MLB Player News

Leake’s right arm will be ready for the start of the season, but whether he’ll be allowed to pitch in games then remains in question. The Diamondbacks still don’t want him trying to field his position or hit.

Valdez clobbered a gargantuan 415-foot moonshot to left-center field against Cubs starter Jordan Wicks to put the cherry on top of Pittsburgh’s five-run explosion in the first inning. The 22-year-old rookie slugger has gone deep twice in four games since being called up from Triple-A Indianapolis last week. He also made a phenomenal throw from deep right field to nail Ian Happ attempting to tag up and advance to third base in the second inning. Valdez projects as an extremely streaky power hitter capable of making a real fantasy impact when he’s in a groove, but he’s probably going to strike out a bit too much in the early stages of his career to be a viable mixed-league contributor.

Cruz delivered a run-scoring single against Cubs starter Jordan Wicks in the opening frame as part of an impressive three-hit effort. His 17 thefts are the second-most in the National League this season behind Nationals speedster Nasim Nuñez, who is up to 22 already.

Ashcraft was staked to a five-run lead by the second inning and managed to limit Chicago’s formidable lineup to just one run into the late innings. He got some help from reliever Brandan Bidois, who came on to strand a pair of inherited runners in the seventh following his departure. He finished with five strikeouts and only issued one walk. The 26-year-old righty has allowed two earned runs or fewer in nine of his 11 starts this season. He’ll take the ball on the road against the Astros his next time out on Tuesday.

Not great. Wicks coughed up nine hits, including a homer to rookie Esmerlyn Valdez as part of a five-run opening frame. He managed to save Chicago’s bullpen by working into the fifth inning where the Pirates got to him for three additional runs. It seems highly unlikely he’ll receive another turn in the Cubs’ rotation, but he’s in line to take the ball against the Cardinals on Sunday.

Alcántara was jettisoned by the Phillies after slashing .223/.389/.348 with two homers and four steals in 35 games for Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season. The 29-year-old journeyman infielder got into one contest for the Giants last year as an emergency stopgap. He was in Nationals camp as a non-roster invitee earlier this spring. He’s merely organizational depth at this stage of his career but should be able to latch on somewhere else.

Altavilla was in Twins camp as a non-roster invitee before posting a bloated 7.32 ERA and 19/16 K/BB ratio across 19 2/3 innings for Triple-A St. Paul. The 33-year-old veteran reliever pitched well in 28 appearances for the White Sox last year and has made 152 career appearances in the big leagues since 2016.

Johnson went 2-for-14 across eight games with the Astros earlier this month. The well-traveled 30-year-old makes a ton of sense as an emergency stopgap outfielder but that’s pretty much the extent of his appeal at this stage of his career. He’s gotten into 75 games in the big leagues between four different teams since 2020.

Díaz figures to elect free agency following his removal from Kansas City’s roster, but there’s always a chance he opts to stick around as emergency catching depth. The well-traveled 35-year-old veteran garnered zero interest on waivers after going 5-for-22 with two homers during a 10-game stint with the Royals.

Jax is officially day-to-day after being struck by a 107-mph comebacker in the lower back from Leody Taveras. The positive sign is that he was able to finish out the second inning before exiting presumably out of an abundance of caution. He was charged with three runs — zero earned — and struck out three over his two innings of work. It sounds like he should be able to make his next start against the Tigers on Monday.