from Japan last year with hype like Paul Skenes. But his rookie season with the Dodgers was a rollercoaster. Sasaki's struggles had him in the Minor Leagues down the stretch … only for him to return for the postseason and dominate as the Dodgers' closer for their World Series run. He's going back into the starting rotation now, but what Roki are we going to get in 2026? A 100-mph-throwing electric arm with one of the nastiest splitters on the planet? Or the shaky starter we saw in 2025? Sasaki just turned 24. He could still be one of the best pitchers in baseball … or look nothing like it.

7) , Yankees

The Yankees rotation will be loaded when Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón get back from their injuries. But before they do, a lot is riding on Weathers, a high-ceiling lefty who could be much more than a stopgap in the Bronx. Based on his pure stuff -- mainly Weathers' power fastball, changeup and sweeper -- the closest comps for the 26-year-old southpaw are Jesús Luzardo, Tarik Skubal and Garrett Crochet. If he looks anything like those guys in pinstripes, the Yanks' trade to get Weathers from the Marlins will be a huge win.

8) , Blue Jays

The Blue Jays have more than one interesting pitcher to watch at Spring Training -- including marquee free agent signing Dylan Cease, who's coming to Toronto riding a streak of five straight 200-strikeout seasons, and postseason rookie sensation Trey Yesavage, who's entering his first full season after stealing the show last October. But maybe the most intriguing arm at Blue Jays camp will be Ponce, who hasn't pitched in the Majors since 2021 but is returning this year after dominating in Korea. The 31-year-old Ponce remade himself as a pitcher in the KBO League, adding several ticks to his fastball and developing a wipeout splitter. He just set the KBO single-season strikeout record (252) and single-game strikeout record (18). What will he do in his second chance in MLB?

9) , Rays

We put McClanahan on this list last spring, too, when he was coming back from Tommy John surgery. And the Rays ace looked really good at Spring Training … only for a freak nerve issue to pop up in his last start and derail his entire season. Well, McClanahan is ready to pitch again, and remember, the 28-year-old was one of the best young starters in baseball the last time he was healthy. But he has even more to prove in 2026 than he did a year ago.

10) , Orioles

Baz helped fill the gap in the Rays' rotation left by McClanahan last season, but he was traded to the Orioles in December. Now he's primed for a breakout in Baltimore -- and the O's sure hope that happens, considering the hefty prospect price they paid to get him. But they have good reason to be hopeful. Baz's 176 strikeouts in 166 1/3 innings for Tampa Bay last season are a lot more encouraging than his 4.87 ERA, since they're built on a foundation of very good stuff, particularly Baz's upper-90s four-seamer (62 K's in 2025) and sharp knuckle-curve (86 K's).

11) , Angels

Baz coming to Baltimore helps replace Rodriguez, the talented starter the Orioles traded away this offseason. The Angels made a big move to get Rodriguez, sending Taylor Ward and his 36 home runs in a one-for-one swap. Will Rodriguez be worth it? The big right-hander missed the entire 2025 season due to elbow surgery, but he's ready for Spring Training and armed with two really good pitches: an upper-90s fastball and a signature secondary pitch, his changeup.

12) , Cubs

Here's one more starter looking to emerge after a change of scenery. Chicago traded top prospect Owen Caissie to get Cabrera from the Marlins, and he's about to give the Cubs something their rotation has lacked for a while: high-end velocity. Even Cabrera's changeup averages a ridiculous 94 mph, which makes it rather unique for an "offspeed" pitch. He'll be in the spotlight on a Cubs team that was in the playoffs in 2025, and he has the stuff for it.

13) , Cardinals

We'll end with a fun one in Cijntje, the pitching prospect who was just dealt from the Mariners to the Cardinals in the Brendan Donovan trade. What makes the 22-year-old a must-watch at his first Cards Spring Training? He's a switch-pitcher ... or is he?

See, Cijntje can pitch both right-handed and left-handed -- one of the rarest qualities in baseball history, something we've only seen Pat Venditte do it in the modern era of MLB. But before he was traded, the Mariners were planning to have Cijntje focus on pitching right-handed this season. The Cardinals might be leaning that way, too, although president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom seemed to at least leave the door open to Cijntje keeping up his pitching from both sides. We want to know what'll happen, so we'll be watching him at Spring Training for sure.