Cooper agreed to a minor-league contract with the Cubs on Sunday, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald reports.

Cooper was an All-Star in 2022 and put together another solid season in 2023, slashing .251/.304/.419 with 17 home runs, 61 RBI and 42 runs over 123 games between the Marlins and Padres. He'll have to settle for a minor-league contract with the Cubs but will compete for a roster spot as a non-roster invitee this spring. The Cubs had a question mark at first base heading into spring training but alleviated some of those concerns by agreeing to terms with Cody Bellinger on Sunday. The team also has young players available to play first base when Bellinger is in center field, as Michael Busch was traded from the Dodgers to the Cubs this offseason, while Matt Mervis made his major-league debut for Chicago in 2023. However, if the Cubs don't feel as though Busch or Mervis are ready to handle regular playing time, Cooper could land on the active roster to provide a veteran presence.

Kirilloff went 1-for-3 in Sunday's spring training loss to Boston as he looks fully healthy after offseason shoulder surgery. "He's in a lot better shape than we originally thought he was going to be in when the offseason started," manager Rocco Badelli stated, per Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic.

Despite surgery in October to repair the labrum in his right shoulder, Kirilloff has played in the first two spring training games, which is a sign the team is confident in his health. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli told The Athletic that he doesn't view first base as a strict platoon since Carlos Santana is a switch hitter, meaning both could be in a lineup against righties. However, Kirilloff would likely play more DH in that scenario with Santana seen as the better glove at first base. It's still not clear how much Kirilloff will play against left-handed pitching or if he'll be used in the outfield.

Casas is dealing with the flu Sunday and will be away from Boston's facilities for a few days, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Casas will sit out for a few spring training games while recovering from the flu. The left-handed batter showed improvement in his second year of the majors and finished the 2023 season slashing .263/.367/.490 with 24 home runs, 65 RBI and 70 walks in 502 plate appearances.

Guzman (visa issues) reported to the Orioles' camp Sunday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Guzman was absent for the start of camp due to visa issues but didn't end up missing significant time. The first baseman-turned-pitcher signed with the Orioles on a minor-league deal in January and is all but guaranteed to begin the season in the minors given his lack of pitching experience.

Pasquantino (shoulder) is starting at first base and batting second in Friday's Cactus League game against the Rangers.

The 26-year-old underwent season-ending shoulder surgery last June but is ready to go to kick off the spring schedule. Pasquantino posted an .833 OPS in 72 contests as a rookie in 2022, but the shoulder injury limited him to just 61 games last season.

Manzardo seems likely to begin the season with Triple-A Columbus, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic reports.

Josh Naylor is slated to be the Guardians' primary first baseman, but Manzardo seemingly could receive plenty of starts between designated hitter and first base. However, it would appear Cleveland is leaning toward sending the 23-year-old back to Columbus initially. Manzardo is coming off a relatively disappointing season in the minors, although he finished strongly at Columbus (.938 OPS) after arriving via trade from the Rays and carried that over into the Arizona Fall League (.905 OPS). Guardians officials have reiterated how difficult it is to hit in Cleveland in April and how that can hurt the confidence of a young hitter. Perhaps that's factoring into the front office's thinking regarding where Manzardo will begin the season.

Angels manager Ron Washington said Thursday that he sees Schanuel as the team's No. 2 hitter, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The left-handed hitting Schanuel slashed just .217/.379/.261 against lefties during his 29-game stint last season, but it sounds like the plan is to bat him second regardless of who the opposition is starting. He will be preceded in the lineup by either Mickey Moniak or Luis Rengifo at leadoff and followed by Mike Trout in the three hole and Anthony Rendon at cleanup.

Lester agreed to a minor-league contract with the Royals on Sunday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Lester's contract presumably includes an invitation to big-league spring training, though the 29-year-old is likely a long shot to make the Opening Day roster and is expected to begin the campaign at Triple-A Omaha. The first baseman appeared in 11 games in the majors for the Orioles in 2023 but otherwise spent the bulk of the season at Triple-A Norfolk, slashing .257/.307/.475 with 23 home runs and 87 RBI over 469 plate appearances.

Cronenworth (wrist) will start at first base and bat third in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Dodgers.

Cronenworth didn't play after Aug. 25 last season due to a fractured right wrist, but he avoided surgery to address the injury and appears to have experienced no limitations thus far in spring training. With Xander Bogaerts making the move to second base in 2024 and Ha-Seong Kim entrenched as an everyday starter at shortstop, Cronenworth should see an even higher volume of starts at first base during the upcoming season than he did in 2023, when he made 94 starts at the position. Cronenworth is still expected to carry middle-infield eligibility in most leagues this season after he made 30 starts at the keystone in 2023.

France, who posted his least productive batting line since his rookie 2019 season in 2023, made changes to his swing this offseason for the first time in his career, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

France's struggles actually began during the latter portion of the 2022 campaign, and given the extended period of below-average performance, the veteran decided to seek out the counsel of Driveline Baseball this offseason. The 29-year-old says the company's biometric data was able to identify where his swing had gone wrong, including pinpointing that he was overusing his hands and that his sequencing from the ground up was very inefficient. France says he's added close to 3.5 mph of bat speed this offseason with the corrections he's been able to make, and manager Scott Servais has been encouraged by what he's seen from France thus far. "I think he looks great," Servais said. "I know it's going to pay off for him when it's going to click, but I know it's going quick. He can hit, he's got track record of it. Being in the best shape he's been in his life, that's part of it, too."