MLB Player News

Manager Torey Lovullo announced Tuesday that Beer tested positive for COVID-19, Zach Buchanan of The Athletic reports.

The 23-year-old apparently cleared the initial intake testing but since reported a positive test. Beer will need to isolate, be clear of any symptoms and produce two negative tests before being cleared to rejoin his teammates.

Buxton (personal) was present for the Twins' workouts Tuesday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Buxton reportedly arrived at camp Sunday, but his presence at Tuesday's workouts signals that his intake testing for COVID-19 went smoothly. If the 26-year-old can remain healthy, he should be present for the remainder of camp, although whether his short absence will impact his readiness for the beginning of the regular season remains to be seen.

Rockies manager Bud Black said Monday that Blackmon (illness) hasn't arrived at summer camp, Nick Groke of The Athletic reports.

Back on June 23, Blackmon was revealed to have tested positive for COVID-19, and the outfielder has remained in quarantine at his offseason home in Georgia while he waits to fully clear the protocol for rejoining the Rockies. It's unclear at this point where Blackmon stands in his recovery or if he's free of symptoms, making it difficult to gauge when he might arrive at camp. The Rockies will open their season July 24 versus the Rangers.

Reyes is absent from team workouts due to an additional round of coronavirus testing, Tom Withers of the Associated Press reports.

Reyes was reportedly part of a gathering over the Fourth of July weekend at which people weren't wearing masks, so he won't be allowed to rejoin his teammates until Cleveland is certain that he didn't pick up the virus. Manager Terry Francona said that his absence was simply a matter of the team being cautious, and that the outfielder is not in any trouble with the team. Assuming Reyes' absence only lasts a few days, his preparation for the upcoming season shouldn't be significantly impacted.

Stanton, who is starting at designated hitter and batting cleanup in Monday's intrasquad game, said his calf feels 100 percent healthy, Marly Rivera of ESPN reports.

He said he only recently started feeling 100 percent healthy and that the Yankees have a good formula to get it right, with him starting at designated hitter for the foreseeable future. Even Aaron Judge (ribs), who is thought to be less healthy than Stanton, is starting in the field in this contest, so Stanton's spot at DH seems very secure.

Ohtani will start opposite Andrew Heaney in Tuesday's intrasquad game and is expected to throw 3-to-4 innings, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

This will be a controlled environment where manager Joe Maddon can end an inning early or change the batting order on the fly, but it is nonetheless encouraging that Ohtani is already capable of going four innings. He is set to be a true two-way player again in 2020, pitching once per week while starting at designated hitter roughly four days per week. This means there probably won't be any two-start weeks for Ohtani, which hurts his value in weekly leagues.

Cespedes (ankle) played one inning in left field during Sunday's simulated game, Deesha Thosar of The New York Daily News reports.

He was also one of the few batters to make any kind of solid contact against Jacob deGrom, though Cespedes didn't appear to be moving around at full speed on the bases or in the field. Cespedes will probably see most of his playing time this season as the Mets' designated hitter, but if he proves capable of handling defensive duties as well it gives the team another route to getting his bat in the lineup.

Torrens would "almost certainly" benefit if the Padres choose to carry three catchers on the active roster to begin the season, but manager Jayce Tingler remains noncommittal about that possibility, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

There are multiple factors that will determine whether San Diego chooses to carry three catchers on its initial 30-man squad, not the least of which is the possibility of Francisco Mejia logging time as designated hitter. Should the Padres choose to use Mejia in that role, Torrens has a much more direct path to breaking camp with the big-league club. Should San Diego ultimately decide to carry only two backstops, Torrens will likely be part of the team's three-man taxi squad for road contests.

Choi has been wearing a mask and protective goggles during early summer camp workouts, a practice that could extend to the regular season, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Choi could again see time at both first base and designated hitter in 2020 after posting career-best figures in multiple categories, including home runs (19) and RBI (63), a year ago. The 29-year-old has been one of the most consistent on-base presences for the Rays during his first two seasons in Tampa, and it remains to seen if added protective accessories would affect his typically sharp vision at the plate to any degree. Notably, Topkin separately reports Choi hit from the right side for part of Saturday's batting practice session and put solid wood on the ball, but manager Kevin Cash remarked that he plans to keep Choi hitting left-handed on a full-time basis once the season begins.

Vogelbach attended Saturday's summer camp session after not being present for Friday's opening day, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

The reason for Vogelbach's absence Friday wasn't officially disclosed, but there appears to be no health-related concerns considering he was present and accounted for a day later. The burly slugger will look to regain the momentum he'd built up during Cactus League play, when he hit .321 (9-for-28), during the current ramp-up to Opening Day.