MLB Player News

Longoria (illness) returned to camp Saturday after missing time with strep throat, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Longoria is the leading candidate to start at third base. He's perceived as a better glove than last year's primary starter at the hot corner, Josh Rojas, who went 1-for-3 with a run-producing double in a spring game against the Rockies.

Reynolds (back/knee) is batting fifth as the designated hitter in Sunday's spring game against the Giants, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Manager Dave Bell said last weekend that Reynolds would be unavailable for the start of Cactus League action due to back and knee soreness, but his presence in the lineup Sunday indicates neither issue is a serious concern. The 32-year-old faces an uphill battle to make the Reds' Opening Day roster after he was removed from the 40-man roster in January.

Baty went 2-for-2 with a walk and a two-run home run in Saturday's Grapefruit League contest against the Astros.

The Mets' top prospect has a legitimate chance to be the Opening Day third baseman with a strong camp, per MLB Pipeline. Eduardo Escobar offers a nice veteran fallback option for New York if Baty needs more seasoning at Triple-A, but the 23-year-old prospect is off to an excellent start to spring training.

It's unclear where the Giants plan to play Davis in 2023, Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Davis is expected to get most of his work at the corner infield spots and designated hitter. The Giants are looking for David Villar to be the starter at third base, while first base remains up in the air. Slusser adds Davis and fellow right-handed hitter Wilmer Flores could likely split first base and DH against left-handed pitchers, but it appears Davis isn't likely to see a significant role to start unless his play in spring forces the issue.

Rivera (wrist) will bat cleanup and play third base Saturday against the Athletics.

Rivera suffered a fractured wrist at the tail end of last season, but the injury evidently is no longer a problem. He'll compete for a bench spot in camp after hitting .238/.298/.393 with 13 home runs in 131 games across his first two big-league campaigns.

Senzel (toe) is on track to take live batting practice soon, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

That said, Senzel is still not running at 100 percent as he recovers from multiple surgeries to repair a fractured toe in his left foot. Reds manager David Bell acknowledged Thursday that the 27-year-old outfielder might be cutting it close for Opening Day. It's a situation that will require monitoring throughout the month of March.

Longoria was away from camp on Wednesday due to illness, Nick Piecoro of the AZ Central reports.

There's no timetable for when Longoria will be back, but it doesn't sound like something that will carry over into the regular season. The 37-year-old third baseman joined the Diamondbacks over the winter after slashing .244/.315/.451 with 14 homers over 89 games for the Giants in 2022.

Newman is away from Reds camp Tuesday due to food poisoning, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Newman should be fine after a day or two of rest and treatment. The 29-year-old signed a one-year, $2.662 million free-agent contract with Cincinnati in January and will likely open the 2023 season as the club's everyday shortstop.

Sosa is being looked at in center field, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Enquirer reports.

As Coffey notes, both Nick Maton and Matt Vierling were traded to Detroit in the Gregory Soto deal over the winter, so there's no obvious backup option behind Brandon Marsh in center. Enter Sosa, who certainly has the athleticism for the position, and would also provide a right-handed bat that could play in the middle of the outfield against southpaws. Sosa is battling for a spot on Philadelphia's Opening Day roster, and if he can help in the outfield, it would obviously increase those chances substantially.

Wisdom will likely begin the year as the Cubs' regular third baseman despite the team adding some new players in the infield, Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic report.

Dansby Swanson was added to play shortstop while Eric Hosmer will begin the year at first. That shifts Nico Hoerner to second base and Nick Madrigal to a bench role. Wisdom should have the edge at the hot corner over Madrigal, but the latter could push for more playing time, especially if Wisdom struggles to make consistent contact.