Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (foot) will come off the 15-day injured list to start against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports. McCullers, who last pitched June 10, has been on the shelf with a sprained right foot. He made a quick enough recovery to forgo a rehab assignment and will return against a Chicago offense that has been among the league's best this year. McCullers has been understandably inconsistent this season in his first action since 2022. The 31-year-old has gone 1-2 with a 4.91 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, and 39 strikeouts against 16 walks in 29 1/3 innings.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (foot) did some fielding practice on Thursday and it "went well," according to manager Joe Espada. If McCullers feels good on Friday, he'll be an "option" to start against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday. The 31-year-old will apparently skip a minor-league rehab assignment after recovering from a sprained right foot. The former first-rounder in 2012 made his return to the big leagues this year for the first time since 2022 due to various right-forearm injuries. McCullers has been up and down with a 4.91 ERA (4.23 FIP) and 1.43 WHIP in his seven starts over 29 1/3 innings pitched, but he's also struck out 39 and walked 16 as he works his way back into a full-time starter for Houston. With that said, fantasy managers would be wise to avoid him if his first start off the IL is this weekend against the Cubs.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (foot) has resumed playing catch and was able to throw off the mound on Monday. It looks like McCullers is progressing well from a right foot sprain that landed him on the injured list. It's unclear if McCullers is going to require a rehab assignment or not. The Astros are likely going to wait and see how his foot responds to throwing off the mound. If everything goes well, McCullers could be back on the mound by early July.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (foot) was able to play catch ahead of Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. The plan is for McCullers to throw again on Sunday. If everything goes well, McCullers could throw off the mound on Monday. It sounds like McCullers is trending in the right direction and could only miss the minimal amount of time on the injured list. The Astros should have a better idea of McCullers timetable after this weekend. Fantasy managers should wait patiently as McCullers could be back on the mound soon.

The Houston Astros placed right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (foot) on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to June 13) on Monday with a right-foot sprain and recalled right-hander Jason Alexander from the minors in a corresponding move. It's unclear when McCullers suffered the injury, but he'll now be out for at least two weeks and may not be back in Houston's starting rotation until after the All-Star break. Right-hander Ryan Gusto will now start on Monday against the Athletics. The 31-year-old former first-rounder made his return to the big leagues this year for the first time since 2022 due to various forearm setbacks. McCullers has shown flashes of his pre-injury form, but he's mostly been inconsistent for fantasy managers and is currently sporting a 4.91 ERA (4.23 FIP), 1.43 WHIP and 39:16 K:BB in 29 1/3 innings over his seven starts in 2025.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. earned the win in a 3-0 victory over the Pirates on Tuesday, pitching six shutout innings with seven strikeouts. He allowed two hits and one walk. This was the second great start in a row for the right-hander, who twirled a 12-strikeout gem in his previous start. A bad outing on May 10 where he gave up seven runs and recorded just one out has inflated his season-long stats, but overall, he's made a very successful return from flexor-tendon surgery. The 31-year-old posted a 3.16 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP with 185 strikeouts in 162 innings in his last full season in 2021, and it looks like he may still have that kind of upside in him four years later. He is a must-add in fantasy in any leagues where he isn't already rostered.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. struck out 12 batters but didn't factor into the decision in a 5-3 victory over the A's. He allowed three runs on five hits and one walk over six innings. His signature knuckle curve stood out as his most effective pitch, inducing 10 whiffs and a 45% swinging strike rate. He now has 20 strikeouts in his past 10 innings, and is looking like the strikeout specialist that he used to be earlier in his career. He'll look to keep things rolling in his next start, which is set to be a promising matchup against the Pirates.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. appeared in the fifth inning of a major-league game in Thursday's win over the Seattle Mariners for the first time since Oct. 23 of 2022. He also reached 94.3 mph on the 91st pitch while acknowledging that he had "more in the tank." McCullers struck out eight batters in 4 1/3 innings and generated 14 whiffs -- he had 15 whiffs in his first three starts combined. The velocity on his sinker also crept up to 92.1 mph on Thursday. The 31-year-old threw three pitches over 93 mph in his first three starts but threw seven of them to beat the M's. McCullers' stuff is starting to improve, but now he'll look for more efficiency to go deeper into games following his long layoff of big-league action due to injuries. Walks have been an issue so far, and he now has a 6.57 ERA and 2.03 WHIP in 12 1/3 frames in his first major-league action since 2022.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. was reportedly receiving threats following a horrendous outing during Saturday's game. The right-hander received threats to himself and his family after McCullers struggled on Saturday. McCullers allowed seven runs and was only able to record one out before being taken out of the game. Afterwards, the Astros needed to notify the police department and Major League Baseball about the threats towards McCullers. The MLB is currently looking into the threats, but haven't said much more about the situation. There should be zero tolerance for this in baseball, so hopefully the MLB is able to do something about the situation.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. did not factor into the decision in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox. The former No. 41 overall pick allowed three hits, struck out four, issued three free passes, and hit one batter over 3 2/3 innings (87 pitches, 51 strikes). McCullers Jr. had a clean third inning where he retired the side in order, though he otherwise had runners crowding the base paths. Fortunately, he escaped trouble until he was pulled in the fourth. It wasn't a very efficient outing, but overall solid considering the last time he pitched in live action was the 2022 World Series. The 31-year-old touched 93.8 MPH with his sinker on a few occasions and picked up the second-most swings-and-misses of all pitchers in the contest (six). If the Astros stick to a five-man rotation, McCullers Jr. would pitch again next weekend against the Cincinnati Reds, though that isn't a guarantee.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) will make his 2025 season debut on Sunday in Chicago against the White Sox, according to the Houston Chronicle's Matt Kawahara. It's an excellent matchup for his season debut, but fantasy managers need to remember that this will be McCullers' first big-league start since the World Series in 2022. The 31-year-old veteran started facing live hitters back in February and posted a 2.84 ERA and 1.26 WHIP with 16 strikeouts and six walks in four minor-league rehab starts over 12 2/3 innings with Double-A Corpus Christi and Triple-A Sugar Land. He threw five scoreless innings over 71 pitches in his final rehab start last Saturday, so he should be built up to go fairly deep this weekend. McCullers was fantasy relevant in all leagues before his forearm injuries set in, but his upside could be limited as the Astros handle him carefully.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (elbow) was impressive on the mound during his rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land on Saturday. The right-hander struck over five batters over four shutout innings during this outing. McCullers allowed one hit and one walk, but was perfect outside of that. He threw 42 of his 61 pitches for strikes and appears to be headed in the right direction. The expectation is that McCullers will probably need to make at least one more rehab start. Hopefully, McCullers can get back on the big league mound by the end of April.

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.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) will make his Grapefruit League debut on Tuesday against the Washington Nationals, according to manager Joe Espada. McCullers has been cleared to pitch in his first game of the spring after looking good recently in a live batting practice session in which he touched 94 mph on the radar gun. The 31-year-old veteran last pitched in a game for the Astros in the World Series back in October of 2022, so it's been a while. He's making good progress this spring, but fantasy managers know by now not to get their hopes up. McCullers will have a rotation spot waiting for him during the regular season as long as he doesn't have any setbacks, but he will begin the year on the injured list. McCullers proved before that he's fantasy relevant in all leagues when he's healthy, but his lengthy injury history and innings limit this year will limit his upside in 2025.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports that Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) could pitch in a Grapefruit League game as early as next week. The 31-year-old last pitched in big-league action during Game 3 of the 2022 World Series and has just 47.2 regular-season innings of work since the end of 2021. McCullers Jr. underwent surgery in June of 2023 to repair a flexor tendon and had a setback during his rehab in 2024, keeping him out for the entirety of both seasons. It's excellent news for the veteran and a significant step in the right direction. "Yeah, it's exciting, but one day at a time," said McCullers Jr. The lefty is currently just inside the top 400 in ADP regarding fantasy drafts, but that could change over the next few weeks if he pitches well in Grapefruit League action.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) will throw his final live bullpen session on Wednesday before making his spring debut. McCullers has been sidelined since the 2022 season since undergoing surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon and remove a bone spur from his right forearm. However, it appears McCullers is nearing the end of his lengthy recovery process. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status after Wednesday's bullpen session as he could be cleared to make his spring debut shortly after. Even though the 31-year-old will open the season on the injured list, he may not miss much time in the regular season given his current status. In the 2022 season, the 31-year-old logged 47 2/3 innings with a strong 2.27 ERA with a 1.24 WHIP. When he does return to the bump, he should have a role in the starting rotation.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (elbow) threw a successful live bullpen session on Friday. The right-hander threw around 20 pitches without any issues, so McCullers might not need many more throwing sessions. The team plans to have McCullers throw one more bullpen session before possibly getting him into game action. The hope is that the right-hander will be able to pitch in the Astros rotation by the end of April or early May.

Houston Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) threw around 23 or 24 pitches in his second live batting practice session of camp on Friday and said it went well. McCullers' first live batting practice session came last Saturday, and he was able to mix in his curveball, sinker and changeup in addition to his fastball. It's good news for the 31-year-old oft-injured hurler, but he still has a ways to go before fantasy managers will take notice. McCullers is hoping to have three more live BP sessions before potentially getting into a Grapefruit League game before the end of spring training. He did not pitch at all in 2024 while recovering from flexor tendon surgery on his right forearm and has not pitched in a big-league game since the 2022 World Series. McCullers was a dependable rotation arm for Houston before his injuries, but now he's just hoping to return to a major-league mound after multiple arm surgeries.