MLB 2026 Buzz: Juan Soto Has Calf Strain; Mookie Betts Exits With Back Pain

The offseason and spring training are behind us, but there's plenty of MLB news left to cover.

Here are the noteworthy transactions, injuries and more from the 2026 season.

Apr. 4

Juan Soto diagnosed with a right calf strain

The Mets shared that Soto has been diagnosed with a right calf strain after undergoing an MRI on Saturday. He exited Friday night's road game vs. the Giants in the first inning with calf tightness. Soto singled in the top of the first and appeared to slow up while going from first to third on Bo Bichette’s run-scoring single. Soto was forced out at home plate when Brett Baty grounded into a 1-2-3 double play. Tyrone Taylor replaced Soto in left field.

"Right now,  it’s a minor strain," Soto said at Oracle Park on Saturday. "We’re going to be going day-by-day, see how it feels. No decisions have been made yet. We’re going to see how I wake up the next couple of days and go from there."

Mookie Betts leaves Dodgers game early

Betts exited the Dodgers' game vs. the Nationals in the bottom of the first inning with lower back pain, the team shared. In his only plate appearance before exiting, Betts drew a walk before scoring from first base on Freddie Freeman's two-run double in the top of the first. Shortstop Miguel Rojas replaced Betts in the bottom of the first.

Justin Verlander to injured list

The Tigers announced that they placed the veteran starting pitcher on the 15-day injured list due to left hip inflammation. In the one start he has made this season, Verlander, who's in his second stint with the Tigers (he pitched in Detroit from 2005-17), surrendered five runs and eight baserunners (six hits and two walks) across 3 2/3 innings. Right-hander Keider Montero was recalled from Triple A to take Verlander's roster spot.

Apr. 3

Brewers sign prospect Cooper Pratt to eight-year, $50M deal

Milwaukee finalized an eight-year, $50.75 million contract with Pratt on Friday, adding the prized 21-year-old shortstop prospect to the 40-man roster and optioning him to Triple-A Nashville. The deal with Pratt includes club options that could keep him with the Brewers through the 2035 season.

"Cooper has all the tools to be a special player," Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said, "and we are thrilled that he will be in a Brewers uniform for years to come. This commitment continues to show our organization’s passion — led by ownership — to consistently produce a winning team season after season."

Pratt is among the top prospects in a Brewers farm system that ranks among the best in MLB. He was rated by MLB Pipeline as the No. 60 overall prospect and fourth among those in the Milwaukee organization — 18-year-old infielder Jesus Made, who is at Double-A Biloxi, is the top Brewers prospect and ranked the third-best in all of baseball.

Carlos Rodón hopeful injury is minor

Yankees left-hander Rodón thinks his tight right hamstring is only a minor setback in his return from elbow surgery last October. Rodón felt the tightness after throwing 50 pitches of batting practice Sunday at the team's complex in Tampa, Florida. Rodón got hurt while running and New York called off a planned minor league injury rehabilitation outing at Double-A Somerset.

"Just a little bump in the road," the 33-year-old left-hander said before the Yankees' home opener against Miami on Friday. Rodón hopes to throw about 50 pitches Saturday in a controlled environment, such as batting practice.

"It's just a matter of when he can run and cover and field his position and things like that," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "So he’s able to keep his arm going through this. It’s minor enough that that’s the case."

Rodón is recovering from surgery on Oct. 15 to remove loose bodies in his left elbow and shave a bone spur. 

Additionally, Boone said shortstop Anthony Volpe started taking at-bats off pitching and could start a rehab assignment in mid-April. Volpe had arthroscopic surgery on Oct. 14 to repair the labrum in his left shoulder.

Johan Oviedo added to injured list

The Boston Red Sox have placed the right-hander on the 15-day injured list due to a right elbow strain, the team announced. In the one appearance that Oviedo has made this season, he surrendered two home runs, four earned runs and six hits over 3 ⅔ innings pitched. Boston acquired Oviedo from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the offseason.

Apr. 2

Pirates calling up top SS prospect

The Pirates announced they're calling up esteemed shortstop prospect Konnor Griffin. Griffin, whom Pittsburgh selected with the ninth overall pick in 2024, is listed as MLB Pipeline's No. 1 overall prospect. He began the 2026 season in Triple A, going 7-for-16 in five games. Last season, Griffin totaled a combined 21 home runs, 94 RBIs and 65 stolen bases across three levels of minor-league ball (A, A+ and Double A), while posting a .333/.415/.527 slash line.

Apr. 1

Luis Gil will join Yankees soon

Gil, who did not make the Yankees’ starting rotation out of spring training, is in line to join the team in mid-April after he makes a start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, manager Aaron Boone revealed. Boone said Gil recently threw in Florida at the team’s spring training complex, and is headed north to join New York’s top affiliate.

"He’ll throw his bullpen with Triple-A, make his next start," Boone said, "and then be in line for the next one with us."

New York decided to use a four-man rotation to open the season. Gil, the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year, ended up as the odd man out after going 2-1 with a 4.66 ERA in six spring training starts. Last year, Gil went 4-1 with a 3.32 ERA across 11 starts in an injury-filled season. He started last year on the injured list because of a high-grade lat strain, and did not make his season debut until Aug. 3.

Nick Lodolo making rehab start for Reds

Lodolo is expected to throw 60 to 65 pitches during a rehab assignment on April 2. The left-hander, who's on the injured list due to a blister on his left index finger, will make his rehab start for Single-A Daytona against Jupiter in a Florida State League game. If Lodolo has a successful outing, he could join the Reds' rotation during next week's series at Miami. Lodolo was 9-8 with a 3.33 ERA and 156 strikeouts last season.

Left-hander Caleb Ferguson (right oblique strain) threw from 90 feet on flat ground before Wednesday's game against the Pirates. He's expected to accompany the team on their upcoming seven-game road trip to Texas and Miami.

Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez scratched

Narváez was scratched from Boston’s finale with the Astros on April 1 for an undisclosed reason. Narváez was removed from the lineup about 2.5 hours before first pitch and replaced behind the plate by Connor Wong.

"I just made a change," manager Alex Cora told reporters. "I talked to Carlos a little bit, and we move on from there. It’s one of those that I felt like we needed to make the change in the lineup, and I think it’s for the best."

When pressed if Narváez’s removal from the lineup was for a disciplinary reason, Cora didn’t directly answer the question. "Let’s keep it between me and Carlos," Cora said. "And he understands. This is something that happens on every club. It just happens to be early in the season, and I think it’s the right thing to do."

The 27-year-old Narváez is hitting .444 in three games this season. He is in his second season in Boston after beginning his career with the Yankees.

Mar. 31

Guardians right fielder Chase DeLauter exits after injury

DeLauter left Tuesday's game in the first inning after fouling a pitch from Dodgers starter Shohei Ohtani off his back foot. After a trainer came out to check on him, the rookie took a few practice swings and returned to the batter's box. He tried to run out a grounder to third, but was thrown out and then hobbled to the tunnel. He was diagnosed with a left foot contusion. X-rays were negative. DeLauter was replaced by CJ Kayfus in the bottom of the first.

DeLauter was the American League rookie of the week after hitting four home runs in his first three games. He's just the second player to accomplish the feat, joining Trevor Story of the Rockies in 2019.

Umpire loses track of count in Red Sox-Astros

Plate umpire Mark Wegner acknowledged he lost track of the count during Cam Smith’s nine-pitch walk on Tuesday night in the fifth inning of the Astros' eventual 9-2 win over the Red Sox. In fact, Smith should have been out on strikes after the third pitch. Smith swung at and missed two cutters from Red Sox starter Brayan Bello to begin the plate appearance. After the second pitch, Joey Loperfido stole second base and Christian Walker scored on the play thanks to a throwing error by catcher Wong. After about 40 seconds, Smith swung and missed at a sweeper. That should have been strike three but Wegner, a crew chief working his 29th MLB season, flashed 1-2 for the count. Six pitches later, Smith worked a walk.

"I just watched the video," Wegner told a pool reporter after the game. "I didn’t know what happened until I came in here and, apparently, I somehow didn’t count the second swinging one because I said the count was 1-2. It was actually strike three. Had anybody caught it, we can always go and call replay and check the count. I’ve never done that before. I’m not happy about it. Just made a mistake."

Wegner said no one on the field raised an issue in the moment. Bello said Wegner gave the count as 1-1 after his second pitch, and he didn't question it at the time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.