MLB Player News

With left-handed Matthew Boyd on the mound, Carpenter may not have started anyway, but the left-handed hitting slugger may not be available off the bench due to his hamstring issue. Justyn-Henry Malloy is the designated hitter and will lead off for the winner-take-all contest. The full lineup: DH Malloy, 3B Matt Vierling, LF Riley Greene, 2B Andy Ibanez, 1B Spencer Torkelson, CF Parker Meadows, C Jake Rogers and SS Trey Sweeney.

The Rangers will receive left-handed reliever Robert Garcia in the return package. Lowe, 29, should represent a major upgrade in production for the Nationals after slashing .265/.361/.401 with 16 homers and 69 RBI for the Rangers during the 2024 campaign. The Rangers seem likely to let new acquisition Jake Burger function as their regular first baseman now that room has been cleared for him.

The 26-year-old hurler made 18 appearances with the Twins during the 2023 season then spent the 2024 campaign with the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization. There, he registered a 4.26 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and a 69/28 K/BB ratio over 57 innings in his 12 appearances (11 starts). It’s unclear if the Tigers view him as depth for their rotation or bullpen — or someplace in between.

Adams, 33, spent the 2024 campaign in the Athletics’ organization where he registered a 3.92 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and a 53/23 K/BB ratio across 41 1/3 innings at the big league level before elbow tightness ended his season prematurely in mid-August. As long as he’s healthy, Adams should function as a nice depth addition for the Red Sox’ bullpen.

The 34-year-old backstop will add quality veteran depth in spring camp for the Cubs. Pérez didn’t see any big league action during the 2024 season, but he was terrific for the Athletics at Triple-A Las Vegas where he slashed .260/.344/.544 with 27 homers and 77 RBI in 468 plate appearances. It’s unlikely that he does enough to earn a reserve role on the Opening Day roster, but his consistent power in the minor leagues would at least make him an intriguing deep league option if he did.

It seemed like there were better third base options out there for the A’s, but they settled for the steady glove. Jon Heyman reported that the deal was worth $2.15 million and includes $400,000 in bonuses. The 33-year-old Urshela hit .250/.286/.361 in 128 games for the Tigers and Braves last season. He shouldn’t be much of a fantasy factor while hitting in the bottom half of the A’s lineup.

The Phillies cash in one of their best prospects here in the hopes that Luzardo will stay healthy after a 2024 season in which he missed time early with elbow soreness and later was shut down for the year because of a stress reaction in his back. He’s expected to have a normal spring, so for now anyway, the Phillies rotation is full, leaving Taijuan Walker apparently bullpen bound and Andrew Painter to toil in the minors for a spell. Luzardo was terrific in 2023, finishing with a 3.58 ERA and 208 strikeouts in 178 2/3 innings, and it looked like he had the potential to do even better going forward. The Phillies will have him for two seasons before he becomes eligible for free agency.

The Phillies face the possibility of losing the out-of-options Rafael Marchán if they don’t carry him as their backup catcher over Garrett Stubbs, so some extra depth is welcome. McIntosh, 27, has a decent enough bat, but he hasn’t proven strong enough defensively to earn consideration for backup gigs yet. He was passed over in the Rule 5 draft earlier this month.

Having just turned 19 this month, Caba is a work in progress offensively, but he’s a legit shortstop, giving the Marlins another strong prospect at the position to go along with Jared Serna, who was acquired from the Yankees in the Jazz Chisholm Jr. trade, and 2024 second-round pick Carter Johnson. The switch-hitter came in at .228/.385/.284 with 50 steals in 78 games between Rookie ball (52 games) and low-A ball (26 games) last season.

Boyd, 21, was an 11th-round pick out of high school in 2022. In two seasons since, he’s posted lines of .262/.366/.324 in low-A and .239/.417/.331 in high-A and stolen a total of 83 bases in 187 games. His defense isn’t particularly well regarded, and he doesn’t figure to add a whole lot of power, so he doesn’t currently project as a starting outfielder.

Gilbert, 31, will always be best known for throwing a no-hitter in his first big-league start for the Diamondbacks in 2021. He’s mostly relieved the last two years, and he allowed three runs over 8 1/3 innings for the Phillies in 2024. While he’s still not a hard thrower at all, he did amass a 52/8 K/BB and a 2.25 ERA in 40 innings for the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate last season.