MLB Player News

Belt batted second and went 0-for-4 in Thursday's 2-0 loss to San Diego.

Belt's Opening Day stat line was forgettable, but his placement second in the order against a southpaw was notable. The 30-year-old figures to bat in the heart of the order against righties, but the club lacks proven right-handed threats against lefties, opening the door for Belt to move up the order instead of down against same-handed pitchers. The move -- combined with Belt's excellent on-base skills -- should boost his run production when he is not being asked to drive in runs against right-handed starters.

Pederson went 3-for-5 with a pair of home runs and a double to help the Dodgers to a 12-5 romp over the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

On an explosive Opening Day for the Dodgers, Pederson starred hitting atop the lineup, cranking two of his team's eight home runs on the afternoon. He'll make a strong case to keep garnering at-bats in the leadoff role if he can parlay the Opening Day fireworks into a sustained hot streak, but his .170 batting average over 53 at-bats against left-handed pitching last year likely means Pederson will frequently find himself sitting against southpaws.

Reyes not only is in the Padres' Opening Day starter in right field, but he's batting cleanup against Madison Bumgarner.

The surprise here is that Reyes got the start ahead of Hunter Renfroe, who was the incumbent starter. But if this holds, this is a pretty sweet spot for Reyes.

Pederson is leading off and starting in left field Thursday against the Diamondbacks, Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times reports.

This is a best-case scenario for Pederson. We know he will sit against most lefties, but if he leads off against righties, he will be relevant in many formats. A.J. Pollock is hitting fifth against Zack Greinke.

Cespedes (heel) was officially placed on the 10-day IL, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

This move was a long time coming. It is not even a lock that Cespedes returns this season, although he said back in February that he expected to be back.

Carpenter (back) participated in the team's full workout at Miller Park in Milwaukee on Wednesday and declared himself "one hunded percent" for Thursday's opener, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

Carpenter spent the early part of the week piling up at-bats at minor-league camp in order to get his timing as sharp as possible prior to Thursday's opener. Carpenter logged only 23 Grapefruit League at-bats due to his back issues, but he's fully expected to start at third base in the opening installment of the four-game set against the Brewers.

Winker will lead off Opening Day against the Pirates, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Winker certainly doesn't have the speed of a traditional leadoff man, but he has the on-base skills that fit the modern requirements for the spot (career on-base percentage of .397 through 136 games). He'll be followed by a trio of quality bats in Joey Votto, Yasiel Puig and Eugenio Suarez, so he could be in line for plenty of runs in the Reds' hitter-friendly home park.

Turner has posted excellent numbers this spring, hitting .465/.574/.814 in 18 games.

It's great to see Turner swinging the bat well so far, but the question with him for the past several years has been health, not performance. This time last season, he had just recently broken his wrist, an injury which kept him out until mid-May. It's unwise to read too much into spring stats, but Turner certainly looks healthy right now and should produce numbers in line with his recent seasons for as long as he can stay on the field.

Winker played two innings in center field Saturday and four innings there on Sunday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. Winker will still be the starting left fielder, but will also back up Scott Schebler for as long as Nick Senzel is down in the minors. "We need to make sure that we have someone who can play out there," Bell said on Sunday. "Talking to guys that have seen Jesse play out there, he's done it before."

Winker played some center field in the minors at Triple-A Louisville, but he's not especially fleet of foot. The Reds want to leave Yasiel Puig alone in right field, instead of experimenting with playing him in center.

Carpenter (back), who struck out in his only at-bat during a Grapefruit League win over the Marlins on Sunday, will lead off in every inning during a game at minor-league camp Monday, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

The goal is to get Carpenter as many reps at the plate as possible before Thursday's season opener versus the Brewers, considering he missed the last week of Grapefruit League action due to his back issue. In addition to the work he'll get Monday, Carpenter is also set to face Luke Gregerson in a simulated game Tuesday prior to joining his teammates in Milwaukee.