MLB Player News

Canha (back) is progressing and his back felt fine with swinging a bat Saturday, reports Joe Stiglich of CSN California.

Canha has missed the first few games of the spring and will hit off a tee on Sunday. After a surprising breakout in 2015 with 16 homers and 70 RBI, he is in a battle for playing time and a possibly even a spot on the roster coming into the spring. Any extended time missed could be a detriment to his chances to break camp with the team considering he still has options available.

Brantley (shoulder) tracked live pitching in a batting practice session, but has not progressed to taking any swings, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

All signs continue to point toward an earlier-than-expected return for Brantley, but it's important to note that he hasn't taken any swings against live pitching to date. A return for Opening Day still seems out of the picture, but a mid-April return may be in the cards.

Canha (back) is expected to miss the first few spring games, MLB.com's Jane Lee reports.

He was pulled from Tuesday's intrasquad game due to back stiffness, so hopefully he will be ready to return to the field after a few games off. Right now it looks like Canha is ticketed for the short side of a first base platoon with Yonder Alonso, so his fantasy value is limited to very deep leagues as the season approaches.

Indians manager Terry Francona remains optimistic that Brantley (shoulder) is ahead of the initial late April/early May timetable, although he would not go as far as saying he was optimistic about his star outfielder being ready for Opening Day, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports.

There is not an adjusted timetable available, but by reading between the lines, it seems like Brantley could return in mid-April. Brantley is not be a lock to reach double-digit homers or double-digit steals if he misses too much time, so it would be a boon for his owners if he only missed a couple weeks. It is unclear how much the shoulder issue will affect him at the plate though, so his value should be slightly discounted in that respect as well.

Canha was pulled from Tuesday's intrasquad game due to some back stiffness, reports Jane Lee of MLB.com.

Canha enters the spring looking to find at-bats at first base and the outfield and his spring production could be vital towards obtaining that playing time. The back stiffness is considered minor, but if were forced to miss any time, it could impact his role to start the regular season.

Astros manager A.J. Hinch said Reed can win the first base job this spring, Phil Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Reed hit the cover off the ball last season between High-A Lancaster and Double-A Corpus Christi (.340/.432/.612 with 34 home runs and 127 RBI) and he reported to camp in much better shape than he did last year. While this news sounds promising, the 22-year-old is not being handed the job. He'll have to beat out veterans Luis Valbuena and Marwin Gonzalez and high-upside players Jonathan Singleton and Tyler White to earn the role this spring.

Brantley (shoulder) progressed to hitting soft toss Monday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Before Monday, the outfielder was only able to take swings off of a tee, so it's good to see some solid evidence of his progression through the rehab process. There is no indication that his timetable has changed, so barring any extraneous leaps in his rehab program, Brantley will likely miss Opening Day and return a few weeks after the start of the season.

Brantley (shoulder) continues to progress but remains limited to hitting from a tee, MLB.com reports.

It's certainly good news that Brantley hasn't suffered any setbacks thus far as he works his way back from offseason shoulder surgery. He's still unlikely to be ready for Opening Day but we'll have a better idea once he's able to take the next step forward in his rehab.

Cabrera may play third base during the Tigers' interleague games at the start of the season if Victor Martinez can play first base, reports Jason Beck of MLB.com.

It's an interesting option for manager Brad Ausmus, but we need to see how VMart's knee holds up during spring training. Cabrera may quickly get one- and five-game eligibility -- the Tigers have six games against National League foes in the first 10 days of the season.

Reed, who was overweight when he arrived to spring training in 2015, looked noticeably slimmer when he arrived to Astros camp Monday, Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reports.

"I'm in a lot better shape this year than I was last year," Reed said. "I just don't think I really understood what I needed to do. It was my first offseason alone. You know, I wasn't at school (at the University of Kentucky) where they're kind of walking you through everything. I don't think I was really ready for that. It was something I had to learn from. This year, I had a really good idea of where I needed to be to be successful for the year." The 22-year-old will try to beat out Jonathan Singleton, Tyler White, Preston Tucker, Marwin Gonzalez and Luis Valbuena for the Astros' first base job during camp.