MLB Player News

Honeycutt went 1-for-1 with a solo home run during Wednesday's Grapefruit League against Houston.

The 22-year-old center fielder is taking the Grapefruit League by storm -- he's now gone yard in each of his four at-bats so far this spring. Honeycutt was a first-round pick during the 2024 MLB Draft, and he's looking to put a discouraging 2025 campaign in the rear-view mirror as he continues his development in the minor leagues in 2026. Last season with High-A Aberdeen, Honeycutt batted just .171 with just five homers, 12 doubles and 24 RBI over 374 at-bats.

The Rays have shut Vernon down from throwing due to right elbow soreness, per MLB.com.

Vernon, who's a non-roster invitee with Tampa Bay, hasn't pitching in spring training and is likely be sidelined for "some time," according to manager Kevin Cash. The 27-year-old right-hander was likely to open the new season in the minor leagues before getting injured. He posted a 3.72 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 19.1 innings for Triple-A Durham a year ago.

Carpenter went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in an exhibition game versus Team Panama on Wednesday.

Carpenter went deep against Kenny Hernandez, a 27-year-old who has bounced around independent baseball the past few seasons. Of greater significance is the fact that Hernandez is left-handed. While Carpenter will face higher-quality pitching moving forward, his ability to produce against southpaws will go a long way toward determining his fantasy value in 2026. There's been talk in camp that Carpenter could receive more opportunities against lefties after logging only 60 at-bats against them during the regular season last year. The 28-year-old regularly rakes against righties, but his fantasy ceiling has been capped in the past due to being mostly a strong-side platoon player.

Flaherty tossed three scoreless innings in an exhibition game versus Team Panama on Wednesday. He allowed two hits and struck out three.

Flaherty looked sharp against a World Baseball Classic squad getting ready for that tournament, and he once again posted a solid strikeout total. The righty now has eight of them this spring in six innings across two Grapefruit League appearances in addition to Wednesday's exhibition tilt. Flaherty had a K/9 of at least 10.5 in each of the last two seasons, and it looks like he'll be a strong asset in that category once again in 2026.

Astros general manager Dana Brown told reporters Wednesday that Pena took a groundball to his fingertip and will undergo X-rays Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Per Dylan Delgatto of SportingNews, Pena suffered a small fracture in his finger during Wednesday's World Baseball Classic exhibition game against the Tigers, and the injury puts him in jeopardy of missing at least the first round of the WBC. Pena will undergo further tests to determine the severity of the injury and whether he is in danger of missing more time, potentially for the start of the MLB regular season. If he were to be sidelined for an extended period of time, then the Astros could turn to Nick Allen to take over at shortstop or move Carlos Correa from third base and have Isaac Paredes serve at the hot corner.

Farris allowed two runs on five hits with one strikeout and no walks over three innings during an exhibition game against Team Italy on Wednesday. According to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, the left-hander was sitting around 93 mph with his fastball.

Farris averaged 90.3 mph with his fastball as a rookie last season, as he made five starts and had a 6.66 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 24:11 K:BB across 24.1 innings. The 25-year-old showed more strikeout potential in the minors with an 11.0 K/9 at Double-A, and a little more velocity could help to improve his results in the majors.

Lee was removed from Chinese Taipei's World Baseball Classic roster Wednesday due to a left oblique strain, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

It's unclear how or when Lee sustained the injury, but he will travel to Lakeland to undergo tests to determine the severity of the injury. He spent the entire 2025 season with Triple-A Toledo, where he slashed .248/.345/.414 with 22 steals (on 26 attempts), 14 home runs and 63 RBI in 579 plate appearances.

The Tigers optioned Montero to minor-league camp Wednesday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Montero had seemed to have a good shot to break camp in a long man or swingman role, so it's a surprise he's an early March cut. He struggled in his first two Grapefruit League outings but tossed three scoreless frames in Wednesday's exhibition contest against Team Panama. Even though he won't be with them on Opening Day, Montero remains likely to spend a large chunk of the season with the Tigers.

Miller (side) is slated to play catch Wednesday, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

After he was briefly shut down over the weekend upon receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection to alleviate inflammation in his left side, Miller has since been cleared to resume a throwing program. Assuming he responds well to Wednesday's workout, Miller said he expects to get back on the mound and throw a light bullpen session by the weekend. Miller still looks to be at least a week or more away from pitching in a Cactus League game, but if he experiences no further setbacks with his side while building back up, he should be able to avoid a stint on the injured list to begin the season.

Thomas went 2-for-3 with a home run and an additional run scored in Tuesday's Cactus League matchup with the Angels.

Thomas has been red hot this spring, going 5-for-12 with a pair of homers in seven games. While he doesn't currently have a clear path towards an Opening Day roster spot, Thomas has certainly turned heads in the Mariners organization. The 25-year-old outfielder went just 1-for-8 in three games with Seattle last year, though he slashed an eye-popping .325/.380/.411 with seven homers and 35 steals across 134 games with Triple-A Tacoma.