MLB Player News

Belt was scratched from Saturday's game with a sinus infection, MLB.com's Chris Haft reports.

The ailment sounds quite minor, so it should not affect his status for Opening Day. Look for him to get back into Cactus League action next week.

Turner (knee) expects to make his spring debut early next week, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Everything seems to be going according to plan for Turner, who is working his way back from microfracture knee surgery. He entered camp having not experienced any setbacks since the October procedure, and has successfully ramped up his activity in the past couple weeks. Manager Dave Roberts has said Turner is on track for Opening Day.

Harper went 1-for-2 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in Thursday's Grapefruit League win over the Mets.

The Nationals went five for five on stolen base attempts in the game, and even this early in the exhibition schedule it looks like new manager Dusty Baker and first base coach Davey Lopes are putting a lot of emphasis of staying active on the base paths. Harper stole 18 bases on 24 attempts as a rookie, but he's gone just 19-for-29 in the three seasons since in an effort to avoid sliding injuries. With Baker and Lopes giving him more green lights, however, Harper is still capable of threatening 20 steals in 2016. Don't count on him to contribute in that category, but he could very well surprise.

Vogelbach will bat eighth in the Cubs' spring opener Thursday, the team's official site reports.

Vogelbach will be the designated hitter Thursday, a position he might need to get used to. While no one doubts his bat, he really doesn't have a position to play. When the time comes for the Cubs to trade prospects for pitching, Vogelbach may be the first one to go.

Ozuna will open the exhibition season batting second in the Marlins' lineup, the Miamie Herald reports.

After an offseason of uncertainty with trade rumors swirling, it appears Manager Don Mattingly is ready to start Ozuna with clean slate. The outfielder struggled last season to match his breakout 2014 campaign, slashing just .259/.308/.383 in 2015 a year after belting 23 home runs during his first full season in the majors. Batting in front of Christian Yelich and Giancarlo Stanton will provide Ozuna plenty of run-scoring opportunities if he is able to stick near the top of Miami's lineup.

Turner (knee) will be held out of the first week of spring training action, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports.

Manager Dave Roberts will take it easy with Turner early this spring, but Turner remains on track to be ready to go by Opening Day. As long as he is healthy he is slated to open the season as the Dodgers' primary third baseman.

Soler was in left field during Friday's outfield drills, the team's official site reports.

Soler played mostly right field in 2015, but with Dexter Fowler now on board to play center, Jason Heyward will shift to right, forcing Soler, Kyle Schwarber, and Shane Victorino to battle it out in left. While it's looking like Schwarber and Soler will platoon in left, expect there to be more movement in Cubs camp before the team heads north.

Soler's playing time in 2016 will likely take a hit with the Cubs' decision to re-sign Dexter Fowler on Thursday, the Chicago Tribune reports.

With Fowler in center and Jason Heyward in right, Soler may platoon with Kyle Schwarber in left, seeing his start there against left-handed pitching, or against righties when manager Joe Maddon deploys Schwarber behind the plate in place of Miguel Montero. A trade out of Chicago or an injury to one of the regulars in front of him appear to be Soler's only paths to everyday playing time this season.

Belt will not play much - if any - left field during spring training, CSN Bay Area reports.

The fact that the Giants aren't having Belt work on his outfield defense during spring training indicates they no longer view him as a viable backup option. While he is the club's starting first baseman, he logged 13 starts in left field last season with Buster Posey sliding over to first, usually against lefties. The signing of veteran outfielder Denard Span and the emergence of Jarrett Parker are presumably the reasons the club feels comfortable keeping Belt at his natural position. This news - if it sticks for the regular season - is a positive for San Francisco's defense, but a negative for any Belt owners in fantasy, as he will likely see 10-15 less games started this year.

Turner (knee) will be a full participant in the team's workouts, manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday, SB Nation's Eric Stephen reports.

While Roberts said Turner would be a full participant, he noted that the intensity might be tempered a bit as the Dodgers' third baseman works his way back from a offseason microfracture procedure. As spring training gets underway it should become clearer what limitations Turner faces initially, if any, but so far all of the news out of camp has been positive and he remains on track to be ready for Opening Day.