MLB Player News

The 30-year-old slugger didn’t enter the game until the seventh inning, but that didn’t stop him from making his presence felt. Bote blasted a go-ahead solo homer off of left-hander Anthony Gose in the seventh that put the Cubs ahead to stay. Three of his four total hits on the spring have now left the yard, as he’s hitting .286 (4-for-14) with seven RBI and a 4/2 K/BB ratio through his first eight contests.

The 32-year-old right-hander has made 90 appearances at the major league level in his career, but none since he posted a 5.26 ERA and 1.17 WHIP over 37 2/3 innings with the Mets during the 2023 campaign. He spent the 2024 season at Triple-A St. Paul where he registered a 4.64 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and a 59/26 K/BB ratio across 42 2/3 frames. He’ll add depth and experience to the backend of the Diamondbacks’ bullpen.

Jacob Stallings appears to be set as the team’s starter behind the dish, but Hunter Goodman has been used in much more of a utility role than as a true backup catcher. That means that it’ll likely be a battle between Nola and Drew Romo to see who will open the season in that reserve role and it’s hard to like his chances there. Nola didn’t appear in the big leagues during the 2024 season, slashing a putrid .174/.260/.298 with five homers and 24 RBI in 191 plate appearances for the Royals at Triple-A Omaha.

The 26-year-old right-hander was non-tendered in mid-November as the Giants needed to clear a couple of spots on their 40-man roster. Teng broke through to the big leagues with the Giants in 2024, where he posted a 9.82 ERA, 2.09 WHIP and a 7/8 K/BB ratio across 11 innings of work. He’ll continue to function as extra bullpen depth for the Giants.

Cotillo says the Red Sox haven’t been aggressive in pursuing Crochet, even though they’d seem to match up as well with the White Sox as anyone in the league. The Yankees, though, are firmly in the mix. The White Sox are looking for bats in return from Crochet, so the Reds might have to take from the major league club to satisfy them by building a deal around Noelvi Marte, Christian Encarnacion-Strand or maybe even Matt McLain. Andrew Abbott or Nick Lodolo could also be on the table, especially since one of them would stand to lose a rotation spot to Crochet anyway.

The 29-year-old hurler hasn’t pitched in affiliated ball since the 2022 season. He resurfaced with the Caneros de los Mochis in the Mexican Pacific Winter League where he has posted a 5.06 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and a 4/5 K/BB ratio in his 5 1/3 innings of work. He’ll add organizational bullpen depth for the M’s.

The Mets are doing well with their minor league deals thus far, snagging Genesis Cabrera, Edward Olivares and now Ortega. The 28-year-old Ortega required two surgeries to remove debris from his elbow and missed all of 2024, but he had a 4.03 ERA and a 51/27 K/BB ratio in 58 innings for the Angels and Twins from 2021-23. He might be something close to an average reliever for the Mets, and that he has an option year left could prove helpful.

No surprise there. The Red Sox are also after Hernández (for the second offseason in a row), though they’re surely waiting to see what Juan Soto does before making a final offer. According to Abraham’s sources, Hernández does see Boston as a viable alternative to L.A.

A strikeout machine in the minors for the Phillies, Howard looked like a future third or fourth starter as a prospect, but he proved too homer-prone to contribute. He heads to Japan with a 4-13 record and a 7.00 ERA over 32 starts and 15 relief appearances for the Phillies, Rangers, Giants and Guardians.

Grichuk presumably would have been more of a platoon guy for the Orioles, leaving the door open for Heston Kjerstad to start in the outfield against righties. Now, though, Kjerstad seems Triple-A bound unless someone gets hurt. Coming off an .875 OPS as a platoon outfielder in Arizona, Grichuk should be in quite a bit of demand as a lefty masher for a contender and a possible full-timer for lesser teams.

Hernández and Anthony Santander are the top fallbacks to Soto for teams looking to add a power-hitting corner outfielder. The Dodgers are likely to bid to retain Hernández if they miss out on Soto, and the Yankees and Blue Jays could also be involved. The Mets, on the other hand, might focus more on Pete Alonso if they fail to land Soto.