ShaneMcClanahan

News: 7 days agoMcClanahan will start Opening Day, March 28 against the Rockies, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Spin: McClanahan missed the entire 2024 season while recovering from a Tommy John procedure he underwent in August 2023 -- already the second such operation of his career. Despite his extended hiatus, the Rays will entrust him with starting the first game of the season, as he owns a 3.02 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over his three seasons in the majors. The 27-year-old southpaw said Wednesday that he won't have any sort of restrictions during spring training, though the Rays are still expected to put a ceiling on his workload -- likely around 150 innings -- during the regular season.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: On the mend from his second career Tommy John surgery -- his first was in college in 2016, while this one was in August 2023 -- McClanahan should be eased back into the rotation gently by the always cautious Rays. Before the operation, he had developed into one of the game's best at his craft, with his 3.02 ERA and 33.4% whiff rates both ranking top-10 among pitchers with at least 50 starts from 2021-23. Whether McClanahan can quickly snap back to those levels is unclear, but if he's looking good during spring training and on track for the Opening Day rotation, he'd be a potential top-30 fantasy starter.