MLB Player News

Belt (undisclosed) returned to the lineup Sunday, going 4-for-4 with four RBI and his first home run of the spring in the 10-4 win over Colorado.

Belt was scratched from Saturday's lineup for undisclosed reasons, but the club stated that it was not injury-related. He reassured owners by having his best day at the plate during Cactus League play. Belt has the starting first base job locked down for Opening Day, but he will likely lose 10-15 starts when Buster Posey slides over to first base during his "off days."

Carpenter went 2-for-3 with a double and a home run Sunday to raise his spring average to .208.

Carpenter hit leadoff, his presumed lineup spot for Opening Day and looked a bit more comfortable than earlier this spring. He still has a couple weeks to fine-tune his swing but he should be in line for another very good year.

Harper hit his first two home runs of the spring, both off Justin Verlander, in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.

Verlander had yet to be scored upon this spring before Harper got to work, and his second shot (a blast over the batter's eye wall in straightaway center field) was one of the longest home runs ever hit at Joker Marchant Stadium and drew admiration from Tigers legends like Al Kaline and Willie Horton. Harper appears to be in midseason form already, and ready to defend his NL MVP award.

Brantley (shoulder) didn't report any lingering soreness following his Cactus League debut Saturday and is expected back in the lineup Monday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Brantley is trending towards a return for Opening Day as his rehab from offseason shoulder surgery continues to go exceedingly well.

Buxton (illness) returned to action and went 1-for-3 with a double in Sunday's spring training loss to the Yankees. He's hitting just .217 (5-for-23) this spring.

Despite some struggles at the plate this spring and missing a few days to an illness, all signs still point toward Buxton beginning the season as Minnesota's starting center fielder. There has been little talk of any other candidate taking over the starting center field job.

Brantley (shoulder) went 1-for-3 with a home run in his major league spring training debut in Saturday's win over the Cubs. He also had an outfield assist. "They told me I was going to be ready when I told them I was ready," Brantley told MLB.com.

Brantley had played in a minor league spring game Thursday. He's said his goal is to be ready for Opening Day. He underwent labral surgery on his right (non-throwing) shoulder on Nov. 9, and initially it was thought he may miss a month or so of the regular season. It increasingly looks like he'll be ready for Opening Day, but we'll need to see how his shoulder responds to playing spring games.

Belt was scratched from Saturday's lineup but is not dealing with any kind of ailment, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The team said Belt's OK and the 27-year-old later confirmed that he's healthy, saying there is "absolutely nothing wrong" with him. Belt is fully expected to return to the lineup for Sunday's exhibition. He has walked more times than he has struck out so far in Cactus League play, but Belt is still looking for his first homer of the spring.

Miller went 1-for-3 with a solo homer in Friday's 5-1 spring victory over the Red Sox.

The four-year pro continued his strong spring by leaving the yard for the first time in the exhibition slate, launching a fifth-inning Sean O'Sullivan offering into center field. Acquired from the Mariners in a November six-player trade, Miller is expected to enter 2016 as the Rays' regular shortstop, although he'll have to demonstrate a much sharper glove than he did in Seattle last season to retain the job. Miller is hitting .364 with a home run and four RBI over 22 at-bats this spring.

Although Colon is hitting just .080 (2-for-25) in 11 spring training games, he's still in competition with Omar Infante for the starting second base job, MLB.com reports.

Infante is hitting .313 (5-for-16) in six games and looks healthy after surgery in November to shave a bone spur in his right elbow. Colon would appear to be a long shot to win the starting job as a result, but should make the team as a reserve infielder.

Brantley (shoulder) will make his spring debut Saturday, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

The 28-year-old grounded out in a pair of at-bats on the minor league side Thursday, but the team saw enough to feel comfortable inserting Brantley into the major league lineup. Brantley will be in left field Saturday and it looks like he still has a shot at Opening Day, though he will be cutting it very close with just over two weeks left in spring training.