MLB Player News

Wade was optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Thursday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

As expected, Wade is headed to the minors to open the season, leaving Jake Cave and Willians Astudillo to compete for Minnesota's final roster spot. In 11 appearances before spring training was put on hold, Wade put together a .286/.423/.381 slash line.

The Rays optioned Lowe to Triple-A Durham on Thursday, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Lowe has nothing left to prove in the minors, but the Rays' wealth of corner infielders and left-handed options off the bench made it an uphill battle for him to crack the Opening Day roster. The 24-year-old may need an injury to either Ji-Man Choi or Yoshitomo Tsutsugo before he gets another opportunity to handle the large side of a platoon with the big club.

Flores had a .240/.296/.400 slash line with one home run in 10 games before the suspension of spring training.

The 28-year-old joined San Francisco on a two-year, $6 million deal in February after the Diamondbacks declined his club option earlier in the offseason despite him posting an .848 OPS in 89 games last season. Flores figures to split time at second base with Mauricio Dubon once play resumes, though both players should also work in a utility role.

Cronenworth is vying for 26th spot on the Padres' Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Cronenworth vaulted himself into contention for the team's final roster spot with a strong spring in which he posted a .320/.393/.400 slash line and a 3:4 BB:K. The 26-year-old's value is boosted by his ability to play three different infield positions as well as pitch. However, Cronenworth's chance of earning two-way status this season is impeded by MLB's requirement that he be carried against the Padres' 13-pitcher limit for part of the season while he accrues enough at-bats to qualify for the designation, per Kyle Glaser of Baseball America.

France is "among a handful of players" in competition for the final spot on the Padres' Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Though France put up a monster season at the Triple-A level last season, posting a .399/.477/.770 slash line with 27 home runs, he entered spring training needing a solid showing to break camp with the big-league club. The 25-year-old wasn't overly impressive in Cactus League play -- he batted .235, though all four of his hits went for extra bases -- but did enough to remain in the running for the Padres' 26th and final roster spot. Part of France's appeal lies in his versatility; he logged games at three different infield positions last season and spent time this spring honing his skills behind the plate.

Goldschmidt (elbow) hit .300 (6-for-20) with two doubles, two home runs, four RBI, five walks and three runs across nine Grapefruit League games before spring training was suspended.

Goldschmidt battled a sore elbow in the early stages of camp, an issue that could well clear up by the time a ramp-up to the regular season unfolds. The veteran slugger's penchant for hard contact and modest two strikeouts during the exhibition slate were.particularly encouraging when considering he whiffed a combined 339 times over the last two campaigns.

Voit is projected to be the Yankees' starter at first base when the regular season begins, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Voit entered spring training as the favorite for the first base job and played well enough to nail down the role, hitting .267 with a home run and two RBI over 30 at-bats in Grapefruit League play. The 29-year-old will look to bounce back from a rough end to the 2019 campaign that included sports hernia surgery in August and a subsequent 1-for-32 slump to close out the regular season.

Diaz is expected to open the season as the Rays' primary leadoff option against left-handed pitching, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Diaz only hit at the top of the order in one of his 11 Grapefruit League starts, but the Rays are apparently inclined to deploy him in the short side of a leadoff platoon with the lefty-hitting Austin Meadows. Considering Diaz slotted anywhere between second and fourth in his other 10 spring starts, he looks set to occupy a prominent lineup spot against righties in most games as well, though he'll be a candidate to sit on days when manager Kevin Cash wants to clear room at a corner-infield spot for Joey Wendle or Yoshi Tsutsugo.

Cabrera remained in the mix for the starting third base spot when spring training was suspended.

The veteran infielder was seen as the insurance policy at the hot corner in case top prospect Carter Kieboom needed more development time in the minors, but that appeared to be the case when MLB went on hiatus, as Kieboom was struggling both at the plate -- hitting .233 with nine strikeouts in 30 at-bats -- and with his defense after moving over from shortstop. Cabrera wasn't doing any better offensively in camp, going 3-for-22 (.136) without an extra-base hit, but his 13-season track record in the majors and .969 OPS in 38 games for the Nats at the end of last season carry a lot more weight.

Lowe hit .227 (5-for-22) with two doubles, two RBI, two walks and one run across 11 Grapefruit League games during spring training.

Lowe arrived in camp approximately 20 pounds lighter, but as his spring line indicates, that hasn't yet translated to increased success at the plate. The 24-year-old did make a strong case for himself over his 50-game major-league debut last season, slashing .263/.325/.454 with 15 extra-base hits (eight doubles, seven home runs), 19 RBI, 13 walks and 24 runs across 169 plate appearances. Lowe put in time at first base (21 games), third base (four games) and designated hitter (17 games) in 2019; that versatility should help keep his chances of securing an Opening Day roster spot relatively strong, although the offseason arrivals of Jose Martinez and Yoshi Tsutsugo does make it more of a challenge.