MLB Player News

Kim will play the outfield later this week, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.

Kim returned from an illness last week and came into the game at shortstop Tuesday against Cincinnati. He has been named as a candidate to log time in the outfield this season despite the fact that he has never played there in his professional career.

Rengifo is expected to break camp with the Angels now that Franklin Barreto has been shut down 4-to-6 weeks due to elbow inflammation, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Rengifo and Barreto had been battling this spring for one of the team's final roster spots, and the latter's injury likely means that Rengifo will make the cut as a reserve middle infielder. The 24-year-old has been doing his part to earn the role in Cactus League play, slashing .292/.419/.458 with a home run, seven RBI and two stolen bases.

Guillorme was struck on the hand by a pitch during a simulated game Sunday, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

The infielder shouldn't be out of action for long; he could see action off the bench Tuesday against the Marlins or get a start in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game. Guillorme is expected to win a spot on the Mets' bench to begin the season and has gone 6-for-22 (.273) this spring with zero extra-base hits and a 3:5 BB:K.

Chavis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's spring game against Tampa Bay.

It was his sixth spring homer, tying him with Bobby Dalbec for the team lead. The right-handed hitter is slashing .302/.362/.767 in an effort to claim the final bench spot. His main competition for the roster, Christian Arroyo, also went deep Monday and is slashing .300/.349/.550 with three homers and eight RBI.

Rojas has hit well this spring, going 18-for-53 with three home runs and a .340/.397/.547 line.

Rojas went on a power tear in early March, swatting all three of his long balls in a two-game span. Nevertheless, he's remained impressive throughout Cactus League play and appears to be securing playing time for himself at second base. If Rojas is able to carry this type of performance through to the regular season, he could take that job and run with it.

Hernandez has "done everything possible" to be the Red Sox's leadoff hitter per manager Alex Cora, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Hernandez doesn't fit the traditional mold of a leadoff man, as he's never stolen more than four bases in a season. He doesn't entirely fit the modern mold, either, as he owns a career .313 on-base percentage and has come in at .308 or below in that category in four of the last five seasons. His .270 on-base percentage last season was a career low, as was his 4.1 percent walk rate, but he's evidently done enough to impress Cora. The leadoff role would be a boost to his fantasy value primarily through the extra plate appearances it comes with and should also boost his run total, albeit at the likely cost of a handful of RBI.

Entering play Monday, Merrifield has gone 12-for-27 (.444 average) with four doubles and a 0-for-2 success rate on stolen-base attempts through 10 Cactus League games.

With batting averages of .280 or better in every season of his career, Merrifield looks poised to find himself near the top of the AL leaderboard category during his sixth season in Kansas City. He'll likely chip in plenty of runs while reprising his familiar role as the Royals' leadoff man, and while the 30-plus steals he notched in both 2017 and 2018 are probably out of reach at this stage of his career, the 32-year-old should at least remain a double-digit stolen-base threat. Merrifield's Statcast-measured sprint speed ranked in the 89th percentile of all players in 2020, suggesting he still boasts some premium wheels.

Barreto will be shut down for four to six weeks due to elbow inflammation, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Barreto had been pushing to win a utility role but now won't get to fill that role in the early part of the season. He won't start building back up until late April at the earliest and then will still need a fair amount of time before he's ready for game action. Luis Rengifo now looks likely to break camp with the Angels in a bench spot.

Arraez could share the leadoff role against right-handed pitchers with Max Kepler this season, manager Rocco Baldelli told MLB.com. Arraez hit leadoff Sunday and went 2-for-3 with a walk and double. He's hitting .300 (9-for-30) this spring.

Arraez will move to a utility role this season with the Twins signing Andrelton Simmons to play shortstop and moving Jorge Polanco to second base. However, he's expected to get near everyday duty as starters are rested regularly. The Twins may not have a set lineup as manager Rocco Baldelli likes to play matchups each game, but it sounds like Arraez will be in the leadoff mix.

Castro could find himself left off the Opening Day roster, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

The strong play of Rule 5 draft pick Akil Baddoo is a bad development for Castro. The Tigers have to keep Baddoo on the roster or give him back to the division-rival Twins, so he will likely be a fifth outfielder who makes the team. Detroit also has Niko Goodrum in a utility role, and Renato Nunez, Nomar Mazara and Grayson Greiner all figure to earn bench spots as well. That likely leaves Castro as the odd man out, at least to begin the season. The 27-year-old had a strong .347/.407/.429 slash line in 22 games last year, so he's capable of producing if he's able to get some time in the majors at some point in 2021.