MLB Player News

Lux is at least one week away from making his Grapefruit League debut due to "general soreness," per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Lux is ramping up his activity at Rays camp, and his status for Opening Day still doesn't appear to be in any real jeopardy. After slashing .269/.350/.374 with five home runs and 53 RBI over 503 regular-season plate appearances for the Reds in 2025, the 28-year-old middle infielder is expected to be Tampa Bay's primary second baseman when healthy in 2026.

Uceta (shoulder) is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Pitching coach Kyle Snyder said Monday that Uceta, who's still limited to playing catch, is "probably still another couple of weeks away from getting back on the mound." The 28-year-old right-hander entered Rays camp in the mix for save chances, but now he's at serious risk of having a delayed start to the season. With Uceta's Opening Day status in real jeopardy, Griffin Jax and Garrett Cleavinger appear to be the most likely candidates to close games for Tampa Bay early in the season.

Nottingham agreed to a minor-league contract with the Mariners on Sunday.

Nottingham will remain with Seattle for the 2026 campaign, though he hasn't seen big-league action since the 2021 season. He appeared in only 17 matchups a year ago for Triple-A Tacoma, slashing .193/.277/.298 with six doubles, seven RBI and seven runs scored. Nottingham figures to serve as catching depth at Triple-A.

Verlander will make his first Grapefruit League start in Friday's game against the Red Sox, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Verlander will be the last member of Detroit's projected season-opening rotation to take the hill this spring, and it will be his first game in a Detroit uniform since 2017 after rejoining the club on a one-year, $13 million contract last month. The 42-year-old isn't the same pitcher he was when he last played for the Tigers, but he should at least give the team a veteran option to reliably eat up some innings. Verlander turned in a respectable 3.85 ERA and 137 strikeouts across 152 innings for the Giants last year.

Valdez allowed two hits across three scoreless innings of work in Monday's Grapefruit League game against Atlanta. He struck out three.

Making his first spring start for the Tigers since inking a three-year, $115 million contract in early February, Valdez looked sharp across his 43 pitches. He threw 30 of those pitches for strikes and managed to scatter two harmless singles. The 32-year-old southpaw figures to slot in to the No. 2 spot in Detroit's rotation behind ace Tarik Skubal, giving the Tigers two of the top left-handed starters in the American League. Valdez has made at least 28 regular-season starts in each of the last four years, and he's compiled a sparkling 3.21 ERA during that time, making him an attractive fantasy option in his first season in Detroit.

Contreras batted third and went 2-for-2 with a double, a three-run home run and an additional run scored in Sunday's spring game against Baltimore.

Contreras belted his second Grapefruit League homer in six games, a hopeful sign for a team projected to lack pop. He should find a home in the order at third or cleanup. Contreras is now headed to the World Baseball Classic and will join Team Venezuela.

Suarez allowed one run on two hits while striking out two over three innings in Sunday's start against the Orioles.

Suarez allowed his lone run in the second inning when he had a few long at-bats against Baltimore hitters. He was at 34 pitches after two innings, 11 shy of his 45-pitch limit, but the lefty managed to get three outs quickly in his final inning. He's made two Grapefruit League starts and will depart camp for the World Baseball Classic, where Suarez will compete for Team Venezuela.

Latz allowed two runs on three hits and struck out one over three innings in Sunday's spring start against Seattle.

Two batters into Latz's second Cactus League start, the Rangers trailed, 2-0, after the left-hander served up a middle-middle slider that Cole Young drove 442 feet over the fence in right field. He allowed another hit in the inning, and then retired eight consecutive batters before calling it a day. Latz threw 41 pitches (26 strikes) and did not walk a batter for the second straight start. He was used mostly as a reliever the last few seasons, but the Rangers are building him as a starter and letting him compete with Kumar Rocker for the final spot in the rotation. Of the two, Latz has performed better thus far in spring action.

DeGrom will make his first spring start in the Rangers' exhibition game against Team Brazil on Wednesday, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.

The Rangers have been slowly building deGrom up in spring training, with the veteran right-hander limited to bullpen sessions and live batting practices. He'll take the mound for Wednesday's exhibition contest, and Rangers manager Skip Schumaker told reporters Monday that he expects deGrom to make three or four appearances before the end of camp, per Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News. DeGrom went 12-8 across 30 starts in 2025 with a 2.97 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 185:37 K:BB in 172.2 innings, which were his most frames thrown in a season since 2019 as a member of the Mets.

The Royals designated Blanco for assignment Monday.

The Royals needed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster for Starling Marte, whose signing was officially announced Monday. Known for his blazing speed, Blanco has stolen 59 bases in the majors despite receiving only 285 plate appearances. The 32-year-old could draw interest on waivers from a team seeking outfield depth.