Lance McCullers Jr. DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) allowed two earned runs and struck out three batters in his two innings of work in his first minor-league rehab start on Sunday at Triple-A Sugar Land. McCullers hit 94.9 mph on the radar gun in what was overall a positive outing, especially when considering it was his first real game action since the World Series in 2022. The 31-year-old also threw a scoreless inning in his only action in the Grapefruit League during spring training. McCullers had surgery to fix the flexor tendon in his right arm back in 2023 and hasn't pitched since after having multiple setbacks along the way. It's looking he may finally make his return to Houston's starting rotation in 2025, but he has a ways to go still, and the Astros are going to take their time. McCullers deserves to be stashed in deep-mixed and AL-only leagues, but his fantasy upside will be limited while on a strict workload this year.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) will make his next minor-league rehab start this Sunday at Triple-A Sugar Land. It will be McCullers' first regular-season start since the 2022 World Series. It's unclear exactly when the 31-year-old veteran will be cleared to rejoin Houston's big-league rotation, but they certainly won't be rushing him based on how much time he's missed over the last few seasons because of arm injuries. McCullers has now recovered from two similar injuries on the flexor tendon in his right forearm, and there's certainly no guarantee he'll suddenly return to his pre-injury form, when he was once a dependable piece of the Astros' starting rotation. At best, he'll be a flier in deep-mixed and AL-only leagues when he returns. In his last full season in 2021, McCullers had a 3.16 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 185 K's and 76 walks in 162 1/3 innings pitched.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) had a successful Grapefruit League debut in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Nationals. McCullers Jr. threw 13 pitches in a scoreless inning, hitting one batter while mainly featuring a four-seam fastball and a changeup. This was the 31-year-old's first game action since Game 3 of the 2022 World Series and he has been recovering from flexor tendon surgery since. Manager Joe Espada said that McCullers Jr. wanted to go out to pitch a second inning and that he was pleased with his performance. McCullers Jr. has been a useful fantasy option throughout his career, but he still has a long way to go before proving that he can be a reliable option again for the Astros and fantasy managers.