MLB Player News

This one certainly qualifies as a surprise since Lucchesi was considered a potential candidate to replace an injured Kodai Senga (shoulder) in New York’s season-opening rotation. The 30-year-old southpaw allowed four runs over 1 1/3 innings this spring in his lone Grapefruit League appearance.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters Varsho hasn’t progressed to throwing in game action yet, but is trending in the right direction. Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith notes that the furthest Varsho would need to throw in game action is roughly 175-200 feet, which means he’s almost there from a ramp-up standpoint. The 28-year-old center fielder opened the regular season on the injured list recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. There should be some clarity on his return timeline once he starts getting into minor league rehab games for Triple-A Buffalo.

It’ll be rookie Kyren Paris making his second straight start in center field while Adell remains sidelined due to a left hip issue. The 25-year-old outfielder left Saturday’s game against the White Sox with left hip tightness and remains day-to-day for now. It’s possible he’ll require a trip to the injured list if he’s unable to get back in the lineup by the middle of the week.

It’ll be Mauricio Dubón getting into the lineup in left field with Altuve making his first appearance at the keystone this season after three straight starts in the outfield. It’s a fascinating wrinkle for fantasy purposes as Altuve picking up enough playing time to retain second-base eligibility for 2026 would be a significant development. It’s unclear whether this will be an isolated event or a regular occurence moving forward, but it’s an unexpected development fantasy managers should monitor closely.

Quijada went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment last week. The 29-year-old lefty has made 106 relief appearances for the Angels dating back to 2020. He’s merely extra organizational relief depth at this stage of his career.

Cabrera, who is on the shelf with a blister, will be eligible to come off the injured list on April 11. He’ll probably make two rehab starts before the Marlins decide whether he’s ready to return.

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.