MLB Player News

Rocchio was added to Cleveland's 40-man roster Friday.

The best prospect in the organization, Rocchio was a lock to get protected from the Rule 5 draft. He started making good on the Francisco Lindor comparisons by tapping into notable power at Double-A as a 20-year-old, but he may not debut until 2023.

Jimenez was added to the Blue Jays' 40-man roster Friday.

The 20-year-old shortstop is good at everything except hitting for power. He hit .315/.517/.381 with 51 walks in 54 games at Low-A and logged a .438 OBP in the Arizona Fall League. Jimenez is still probably a couple years away from making his big-league debut.

Duran's contract was selected by the Rangers on Friday.

Duran posted a .907 OPS in 67 games at the High-A level in the Yankees' system to start the year, but that number dropped to .695 in 38 games following a trade to Texas. While he has plenty of work to do before pushing for a big-league debut, the Rangers still elected to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

Downs was added to the Red Sox's 40-man roster Friday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

This was a lock to happen as protection from the Rule 5 draft. Downs had a rough year at Triple-A (.190/.272/.333 slash line), but he finished the 2021 season on a better note, hitting .208/.382/.491 with five home runs and four steals in 68 plate appearances in the Arizona Fall League. It's starting to look like Downs' batting average is going to be subpar, at least initially, against big-league pitching, but his ability to get on base at a high clip while chipping in some power and speed makes him worth monitoring in 2022.

Pena had his contract selected by the Astros on Friday.

Pena is one of Houston's top prospects, so it's hardly a surprise the organization opted to add him to the 40-man roster ahead of the Rule 5 draft. The 24-year-old hit .287/.346/.598 with 10 homer, 19 RBI, 22 runs and five stolen bases in 30 games at Triple-A Sugar Land last season, and he could make his major-league debut in 2022, especially if Carlos Correa signs elsewhere in free agency.

Allen was added to Oakland's 40-man roster Friday.

The move means Allen won't be available for selection in the Rule 5 draft. He still has to conquer Triple-A before pushing for a big-league roster spot, as he struggled to a .243/.302/.301 line in 39 games after a promotion to Triple-A Las Vegas late in the year, but he should make his major-league debut at some point next season if all goes well.

Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said Tuesday that Crawford will be the team's starting shortstop in 2022, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.

Dipoto noted that Crawford's presence would dissuade the Mariners from pursuing free-agent shortstops such as Marcus Semien, Javier Baez or Trevor Story, but any potential additions would seemingly be in line to move to another position to keep Crawford entrenched at his normal spot. Crawford has proven to be a plus defender at shortstop throughout his career, but it wasn't until 2021 that he emerged as a league-average hitter. He wrapped up the past campaign with a .257/.333/.380 slash line to go with 12 home runs, 57 RBI, 82 runs and nine stolen bases, but he could see his production suffer in the latter two categories if the Mariners bring in a more established leadoff option this offseason.

Velazquez was claimed off waivers by the Angels on Friday.

Velazquez hit .224/.235/.358 in 68 trips to the plate for the Yankees this season. He owns a career 44 wRC+ in 181 plate appearances at the major-league level, so he may face an uphill battle in spring training just to win a bench spot.

Bogaerts went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer, a double and two strikeouts in Tuesday's loss to the Astros in Game 4 of the ALCS.

Bogaerts hit a two-run homer in the top of the first inning that gave the Red Sox the lead for most of the game, but the Astros scored eight runs across the final two frames. The 29-year-old has recorded hits in each of the last three contests and has gone 5-for-15 with a homer, two doubles, two RBI, a run and seven strikeouts during that time.

Correa went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-4 win over the Red Sox in Game 1 of the ALCS.

Correa recorded his third multi-hit performance of the postseason in Friday's contest, and he gave the Astros the lead with his solo blast in the bottom of the seventh inning. Across his five playoff appearances this year, the shortstop has gone 8-for-17 with a home run, two doubles, five runs and five RBI.