Josh Harrison played second base last season 37 times, third base 72 times and appeared in the outfield 22 times. Versatility could be the name on the back of his jersey. His offense slumped when compared to 2014 (.315-13-52-77-18) though, but he had a strong kick to the finish line with a .287-4-28-57-10 line over 449 plate appearances. At this point it was assumed that Harrison would play third base until Jung Ho Kang was ready to return from left leg surgery (the hope is that he will be back at some point in April). Doesn’t sound like it’s a lock that Harrison will start the year at the hot corner though. “We have some (internal) alternatives at third,” GM Neal Huntington said. “We have some alternatives at second. Josh is going to be more than capable of playing either position. Our anticipation is he'll be willing to do whatever we feel we need to do to put the best club on the field until Jung Ho is healthy and ready to go.” Regardless of which gloves he uses, you have to feel good about the prospects of Harrison being in the lineup on a daily basis early on.

Brock Holt is likely to get 350-400 at-bats this season according to Red Sox manager John Farrell. Holt had 449 at-bats in 2014 and followed that up with 454 at-bats last season. So why the reduction in projected workload for Holt? The Sox believe that Holt, who played every spot but pitcher and catcher last season, will benefit from some periodic rest. In his young career he has a .803 OPS in the first half versus just .600 in the second half.

Mike Minor signed a 2-year, $6 million deal with the Royals. The deal includes a $10 million mutual option for 2018. In 2013 Minor was 13-9 with a 3.21 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 181 strikeouts. He then was limited to 25 starts in 2014 (4.77 ERA and 1.44 WHIP) before missing all of last season with injury. He isn’t likely to be ready to pitch until late May or early June as he works his way back from shoulder surgery.

Albert Pujols will not be ready to participate in defensive drills when he shows up in camp next week as he works his way back from foot surgery. There’s no setback, he’s just not ready yet. "But if you know Albert, you know that he's always come back quicker than any timeline he's ever been given," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "But we're definitely not going to try to sacrifice the lion's share of the season to get him back maybe two weeks before he should. When he's ready, he's ready." C.J. Cron is likely going to get more work early on than he will later in the year, and if he starts off swinging the stick well it’s possible he will end up being a better option in AL-only leagues than one would think at present.

Tyson Ross will start on Opening Day for the Padres as he should. James Shields and Andrew Cashner will fill the #2 and 3 holes in the rotation (as they should).

Juan Uribe appears likely to end up with the Indians according to Ken Rosenthal. Uribe would appear to be slated to start at third base for the Tribe meaning that Giovanny Urshela will likely end up back in Triple-A for a while. Uribe is nothing other than an AL-only option coming off a season of batting .253 with 14 homers. 

Don’t forget to pick up your copy of the 2016 MLB Draft Guide which includes more than 600 Players Ranked, auction values, rookie reports, hitting and pitching targets as well as all the info you need if you’re ready to start playing DFS.

YOUNG HURLERS

Dylan Bundy is out of options. That means that he has to remain on the Orioles big league roster this season or be exposed to waivers where he would obviously be plucked by a club. Bundy, who is not ready to throw 180-innings as he returns from shoulder and forearm issues last season, will spend the majority (if not all) of the season in the Orioles bullpen. "Arm's healthy. Feel good, physical's done, ready to go," said Bundy. “As a bullpen guy, you never know when you're going to get in the game. You've got more adrenaline, you've got to be able to control the adrenaline, you've got to throw an off-speed pitch first pitch of the outing that you come out. Just stuff like that." Long-term he still profiles as a starter, but it doesn’t sound like it will happen this season.

Gerrit Cole has an issue with his right rib cage, basically some inflammation since mid-January, and as a result he’s a bit behind the other Pirates hurlers as he’s limited to throwing off flat ground. At this point he is still fully expected to start the season on time. For more, listen to his own words.

Jerad Eickhoff, the Phillies hurling prospect, has a thumb injury. Apparently he doesn’t know how to bunt as he was taking batting practice off a machine earlier this month when he was hit by a pitch badly bruising his thumb. He expects to throw off the mound in about a week, but this is a concern to me even if the Phillies are trying to blow it off. “I’ve got a lot of time - a lot of time - before the season starts,” Eickhoff said. “I’m just trying to rehab it and get it back to 100 percent as soon as possible.” Young hurlers missing weeks of work in the offseason do to an injury, to his hand, has to be a concern. Has to be.

 

Some hate him... but I love the guy. The video is filled with explicatives.

 


 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday, 7 PM EDT and Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 6 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).