MLB Player News

Jansen spent the offseason developing a pre-game hitting routine to help him maintain a consistent swing plane and spot flaws in his mechanics, Gregor Chisholm of The Toronto Star reports.

The 24-year-old came up through the minors with a reputation as a bat-first catcher, but he spent last season focused on improving his defense and pitch framing. His .639 OPS reflected the lack of attention he was giving that side of his game, but Jansen now hits a weighted ball off a tee as part of his pre-game preparations. "I've always taken hitting very seriously, but I've always felt like I just didn't need tee work," Jansen said Tuesday morning. "I just wanted to get my timing down, that was the most important thing for me, until I went into this off-season and developed. I like to hit off a tee now, I actually want to, and I need it. I'm starting to understand my body more and my swing." He posted a .275/.390/.473 slash line through 88 games for Triple-A Buffalo in 2018, and a return to something close to that level of production would likely allow Jansen to seize the No. 1 job behind the plate for Toronto rather than working in a timeshare with Reese McGuire.

Athletics manager Bob Melvin said Wednesday that he doesn't expect Murphy (knee) to make his Cactus League debut until March 2 versus the Cubs, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The Athletics are bringing Murphy along slowly this spring after he underwent a minor cleanup procedure for his left knee back in October. Murphy hasn't endured any setbacks following the surgery and has been taking part in catching drills since reporting to camp, so he should be ready to go for Opening Day once he gets a few spring games under his belt. After posting an .899 OPS over 60 plate appearances in his first taste of the majors last season, Murphy would offer some intriguing upside in 2020 if he can stay healthy and avoid falling into a timeshare behind the dish.

Perez will hit but won't catch in the Royals' first handful of spring games, Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star reports.

Perez has been practicing without restrictions after missing all of last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. The Royals will be careful not to overwork him early, but it appears that he'll have plenty of time to be ready for Opening Day. Whether or not he'll handle his typically heavy workload behind the plate early in the regular season remains to be seen.

Thaiss will get the majority of his work at first base, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Although Thaiss spent time in the Dominican Republic this winter working at third base, the signing of Anthony Rendon has rendered the 24-year-old's services at the hot corner mostly unnecessary. Instead, Thaiss will focus on improving at first base, where he logged 13 games (as opposed to 43 games at third base) last season.

Higashioka is the front-runner to back up Gary Sanchez at catcher, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Higashioka spent much of last season in the minors, hitting .278 with 20 home runs and 56 RBI with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Though he has hit only .164 in 146 career major-league at-bats, the Yankees are optimistic that the 29-year-old is capable of holding down the No. 2 backstop role behind Sanchez. Higashioka will be competing for the spot with a host of veterans -- including Chris Iannetta, Erik Kratz and Josh Thole -- but strong defense, tenure in the organization and a lack of minor-league options are certainly factors working in his favor.

Amaya, who is in his first big-league camp this year, could start the season with Double-A Tennessee, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

The 20-year-old catcher is getting his first taste of the MLB level this spring, but the Cubs are in no rush to make him their everyday backstop with Willson Contreras around. Amaya spent 2019 at High-A Myrtle Beach and had a .235/.351/.402 slash line with 11 home runs and 24 doubles in 99 games.

Grandal (calf) was able to catch Wednesday, Scot Gregor of the Chicago Daily Herald reports.

Grandal came into camp with a mild calf strain and is expected to miss the first few Cactus League games. Initial reports indicated that his start to the regular season wasn't at risk, and the fact that he's already able to catch at the start of camp appears to back that up.

Grandal will miss the first week of Cactus League contests with a mild calf strain, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

The issue doesn't appear likely to threaten Grandal's Opening Day availability, though it would obviously be preferable for a 31-year-old catcher to enter the season without any injury worries. Grandal hasn't hit the injured list since April of 2016 and has played in 140 and 153 games over the last two years.

Barnhart will no longer be a switch hitter and will instead hit exclusively from the left side of the plate, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Over the last three years, Barnhart has a .651 OPS against left-handers, but that dropped to .390 (.133/.235/.156 in 51 plate appearances) last year. With lefty-mashing Curt Casali as his backup, it's most likely that Barnhart will have limited exposure to lefties with this change.

McGuire was arrested last weekend for the exposure of sexual organs and given notice to appear in court March 16 in Clearwater, Florida, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The team issued a statement Wednesday morning saying, "The Toronto Blue Jays are aware of the recent police incident involving catcher Reese McGuire. He has been in communication with the Blue Jays and we are working to gather more information. Out of respect for the legal process, neither he nor the club will comment any further at this time." McGuire is expected to compete with Danny Jansen for the primary catcher role in spring training.