MLB Player News

Rangers manager Ron Washington provided his projected lineup/batting order for the 2014 season, according to ESPN.

Washington has penciled left fielder Shin-Soo Choo into the leadoff spot. He will be followed by shortstop Elvis Andrus, first baseman Prince Fielder, third baseman Adrian Beltre, right fielder Alex Rios, DH Mitch Moreland, catcher Geovany Soto, second baseman Jurickson Profar and center fielder Leonys Martin.

Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said Monday infielders Nick Franklin and Brad Miller will compete for the starting job at shortstop, according to MLB.com. McClendon said he's not looking to move either player to another position.

"That's a good problem to have," McClendon said.

Nationals manager Matt Williams reiterated Sunday there is an "open competition" at second base between Anthony Rendon and Danny Espinosa. Williams added there is "no favorite at this point."

Williams added Espinosa will also see time at shortstop this spring, while Rendon will get some playing time at third base.

The Nationals have been discussing a potential trade for Rays catcher Jose Lobaton for a while, seriously and reportedly for more than a month, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The paper suggests the Rays could be targeting Nationals infielder Danny Espinosa, who said he's been by told by the Nationals he will compete for the starting job at second base this spring.

Second baseman Danny Espinosa has been targeted by at least a dozen teams, but the Nationals are not eager to trade him despite his disappointing 2013 season, according to MLB.com.

Anthony Rendon is ahead of Espinosa in the battle for the starting spot, but the latter will compete for it in training camp. Rendon ran with his opportunity upon the demotion of Espinosa a year ago, batting .265 with 35 RBI in 98 games while playing solid defense.

Espinosa played most of the season at Triple-A Syracuse and fanned 148 times in 471 at-bats at both levels combined. Espinosa must make more consistent contact this spring to have any chance at earning the starting job.

Nationals manager Matt Williams said infielder Danny Espinosa is going to receive a lot of playing time this spring, as Espinosa tries to earn his way onto the roster and potentially into the starting lineup at second base.

"We're going to get him a lot of reps at short, we're going to get him a lot of reps at second base. He's going to get a lot of at-bats, and get his stroke feeling good. And if he can do all those things, he's got a chance to be a really integral part of the team," Williams said, per MASNsports.com.

Williams seems to have a lot of confidence Espinosa can bounce back after being banished to the minors last season.

"I just think that there's great potential there," Williams said. "And I'm not alone. There were multiple calls, as I understand it, from teams throughout baseball about him this offseason. So I'm not the only one thinking that, or the Nationals aren't the only one thinking that.

"Now he's got to put it together and he's got to play. And he's got to play well, and he's got to be effective. So that's the objective going in."

The Yankees announced Wednesday they signed nine players to minor-league contracts, which included an invitation to spring training.

They were pitcher Bruce Billings, infielder Russ Canzler, pitcher Robert Coello, pitcher Brian Gordon, pitcher Chris Leroux, outfielder Antoan Richardson, infielder Scott Sizemore, infielder Yangervis Solarte and infielder Zelous Wheeler.

Nationals infielder Danny Espinosa is headed to spring training with a renewed outlook after general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Matt Williams told him during the offseason he will have the chance to compete for the starting job at second base, according to MLB.com.

"Matt and Mike Rizzo both called me in the offseason and told me I’m going to get a fair opportunity to win my job back, and that’s all I can ask for," Espinosa said. "I’ve never asked for anything to be handed to me. But if I get a fair opportunity to win my job back, I feel like I can do it."

Espinosa attributes his poor performance in 2013, which resulted in him eventually losing the starting second-base job to Anthony Rendon, to a small fracture in his right wrist he sustained early in the season, which was originally diagnosed as a bone bruise.

"There was times I couldn’t pick my bat up with one hand," Espinosa said. "So my wrist was just in a bad place, and I shouldn’t have been playing on it, but I made the choice to try to play on it."

Espinosa is encouraged heading into 2014. He's been working with a personal trainer in the offseason and is back to lifting weights after a rotator cuff injury prevented him from doing so last season.

"I’m probably stronger at this point in my career than I’ve ever been in my life," he said. "My trainer has done an unbelievable job, he’s put me in a really good place. I feel physically I’m at the top of where I could ever be, almost. He’s done everything for me to get back to where I was and get beyond that, strength-wise. So I feel great."

White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham believes he can have a productive season at the plate in 2014, if he is able to avoid the injury issues that plagued him in 2013, according to MLB.com.

"I feel good and my body feels healed from the injuries I had," Beckham said. "I felt like I was just limping around the last month and a half. It was tough.

"But it was a tough year for everybody. Not just me, but the way the team went, how many games we lost. It was very trying on us and our patience, but it will be good motivation for this year to make sure we remember. We don't always want to harp on it, but we always want to remember what it felt like so we're not in that position this year."

The Rays and Padres announced a seven-player trade Wednesday. The Padres acquired pitcher Alex Torres and pitcher Jesse Hahn from the Rays in exchange for infielder Logan Forsythe, pitcher Brad Boxberger, pitcher Matt Andriese, pitcher Matt Lollis and infielder Maxx Tissenbaum.

Forsythe appeared in 228 games over the last three seasons for San Diego, batting .241 with a .310 on-base percentage, .349 slugging percentage and .659 OPS. He has seen playing time at second base, third base, shortstop, left field and right field.

Boxberger is 0-1 with a 2.72 ERA and 1.45 WHIP in 42 MLB relief appearances. He is striking out 10.3 batters per nine innings.

Andriese, who pitched at Double-A and Triple-A in 2013, owns a career 26-16 record, 3.18 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 66 minor-league appearances (59 starts). He is striking out 7.8 batters per nine innings.

Lollis has spent five seasons in the minors, going 15-33 with a 4.79 ERA and 1.49 WHIP in 149 appearances (48 starts). Lollis was used exclusively as a reliever for the first time in his career in 2013.

Tissenbaum has hit .282 with a .375 on-base percentage, .363 slugging percentage and .739 OPS through 159 minor-league games. The 2012 11th-round pick has played all four infield positions in the minors.