MLB Player News

The Rays optioned Adames to Triple-A Durham on Sunday.

Adames seemingly has little left to prove in the minors after slashing .277/.360/.415 with 10 home runs and 11 steals across 578 plate appearances with Durham last season, so the Rays' top prospect may not be in store for a lengthy stay at Triple-A to begin the 2018 campaign. The 22-year-old is likely to emerge as an everyday option for Tampa Bay at either second base or shortstop at some point during the upcoming season.

Seager (elbow) will serve as the Dodgers' designated hitter and bat second in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Rockies, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Sunday will mark Seager's eighth appearance of the spring, but all have come as the Dodgers' designated hitter with the team reluctant to use him in the field while he recovers from the right elbow injury that plagued him late in 2017. It's expected that Seager will return to the field in a minor-league game Monday before returning to action at shortstop in Cactus League play a few days later.

Swanson is 5-for-27 (.185) with two home runs through 10 spring training games.

It's rarely ever wise to read too far into spring training stats, but it's fair to be a bit disappointed with Swanson's early spring struggles following his poor showing during the 2017 season. The shortstop's lackluster performance resulted in a brief demotion to Triple-A Gwinnett last year, and despite better results following his return from the minors, the former top prospect still closed the campaign with an awful .232/.312/.324 slash line. He'll be given time to right the ship this season, but the early results don't lend much optimism.

Adrianza is unavailable for Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays due to a minor left calf strain, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

The injury isn't expected to keep Adrianza out of action for more than a few days. The 28-year-old is coming off a season in which he logged a career-high 186 plate appearances, but don't expect him to see much additional work in 2018 with the Twins earmarking him for a utility role.

Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said Crawford is "fine" after getting hit in the eye with a piece of his broken bat in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

It appears unlikely that Crawford will miss much if any time after a potentially dangerous incident. The 23-year-old infielder appears to be a lock to start at shortstop for the Phillies this season but will need an improved bat if he's to be anything other than a deep-league asset.

Gordon blasted two home runs over three at-bats in Friday's 10-7 Cactus League loss to the Giants.

Gordon first home run went deep off starter Jeff Samardzija in the third and he followed it up with a solo shot off Sam Dyson in the fifth. The offseason acquisition is displaying unprecedented power this spring, considering he totaled just two round trippers over 653 at-bats last season in Miami. While it's unlikely the increased pop carries over into the regular season, Gordon's rapid acclimation to his new center field spot and his overall play (.391 average over nine games) offer plenty of reason for optimism.

Crawford was removed from Saturday's game against the Rays after a piece of his broken bat hit him in the eye, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

Crawford was jammed on a pitch and a splinter from his broken bat popped straight up into his face. He was looked at by the team's trainer after the incident and removed from the game.

Baez (hamstring) will likely stay out of Cactus League action until the middle of next week, Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune reports.

Baez received an MRI on the hamstring, but manager Joe Maddon didn't seem concerned with the results, stating that it was "minimal." Expect the Cubs to continue to take it easy with their infielder with a couple more weeks of spring games on the docket.

The Astros renewed Correa's contract, the Associated Press reports. He'll earn $1 million for the 2018 season.

That price tag seems like a bargain for a player like Correa, who whacked 24 home runs and had a .941 OPS in 109 games from the shortstop position in 2017, but the 23-year-old is still in his pre-arbitration years. The salary is the second-most ever allotted to a pre-arb player, behind only Kris Bryant ($1.05 million in 2017) of the Cubs. Correa will reprise his role as the Astros' starting shortstop in 2018 and, given better health, should push for 30 homers and a greater salary next offseason when he qualifies for arbitration.

Manager Joe Maddon said that Baez (hamstring) still experiences some soreness and is not expected to take the field for another few days, Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune reports.

Maddon went on, saying that "(the hamstring) is still bothering him a bit, we're trying to figure out exactly what's going on." This comes a day after Baez claimed he was feeling "100 percent" but is not entirely unexpected given that a hamstring injury typically takes more than a day to heal. Expect Baez to return to action early next week.