MLB Player News

Arrighetti is working on a new two-seam fastball against right-handed hitters this spring, because his four-seam fastball last year was hit hard, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports. He only threw the new pitch three times in his last start against the Cardinals, because they had six left-handed batters.

The four-seam fastball got hit to the tune of a .302 batting average and .516 slugging percentage last year, hence the need for a new offering. "[I want to] throw something hard that doesn't get barrelled," he said. "Simply put." The new pitch is still a work in progress for Arrighetti, who already gets good results on his offspeed offerings.

Noel is projected to make the Guardians' Opening Day roster by Mandy Bell and Tim Stebbins of MLB.com.

Noel has 15 strikeouts across 33 at-bats in Cactus League action this spring and doesn't offer much range in the outfield. On the other hand, he would provide some needed pop for the Guardians from the right side of the plate, as he maintained a .268 ISO across 198 plate appearances in his first taste of the majors last season. Assuming he does make the team, Noel is expected to begin the campaign splitting time with Will Brennan in right field.

Brennan is still in line to make the Guardians' Opening Day roster despite a slow spring training, Mandy Bell and Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.

Brennan has struggled each of the last two seasons with OPS marks of .655 and .697, respectively. Even after logging only six hits across 24 at-bats in the spring this season -- only one of which has gone for extra bases -- he is still projected to make the roster and split reps with Jhonkensy Noel in right field. Brennan would provide a contact-heavy profile at the plate from the left side, while Noel should provide more pop with more strikeouts.

Greene is an option to see more playing in center field for Detroit with the Tigers dealing with injuries to Parker Meadows (arm) and Matt Vierling (shoulder), Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Greene primarily played in center during his first two MLB campaigns but shifted mostly to left in 2024. With Meadows questionable for Opening Day and Vierling already ruled out, Greene may be needed to slide back over, particularly with Wenceel Perez (back) also banged up. No matter where he plays, Greene figures to be one of Detroit's top offensive threats and a strong fantasy contributor.

Through 10 Grapefruit League games, Torres is batting .318 with a 1.221 OPS and three home runs.

The long balls are particularly encouraging for Torres, as he dipped to 15 homers in 2024 after having more than 20 in each of the previous two seasons. The 28-year-old's career high in home runs is 38, which he recorded back in 2019, and coming anywhere near that total in 2025 would be a welcome development for his fantasy prospects -- and would also be a major surprise. Either way, Torres figures to be a key offensive piece for the Tigers and should see plenty of playing time as long as he stays healthy.

Murdock looks set to win a spot in the Athletics' Opening Day bullpen, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports. He threw a scoreless inning in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Reds and has a 4.05 ERA with a 6:4 K:BB in 6.2 innings this spring.

Murdock was a Rule 5 pick in December, so he'll need to stay on the major-league roster all season for the A's to retain his rights. He has logged groundball rates over 55 percent at his three most recent stops thanks to a quality sinker and posted a 3.76 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 46:26 K:BB and 62.1 percent groundball rate in 38.1 innings at Triple-A last season. Murdock should work in low-leverage situations initially but could have some upside as a middle reliever.

Cole's (elbow) season-ending Tommy John surgery included internal bracing, which could speed up his recovery time, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Cole underwent the operation Tuesday and is still certain to miss the entire 2025 season. However, the internal bracing procedure could allow him to return closer to the short end of the 12-to-18-month recovery timeline typically given to Tommy John patients. The Yankees still haven't announced how they plan to replace Cole and Luis Gil (lat) in their Opening Day rotation, though Marcus Stroman and Will Warren are the likely candidates to make the cut if no outside help is brought in.

Astros manager Joe Espada said Thursday that Altuve has done "enough for me to feel good about playing (him in) left field," Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Altuve had a misplay at the left-field wall during Thursday's game against the Cardinals, but Espada appears to be pleased with how the 34-year-old has looked as he attempts to convert from second baseman to left fielder. Espada has not yet officially said that Altuve will be the team's primary left fielder this season, but that announcement seems inevitable.

White Sox manager Will Venable said that Benintendi (hand) took swings in the batting cage Thursday and "felt really good," Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Benintendi was cleared to hit after he had a scan on his fractured right hand earlier this week that returned good results. Venable didn't rule Benintendi out for Opening Day, and while it seems unlikely the outfielder will be ready by then, the skipper added of Benintendi that "we feel confident that he's in a good spot to progress." When healthy, Benintendi projects as Chicago's everyday left fielder.

Rocker is competing with Jack Leiter to fill the spot in the Rangers' rotation vacated by Cody Bradford (elbow), Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports.

The former college teammates and current pro teammates will go head-to-head for the right to serve as the Rangers' fifth starter while Bradford recuperates from left elbow soreness. Rocker has been blasted for eight runs over two innings in his two Cactus League starts this spring, but he threw three hitless frames in an intrasquad game last weekend. Leiter, meanwhile, has pitched much better with a 2.53 ERA and 13 strikeouts over 10.2 innings, although he was shaky his last time out. It's unclear which of the two righties might have the current edge, but with the injury history of some of the other Rangers starters, there's a decent chance both Rocker and Leiter will wind up spending a significant portion of the season in the Texas rotation.