Anthony Bender Says He's Healthy

Miami Marlins relief pitcher Anthony Bender (elbow) said that he's fully recovered from Tommy John surgery that he had in August of 2022 and is expecting to enter spring training without any limitations. "I'm ready to go in and help out anywhere I can," Bender said. "If there's a spot where my name is called,... Read More

Guardians Unlikely To Trade Emmanuel Clase

Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase is drawing trade interest from multiple teams, but a deal appears unlikely in the short term, according to sources. Cleveland has club options and control of Clase through the 2028 season, so there is no motivation for the Guardians to move one of the best closers in baseball right now.... Read More

Jay Jackson, Twins Agree To Major-League Contract

Free-agent relief pitcher Jay Jackson and the Minnesota Twins agreed to an undisclosed major-league deal on Monday, pending a physical, according to a source familiar with the deal. The 36-year-old veteran right-hander has a 92-94 mph fastball with a good slider and has a 2.73 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 53 innings since returning from... Read More

Yankees Acquire Caleb Ferguson From Dodgers

The New York Yankees have acquired left-handed reliever Caleb Ferguson from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for fellow southpaw reliever Matt Gage and right-handed prospect Christian Zazueta. Ferguson returned from Tommy John surgery in 2022 to toss a spectacular 1.82 ERA before working to a solid 3.43 ERA across 68 appearances in the 2023... Read More

Devin Sweet Clears Waivers, Outrighted To Triple-A

Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Devin Sweet has cleared waivers and has been outrighted off the 40-man roster to Triple-A Toledo. Sweet was designated for assignment last week when the Tigers signed infield prospect Colt Keith to a six-year contract extension, meaning they had to place him on their 40-man roster. The 27-year-old has spent time... Read More

Tigers Claim Kolton Ingram From Angels

The Detroit Tigers have claimed left-hander Kolton Ingram off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels. Infielder Nick Maton has been designated for assignment in a corresponding move. Ingram got into five games with the Angels in 2023 but struggled to an 8.44 ERA in that time, surrendering a pair of homers while walking five in... Read More

Ryan Brasier Signs Two-Year Deal With Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed free-agent relief pitcher Ryan Braiser to a two-year, $9 million contract. Brasier can earn as much as $13 million over the two seasons through incentives. Brasier latched on with the Dodgers in the 2023 season following a rough stretch with the Boston Red Sox that saw him pitch to... Read More

Bullpen Arms To Target In 2024 Fantasy Baseball Drafts - Closers and Relief Pitchers

Fantasy baseball drafts are right around the corner, and it's never too early to start prepping for your league. In the early rounds, position players and starting pitchers get the most love because they have the most value in both points and roto leagues. But relief pitchers are just as important in the middle to... Read More

Pitch Info: Using Sabermetrics for 2024 Fantasy Baseball

One of the most fundamental questions in fantasy sports is if a player's current performance is sustainable. More than any other sport, baseball has many statistical measures that can be dissected in numerous ways to analyze player performance. Pitch Info is a public pitch tracking system providing a lot of data to help fantasy managers... Read More

Blake Treinen Trending Toward Return

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Blake Treinen (right shoulder) is "trending toward a return," according to Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Injuries have been quite the obstacle for Treinen, who has pitched just five innings over the last two seasons, but it appears that he's ready to be a contributor out of the... Read More

Jay Jackson Inks Major League Deal With Twins

The Minnesota Twins have signed veteran relief pitcher Jay Jackson to a major league deal, according to Robert Murray of FanSided. Initial terms of the contract were unavailable. Just last month, it was reported that Jackson had interest from over one dozen teams and was trending towards receiving a major league contract. Indeed, the 36-year-old... Read More

Cubs Have Multiple Late-Inning Options In Their Bullpen

The Chicago Cubs can employ a number of arms, depending on matchups, when it comes to closing out games in 2024, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Adbert Alzolay ran away with the closer role last season, racking up 22 saves to lead the team. Julian Merryweather served as an excellent setup man, working a... Read More

Mike Shildt Refuses To Name A Set Closer

While it's expected that San Diego Padres right-hander Robert Suarez will open the 2024 season as the team's closer with Josh Hader now in Houston, manager Mike Shildt refused to name a set closer when asked who his closer was with spring training right around the corner. In addition to Suarez, the new skipper mentioned... Read More

Heath Hembree Inks Minor-League Deal With Seattle

Veteran relief pitcher Heath Hembree has signed a minor-league contract with the Seattle Mariners. The 35-year-old righty had worked just 23 1/3 innings at the major league level over the last two seasons, compiling a poor 6.94 ERA and 1.886 WHIP in the process. He was with the Tampa Bay Rays last season, appearing in... Read More

Jose Cisnero Signs One-Year Deal With The Angels

Free-agent relief pitcher Jose Cisnero signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels. The veteran reliever put up a poor 5.31 ERA, 1.483 WHIP, and 70:25 K/BB over 59 1/3 innings last season as a member of the Detroit Tigers. While the ERA and WHIP leave a lot to be desired, he still put... Read More

Dinelson Lamet Heads To Dodgers

Free-agent right-hander Dinelson Lamet signed a minor-league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday that includes an invitation to major-league spring training. Lamet has really struggled the last two years and has bounced around the league with three different teams. In 2023, he had a nightmarish 11.71 ERA (6.83 FIP) and 2.35 WHIP with... Read More

Prelander Berroa, Zach DeLoach Traded To White Sox

The Chicago White Sox have acquired right-handed pitcher Prelander Berroa, outfielder Zach DeLoach, and the 69th overall pick in the 2024 draft from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for reliever Gregory Santos, per ESPN's Jeff Passan. Berroa is a young right-handed prospect who bypassed Triple-A to make his MLB debut last season. He's an interesting... Read More

Mariners Acquire Gregory Santos From White Sox

The Seattle Mariners have acquired relief pitcher Gregory Santos from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for right-hander Prelander Berroa, outfielder Zach DeLoach, and the 69th pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. Santos made a handful of appearances between 2021 and 2022 but truly emerged last year, amassing a... Read More

Jake Walsh Signs Minor-League Contract With The Braves

Free agent relief pitcher Jake Walsh has signed a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves that includes an invite to spring training. Walsh is 28 years old but has very limited major league experience. He only pitched 2/2 innings last season with the St. Louis Cardinals and allowed four earned runs, so it's hard... Read More

White Sox Sign Juan Then To Minor-League Deal

The Chicago White Sox signed free-agent right-hander Juan Then to a minor-league deal. Then made his major-league debut last year with the Seattle Mariners and pitched in 11 innings out of their bullpen, allowing six earned runs on 14 hits (three homers) while walking two and striking out five. The 23-year-old will almost certainly begin... Read More

Phil Maton Finalizing Deal With Rays

Free-agent right-hander Phil Maton is finalizing an undisclosed deal with the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday, according to a source. Maton had the best season of his career in 2023 with the Houston Astros, going 4-3 with a 3.00 ERA (3.74 FIP), a 1.12 WHIP, his second career save, 25 walks and 74 strikeouts in... Read More

5 Mid-To-Late Round Sleepers: AL East - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

The stars you draft in the top half of your fantasy baseball league will almost always dictate how good your team will be. But it's those sleepers in the middle to late rounds that might matter more. Those unexpected players that you draft in the 11th or 12th round that turn out to be strong... Read More

Twins Claim Daniel Duarte Off Waivers From Rangers

The Minnesota Twins claimed right-hander Daniel Duarte off waivers from the Texas Rangers on Friday and designated right-hander Ryan Jensen for release or assignment to make room for Duarte on the 40-man roster. Duarte has a minor-league option remaining, so he could start the 2024 campaign at Triple-A St. Paul if he doesn't win a... Read More

Mason Miller, Trevor Gott, Dany Jimenez In Closer Mix

Oakland Athletics general manager David Forst said that right-handers Mason Miller, Trevor Gott and Dany Jimenez will be in the closer mix with spring training approaching quickly. The A's want to see Miller get through a full season healthy, and Forst didn't rule out a return to a starting role for Miller after 2024. The... Read More

Jose Suarez Loses Arbitration Case With Angels

Los Angeles Angels left-hander Jose Suarez has lost his salary arbitration case with the team and will earn the $925,000 the club filed in arbitration. The 26-year-old has enjoyed a pair of fruitful campaigns with the Halos in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, posting a sub-4.00 ERA in both of those campaigns while scuffling to... Read More

Ross Stripling Dealt To A's

The San Francisco Giants have traded pitcher Ross Stripling to the Oakland A's in exchange for infielder/outfielder Jonah Cox. The veteran right-hander authored a 5.36 ERA across 22 outings (11 starts) with the Giants in the 2023 season but also tossed a 3.01 ERA across 32 appearances (24 starts) with the Blue Jays as recently... Read More

Mets Agree With Jake Diekman

The New York Mets agreed to an undisclosed deal with free-agent left-handed reliever Jake Diekman on Friday, pending a physical. It was reported that the two sides were close to a deal on Thursday. The Mets also added Japanese right-hander Shintaro Fujinami to their bullpen on Friday. The 37-year-old Diekman will give the Mets another... Read More

Shintaro Fujinami Signs With Mets

Free-agent right-hander Shintaro Fujinami signed a one-year, $3.35 million deal with the New York Mets on Friday that includes $850,000 in incentives. The Japanese hurler was a bust in his first year in the big leagues in 2023 after signing with the Oakland Athletics and was quickly banished to the bullpen after posting a 14.26... Read More

Nationals Sign Richard Bleier To Minor-League Deal

The Washington Nationals signed free-agent left-hander Richard Bleier to a minor-league deal on Thursday, according to a source. The 36-year-old southpaw spent last year with the Boston Red Sox before being designated for assignment in August. In 27 appearances out of the bullpen for the BoSox in 2023, Bleier had a 5.28 ERA (5.11 FIP),... Read More

Ken Giles Signs With Braves

Free-agent right-handed reliever Ken Giles signed a minor-league deal with the Atlanta Braves on Friday, according to the team. The deal includes an invite to major-league spring training, and he'll receive $1.75 million if he's in the majors in 2024. Giles impressed some teams during his showcase a month ago and will now join the... Read More