MLB Player News

Frazier appears to be the leading candidate to open the season as the Angels' starting second baseman after Christian Moore and Kyren Paris were optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

The Angels thinned the competition further by reassigning Nick Madrigal to minor-league camp, leaving Frazier, Oswald Peraza and Vaughn Grissom (hand) as the main contenders for playing time at the keystone. Neither Peraza nor Grissom have minor-league options remaining, giving them good odds of making the Opening Day roster, but as the lone left-handed hitter of the trio, Frazier -- who is attending camp as a non-roster invitee -- may actually have a better chance of seeing the bulk of the at-bats at second base. A career .264 hitter, Frazier possesses strong contact skills, but his lack of power and modest speed limits his overall fantasy appeal. Expect the 34-year-old to shift into a utility role once the Angels decide that Moore is ready for an extended run.

Olivares had surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow in early October, and he will start the season on the minor league injured list, Bobby Nightengale of the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Olivares had a 4.11 ERA and 111:59 K:BB in 96.1 innings at High-A Cedar Rapids last season. His strong strikeout rates make him a mildly intriguing prospect, but he was left off the 40-man roster this offseason and went unclaimed in the Rule 5 Draft.

Brieske (ribcage) worked around a walk to toss a scoreless inning of relief in Friday's 7-5 loss to the Pirates in Grapefruit League play.

After he was briefly shut down with right ribcage tightness, Brieske returned to the mound Friday for his third appearance of the spring and his first since March 2. Manager A.J. Hinch was satisfied with how the right-hander looked Friday, noting that he hit 96 miles per hour with his fastball and displayed "pretty good" stuff, per Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. Brieske looks poised to break camp with the Tigers and is likely to fill a middle-relief role.

The Reds reassigned Antone to minor-league camp Sunday.

Antone owns a 2.47 ERA and 1.00 WHIP over 76.2 innings in parts of four seasons in the majors with Cincinnati, but he spent the entire 2025 campaign in the minors after completing his recovery from the third elbow surgery of his career, and the 32-year-old right-hander struggled at Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville. While his numbers in the Cactus League this spring (7.94 ERA, 1.94 WHIP and 7:4 K:BB in 5.2 innings) weren't anything special, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati notes that Antone's velocity was up from 2025. He'll still need to translate those velocity gains into better results at Triple-A before earning another look in the majors.

Dingler, who went 0-for-3 with a strikeout in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays, is batting just .188 through seven exhibition contests.

The start to Dingler's spring was delayed after he underwent arthroscopic right elbow surgery in the offseason. So far, the catcher has looked a bit sluggish offensively, but he's seeing regular playing time ahead of the regular season. Dingler had an impressive 2025 with a .278/.327/.425 slash line and 13 home runs across 126 regular-season contests, and he should be Detroit's clear No. 1 backstop this year with Jake Rogers in a reserve role.

Vientos went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

Getting the start at first base and batting second, Vientos wasn't able to catch up to a 95.3 mph fastball from Ryan Weiss in the fourth inning, striking out on a foul tip into Carlos Perez's glove. The Mets are still hoping Vientos can rebound from a tough 2025 and become a key part of the offense, but he's batting a miserable .048 (1-for-21) this spring with a 0:4 BB:K. Given his defensive limitations, if the 26-year-old isn't contributing with his bat, his playing time could dwindle quickly once the regular season begins in favor of other young players like Brett Baty or Ronny Mauricio.

Vierling, who went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays, is sporting a 1.039 OPS this spring.

Vierling has gone 11-for-31 with six extra-base hits and seven RBI in 11 Grapefruit League contests to date. The 29-year-old is expected to serve as a fourth outfielder and possible infield option this year, though his strong play could ultimately lead to elevated playing time. Parker Meadows and Wenceel Perez are struggling this spring, and both are candidates to cede time to Vierling if he continues to outperform them at the plate in the regular season.

Peralta allowed one run on one hit and one walk over four innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros. He struck out six.

Facing a Houston lineup headlined by Yordan Alvarez and Carlos Correa, Peralta fired 39 of 56 pitches for strikes as he continues to build up ahead of his first Opening Day assignment for the Mets. The right-hander has a 2.70 ERA and 12:2 K:BB through 10 spring innings.

Skubal allowed one run on three hits across 4.2 innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays. He struck out seven.

After making just one appearance for the United States in the World Baseball Classic, Skubal returned to the Grapefruit League and looked sharp in his latest tune-up. The lefty now has a 2.79 ERA and 12 strikeouts across 9.2 innings this spring, and he also allowed one run over three innings with five strikeouts for Team USA. Skubal has been named Detroit's starter for Opening Day on March 26 against the Padres.

Fairbanks struck out one in a perfect inning Saturday during a split-squad game against the Cardinals.

The right-hander has yet to allow a run over four innings this spring with a 6:1 K:BB. Signed to a one-year, $13 million contract in December, Fairbanks is set to be the Marlins' unquestioned closer this season after averaging 25 saves over the last three years for the Rays with a 2.98 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 10.2 K/9 in 151 innings.