MLB Player News

Isaac hit two home runs in Saturday's Spring Breakout game, an 8-8 tie against Minnesota, despite being limited to DH this spring due to a sore ankle, MLB.com reports. His second home run had an exit velocity of 110.4 mph.

It doesn't sound like an injury to be worried about for the regular season. The 6-foot-4, 240-pound lefty slugger has huge raw power, but he didn't sell out for it in his first full pro season, logging a 21 percent strikeout rate at Single-A and at High-A. He hit 19 home runs with a .916 OPS between the two levels. Isaac could be big-league ready in a year or two, and the main question is whether he will be platooned at the highest level since he had a .697 OPS in 94 plate appearances against southpaws.

The Nationals reassigned Diaz to minor-league camp Sunday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Diaz signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals in late December. He had a .804 OPS with 17 home runs over 118 games for the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate but saw no time in the majors during the 2023 season.

Votto was removed from Sunday's Grapefruit League game as a precaution after rolling his right ankle in the dugout, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Votto clubbed a solo homer on the first pitch he saw from Zack Wheeler before the dugout accident prompted an early exit from his spring debut. It doesn't appear to be a serious issue, so the veteran slugger could be back on the field in the next few days.

Tellez was scratched from Saturday's Grapefruit League lineup due to a minor back injury, Greg Brown of SportsNet Pittsburgh reports.

The 29-year-old was pulled from the lineup due to an "abundance of caution," so he could return to game action within the next couple days. Assuming Tellez has no additional issues, he should begin the season as the Pirates' primary first baseman.

The Cubs optioned Mervis to Triple-A Iowa on Sunday.

Despite posting a strong slash line of .300/.432/.400 in 19 Cactus League games, Mervis fell well shy of making the season-opening 26-man roster, as he was cut with 42 players still remaining in big-league camp. After a rough showing in his first taste of the big leagues in 2023, Mervis will likely need to mash at Iowa and/or wait for an injury to hit the Cubs' first-base/designated-hitter ranks before he gets another extended opportunity in Chicago.

Abreu (knee) is batting fifth as the designated hitter in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Abreu has been sidelined a bit more than a week due to right knee soreness, but he went through full workouts the past two days and is back in the lineup Sunday. The 37-year-old has plenty of time to ramp back up before Opening Day following the absence.

Mountcastle (neck) won't be in the lineup for either of Sunday's split-squad games but could return to game action as early as Tuesday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

The 26-year-old was scratched from Saturday's starting nine after his backed locked up on him while taking some swings, but he's apparently feeling much better a day later. The Orioles are likely to remain cautious so close to the start of the season, but at this point Mountcastle's availability for Opening Day doesn't appear to be in jeopardy.

Guerrero went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.

He launched a Mason Englert offering completely out of the stadium to left-center field for a two-run shot in the fifth inning. Guerrero sat out a few days with a knee bruise he picked up making a sliding catch in foul territory last weekend, but it looks like he's fully healthy again. Through nine Grapefruit League games, the 25-year-old slugger is batting .417 (10-for-24) with a double and two homers.

Hiura went 2-for-4 with a grand slam in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays and is now batting .304 this spring with a 1.042 OPS.

Hiura has two home runs and nine RBI across 15 spring contests to go along with the strong batting average and OPS, making him a pleasant offensive surprise to this point. The veteran is pushing for an Opening Day utility role, and with his impressive play so far in camp, he's making a compelling case. However, Hiura's fantasy value is limited if he's mostly a bench player this season.

Despite going 0-for-4 in Friday's Cactus League game against the White Sox, Mervis is batting a solid .259 this spring with a .782 OPS.

While the numbers don't jump off the page, they're an improvement from 2023, when Mervis batted just .167 with a .531 OPS across 27 games, which marked his MLB debut. This year, the 25-year-old may have to settle for a bench role due to Michael Busch now being on the roster and expected to start at first. However, both players are fairly inexperienced at the MLB level, so Mervis could emerge if Busch struggles.