The New York Yankees have reached out to veteran free-agent designated hitter J.D. Martinez, but the sides don't seem close on a deal and they are unlikely to reach an agreement, according to the New York Post's Jon Heyman. The Yankees are looking for a veteran bat with outfielder/designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton (elbow) set to open the year on the injured list with no timetable for a return as he deals with tennis elbow in both of his arms. While it doesn't look likely that Martinez will sign with the Yankees right now, that could change if Stanton is forced to miss even more time. Martinez is 37 years old and is no longer the hitter he once was after slashing only .235/.320/.406 with a .725 OPS in 120 regular-season games with the New York Mets in 2024. However, the six-time All-Star still has some pop in his bat and could be a short-term solution for the DH spot in the Bronx.

Chicago White Sox right-handers Prelander Berroa (elbow) and Juan Carela (elbow) both will need Tommy John surgery, according to the team. It means that both pitchers will miss the entire 2025 season and could be forced to miss the start of next year as well. Berroa, 24, was initially injured during a Cactus League outing late last month. The White Sox added Carela, 23, to their 40-man roster in the offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. Berroa was the one that had a shot to be a high-leverage arm for the Pale Hose out of their bullpen this year after sporting a 3.32 ERA (4.01 FIP) and 1.47 WHIP with 26 strikeouts and 13 walks in 19 relief innings in the big leagues last year. The hard-throwing righty had three holds and a win and had shown plenty of strikeout upside. Both he and Carela have long recoveries ahead of them.

Houston Astros right-hander Shawn Dubin (shoulder) will resume playing catch in camp on Saturday after battling right-shoulder inflammation. Additionally, right-hander Kaleb Ort (oblique) is progressing nicely and has been throwing off flat ground. Because Dubin hasn't pitched at all in spring training yet, he will not be ready for Opening Day in late March. However, if the 29-year-old can avoid setbacks as he begins ramping up, he should be able to return early in the 2025 regular season in a relief role for the Astros. Dubin made 31 appearances (two starts) for the Astros in 2024 in his second major-league season and had a 4.17 ERA (3.72 FIP), his first two career saves, a 1.57 WHIP, 49 strikeouts and 26 walks in 45 1/3 innings. Ort, who injured his left oblique early in camp, is also probably a long shot to be ready for Opening Day.

The Athletic's Katie Woo writes that the St. Louis Cardinals seem inclined to use left-handed veteran Steven Matz in the starting rotation to start the season. However, it's not a guarantee, especially is young pitchers Andre Pallante and Michael McGreevy continue their strong springs. The main thing is that Matz has been healthy in camp, and the Cardinals will get a better sense of how effective the 33-year-old southpaw will be over the final few weeks of Grapefruit League action. Barring a late-spring trade, Woo believes Matz will be on the Opening Day roster as a back-end starter. Matz has allowed just one run with three walks and three strikeouts in five innings over his two spring starts. Since Matz has mostly dealt with injuries the last couple of seasons, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him eventually moved to a long-relief role when St. Louis feels Pallante or McGreevy are ready.

Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker's (oblique) MRI exam didn't show a "strain or anything that we are concerned about," manager Joe Espada said. The Astros are calling Walker's injury left-oblique soreness. He is returning to the team in camp on Friday and will be eased back into baseball activities. It's good news for the team's new first baseman, but the 33-year-old isn't out of the woods yet with three weeks until Opening Day. The good news is that if Walker doesn't have any setbacks with his oblique as he ramps back up, he still has a chance to be ready for the start of the regular season. If he's not ready to go, the left-handed-hitting Jon Singleton would see most of the playing time at the cold corner to begin the year. Assuming Walker's oblique injury doesn't linger and affect his early-season production, he's not a bad fallback target at the first base position in fantasy drafts. Walker has 30-plus homers in two of the last three seasons.