MLB Player News

Muncy stated that he has been hitting in a cage "a couple times a week" but is "trying not to overdo it" in an interview with John Hartung of Spectrum SportsNet LA.

"Once things start up...it's going to be a lot of games in a short period of time," Muncy theorized in explaining his rationale for wanting to stay fresh during MLB's hiatus. The 29-year-old is slated to take on a near-everyday role as the Dodgers' starting first baseman in 2020, with occasional time at second base.

Sosa would be highly likely to return to the big-league club if rosters are expanded to 30 players for the 2020 season, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Goold provides his assessment on the versatile utility asset in a response to a reader question about what players the Cardinals might opt to carry were they afforded four extra spots to work with. Sosa makes the cut in Goold's eyes due to the 24-year-old's ability to fill in at shortstop and the fact he's already on the 40-man roster. Sosa has just 13 regular-season big-league plate appearances to his name, but he swatted a pair of doubles and home runs apiece during Grapefruit League play and generated a solid .291/.335/.466 line with 40 extra-base hits (18 doubles, five triples, 17 home runs) across 496 plate appearances at Triple-A Memphis in 2019.

Muncy spent time this offseason working on his approach to offspeed pitches, Cary Osborne of Dodger Insider reports.

Despite making his first All-Star team last season, Muncy struggled against offspeed offerings, batting a paltry .197 against such pitches, per Statcast. That was a significant dropoff in comparison to his 2018 campaign during which he batted .268 against offspeed pitches. As a result, Muncy consulted with Dodgers hitting coaches Brant Brown and Robert Van Scoyoc in the offseason, both of whom flew to Texas to work with the slugger. Muncy also spent time addressing his defensive mechanics -- in particular his footwork -- in an effort to shore up a second self-perceived area in need of improvement. The 29-year-old is expected to play primarily at first base in 2020, though he should also see some time at second base.

Riley would likely have been on Atlanta's Opening Day roster had the regular season begun as scheduled, even if he wasn't the starting third baseman, Gabriel Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The club headed into the spring with Riley battling Johan Camargo for the starting job at the hot corner, and the loser was expected to head down to Triple-A Gwinnett to get consistent playing time. During an interview Friday, however, GM Alex Anthopoulos suggested that both had been playing so well in camp that the battle could have continued into the regular season. "Camargo, Riley were playing unbelievably well," Anthopoulos told Fox Sports broadcaster Chip Carey. "We hadn't made a decision yet of who we were going to carry. We had started to talk about - the fact that the minor-league season was scheduled to start on April 9 and we were starting March 26 - we started to talk about carrying both. There's no reason to leave them down in Florida. They'd both been playing well enough to make the team." Once games finally do resume, the duo will pick the competition back up, but if Riley can reduce his strikeouts he remains the favorite in the long run to seize the job.

Nevin has been optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque.

The Rockies have mentioned Nevin and Colton Welker as potential options at first base in the future, given that they are both close to the majors and Colorado seems likely to decline Daniel Murphy's mutual option for 2021. Nevin took advantage of the hitter-friendly conditions at Asheville and Lancaster in 2017 and 2018, but his slash line dipped to .251/.345/.399 in the more neutral conditions at Double-A Hartford.

Newman is expected to serve as the Pirates' primary leadoff man in 2020, though he could also slot third ahead of cleanup hitter Josh Bell occasionally, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

After hitting seventh at the beginning of last year, Newman took full advantage of his opportunity to bat atop the order -- the 26-year-old slashed .328/.374/.502 in 75 games as a leadoff hitter. It remains to be seen how long he'll stick at shortstop, though. He ranked 22nd of 25 with a minus-1.7 dWAR (min. 800 innings). If Pittsburgh trades second baseman Adam Frazier, then Newman could shift to second, with standout defensive prospect Cole Tucker taking over at short. Regardless of where Newman plays in the field, his ability to hit for a high batting average and steal bases -- he swiped 16 bags in 24 tries in 2019 -- gives him fantasy value in two categories.

Longoria went 5-for-25 with two doubles and four RBI in 10 games prior to the suspension of spring training.

The veteran third baseman is poised for another season starting at the hot corner for San Francisco, though he didn't find much success before Cactus League play was suspended. Longoria finished 2019 with a .254/.325/.437 slash line, 20 home runs and 69 RBI in 129 contests.

Nevin or Colton Welker will have a chance to play first base for the Rockies in the coming years, according to farm director Zach Wilson, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.

Wilson notes that Ryan McMahon has found a home at second base, so as things stand, it could be Nevin or Welker, assuming the Rockies decline Daniel Murphy's mutual option for 2021. Michael Toglia is the best first base prospect in the system, but he is at least a year behind Nevin and Welker. Nevin took advantage of the hitter-friendly conditions at Asheville and Lancaster in 2017 and 2018, but his slash line dipped to .251/.345/.399 in the more neutral conditions at Double-A Hartford.

Escobar batted .208 (5-for-24) with one extra-base hit, two walks and six RBI over nine Cactus League games.

Escobar hit third in the order in all nine games and is expected to be a key piece in the middle of the Diamondbacks' lineup in 2020. He launched a career-best 35 home runs in 2019, his third straight year with more than 20 homers, but there's reason for skepticism about his 2019 achievements: the suspicion about the 2019 baseball, a hard-hit rate that was below league average, and his track record as a power hitter. However, factoring in a regression, Escobar is still worthy of a spot on fantasy rosters. He'll be the everyday starter at third base in 2020, but the 31-year-old infielder is also eligible at second base (32 games played). It's at second base where Escobar gives fantasy teams an edge even with a statistical correction.

Muncy hit .200 (5-for-25) with a pair of home runs and two RBI before Cactus League play was suspended.

In addition to the long balls, Muncy walked six times this spring -- the second highest mark on the Dodgers -- and scored six runs. The base on balls total highlights an often-overlooked part of Muncy's skill set; the slugger walked 90 times last season, second on the squad and seventh in the National League. He's set to be the Dodgers' primary first baseman this season after playing second base in all or part of 70 games in 2019.