MLB Player News

Hoskins hit a decent .241/.371/.483 in 12 Grapefruit League games before play was suspended, but he also struck out at a 40 percent clip.

The slugger owns a career 23.4 percent strikeout rate in 363 big-league games, a perfectly respectable mark for a power hitter, so it's possible his spring struggles in that area were nothing more than a small-sample blip. Either way, Hoskins faces some questions about his value this season, as his slugging percentage dropped from .496 to .454 last year despite league-wide power increasing. His expected slugging percentage according to Statcast came to just .426, suggesting that even his mediocre showing was an overachievement.

Alonso and the Mets agreed to a one-year contract worth over $652,000 on Wednesday, an MLB record for a player heading into his second season, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

Players have no bargaining power before they reach their arbitration years, so the club giving Alonso anything more than the league minimum of $563,500 was essentially a show of gratitude for his exploits as a rookie. The 25-year-old hasn't found his timing at the plate yet this spring -- he's hitting only .243 (9-for-37) without a homer -- but Alonso still has a couple weeks to round into form before Opening Day.

Freeman (personal) is expected to re-enter the Braves' Grapefruit League lineup Friday versus the Mets, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Freeman left the team Tuesday to tend to a family issue, but he looks like he'll only need a few days to address the matter. The missed time shouldn't impact his availability to get himself ready for Opening Day.

Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said Wednesday that Goldschmidt is dealing with right elbow soreness and will be out of the Grapefruit League lineup for at least "a couple of days," Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The Cardinals haven't yet indicated that Goldschmidt's injury is anything overly worrisome, but it's somewhat disconcerting that he's dealing with the same issue that already limited him earlier in camp. The first baseman will presumably be re-examined prior to the weekend before the Cardinals provide more clarity on his situation.

Freeman was a late scratch from Tuesday's lineup for what the team said was a family matter, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Ryan Casteel was inserted into the lineup batting third and playing first base. Freeman is expected to return to Wednesday's lineup against the Twins after attending to his family. The 30-year-old is likely to take a cautious approach during the rest of spring training after dealing with right elbow inflammation earlier this week.

Raley was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, Eric Stephen of TrueBlueLA.com reports.

Raley got off to a hot start at the dish in spring games, but it wasn't enough to earn him a spot on the big-league roster to open the 2020 campaign. He'll begin the season at Triple-A, where he hit .302 with seven homers, 21 RBI and four stolen bases in 33 contests a year ago.

Arias was returned to minor-league camp Sunday, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Arias went 4-for-13 with three walks in Cactus League play, but he'll return to the minors to get more seasoning. The 20-year-old will likely open the season at the Double-A level after hitting .302 with 17 home runs with High-A Lake Elsinore last season.

Rizzo is batting just .176 with no home runs through his first 17 Cactus League at-bats.

Rizzo is no stranger to slow starts, as the career .273 hitter has just a .241 mark in March and April. Fantasy owners will need to be patient with the slugger, but when everything is said and done, he will likely post a strong average and approach 30 home runs and 100 RBI once again assuming he stays healthy.

Rizzo (finger) is starting at first base and hitting second Saturday against the Reds.

He was scratched from Thursday's lineup due to a blister, but it was clearly a minor issue.

Hiura hit his third home run of the exhibition season in Friday's spring game against the Giants.

Hiura has picked up right where he left off last season, going 6-for-16 (.375) with three homers, a double, and five RBI over seven games this spring. He has struck out just four times in 17 plate appearances, which -- albeit over a small sample size -- is a lower rate than the 30.7 percent of the time he was punched out in his first big-league campaign. Cutting the strikeouts will be key for Hiura moving forward, and if he is able to do so he could become an even more dangerous hitter than he already is.