MLB Player News

Winker is under consideration for the Reds' left field job this spring, though he's not the favorite. "I would not say he can't make the team," manager Bryan Price said Friday. "We know right now that we've got some guys competing for left field. I would say Adam Duvall, Scott Schebler and Yorman [Rodriguez] are probably -- I hate to say the favorites -- but they're guys we're looking at. They've done what they needed to do at the Triple-A level."

It's still very unlikely that Winker will win the job, even with a monster spring, because he's not on the 40-man roster yet and hasn't played at all in Triple-A. Given the Reds' presumed status as a non-contender this year, there's little reason to rush Winker's progression until he's absolutely beating the door down in front of him.

A season after getting a late start due to a knee ailment, McCutchen is already working out at the Pirates' spring training complex. "I'm ready to go, as opposed to last year," McCutchen told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. That's why I've been here working out."

"Baseball's back, and I'm looking forward to it," McCutchen said. "My knee's great, my body's great. I won't have to worry about that at all. I'm motivated in the sense that I didn't do ... physically, I wasn't where I needed to be at the beginning of the season." The Pittsburgh center fielder looks to improve upon his recent early-season performance. He's struggled in April, posting a .246/.343/.428 split from 2013 to 2015.

Belt and the Giants agreed to a one-year, $6.2 million contract, avoiding arbitration, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The deal goes just a bit in favor of the Giants, as it falls a bit short of the $6.4 million midpoint. The 27-year-old bounced back nicely last season with a .280 batting average, an .834 OPS, and 18 home runs. Now that his contract situation is out of the way, Belt can return to being a solid fantasy option at first base, assuming he can replicate his 2015 numbers.

Winker will probably begin the 2016 season at Triple-A Louisville, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

This is the obvious strategy for the Reds - Winker spent all of 2015 at Double-A Pensacola, coming on strong after initially struggling. He's not yet on the 40-man roster, and the team won't contend, so there's no rush to start his options clock.

Turner (knee) has not dealt with any setbacks in his recovery from a microfracture procedure in November, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Turner reportedly had a portion of the cartilage torn off the outside of his knee in the postseason, requiring him to undergo the surgery shortly after the season. Assuming the rest of his rehab process goes as planned, the 31-year-old third baseman should be ready for the beginning of spring training.

Blackmon and the Rockies agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million contract Monday, avoiding arbitration, Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports reports.

Blackmon got a nice deal to avoid arbitration, as the midpoint between the Rockies and him was $3.3 million. He'll likely slate in as the Rockies' centerfielder again in 2016 after posting a .797 OPS with 17 home runs and 43 stolen bases last season.

Cespedes agreed to a three-year contract with the Mets on Friday, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports.

Cespedes' deal includes an opt out after just one year, but he will spend at least another season with the team he spurred to a World Series berth in 2015. It remains to be seen exactly where he will hit in the order, but he knocked in runs in bunches for the Mets last season with 44 RBI in 57 games. He will be the team's every day left fielder in 2016.

Manager Pete Mackanin said Ryan Howard, who platooned with Ruf at first base toward the end of last season, will need to show improvement against left handed pitchers this spring to avoid entering the season with the same arrangement, CSN Philadelphia reports.

Howard hit just .130 with a .418 OPS and 40 strikeouts against lefties last season. It seems unlikely that Howard will finally overcome his difficulties with lefties this spring. A more likely scenario has Howard opening the season in a platoon with Darin Ruf, who hit .371 with 8 home runs and a 1.107 OPS against lefties last season. Ruf could also earn at-bats against right handed pitching if Howard struggles or if the team decides to bench him more as he heads toward free agency after the 2016 season.

Turner (knee) agreed to terms with the Dodgers on a one-year, $5.1 million deal Friday, avoiding arbitration, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports.

Turner followed up an impressive 2014 with a productive 2015 campaign, hitting .294 with a career-high 16 home runs to go with 60 RBI and five steals. The third baseman underwent microfracture surgery on his knee in November, and while it's expected to keep him from working out at full speed until next month, he said he expects to be 100 percent by the time spring training begins.

Ozuna has been the subject of trade talks between the Miami Marlins and the Texas Rangers for a month, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reports, but those talks have "yet to significantly advance."

Ozuna was disappointing in 2015 (.259/.308/.383 in 494 plate appearances), but he is just 25 years old and all of one year removed from a 23-homer, 85-RBI season with the Marlins. If the Marlins are ready to give up on Ozuna, there will be a team ready to pounce. However, it doesn't appear the Rangers, seemingly set with an outfield of Josh Hamilton, Delino DeShields, and Shin-Soo Choo, are ready to pull the trigger just yet.