MLB Player News

Baldwin is fine Friday after being scratched from Wednesday's Grapefruit League lineup due to an allergic reaction, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

The 23-year-old had an accidental exposure to walnuts but has since recovered from the allergic reaction. Baldwin is Atlanta's top prospect and has yet to make his MLB debut, but that could change soon with No. 1 backstop Sean Murphy (rib) set to begin the season on the injured list. Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution projects Baldwin to be the team's Opening Day starter behind the plate.

Thaiss is projected to be on the White Sox's Opening Day roster by Scott Merkin of MLB.com.

Thaiss joined the White Sox this offseason and has had a decent spring, collecting six hits across 19 at-bats while striking out only three times. While much of Chicago's roster lacks standout talent, catcher is the exception with the pair of Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero --both promising prospects -- knocking on the door of the majors. That could ultimately cost Thaiss playing time later in the season, but he appears to still have a decent shot to make the Opening Day roster.

Stallings went 2-for-2 with a pair of home runs and four RBI in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Guardians.

Stallings is locked in as Colorado's primary catcher to begin the season, mostly due to his sturdy defense and veteran leadership. However, he flashed some pop by delivering his first homers of spring training Thursday. Overall, Stallings has collected six hits across 21 at-bats this spring.

Stephenson will undergo an MRI on his injured back Thursday, Pat Brennan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Stephenson had to be scratched from Wednesday's Cactus League lineup against the Rangers. Reds manager Terry Francona downplayed the injury at the time, but it seems Stephenson hasn't bounced back as quickly as hoped, necessitating the MRI. Francona said the team should have an update on Stephenson's condition later Thursday or Friday.

Quero has yet to make a start for the White Sox this spring.

Quero came into camp seemingly with a shot to emerge with a spot on the Opening Day roster, but his lack of usage suggests that's not going to happen. The 21-year-old has appeared in eight Cactus League games off the bench this spring, going 4-for-14 with a 2:1 K:BB. Quero appears likely to open the season alongside fellow catching prospect Kyle Teel at Triple-A Charlotte, where the duo would split playing time.

The Astros reassigned Lavastida to minor-league camp Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Lavastida is likely to be part of a catcher committee at Triple-A Sugar Land this season after he spent the entirety of the 2024 campaign with the Guardians' Triple-A affiliate in Columbus, finishing with a .232/.334/.387 slash line, eight home runs and 26 stolen bases over 345 plate appearances. The 26-year-old's lone big-league action came in 2022, when he appeared in six games for Cleveland.

Pages adopted a new batting stance earlier this week in which he stands taller in the box and holds his hand higher, Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Pages began to see the changes pay dividends in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game versus the Mets, as he contributed an opposite-field double while also hitting two hard lineouts. The 26-year-old Pages is competing with Ivan Herrera for playing time at catcher and is likely to enter the season as 1B to Herrera's 1A behind the dish.

Diaz (illness) is out of the Astros' Grapefruit League lineup for a second straight day Thursday but will go through a full workout, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

It sounds like Diaz should be ready to play in games in a day or two. The Astros' top catcher is 3-for-28 with one home run at the dish during Grapefruit League action.

Stephenson was scratched from Wednesday's lineup because of lower-to-mid back pain, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Stephenson was scheduled to be the designated hitter and was replaced by Blake Dunn. Cincinnati manager Terry Francona downplayed the injury, indicating Stephenson will be fine and that there was no need to push him.

Raleigh went 0-for-3 with a walk in Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Royals and is now batting just .129 (4-for-31) with one home run and five RBI this spring.

Raleigh got off to fast start during spring training in 2024, belting four homers in 44 plate appearances, but it's been a sluggish beginning at the dish thus far this year. Even so, the Mariners are still set to rely on Raleigh as a key cog in their lineup in 2025. Although Raleigh hasn't finished with a batting average higher than .232 in any of his four MLB seasons, the switch-hitting slugger has smashed at least 27 long balls in each campaign since 2022.