MLB Player News

Diaz (illness) is starting behind the plate and batting cleanup in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

The 26-year-old has been sidelined the past few days due to an illness but is ready to return to the lineup. Diaz has gone just 4-for-30 through 11 games in spring training, but he also had a .666 OPS last spring before turning in a .299/.325/.441 slash line with 16 homers during the regular season.

Mateo (elbow) is starting at shortstop and batting seventh in Sunday's split-squad game against the Phillies, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Mateo underwent UCL reconstruction surgery on his left (non-throwing) elbow in late August and will be making his first start of spring training. The 29-year-old hasn't officially been ruled out for Opening Day, but manager Brandon Hyde recently said Mateo is unlikely to be available.

Wong (illness) is starting behind the plate and batting sixth in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Wong was scratched from the lineup Wednesday due to an illness, but he returned to team workouts Saturday and is ready for game action. The 28-year-old will begin the season as Boston's primary catcher after posting a .280/.333/.425 slash line with 13 homers and eight steals in 126 games during 2024.

DeLuca is expected to be the Rays' primary center fielder to begin the regular season, John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

DeLuca produced only a .609 OPS across 362 plate appearances with the Rays in 2024, but he seemingly inherited the center field role after Jose Siri was dealt in the offseason. He hasn't fared any better across 29 plate appearances in Grapefruit League games, as he has yet to tally an extra-base hit while collecting only five hits across 26 at-bats. DeLuca's defensive ability will still be enough for him to begin the season as a regular, though he'll presumably need to be more productive at the plate to maintain that status.

Dezenzo could make the Astros' Opening Day roster, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Dezenzo has racked up 33 at-bats and 34 plate appearances this spring while playing a combination of first base and both corner outfield spots. He's struck out at a 26.5 percent clip but also has four extra-base hits, and manager Joe Espada has noted the positive overall impression Dezenzo has made on the club. Even so, the status of Christian Walker (oblique) could ultimately dictate Dezenzo's fate to begin the campaign.

Rasmussen allowed three earned runs on five hits while striking out six and walking none across four innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees.

This marked Rasmussen's second official spring start, though he completed three innings in a live batting practice session March 9. In addition to impressively striking out six batters, this was something of a milestone for Rasmussen as he hadn't completed more than two innings since May of 2023. Per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, Rasmussen is operating as a starter, but it remains unclear how the Rays will sort out their starting rotation to begin the season.

Garver (hand/wrist) went 0-for-2 with one walk in his return to the lineup during Saturday's Cactus League game against the Padres.

After being hit in the hand by a pitch in Monday's Cactus League game against the Brewers, Garver was back in action Saturday as the cleanup hitter. The veteran slugger has excelled this spring, batting .400 (8-for-20) with three home runs and six RBI. With Mitch Haniger dealing with a shoulder injury, Garver is mainly competing with Donovan Solano for at-bats as Seattle's primary designated hitter.

Castillo didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's Cactus League game against San Diego after giving up two runs on five hits over 4.2 innings. He struck out four.

After throwing three scoreless innings Saturday, Castillo watched Gavin Sheets go deep for one run and Connor Joe hit a double to plate another in the fourth frame. While Castillo has struggled with the long ball this spring, allowing three homers across 12.2 innings, he encouragingly hasn't yielded greater than two runs in any of his four Cactus League starts. The 32-year-old right-hander will have the benefit of working about half of his outings in 2025 at the pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park, where Castillo boasts a 2.89 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 279 strikeouts through 233.2 innings (39 starts) since joining the Mariners in 2022.

The Royals optioned Sisk to Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.

Sisk spent the entire 2024 regular season in Triple-A and logged a 6-2 record with 15 saves, a 1.56 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 57.2 innings. Given his impressive numbers last season, Sisk could make his way to the majors in 2025 when the Royals need to bolster their bullpen with a southpaw.

Kurtz, who was hit by a pitch on his right hand during Saturday's game against the Rangers, underwent X-rays that came back negative, Jessica Kleinschmidt of TheComeback.com reports.

Kurtz took a fastball off his hand in the seventh inning and was taken out of the game immediately. Initial imaging didn't reveal any fractures, but he'll continue to undergo tests to determine the severity of the injury.