MLB Player News

Martin allowed one hit and one walk while striking out four across three innings in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Mariners.

Martin has had mixed results this spring, but he settled into a groove during Saturday's appearance. He threw 32 strikes on 50 pitches, while generating punchouts of Brendan Donovan, Luke Raley and Mitch Garver. The White Sox have made little known about their rotation plans to this point in the spring, though Martin's ramp-up suggests he has a good chance of securing a spot to begin the 2026 campaign.

Harrington allowed two hits and one walk while striking out two across four scoreless innings during Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.

This marked Harrington's second appearance of the spring, and he worked efficiently while ramping up to 44 pitches. He put 29 of those in the strike zone, while punching out Riley Greene and Colt Keith. Harrington has now allowed one earned run across six innings while striking out two and walking three this spring. He has an outside chance to earn a rotation role to begin the season, but he will more likely begin the campaign at Triple-A Indianapolis.

Barco added a changeup, sweeper and sinker to his pitch mix this offseason, Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

Barco featured a fastball, spltter and slider during his brief big-league debut at the end of 2025, but believed he needed to add to his arsenal to stick in the rotation. He threw six changeups among his 57 pitches in Saturday's Grapefruit League outing against the Tigers, during which he surrendered three earned runs across three innings while striking out three and walking one. Despite the bumpy outing, Barco showed improved control, registering his first appearance of the spring without giving up multiple free passes.

The Angels reassigned Rada to minor-league camp Saturday.

Rada was a longshot to make the Angels' Opening Day roster, and the 20-year-old will start the 2026 season in the minors. He ended the 2025 campaign with Triple-A Salt Lake, where he slashed .323/.433/.416 with 20 steals (on 26 attempts), one home run and 17 RBI in 201 plate appearances. Rada lacks power, but his ability to make contact and his prowess on as a baserunner could net him some major-league opportunities in 2026.

Murray was removed from Saturday's Cactus League game against the Mariners after being struck by a pitch on his right pinky finger, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Murray was hit by a pitch in the second inning and proceeded to take his base and steal second base before being removed from the contest. The good news for Murray is that X-rays came back negative, though the injury could limit his playing time over the next couple of days. Murray was acquired by the White Sox from the Rays in November after spending the entire 2025 season with Triple-A Durham, where he slashed .241/.299/.400 with five steals (in nine attempts), 18 home runs and 58 RBI in 572 plate appearances.

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa said Friday following his team's 15-5 win over Team Brazil in the World Baseball Classic that Buxton (elbow) is "feeling fine" after being hit by a pitch in the top of the fifth inning, Ryan Kelapire of MLB.com reports.

Buxton was replaced by Pete Crow-Armstrong after the former took a pitch to his right forearm, but DeRosa relayed that Buxton's removal was precautionary. X-rays on Buxton's forearm came back negative, and while he isn't in Team USA's starting lineup for Saturday's game against Great Britain, the 32-year-old center fielder isn't expected to miss significant time.

Tucker (personal) is expected to rejoin the team Sunday and serve as the Dodgers' designated hitter against the Athletics, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Tucker has been away from spring camp since Tuesday to spend time with his wife and newborn child. Before leaving, the 29-year-old outfielder had gone 1-for-7 with four walks and three runs scored in four Cactus League contests.

Espino announced Saturday that he will retire from professional baseball after the World Baseball Classic, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Espino spent parts of six seasons in the majors and will end his MLB career with a 5.12 ERA and 1.38 WHIP over 265.2 innings.

The Cardinals optioned Crooks to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

With five catchers on St. Louis' 40-man roster, Crooks had a considerable amount of competition for an Opening Day spot, and despite going 4-for-12 at the plate with a homer, four RBI and two runs scored in the Grapefruit League, he will ultimately fall short. He's had consistent success hitting in the minors, posting a .773 OPS in 435 plate appearances at Triple-A last season, and he could be called up to St. Louis later in the year if the trend continues.

The Cardinals optioned Bernal to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Bernal spent all of 2025 at Double-A Springfield, where he slashed .247/.332/.394 with 13 homers, 69 RBI, 58 runs scored and 13 steals over 107 games. After going 2-for-5 with two walks in Grapefruit League play, he'll receive a promotion to Triple-A to begin the season.