MLB Player News

The Cubs reassigned Perez to minor-league camp Sunday, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Perez's dismissal from big-league camp leaves Carson Kelly, Miguel Amaya and Reese McGuire as the catchers who are likely competing for two spots on the Cubs' season-opening roster. The 34-year-old Perez has seen big-league action in parts of five seasons but spent the entire 2024 campaign with the Athletics' Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas, where he slashed .260/.344/.544 over 468 plate appearances.

Amaya went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Mariners and is now batting .524 this spring with a 1.450 OPS.

Amaya has gone 11-for-21 across seven contests with two doubles and two home runs. The 26-year-old has more upside than the Cubs' other catcher, veteran Carson Kelly, and Amaya could seize a majority of the playing time as the season progresses if he delivers on his promise at the plate.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said that Alvarez has been diagnosed with a fractured hamate bone in his left hand and will be sidelined 6-to-8 weeks after he undergoes surgery Monday, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

Alvarez last saw Grapefruit League action Friday against the Nationals, but it's unclear exactly how he suffered the injury. The 23-year-old missed over seven weeks in 2024 due to a torn UCL in his left thumb, and he struggled to find much consistency when healthy with 11 home runs and a .237/.307/.403 slash line over 100 regular-season games. Making his 2025 debut in late April is likely the best-case scenario while coming back from a fracture in his glove hand, but there's a real chance Alvarez doesn't return from the injured list until May. Luis Torrens is poised to take over as the No. 1 catcher in the interim, though the Mets could look outside the organization to bolster their depth behind the plate.

During an in-game interview on YES Network on Thursday, Yankees manager Aaron Boone mentioned Rice as a candidate to log at-bats at DH with Giancarlo Stanton (elbows) slated to miss the start of the season.

Boone indicated that Aaron Judge won't necessarily be the team's primary DH while Stanton is on the shelf, opening the door for Rice, among others, to log at-bats at the position. Rice isn't guaranteed to make the Opening Day roster, but his ability to play both first base and catcher works in his favor, as New York doesn't have a clear-cut healthy backup at either position. Rice was up-and-down in his first taste of the majors last season, slashing .171/.264/.349 with seven home runs and 23 RBI over 178 regular-season plate appearances.

Adams was scratched from the lineup ahead of Saturday's Grapefruit League game versus St. Louis due to a right wrist injury, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Adams took a pitch off his wrist Friday, and although X-rays came back negative immediately afterward, the Nationals opted to give him Saturday to recover. He should be back in the lineup within a few days.

The Angels optioned Campero to Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday.

Campero put together a solid spring, going 6-for-18 with two RBI, three runs scored and a stolen base over 12 games. However, the 27-year-old slashed just .239/.271/.348 across 48 plate appearances with the Angels last year, so he'll return to Triple-A to continue developing at the plate.

Baldwin appears to be the favorite to begin the season as Atlanta's starting catcher with Sean Murphy (ribs) sidelined, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The organization's top prospect seemed likely to make his MLB debut at some point in 2025 anyway, but Murphy's injury in camp could accelerate that timeline. Baldwin might have pushed his way onto the Opening Day roster anyway given how he's performed this spring -- both pitchers and coaches have been impressed by his work behind the plate, and the 23-year-old is batting .375 (6-for-16) so far in camp with an eye-popping 4:0 BB:K. Murphy could be back by mid-April, giving Baldwin a small window to establish himself in the majors should he break camp with the club.

Lee (hand) will start at catcher and bat eighth in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Dodgers.

Lee suffered a bruised hand during Wednesday's contest and had to make an early exit, but the discomfort has subsided ahead of Saturday's game. The 26-year-old has gone 3-for-9 with two RBI and two runs scored over five games this spring and figures to open the season as Chicago's primary catcher.

Basallo went 1-for-3 with a three-run triple in Friday's Grapefruit League game against Detroit.

Basallo added to a promising start to spring training with a bases-clearing triple in the first inning Friday. Over eight Grapefruit League outings, the 20-year-old backstop has gone 4-for-13 with one home run and five RBI. Basallo remains likely to open the season with Triple-A Norfolk, but he ranks as Baltimore's No. 1 prospect to begin the year, per MLB.com, and could get his first taste of major-league action at some point later in 2025.

Wells is a candidate to bat leadoff for the Yankees during the 2025 campaign, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Wells and Jazz Chisholm have been getting most of the reps in the leadoff spot this spring, and Yankees manager Aaron Boone has indicated that both players are being considered for the role come the regular season. While Wells' lack of speed and .229 batting average to this point in his big-league career aren't typical of a leadoff hitter, he has shown an acumen for getting on base, frequently recording double-digit walk rates in the minors and posting an 11.4 percent walk rate over 414 plate appearances with the big club last year. Hoch notes that the Yankees have never had a catcher bat leadoff in a regular-season game over the long history of the franchise.