Padres Open-Minded About Bullpen

The San Diego Padres have relief pitchers Drew Pomeranz, Emilio Pagan, Mark Melancon and Keone Kela as options for the closer's role this season, but manager Jayce Tingler said on Wednesday that the club will be open-minded about the bullpen. "We're not committed to one way right now. We're going to stay extremely flexible," Tingler […]

Padres Feel Good About Dinelson Lamet

The San Diego Padres feel good about starting pitcher Dinelson Lamet (elbow), who missed the playoffs last year because of an elbow/biceps injury. The 28-year-old right-hander received a platelet-rich plasma injection in October, and there have been questions about whether he'll be ready for the start of the 2021 season after he broke out as […]

Blake Snell Forecasts 150-180 Innings In 2021

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Blake Snell forecast 150 to 180 innings "and then the postseason" coming off the shortened 2020 season. The 28-year-old left-hander won the American League Cy Young Award in 2018 with a career-high 180 2/3 innings. The Padres may be more open-minded toward using Snell beyond some of his previous limits […]

Brad Miller Agrees With Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with free-agent infielder Brad Miller on Wednesday. The 31-year-old left-handed bat will bring versatility around the infield at second base, shortstop and first base. He spent the shortened 2020 season with the Cardinals and hit .232/.357/.451 with seven home runs and 25 RBI in 142 […]

Ndamukong Suh Wants To Return In 2021

Tampa Bay Buccaneers impending free-agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh clearly wants to return to the team in 2021 and play with quarterback Tom Brady again after winning Super Bowl LV over the Chiefs. "My goal is to come back and have an opportunity to go win another championship," Suh said. After 11 years in the […]

Alex Smith Thinks He Has Room For Growth

Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith, last year's Comeback Player of the Year, appeared in eight games (six starts) and completed 66.7 percent of his passes while going 5-1 after nearly losing his leg due to injury in 2018. Smith strained the calf in the same leg late in the season, but it was unrelated […]

Red Sox Acquire Ronaldo Hernandez, Nick Sogard

The Boston Red Sox acquired catching prospect Ronaldo Hernandez and infield prospect Nick Sogard from the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday in exchange for right-hander Chris Mazza, left-hander Jeffrey Springs and cash considerations. Hernandez was Tampa's No. 14 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. The 23-year-old has a really strong arm and hit .265 with nine […]

Titans Put Isaiah Wilson On Notice

Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson put last year's first-round pick, offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson, on notice during a virtual news conference on Tuesday. Wilson played just four snaps in 2020 despite being the 29th overall pick in the draft. "We put him on the Reserve/Non-Football Injury list and haven't spoken to him since. He's […]

Titans Reach Out To J.J. Watt

Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson said that he has reached out to free-agent pass-rusher J.J. Watt's, and "it's early in the stages" when it comes to Watt deciding where he'll play after being released by the Houston Texans last Friday. The Titans would like to add the All-Pro to their defensive line, but they'll […]

Trevor Lawrence Undergoes Successful Surgery

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) underwent successful left shoulder surgery on Tuesday to fix the labrum in his non-throwing shoulder. Doctors expect Lawrence to be 100 percent healthy for training camp this summer. He has dealt with issues in his left shoulder for the past couple of years, but he should be completely healthy before […]

Cody Allen Hangs Up His Cleats

Free-agent relief pitcher Cody Allen drew some interest on the open market but has decided to retire from Major League Baseball. The 32-year-old compiled 153 career saves, with all but four of them coming for the Cleveland Indians. The right-hander was the ninth-inning man for Cleveland's 2016 World Series team, pitching in four World Series […]

Melky Cabrera Still Wants To Play

Free-agent outfielder Melky Cabrera hit .308 in the Dominican Republic and Mexican Winter Leagues this offseason and is looking for a job. He's a career .285 hitter and batted .280 with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2019. The 36-year-old did not play in the major leagues in 2020 after being released by the New York Mets. […]

Rays Re-Sign Oliver Drake

The Tampa Bay Rays are re-signing relief pitcher Oliver Drake to an undisclosed deal on Wednesday. The club also traded reliever John Curtiss to the Miami Marlins in exchange for minor league first baseman Evan Edwards. The 34-year-old Drake is expected to start the season on the 60-day injured list due to a flexor tendon […]

Tigers Considering Six-Man Rotation

The Detroit Tigers are considering using a six-man starting rotation for at least some of the 2021 season as they return to a normal schedule with a pitching staff that will likely include some of their top prospects, according to general manager Al Avila. Matthew Boyd led the Tigers last year with just 60 1/3 […]

No Restrictions For Shohei Ohtani This Spring

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (elbow) went through a normal offseason and is fully healthy after an elbow/forearm strain last year limited him to just two starts on the mound. The Angels plan to utilize him as a two-way player in 2021, and manager Joe Maddon said that Ohtani is a full-go […]

Travis Shaw Returning To Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers signed free-agent third baseman/first baseman Travis Shaw to a minor league deal on Tuesday. The 30-year-old had 30-plus home runs and a 3.5 fWAR in 2017 and 2018 with Milwaukee but slumped badly in 2019 and was sent to the minors for most of that season. The left-handed slugger posted a .717 […]

Pirates Sign Lefty Tyler Anderson

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed free-agent left-hander Tyler Anderson to a one-year major league contract worth $2.5 million on Tuesday. Anderson has made 82 starts over five big league seasons with the Rockies and Giants and should enter spring training with a spot in the team's starting rotation. The other four members of Pittsburgh's staff have […]

Rangers Acquire Josh Sborz From Dodgers

The Texas Rangers acquired right-handed pitcher Josh Sborz from the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday in exchange for minor league righty Jhan Zambrano. Sborz was designated for assignment on Feb. 11 when the Dodgers signed Trevor Bauer. A second-round pick in 2015, Sborz made his major league debut in June of 2019 and has thrown […]

Dansby Swanson Loses Arbitration Case

Atlanta Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson will earn $6 million this year after losing his salary arbitration case on Tuesday. He was requesting $6.7 million. The 27-year-old made $3.15 million through the arbitration process in 2020, and he's been among the teams better players over the last three seasons. Appearing in all 60 games in the […]

Mets In On Trevor Rosenthal

The New York Mets have stayed in touch with free-agent relief pitcher Trevor Rosenthal and are clearly "in" on the right-hander. The hard-throwing veteran is arguably the best reliever left on the open market after a bounce-back 2020 campaign in which he was a finalist for National League Reliever of the Year. The 30-year-old recorded […]

Mets, Kris Bryant Rumors Aren't True

Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said that the rumors of the New York Mets and third baseman Kris Bryant are inaccurate. Hoyer also said he hasn't been engaged in any serious trade talks in a while, and nothing major is expected at this point with pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training […]

Odubel Herrera Invited To Spring Training

Philadelphia Phillies former All-Star center fielder Odubel Herrera is among 31 non-roster players that were invited to spring training. Herrera will earn $10 million this year but hasn't played since 2019 when he was suspended under the league's domestic-violence policy. Other non-roster invites for the Phillies include pitchers Neftali Feliz, Brandon Kintzler, Bryan Mitchell, Ivan […]

Matt Wise Named Interim Pitching Coach

Los Angeles Angels bullpen coach Matt Wise has been named as the team's interim pitching coach, replacing the suspended Mickey Callaway. New executive Dom Chiti will fill in as the bullpen coach until the investigation of Callaway is completed. Callaway is being investigated by Major League Baseball over allegations of inappropriate behavior toward several women […]

Bears, Allen Robinson II Haven't Talked Extension

The Chicago Bears and impending free-agent wide receiver Allen Robinson II haven't had talks about a contract extension since last September, which means that the franchise tag will likely be in play for the 2021 season. A-Rob has topped the 1,000-yard mark in each of the last two seasons in Chicago and has scored 13 […]

Adrian Peterson Wants To Play Until He's 40

Detroit Lions impending free-agent running back Adrian Peterson said that he wants to play until he's 40 years old and wants to break Emmitt Smith's all-time rushing record while also winning a Super Bowl ring. "I'm just going to keep playing, I'm going to keep playing, trying to chase a championship," Peterson said. "And God's […]

Panthers Releasing Kawann Short

The Carolina Panthers are releasing two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kawann Short on Tuesday after eight years with the team, according to a source. Short was a second-round selection back in 2013 and earned a five-year contract extension in 2017, but he's been mostly an afterthought on the defensive line for most of the four […]

Dolphins Sign Jason Sanders To Five-Year Extension

The Miami Dolphins are signing kicker Jason Sanders to a five-year, $22 million contract extension on Tuesday that includes $10 million guaranteed and ties him to the team through the 2026 season, according to a source. The All-Pro is one of the league's top kickers after making 36 of his 39 field-goal attempts in 2020, […]

Ken Giles Agrees To Two-Year Deal With Mariners

The Seattle Mariners agreed to an undisclosed two-year deal with free-agent relief pitcher Ken Giles (elbow) on Thursday, according to sources. Giles will miss the entire 2021 season while coming off Tommy John surgery, but he's expected to be ready for 2022. Before he had surgery last season, the hard-throwing right-hander posted a 1.87 ERA, […]

Mets Resume Talks For Kris Bryant

The New York Mets have resumed talks with the Chicago Cubs about trading for third baseman Kris Bryant, according to league sources. However, it's unknown how likely a trade is, as it was recently reported that the Cubs would likely hold onto Bryant until the July 31 trade deadline unless they were blown away by […]

Mets Talking About Matt Chapman

The New York Mets have talked to the Oakland Athletics about trading for third baseman Matt Chapman, according to sources. The Mets have also been linked to Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant and Cincinnati Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez, with Chapman now emerging as a surprise candidate on the Mets radar. The 27-year-old has […]