MLB Player News

Shaw (oblique) said Saturday that he's been cleared to begin light hitting, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Shaw suffered an oblique strain Monday, but he seems to be trending in the right direction after four days of rest. It will be important for the 23-year-old prospect to get as many reps as possible during camp while he competes for a starting job at third base.

De La Cruz said Friday that he wants to cut down on strikeouts this season, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

De La Cruz is massively talented, but the 23-year-old shortstop has been prone to mistakes. He led MLB in strikeouts (218) and is working with new hitting coach Chris Valaika to improve in that area. Reds manager Terry Francona envisions De La Cruz improving in other areas, too. The dynamic infielder also led the majors in errors (29), times caught stealing (16) and non-stealing outs on the bases (15). Francona spoke about the growth of young players in general as they get more at-bats. "With young players as they accumulate at-bats, they get to that 1,200, you see them grow," the skipper said, noting how the game slows down for players. "It just makes it easier to make better decisions. That's what we want to do." De La Cruz enters the season with 1,006 career at-bats, which puts him in line to test Francona's theory in 2025.

Lawlar is unlikely to win a bench role during spring training, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.

Lawlar is nominally in the mix for a backup infielder role in camp, but given the time he missed in 2024 -- injuries limited him to 14 games -- having him serve in a part-time role is "probably not what's in his best interest," per Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen. The roster spot should be a battle between Garrett Hampson and Blaze Alexander, with non-roster invitees Grae Kessinger, Ildemaro Vargas and Connor Kaiser also in the mix.

Shaw is nursing an oblique injury but is considered day-to-day, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Oblique issues can be worrisome, but this one at least appears to be minor. Still, any sort of setback for Shaw is not ideal since he is competing to be the Cubs' Opening Day third baseman. The team could hold its top prospect out of early spring training games to ensure he's 100 percent healthy before he joins the battle for the starting job at the hot corner.

Angels manager Ron Washington said Friday that he expects Neto (shoulder) to bat fifth or sixth this season once he's healthy, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

Neto batted second for the Angels for most of the final two months of last season, but with Mike Trout (knee) expected back and Jorge Soler added to the mix, Neto will slide down a bit in the batting order. A stint on the injured list at the beginning of the season is likely as he continues his recovery from right shoulder surgery.

Giants manager Bob Melvin said Friday that Luciano will be used as a corner outfielder this spring, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

It's not clear whether Luciano has been permanently moved from middle infield, but the Giants have been mulling a shift to the outfield for him for a while. Luciano admitted to being "totally lost" at the plate last season, when he managed just a .562 OPS and 34.6 percent strikeout rate in 27 games with the big club. The hope is that a move to a less taxing defensive position will help unlock his offensive potential. Luciano is likely to begin the 2025 season at Triple-A Sacramento.

Shaw's chances of starting the season as Chicago's regular third baseman seemingly improved when the club missed out on free agent Alex Bregman, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

Shaw has seemingly had the inside track on the starting gig at the hot corner in recent weeks, though Bregman was looming in the background. However, now that the latter has signed with the Red Sox, Shaw seems to have a clearer path to the role. The 23-year-old will still need to have a solid spring, and the Cubs could still look to add a veteran option before camp ends, but any move now might be more along the lines of improving the bench. Shaw's fantasy outlook is on the rise, and he could be a breakout performer in 2025 given his prospect pedigree.

Johnson (foot) was spotted taking grounders at second base during Thursday's spring training workout, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

After suffering a right foot injury in an Oct. 9 game in the Arizona Fall League, Johnson was limited to just 11 games for the Scottsdale Scorpions and slashed .250/.444/.475 with a home run and three stolen bases. The injury doesn't appear to be anything that is limiting him early on during the spring, and though he's attending big-league camp with the Pirates, Johnson will likely be headed to Double-A Altoona to begin the 2025 season. The 20-year-old infielder remains one of Pittsburgh's top prospects and could make a push for his big-league debut later in the season if he continues to maintain high walk rates while putting his power and speed on display in the upper levels of the minors.

Orioles general manager Mike Elias said Thursday that Mateo (elbow) is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Mateo's rehab from UCL reconstruction surgery on his left (non-throwing) elbow is going well, but he will be held out game action until late in spring training. The 29-year-old's stint on the injured list to begin the season could be relatively brief, and once healthy he will fill a utility role for Baltimore.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider confirmed Thursday that Bichette is a "full go" for spring training after making a full recovery from September surgery to address a fractured right middle finger, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Bichette needed to have a pin inserted during surgery to stabilize his finger, but Schneider relayed that the pin was removed long ago, and the veteran shortstop feels normal heading into camp. The 2024 campaign was by far the worst of the 26-year-old's six-year MLB career, as his OPS plummeted to .599 after he had delivered marks north of .800 in each of the prior five seasons. Bichette also continued his trend of halting his involvement in the running game; he was held to five stolen bases for the second season in a row after pilfering 25 bags in 2021 and 13 in 2022. Better health in 2025 could allow Bichette to bounce back to some degree after he also had two separate stints on the injured list last season due to calf strains, but fantasy managers shouldn't bank on him fully re-emerging as the five-category standout he was in 2021 and 2022.