MLB Player News

Lewis is 5-for-11 with three doubles, a home run, three RBI, a walk and three runs across his last three Cactus League games, pushing his spring average to .303 (10-for-33).

Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Lewis was already drawing accolades from manager Scott Servais after the first game Thursday, with the Mariners' skipper noting the slugging outfielder had "looked as good as he has all spring" in that contest. Lewis subsequently continued his hot hitting the next two days, supporting the notion the 25-year-old may have his timing at the plate close to regular-season form at this point.

Stanton is no longer expected to spend any time in the outfield during spring training, though he still expects to log some time there during the regular season, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Stanton had previously expressed a desire and expectation to get some defensive reps this spring, but manager Aaron Boone has been noncommittal about that prospect, and it now appears that the team has no plans to allow the slugger to risk injury by playing the field in Grapefruit League games. Despite Stanton's clear interest in playing defense at some point in the campaign, it wouldn't be surprising if he's limited strictly to DH duties this year.

Ford was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday.

Ford struggled in the majors last year but worked with the major-league coaching staff this spring. He went 3-for-19 with a double, two RBI, one walk and three strikeouts over nine spring games this year but will now prepare for the minor-league season.

Choi (knee) is progressing well in his recovery but hasn't began participating in baseball activities, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The 29-year-old has been battling right knee soreness since early in camp and is unlikely to retake the field in the near future. Choi appears poised to open the season on the injured list since he's not taking part in baseball activities and with Opening Day less than two weeks away.

Canha is hitting .176 (3-for-17) with seven walks, a stolen base and one run across his first nine Cactus League games.

The veteran notched back-to-back one-single performances March 7 and 9, but he's just 1-for-7 over his subsequent four games and is still in search of his first extra-base hit this spring. However, the seven bases on balls do corroborate Canha's batting eye is as sharp as ever after he generated the two highest walk rates of his career the last two seasons (13.5 percent and 15.2 percent). Canha presumably still remains a candidate to lead off on occasion after being labeled as such early in spring training, with his respective .396 and .387 on-base percentages in 2019 and 2020 certainly helping make his case as a viable top-of-the-order option.

Solak went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and two runs scored in Wednesday's spring game against Arizona.

Solak homered for the second straight game and is now 4-for-9 over his last three games. That's the good news. The other side of Solak's spring is an increase in strikeouts. The Rangers' planned starter at second base, who struck out at an 18 percent clip in 2020, has whiffed 11 times in 26 Cactus League at-bats.

Alvarez did not appear in Monday's spring game against the Marlins because manager Dusty Baker wanted to avoid using him in back-to-back games, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Alvarez, who made his spring debut Sunday, has been dealing with sore knees, so the manager didn't want to expose him to back-to-back contests this early. It's unclear how long Alvarez will be under such restrictions or whether this was simply Baker exercising an overabundance of caution.

Ohtani went 2-for-3 with a pair of solo home runs in Monday's Cactus League loss to Cincinnati.

Two days after a rough outing on the mound, Ohtani was in the lineup at DH and reminded everyone of what he can do with the bat, drilling two opposite-field homers against Michael Lorenzen. While he has been up and down as a pitcher this spring, Ohtani has wowed at the plate, slashing .563/.556/1.125 with three homers and five RBI.

Choi (knee) acknowledged Monday that he's unsure if he'll be available for the Rays' April 1 season opener versus the Marlins, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Choi expects to glean more clarity on his status for Opening Day when the Rays re-evaluate him this weekend or early next week after he completes a 7-to-10-day shutdown period. The Rays are hopeful that the time off will help resolve the ongoing right knee soreness/tightness that Choi has been managing this spring, but if not, the 29-year-old will be a candidate for the 10-day injured list. Choi's potential absence to begin the season would open up more reps at first base and/or designated hitter for Yandy Diaz, Austin Meadows and Yoshi Tsutsugo.

Alvarez made his Grapefruit League debut Sunday and went 0-for-3 in a game against Washington.

As expected, Alvarez slotted in at designated hitter while batting fifth in the order. Issues with both knees slowed Alvarez's introduction to game action and will likely limit him to DH-only duties in 2021. He missed all but two games in 2020, but Alvarez was productive in a mostly-DH role in 2019, when he won Rookie of the Year honors after posting a 1.067 OPS with 27 home runs over 369 plate appearances.