According to MASN's Roch Kubatko, Baltimore Orioles infield prospect Coby Mayo's chances of making the Opening Day roster out of spring training this year lessen if No. 1 overall prospect Jackson Holliday makes the team. Mayo has focused on third base and some first base in camp, but he's likely to require some more time at Triple-A Norfolk, especially since Gunnar Henderson will be fine for Opening Day after dealing with an oblique injury early in camp. The Orioles' No. 4 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, hit .267/.393/.512 at Triple-A Norfolk last year in 62 games. The 22-year-old has impressive power from the right side and also raised his walk rate and dropped his strikeout rate in the minors in 2023. If he sticks in Baltimore's system, his best path to playing time long term will probably be at first base.

New York Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu (foot) has "a pretty significant bone bruise" on his right foot, according to manager Aaron Boone, and the skipper isn't sure if LeMahieu will have enough time to get ready for Opening Day on March 28 in Houston against the Astros. LeMahieu fouled a ball off his foot in a Grapefruit League game on Saturday, but X-rays came back negative. Still, the 35-year-old veteran, who is projected to be the team's regular third baseman in 2024, may not be ready to go for the start of the 2024 regular season. The season hasn't even started yet and the Yankees are dealing with injuries to Gerrit Cole (elbow), Aaron Judge (abdomen, oblique) and LeMahieu. If LeMahieu opens the year on the injured list, Oswaldo Cabrera should see a boost in playing time at the hot corner.

Houston Astros right-hander Jose Urquidy (forearm) has been diagnosed with a forearm muscle strain, according to manager Joe Espada. Urquidy is not throwing for now in camp and will not open the 2024 regular season in the team's starting rotation. The 28-year-old pulled himself out of a minor-league game in camp last Friday and will now be forced to open the year on the injured list. It's bad news for a pitcher that already wasn't very attractive in mixed fantasy leagues after he missed most of 2023 due to arm injuries. He had a 5.29 ERA and 1.43 WHIP in only 63 innings last season. With both Urquidy and Justin Verlander (shoulder) set to begin the year on the IL, and with Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm) and Luis Garcia (elbow) to miss the first half of the season, J.P. France and Ronel Blanco are expected to open the year in the starting rotation.

Houston Astros manager Joe Espada said that right-hander Justin Verlander (shoulder) should face hitters "in the next day or two" in camp. Verlander came into spring training with right-shoulder issues, but he threw another bullpen session on Sunday and is ramping up with the start of the 2024 regular season right around the corner. The 41-year-old future Hall of Famer and three-time Cy Young winner is going to start the year on the injured list and might not make his 2024 debut until late April or early May. He became the first pitcher age 40 or older to win 12 games and post an ERA below 3.25 since 2013, so Verlander can clearly still be effective despite his age. However, injuries are a big concern, and his fantasy value has obviously dropped considerably in 2024 now that he could miss the first month of the season.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager (hernia) took live batting practice in camp on Monday for the first time since having sports-hernia surgery on Jan. 30. Manager Bruce Bochy said that Seager could be in the lineup on March 25-26 for the team's exhibition games against the Boston Red Sox at Globe Life Field. While Seager is making good progress in his rehab, he said himself that he's still unsure if he'll be ready to play on Opening Day on March 28. If the 29-year-old reigning World Series MVP is able to play in any Cactus League games in the next week or in the two exhibition games against Boston, there's a good bet that he'll be ready for Opening Day. In one of the best offenses in baseball and a great hitter's park in Texas, Seager is ranked as RotoBaller's No. 7 fantasy shortstop despite coming off offseason surgery.