MLB Player News

Arias started at second base and went 1-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Thursday's 7-4 win over the Royals.

Arias won a camp-long battle to become the Guardians' primary second baseman. The job may not be his all year, as Cleveland will track the progress of prospects Juan Brito and Travis Bazzana in the minors, but Arias should get more opportunities than Daniel Schneemann to start the season.

O'Neill went 3-for-3 with two walks, a three-run home run and two additional runs scored in Thursday's 12-2 win over Toronto.

With his three-run blast in the third inning off Blue Jays right-hander Jose Berrios, O'Neill remarkably tallied an Opening Day home run in his sixth straight season. The veteran slugger should consistently hit in the heart of Baltimore's lineup in 2025, and he's off to a fast start during his first season with the Orioles after going 9-for-29 (.310) with one long ball and four RBI during spring training.

Rutschman went 3-for-5 with two home runs, three RBI and three runs scored in Thursday's 12-2 win over Toronto.

After homering in the first inning off Blue Jays right-hander Jose Berrios, Rutschman went deep once again during the eighth frame to add to the Opening Day rout. Rutschman's hot bat in spring training appears to have carried into the regular season to begin the year, as the star backstop went 15-for-42 (.357) with three long balls and eight RBI in the Grapefruit League.

Devers started at designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in Thursday's 5-2 win over Texas.

Devers, who had just 15 spring plate appearances, looked like he could have used more in Florida. He struck out swinging three times and whiffed six times in all, including five times against Nathan Eovaldi's breaking ball, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. To be fair, Devers wasn't the only one that struggled; Boston's top four hitters went a combined 1-for-16.

Hamilton entered Thursday's game as a pinch runner and scored a run in a 5-2 win over the Rangers. He finished the game at second base.

Hamilton lost out on the starting second base job to prospect Kristian Campbell, but it appears manager Alex Cora sees Hamilton's baserunning skills as an asset. He pinch ran for Campbell, who notched his first hit as a major leaguer in the top of the ninth inning. Hamilton could be of value as a pinch runner, a role that could easily lead to double-digit stolen bases.

O'Hoppe went 2-for-4 with a solo home run during Thursday's 8-1 Opening Day loss to the White Sox.

O'Hoppe was responsible for two of the Angels' five hits Thursday and their only run of the game thanks to a 417-foot solo homer off Cam Booser during the ninth inning. O'Hoppe is looking to build off a solid 2024 campaign in which he slashed .244/.303/.409 with 20 home runs and 56 RBI across 522 plate appearances, though he'll look to lower his 29.7 percent strikeout rate.

Anderson went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts during Thursday's 8-1 Opening Day loss to the White Sox.

Anderson got the starting nod at the keystone Opening Day but struck out three times in a game that saw the Angels held without a run until the ninth inning. Anderson should see a fair amount of starts to begin the year due to Zach Neto (shoulder) starting the season on the 10-day IL, but the former could begin Saturday's game in the dugout if Yoan Moncada (thumb) is cleared to play, which would likely shift Luis Rengifo to second base.

Chapman (1-0) allowed one hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning to pick up the win over Texas on Thursday.

Chapman, who was named Boston's primary closer earlier this week, entered a 2-2 game in the eighth inning. It appears the decision to use the closer in the eighth was because the Rangers had the top of the order due up. Chapman worked around a one-out, broken-bat single, throwing seven strikes among his 11 pitches. After the Red Sox took a 5-2 lead in the top of the ninth, Justin Slaten shut the door for Boston.

Kikuchi (0-1) took the loss in Thursday's Opening Day loss to the White Sox. He allowed three runs on five hits while striking out five across six innings.

Kikuchi got off to a nice start with two first-inning strikeouts, but he gave up a solo homer to Austin Slater to open the second frame before relinquishing a two-run double to Miguel Vargas in the same inning. Kikuchi didn't allow a base runner over his last four innings of work, but the Angels weren't able to supply the 33-year-old southpaw enough runs for him to avoid the Opening Day loss. Kikuchi will look to pick up his first win of the season in his next start, which is tentatively slated for the Angels' road series against the Cardinals next week.

Higashioka started at catcher and went 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Thursday's 5-2 loss to the Red Sox.

Higashioka got the call behind the plate against a left-hander ahead of primary backstop Jonah Heim. The Rangers are expected to have a relatively even split at catcher, so this may not be a strict platoon based on the the handedness of the opponent's starter. Higashioka has hit double-digit home runs in four consecutive campaigns while never getting more than 246 at-bats in any one season.