MLB Player News

Rengifo won his arbitration case against the Angels on Thursday and will earn $2.3 million this season, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

The club filed at $2 million when arbitration figures were exchanged over the winter. Rengifo gets a nice raise from his $730,000 salary in 2022 as he prepares to serve as the Angels' primary shortstop in 2023. He's coming off a .724 OPS with 17 home runs and six stolen bases in 127 games.

Arroyo "is our second baseman as of now," Red Sox manager Alex Cora told Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican Tuesday.

Adalberto Mondesi (knee) will be a candidate to start at second base once he's ready, but he'll be behind others at the start of spring training. Arroyo sports a solid .273/.320/.427 batting line with 15 home runs over 158 games during his two-and-a-half years with the Red Sox. He might ultimately be just a placeholder for Mondesi but we've learned over the years that Mondesi is no sure thing to play or perform.

Haggerty (groin) has resumed baseball activities, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Divish reports that Haggerty underwent surgery to repair a Grade 2 adductor strain, but the Mariners aren't confirming the operation. The 28-year-old was a pleasant surprise for Seattle in 2022 before the injury, contributing a .738 OPS with five homers and 13 stolen bases in 14 attempts over 201 plate appearances. If healthy, Haggerty should be a utility option for the Mariners in 2023 with the ability to play all three outfield spots with some history at both second and third base.

Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said Wednesday that Haggerty (groin) should be healthy for the beginning of spring training, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Haggerty injured his groin near the end of the 2022 regular season and missed Seattle's five-game postseason run. With a .738 OPS and 13 stolen bases in just 201 plate appearances, Haggerty was a valuable depth outfielder for the Mariners and figures to fill a similar role this coming season.

Mondou signed a minor-league contract with the White Sox on Tuesday.

Mondou got his first cup of coffee as a 27-year-old with the Athletics last season, appearing in one game. He put up an .805 OPS with seven home runs over 449 plate appearances at Triple-A Las Vegas in 2022 while seeing starts at five different positions. Mondou will give the White Sox some utility depth.

Polanco says he's ready to go for spring training after missing the last month of the 2022 season due to a knee injury, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Polanco missed a week with patellar tendinitis before he landed on the injured list Sept. 3. He then worked his way back to playing minor-league games before a setback in late September. It sounds like he just needed some rest to get back to full strength, but watch his status early in spring training. His injury risk has become a concern after a chronic ankle injury also hindered his 2020 season.

Torres agreed to a one-year, $9.95 million contract with the Yankees on Saturday to avoid arbitration, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

It's the penultimate year of arbitration eligibility for Torres, and he'll receive a nice raise after he made $6.25 million in 2022. The 26-year-old rebounded at the plate last season with a .257/.310/.451 slash line and 24 home runs after he struggled to a .697 OPS in 2021.

Remillard re-signed with the White Sox on a minor-league contract Friday.

Remillard had reached minor-league free agency, but he'll return to the White Sox and be given an invitation to major-league spring training. The 28-year-old spent 2022 at Triple-A Charlotte, posting a .773 OPS with nine homers and 19 stolen bases. He'll compete for a reserve role but is almost certainly headed back to Charlotte to begin 2023.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters on Friday that Hernandez has a chance to be the starting shortstop for the Red Sox, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Hernandez will be playing in the infield after spending the majority of the 2022 season in center field. The versatile 31-year-old has played 100 games in his career at shortstop with 258 at second base. Hernandez should get plenty of playing time whether if he's the everyday option at short or not, but there's not going to be much fantasy relevance in his bat no matter where he's playing.

Hernandez is expected to move into a full-time role in the middle infield to begin the 2023 season with Trevor Story (elbow) expected to miss a significant chunk of the campaign, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Hernandez handled a utility role for most of his first seven years in the majors, but he's primarily manned center field since joining Boston ahead of the 2021 season. The Red Sox had earmarked Story for shortstop following Xander Bogaerts' offseason move to San Diego, but those plans are on hold after Story underwent surgery on his throwing elbow and is now set to miss a sizable portion of the upcoming season. With Boston signing Adam Duvall to a one-year deal Wednesday and set to install him as their everyday center fielder, Hernandez will turn his focus to the infield, where he could play regularly at either second base or shortstop. According to Cotillo, Boston is still expected to bring aboard another middle infielder this offseason, but any new arrival is more likely to affect the playing-time outlook of Christian Arroyo rather than Hernandez. Since he didn't play more than 11 games at any spot besides center field in 2022, Hernandez won't carry multi-position eligibility in most fantasy leagues entering 2023, but it shouldn't take long for him to gain eligibility at whichever middle-infield spot he ultimately settles.