MLB Player News

Smith went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run and a double Thursday in a Cactus League victory over the White Sox.

Smith hit his -- and the Dodgers' -- first homer of the spring when he belted a solo shot to left-center field in the fifth inning. The All-Star catcher's previous long ball came in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the World Series last season and proved to be the championship-winning RBI. Smith hasn't missed a beat, as he's slashing .556/.556/1.000 so far this spring. He's locked in for another year as Los Angeles' starting catcher.

The Rockies are expecting Castro to be aggressive stealing bases this season, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

The Rockies have revamped their front office and much of the coaching staff during offseason, leading to several new philosophies. One such change will be a focus on aggressiveness on the basepaths in an effort to create more run-scoring opportunities. Castro is among several players on the roster who could benefit, though he's only 24 of 40 on stolen base attempts across the last two regular seasons.

Kim went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Thursday in a Cactus League win over the White Sox.

Kim belted his first homer of the spring when he went deep to right field in the sixth inning. Overall, the 27-year-old is slashing a robust .462/.462/.692 with five RBI, three runs and two stolen bases in exhibition play. He has also struck out five times over 13 at-bats, but overall Kim is making a strong impression as he bids to begin the campaign as Los Angeles' starting second baseman while Tommy Edman completes his recovery from offseason ankle surgery. Alex Freeland and Miguel Rojas are the other candidates for the Opening Day second-base job, though two (or all three) of the trio may ultimately split time at the keystone if the Dodgers decide not to give the role to one player outright.

Condon has gone 6-for-10 with two home runs and four RBI across six Cactus League appearances.

It's a small sample, but Condon has had an impressive start to spring training. He popped a home run to the opposite field Thursday and now has only two strikeouts across his first 12 plate appearances. Condon is in the mix for a roster spot at first base, though he'll likely start the season in the upper minors.

Walker allowed one run on three hits in two innings during Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals. He struck out one.

The 33-year-old right-hander is preparing to begin the season as Philadelphia's No. 5 starter, with Zack Wheeler (shoulder) expected to begin the year on the injured list. Whether or not Walker holds onto a spot in the rotation once Wheeler is ready to pitch remains a question mark -- top prospect Andrew Painter poses a significant threat to Walker's role in 2026. That said, Walker should be able to offer a bit of streaming appeal in deep fantasy leagues in favorable matchups for as long he sticks around in the rotation.

Stott went 1-for-1 with a solo home run, two walks and an additional run scored in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals.

Stott swatted his first homer of the spring while reaching base safely three times. The 28-year-old middle infielder is lined up as Philadelphia's primary second baseman to begin 2026 but is likely to sit in favor of Edmundo Sosa versus left-handed pitching. It remains to been seen where Stott will hit most frequently in the Phillies' batting order, but fantasy managers should expect him to slot somewhere into the lower half of the lineup to open the new year.

Boyd didn't allow a baserunner over three scoreless innings during Thursday's Cactus League game against the Angels. He struck out three.

Making his second start of the spring, Boyd looked sharp as he kept Los Angeles off the bases for three innings. The veteran lefty now has seven strikeouts across 4.2 Cactus League innings. Boyd's K/9 dropped to 7.7 last year, his lowest rate since 2021, and he's unlikely to see any dramatic upticks at this point in his career. However, even modest gains in the strikeout department would boost the southpaw's fantasy stock in 2026. Outside of the drop in strikeouts, Boyd was excellent for the Cubs in 2025, recording a 3.21 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 179.2 regular-season innings.

Long (elbow) will not join Team Chinese Taipei for the World Baseball Classic, deciding instead to stay in camp to focus on his rehab, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Long has been dealing with a left elbow sprain and has been on the mend over the past week. His original plan was to simply delay his departure for the WBC, but now the 24-year-old has opted to instead stick with the Cubs. While it's a disappointing development for Long, the decision makes sense in terms of getting fully healthy for the regular season. The youngster figures to start the year with Triple-A Iowa, where he'll look to build on the 20 home runs and .885 OPS he posted across 140 games at the same level in 2025.

Musgrove (elbow) touched 95 mph with his fastball in a three-inning simulated game Thursday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Working his way back from Tommy John surgery, Musgrove threw 36 pitches in the outing and was pleased with how things went, saying afterward that, "I'm coming out of this feeling the best I have felt." The veteran righty said that things are "kind of all day-to-day" with his rehab based on how he feels, but he expects to make his first Cactus League start next week. Musgrove missed all of the 2025 season but will not have a strict workload limit in 2026, with Padres pitching coach Ruben Niebla saying their approach with the 33-year-old is, "full-go but watch him."

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Thursday that Pfaadt is being "slow-played" during spring training because of a side issue that popped up over the offseason, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Pfaadt is pitching in a backfield game Thursday and Lovullo indicated that the injury is unlikely to prevent the right-hander from being ready for the start of the season. That's if Pfaadt is able to avoid a setback, of course. The right-hander is coming off a disappointing 2025 campaign that saw him collect a 5.25 ERA over 33 starts, but his rotation spot should be secure as long as he's healthy.