MLB Player News

The Athletics optioned Alexander to Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday.

Alexander was in the running for a reserve job but ultimately fell short. He will head to Las Vegas, where he'll provide depth at the corner infield and outfield spots.

Urias (hamstring) will start at third base and bat eighth in Thursday's Grapefruit League contest versus the Yankees.

Urias was unavailable for a little over a week as he battled through some hamstring soreness but is ready to give it a go in this one. The 30-year-old could see increased reps early on in the season if Gunnar Henderson (intercostal) isn't ready.

Adell went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, two total runs and two total RBI in Wednesday's Cactus League victory over Cleveland.

Adell came into the game struggling at the plate, but he created reason for optimism with his big performance Wednesday. The 25-year-old still has a meager .164/.190/.345 slash line this spring, but Adell does rank second on the club with three home runs and 12 RBI. Per Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register, the Angels haven't yet decided how they'll handle center field this season, but both Adell and Mickey Moniak are likely to spend time at the position now that Mike Trout is shifting to right field.

Carrasco pitched five scoreless innings in a Grapefruit League game against Atlanta on Wednesday, allowing two hits and issuing one walk while striking out three batters.

Carrasco allowed a single to the first batter he faced, then retired the next six hitters and ended up allowing just four baserunners in the outing. The veteran righty was efficient in needing just 54 pitches to get through five frames, and he lowered his spring ERA to 1.69. Carrasco also has a 0.94 WHIP and 15:7 K:BB over 16 innings during the exhibition slate, and he's likely to have earned a spot in New York's season-opening rotation due to his superb spring.

The Red Sox optioned Sabol to Triple-A Worcester on Thursday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

He went 4-for-19 at the plate for Boston this spring. With Sabol sent down, that means Carlos Narvaez will open the season as the backup catcher behind Connor Wong.

Lynch is expected to open the season in the Royals' bullpen, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

He had been competing with Kris Bubic for the final spot in the rotation, but Lynch made a relief appearance Wednesday and is set for another one Friday as the Royals prep him for a bullpen role. Lynch proved to be a weapon in relief last season, collecting a 1.84 ERA and 27:8 K:BB over 29.1 regular-season innings.

Bubic is likely to open the season as the Royals' fifth starter, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Daniel Lynch gave himself a fighting chance to nab a rotation spot with a strong showing this spring, but he made a one-inning relief appearance Wednesday and is scheduled for another relief outing Friday, which points to Bubic opening in the rotation. Bubic has yielded six runs with a 13:3 K:BB over 13 innings this spring and will look to carry over his success last season as a reliever (32.2 percent strikeout rate over 30.1 regular-season innings) into the rotation.

Scherzer (thumb) said Thursday that he's tentatively lined up to pitch in a game Saturday, Jayson Stark of The Athletic reports.

Scherzer got through a bullpen session Thursday without any apparent issues, but he will have to wait and see how his right thumb recovers before he's cleared to pitch Saturday. If he is able to take the ball this weekend, the goal is to get up to the 65-to-70 pitch count, which would set him up to be ready to make his first start of the regular season.

Heineman is expected to begin the season as the Blue Jays' No. 2 catcher behind Alejandro Kirk, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

He's the only other catcher on the 40-man roster, so this isn't a big surprise, but NRI signing Christian Bethancourt also hasn't shown enough in camp to push Heineman for the job. The switch-hitting Heineman doesn't offer much offense and has a .212/.298/.273 slash line through 299 plate appearances in the majors, but he could end up seeing the biggest workload of his career in 2025 -- Kirk has never caught more than 99 games in a season.

Fitts allowed three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out one over four-plus innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League start against Detroit.

Fitts was on the bump for his third Grapefruit League start (fifth appearance) and experienced his first bout of adversity. His day ended after giving up a leadoff home run in the fifth inning on his 73rd pitch. Although manager Alex Cora has not yet announced which starter candidates will make up the back end of the rotation, Fitts looks primed to open the season as one of the five starters. He has a 2.45 ERA with 14 strikeouts and six walks over 14.2 spring innings. With Brayan Bello (shoulder), Lucas Giolito (hamstring) and Kutter Crawford (knee) all expected to open the regular season on the injured list, Fitts could get a few turns in April.