MLB Player News

Olson hit .200 (5-for-25) with two doubles, one home run, four RBI, nine strikeouts, five walks and four runs across 11 Cactus League games before spring training was suspended.

The slugging first baseman's spring average left plenty to be desired, but it was obviously a small sample. The 26-year-old enjoyed the best season of his career in 2019, a campaign that included a new career high of 36 home runs. As good as Olson was last season, Jessica Kleinschmidt of NBC Sports Bay Area reports Olson could still have room for even more improvement, noting multiple baseball metrics sites had projected him to exceed last season's homer total in a full 2020 season.

White stood out to hitting coach Tim Laker this spring with his ability to consistently make hard contact, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. "He's a really strong kid," Laker said. "He's a really intelligent guy. His swing, I guess when you look at it compared to everybody else, it's a little bit maybe unconventional, but I think he's got an ability to find the barrel and hit the ball hard."

The rookie tuned up for a projected everyday job at first base this spring by hitting .333 (8-for-24) with three doubles, three RBI, two walks and a stolen base across eight Cactus League contests. White's meteoric rise through the Mariners' organizational ranks includes just four games of experience at Triple-A Tacoma, but he earned the confidence of team brass by slashing an impressive. .293/.350/.488 with 33 extra-base hits (13 doubles, two triples, 18 home runs) and 55 RBI over 400 plate appearances at Double-A Arkansas in 2019. The fact White was able to thrive versus big-league arms this spring naturally serves to strengthen his outlook, and Laker's assessment qualifies as a particularly strong endorsement as well.

Voit has been working out at his home in St. Louis, Ryan Fagan of Sporting News reports.

In addition to working out "as much as possible" in order to stay in shape, Voit has been getting extra conditioning by doing yard work in his backyard. The slugger is expected to take on a near-everyday role at first base for the Yankees when the regular season begins.

Beaty has been working on his hand-eye coordination by swinging at pinto beans with teammate Edwin Rios, he stated in an interview with David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports.

Beaty and Rios have remained in Arizona during the suspension of play, rooming together in an apartment that provides little space for traditional baseball workouts. As such, they have taken to unique methods for staying sharp as they await word on when the MLB season may resume. Beaty also noted that he and Rios have been taking part in strength and cardio workouts using equipment set up in their garage. Interestingly, the pair are in competition with each other for one of the final spots on the Dodgers' Opening Day roster.

Votto blamed his subpar 2019 on mechanics and process, trying to chase his 2017 results in part because he didn't get the desired results in 2018, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer (via a segment on MLB Network with Brian Kenny) reports.

Votto said that the drop in homers from 36 in 2017 to 12 in 2018 disturbed his approach at the plate, but it shouldn't have. "In '19, I was really bent out of shape going from hitting 36 home runs to 12 home runs (in 2018). I viewed the year as a failure. But looking at my Statcast data, it was an unlucky season. I was a really productive hitter using relatively predictive data." Watch the full segment with Votto and Kenny -- it's really enlightening.

Cron finished Grapefruit League play with a .346/.452/.731 slash line and three home runs in 12 games.

Cron had a similarly strong spring with Minnesota in 2019 and then got off to a hot start for the Twins before a thumb injury derailed him in the latter part of the season. The first baseman had offseason thumb surgery and is reportedly fully healthy, so he could provide strong offensive numbers for the Tigers when the 2020 season is able to begin.

Beaty spent much of the offseason working on his quickness, Rowan Kavner of Dodger Insider reports.

His desire to be quicker is likely related to the team's desire for a left-handed backup at third base. Beaty's ability to fill that role has given him the "inside track" for a roster spot according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, but a lackluster spring at the plate prevented him from cementing a place on the big-league club prior to the suspension of spring training. Edwin Rios appears to be Beaty's primary competition for one of the final spots on the Opening Day roster.

Stassi was released by the Athletics in March, Baseball America reports.

The 30-year-old first baseman has bounced around, from the Phillies to the Twins in 2017 and 2018, then to independent ball, and then to the Giants and A's in 2019 and 2020. His top skill is walking at a high clip, but he has never flashed enough power to profile at first base.

Although new manager Derek Shelton hasn't revealed his preferred lineup, Bell is expected to bat cleanup for the Pirates in 2020, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

With No. 3 hitter Starling Marte traded to Arizona, the team will likely turn to Adam Frazier, Kevin Newman or Gregory Polanco to bat ahead of Bell. After a red-hot start to 2019, Bell hit just .232/.342/.476 with 19 homers in his final 371 plate appearances. The switch hitter's splits against left-handed pitching were disappointing -- he slashed just .224/.313/.448 with nine homers in 166 plate appearances. Against right-handers, however, he batted .297/.387/.615 with 32 doubles and 28 homers in 384 PA. He may get pitched around, given that Polanco, Colin Moran and Jose Osuna are likely candidates to bat fifth. As Pittsburgh's only bona fide power hitter, the organization will be counting upon Bell to produce big numbers in 2020.

Rizzo said he enjoys playing in Chicago and would like to stay with the Cubs beyond 2020, Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

The team picked up Rizzo's $16.5 million 2020 club option back in November, and it can do so one more time next year if it wants. The slugging first baseman said he wants to stay in Chicago long term, but he also called the business side of baseball "as cutthroat as ever" in January when the Cubs shut down contract extension talks. Rizzo has been a cornerstone player for the Cubs since 2012, but if the team gets off to a sluggish start when the 2020 season is able to resume, management could begin to move some bigger pieces as part of a rebuild.