MLB Player News

Seager went 2-for-3 with a run scored in Friday's spring game against the Athletics.

Unlike his first season with Texas, when Seager struggled during the spring and had the second-lowest OPS (.772) of his career, the shortstop's having a strong Cactus League in 2023. He's 10-for-21 with a 1.474 OPS, three home runs and eight RBI. He had similarly strong springs in 2020 and 2021 and went on to post a .943 and .915 OPS, respectively.

Story (elbow) fielded grounders Thursday in Red Sox camp, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

It was his first time doing any on-field baseball activity since he underwent internal brace surgery in January to repair the UCL in his right elbow. "It's something small in the grand scheme of things," Story said Friday. "But in the progression it's big... It was a good day." The positive step here is encouraging, but there remains no exact timetable for when the 30-year-old infielder might return to action for Boston. He can be ruled out through at least the first half of the 2023 campaign.

Perez (back) was optioned to Triple-A Toledo by the Tigers on Friday.

Perez was never going to crack the Opening Day roster, but a back injury he suffered prior to camp cinched it. When he's ready to play for Toledo, it will be his first taste of Triple-A.

Crawford is hitting .267 (3-for-15) with two RBI, three walks and three runs across seven Cactus League games thus far.

Crawford has yet to provide an extra-base hit, but he's been a fairly constant presence on the basepaths and has only struck out twice. The veteran shortstop saw a 30-point drop in batting average last season after a career-best .273 figure in 2021, but that also came with a 45-point reduction in BABIP from .320 to .275. Additionally, Crawford lowered his strikeout rate to a career-low 13.3 percent and walked at his highest clip (11.3 percent) since his initial 23-game big-league cup of coffee back in 2017. An uptick in luck when putting the ball in play could see his average bounce back in 2023.

Correa has left Twins camp in preparation for the birth of his second son, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

Correa figures to be away for a handful of days to take care of more important business before returning to camp. He's 3-for-9 with a walk and two strikeouts so far during Grapefruit League play.

Mondesi (knee) hit outside and fielded grounders Tuesday in Red Sox camp, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora called it another "good day" for the rehabbing speedster. Mondesi is doubtful for the start of the 2023 regular season as he completes his recovery from ACL surgery last May, but he's generally trending in a positive direction and should again be an intriguing fantasy option as soon he's deemed fit to join the active roster in Boston.

Mondesi (knee) participated in running activities and fielded grounders Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

The activity is what manager Alex Cora described as a "great day for him." The manager added that Mondesi's workload will become greater in the upcoming days. The infielder isn't trending toward being ready for Opening Day, but Mondesi is expected to be part of a rotation in the middle infield whenever he's ready to play.

Allen is not a lock to open the season as the Athletics' starting shortstop, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Allen entered camp as the clear favorite to be the primary shortstop and probably still is, but when asked over the weekend whether Allen was the team's starter at short, general manager David Forst said, "I don't know that we have anything penciled in like that." Aledmys Diaz has mostly played shortstop in camp and is an alternative to Allen to start there, although he's likely to bounce around to other infield spots. While he offers solid defense, Allen batted just .207/.256/.291 in 100 games for Oakland last season.

Mondesi (knee) will undergo follow-up tests Monday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

The goal of the tests is simply to get a better idea as to how Mondesi's recovery from a torn left ACL is going. The infielder has been hitting and taking grounders lately, although not on an everyday basis. Mondesi is not expected to be ready for Opening Day, but we could find out more regarding his timetable following Monday's tests.

Lopez is projected to secure the final spot on the Blue Jays' bench for Opening Day, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Toronto already has plenty of versatility on the infield with Santiago Espinal and Cavan Biggio all but locked into roster spots, but Lopez would provide added flexibility. The 24-year-old has only 11 big-league plate appearances over the last two seasons, but he slashed .297/.378/.415 through 91 games with Triple-A Buffalo in 2022 while playing second base, shortstop, center field and left field, and he's stolen double-digit bases in each of the last four minor-league campaigns. Lopez isn't hurting his chances of breaking camp on the 26-man roster either, going 7-for-15 to begin his spring with a 2:2 BB:K.