MLB Player News

Phillips was informed by the Reds that he has made the Opening Day roster, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Phillips got off to a rough start to begin spring training, as he allowed three earned runs in three of his first five appearances. After allowing three runs March 5, the righty has allowed one earned allowed across 3.1 innings over his past three appearances. The Reds are hoping the former starter can recapture the dominance he found as a reliever to conclude the 2025 season.

Suzuki was diagnosed with a sprained PCL in his right knee Tuesday, which manager Craig Counsell described as "good news," and the Cubs will wait to make a decision on the outfielder's Opening Day availability this weekend, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

The 31-year-old suffered the injury Saturday during the World Baseball Classic while attempting to steal second base. According to Bruce, Counsell said that Suzuki will do some light baseball activities while the swelling in his knee subsides, so it's encouraging that he's not being fully shut down. Still, his availability for the start of the season is now seriously in question.

Manaea struck out four and didn't allow a baserunner over four scoreless innings during Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins. According to Max Goodman of NJ.com, the left-hander averaged 88.3 mph with his fastball and topped out at 89.9 mph.

Four perfect frames against most of Miami's likely Opening Day lineup are hard to ignore, but Manaea saw his fastball velocity drop after he averaged 89 mph during his previous spring start last week. The 34-year-old has never been a flamethrower, but he averaged 91.8 mph on his fastball last year and has been over 91 mph in each of the past five seasons. Manaea has indicated that he's not worried about the reduced velocity, but it's worth keeping an eye on as spring training winds down.

Horton allowed a run on three hits and one walk while striking out 10 in Monday's Cactus League game against the Guardians.

The right-hander surrendered six runs -- including three homers -- during his previous Cactus League outing last week, but he bounced back in dominant fashion Monday. Horton will be a pivotal rotation piece for the Cubs in 2026 after he posted a 2.67 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 97:33 K:BB across 118 regular-season innings as a rookie last year.

Crim (oblique) has been cleared for baseball activities Tuesday, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.

Crim has missed most of spring training with a strained oblique. The 29-year-old made his MLB debut last season, appearing in 20 games with the Rangers and Rockies and producing a .200/.270/.462 slash line with five home runs, 12 RBI, 10 runs scored and a 6:28 BB:K across 74 trips to the plate.

Lee went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk in Monday's 3-1 Cactus League loss to the Padres.

Lee returned to Cactus League action after joining Team Korea for the World Baseball Classic, during which he went 5-for-21 with four runs scored, two doubles, two RBI and one walk in five outings. The 27-year-old outfielder started in right field Monday, where he's expected to spend most of his time in the 2026 campaign. Lee primarily played center field in 2025, appearing in 150 regular-season games while slashing .266/.327/.407 with 73 runs scored, 55 RBI, 10 stolen bases, eight long balls and an 11.5 percent strikeout rate across 617 plate appearances.

The Mets reassigned Alzolay to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Alzolay is healthy again after missing the entire 2025 season while recovering from August 2024 Tommy John operation, but the 31-year-old righty will need to shake off some rust at Triple-A Syracuse and show that he's regained his pre-surgery velocity and command before garnering another look in the big leagues. He had previously been one of the game's more effective closers as recently as the 2023 season, when he went 22-for-25 in save chances and delivered a 2.67 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 67:13 K:BB across 64 innings with the Cubs.

The Mets reassigned Burdi to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Burdi made four appearances at the big-league level with Boston in 2025, but he was outrighted off the 40-man roster in August and then joined the Mets on a minor-league deal this offseason. The 33-year-old righty was given the chance to compete for a spot in the Mets' Opening Day bullpen during spring training, but he was cut after yielding two runs in two innings in his two Grapefruit League appearances. Expect Burdi to report to Triple-A Syracuse to begin the season.

Lopez went 3-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.

The 27-year-old shortstop took Lazaro Estrada deep with two outs in the first inning, giving Lopez his first homer of the spring. After playing for Team Canada in the WBC, Lopez has just 15 Grapefruit League plate appearances, but he's collected six hits (.400 batting average) in that time with only one strikeout. Lopez is looking to build on a solid 2025 campaign in which he delivered 15 home runs and 15 stolen bases in 143 games.

Junk made his first start of the spring Monday, giving up four runs on four hits and two walks over two-plus innings in a Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays. He struck out two.

It was far from a clean outing, but the important thing was Junk's usage, as he got stretched out to 49 pitches (24 strikes) while completing three up-and-downs. Per Christina DeNicola of MLB.com, Junk is still in the mix for the Marlins' fifth starter job, as Braxton Garrett may need a bit more time to fully complete his recovery from December 2024 elbow surgery. If Junk doesn't begin the season in the rotation, he's still expected to fill a long-relief role, as he's out of minor-league options.