Los Angeles Dodgers corner infielder Max Muncy appears to be in improved physical condition at spring training this year. Both manager Dave Roberts and general manager Brandon Gomes gave credit to Muncy for taking on the challenge to improve himself in the offseason. "Our hitting guys are raving about him," Gomes said. The 33-year-old veteran left-handed hitter has never been in peak physical form, but he's still a great hitter. However, he's been hurt by nagging injuries in recent seasons and has hit just .204 the last two years while also slugging 57 home runs and driving in 174 runs in 271 games played. Muncy knows how to lift the ball for home runs and his fantasy value is boosted by residing in an excellent Dodgers lineup, but there's a lot of swing and miss to his game, and he's not getting any younger.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (ankle) is making his Grapefruit League debut on Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles and is batting leadoff and playing shortstop. It's great to see Cruz playing in games again after he fractured his left ankle early last season. The 25-year-old's injury required season-ending surgery in 2023. Cruz is fully healthy now, though, and will be Pittsburgh's starting shortstop. His size (6-foot-7, 215 pounds) is unorthodox for a shortstop, but the left-handed-hitting Dominican has a lot of upside at a premium position if he can stay healthy for a full season. In his three years in the big leagues over 98 games (410 plate appearances), Cruz has hit .237/.302/.449 with 19 home runs, 61 RBI and 13 stolen bases. He should easily be a top-10 fantasy shortstop at the end of the year if he can avoid another injury.

Houston Astros manager Joe Espada said his plan right now is to bat outfielder/designated hitter Yordan Alvarez second in the batting order this year. The ideal top four of Espada's lineup is second baseman Jose Altuve at leadoff, followed by Alvarez, third baseman Alex Bregman and outfielder Kyle Tucker. Alvarez hit mostly out of the third spot last year and is an RBI machine, racking up an incredible 298 RBI in the last three seasons for the Astros. The former American League Rookie of the Year in 2019 could see fewer chances to drive in runs hitting in the two-hole, but it won't be enough to drastically affect his fantasy appeal as one of the best overall hitters in baseball. The 26-year-old is a pretty big injury risk, but he should still come off the board late in the first round or early in the second round of fantasy drafts.

Miami Marlins shortstop Tim Anderson, who signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the team this week, said his left knee is "healthy" and ready to go for the 2024 season. Anderson's left-knee sprain contributed heavily to his struggles in 2023, in which he hit just one home run while delivering a .582 OPS, the lowest among all qualified hitters. The 30-year-old hasn't played in more than 123 games in a season since 2019 due to injuries, which makes him a pretty big injury risk as he tries to bounce back from a dreadful season. His sprint speed, which has been well above-average for the bulk of his eight-year career, fell to the 46th percentile last year. But if the former first-rounder can regain even a fraction of his old form -- he was the only player in the majors to hit .300 or better in each season from 2019-22 -- fantasy managers will have a steal on their hands.

Miami Marlins outfielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. (toe) is making his Grapefruit League debut on Sunday against the Washington Nationals and is batting cleanup and starting in center field. Chisholm battled turf toe last year and had to have surgery to fix it in October, but he's back in action in spring training and should be fully ready to go for the start of the 2024 regular season at the end of March. The 26-year-old is one of the bigger risk/reward fantasy commodities in baseball. In 97 games for the Fish last year, he hit .250/.304/.457 with 19 home runs and 22 stolen bases. If Chisholm can stay healthy -- he's played in over 100 games just once in his four major-league seasons -- he has the power/speed ability to be a league-winner for fantasy managers. RotoBaller has Chisholm ranked as the No. 17 fantasy outfielder entering his fifth MLB campaign.