MLB Player News

Olson went 2-for-4 with a double and a run in Sunday's 14-0 Cactus League win over the White Sox.

Olson has a somewhat less prolific home run pace going this spring when compared to the jaw-dropping long-ball display he put on during his rookie season, but he's enjoyed a solid exhibition slate overall. The 23-year-old has slugged a pair of round trippers and has posted a solid .293 average over 47 plate appearances across 15 spring games. Set for an everyday first base job, Olson will look to put a significant dent in the 27.8 percent strikeout rate he generated in 2017, while also trying to keep his power numbers robust.

Joseph was claimed off waivers by the Rangers on Monday.

Clayton Blackburn (elbow) was shifted to the 60-day disabled list to clear a spot on the Rangers' 40-man roster for Joseph, who will join Texas after being designated for assignment by the Phillies last week. With Joey Gallo settled in at first base for the Rangers, the 26-year-old Joseph will likely work as his backup while offering a right-handed bench bat, assuming he cracks the Opening Day roster. He hit .240/.289/.432 with 22 homers across 142 games last season.

Diaz was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Monday, T.J. Zuppe of The Athletic Cleveland reports.

Diaz was expected to serve a utility role for the Indians this season, and while he may still do so, that won't happen right away. Diaz has little left to prove at the Triple-A level; he's hit .331/.419/.455 in 184 games at Triple-A over his career. In 49 games with Cleveland last year, he hit .263/.352/.327 with no home runs. He hits the ball hard but far too often on the ground (59 percent groundball rate last year), limiting his power potential. Still, it's a profile that's good enough to work in a utility role, so Diaz should be back with the team at some point this season.

Hiura was reassigned to minor-league camp Sunday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Hiura had an impressive performance this spring, as he went 11-for-28 (.393) with a home run and seven RBI over 17 games. It remains to be seen where Hiura will open the upcoming season, but he impressed at Low-A Wisconsin during the 2017 season. He slashed .333/.374/.476 and recorded 11 doubles over 27 games with Wisconsin.

Wade was assigned to minor-league camp Sunday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic Minnesota reports.

Wade played well for Minnesota this spring, going 7-for-23 (.304) with two doubles and eight walks over 17 games. After hitting .292/.397/.408 across 117 games at Double-A Chattanooga last season, Wade could make his way up to Triple-A Rochester during the upcoming season.

Flores got the start in left field for Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals, going 3-for-4 with a double and a two-run home run.

The 26-year-old has never played a regular-season game in the outfield, but Flores is attempting to add more versatility to his resume as he prepares for a utility role in 2018. Wherever and whenever he plays, he should be a weapon against left-handed pitching: For his career, Flores has a .274/.318/.520 slash line against lefties but only a .255/.291/.392 line against righties.

Cabrera went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs scored in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles.

Hitting leadoff in this one, Cabrera went yard for the first time this spring, taking O's reliever Donnie Hart deep in the eighth inning. Mets manager Mickey Callaway hasn't tipped his hand yet with regard to who will hit at the top of the lineup, but the veteran infielder certainly didn't hurt his chances of winning the job with this performance.

Smith (quad) still has enough discomfort to prevent him from running and is unsure if he will be able to play in a game before the end of spring training, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

He essentially has no chance to break camp in the big leagues, so look for him to spend the first month or two of the season knocking any rust off and working on improving his conditioning at Triple-A. Adrian Gonzalez will start at first base for the Mets against righties, while Wilmer Flores and Todd Frazier also serve as options there early in the season.

Goldschmidt went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in Friday's 4-1 victory over the Dodgers in Cactus League play.

While spring numbers should be taken with a grain of salt for proven commodities like Goldschmidt, his .433 on-base percentage through 11 exhibitions certainly hasn't made fantasy owners regretting their early-round investment in the first baseman. With the humidor in effect at Chase Field in 2018, it's generally expected that Goldschmidt will sacrifice a few home runs from the career-high-tying 36 he smacked a season ago, but he still profiles as an elite commodity at his position even in the most pessimistic projection systems.

The White Sox optioned Gillaspie to Triple-A Charlotte on Friday.

The move isn't surprising as Gillaspie struggled this spring with a .189 batting average and .514 OPS. The 2014 first-round pick will likely need to improve upon his 2017 slash line of .223/.297/.373 at Triple-A if he is to earn a major-league opportunity this season.