MLB Player News

The 23-year-old backstop doesn’t have much left to prove in the minor leagues, but with Will Smit and Austin Barnes holding things down at the game’s highest level, he’ll need to work his way into the crowded outfield mix in order to have any shot of breaking camp. He’ll be an intriguing option for fantasy purposes when he does finally arrive in Los Angeles, but it’ll probably take an injury to Smith or Barnes for it to happen. Roki Sasaki and Zyhir Hope also received official invitations to spring training on Friday.

Canning “might not be there very long,” per Cassavell, but he is not currently part of that race. NL-only leaguers take notice — if you draft Canning you’re going to have to have an IL spot to stash him early. Canning pitched well for the Mets before tearing his Achilles in June. He’ll likely bump one of the lower-level Padres starters from the rotation once he’s ready to return.

Conforto would presumably challenge Joey Loperfido or Zach Cole in a corner outfield spot if signed. It should be noted that Conforto is no lock to win that battle coming into Spring Training late after hitting .199/.305/.333 for the Dodgers in 2025, disappointing the club so much that they decided to give Kyle Tucker a megacontract to forget about Conforto. This is the first blurb we have on Conforto since the White Sox expressed interest in him in January.

The Braves provided no timetable for Waldrep’s return. Weiss said he “hopes” Waldrep will be able to pitch again this year., and the surgery removed loose bodies from his elbow. Waldrep had a 2.88 ERA in nine starts down the stretch for Atlanta in 2025, striking out 55 in 56 1/3 innings. Atlanta’s pitching depth is already being tested early this season. We wouldn’t be surprised if Waldrep missed his entire age-24 season with the injury.

This looked to be the likely scenario as he was placed on the 60-day IL last week. The surgery, per Weiss, removed bone spurs from Schwellenbach’s elbow. Fantasy managers should probably not bother spending real draft capital on Schwellenbach this year given his uncertain return date. It’s a bummer for the Braves after Schwellenbach posted a 3.23 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and 235/41 K/BB ratio over the last two seasons before fracturing his elbow last June.

Graterol missed all of last season while recovering from shoulder surgery. It doesn’t look like he’s anywhere close to returning, and Roberts added that he’ll be “on a slower progression.” Graterol won’t figure into save chances when healthy either way, but if he’s healthy he could generate some holds.

Butler is in the final stages of rehab after an offseason surgery to repair a partial tendon tear and debridement of chronic scar tissue. He’ll go cheaper in drafts this year and still maintains plenty of power/speed upside entering his age-26 season, but we’d sure like to see him in spring training games before giving him a full endorsement as a post-hype sleeper. Zack Gelof will also miss the start of Cactus League action as he builds up his swing progression.

He suffered a shoulder aneurysm that required the surgery. The Cardinals got Clarke in the Sonny Gray trade this offseason and at the time of the deal was Boston’s fifth-ranked prospect. Entering his age-23 season, this injury probably puts Clarke’s odds of making his major league debut in 2026 in jeopardy.

Muncy fractured his hand last season and posted a .214/.259/.379 line in 220 plate appearances split between third base and second base. The A’s were reportedly close to acquiring Nolan Arenado this offseason, so it makes sense that they’re not exactly handing the 23-year-old Muncy the job. Neither of the three has much of a major-league track record to this point, but Muncy would have the highest upside in AL-only leagues.

That doesn’t sound promising for Junk’s chances of being ready for the start of the season. He rolled the ankle in workouts on Tuesday. Should Junk’s absence linger, it could help Miami’s other fifth starter candidates such as Braxton Garrett, Ryan Gusto and Bradley Blalock nail down a roster spot.

Ohtani will not pitch during the World Baseball Classic, which concludes nine days before the Dodgers’ opener, so it’s unclear how built up he’ll be initially. Still, the Dodgers will just work with it, even if Ohtani isn’t ready to throw more than two or three innings initially. With early days off, they could have another starter piggyback off of him the first couple of times through the rotation.