MLB Player News

Crawford went 2-for-5 with a solo homer and two runs scored in Tuesday's 8-4 win over Arizona.

He could have had a much bigger day, as Crawford was credited with six stranded baserunners. Still, he's opened the season by going 4-for-10 with three extra-base hits, and fantasy owners aren't about to look that gift horse in its mouth. Crawford's been improving steadily, and he's already proven to be a quality source of RBI. The question now for fantasy owners is whether he can continue last year's uptick in batting average and/or regain the power stroke he showed two seasons ago.

Owings will start at shortstop and bat seventh against the Giants on Tuesday.

With right-hander Johnny Cueto taking the mound Tuesday, Torey Lovullo will shy away from his Opening Day lineup that stacked right-handed bats in the top three spots. Instead, Owings will slide down to seventh in the order while left-handed swinging David Peralta will jump up to the two spot. It seems this might be common against right-handed starters, but only time will tell.

Arcia went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in the Brewers' season-opening loss to the Rockies.

Arcia hit eighth in the Brewers' Opening Day batting order and figures to slot in there often at the beginning of the regular season, but he is one of the Brewers' most promising youngsters, and figures to play nearly every day at shortstop.

Seager finished 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBI in Monday's 14-3 win over the Padres.

Seager was a spectator as his team built a big early lead, but he joined the party with a three-run dinger to left center in the fifth inning. He emerged as one of the best young hitters in the game last season and should have big things in store in his second full campaign as a Dodger.

Rodriguez signed a minor-league contract with the Mets on Monday, Matt Ehalt of The Record reports.

Rodriguez's only time in the majors came in 2011 during a brief stint with the Pirates, when he went 1-for-12 before being sent back to the minors. The 32-year-old will report to Triple-A Las Vegas, where he will serve as organizational infield depth.

Diaz went 2-for-5 with a double and two stolen bases in Sunday's 4-3 Opening Day win over the Cubs.

Diaz and offseason acquisition Dexter Fowler have the look of a lethal 1-2 punch at the top of the Cardinals order, and it was the former who particularly stood out Sunday. The pair of swipes was especially noteworthy because Diaz was just 4-for-8 in steal attempts during his rookie campaign and never topped six stolen bases in his minor-league career. Now 26, Diaz burst onto the scene in 2016 in the wake of Jhonny Peralta's spring training thumb injury, providing a .300/.369/.510 line that included 28 doubles, three triples, 17 home runs and 65 RBI. With a year of seasoning at the big-league level now under his belt, 20-plus homers and 100 RBI look to be realistic goals for the blossoming star in 2017.

Owings will start at shortstop and bat second in the order in the Diamondbacks' Opening Day game Sunday against the Giants, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

With a tough left-hander on the hill for the opposition in Madison Bumgarner, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo will stack his lineup with right-handed bats in the top three spots. Owings will occupy prime real estate between A.J. Pollock and Paul Goldschmidt on Sunday, but there's a chance that Lovullo could drop the shortstop in the lineup when the Diamondbacks face right-handed starters.

Seager (oblique) is starting at shortstop in Saturday's game against the Angels, J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group reports.

Seager had been expected to return Sunday, but he'll be back in action a day early. With his return, it appears that Seager is all set for the Dodgers' Opening Day game against the Padres.

Cordoba was one of three Rule 5 draft picks the Padres retained on their 25-man roster, MLB.com's AJ Cassavell reports.

The club elected to keep both Luis Sardinas and Cordoba as backup infielders. The former figures to be the club's primary infield backup, but the latter could see the occasional spot start in the outfield. The 21-year-old's addition to the 25-man roster was clearly a move made by San Diego in an effort to protect the Rule 5 draft pick from being offered back to the Cardinals. There isn't much to see here from a fantasy perspective quite yet.

Manager Torey Lovullo said Chris Owings will receive the bulk of playing time at shortstop, but Ahmed will still see a fair share of starts, Bob McManaman of The Arizona Republic reports.

Ahmed has been behind Owings in terms of performance all spring, so the move doesn't come as much of a surprise. However, Lovullo said the move doesn't mean there won't be opportunities down the road. "Nick Ahmed is not a backup infielder," he said. "He's going to get a number of starts at shortstop." The general assumption here is that those starts will come on the days when Owings moves to right field. Ahmed is looking to move past his injury-riddled 2016 campaign.