MLB Player News

Vargas went 2-for-5 with a home run for Puerto Rico in Sunday's win over Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic.

Vargas hadn't played much before Sunday with just three at-bats in the WBC. He was just 1-for-13 in MLB spring training before leaving for the tournament. Vargas was the leading candidate for the starting DH job in Minnesota as spring training began, but he's struggled while Byungho Park has been hot (hitting .357 with three home runs). The battle for Minnesota's starting DH job will likely be decided late in spring training once Vargas returns from the WBC. Vargas' homer shows he won't be easily unseated.

Martinez (foot) is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Sunday, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Martinez was an early exit from Saturday's exhibition matchup after he appeared to suffer a leg injury while playing the field, which was later classified as a right foot sprain. The Tigers aren't taking any chances with the 29-year-old outfielder, who has tallied 83 home runs over the last three seasons. Look for more information to follow once the results come in, but don't expect Martinez to return to a regular workload for at least a few days.

Martinez has been diagnosed with a mid right foot sprain and is set to be reevaluated Sunday.

X-rays came back negative on Martinez's foot, but there won't be an offical timetable for his return until team doctors re-examine him later in the weekend. Martinez exited Saturday's game after making a running catch and was seen favoring his right leg on his way into the dugout. Tyler Collins and Steven Moya stand to see more playing time in right field while Martinez is sidelined.

Martinez exited Saturday's game with an apparent leg injury, MLB.com's Jason Beck reports.

Martinez appeared to injure his leg making a play in the field in the first inning of Saturday's contest. According to Beck, Martinez charged for a fly ball and hobbled to the dugout after making the catch. Alex Presley has come on to replace Martinez in the lineup. More information on Martinez's status should be available later in Saturday's game.

Vargas has just three at-bats for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic and was just 1-for-13 in MLB spring training before leaving for the tournament.

Vargas was the leading candidate for the starting DH job in Minnesota as spring training began, but he's struggled while Byungho Park has been hot (hitting .357 with three home runs). Still, it's probably too early in the spring to read too much into the competition since Vargas has hardly played (surprisingly losing playing time with Puerto Rico to T. J. Rivera). The battle for Minnesota's starting DH job will likely be decided late in spring training once Vargas returns from the WBC.

Brantley (shoulder) will play in a minor league game Saturday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

After two days off, Brantley will test his shoulder out again for five innings. Cleveland is taking it slowly with Brantley, but he is on pace to get back into Cactus League action before spring training ends, and as such there's a good chance Brantley suits up for Cleveland on Opening Day.

Cabrera (back) is expected to miss the rest of the World Baseball Classic, Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY reports.

With Venezuela sitting at 0-2 in Pool F, the team is already all but eliminated from the tournament, as it would need an almost impossible combination of results and run scoring in order to win a tiebreaker and advance to the semifinals. As such, Cabrera will take it easy with the back injury, which is still expected to be minor, just to ensure that he will be ready for Opening Day with the Tigers.

Ramirez was optioned to minor league camp Friday, Mike Wilner of Sportsnet.ca reports.

A knee injury put Ramirez on the shelf last year just one game into his tenure in the Blue Jays' organization -- he came over from Pittsburgh in the Francisco Liriano deal. Ramirez hit .306/.354/.401 with two homers and seven steals (17 attempts) in 98 games with Double-A Altoona before the trade. The 22-year-old figures to return to Double-A to begin the 2017 season.

Cabrera's back discomfort, that prompted him to be removed from Thursday's World Baseball Classic contest, isn't a cause for concern for the Tigers, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports. "I just got a text from Omar (Vizquel, Venezuela's manager) this morning saying his back tightened up and he's fine. Don't think it's anything more than that," said Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said, who was uncertain whether Cabrera would play in Team Venezuela's Saturday contest.

Though it's worth noting, this story at first glance doesn't appear to jeopardize Cabrera's fantasy value. Of course, diligent drafters should watch closely as their big day approaches.

Cabrera (back) was pulled from Thursday's game against the Dominican Republic for precautionary reasons, MLB Network's Jon Morosi reports.

Hernan Perez came on to take over for Cabrera at first base in the sixth inning after the veteran slugger experienced some back tightness. Fortunately, manager Omar Vizquel told Morosi that the move was precautionary, so there's hope that Cabrera's back issue won't put him on the shelf for long. More information on Cabrera's status figures to be released Friday.