Trent Taylor In Line For Bounce-Back Season?

The Athletic's Matt Barrows believes that San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Trent Taylor is the favorite to finish third in receptions in 2020 behind tight end George Kittle and receiver Deebo Samuel. Taylor missed the entire 2019 campaign with a Jones fracture in his foot, which is the same injury that Samuel is recovering from […]

Deebo Samuel Has Classic Jones Fracture

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel (foot) is dealing with a classic Jones fracture and could be ready to return in 10 to 12 weeks rather than the 12 to 16 weeks that was originally reported. Samuel could still be pushing it to be ready for the start of the regular season, and the […]

Nate Pearson Could Be X-Factor For Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays have a young core of position players that could make them competitive in the shortened 60-game season, and starting pitcher Nate Pearson, MLB's eighth-ranked prospect, could be the X-factor. The 6-foot-6 23-year-old right-hander had a 2.30 ERA with 119 K's and 27 walks in 101 2/3 minor league innings in 2019. […]

Jesus Luzardo Could Change Makeup Of A's Rotation

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo, baseball's No. 12 overall prospect per MLB Pipeline, could change the makeup of the A's starting rotation in the 60-game season this year. Oakland's starters have a 6.9 K/9 the last two seasons, which is the lowest in baseball. Luzardo, a 22-year-old left-hander, has a 10.8 K/9 in his […]

49ers Have Discussed Extension For Kendrick Bourne

The San Francisco 49ers have discussed a long-term contract extension with wide receiver Kendrick Bourne. The 24-year-old caught 30 passes for 358 yards and five touchdowns last year and has 88 career receptions for 1,102 yards and nine touchdowns (all in the last two years) in his three seasons in the league. Bourne isn't a […]

Jets Still Talking With Demaryius Thomas

The New York Jets are still talking to free-agent wide receiver Demaryius Thomas. The 32-year-old former Denver Bronco doesn't have much left in the tank at this point in his career, catching only 36 passes (58 targets) for 433 yards and one touchdown in his 11 games for the Jets last year. It's a far […]

Le'Veon Bell Working Hard In The Training Room

New York Jets running back Le'Veon Bell has been "training like a mad man" this offseason. After holding out for all of 2018, Bell signed with the Jets and had the worst full season of his career, rushing for 789 yards and three touchdowns on 245 carries (career-low 3.2 yards per carry). He also added […]

Antonio Brown Works Out With Russell Wilson

Free-agent wide receiver Antonio Brown posted a picture on his Instagram account on Wednesday showing him working out with Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Russell Wilson. Brown is trying to work his way back into the league after countless off-field incidents. While he's likely to receive at least an eight-game suspension in 2020, it's looking more […]

Josh Bell To DH For Pirates?

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell is a prototypical slugging designated hitter, and the Pirates could use Jose Osuna at first base if they decide to use Bell as the primary designated hitter in 2020. Another option in the DH role would be outfielder Gregory Polanco, with Guillermo Heredia, who is an excellent defender, in […]

Hunter Pence The Obvious Candidate For DH

San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence is the obvious candidate for the team's designated hitter spot this year given his age (37) and the fact that he's coming off a season with the Rangers where he mostly served as the DH while also dealing with injury and posting an OPS of .910. Pablo Sandoval could […]

Wil Myers Likely To Take Most Of His At-Bats As DH

San Diego Padres outfielder Wil Myers was seemingly left to compete for playing time with 22-year-old Josh Naylor and 25-year-old Franchy Cordero in 2020 after the Padres traded for outfielders Tommy Pham and Trent Grisham. Myers had a down year in 2019, but he had a 112 OPS+ in his first four seasons in San […]

Players Association May Not Want Any Preseason Games

NFL teams want to play just two preseason games in 2020 in order to get a read on their rosters and to get ready for Week 1 of the regular season, but the Players Association hasn't signed off on anything yet and is wondering if it's smart to start mixing teams for games that don't […]

Andrew Toles Suffering From Mental Illness

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andrew Toles, who was arrested after he was found sleeping behind the Key West International Airport in Florida last week, has been in at least 20 mental health facilities since 2019. His sister, Morgan Toles, said "we didn't know whether he was dead or alive." His family seeks legal guardianship, but […]

Colin Moran Expected To Play A Lot At Hot Corner

Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton said that he expects third baseman Colin Moran to see most of the playing time at third base this year. "I don’t think it’s an open competition. I think you’re going to see Colin [Moran] there a lot," Shelton said. Other candidates to see time at the hot corner this […]

NFL Shortening Preseason To Two Weeks

The National Football League is shortening the 2020 preseason to two games as part of a larger acclimatization plan for players following an unprecedented virtual offseason program amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a source. Most players will still report to training camp on July 28, but the first preseason games won't be played until […]

Packers Sign Jordan Love To Fully Guaranteed Deal

The Green Bay Packers signed first-round quarterback Jordan Love on Wednesday to a fully guaranteed four-year, $12.383 million deal, according to sources. Love will receive a $6.566 million signing bonus. It's the first time that the No. 26 pick in the draft has received a fully guaranteed deal under the current rookie contract system. The […]

Jordan Hicks To Begin Year On Injured List

St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said that relief pitcher Jordan Hicks (elbow) will start the regular season on the Injured List while recovering from Tommy John surgery last June. However, the Cardinals expect Hicks to contribute in a late-inning role soon, so it may not be long before he's an option for the ninth […]

Miles Mikolas Is Healthy

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (elbow) is healthy entering the start of this week's summer camp after suffering a flexor tendon strain earlier this year. Mikolas would've missed at least the first month of the regular season had COVID-19 not interfered, but now it sounds as though he'll be part of the team's […]

Giants Sign First-Rounder Patrick Bailey

The San Francisco Giants signed first-round catcher Patrick Bailey (13th overall) for $3.8 million on Wednesday. Bailey's deal is just under the slot value of $4.197 million for the 13th overall selection in the draft. The catcher from North Carolina State was the top catching prospect in this year's draft. He has solid power from […]

Packers Sign Second-Rounder A.J. Dillon

Green Bay Packers rookie running back A.J. Dillon announced on his Twitter account on Wednesday that he has signed his rookie deal with the team. The Boston College product ran for 1,685 yards and 14 touchdowns in his final year in college. Dillon finished his college career with 4,382 yards and 38 touchdowns. Green Bay […]

Duke Williams, Robert Foster Won't Be Locks To Make Team

Buffalo Bills wide receivers Duke Williams and Robert Foster could be facing an uphill battle to make the team out of training camp, in the opinion of The Athletic's Joe Buscaglia. Williams, 27, saw more opportunities late last season, but he played in just four regular season games and had 12 receptions for 166 yards […]

Devin Singletary To Be More Involved In Passing Game?

It's possible that the Buffalo Bills want to get running back Devin Singletary more involved in the passing game this year, in the opinion of The Athletic's Joe Buscaglia. If it actually transpires, this will obviously be good news for the second-year back, but the presence of rookie Zack Moss in Buffalo's backfield will likely […]

Yannick Ngakoue Still Desires Trade

Nothing has changed with Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue as we approach the July 15 deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign long-term contract extensions, according to a source. Ngakoue still desires a trade and doesn't have any immediate plans to sign the franchise tag. This is a situation that could bleed into training camp. […]

Jo Adell Will Have Chance To Make Debut In 2020

Los Angeles Angels general manager Billy Eppler said that the team's top prospect and No. 6 overall, outfielder Jo Adell, will have a chance to prove that he is ready to make his MLB debut in 2020. Adell will have around three weeks of summer camp to prove that he deserves a spot on the […]

Kyler Murray Plans To Help Offensive Line More

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray was the most-sacked signal-caller in his rookie season in 2019, getting taken down 48 times. “Last year, a lot of those sacks I feel were on me,” Murray said. The young QB held onto the ball way too long early in the season, but he was sacked just twice in […]

Nelson Cruz Not Ready To Retire

Minnesota Twins designated hitter Nelson Cruz is turning 40 years old on Wednesday but doesn't feel that he's approaching retirement after hitting 41 home runs last season. Cruz also had baseball's third-highest average exit velocity in 2019. "Nelson Cruz is in probably better shape than almost any player in the game. He’s diligent. Nelson Cruz […]

Brendan McKay Has Been Throwing Regularly

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Brendan McKay (shoulder), the team's No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, was set back by some early camp shoulder soreness, but he has been throwing regularly at Tropicana Field and is ready for spring training 2.0. McKay is part of the team's 60-player pool and could be used to build […]

Blake Snell Looks "Awesome"

Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said that starting pitcher Blake Snell (elbow) looked "awesome" during a Tuesday bullpen session at Tropicana Field. Snell was limited by a left elbow injury in 2019 and was sidelined early in the spring with elbow soreness that required a cortisone shot. But the left-hander insisted he was fine […]

Daniel Robertson Has Edge For Second Utility Spot

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Daniel Robertson apparently has edged out Michael Brosseau and Nate Lowe for the second utility infielder spot, with his ability to play shortstop a benefit. Brosseau has the ability to play the outfield, and that could factor in with the Rays using newcomer Yoshitomo Tsutsugo at third on occasion. Tampa is […]

Markus Golden Looks Set To Return To Big Apple

New York Giants free-agent linebacker Markus Golden has until July 22 to find a new team after the Giants put a May 5 tender on him, but there is no indication that any other team is interested in signing him for more than one year and $4.125 million. If another team wanted him for more, […]