MLB Player News

Villar cleared waivers after the Angels designated him for assignment and has opted to hit the open market. He’ll look for another landing spot for the final two months.

Mayo had two singles, including an RBI in the first inning. He also added a 102.7 mph flyout that fell just short of a home run at 348 feet. The 24-year-old is battling for a starting spot with Jordan Westburg (oblique) sidelined to start the season. There are some batting average concerns, but Mayo has the power and pulled fly ball approach to hit 25 home runs if he gets a full season of at-bats.

Outman came over to the Twins at the deadline last year and is now fighting for a spot on the Opening Day roster. The 28-year-old has struggled in his big league at-bats since 2023, but he hit .281/.369/.576 in 390 minor league at-bats in 2025 with 23 home runs and 17 steals. He is a solid defender in the outfield as well, so there is still a chance he can not only earn a spot but perhaps push Trevor Larnach for starts.

Yorke came to the Pirates at the end of the 2024 season in exchange for Quinn Priester, but he has not yet delivered in Pittsburgh. Last season, he had a .232/.264/.319 slash line in 74 MLB plate appearances. However, he also hit .287/.348/.406 in 440 Triple-A plate appearances with seven home runs and 17 steals. Right now, he is slated to play second base only against lefties when Brandon Lowe sits, but perhaps Yorke could push for the third base job and push Jared Triolo to shortstop or to the bench.

Contreras’ home run was a 385-foot shot that left the bat at 106.1 mph. The 33-year-old is set to begin his first season in Boston this year after coming off a year in which he had a near-identical wRC+ to Alex Bregman, who he is essentially replacing in the rotation. Despite being 33 years old last year, Contreras still had 95th-percentile bat speed and is moving into a nice home ballpark for a player with a 41% career pull rate. Contreras also spiked the highest fly ball rate of his career last year and the highest barrel rate he’s ever posted. The Red Sox have already announced that he will hit clean-up for them, which means Contreras could be a 25 HR bat with a .270 average on a good team that will give him solid counting stats.

Not a bad way to get your first two hits in MLB spring training. After going 0-for-5 with two strikeouts in his first two games, Griffin got the scoring started by taking a hanging curveball from Ranger Suarez and hitting it 374 feet for a two-run home run. He then followed that up with a 440-foot solo home run off Seth Martinez that left the bat at 112 mph. Through three games, we’ve seen both the pure talent of Griffin and also the steep learning curve that is going to come for a 19-year-old who has just 98 plate appearances at Double-A. It remains to be seen how aggressive the Pirates want to be with him, but more days like this will force their hand.

Suárez hit a batter and allowed a single in the first inning, but induced a double play to get out of trouble. He struck out the first batter of the second inning before allowing a double and a 374-foot home run to Konnor Griffin on a hanging curveball. He struck out the next batter to end his afternoon. Suárez sat 90.3 mph on his four-seam fastball, and it would be calming for fantasy managers and Red Sox fans if he could get that up over 91 mph heading into the regular season.

The Blue Jays are not concerned about any injury, but Schneider mentioned that the team is aware that Yesavage is coming off perhaps the shortest offseason possible after the Blue Jays’ World Series run. The 22-year-old is “on a little bit of a different ramp up” and will “probably throw another live [bullpen] even before games.” However, Schneider also mentioned that the team is going to monitor Yesavage’s workload during the season as well. “There are probably going to be some times where you have to hone him in a little bit, and if you can maneuver the rotation a little bit, yeah.” After Yesavagae threw 139 2/3 innings last season, it’s probably smart to assume he finishes 2026 around the 150-160 mark.

Crim has said that he’s never had an oblique injury before, so “he will be relying on advice from the athletic training staff.” The 28-year-old made his MLB debut last season, hitting .200/.270/.462 with five home runs in 74 MLB plate appearances. However, he did hit .281/.370/.494 with 21 home runs and four steals in 109 minor league games. If he is sidelined for an extended period of time, it would open up the door for Troy Johnston or T.J. Rumfield to win the first base job out of camp.

Waldron is considered week-to-week, but this procedure will make it far less likely that he can make the starting rotation out of spring training. However, Waldron has zero minor league options, which means he either needs to make the team out of camp or land on the injured list, or else the Padres have to designate him for assignment.

Mitchell had shoulder surgery in June and missed the remainder of the 2025 season. He was cleared for all baseball activities earlier this month and will now make his spring training debut. The 27-year-old will have a chance to earn a starting job in center field if he can prove that he’s healthy, but he has yet to play more than 70 games in one season at the MLB level.