MLB Player News

Cruz went 1-for-2 with two walks, a home run, two RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 5-4 victory over the Reds.

Cruz erased an early Reds lead with a missile of a home run, a 425-foot long ball off Hunter Greene clocked at 111.1 mph off the bat. His tools are just silly, and the walks are nice to see, suggesting the improved plate discipline from late last season might stick. While the team context isn't great, the upside is massive regardless for the Pirates' leadoff hitter.

Mateo went 2-for-3 with a walk, two stolen bases, one RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 10-9 win over the Red Sox.

Mateo attempted only one steal over 17 Grapefruit League games while slashing .273/.333/.386 during the exhibition season. The shortstop had 35 steals in 2022, so it's not a huge surprise to see him active on the basepaths, especially with new rules incentivizing steals. The bigger issue for Mateo may be getting on base -- he hit .221 with a .267 on-base percentage last season. The 27-year-old should at least see a majority of the starts at shortstop to begin the campaign. He's a strong defender, though a ninth-inning error Thursday made this game closer than it had to be.

Swanson went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored en route to a 4-0 victory over Milwaukee on Thursday.

After getting two hits in three tries against Corbin Burnes, Swanson immediately began showing why the Cubs gave him a seven-year, $177 million contract in the offseason. Despite getting off to a slow start in spring training, Swanson figures to be one of the best hitters in Chicago's lineup this year.

Crawford (foot) is batting ninth and playing shortstop Thursday versus Cleveland.

As expected, Crawford is fine after fouling a pitch off hit foot six days ago and will face Shane Bieber to begin the 2023 season. Coming off a 2022 campaign when he slashed .243/.339/.336, Crawford figures to be a mainstay near the bottom of Seattle's lineup.

Cruz is batting leadoff for the Pirates in their season opener Thursday against the Reds.

Cruz jumped up into the leadoff spot down the stretch in 2022, and he can hopefully latch onto that role throughout the entire 2023 campaign. The dynamic 24-year-old shortstop has tallied 18 home runs and 10 stolen bases across his first 89 major-league games.

The Yankees selected Volpe's contract and added him to the active roster ahead of Thursday's season opener versus the Giants. He'll start at shortstop and bat ninth in the Opening Day game.

The team confirmed over the weekend that Volpe would break camp with the big club, but the transaction wasn't made official until shortly before the season opener. The 21-year-old Volpe pushed his way on the roster after posting a 1.033 OPS with three home runs and five stolen bases in 19 Grapefruit League games. Despite the strong showing in Florida, Volpe will still have to earn his way up the batting order by continuing to turn in productive at-bats during the early weeks of the regular season.

DeJong (back) was placed on the 10-day injured list Thursday, retroactive to March 27.

DeJong is expected to miss the first handful of weeks of the 2023 regular season after suffering a lower-back injury in mid-March. He'll probably be a bench player even when he does return to the Cardinals' active roster.

Adrianza had his contract selected by Atlanta on Thursday.

The 33-year-old earned a spot on Atlanta's Opening Day roster and has now officially been added to the 26-man and 40-man rosters. Adrianza will fill a utility role and begins the season as the primary backup option at second base, shortstop and third base.

Franco is starting at shortstop and batting second for the Rays in Thursday's opener against the Tigers, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Franco recently required an MRI for soreness in his right quad, but the imaging came back clean and he's ready to roll for Opening Day. The young switch hitter and his teammates will be going up against Detroit lefty Eduardo Rodriguez.

The Red Sox placed Mondesi (knee) on the 60-day injured list Thursday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

As a result of the transaction, Mondesi will come off the 40-man roster and won't be eligible to make his Boston debut until at least late May. The Red Sox have been vague about a potential timetable for Mondesi to resume playing while he continues his recovery from the ACL tear he suffered last year. He'll be in the mix at second base once healthy, but for now, Christian Arroyo will hold down the keystone.