MLB Player News

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Sunday that Locklear (shoulder/elbow) is trending toward a return around mid-May to early June, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Locklear will be a spectator for spring training while he continues to recover from Oct. 16 surgeries to address a torn labrum in his left shoulder and a torn ligament in his left elbow. Before suffering the two arm injuries in a Sept. 7 collision at first base with Boston's Connor Wong, Locklear slashed .175/.267/.262 with a 37.1 percent strikeout rate over 116 plate appearances with Arizona after coming over from Seattle in a trade-deadline deal. Locklear has a minor-league option remaining, so he could end up sticking around with Arizona's Triple-A affiliate in Reno once he completes his rehab process and gets activated from the injured list.

Del Castillo said Monday that he expects to be sidelined for around one month due to his left calf injury, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

While Del Castillo is hopeful that he'll be able to play in at least one Cactus League game or exhibition before the beginning of the regular season, the extended time he'll miss this spring could end up costing him a spot on the Opening Day roster. Arizona is expected to head into the season with Gabriel Moreno and James McCann as its top two catchers, so Del Castillo would merely provide a third option at the position and would likely see most of his playing time at designated hitter. Because the 26-year-old still has a pair of minor-league options remaining, the Diamondbacks may prefer to option Del Castillo to Triple-A Reno, which would allow him to play on a more regular basis once he overcomes the calf issue.

The Pirates designated Suwinski for assignment Monday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Suwinski ended up being the casualty after the Pirates needed to free up a 40-man roster spot for the signing of Marcell Ozuna. After showing promise in his first two big-league seasons with 45 home runs over 250 games, Suwinski managed a weak .169/.271/.297 batting line and 29.9 percent strikeout rate over the subsequent two seasons. The 27-year-old doesn't have minor-league options remaining, but he's shown enough upside that he could draw interest via waivers.

The Padres signed France to a minor-league contract Monday that includes an invitation to spring training, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.

France was drafted by the Padres and reached the majors with them before being traded to the Mariners. The 31-year-old graded out well defensively at first base in 2025 but turned in a sub-.700 OPS for the second straight regular season between the Twins and Blue Jays. France will join a suddenly-crowded mix at first base and designated hitter in San Diego.

After fading down the stretch last season, Crow-Armstrong is aiming to make his swing more consistent and compact this year in an effort to find more sustained success at the plate, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Crow-Armstrong was one of the top players in the league before the All-Star break, blasting 25 home runs and posting an .846 OPS. However, he faded some after the break, as he mustered only six long balls and a .634 OPS. Chicago assistant hitting coach John Mallee said he noticed that as the season went on, the talented outfielder developed a longer stride in his swing, which led him to miss more pitches or make weaker contact when he did connect. Crow-Armstrong still had a great season with the 31 long balls and 35 stolen bases, making him one of only seven players in all of baseball to get to 30 in each of those categories. The 23-year-old's combination of power and speed makes him a valuable fantasy asset, and he could take a step forward in 2026 if he tightens up his swing and makes more consistent contact all year.

Rodriguez's contact ability has generated reaction from observers in camp, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Rodriguez spent time with Double-A Chattanooga (82 games) and Triple-A Louisville (53) in 2025 before earning a promotion to the Reds' 40-man roster during the offseason. He slashed .298/.357/.481 with 12 home runs in Double A and .260/.304/.405 with seven homers in his introduction to Triple A. While onlookers are impressed by Rodriguez's ability to hit anything thrown at him, they also feel he needs to be more selective. The soon-to-be 22-year-old outfielder also played offseason ball in the Dominican Winter League, where he slashed .301/.375/.504 with four homers across 128 plate appearances and walked as many times as he struck out (13).

Burns will compete for the fifth starter's role during spring training, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. He showed improvement with his changeup during a two-inning live batting practice session on Monday, Charlie Goldsmith of The Dayton Daily News reports.

Burns experienced just about everything a pitcher can during his first year of professional ball in 2025, hitting three levels of the minors before making his MLB debut with the Reds. He also experienced an injury, time on the injured list and returned to pitch as a reliever over the final weeks of the regular season and into the postseason. The right-hander held his own for the most part and can leverage that experience to compete for the final rotation spot. His fellow candidates for the job are Rhett Lowder, Brandon Williamson and Julian Aguiar (elbow). Burns possesses an elite four-seamer and slider (43.9 Whiff%) and has succeeded thus far on the strength of those two pitches, but adding a useful changeup or cutter could take him to another level.

Soroka might open the season in the bullpen, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

The Diamondbacks enter spring training well stocked in the rotation but with an unsettled outlook in the bullpen. Soroka, signed by Arizona as a free agent in December, made 17 starts for the Nationals and Cubs in 2025 before a shoulder injury limited him to relief work over the final two weeks of the regular season. Built into Soroka's contract are incentives that reward him for starts or relief appearances -- two points for every start, one point for a relief outing. He will earn $250,000 each for reaching 10 and 20 points, $425,000 each for reaching 30 and 40, and $650,000 for reaching 50. Barring a significant injury, the 28-year-old right-hander could reach those incentives as a full-time starter or reliever or a combination of the two roles.

Realmuto is an option to bat cleanup in 2026, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

Manager Rob Thomson considers Alec Bohm the favorite for the role, and it sounds like Adolis Garcia is in contention as well. Realmuto enters his age-35 campaign in fairly evident decline, considering his OPS has dropped steadily in each of the past four seasons, but the possibility of hitting fourth in Philadelphia's lineup at least gives him some upside as a late-round catcher option in fantasy drafts.

Bohm is the most likely option to bat fourth in Philadelphia's lineup this season, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

Manager Rob Thomson also mentioned Adolis Garcia and J.T. Realmuto as candidates for the cleanup role in 2026. Nick Castellanos, who signed with the Padres on Saturday, handled the majority of the cleanup duties a year ago, and it's possible the Phillies will use spring training as an audition to determine who's next in line as their primary No. 4 hitter. Bohm bounced around the batting order last season and ended up spending around half his time in the lower half of the lineup, so it's encouraging to hear he's in pole position to hit cleanup this spring.