MLB Player News

Seager’s first-inning homer came off Cubs starter Cade Horton and was his first of the spring. The 31-year-old shortstop has topped 125 games just once in four seasons with the Rangers but he’s still managed to reach the 30-homer mark three times during that span. He’s a back-end starting shortstop for fantasy managers in shallow mixed leagues based on leaps by younger alternatives like Geraldo Perdomo and Jeremy Peña at the position.

No word yet on the financial terms. Crow-Armstrong made the leap into full-fledged superstardom last season, delivering a 31-homer, 35-steal breakout campaign, and emerging as one of the most impactful all-around contributors in the fantasy landscape. The 23-year-old center fielder is firmly entrenched as one of the core building blocks for the Cubs moving forward and projects as a perennial early-round selection in all fantasy formats as he enters his physical prime.

Nimmo took Royals starter Michael Wacha deep to right field in the third inning for his third round-tripper of the spring. The 32-year-old outfielder has eclipsed the 20-homer mark in three straight seasons and will occupy the leadoff spot for a new-look Rangers offense that will feature Wyatt Langford and Corey Seager in the heart of the order.

The major concern here is that Estévez’s fastball velocity hovered between 88-90 mph, while topping out at just 91 mph, after averaging nearly 96 mph last year during a 42-save campaign. He hit one batter and also handed out a free pass, needing 22 pitches (11 strikes) to work a scoreless frame. The fact that he’s barely touching 90 mph is a flashing warning light. He’ll open the regular season as Kansas City’s closer but the fantasy managers should be prepared for some potential early-season turbulence.

Gore scattered three hits and threw 51 pitches (38 strikes) in his final spring tune-up. The 27-year-old lefty will take the ball on Sunday against the Phillies, a familiar foe from his Nationals tenure, in his Rangers debut.

Roberts has decided to flip Smith and Freddie Freeman against southpaws, likely to prevent having three lefty bats in the top four of the order, now that offseason addition Kyle Tucker is in the mix. It’s a small change for the Dodgers but one that fantasy managers should monitor to see whether it sticks. It would likely result in a few additional run-producing opportunities for Smith.

Hamilton kicked off the scoring with a two-run double in the second inning. He also singled and stole a base, his sixth theft of the spring, in the fourth. The 28-year-old speedster will occupy a reserve infielder role on Milwaukee’s bench to open the season. He would have some appeal in deeper mixed leagues if an injury opened up a full-time opportunity.

Singer struck out three, issued one walk and threw 51 of 78 pitches for strikes. The key takeaway is that the 29-year-old made it through the outing without the blister issue resurfacing. He’ll take the ball on Sunday against the Red Sox to open the regular season.

Imai recorded 12 swinging strikes and averaged 95.8 mph on his four-seam fastball, topping out at 98.5 mph in his spring finale at Daikin Park. He threw 51 of 79 pitches for strikes. The 27-year-old has done a nice job mixing speeds and locations this spring and looks like he’ll offer enough strikeout potential to be impactful in all fantasy formats. There are going to be a wide range of opinions on his immediate fantasy value, but Imai is easily a top 50-60 range starter entering the year. He’ll make his major-league debut on Sunday against the division-rival Angels.

We don’t have any Statcast data since this contest took place at Double-A Hammons Field but May turned in a strong performance in his final tune-up before opening the season in St. Louis’ rotation. The 28-year-old figures to take the ball this weekend against the Rays at Busch Stadium. His immediate fantasy appeal is strictly limited to deeper formats until he strings together a handful of quality outings.

It’s a bit perplexing Detroit is taking things down to the wire on the McGonigle decision since all signs point to him being the club’s starting third baseman for Thursday’s season opener against the Padres. The 21-year-old’s upper-echelon hit tool gives him a chance to be an extremely impactful fantasy contributor right away. There should be an official announcement from the team at some point in the near future.