St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt went hitless in four at-bats in an 8-4 Grapefruit League loss to the Marlins on Friday. The veteran has been scuffling this spring, hitting just .148 (4-for-27) including 11 strikeouts (33.3%) and just one home run. You don't want to put too much stock in spring stats, but the 36-year-old is coming off of a season that was a continuation of some troubling trends, seeing his Contact% tick down while his Whiff% ticked up for a third consecutive season. Hopefully the 7x All-Star can pick up the pace, as he'll also be in talks with the Cardinals at some point about a contract extension as the former MVP will be a free agent at the end of the season.

Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran doubled his spring hit total in an 8-5 Grapefruit League win over the Twins on Friday. The 27-year-old came into the game with three hits, none for extra bases, and finished the game with three more hits which included a double and a home run. The lefty also had four RBI and two runs scored. He's yet to steal a base in Grapefruit League action but is now 6-for-21 (.286) in the spring and will look to build some momentum heading into the season. RotoBaller is bullish on the speedster, ranking him at 128 overall, well ahead of his 164 NFB ADP.

The Pittsburgh Pirates agreed with free-agent right-hander Domingo German on a $1.5 million minor-league deal on Friday. The 31-year-old Dominican hurler tossed a no-hitter against the lowly Oakland Athletics last year while with the New York Yankees, but that was easily the highlight of his season, as he finished with a 5-7 record, 4.56 ERA (4.65 FIP) and 1.08 WHIP with 34 walks and 114 strikeouts in 108 2/3 innings pitched over his 20 appearances (19 starts) in his sixth year in pinstripes. He'll have a better opportunity with the rebuilding Pirates, but German is unlikely to be much of a fantasy asset outside of NL-only leagues if he's with the big-league roster in 2024. In his six-year career, German holds a 4.41 ERA and 1.18 WHIP with 2.8 walks per nine innings and 9.4 K's per nine innings in 522 1/3 frames.

Houston Astros manager Joe Espada said that outfielder/designated hitter Yordan Alvarez (eye) left Friday's Grapefruit League game early because of an allergic reaction in his left eye and not due to a foot injury after he fouled a ball off his right foot in his only at-bat of the game. Alvarez's eye issue isn't considered serious and he'll be just fine for Opening Day on March 28 when the Astros host the visiting New York Yankees. The 26-year-old left-handed slugger has one of the most dangerous bats in all of baseball, but he's also a pretty big injury risk for fantasy managers. Despite the injury risk, RotoBaller has the Cuban ranked as the No. 15 overall fantasy player in baseball due to his immense power and run production in one of the strongest lineups in MLB.

Free-agent third baseman J.D. Davis signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Oakland Athletics on Friday. The deal includes another $1 million in performance-based incentives. Davis will stay in the Bay Area after spending all of 2023 with the San Francisco Giants, where he slashed .248/.325/.413 with 18 home runs, 69 RBI and 61 runs scored in 144 games and 546 plate appearances. He was expendable in San Fran when the Giants signed Matt Chapman. Given the state of the perpetually rebuilding A's roster, the 30-year-old right-handed slugger should immediately slot in as Oakland's starting third baseman in 2024, boosting his fantasy appeal as a corner-infield option in deep-mixed leagues. Davis has a career .261/.343/.432 slash line with a .775 OPS and 68 homers in seven major-league seasons.