MLB Player News

DiComo adds that “close to a dozen teams” were in attendance for the workout, including the Blue Jays, Brewers, Rays, Tigers, Padres, and White Sox. It was a quiet winter for the 35-year-old slugger, who went just 5-for-31 (.161) in eight games last summer with the Mets before opting out of the remainder of the season in early August. A scout in attendance Tuesday suggested to DiComo that Cespedes “could go be someone’s DH” but probably lacks the overall mobility at this point in his career to be a regular starting outfielder.

Fleming was an 11th-round pick of the Mariners in 2021, but he was traded to the Royals for Carlos Santana a year later. Kansas City let him go after a 2024 season in which he posted a 7.22 ERA and a 60/46 K/BB in 104 2/3 innings between Double- and Triple-A, so he’s back now with a Seattle team in search of pitching depth. It’s unlikely that he’ll surface in the majors.

Brubaker’s run of bad luck continued when he suffered three broken ribs upon being hit by a comebacker this spring. He won’t be a candidate to join the Yankees until late May now.

There were some rumors early in the spring that Lynn may sign with a pitching-needy team, but that no longer appears to be a likely outcome. If this is indeed it for Lynn, the two-time All-Star will retire with a 143-99 record with a 3.74 career ERA and 9.00 K/9 in 2006 1/3 innings over 13 seasons. He played for six different teams, but spent the majority of his career with the Cardinals.

Ottavino is back in New York again after failing to make the Red Sox out of spring training. He will take the place of Devin Williams, who was placed on the paternity list. However, with Williams likely to return in a few days, it’s unclear how long Ottavino will remain on the active roster.

Congrats to Devin and his growing family. Williams will likely miss three games while on the paternity list and while the Yankees signed Adam Ottavino to take his place on the active roster, it will likely be Luke Weaver who handles any save chances over that span.

Giménez has been one of the surprise stars of the start of the season, going 6-for-18 with three home runs. Early Statcast data also shows that Giménez has moved farther back in the batter’s box this season and has opened his stance up more. Those changes could theoretically allow him to see the ball deeper and turn on it easier, which might mean this early power surge isn’t as fluky as it may initially have seemed.

Ornelas impressed in spring, hitting .294 with one home run in 57 plate appearances. He’s started off strong in Triple-A as well, going 5-for-12 with five runs scored and two RBI in three games. He figures to get the first crack at an outfield job if the Padres decide to move on from veterans like Jason Heyward or Gavin Sheets.

The Pirates decided last week to keep Cameron Mlodzinski over Harrington for the final spot in the rotation, but Mlodzinski allowed four runs on seven hits in 3 2/3 innings, and it appears the Pirates will now turn to Harrington, who will start on Tuesday against the Rays. The 23-year-old has yet to make a start in the minors this season, but he posted a 2.61 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and 115/19 K/BB ratio in 117 1/2 innings last year split between Double-A and Triple-A. Harrington does not have the swing-and-miss upside of Paul Skenes or Jared Jones, but he has elite command and a deep five-pitch mix. His four-seam fastball is just around 92 mph, so he will need to rely on that command and sequencing to help him against MLB hitters, but he should be added in deeper formats and can be treated as a streamer right now in shallower leagues.

Tucker is already up to three homers, and this one came off Johnny Pereda in the ninth inning. Yes, that’s a position player, and yes it still counts. Tucker is off to a roaring start with the Cubs, boasting a slash line of .300/.423/.742 over Chicago’s first seven games. That’ll play.

Congrats to Wilson on his first MLB homer. The 23-year-old was clearly working on driving the baseball in Arizona, and while he’s never going to come close to being an elite power option, it’s nice to see some early results. Wilson is an underrated fantasy option in redraft leagues, and offers considerable — and also underrated — upside in keeper formats.