MLB Player News

Andrus went 1-for-2 with an RBI in Friday's game against the White Sox.

Andrus will be looking to rebound from an injury-marred 2018 season that saw him finish with a career-low .256 batting average. He also dropped from 20 home runs and 88 RBI in 2017 to six and 33, respectively, last season. An early season fractured elbow interrupted what had been a hot start (.926 OPS, 14 games) and impacted his offense upon returning in June. "I was still having some discomfort, especially when I was swinging," Andrus told T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. "Throwing-wise, not really. Maybe if I lowered my angle I felt it a little bit, but mostly it was my hitting." Andrus is expected to occupy the third spot in the batting order.

Ngoepe arrived at Phillies camp Saturday morning, Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Ngoepe's start to the spring was delayed by visa issues, but those have apparently been cleared up, and he is ready to make a push for a spot on the Phillies' Opening Day roster.

McNeil (wrist) is in the lineup for Saturday's spring game against the Astros, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

McNeil was expected to play Saturday after missing the last couple days with his sore wrist, and it turns out he will do just that. McNeil will man left field and hit leadoff for the Mets.

Barreto, who went 2-for-2 with a double and a run in the Athletics' 6-3 Cactus League win over the Rockies on Friday, is impressing manager Bob Melvin with his work in the outfield, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports. "You watch the drills and watch him do his work in the outfield, he's a natural at it," Melvin said. "When you're that athletic, it gives you some options."

Barreto is actually impressing with both the bat and glove thus far in Cactus League play. The 23-year-old is now hitting .500 (8-for-16) with three doubles and only two strikeouts in spring training, with a successful winter ball stint in Venezuela (.358 average, .927 OPS over 203 plate appearances) clearly having helped Barretto maintain his timing at the plate throughout the offseason. However, his transition from second base to the outfield is drawing plenty of raves as well, with Melvin noting that Barreto has jumped into the process without any trepidation. Barreto played center field in Friday's game after manning left Thursday, and the plan is to continue moving him around the outfield before he likely starts the season at Triple-A Las Vegas.

McNeil (wrist) is expected to return to action Saturday against the Astros, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

McNeil was scratched from Wednesday's contest against the Marlins due to a left wrist laceration and has remained out since then. The issue wasn't expected to be a significant one, and he'll be back Saturday after missing three games. He's in the middle of a switch to the outfield, so the Mets will want him getting a good amount of game action this spring.

Dubon should be released from the hospital Friday after a battle with an illness, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Dubon has been hospitalized for several days. He's reportedly been making progress, though it remains to be seen how many more days off he'll need after his hospitalization ends.

McNeil (wrist) is not in the lineup for Friday's spring game against the Tigers, Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reports.

McNeil was scratched from Wednesday's lineup after scraping his wrist against the outfield wall Monday versus the Astros. The 26-year-old indicated he's not concerned about the injury but is nonetheless receiving a few days off to get healthy.

Garcia hasn't looked out of place in his first big-league spring training, Jamal Collier of MLB.com reports.

While the Nats have been careful to downplay any notion that Garcia might ascend through the system as rapidly as Juan Soto did last year, the club has been impressed with the 19-year-old shortstop's maturity, poise and instincts. "He doesn't sweat the small stuff," Johnny DiPuglia, the Nationals' vice president of international operations, said. "The slumps don't bother him because he knows he'll get out of it. He's going to help you defensively, around the bases. He's a very high baseball IQ kid, probably the highest IQ kid we've had here... because he knows the little parts of the game, the locker room part, the bus part, the failure part, the success part, being a good teammate." Garcia, the No. 18 fantasy prospect in baseball, could get an aggressive assignment to Double-A Harrisburg to begin the season after slashing .299/.338/.412 in 49 games for High-A Potomac in 2018.

Rodgers went 1-for-2 with two RBI in Thursday's game against the Dodgers.

Rodgers drove in a run during the first inning on a sacrifice double play, and he plated another in the third on an RBI single to left field. He's 2-for-11 with three RBI and two runs scored so far this spring as he continues to compete for a job at second base.

Altuve will start at second base for the first time this spring Saturday against the Mets, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Altuve, who underwent offseason knee surgery, has served as a designated hitter twice this spring, going 0-for-5, including a three-strikeout game Thursday.