MLB Player News

Devers and the Red Sox won't play the Orioles on Thursday after their Opening Day game was postponed due to rain, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

The two teams are now scheduled to play their season opener Friday, which was initially set to be an off day for both sides.

Vargas cleared waivers Wednesday and was outrighted to Triple-A Iowa, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Vargas was designated for assignment by the Cubs after missing out on a spot on the team's Opening Day roster. However, Chicago hoped to keep him in the organization, and he'll report to the team's alternate camp in South Bend to begin the season. The 29-year-old appeared in 17 Cactus League games this spring and slashed .324/.343/.471 with one home run and five RBI.

Asche accepted a position Wednesday on the Phillies' player development staff, signaling the end of his playing career, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Asche will transition into his post-playing career with the Phillies' Low-A affiliate in Clearwater, where he'll serve as a hitting coach. The 30-year-old spent parts of five seasons in the big leagues with the Phillies and White Sox, accruing a .234/.293/.376 slash line and 32 home runs over 1,349 career plate appearances.

Sosa, who has secured a utility spot on the Opening Day roster, went 2-for-2 with a solo home run in a Grapefruit League tie with the Mets on Monday.

Sosa put together a positive finish to a quiet spring with his only multi-hit effort of Grapefruit League play as well as his only round-tripper of the exhibition slate. The 25-year-old hit just .200 (5-for-25) this spring, but his ability to cover multiple positions and his solid track minor-league track record at the plate likely helped him latch onto a roster spot to open the campaign.

Arenado, who hit a solo home run in his only plate appearance during a Grapefruit League tie with the Mets on Monday, finished spring hitting 4-for-8 with two doubles, the homer, a walk and two runs over his final three exhibitions.

Arenado's round tripper ensured the slugger didn't head into his first Cardinals campaign without going deep in spring play, and his overall body of work over the final three contests was encouraging, considering he was hitting just .184 prior to that stretch. Arenado has previously said he ideally needs at least 50 spring at-bats to get his timing down, and he finishes Grapefruit League play having slashed .239/.321/.370 over 53 plate appearances overall.

Hayes went 1-for-2 with his second home run of the spring Wednesday against Minnesota.

The 24-year-old closes out Grapefruit League action with a .431 batting average in 51 at-bats, including 10 extra-base hits, nine RBI and two stolen bases. Fantasy owners are expecting much from Hayes, who still retains his rookie status. He hit .376 in 85 at-bats last summer, thanks to a .450 BABIP. His minor-league career slash line of .279/.354/.399 seems like a more reasonable expectation for 2021.

Toro cleared the health and safety protocols and rejoined his teammates Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

It's already been announced that Toro didn't make the Astros' Opening Day roster, though that decision was apparently unrelated to his temporary quarantine. The Astros want Toro to get regular at-bats at the alternate site rather than being stuck on the bench in the big leagues. Robel Garcia and Aledmys Diaz will be the team's utility options to start the season.

Donaldson enters Tuesday's spring finale against the Pirates with a .281/.303/.500 slash line across 32 at-bats in Grapefruit League play.

In what looks to be a preview of the Twins' lineup for Thursday's regular-season opener in Milwaukee, Donaldson is starting at third base and batting second Tuesday. The 35-year-old regularly batted out of the two hole during an injury-shortened 2020 campaign, making 24 of his 25 starts out of that spot in the lineup. Donaldson has shown no ill effects from the calf injury that troubled him in 2020, so he should be poised to deliver better results as he prepares for his second season in Minnesota.

Astudillo hit his fourth home run in Monday's spring training game and has won a spot on Minnesota's 26-man roster for Opening Day.

Known for his contact abilities, Astudillo has shown plenty of pop this spring, hitting .385 with a 1.235 OPS. He'll work in a utility role for the Twins, serving as a third catcher as well as seeing time at third base, second base and left field. The 29-year-old could have value in deeper leagues since his bat should be above average for a catcher.

Astros manager Dusty Baker confirmed Monday that Toro (COVID-19 health and safety protocols) won't be included on the Opening Day roster, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Though Toro remains away from the team as he completes a quarantine period due to contact-tracing concerns, that likely didn't play a factor in his omission from the Opening Day roster. Instead, the Astros likely determined that the 24-year-old third baseman would be best off playing regularly at minor-league camp, rather than serving as a lightly-used backup to Alex Bregman. Toro's demotion leaves Aledmys Diaz (hamstring) and Robel Garcia as the utility men on Houston's Opening Day roster.