MLB Player News

There was some concern that Winker’s back issues may have kept him out of the lineup — and potentially off the roster — but the Mets will have the 31-year-old available against Freddy Peralta and the Brew Crew. J.D. Martinez is not in the starting lineup after his atrocious end to the season. The full lineup: SS Francisco Lindor, 2B Jose Iglesias, LF Brandon Nimmo, 3B Mark Vientos, 1B Pete Alonso, DH Winker, RF Starling Marte, CF Tyrone Taylor and catcher Francisco Alvarez.

This isn’t a huge surprise. While the Yankees maintained that Jasson Dominguez would play everyday once he was called up, that wasn’t the case. Assuming the Yankees use their best hitting lineup with Aaron Judge in center, Juan Soto in right and Giancarlo Stanton at DH, Dominguez will find himself on the bench with Verdugo in left field to begin the playoffs.

Freeman admitted that he’s trying to recover in a week from an ankle sprain that would normally require a 4-6 week stint on the injured list. He added that this is the worst injury he’s ever tried to play through, but also that he feels good enough after testing his ankle in the field and on the bases on Friday. The Dodgers have been nothing but optimistic about Freeman’s return to this point, though the final ALDS roster hasn’t been made official yet.

Rizzo was deemed a “long shot” by both manager Aaron Boone and general manager Brian Cashman in recent days. The Yankees are likely to go with Ben Rice and potentially DJ LeMahieu at first base if the latter is healthy enough to make the roster. It remains to be seen if Rizzo will be able to make it back for the ALCS if the Yankees advance, but the first baseman is optimistic about his chances.

LeMahieu went on the injured list in early September with a hip injury. Towards the end of September, he was encouraged by his recovery and Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the club would continue to monitor him. At the time, there wasn’t a clear role for LeMahieu even if he was healthy. Since then, Anthony Rizzo fractured two fingers and didn’t participate in the Yankees practice on Friday. It would seem that if LeMahieu is healthy enough, he would be a logical platoon partner with Ben Rice at first base with Rizzo out.

Freeman ran the bases and played defense on Friday, which bodes well for his availability. While no decision has been made official, Roberts still expects him to play. Freeman turned his ankle trying to avoid a tag at first base last week in a regular season game against the Padres.

What a blow. The Padres have been one of if not the hottest team in baseball since the start of June, but losing Musgrove for essentially the entirety of their playoff run is certainly a bump in the road for San Diego. For Musgrove himself, the timing as well as the injury itself is brutal. While Preller didn’t provide a timeline, Musgrove won’t pitch at all in 2025.

Cummings was selected by the Mariners in the seventh round of the 2023 MLB Draft. He made his professional debut this year and had a 4.17 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 124 strikeouts in 116 2/3 innings over 25 starts with High-A Everett. Cummings isn’t considered a top 100 prospect and is more of a depth starter than top prospect.

Musgrove was removed from his Wild Card series start on Wednesday with right elbow tightness. He’s undergone testing on the elbow and has now been ruled out for the Division series. Padres manager Mike Shildt wouldn’t speculate about Musgrave’s potential availability if the Padres advance. Adrian Morejon or Martin Perez could pick up a playoff start in Musgrave’s absence.

David Peterson will likely also be involved. Senga has made just one major league start this season because of arm woes, that coming on July 26. He pitched one inning in a rehab start Sept 1, and it seems unlikely that he’ll work more than a couple of innings tomorrow. Still, it’s great to have him back.

Sánchez ahead of Aaron Nola is a surprise, but he’s proven to be a tough matchup against the Mets, going 1-0 with a 3.06 ERA in three starts against them this year. The Phillies will presumably use Nola in Game 3 and Ranger Suárez in Game 4.