MLB Player News
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Anthony Rendon 3B | LAA
Angels' Anthony Rendon: Healthy and hitting this spring
Rendon is hitting .444 (8-for-18) with two home runs this spring. He's appeared fully healthy this spring after a wrist injury limited him to just 47 games in 2022, MLB.com reports.
Rendon will turn 33 in June and hasn't had a full healthy season since 2019 (not counting the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign). However, he's done everything this spring to give fantasy managers confidence he can end that recent trend.
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Kyle Farmer 3B | ATL
Twins' Kyle Farmer: Showing power in spring training
Farmer went 2-for-3 with two home runs in Friday's spring training loss to Tampa Bay. He's hitting .381 (8-for-21) with three home runs this spring.
Farmer is set to be Minnesota's primary utility player this season. However, it's possible he could get steady playing time at third base or first base at the start of the season if Alex Kirilloff (wrist) isn't ready for Opening Day.
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Rafael Devers 3B | SF
Red Sox's Rafael Devers: Returns to camp
Devers returned to spring training Friday after the Dominican Republic was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.
He went 2-for-16 with two walks and zero RBI over four games while serving as the designated hitter and cleanup hitter for Team D.R., as Manny Machado was the starter at third base. Devers will get his reps at third base over the final two weeks before the regular season kicks off. Prior to the WBC, Devers made 14 plate appearances in Grapefruit League play.
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Jace Peterson SS | ARI
Athletics' Jace Peterson: Holding own at plate in spring
Peterson is hitting .240 (6-for-25) with two doubles, two home runs, six RBI, seven walks, a stolen base and four runs across 12 Cactus League games.
The veteran is trying to lock down the starting third base job on the Opening Day roster. Peterson owns a career .231 average and .664 OPS across 741 big-league games, so his real-world and fantasy ceilings are irrefutably capped, but he's proven to be a serviceable contributor over the years. The left-hander should open the season seeing the majority of work against right-handed pitching, but he has managed a .268 batting average and .340 OBP versus southpaws over the last three seasons, albeit in only 94 plate appearances.
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Ramon Urias 3B | STL
Orioles' Ramon Urias: Not hitting well yet
Urias has gone 4-for-21 (.190) through nine Grapefruit League games.
Urias began the spring without a set spot in the Orioles' lineup, but he's not alone among struggling infielders this spring. All of Gunnar Henderson, Adam Frazier and Jorge Mateo are also batting under .200 so far, so Urias' struggles don't stand out as much. The right-handed hitter should at least be able to push for a short-side platoon role at second base or third base, especially since he won a Gold Glove at the hot corner in 2022.
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Tyler Nevin 3B | ATH
Tigers' Tyler Nevin: To ramp up hitting next week
Nevin (oblique) hit off a tee Thursday and will ramp up his hitting progression next week, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Nevin has been going through other baseball activities as well as he makes a swift recovery from a left oblique strain. The 25-year-old would seem to have a shot to get ready in time for Opening Day.
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Jose Ramirez 3B | CLE
Guardians' Jose Ramirez: Fine work in spring games
Ramirez is batting .364 (8-for-22) through nine Cactus League games.
Ramirez played through a thumb injury for most of last season which required offseason surgery. The one concern from his spring numbers is a lack of power -- he has one extra-base hit, a home run. He's also logged two stolen bases. Ramirez offers one of the most enticing power-and-speed combinations in fantasy, especially since he's a third baseman. He slashed .280/.355/.514 with 29 homers, 20 steals, 126 RBI and 90 runs scored over 157 games a year ago despite the injury, and it would be fair to call that a slightly down year by his standards.
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Taylor Walls 3B | TB
Rays' Taylor Walls: Serving as DH in return
Walls (oblique) will serve as the Rays' designated hitter and No. 3 batter Thursday in a split-squad Grapefruit League game against Atlanta, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Walls is making his spring debut Thursday after he reported to camp battling an oblique strain that has prompted the Rays to bring him along slowly in workouts. The Rays will ease Walls back into the lineup in a non-defensive role, and he could be limited to DH duties for at least a couple more days before he gets the green light to make a start in the infield. Manager Kevin Cash has said that he anticipates Walls being ready to go for Opening Day, but that will be contingent on Walls avoiding any setbacks with the oblique during Grapefruit League play.
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Isaac Paredes 3B | HOU
Rays' Isaac Paredes: Chance to claim third base job
Yandy Diaz is expected to play primarily at first base in 2023, leaving Paredes with an opportunity to be the team's primary third baseman, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.
Though the Rays continue to boast impressive infield depth in both the majors and upper levels of the minors, the departure of Ji-Man Choi relieved some of the playing time jam. Paredes will seek to take advantage of the opportunity after posting 20 home runs, 48 runs scored and 45 RBI across 381 plate appearances with the Rays last season. However, he hasn't acquitted himself particularly well this spring, as he has gone only 5-for-26 with no extra-base hits combined between the World Baseball Classic and spring training contests.
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Jake Burger 3B | TEX
White Sox's Jake Burger: Showing power this spring
Burger has four home runs through 15 Cactus League games.
He has also struck out 12 times through 35 at-bats, but the power is certainly encouraging. Burger, 26, appears to be locked into an Opening Day roster spot with the White Sox and deserves to see regular playing time out of the gate versus left-handed pitching. A first-round pick in the 2017 MLB Draft, he boasts a career .892 OPS against southpaws in limited action as a major leaguer.