

Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm (foot) is back in the starting lineup for Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the New York Yankees and is starting at third base and batting cleanup, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Lochlahn March. It will be Bohm's first game action since Saturday due to a bruised foot. The 28-year-old former third overall pick in 2018 out of Wichita State University was the subject of trade rumors in the offseason, but he will remain in Philly for now, where his fantasy value is the highest, especially if he's hitting in the heart of one of the best lineups in baseball. Bohm has been swinging a hot back in camp, too, batting .344 (11-for-32) with three home runs, three doubles, five RBI and 10 runs in 11 Grapefruit League games. While Bohm may not have high-end power for a third baseman, he hits for a high average and will have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs.


In his first career MLB start in Tokyo, Japan, against the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki picked up a no-decision by allowing one earned run on one hit while walking five and striking out three in only three innings pitched. The 23-year-old was a bit wild, and the one run he allowed came home on a bases-loaded walk in the third inning, but he was able to escape the jam by inducing two strikeouts to end the inning. Things could have been a lot worse for the young Japanese hurler in his first outing against Chicago. Sasaki's stuff is real and should play in the big leagues, but expect the Dodgers to continue to limit him early in the year from an innings perspective, which will limit his fantasy upside as a No. 2 starter. Sasaki is also going to need to show better control to be effective.


In the Los Angeles Dodgers' 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs to conclude the two-game Tokyo Series, designated hitter Shohei Ohtani went 1-for-3 with a solo homer and two RBI for his first round-tripper of the 2025 season. The 30-year-old two-way Japanese superstar went 3-for-8 with a double, home run and three runs scored in L.A.'s two-game sweep of the Cubs. After becoming baseball's first-ever player to hit 50-plus home runs and steal 50-plus bases in a single season, Ohtani's home run in Tokyo will be the first of many for the Dodgers and fantasy managers. In addition to his 54 homer and 59 stolen bases in 2024, he had a league-high 130 RBI and 134 runs and also led in on-base percentage (.390), slugging percentage (.646) and OPS (1.036) in 159 regular-season games. It's why Ohtani was probably the first player taken in your fantasy draft.


New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone has admitted that right-hander Clarke Schmidt (shoulder) won't be built up to 75-80 pitches for the beginning of the 2025 regular season. The Yankees will likely be cautious with Schmidt early on, which could open the door for both veteran Carlos Carrasco and prospect Will Warren to begin the year in the starting rotation. The 29-year-old Schmidt has been hoping all along that he'll still make his first scheduled start of the year on April 3 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but it's looking more and more likely that he'll stay back in extended spring training to get stretched out further. It's a disappointment for a pitcher that also missed three months in 2024 due to a right-lat strain, but barring a setback with his shoulder, Schmidt could make his 2025 debut sooner than later in April.


MassLive's Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam write that Boston Red Sox right-handed reliever Liam Hendriks appears to be behind left-hander Aroldis Chapman for closing duties to begin the 2025 regular season, even though he has seemingly corrected some of the command issues he had early in camp. Second-year right-hander Justin Slaten will also be an option for the BoSox in late-inning, high-leverage situations. As things stand right now, Chapman and Slaten are ahead of Hendriks, who has allowed six earned runs on 12 hits (two homers) while walking none and striking out four in five appearances in the Grapefruit League. The 36-year-old Australian is a three-time All-Star and has 116 career MLB saves over 13 seasons, though, so he's still going to be a key member of Boston's bullpen in 2025. He just isn't much of a target for save speculators right now.
