MLB Player News

Garver is expected to begin the season as Seattle's No. 2 catcher, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The 35-year-old re-signed with the Mariners as a non-roster invitee in February and will once again served as the backup catcher to Cal Raleigh. Garver still needs to be added to the big-league roster, but the club isn't expected to finalize the roster until Wednesday. During the 2025 regular season, Garver clubbed nine homers and produced a .640 OPS over 87 games.

Vientos went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's split-squad game against the Nationals.

Getting the start at first base and batting second, Vientos took Gus Varland deep in the eighth inning for his first long ball of the spring, but he also struck out against PJ Poulin in the sixth. Vientos appears to have a spot on the Opening Day bench locked up, but with only two hits in 35 at-bats during Grapefruit League action (.057 batting average) and a 1:7 BB:K, the 26-year-old appears to be a long way from regular playing time.

Pederson went 0-for-2 in Friday's spring game against San Francisco.

Pederson's struggles from 2025 have carried over into 2026. He's batting just .171 (6-for-35) with zero RBI over 15 Cactus League games. Pederson is expected to be part of a rotation at designated hitter, which could also include players that have been more productive this spring. Both Andrew McCutchen (.533 average) and Mark Canha (.316, three HR) have been better than Pederson.

Kjerstad is dealing with tightness in his right hamstring, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.

Kjerstad will undergo imaging as a precaution to determine whether he's dealing with any structural damage, at which point the team will know more about how long he'll be out. The 27-year-old outfielder has posted just a .605 OPS through 42 plate appearances in the Grapefruit League and seems likely to open the regular season in Triple-A.

Rooker went 2-for-3 with a double in Friday's Cactus League win over the Cubs.

Rooker didn't drive in a run but still squared the ball up consistently Friday, as his fourth-inning single registered at 105 mph off the bat while his fifth-inning double left the bat at 109.2 mph. Coming off three consecutive seasons with 30-plus homers and an OPS north of .800 in each campaign, the 31-year-old has looked locked in this spring, slashing .349/.404/.721 with four doubles, four homers and 10 RBI across 16 Cactus League appearances, and he'll enter the 2026 regular season with high expectations at the plate.

Stanton went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and an additional RBI in Thursday's split-squad Grapefruit League win over the Orioles.

Stanton kicked off the scoring with a first-inning sacrifice fly, then belted a solo homer to right field in the sixth inning. The veteran slugger didn't make his Grapefruit League debut until March 3 and didn't hit his first homer of the exhibition slate until March 9, but his four long balls is tied with top prospect Spencer Jones for the Yankees' lead this spring. If Stanton can stay reasonably healthy this season, a big if given the state of his chronically sore elbows, he should provide fantasy managers with big power numbers after going deep 24 times in only 77 regular-season games last year.

Ohtani tossed 4.1 scoreless innings in a Cactus League start against the Giants on Wednesday, allowing one hit and issuing two walks while striking out four batters.

This was Ohtani's first outing of the Cactus League slate, as he spent much of spring with Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic. The two-way star didn't pitch during the tournament, but he continued to work on his throwing progression with bullpen and live batting-practice sessions. Ohtani certainly didn't seem to be very far behind in his ramp-up Wednesday -- he threw 61 pitches (34 strikes) and topped out at 99.9 mph on his fastball, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com. While Ohtani will likely have some slight innings limitations early in the campaign, he's slated to be part of the Dodgers' rotation from the get-go and may need only a few starts to ramp up to a full workload.

McCutchen started at designated hitter and went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run in Wednesday's spring game against the Royals.

McCutchen, who was signed in the middle of spring training, has hit safely in all six games in which he's appeared. The 39-year-old is 8-for-15 with three doubles, a home run, seven RBI and five runs scored. He's making the most of a brief opportunity to earn a roster spot, likely as a DH.

Morel is expected to begin the season as the Marlins' starting first baseman, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports.

This was always the plan after the 26-year-old career outfielder was signed to a one-year, $2 million deal in December, but Morel needed to show he could handle the position defensively in camp first. His glovework has been acceptable, but how he performs with his bat looms as the bigger issue. Morel is batting just .135 (5-for-37) this spring with zero homers and a 3:13 BB:K, after he managed a .204/.288/.363 line over the last two seasons between the Cubs and Rays with a 29.3 percent strikeout rate. Morel is capable of punishing a mistake -- he clubbed 32 homers in 257 games during those two seasons -- but if he struggles overall, it could open the door later in the year for someone like Griffin Conine to take on a larger role at first base.

Manager Dave Roberts said that Ohtani will pitch in Wednesday's Cactus League game versus the Giants and added that the two-way star is lined up for the Freeway Series versus the Angels between March 22 and 24, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Ohtani is expected to pitch 3-to-4 innings in his first start during the regular season as a pitcher. Wednesday's Cactus League game will be the first time the four-time MVP will have pitched in a spring training game since 2023 when he was with the Angels. The right-hander did not pitch for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic, but he has been participating in bullpen and live batting-practice sessions in his progression.