MLB Player News

San Diego claimed Marcano (knee) off waivers from the Pirates on Thursday.

Marcano is expected to miss at least a portion of the 2024 season after undergoing surgery this past August to repair a torn ACL in his right knee. The infielder owns a career .217/.269/.320 batting line in 149 major-league games, but he showed a bit of improvement at the plate in 2023 and just turned 24 years old in September. Marcano began his professional career in the Padres' system before heading to Pittsburgh in July of 2021 as part of the Adam Frazier trade.

Franco was activated Thursday from administrative leave, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

This is merely a procedural move, as administrative leave is only applicable during the season and the World Series came to an end Wednesday. Franco is still under investigation from both authorities in the Dominican Republic and Major League Baseball following allegations that emerged this summer involving inappropriate relationships with minors. Topkin notes that Franco's "status to return to playing remains unchanged and uncertain."

Atlanta outrighted Velazquez to Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday.

Velazquez was claimed off waivers from the Angels in early September but was immediately sent to Triple-A Gwinnett and finished out the season there. The 29-year-old journeyman shortstop is a career .189/.244/.293 hitter in 275 games (624 plate appearances) at the major-league level.

The Rangers added Duran to their World Series roster Tuesday, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Duran will be added to the roster as a replacement for Adolis Garcia, who suffered an oblique injury on a swing during Game 3. Duran slashed .276/.324/.443 across 439 plate appearances during the regular season, but he has yet to register a plate appearance in the postseason and will likely be used off the bench during the final games of the Fall Classic.

Querecuto elected free agency Monday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Querecuto will test the waters elsewhere after passing through waivers unclaimed. He saw his first big-league action since 2016 during the 2023 campaign with St. Louis, collecting two hits in 20 at-bats while adding one double and one walk in nine contests.

The Cardinals sent Querecuto outright to Triple-A Memphis on Thursday.

Querecuto appeared in just nine games for St. Louis during the final stages of the regular season, logging two hits and a walk over 21 plate appearances. The 31-year-old infielder will now return to Memphis without the benefit of a 40-man roster spot.

McLain (oblique) has begun rehab work at the Reds' spring training complex in Arizona, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

McLain wound up missing the final month-plus of the season with an oblique injury, which he aggravated in late September. He's on the mend now, though, and should be healed up well ahead of spring training. McLain is in line to hold down a starting spot in the Reds' infield in 2024, with the position yet to be determined.

Lindor underwent surgery Tuesday to remove a bone spur from his right elbow, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

Per Andy Martino of SNY.tv, Lindor first began feeling the effects of the injury during spring training and played through some discomfort all season. He is expected to be fully ready for the beginning of spring training. The veteran shortstop had his first-ever 30-30 season in 2023, hitting 31 home runs and stealing 31 bases while slashing .254/.336/.470.

Pena, who landed on first base awkwardly for the final out of Sunday's ALDS Game 2 loss to the Twins, was spotted taking infield with his teammates during Monday's workout, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Pena appeared to be walking around gingerly after being retired for the final out Sunday, but it seems like he got through Monday's workout with no issues. Expect him to start at shortstop as the Astros look to regain the series edge Tuesday.

Correa went 3-for-4 with two doubles, three RBI and one walk in Sunday's 6-2 win over the Astros in Game 2 of the ALDS.

The star shortstop was an RBI machine in this contest, accounting for half of his team's runs to help tie the series. Correa was preparing himself for a postseason mentality at the end of the regular season, finishing the year with an .840 OPS across 15 games in September, his best mark of any month. That success has translated into October, as he now is slashing .533/.588/.733 across four games this postseason and has also contributed four RBI.