MLB Player News

Yelich drew a walk early on in the second inning, then came around to score on an RBI double by Carlos Santana. He then capped off the 12-run inning for the Brewers with a two-run blast off of Bryan Hoeing. He then led off the fifth inning with a double and was once again driven in by Santana. Yelich put the cherry on top of the lopsided victory with a 430-foot three-run bomb off of George Soriano in the sixth that made it a 16-0 ballgame. He has been outstanding when on the field this season — slashing .276/.366/.448 with 19 homers, 75 RBI and 27 stolen bases on the year.

All three of Bazzana’s at-bats produced balls in play in excess of 101 mph, but the double was sandwiched between a groundout and a GIDP. With his .897 OPS in Guardians camp, he’s made an argument to open up as the team’s second baseman. Still, they’ve already committed to sticking him in the minors to begin the year and will likely go with a double play combo of Brayan Rocchio (career 75 OPS+) at second and Gabriel Arias (career... well, wouldn’t you know it, 75 OPS+) at shortstop.

Lodolo, one of the Cactus League’s most effective pitchers the previous four years, is having a bit of an off spring this time around, having posted a 5.93 ERA in four starts. Still, that comes with an 18/3 K/BB in 13 2/3 innings. It’s just that he’s allowed as many earned runs this year as he did over 36 innings in his previous three springs combined.

Marte’s homer off lefty Kolby Allard was a 109-foot rocket to left-center. Marte was bad against lefties last year and the Reds have made judgments about him because of it, but he shouldn’t have any playing time concerns initially. He’s slugging .600 with his three homers and four doubles this spring.

Luis Arraez drew a rare walk on what looked to be strike two to open the ninth against Garrett Whitlock and then pinch-runner Javier Sanoja stole second on a close play. Suárez followed with a clean double into the gap in right-center for the go-ahead run, and Daniel Palencia mowed down Kyle Schwarber, pinch-hitter Gunnar Henderson and Roman Anthony in the bottom of the ninth. Team USA was shut out for seven innings until Bryce Harper hit a game-tying two-run homer in the eighth. Venezuela’s previous runs came in a Maikel Garcia sac fly and a Wilyer Abreu homer. It’s Venezuela’s first WBC title, and the U.S. is the runnerup for the second straight tournament after losing to Japan by the same score in the final last time out.

McLean topped out at 99.2 mph tonight and averaged 98.1 mph. That’s 1.3 mph better than his lone spring start before the WBC and 2.5 mph better than his eight starts for the Mets last season. Now we just have to hope he stays healthy for at least the next couple of months and hopefully throughout the season if we ever want to see a young ace pitch in the World Baseball Classic again.

Rodriguez allowed one hit, walked one and struck out four in an excellent performance. His fastball velocity was actually down a bit tonight from his last start; he averaged 92.6 mph, compared to 93.5 mph in his pool play start versus the Dominican Republic. That’s still better than his 2025 average of 92.0 mph. Rodriguez should get one more spring start before opening up as the Diamondbacks’ third or fourth starter.

Ragans gets the ball for his third consecutive Opening Day assignment. The 28-year-old fantasy ace is a borderline SP1 in fantasy drafts this spring after posting a 4.67 ERA (2.67 xERA), 1.18 WHIP and 98/20 K/BB ratio across 61 2/3 innings over 13 starts during last year’s injury-marred campaign.

Bergert’s departure from camp is a notable development since it virtually guarantees that Noah Cameron will have a rotation spot to open the year. The 26-year-old righty posted a respectable 3.66 ERA (4.32 xERA), 1.26 WHIP and 73/35 K/BB ratio across 76 1/3 innings between the Royals and Padres as a rookie last year. Misner and Rave were candidates for a spot on Kansas City’s bench but will head back to the minors to open the year. They profile as platoon options at the highest level.

Kahnle fortifies Boston’s middle relief depth after a strong showing for Israel in the World Baseball Classic. The 36-year-old veteran posted a respectable 4.43 ERA (4.52 xERA), 1.30 WHIP and 50/31 K/BB ratio across 63 innings for the Tigers last year. He’ll presumably head to Triple-A Worcester to open the year, but should make it to Fenway Park relatively quickly.

Neto managed to avoid serious injury when he slid into home plate over the weekend, somehow escaping with just a minor left hand sprain. The 25-year-old impact fantasy contributor will return to game action on Tuesday night and should be ready for next week’s season opener.