MLB Player News

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said the earliest Ahmed (knee) could return to action is Monday, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Lovullo was hopeful that Ahmed could play Friday, but the team decided to give the shortstop a few extra days to test his right knee before playing in a game. Ahmed said the condition improves daily and did not sound too concerned about it. Josh Rojas has been the primary fill-in at shortstop.

Ahmed (knee) isn't in the lineup for Friday's spring game against the Angels.

The 30-year-old has been sidelined by a knee injury this week and was expected to rejoin the lineup Friday, but he won't be in the starting nine. Ahmed could still make an appearance off the bench, but the Diamondbacks could just be delaying his return by a day or two. Josh Rojas will continue to work as the team's top shortstop in the meantime.

Bogaerts (shoulder) will make his spring debut in Friday's exhibition game against the Rays, Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe reports.

Bogaerts was expected to make his first appearance of the spring Friday, and Boston's lineup confirms he will do just that. He will be eased into action at the designated hitter spot, but barring any setbacks he should be at full speed for Opening Day.

Crawford, who hit leadoff in 48 of 53 games last season, is likely to share the role more often this season with Mitch Haniger, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

"We'll continue to play with that. It won't be just locked in," manager Scott Servais said. "Last year, we had J.P. at the top, just because I thought we didn't have a ton of options. So, we'll continue to be flexible and move it around there." The 26-year-old has gotten off to a modest start in Cactus League play -- he's hitting just .200 (2-for-10) with five walks, a stolen base and a run across his first six games -- but he reported to spring camp with about 10 pounds of additional muscle and hit a career-best .255 last season over 232 plate appearances while striking out at a career-low 16.8 percent clip. However, Haniger is now back and healthy after missing almost two full seasons. The veteran outfielder slashed .330/.388/.580 across 45 games at the top of the order in 2018 and profiles as a highly viable opposite-handed alternative to the lefty-hitting Crawford in the leadoff spot.

Bogaerts (shoulder) will serve as the designated hitter during Friday's spring game against the Rays, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Bogaerts was brought along slowly to begin spring training after he reported soreness in his right shoulder March 1. However, manager Alex Cora confirmed that the 28-year-old will take his first in-game at-bats against Tampa Bay on Friday. It's not yet clear when he'll be able to return to the field, but Bogaerts has said that he thinks he'll be ready for Opening Day.

Diaz started at third base and went 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored in Wednesday's spring game against the Marlins.

Diaz has filled his usual role this spring, playing first base (three games), shortstop (two) and third base (two) over seven Grapefruit League contests. With Alex Bregman's hamstring injury lingering and his spring debut undetermined, Diaz could focus on third base in the short term. He's 3-for-10 with two doubles, one RBI and two runs scored so far in spring training.

Correa batted leadoff and went 3-for-3 with two RBI in Wednesday's spring game against the Marlins.

Houston manager Dusty Baker declared Correa as a candidate to lead off along with center fielder Myles Straw. Wednesday's start was the third time this spring that Correa has hit leadoff and the first success he's had in that role. The Astros are looking to replace George Springer atop the batting order, and Correa brings a similar offensive style to Springer, while Straw offers a speed element.

Ahmed (knee) is likely to return to action Friday following Thursday's off-day, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Ahmed missed a third straight game Wednesday and will get the benefit of a fourth day when Arizona is off. Josh Rojas started at shortstop Wednesday, the second time in three games he's replaced Ahmed in the lineup.

Manager Dusty Baker said Wednesday that Correa and Myles Straw are the "leading candidates" to bat leadoff Opening Day for the Astros, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

George Springer was the longtime leadoff man for Houston, but now that he's moved onto Toronto, Baker is in search of his new man atop the order. Correa has never batted leadoff in his major-league career, primarily hitting third or fourth. The 26-year-old struggled in 2020 with a .264/.326/.383 slash line, five homers and 25 RBI in 58 games, but he had an .845 OPS across the previous five seasons. Correa is the safer option between the two candidates since Straw has only 224 big-league plate appearances to his name, though the latter certainly provides more upside on the basepaths.

The Red Sox are hopeful that Bogaerts (shoulder) will be available to serve as a designated hitter in Grapefruit League games as soon as this weekend, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Boston has been cautious with Bogaerts since he first reported soreness in his right shoulder March 1, but the star shortstop looks to be nearing a return to full health. After he was cleared to resume a throwing program last weekend, Bogaerts will take another step forward Wednesday, when he's scheduled to take live batting practice. If Bogaerts checks out fine during the workout, the Red Sox could clear him to rejoin the spring lineup as early as Friday's game against the Rays.