MLB Player News

Casas (illness) is expected to make his Grapefruit League debut Saturday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Casas has been away from the club for much of the week while dealing with a nasty bout of the flu, but he's on the mend and his return to game action is imminent. The young first baseman put up a 1.034 OPS in the second half last season and will be looking to carry that over into a breakout 2024 campaign.

Gittens will undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

The operation will sideline Gittens "for a while," per Astros manager Joe Espada. Gittens is in camp as a non-roster invitee and injured the knee on the first swing he took in Grapefruit League play.

Sano said Sunday that he's lost 58 pounds in an effort to stay healthy, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Sano had some visa issues that delayed his arrival at camp, but he reported Sunday and turned heads with his weight loss. The veteran is trying to get his career back on track after not catching on with any team last season and playing in just 20 big-league games in 2022. The Angels signed Sano to a minor-league deal in January with the hope that he can return to the level of production that led to 30-plus homers in both 2019 and 2021 while he was with the Twins.

Casas (illness) will return to Red Sox camp Wednesday, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Casas has been away for a few days while battling the flu, although he was still taking some swings on his own. It will be a few days before the young first baseman is cleared to return to Grapefruit League contests, but he's on the mend.

Gittens has been sent to Houston to have his right knee injury examined, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The Astros believe Gittens could be dealing with a meniscus or patella injury but will know more after the test results are in. Gittens is in camp as a non-roster invitee, and any chance he might have had to make the Opening Day roster probably just went out the window.

White has been cleared to resume limited activities Monday after experiencing soreness in his surgically repaired left hip Saturday, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

White -- who hasn't appeared in a major-league game since 2021 -- had surgery on the hip last May. The first baseman was acquired from Atlanta via trade earlier this offseason and is in camp as a non-roster invitee.

Toglia has gone 3-for-7 with two home runs through his first three games of the Cactus League.

Toglia has earned 272 plate appearances in the majors combined across the last two seasons, but he's struggled to just a .187/.246/.325 line in that span. As a result, he's in a battle for a roster spot as a reserve at first base and in the outfield, along with the likes of Hunter Goodman and Elehuris Montero. Toglia will need to continue to perform well to ultimately earn a roster spot, but he's made a strong impression early on this spring.

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.