MLB Player News

Cooper was hit by a pitch and exited Friday night's game against the Cubs, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Cooper was hit on the right wrist and was replaced by Cameron Maybin. Craig Davis of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports the 27-year-old suffered a wrist contusion and is currently considered day-to-day.

Olson went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Thursday's 6-5 extra-inning Opening Day win over the Angels.

The 383-foot shot to right in the fifth inning knotted the game at 4-4 and was the unquestioned highlight of Olson's afternoon, as he went down on strikes in three of his other four at-bats. The whiffs were a recurring theme during the spring (18 strikeouts in 64 plate appearances) and in 2017 (27.8 percent strikeout rate over 216 plate appearances), as well, so it's an inauspicious start for the Athletics' everyday first baseman in that regard. However, prodigious power helps cover a lot of blemishes, and the fact Olson wasted no time in notching his first round tripper could be an early sign he's ready to build handsomely on his torrid 24-homer outburst from last season.

Cooper got the start in right field Thursday, going 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI in an 8-4 loss to the Cubs.

With lefty Jon Lester on the hill for the reigning NL Central champs, Cooper got the start in right field over Cameron Maybin, but as both players hit right-handed the position is unlikely to develop into a true platoon. As the season progresses, expect Cooper to get spotted in at both outfield corners and at first base when the Marlins' starter needs a breather, but Maybin's checkered injury history does offer a path to more consistent playing time for Cooper at some point.

Goldschmidt went 0-for-2 with three walks and a run in Thursday's 8-2 win over the Rockies.

Goldschmidt's season debut wasn't an especially helpful one for fantasy owners outside of leagues that count on-base percentage, but the three walks at least suggest the first baseman is seeing the ball well coming out of spring training. Though the installation of a humidor at Chase Field this season could inhibit Goldschmidt's power output to some extent, the 30-year-old is still expected to finish among the top fantasy producers at his position thanks to his above-average contributions across all five major fantasy categories.

Calhoun went 3-for-5 with a triple, a home run and a trio of runs scored in Thursday's Opening Day loss to the Athletics.

Calhoun got the offense going early Thursday, tripling in his first at-bat and following that up with his first homer of the 2018 campaign. The Angels lowered their right field fence this offseason, and we got a taste of the benefit that change could have for the club's only everyday left-handed batter. The 30-year-old should be a decent source of HR and RBI batting fifth or sixth in the Halos' improved offense.

Freeman went 1-for-2 with a home run, three walks, two RBI, and three runs scored Thursday against the Phillies.

Freeman is one of the best hitters in the game, and the full stat-line he produced on Thursday is an illustration of that. One significant boost to his value is his ability to hit against left-handed pitching, he posted an .881 OPS against them in 126 at-bats last season, and his home run Thursday came against left-handed reliever Hoby Milner. Without drastic splits, Freeman should always remain in fantasy lineups.

Abreu went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI in Thursday's Opening Day win over the Royals.

His two-run shot off Danny Duffy in the fourth inning opened the scoring for the 2018 White Sox as he delivered a hanging changeup over the left field fence. Abreu dealt with some hamstring issues late in spring training, but he proved to be no worse for the wear Thursday. He and the White Sox have a scheduled day off Friday before returning to action Saturday against Ian Kennedy and the Royals.

Rizzo went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs scored in Thursday's win over the Marlins.

Rizzo's blast came in the second inning off Miami starter Jose Urena. The slugging first baseman posted exactly 32 home runs in three of the last four seasons (and had 31 the other year), so expect him to once again fall into that range if he stays healthy.

Smith (quadriceps) was placed on the 10-day DL on Thursday.

Aside from being able to slot him into a DL spot in certain formats, this isn't actionable, as Smith was expected to be optioned to Triple-A to start the season if he was healthy. Adrian Gonzalez started at first base on Opening Day and Wilmer Flores is expected to split duties there for the foreseeable future. Once Smith gets healthy, he will need to impress the organization on and off the field at Triple-A in order to be recalled to the big leagues.

Joseph was designated for assignment by the Rangers on Thursday, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

The Rangers needed to clear a spot on their 40-man roster for the addition of Kevin Jepsen, who made the Opening Day roster after a strong spring, and Joseph was the corresponding roster casualty. The 26-year-old has knocked 20-plus homers in each of the previous two seasons, though that has come with a lackluster .240/.289/.432 slash line. He should garner some interest on waivers.