MLB Player News

Sierra appeared in 45 games with the Angels this season while hitting just .165/.200/.242 with six stolen bases across 96 plate appearances. The 26-year-old offers good speed and can all across the outfield, so he’ll be in camp with someone in the spring.

The encouraging development is that Kirk hasn’t officially been placed on the injured list yet. That could change at some point this weekend. It’s notable that Brandon Valenzuela has joined the club on the taxi squad as emergency depth. It’ll be Tyler Heineman handling the catching duties in his absence. Kirk underwent X-rays after taking a foul tip off his left thumb in the 10th inning of Friday’s extra-inning marathon against the White Sox. It’s unclear what those X-rays revealed. There should be a more definitive update on his status shortly.

It’ll be Griffin’s first rehab outing since suffering an Achilles tear last June while pitching for the Mets. The 29-year-old figures to be an option for the back-end of San Diego’s rotation mix at some point in May or June. He would likely represent an upgrade over cromulent veterans Walker Buehler and Germán Márquez for the Padres.

It’s the lowest Mongomery has hit in Chicago’s lineup this season as Toronto throws lefty Mason Fluharty on Saturday afternoon in the Windy City. The 24-year-old shortstop is off to an ice-cold start at the dish, hitting .192 (5-for-26) with one homer, five RBI and one steal through seven games. He’s struck out in 34.5 percent of his 29 plate appearances so far. It’s admittedly a small sample size, but he continues to look like a batting average liability without enough big-time power upside to make him a viable mixed-league option in shallow fantasy formats.

Wheeler finished with one strikeout while allowing four hits, including a home run, and issuing a pair of walks. The results are less concerning than his fastball velocity, which averaged just 92.7 mph after sitting in the 96 mph range last year. The 35-year-old threw 49 pitches (26 strikes) in his second rehab outing as he continues to build up towards a potential late-April or early-May return to Philadelphia’s rotation coming off last year’s thoracic outlet syndrome surgery.

Strider remains without a firm timeline to begin a minor league rehab assignment, which is likely to last several weeks. He’ll need to progress to facing hitters before he’s ready for rehab starts. The 27-year-old former fantasy ace has been on the shelf since the end of spring training recovering from an oblique strain. It’s starting to look like some point in May might be an optimistic goal at this juncture.

Suzuki played five innings in right field during his first rehab contest and got three plate appearances under his belt. Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters earlier this week that the 31-year-old right fielder will remain in the minors for three-to-seven days, which puts his season debut at some point within next week.

Keith finds himself atop Detroit’s lineup for the third time in the last four games after getting a break during Friday’s series opener. The 24-year-old has been a certifiable on-base machine this season, reaching safely in six straight games to boast a robust .417 on-base percentage. It’s an extremely small sample, but Tigers manager A.J. Hinch has been complimentary of his at-bats recently and appears poised to stick with him atop the lineup over Kerry Carpenter, who is hitting .160 (4-for-25) with 13 strikeouts in seven games. Star rookie Kevin McGonigle is back at shortstop and will bat second for the third time in the last four games.

No surprise here after Winn left Friday’s series opener in Detroit with hip tightness. The 24-year-old shortstop attributed the issue to overdoing it with his swing in an effort to break out of season-opening slump earlier this week prior to Wednesday evening’s car accident. It doesn’t sound like a serious concern but fantasy managers should keep a close eye on the situation this weekend. It’ll be rookie sensation JJ Wetherholt leading off with Thomas Saggese taking over at shortstop in his absence.

Jackson languished on the open market throughout the entire offseason, and spring training, after struggling to an inflated 4.06 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 38/28 K/BB ratio across 51 innings between the Mariners, Tigers and Rangers last year. Perhaps switching leagues will do the trick. The well-traveled 34-year-old veteran figures to arrive in New York’s bullpen as a middle relief option at some point this summer.

Rocker had his first start pushed back earlier this week after a minor neck issue with ace Jacob deGrom forced Texas the reshuffle their rotation. The 26-year-old former first-rounder won the final spot in the club’s season-opening rotation out of spring training and will get the ball opposite Reds pitching prospect Rhett Lowder on Saturday afternoon at Globe Life Field. He’s been extremely unpredictable from a results standpoint, so a wait-and-see approach is advisable for fantasy managers in shallow formats.