MLB Player News

Stassi is day-to-day with back spasms, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Stassi was expected to play in Monday's game against the Cardinals before the issue cropped up. While the ailment shouldn't keep him sidelined for too long, the Twins will likely play it safe with the 28-year-old given how early it is in camp. Stassi is expected to open the season with Triple-A Rochester, though he could earn a promotion to the majors in summer if he impresses with the Red Wings.

Smith (quadriceps) had an MRI which revealed no issues Monday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Smith had strained his quadriceps Sunday, but appears to have not done serious harm. He is considered day-to-day. It's doubtful that this injury will have long-term effects, but any lost spring training at-bats could hurt him in his battle with Adrian Gonzalez for early season playing time at first base.

Gurriel (suspension) was scratched from Monday's game against the Marlins due to left wrist discomfort, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic Houston reports.

The severity of the injury is unclear, but the Astros won't take any chances with the 33-year-old given how early it is in camp. More should be known about the ailment once he's further evaluated in the coming days; look for Tyler White and A.J. Reed to get some extra reps at first base if he's forced to miss any action.

Cron is likely to be a full-time starter for the Rays, Steve Carney of Sports Radio 620 WDAE reports.

After being acquired by Tampa Bay, it was thought that Cron might be set for a role as the short side of a platoon with the left-handed Brad Miller, but manager Kevin Cash says he wants to give Cron a full-time role. Even with full-time at-bats, it's fair to wonder what his ceiling looks like, as he owns a career .262/.307/.449 slash line and has hit just 24 home runs per 600 plate appearances, a very modest home-run rate for a first baseman at the present time. At the very least, however, the appeal in targeting him deeper formats has increased with the prospect of better counting stats, and the Rays' lack of middle-of-the-order pop potentially leaving him in the heart of the lineup on a regular basis.

The Mets announced that Smith is dealing with a strained right quadriceps and will require an MRI on Monday, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

Smith was already off to a poor start to the spring after he was scratched from the Mets' Grapefruit League opener due to tardiness, and the injury only further hurts his hopes of inching ahead of Adrian Gonzalez in their competition for the Opening Day first-base gig. The MRI should shed more light on the severity of Smith's injury, but it seems likely that he'll miss at least a few more Grapefruit League games, at the very least.

Voit is re-working his swing this spring in an attempt to reduce his launch angle, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

In an era when more and more players are trying to lift the ball in order to hit for more power, Voit is going in the opposite direction. He's reportedly making the change in order to become less susceptible to high fastballs, which have grown in frequency in order to combat the increasingly common uppercut swing path. Voit is somewhat of an odd player to be making this change, as his 11.6 degree average launch angle in 2017 wasn't remarkably high. He did have a somewhat high 25 percent strikeout rate though, and as a 27-year-old fighting to make the end of the major-league roster, he might be desperate to find anything that could take him to the next level. Swing changes are far from guaranteed to work, but if Voit's batted-ball profile looks different this spring, it may not be a fluke.

Shaw (shoulder) will DH and bat fifth in the order for Saturday's Cactus League game against the Dodgers, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The 23-year-old prospect will be making his spring debut after putting together a slash line of .289/.328/.530 with 18 home runs and 50 RBI in 88 games with Triple-A Sacramento in 2017. He is coming off a minor shoulder injury that sidelined him during the Arizona Fall League, but he should be fully healthy heading into the spring. Even with an impressive showing in camp, Shaw will likely return to the Triple-A level once the regular season starts, but keep an eye out for his major-league debut later this summer.

Diaz (groin) is currently without restriction following the right groin strain suffered in November, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Diaz sustained the injury playing in the Venezuelan Winter League for Leones del Caracas, but has since undergone successful rehab in time for spring training. The 25-year-old slashed .263/.352/.327 in 179 plate appearances for the Indians in last season, with most of his at-bats coming as a third baseman. Diaz is likely to serve a similar role for Cleveland in 2018, and his potential role should become clearer with spring training now underway.

Rizzo (personal) will take the field against the Rangers on Saturday for the club's second Cactus League contest, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.

Rizzo stepped away from the Cubs' camp for a few days in the wake of the deadly shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. where he graduated from in 2007. The first baseman returned to Chicago's spring training complex in Scottsdale, Ariz. and will ready to go moving forward.

Smith has been removed from the starting lineup Friday as a punishment for arriving late, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

It's not a great sign for Smith, who is tabbed as the Mets' first baseman of the future. After a poor debut in 2017, where he hit .198/.262/.395 in 49 games, the Mets indicated their lack of faith in him by bringing in veteran first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. While it would be wrong to read too much into one incident, Smith is already fighting the perception that he's not a very hard worker, and this just reinforces the idea that the team isn't very happy with him. This event could be a small blow to Smith in his battle to win the starting job out of camp, though if he hits better than Gonzalez this spring, the job should still be his.