MLB Player News

Johnson (foot) was spotted taking grounders at second base during Thursday's spring training workout, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

After suffering a right foot injury in an Oct. 9 game in the Arizona Fall League, Johnson was limited to just 11 games for the Scottsdale Scorpions and slashed .250/.444/.475 with a home run and three stolen bases. The injury doesn't appear to be anything that is limiting him early on during the spring, and though he's attending big-league camp with the Pirates, Johnson will likely be headed to Double-A Altoona to begin the 2025 season. The 20-year-old infielder remains one of Pittsburgh's top prospects and could make a push for his big-league debut later in the season if he continues to maintain high walk rates while putting his power and speed on display in the upper levels of the minors.

Davis (hand) was spotted taking batting practice Thursday during the Pirates' second workout of spring training, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Davis appears to have reported to camp without any restrictions after finishing the 2024 season on the injured list due to left hand inflammation. Even before being shut down with the hand injury, Davis had endured a rough second season at the big-league level, slashing just .144/.242/.212 with a 37.2 percent strikeout rate in 121 plate appearances while allowing Joey Bart to emerge as the team's top backstop. Davis fared much better over his extended playing time at Triple-A Indianapolis (.952 OPS in 253 plate appearances), and since the Pirates are already confident in his defense behind the plate, he'll get another chance this spring to stake his claim to the No. 1 catching gig with the big club. Bart will open the spring as the frontrunner for the job, and Davis will also face competition from Endy Rodriguez, who is healthy again after missing nearly all of the 2024 season while recovering from elbow surgery.

Alcantara will be the Marlins' Opening Day starter on March 27 versus the Pirates, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

He'll likely be opposed by Paul Skenes, although the Pirates have not officially announced their Opening Day starter yet. The Marlins are sure to limit Alcantara's workload to some degree in his first season back from Tommy John surgery, but he's more than 16 months removed from the operation and was the only real option to take the ball Opening Day.

Uribe will go slow as he comes back from right knee surgery, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

He underwent surgery to repair a lateral miniscus tear in mid-June of 2024. This is a vague report, but it sounds like Uribe's status is questionable for Opening Day. Brewers closer Trevor Megill is dealing with an undisclosed injury, so if Uribe can get up to speed and Megill's injury lingers, Uribe could figure into the ninth-inning mix.

Megill has been pushed back at the outset of spring training due to some minor health issues in recent throwing sessions, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Manager Pat Murphy said Megill seems "fine," per McCalvy, but Megill is dealing with something that is preventing him from ramping up on a normal schedule this spring. While Megill's delayed schedule could end up being a non-issue, fantasy managers should still view him as a higher-risk option than he was prior to pitchers and catchers reporting. Abner Uribe (knee) is being brought along slowly, so 30-year-old Joel Payamps may be best suited to step up in the ninth inning if Megill is unable to get up to speed by Opening Day.

Pivetta signed a four-year, $55 million contract with the Padres on Wednesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Pivetta declined a $21.05 million qualifying offer from the Red Sox earlier in the offseason, opting to pursue a multi-year deal with a lower AAV instead. That is exactly what he'll get from the Padres, who gain a much-needed boost to their rotation depth. The 31-year-old righty turned in a 4.14 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over 145.2 innings last season alongside a 172:36 K:BB. He's developed a reputation for living in the strike zone and thus racking up high strikeout totals, but he has yet to finish a season with a sub-4.00 ERA over his eight-year career.

Waldron said Wednesday that he is planning to throw his knuckleball more frequently during the upcoming season, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

The knuckler was Waldron's most-used pitch last year, as he threw it 38.2 percent of the time, per Statcast. The right-hander registered a 27.5 percent whiff rate on the offering, and opponents had a .227 xBA against it, rendering it a relatively effective pitch, especially in comparison to his four-seamer (19.1 percent usage rate, 22.4 percent whiff rate, .247 xBA) and his sinker (14.3 percent usage rate, 6.7 percent whiff rate, .316 xBA). Waldron is battling for a spot at the back of San Diego's rotation, and how he -- and his knuckleball -- perform during Cactus League play could go a long way toward determining what his role will be at the start of the season.

Canario received reps at first base Tuesday as the Cubs explore their reserve options behind starter Michael Busch, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

The 24-year-old Canario has a good chance to make the Opening Day roster since he's out of minor-league options, and adding some positional versatility might help him secure a bench job. Canario has played in just 21 big-league games, striking out 19 times in 45 plate appearances, which is consistent with his 30.4 percent strikeout rate at Triple-A Iowa last year.

Manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday that Cavalli (elbow) is healthy, but the Nationals plan to manage the right-hander's workload this season, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports. "He had a good winter," Martinez said of Cavalli. "He looks great. We know he's going to be limited in how many innings he pitches this year, so we want to make sure when he does get out there, we do have him the whole season."

After undergoing Tommy John surgery in March 2023, Cavalli missed that entire season and was limited to just three minor-league rehab appearances in 2024, with none coming after June. He came down with a bout of the flu and then dealt with a dead-arm phase for a large chunk of the second half of last season, but he was at least able to ramp his throwing back up in September. Cavalli seems to have emerged from his offseason throwing program free of setbacks, so he should be facing relatively few restrictions this spring, aside from the Nationals managing how many live innings he throws. Martinez left the door open for Cavalli to compete for a roster spot with the big club, but given the extended time he missed in addition to his limited MLB experience (he made one start for the Nationals in 2022), the 26-year-old is likely to begin the season at Triple-A Rochester.

The Brewers placed Gasser (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.

A 40-man roster spot needed to be freed up for Tyler Alexander, who inked a one-year deal Wednesday. Gasser had Tommy John surgery last July, and manager Pat Murphy said that the Brewers aren't anticipating the southpaw making his 2025 debut until late August or early September, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.