MLB Player News
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Teoscar Hernandez RF | LAD
Dodgers' Teoscar Hernandez: Played through nagging groin issue
Hernandez admitted Tuesday that he played through a left groin injury for much of the 2025 season, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Hernandez missed just two weeks of action after straining his groin in early May, but he acknowledged he "wasn't moving the way I know I can move" for the remainder of the season. The veteran outfielder was slashing .306/.329/.582 with a 149 wRC+ when he was hurt and then hit only .225/.271/.408 with an 86 wRC+ the rest of the way, so it's fair to suggest the injury affected his performance. The 33-year-old Hernandez is fully healthy now in Dodgers camp and looking for a bounce-back 2026 campaign.
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Jorge Polanco 1B | NYM
Mets' Jorge Polanco: Won't see game action right away
Polanco isn't expected to play in any spring games until the second week of the Grapefruit League schedule, Will Sammon and Tim Britton of The Athletic report.
The Mets are bringing a number of key position players along slowly this spring, including Luis Robert, Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty (hamstring). Unlike those three, Polanco doesn't have any serious injury concerns -- he played 138 games in 2025 for the Mariners, his highest total since 2021 -- but the 32-year-old is getting a crash course on defense at first base, so an extra week of drills at the position before he works his way into game situations can only help.
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Francisco Alvarez C | NYM
Mets' Francisco Alvarez: Will get eased into spring action
Alvarez isn't expected to see game action this spring until the second week of the Grapefruit League schedule, Will Sammon and Tim Britton of The Athletic report.
The Mets are bringing a number of key position players along slowly this spring, including Luis Robert, Jorge Polanco and Brett Baty (hamstring). Alvarez underwent thumb surgery right after the end of last season, which explains the team's caution with its starting catcher, but the 24-year-old appeared to be fully healthy when he reported to camp. The Mets are hoping that good health extends into the regular season -- Alvarez played only 76 games in 2025, his lowest total in three years since becoming a big-league regular.
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Hunter Dobbins SP | STL
Cardinals' Hunter Dobbins: Hopes for full clearance Wednesday
Dobbins (knee) will travel Wednesday to visit a doctor in Wisconsin, where he hopes to be fully cleared for spring-training activities, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Recovering from last July's right ACL surgery, Dobbins has thrown bullpen sessions and live batting practice sessions with the rest of the Cardinals' pitchers, but his fielding and running has been limited. As long as he gains clearance Wednesday, Dobbins should make some Grapefruit League appearances for St. Louis. However, the late start likely takes him out of the Opening Day rotation competition.
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Arjun Nimmala SS | TOR
Blue Jays' Arjun Nimmala: Working to keep on weight
Nimmala has added 15 pounds from his playing weight at the end of last season, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.
While it's good to see the 20-year-old bulk up, that weight mostly just replaces the mass Nimmala lost over the course of the 2025 campaign. That weight loss may have contributed to a summer slump that saw his offensive numbers crater -- he held an .842 OPS with 11 homers through his first 61 games for High-A Vancouver, but Nimmala managed just a .522 OPS with two homers over his final 59 contests. "I need to keep prepared and keep doing things the right way," the shortstop prospect said Tuesday. "That's something I look forward to taking into this year. Forget about what's going on on the field, but it's more like putting yourself in a good situation to play well." Encouragingly, Nimmala did maintain an improved strikeout rate all season, and if his more frequent contact turns into more frequent hard contact, he could be headed for a breakout in 2026.
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Garrett Mitchell CF | MIL
Brewers' Garrett Mitchell: Full-go after shoulder surgery
Mitchell (shoulder) said Wednesday that he received full clearance for baseball activities in early February, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
Mitchell was limited to only 25 games in 2025 before requiring a second surgery on his left shoulder, but he will not have any restrictions this spring. The 27-year-old has been plagued by injuries throughout his career, having never played more than 69 contests in any big-league season. Mitchell will compete for the starting job in center field this spring.
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Mauricio Dubon 2B | ATL
Braves' Mauricio Dubon: Beginning 2025 at shortstop
Dubon will start at shortstop for Atlanta while Ha-Seong Kim recovers from finger surgery, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Acquired from Houston in the offseason to be the team's primary utility player, Dubon will instead see a near-everyday role out of the gate with Kim potentially sidelined into May. Dubon averaged 439.3 plate appearances for the Astros over the prior three seasons, slashing a modest .264/.299/.378 with little power or speed but seeing action at every spot on the diamond except pitcher and catcher.
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Andrew Nardi RP | MIA
Marlins' Andrew Nardi: Dealing with blister
Nardi is a few days behind schedule due to a blister on his pitching hand, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
Nardi was able to throw Tuesday, so it doesn't seem to be a significant setback. The lefty reliever will be held out of the first few Grapefruit League contests, but his prep for the regular season shouldn't be affected. Nardi missed the entire 2025 campaign with back issues, but if he's healthy in 2026, he'll likely fill a high-leverage relief role in Miami.
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Anthony Bender RP | MIA
Marlins' Anthony Bender: Nursing shin injury
Bender is slightly behind schedule in Marlins camp due to a shin injury, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
It's not clear how or when Bender sustained the injury, but he threw a bullpen session Tuesday. The veteran reliever will not appear in Grapefruit League games right away, but it's not a significant setback. Bender is slated to serve in a setup role for the Marlins in 2026.
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Marcelo Mayer SS | BOS
Red Sox's Marcelo Mayer: Takes grounders at 2B
Mayer has taken infield practice exclusively at second base during the first few days of camp, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
One storyline during camp is how manager Alex Cora deploys Mayer and Caleb Durbin, who has been used exclusively at third base thus far. Both infielders have experience at second and third base, and it's likely each will get reps at the two positions. "Everybody will benefit from reps, but we'll make a decision, probably sooner rather than later," Cora said. "We're not going to be waiting." A better indicator of the manager's plans should emerge when the Red Sox begin spring games this weekend.