MLB Player News
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Evan White 1B | LAA
Mariners' Evan White: Sent to minor-league camp
White was reassigned to minor-league camp Monday, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.
White missed the last few days of camp with a hamstring issue, but he appears to have returned to health and will join minor-league camp following Monday's cuts. He should open the year at Double-A and could finish the year at Triple-A, with the hopes that he will be ready to spend most of 2020 in the majors.
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Nate Lowe DH | CIN
Rays' Nate Lowe: Goes deep in win
Lowe entered Sunday's 8-1 Grapefruit League win over the Red Sox as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning, hitting a solo home run and drawing a walk in his two plate appearances.
Lowe only has three hits over 28 spring at-bats, but two of them have left the yard. The 23-year-old, who profiles as RotoWire's No. 3 prospect in the Rays organization, projects to open the season at Triple-A Durham after getting his initial taste of action there during the latter portion of 2018. Lowe slashed .260/.327/.460 across 110 plate appearances with the Bulls, impressive numbers when considering Lowe had opened the season two levels lower at High-A Charlotte.
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Justin Bour 1B | SF
Angels' Justin Bour: Back in lineup
Bour (knee) is starting at first base and hitting second Monday against the Rangers, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
He was scratched from Sunday's lineup with right knee soreness, but it was apparently a very minor issue.
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Evan White 1B | LAA
Mariners' Evan White: Returns to action
White (hamstring) went 0-for-2 in Sunday's game against Cleveland.
White rested his hamstring for a few days after experiencing some soreness, but he managed to get two at-bats in Sunday's exhibition, although he failed to get on base. The 22-year-old prospect is now 4-for-14 with an RBI and a run scored so far this spring, and the Mariners are optimistic he's put the hamstring issue behind him.
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Rowdy Tellez 1B | ATL
Blue Jays' Rowdy Tellez: Monster day at plate
Tellez went 3-for-3 with two home runs and five RBI in Sunday's game against Minnesota.
Tellez launched a three-run homer in the first inning and belted a two-run home run in the sixth over the wall in left. Following Sunday's impressive display of power, he's 10-for-30 with three homers, eight RBI and five runs scored this spring.
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Justin Bour 1B | SF
Angels' Justin Bour: Scratched with knee soreness
Bour was a late scratch for Sunday's spring game against the Mariners due to right knee soreness, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Bour was set to serve as the designated hitter Sunday but will instead be forced to sit out. The severity of the issue remains unclear, but it wouldn't be surprising for the 30-year-old to at least be held out through Tuesday's off-day.
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Matt Olson 1B | ATL
Athletics' Matt Olson: Candidate for No. 3 spot in order
Olson is one of the primary candidates for the No. 3 spot in the batting order during the regular season, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. "I'm fine with anywhere, but I'm pretty comfortable in the third spot," Olson said before going 0-for-2 with a walk in the Athletics' 11-2 loss to Milwaukee. "Growing up, that's where I hit, and even in the minors I was there a lot with Renato Nunez hitting behind me. It should be nice to have KD [Khris Davis] behind me and maybe get more pitches to hit."
Jed Lowrie saw an appreciable boost in production while logging 653 plate appearances out of the No. 3 hole last season, slashing .275/.361/.461 with 59 extra-base hits (35 doubles, one triple, 23 home runs) and 96 RBI in that slot alone. With Lowrie now a Met, Olson is a fitting candidate to slide into that spot after making just 17 plate appearances there in 2018. The 24-year-old racked up 84 RBI last season while hitting behind Davis in the lineup, but as he noted, Davis often did a good job clearing the bases ahead of Olson while driving in a career-high 123 runs. Manager Bob Melvin will likely continue to evaluate different scenarios ahead of the team's season opener March 20 in Japan versus the Mariners, and Slusser also notes that Stephen Piscotty, who's hit third for most of spring, would likely see his fair share of time there over the course of the season versus right-handed starters.
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Jake Cronenworth 2B | SD
Rays' Jake Cronenworth: Rakes in high-scoring loss
Cronenworth went 2-for-2 with a triple, a solo home run and two runs overall in a 17-15 Grapefruit League loss to the Orioles on Saturday.
The 25-year-old shortstop entered the game for Daniel Robertson in the top of the sixth, ripping his run-scoring three-bagger in his first at-bat before bringing the Rays to within one with his eighth-inning solo blast. Cronenworth is now hitting .357 overall across 14 spring at-bats, and he's likely headed to Triple-A Durham to open the season. Cronenworth got his first taste of game action at that level late last season, slashing .240/.269/.360 across a modest sample of 26 plate appearances. The shortstop position at the big-league level is in the capable hands of Willy Adames, so Cronenworth doesn't presently have a clear path to the majors.
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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B | TOR
Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: Out with oblique strain
Guerrero will be out at least three weeks with a left oblique strain, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.
The good news is that Guerrero was diagnosed with a Grade 1 strain rather than a more severe muscle injury. The Blue Jays' top prospect, who turns 20 on March 16, was struggling this spring with a .211/.250/.316 slash line. Guerrero likely would have been ticketed for Triple-A Buffalo regardless of his spring results, as the organization looks to delay the start of his service clock. A return in early April appears to be the current goal, but a clearer recovery timetable should come into focus as the young slugger advances into his rehab work.
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Ryan Mountcastle 1B | BAL
Orioles' Ryan Mountcastle: Drives in four runs
Mountcastle went 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and four RBI in Saturday's spring win over Tampa Bay.
Mountcastle was seen going through drills at first base earlier in camp and got the starting nod there Saturday. The 22-year-old was previously a shortstop before transitioning to third base in 2018, but it appears the move to first is mostly about creating additional versatility. Mountcastle slashed .297/.341/.464 with 13 home runs at Double-A Bowie last season.