MLB Player News

Soler (personal) is batting third as the designated hitter for Friday's season opener at Cleveland, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

The 28-year-old stepped away from the team earlier this week due to a family matter, but he's back for Opening Day as expected. Soler had a .265/.354/.569 slash line with 48 home runs and 117 RBI in 2019, and he'll look to build on that success in the shortened season.

Choi isn't in the lineup for Friday's season opener against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu is on the mound for Toronto, so Yandy Diaz is receiving the start at first base while Jose Martinez serves as the designated hitter. Choi should be in Saturday's starting nine since righty Matt Shoemaker is the Blue Jays' probable starter.

Alvarez (undisclosed) was cleared to begin participating in baseball activities Friday, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

The 23-year-old remains on the injured list and was absent from the entirety of summer training for undisclosed reasons, but he may be able to join the team in the near future. Alvarez will report to the Astros' alternate training site to begin his preparations for the season, though it's unclear when he may reach game readiness. Aledmys Diaz and Kyle Tucker are expected to split time at designated hitter until the young slugger is activated off the IL.

Winker is not in the lineup for Friday's Opening Day game against the Tigers.

With southpaw Matthew Boyd starting for Detroit, the Reds will go with a heavily right-handed lineup, sitting both Winker and Shogo Akiyama, with righties Phillip Ervin and Matt Davidson starting at left field and designated hitter, respectively. Winker owns a career 137 wRC+ against righties compared to a 52 wRC+ against lefties, so expect him to continue to be platooned heavily this season.

Colon had his contract selected by the Reds on Friday and was added to the 30-man roster.

The 31-year-old was in camp as a non-roster invitee and was able to show enough for the team to justify creating room for him on the 40-man roster. Colon appeared in eight games for the Reds in 2019 and spent most of the season at Triple-A Louisville, where he had a .300/.372/.443 slash line in 136 games. He's unlikely to see significant playing time as a reserve infielder.

Collins was added to the White Sox's Opening Day roster, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Collins and Yermin Mercedes were in a battle for the same spot, but the White Sox opted for their top pick in the 2016 draft. It came down to Collins' left-handed bat and familiarity with the arms at the big-league level. He also had a productive bat during summer camp, putting into practice a more aggressive plate approach. He'll serve as the third catcher and depth option at first base and designated hitter.

Stanton went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and an additional RBI in Thursday's win over Washington.

Stanton got his season started with a bang in the first inning, crushing a 459-foot homer to deep center off Max Scherzer. He got to Scherzer again in the fifth, driving in another run with a single to right field. After playing in only 18 games during an injury-riddled 2019 season, Stanton is looking to bounce back in the abbreviated 2020 campaign.

Torrens is not included on the Padres' Opening Day roster.

Torrens had been on the bubble for a roster spot throughout spring training and summer camp, but San Diego ultimately decided to carry only two catchers while Ty France serves as the emergency backstop. Though he is not on the active roster, Torrens will travel with the team during road trips as a member of the taxi squad, per Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The Giants selected Ruf's contract Thursday.

Ruf was one of six non-roster players the Giants bumped up the 40-man roster and 30-man Opening Day roster in advance of Thursday's opener versus the Dodgers. Back in North America after a three-year stint in the Korea Baseball Organization, Ruf will provide the Giants with some right-handed power off the bench. He could find himself in the lineup regularly versus southpaws, against whom he's posted a .299/.379/.542 career slash line (150 wRC+).

Goins signed a minor-league contract with the White Sox on Thursday, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Goins will report to the team's alternative camp site in Schaumburg, Illinois, where he'll remain as organizational infield depth. The 32-year-old hit .250/.333/.347 across 52 games with Chicago in 2019.