MLB Player News

Turner (face) visited the Red Sox' spring training complex Thursday and the team is hopeful he'll have time to get ready for Opening Day, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Turner will not resume on-field workouts until his stitches are removed, which is expected to happen in about two weeks. That gives him a pretty tight window to knock some rust off before the opener, but it seems doable since he already has six games under his belt and, as a veteran, probably doesn't need a ton of at-bats.

Alvarez (hand) is expected to resume swinging Friday or Saturday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Alvarez has yet to swing a bat this spring, though general manager Dana Brown said he is currently pain free. Alvarez's exact timetable to resume baseball activity has been a moving target, though this latest development is a positive for the slugger's outlook. Assuming he remains on track, Alvarez is expected to be ready for Opening Day.

Brantley (shoulder) may not be ready to play on Opening Day, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Brantley is recovering from surgery to repair his right labrum and has been progressing slowly. He's currently away from the team due to a personal matter, but prior to that, he had not appeared in any Grapefruit League games. On Wednesday, general manager Dana Brown said Brantley's availability for Opening Day is in doubt, but the team hopes he'll be able to return to the field no later than April 10.

Manager Alex Cora said Wednesday that Turner (face) will probably be out two weeks, Mike Monaco of ESPN reports.

The timeline offered by Cora suggests that Turner, who was hit in the face Monday and required 16 stitches to seal the wound, will be cutting it close for Opening Day. If the veteran infielder needs to miss time, he likely won't need to spend more than the minimum 10 days on the injured list at the start of the regular season.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Wednesday that Stanton could play "40, 50, 60" games in the outfield this season, Jack Curry of YES Network reports.

Not only will putting Stanton in the outfield free up more chances for others in the designated hitter spot, but Boone also feels that the veteran slugger is more engaged and that it's good for him physically to play the field some. He's expected to play some right field when the Yankees are at home, with Aaron Judge shifting over to the roomier left field. Stanton will be used in left in places like Fenway Park, where there's not as much ground to cover. Stanton made 38 total starts in the outfield in 2022, so he should already have eligibility at the position in the majority of fantasy leagues heading into 2023.

Torrens went 2-for-2 with two solo home runs in Tuesday's Cactus League game against the Rangers.

The power display was a bit unexpected, as Torrens had only three home runs in 151 at-bats with Seattle last season. However, the veteran backstop did go deep 15 times in 2021, so he has shown off some pop in his career. Torrens is likely third in Chicago's catching pecking order behind Yan Gomes and Tucker Barnhart, so his fantasy value will be limited unless he's able to move up the depth chart. He's on a minor-league deal and could start the year with Triple-A Iowa, though the Cubs may decide to carry three catchers in the early going.

Lewis went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's spring game against the Athletics.

Lewis made his second spring appearance at designated hitter after missing time while building up strength in his legs.

Alvarez (hand) is hoping to resume swinging a bat next week, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday he was hoping Alvarez would be ready to swing a bat by this weekend, but apparently it will take a little longer than that. It does not appear at this point that Alvarez had a setback, but the team clearly wants to make sure the slugger's nagging hand soreness is behind him before he ramps things up again. There's been no indication that the injury could affect Alvarez's Opening Day availability, but it's certainly an uneasy feeling seeing him miss so much time.

Winker (neck, knee) is making his Cactus League debut Tuesday.

Winker will DH and bat second in what is also his unofficial Brewers debut. He had a rough go of it in Seattle last season, due in part to neck and knee injuries, but there is bounce-back potential ahead for the 2021 NL All-Star.

Ozuna has gotten more plate appearances than any Atlanta player who isn't either participating in the WBC or competing for a job through the early part of the Grapefruit League schedule, and he's been used exclusively at designated hitter, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The 32-year-old worked to improve his shoulder strength in the offseason in an effort to not be such a liability in the field, but Atlanta would be content simply to get some value out of his bat at this point. Ozuna has two years and $32 million remaining on his contract with a $16 million club option for 2025, but over the last two seasons he's played only 172 games due to injuries and off-field issues, posting decent power numbers with 30 homers and 82 RBI but slashing a weak .222/.278/.397.