Jameson Taillon's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

Chicago Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon (back) threw a 10-pitch, touch-and-feel bullpen session in camp on Wednesday. Taillon is finally starting to work his way back after being shut down with a lower-back injury almost two weeks ago. As a result, the 32-year-old veteran will start the 2024 regular season on the injured list for the Cubbies, and he's unlikely to pitch in a Cactus League game before next week. Barring another setback with his back, though, it seems reasonable that Taillon can make his season debut in late April. The former second overall pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2010 has proven to be a league-average pitcher. He isn't dominant by any means but rarely walks batters. Taillon is off the fantasy radar in mixed leagues after posting a career-worst 4.84 ERA and 1.28 WHIP with 41 walks and 140 K's in 154 1/3 frames in 2023 in his first year in Chicago.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jameson Taillon (back) is already in jeopardy of missing Opening Day. The good news is Taillon is expected to throw off the mound on Tuesday or Wednesday. The right-hander has reportedly responded well to treatment, so hopefully he won't be forced to miss an extended time. The Cubs have options such as Javier Assad, Hayden Wesneski, or Drew Smyly if Taillon isn't ready to go by the opening series. The Cubs might proceed cautiously given the fact they do have multiple other options.

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jameson Taillon was scratched from what would have been his spring debut on Saturday. The veteran pitcher experienced tightness in his lower back during his mound warmup. Manager Craig Counsell said that they will see how he feels Sunday before taking any next steps, but at this point, they're hoping it was just a spasm and they don't believe he'll need to go for imaging on his back. The former first-round draft pick had some very clean starts last season, but also had his share of blow-up games too, which led to a 4.84 ERA (4.34 SIERA), 1.28 WHIP, and 15.1% K-BB%. He's already going after the 300th pick in fantasy drafts, so any delay to his regular season would of course depress his value even further.