MLB Player News

Flores was scratched from the Giants' Cactus League lineup Wednesday due to knee soreness, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

When asked about the injury, Flores said, "it's nothing," so it seems safe to say he should be back in there in a day or two. LaMonte Wade will slide in at first base in Flores' absence.

The Phillies optioned Hall to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

With Bryce Harper now handling first base and Kyle Schwarber settling in at designated hitter, Hall's future with the Phillies looks cloudy. For now, he'll represent depth at Lehigh Valley.

Smith seems likely to make the Cubs' Opening Day roster, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com, and he now has less competition with Matt Mervis getting optioned to Triple-A Iowa on Sunday.

Smith would give Chicago a left-handed power bat off the bench as well as a veteran option should Michael Busch falter at first base. It may not be a fantasy-friendly role right away, but Smith could have more value down the road if his playing time increases. The 28-year-old hit 12 home runs across 153 games with Washington last season to go along with a .254 batting average.

Tellez (back) will start at first base and bat sixth for the Pirates in Monday's spring contest versus the Phillies, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

Tellez was scratched from the Grapefruit League lineup over the weekend with a minor back issue, but he's fine. The 29-year-old is slated to be the Pirates' primary first baseman against right-handed pitching this season.

The Nationals reassigned Diaz to minor-league camp Sunday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Diaz signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals in late December. He had a .804 OPS with 17 home runs over 118 games for the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate but saw no time in the majors during the 2023 season.

Tellez was scratched from Saturday's Grapefruit League lineup due to a minor back injury, Greg Brown of SportsNet Pittsburgh reports.

The 29-year-old was pulled from the lineup due to an "abundance of caution," so he could return to game action within the next couple days. Assuming Tellez has no additional issues, he should begin the season as the Pirates' primary first baseman.

The Cubs optioned Mervis to Triple-A Iowa on Sunday.

Despite posting a strong slash line of .300/.432/.400 in 19 Cactus League games, Mervis fell well shy of making the season-opening 26-man roster, as he was cut with 42 players still remaining in big-league camp. After a rough showing in his first taste of the big leagues in 2023, Mervis will likely need to mash at Iowa and/or wait for an injury to hit the Cubs' first-base/designated-hitter ranks before he gets another extended opportunity in Chicago.

Despite going 0-for-4 in Friday's Cactus League game against the White Sox, Mervis is batting a solid .259 this spring with a .782 OPS.

While the numbers don't jump off the page, they're an improvement from 2023, when Mervis batted just .167 with a .531 OPS across 27 games, which marked his MLB debut. This year, the 25-year-old may have to settle for a bench role due to Michael Busch now being on the roster and expected to start at first. However, both players are fairly inexperienced at the MLB level, so Mervis could emerge if Busch struggles.

Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Thursday that Gallo will be the team's primary first baseman this season, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

When Gallo was signed in January, the plan was for him to be the club's regular left fielder. However, the Nats have since signed Jesse Winker and Eddie Rosario and Gallo has also dealt with a quad issue. Martinez didn't rule out the possibility of Gallo eventually playing some outfield, but for now he'll be the first baseman while mixing in some starts at designated hitter. The news means Joey Meneses will be the everyday DH, while Rosario looks like the favorite for left field duties.

Rivas has gone 3-for-26 (.115) over 15 Grapefruit League games.

Rivas' hold on a 40-man roster spot is tenuous at best after being waived by three teams in the offseason. He's stuck around with the Cardinals for a while, but his poor hitting in the spring has left him with little chance of leapfrogging Alec Burleson for a spot as a backup first baseman/outfielder. Rivas hit a poor .229 with a .725 OPS over 48 games between the Pirates and the Padres last season.