MLB Player News

Cabrera hit a mammoth go-ahead home run in Venezuela's World Baseball Classic win Monday over Italy, his only hit in a 1-for-4 game.

Cabrera has not been the dominant force you would expect in the weaker talent pool of international play. He was hitting just .273/.273/.429 in the first round of pools entering Monday's play-in contest, as pitchers from Italy, Israel and Venezuela proved shockingly effective at stifling one of the world's best hitters. He'll need to ride the momentum of this ninth-inning home run if Venezuela wants to keep advancing in the WBC.

Turner went 1-for-4 with a double, a pair of RBI and a stolen base in a 6-5 win over the Royals.

The stolen base is a positive sign that Turner's knee is feeling good after receiving a preventative lubricating injection last week. He's having a strong spring, batting .375 (6-for-16) with seven RBI after posting career numbers last season. While the 27 home runs the 32-year-old hit last year will be hard to repeat, 2016 was his first full season as a starter in the majors. His isolated power rating of .218 last season isn't far off from the .197 he produced in 2015. So a slight regression in power may be expected, but Turner should still be good for close to 20 homers and solid counting stats while batting in the heart of the Dodgers' potent lineup.

Buxton went 2-for-4 with his first home run of the spring in Sunday's win over Baltimore. He's hitting .273 (6-for-22) during spring training.

Buxton has struck out just five times in 24 plate appearances. It's an extremely small sample size, but a 20.8 percent strikeout rate would be a significant improvement from the problematic 34.8 percent he's posted in the majors to this point. Buxton appears set to begin the season as the starter in center field, but it's not clear where he'll bat in the order. He hit leadoff Sunday, but may be a better fit lower in the order if the 10 home runs he hit in September indicate that he'll add more power than on-base ability.

Manager A.J. Green confirmed that Dickerson has been scratched from Monday's game due to tightness in his back.

This is a tough break for both parties, as Dickerson was slated to make his first start in the outfield this spring before the issue returned. It's unclear how long he will be out, but he should be considered day-to-day for now. The injury has been persistent, and if the 26-year-old is forced to miss time to start the season, Jabari Blash will likely take his place as a reserve outfielder.

Ozuna went 1-for-2 with a sacrifice fly and a solo home run, his second blast of the spring, in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals.

The homer came off top St. Louis prospect Luke Weaver, but Ozuna is only hitting .240 (6-for-25) so far on the spring with a discouraging 0:6 BB:K. On the bright side, he's already matched his previous best homer mark during Grapefruit League play -- he hit two in each of the last three years. The 26-year-old has slugged 23 home runs in two of the last three regular seasons and may still have some upside, but it's also possible Ozuna has already reached his ceiling as a hitter.

Harper went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, his MLB-leading fifth blast of the spring, in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

That's five homers in only 24 at-bats, by the way, an absurd pace even for someone with Harper's talent. While all the usual spring training caveats apply when it comes to the erratic level of competition -- Sunday's bomb came off 24-year-old semi-prospect Reymin Guduan, not exactly a household name -- Harper certainly appears to be in midseason form already, which is a frightening thought for opposing pitchers.

Dickerson is expected to get his first outfield action of the spring Monday, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

The 26-year-old injured his back in the first week of spring training, but he was able to return to game action as the designated hitter in Saturday's Cactus League matchup with the Brewers. It seems like that outing went well, so the Padres will let Dickerson roam the green Monday, and assuming all goes well with that outing, he could push for playing time in a young Padres outfield.

Ramirez went 0-for-2 in his spring debut Saturday versus the Phillies.

Ramirez, a career .306/.364/.411 hitter over five minor league seasons, came over from the Pirates at last year's trade deadline in the same transaction that brought Francisco Liriano north. The Jays haven't had much of a look at Ramirez, whose bat they loved while he was in the Pirates' system. He only played one game with Triple-A New Hampshire before suffering a knee injury that knocked him out for the rest of the season and, after aggravating it early in camp this year, kept him on the shelf until Saturday. The 22-year-old Colombian is an intriguing (and under-the-radar) prospect that dynasty owners should pay attention to throughout the remaining Grapefruit League schedule.

Dickerson (back) will make his spring debut Saturday against the Brewers, MLB.com's Bill Center reports.

Dickerson is a little behind most of his teammates, as a back injury has kept him out of action to this point, but he will get the start at DH and hit cleanup Saturday. He is fourth on the Padres' outfield depth chart, but a big spring could change that. It is possible that Dickerson is just a Quadruple-A bat, as he has been old for his level and has taken advantage of hitter-friendly conditions in the upper levels of the minors, but in NL-only formats he is worth a gamble.

Cespedes hit his fourth home run of the spring, a solo shot, in Friday's split-squad game against the Astros.

His absurd numbers this spring include a .500 batting average, a 1.091 slugging percentage, and zero strikeouts in 22 at-bats. The Mets are counting on Cespedes to anchor a lineup that will get them back to the postseason, and he seems intent on hitting the ground running come Opening Day.