MLB Player News

Taylor (elbow) is starting in left field and batting eighth in Friday's Cactus League game against the Cubs.

The veteran outfielder was sidelined nearly a week due to right elbow inflammation but is ready to retake the field for Friday's spring contest. Luis Robert is locked in as the White Sox's primary center fielder, but Taylor should still see semi-regular starts when Robert gets a breather, even as the DH or with a full day off, thanks to his elite defense.

Bassitt gave up two runs on three hits and four walks over 2.1 innings in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox. He struck out two.

Spring results mean little, especially for a veteran like Bassitt, and the most important takeaway from Thursday's outing might be that he built up to 56 pitches -- even if only 29 of them were strikes. Given his performance last season however, it would be reassuring to fantasy GMs if he put together some better outings before Opening Day. The 36-year-old righty has made at least 30 starts in each of the last three seasons, but Bassitt's 2024 numbers were his worst since he became a full-time rotation arm with the A's in 2019, as he stumbled to a 4.16 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 168:70 K:BB over 171 regular-season innings.

Perez (eye) is starting behind the plate and batting cleanup in Friday's Cactus League game against the Angels.

The veteran catcher departed Wednesday's spring game due to a laceration under his left eye but will return to action after sitting out just one game. After posting a .786 OPS with 27 homers during the regular season last year, Perez has gone just 2-for-11 through five Cactus League games.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Friday that he expects Anthony (illness) to resume workouts Saturday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Anthony hasn't played in a Grapefruit League game since March 2, as he's one of a handful of Red Sox players to come down with the flu. He appears to be on the mend, but it could be a few more days before he's back in game action. Anthony is a candidate to play right field for Boston with Wilyer Abreu (illness) expected to begin the season on the injured list, but the top prospect will need to get back up to speed himself first.

Devers (shoulders) is targeting Tuesday or Wednesday for his Grapefruit League debut, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

That would be about a week after his originally scheduled spring debut, as Devers has been working on getting his timing down in live batting practice before testing things out in a game. He's been brought along slowly in camp due to last season's shoulder problems, but he doesn't seem to have had any physical setbacks. While Devers will have less than two weeks of spring games to prep for Opening Day, it doesn't appear his availability for that March 27 contest versus the Rangers is in danger.

Abreu (illness) is unlikely to be ready in time for Opening Day, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Abreu has been behind schedule in the Red Sox's camp due to a gastrointestinal issue and remains limited to just tracking pitches on a Trajekt machine. The 25-year-old shouldn't miss too much time in the regular season, but it does appear a stint on the injured list will be required. Abreu's absence would potentially create an opening for Roman Anthony (illness) or Kristian Campbell in the outfield, but if the club isn't ready to make that move yet it could go with Rob Refsnyder and others in right field to cover Abreu's absence.

Guerrero told ESPN's Enrique Rojas and Ernesto Jerez that his representation's final offer to the Blue Jays during contract extension negotiations was for 15 years and less than $600 million.

It's not clear what the Blue Jays' final proposal was, but Guerrero has said previously that the two sides were not close. He will turn 26 later this month, so it's not a surprise that he was seeking to match the length of the contract given to Juan Soto, who is a few months older than Guerrero. Teams in recent years have been reluctant to hand out megadeals to righty-swinging first basemen, so it will be interesting to see whether Vlad Jr. will be able to get the dollar figure he's seeking next offseason when he reaches free agency.

Giolito (elbow) is set to throw two innings against the Phillies next Tuesday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Giolito is ready for his Grapefruit League debut after throwing a two-inning live batting practice session at Fenway South on Thursday. He's fallen behind other rotation candidates while he completed his recovery from an internal brace procedure in March 2024, but Boston manager Alex Cora expects Giolito to be ready for the start of the regular season.

Whitlock will make his spring debut Friday against the Marlins, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Whitlock was on a strict throwing schedule this spring as he recovered from an internal brace procedure, which included planned one-week downtimes which the team described as "de-load" weeks. He'll pitch Friday in relief of starter Walker Buehler. Red Sox manager Alex Cora sees Whitlock has a high-leverage, multi-inning weapon that can deployed in the late innings. Save opportunities are not out of the question, but the Red Sox have Liam Hendriks, Aroldis Chapman and Justin Slaten pegged for closing duties.

The Red Sox optioned Garcia to minor-league camp Friday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Garcia struggled this spring, going 1-for-21 with a 10:0 K:BB. The 22-year-old finished the 2024 campaign at Double-A Portland and is likely headed back there to begin this season.