MLB Player News
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Rhys Hoskins 1B | CLE
Guardians' Rhys Hoskins: Lands minors deal with Cleveland
Hoskins agreed to a minor-league contract with the Guardians on Sunday that includes an invitation to spring training, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
According to Zack Meisel of The Athletic, the contract will pay Hoskins a base salary of $1.5 million should he make the major-league roster, which seems likely. Hoskins missed extended time last season with a Grade 2 thumb sprain, but he has been above league average by wRC+ every season of his career. He will compete for time at first base and designated hitter with Cleveland.
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Rhys Hoskins 1B | CLE
Rhys Hoskins: Joining Cleveland
Hoskins was seen in the Guardians' clubhouse Sunday, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.
The move has not been officially announced, but it's believed to be a minor-league contract with a base salary of $1.5 million if he makes the major-league roster. Hoskins already has his own locker and was even in Guardians gear Sunday, per Zack Meisel of The Athletic. Hoskins slashed .237/.332/.416 with 12 homers and 43 RBI in 90 regular-season games with Milwaukee last season, leading the Brewers to decline his mutual option for 2026.
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Sal Stewart 1B | CIN
Reds' Sal Stewart: Starts at 2B
Stewart started at second base and went 0-for-1 with two walks in Saturday's spring game against Cleveland.
Stewart, who entered camp as the favorite to be the team's primary first baseman, was given an opportunity at second base in the Cactus League opener. A slimmed down version of Stewart -- he shed 26 pounds during the offseason -- makes it possible for him to be deployed at the keystone this season.
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Pete Alonso 1B | BAL
Orioles' Pete Alonso: Goes yard in spring debut
Alonso went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Friday's 2-0 Grapefruit League win over the Yankees.
Alonso made his presence felt in his spring debut and first game for the Orioles, crushing a two-run shot in the sixth inning. The All-Star first baseman inked a five-year, $155 million contract with Baltimore this winter, and Alonso already appears to be in midseason form after smashing at least 34 homers in each of his past five seasons for the Mets.
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Eduardo Valencia 1B | DET
Tigers' Eduardo Valencia: Cleared for all baseball activities
Valencia (quadriceps) has been cleared for all baseball activities Friday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Valencia has been dealing with a strained left quad but appears ready to play in Grapefruit League games. The 26-year-old backstop split the 2025 campaign between Double-A and Triple-A and slashed .311/.382/.559 with 24 home runs, 95 RBI and 64 runs scored across 433 plate appearances.
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Justin Foscue 1B | TEX
Rangers' Justin Foscue: Trying to increase versatility
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said Thursday that Foscue will be given some reps in the outfield during spring training, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Foscue has played only in the infield both in college at Mississippi State and since entering pro ball, but increasing his versatility gives him a better chance to make the team in a reserve role. The 26-year-old has struggled mightily during his brief time in the majors, going 3-for-51 with a 2:21 BB:K.
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Christian Encarnacion-Strand 1B | CIN
Reds' Christian Encarnacion-Strand: Could get into games next week
Reds manager Terry Francona said Thursday that Encarnacion-Strand (hamstring) could play in Cactus League games next week, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.
Encarnacion-Strand has been slowed early on in camp by a hamstring injury he suffered in January, but he's been working out and it seems he'll miss only the first few spring training games. Given the number of bodies ahead of him at the infield corners and designated hitter, the 26-year-old is facing long odds to make the Opening Day roster.
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Nolan Schanuel 1B | LAA
Angels' Nolan Schanuel: Looking to add more bat speed
Schanuel said Wednesday that he spent considerable time in the offseason taking part in drills to improve his bat speed and barrel control, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
The drills represented a continuation of the work he put in the previous offseason, which he credits for helping him increase his bat speed by 2.3 miles per hour during the 2025 campaign -- the sixth-biggest jump of all major-league hitters. While Schanuel continued to make contact at a steady clip (12.6 percent strikeout rate) and finished with a .264 average last season, he still offered subpar power production (.389 slugging percentage, .125 ISO) for a first baseman. Schanuel is hoping that another uptick in bat speed heading into 2026 will translate to more power, but manager Kurt Suzuki emphasized that he doesn't want the 24-year-old to dramatically alter his swing in pursuit of more pop. Fantasy managers should still be viewing Schanuel as a low-end option at first base who will hold greater value in leagues that count on-base percentage as a category.
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Dominic Smith 1B | SF
Braves' Dominic Smith: Links up with Atlanta as NRI
Atlanta signed Smith to a minor-league contract Tuesday that includes an invitation to spring training, Chad Bishop of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Smith played well in 63 games with the Giants last season, slashing .284/.333/.417 with five home runs. The 30-year-old has not started a game at a position other than first base since 2021, when he was the Mets' regular left fielder. Matt Olson has played all 162 games in each of his four seasons in Atlanta, which means Smith is almost certainly ticketed for Triple-A Gwinnett.
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Ryan O'Hearn 1B | PIT
Pirates' Ryan O'Hearn: Set to play RF
The Pirates plan to play O'Hearn primarily in right field in 2026, Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com reports.
O'Hearn was originally projected to play at either first base or serve as DH, but the addition of Marcell Ozuna will take away many of those at-bats. O'Hearn will seemingly be Pittsburgh's primary right fielder as a result, a position he played 149.0 innings at in 2025. He registered negative-4 runs saved in that span, though left field is the far more difficult corner to cover at PNC Park.