MLB Player News

With Dillon Tate and maybe Mychal Givens opening up on the IL for the Orioles, Politi, who was selected out of the Red Sox system, figures to have a bullpen spot initially. He has a 4.50 ERA and an 8/2 K/BB ratio in eight innings this spring.

Smith is batting seventh tonight. He’ll play pretty regularly while Josh Jung is on the injured list.

Fairchild is out of options, so he’ll join the major league club. That seems like bad news for Bryan De La Cruz, who does have options and who fills a similar role as a platoon outfielder against left-handers. It’s possible the Braves could demote Eli White instead, but that seems unlikely. Fairchild, 29, hit just .215/.286/.368 for the Reds last season, but he was still a surprise exclusion from this year’s roster. He’s a lifetime .248/.346/.409 hitter against lefties, and he’s a big defensive upgrade from De La Cruz.

Jiménez is expected to be sidelined into the second half of the season after knee surgery.

Smith opted out of his deal with the Yankees last week in the hopes of getting a major league spot elsewhere, but that never materialized. He hit .297/.289/.568 this spring to make a case for a spot on the Yankees bench, but he’ll head to Triple-A for now.

The Yankees don’t have a particularly crowded outfield in Triple-A, but they’re going to return the 23-year-old Jones to the level at which he struck out 200 times last season. Jones did have a solid spring, hitting .250/.333/.594 with three homers, but even then, he fanned in 16 of his 36 plate appearances.

The Pirates likely are better off using Jack Suwinski over McCutchen against righties, especially since it means improving the outfield defense (Bryan Reynolds is DHing for the second time in three days). Still, it’s surprising they’re doing it often already. McCutchen didn’t look great this spring, but he has four hard-hit balls and a couple of walks in 13 plate appearances thus far.

Starling Marte is getting the nod at DH today. Winker is off to a 1-for-7 start this season. He came up big in the postseason for the Mets, but in 47 regular-season games for the club, he’s hit just .240/.316/.355 with 14 RBI.

Murphy played in just three games this spring before going down with a broken rib, so the Braves will want him to get some at-bats before activating him. Drake Baldwin figures to be sent down to play regularly once Murphy is activated.

The New York Post’s Mike Puma said he is listed as an available player, suggesting he’s in Miami or will be soon. Luisangel Acuña will fill in for him at shortstop tonight.

Petersen has gone from the Dodgers to the Marlins to the Blue Jays to the Angels on waivers since last September, and he might be on his way to yet another organization now. The 30-year-old reliever made his major league debut last season, amassing a 5.95 ERA in 19 2/3 innings. He failed to make the Angels out of spring training and was pitching at Triple-A Salt Lake.