MLB Player News

Arraez will lead off and play left field in Thursday's season opener against the Brewers.

Arraez has spent the majority of his career in the infield, but he's no stranger to the outfield, having started 18 games in left in 2019. Per Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic, he's expected to fill the leadoff spot regularly this season, pushing Max Kepler (who's batting fifth Thursday) into the heart of the order. Arraez doesn't steal like a traditional leadoff man, as he's swiped just two bags in 124 major-league games, but his .390 on-base percentage fits well at the top of the order.

Rodgers (hamstring) was placed on the 10-day injured list Thursday, Kyle Newman of The Denver Post reports.

Rodgers is slated to miss about a month after he suffered a right hamstring strain in mid-March, and he'll officially begin the year on the injured list. Ryan McMahon and Garrett Hampson should see most of the playing time at second base in Rodgers' absence, while Josh Fuentes could see an uptick in playing time at the hot corner.

Haggerty has made the Mariners' Opening Day roster, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The versatile 26-year-old flashed potential in his first Mariners season in 2020 with a .260/.315/.400 slash over 13 games. Despite the fact that he followed it up with just a .239 average this spring, his experience playing every position in the field except catcher and first base made him too valuable not to stick.

Frazier will bat leadoff and play second base in Thursday's opener at Wrigley Field.

He's 10-for-22 in his career with two doubles and two homers against the Cubs' Opening Day starter, Kyle Hendricks. Frazier also put together an amazing spring, slashing .488/.511/.860 in 45 spring plate appearances. As a result, fantasy owners might want to consider streaming Frazier on Opening Day.

Rosario is out of the lineup for Thursday's season opener versus the Tigers.

With southpaw Matthew Boyd on the hill for the Tigers, Cleveland will roll with the right-handed Jordan Luplow in center field. Cleveland's plans for that position remain less clear versus right-handed pitching, but the lefty-hitting Ben Gamel could have the edge for those starts over Rosario, who is right-handed like Luplow. If that's the case, Rosario would have to settle for a utility role to begin the season, limiting his overall playing-time outlook.

Barreto (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.

The 25-year-old was shut down for 4-to-6 weeks March 22 with right elbow inflammation, and the move to the 60-day IL will guarantee he misses the first two months of the season. Barreto was competing for a utility role in camp and likely won't return until June.

Garcia will be recalled from Triple-A Rochester ahead of Thursday's season opener against the Mets, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

The 20-year-old initially missed the Opening Day roster and was optioned to the minors over the weekend, but he'll rejoin the big-league club with multiple players sidelined due to a positive COVID-19 test and subsequent contact tracing. Garcia is likely to fill a depth role in the infield, but there's a chance he could see some playing time depending on which players are unavailable.

Manager Mike Matheny said Lopez would start at shortstop in the Royals' season opener Thursday against the Rangers, Josh Vernier of 610 Sports reports.

Texas is bringing a right-hander (Kyle Gibson) to the mound Opening Day, so the lefty-hitting Lopez looks on track to at least occupy the strong side of a platoon at shortstop while Adalberto Mondesi (oblique) is sidelined to begin the season. Per Vernier, Matheny said that he expects Mondesi to miss "a couple of weeks" with the injury, so Lopez could be in store for a near-everyday role until around at least mid-April. With a .228 lifetime average and three home runs and one stolen base across 159 career games, Lopez shouldn't be counted on to deliver much fantasy value even if he receives steady at-bats.

India's contract was selected by the Reds on Wednesday.

India is expected to serve as Cincinnati's starting second baseman to begin the regular season with Eugenio Suarez at shortstop and Mike Moustakas at third. The 24-year-old impressed while playing second base at the alternate training site last year and will be in line to make his major-league debut to begin the 2021 campaign. India slashed .313/.441/.604 with three home runs, seven RBI and two stolen bases in 22 spring games this year.

The Royals recalled Lopez from their alternate training site Wednesday.

Lopez initially appeared set to miss out on joining the Opening Day roster, but Kansas City chose to bring him back following Adalberto Mondesi's surprising placement on the 10-day injured list due to an oblique strain. The severity of Mondesi's injury isn't yet known, but Lopez could end up filling the strong side of a platoon at shortstop with Hanser Alberto for however long Mondesi is sidelined. While handling a near-everyday role for Kansas City the past two seasons, Lopez provided little fantasy value with a .228 average, three home runs, one stolen base, 59 runs and 43 RBI in 159 games.