MLB Player News

McBride (back) went 2-for-3 with a double and a homer in Wednesday's Cactus League game.

McBride missed most of spring with a lat strain and is now 3-for-12 with a homer and five strikeouts. The 31-year-old will serve most of the year as organizational depth.

Santana is expected to open the season as the leadoff hitter for the Indians, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

It's a role that could change with the return of Michael Brantley, but is certainly a well-deserved spot for the first baseman. Santana led the Indians with 34 home runs last season (19 from the leadoff spot) and is set to help form a powerful lineup alongside Edwin Encarnacion, Jason Kipnis and Francisco Lindor.

The Indians informed Colabello on Sunday that he wouldn't make the Indians' Opening Day roster.

Colabello had an excellent spring training with a 15-of-39 showing from the dish and performed well for Italy in the World Baseball Classic, but as a non-roster invitee, the 33-year-old always faced long odds to break camp with the big club. After missing much of the first half of last season while serving a suspension for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs, Colabello slashed just .180/.248/.288 with Triple-A Buffalo in the Blue Jays organization. He'll likely have to find some success with Triple-A Columbus before earning a promotion to the Indians in 2017.

Solano was assigned to the Yankees' minor-league camp Monday.

Solano appeared in nine games with the big club a season ago, going 5-for-22 (.227 average) at the dish. With the Yankees relatively healthy in the infield as the regular season approaches, Solano never had a realistic shot at winning an Opening Day roster spot, but as injuries mount over the course of the campaign, he could be called upon if more depth is needed up the middle. Look for Solano to report to Triple-A Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Hague has been told he won't make Minnesota's final 25-man roster, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Hague has had a good spring as he's hitting .359, but he'll need to prove himself in the minors after producing a .685 OPS with the Hanshin Tigers in Japan last year.

Gillaspie was reassigned to minor league camp Thursday, Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Gillaspie smacked three homers over 40 spring at-bats but hit only .200 and counted two doubles as his only other extra-base hits over that span. The 2014 first-round pick will look to improve on what was an excellent 203-plate appearance stint at Triple-A Durham in 2016 that included a .307/.389/.520 line.

Santana is 2-for-6 with a strikeout in his first two Cactus League games since returning from the WBC.

Santana entertained on the world stage by hitting .308 (8-for-26) with a pair of doubles, three RBI and two runs scored for the Dominican Republic. Fantasy owners will hope for carry-over results similar to the ones he displayed coming off his previous WBC. Following the 2013 tournament, the slugger opened the MLB regular season by hitting .389 in April. A slight regression from 2016's career year should be expected, but even so, Santana brings plenty of value across all formats.

Diaz has been working on the back fields at the Indians' complex with third-base coach and infield instructor Mike Sarbaugh, like a student cramming for an exam, to earn an Opening Day roster spot as a third baseman, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports.

With Jason Kipnis (shoulder) likely to miss the beginning of the season, starting third baseman Jose Ramirez may be pushed across the diamond to fill the hole. Diaz is looking to capitalize on that potential opening at the hot corner to ensure his place on the 25-man roster. As a member of the Rockies' organization in 2015, the 25-year-old played 126 minor-league games at third base. However, Diaz played a majority of his 103 games last year at Triple-A in the outfield. It's widely believed that the Cuban native can hold his own in the box against MLB pitchers -- he owns a career .307/.403/.410 slash line while displaying good plate discipline over 1222 at-bats in the minors -- but the Tribe have other options to temporarily hold down third base if Diaz proves to be a defensive liability.

With Luis Valbuena (hamstring) heading for an MRI on Thursday, Cron's chances of becoming the Angels' starter at first base increase, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Both veteran sluggers have been battling for playing time all spring, with neither taking a significant lead at any point. Even though Valbuena's hamstring injury wasn't considered serious at first, the timing of it should lead to Cron winning the job outright. The 27-year-old is slashing .340/.393/.640 in 54 spring training plate appearances after posting career-best numbers in 2016 (.278 with 16 homers and 69 RBI over 116 games). This news bumps his value up, as regular at-bats to start the year could lead to some cheap power numbers.

Gurriel hit a first-inning, three-run homer and later doubled in Wednesday's game against the Twins.

Gurriel has had a quiet camp before flexing his muscles the last two days, going 4-for-6 with two homers, two doubles and four RBI. It's an encouraging sign that he'll be able to handle the transition to a new defensive position without reducing the impact of his bat.