MLB Player News

Merrill is not in the lineup Friday against the Giants.

Merrill started in center field Thursday, and he finished 0-for-2 with one run, one walk and one strikeout while batting ninth. With left-hander Kyle Harrison starting for the Giants on Friday, Jose Azocar will play center field and bat ninth.

Wade is not in the Padres' lineup Friday against the Giants.

With the Giants starting left-hander Kyle Harrison on Friday, Eguy Rosario will draw the start at third base and bat eighth. Wade was the third baseman Thursday and went 1-for-3 with one run, one RBI and one strikeout.

Mateo went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored in Thursday's 11-3 win over the Angels.

Mateo got the start at second base versus Angels left-hander Patrick Sandoval, which may be an early indication of manager Brandon Hyde's preferences for lineup construction. It still doesn't give Mateo an everyday spot, but he could see a short-side platoon role at second base early in the campaign. He offers speed -- the utility man has 67 stolen bases over the last two campaigns -- but he'll need to hit enough to stay in the lineup, especially with top prospect Jackson Holliday waiting at Triple-A Norfolk.

The Athletics placed Diaz on the 60-day injured list Thursday with a right calf strain.

Diaz was able to resume light baseball activities at the tail end of spring training and is set to begin jogging this week, but he's not close to being ready for game action. Diaz should be on track to return when he's first eligible to come off the IL in late May and serve as a utility player for Oakland.

Kim went 1-for-3 with a walk, a run and a stolen base in Thursday's 6-4 win against the Giants.

Kim has reached base four times -- three via walk -- through three games this season, and he's stolen a base on half of those occasions. He recorded a career-high 38 steals in 47 attempts last year and appears to have the green light to run frequently this season. Kim has yet to get his bat going with just one hit in 10 at-bats, but the thefts have helped highlight what he can provide for fantasy managers.

The Guardians placed Martinez on the 10-day injured list Thursday with a right foot contusion.

Martinez's last Cactus League appearance came March 14, so the infielder may have suffered the foot injury in the Guardians' game that day against the Rockies. Though he'll begin the season on Cleveland's injured list since he's a member of the 40-man roster, the infielder will be optioned to Triple-A Columbus once he's healthy.

Betts went 1-for-2 with a solo home run, two walks and three total runs in Thursday's 7-1 win over St. Louis.

Betts had a big two-game series against the Padres in Seoul, Korea, to kick off the regular season, and he carried his hot bat over to the Dodgers' domestic home opener. The outfielder-turned-shortstop launched a solo shot off Miles Mikolas in the third inning and reached base two additional times via walks. Through three contests, Betts is slashing a scorching .636/.733/1.273 with two homers, eight RBI, four walks and five runs.

Bichette went 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, a run scored and two RBI in Thursday's 8-2 win over the Rays on Opening Day.

The 26-year-old shortstop capped the scoring on the day for the Blue Jays with a two-run double in the seventh inning. Bichette came into 2024 with a career .299/.340/.487 slash line and has hit at least 20 homers in three straight seasons, and he'll be counted on for big numbers again while batting in the heart of Toronto's potent lineup.

The Red Sox placed Grissom (hamstring) on the 10-day injured list Thursday.

The transaction is retroactive to Monday, but Grissom won't be ready to come off the IL once his 10 days are up. The 23-year-old infielder will need more time to build back up after missing most of spring training due to the right hamstring strain, as well as a minor groin injury that delayed his recovery. According to MLB.com, manager Alex Cora said Sunday that Grissom is about 7-to-10 days away from seeing game action in any form, so he could be ready to begin a rehab assignment at some point next week.

Alexander went 2-for-5 with an RBI in Thursday's 16-1 win over Colorado on Opening Day.

Alexander started at designated hitter and batted seventh against left-hander Kyle Freeland in his MLB debut after beating out Emmanuel Rivera for the final bench spot. He also played shortstop for the final inning. Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen earlier this spring indicated a preference for the 24-year-old Alexander to get regular at-bats, but that may not happen on the major-league roster with the lefty-hitting Joc Pederson expected to be in the starting lineup against righties. Arizona faces right-hander Cal Quantrill on Friday, which could give an indication of how manager Torey Lovullo plans to use Alexander.