MLB Player News

Semien, who was 0-for-3 against the Royals on Monday in his return from an illness, went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 15-12 Cactus League loss to the Cubs.

Semien, who blasted a career-best 27 homers in 2016, launched only his second round-tripper of spring off Cubs starter John Lackey in the third inning. The 26-year-old brings plenty of pop but will look to improve his 22.4 percent strikeout rate from 2016 in the coming season.

Giavotella will begin the season with Triple-A Norfolk, Roch Kubatko of MASN reports.

The 29-year-old was in the running for a reserve infield spot with Baltimore, but his .701 OPS ultimately wasn't enough to warrant a spot on the 40-man roster. Giavotella will likely spend a good amount of time in the minors, although his major-league experience could help him be one of the first players called up if someone in the major-league infield gets injured or falters significantly.

Franklin (illness) will start at second base and bat eighth in the order in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles, Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Franklin was scratched from Tuesday's lineup while he dealt with the illness, but the Rays never expected him to require much recovery time. Though he'll start Wednesday, Franklin won't have a path to an everyday role to begin the season with Brad Miller expected to occupy the keystone more often than not. However, Franklin's ability to play just about everywhere on the diamond as well as the corner outfield should help him find a handful of at-bats every week.

Franklin was scratched from the Rays' Grapefruit League lineup for Tuesday's game against the Twins due to an illness, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Franklin's removal from the lineup looks precautionary, so he shouldn't need more than a day or two to recover. The 26-year-old won't have an everyday starting role to begin the season, but with the ability to play every position save for catcher and center field, Franklin could still find his way to two or three starts per week, even when the team is relatively healthy.

Semien (illness) will start at shorstop and bat in the cleanup spot for Monday's Cactus League game against the Royals.

Semien was held out the past two days with an illness, but there was never much concern that he'd be sidelined for long. The 26-year-old is expected to lock down a spot in the heart of the order for the Athletics after slugging 27 homers and 27 doubles in 2016.

Gonzalez has been told he won't make Minnesota's final 25-man roster, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Gonzalez hit .371 (13-for-35) and made a strong impression in spring training. He could be called up early in the season if the Twins need a utility infielder.

Fontana was optioned to the minors Friday, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.

The 25-year-old had a nice spring, batting .270 with a home run and eight RBI in 37 at-bats. The Angels already have their middle infield set with Andrelton Simmons, Danny Espinosa and Cliff Pennington all healthy, leaving no room for the rookie shortstop. Fontana will start the year with Triple-A Salt Lake and should be the first to get the call to the majors should any of the aforementioned players go down to injury.

Semien was scratched from the lineup Saturday due to an illness, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The shortstop could miss a day or two, but the ailment isn't likely to threaten his availability for Opening Day. Expectations are fairly high this season for the 26-year-old, who clubbed 27 homers to go with 75 RBI in 2016.

Merrifield went 1-for-2 with an RBI, a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's 6-2 victory over the Padres in Cactus League play.

Merrifield's five stolen bases during Cactus League games are tops among all Royals players, and his contributions on the basepaths to go with a .389 on-base percentage have kept him in the mix for the starting job at second base to begin the season. Unfortunately for Merrifield, Raul Mondesi has been even more impressive in the batter's box during the spring and appears to be the frontrunner for the Opening Day gig at the keystone, so Merrifield may be more realistically competing with Christian Colon for a utility role in the infield at this stage of spring camp.

Torres was reassigned to minor league camp Tuesday.

Torres will begin the season with Double-A Trenton. In 18 Grapefruit League contests, the coveted prospect hit .464 (13-for-28) with six doubles, two home runs and nine RBI. Despite the fact that the Yankees starting shortstop Didi Gregorius is expected to miss extended time with a shoulder strain, the team thought it was best not to rush Torres to the big leagues. The 20-year-old has a chance to make his major league debut further down the road in 2017.