MLB Player News

While there has been a lot of chatter this offseason about the Reds moving Joey Votto into the No. 2 spot in the lineup because of his high on-base percentage, manager Bryan Price told MLB Network Radio Wednesday it's unlikely they will move Votto in the lineup.

"I don’t think so," Price said of hitting Votto second. "He’s our best hitter. Our most productive hitter. He's worked hard to understand the strike zone."

The Braves and first baseman Freddie Freeman have agreed to an eight-year contract worth $135 million, MLB.com reports.

News of the two sides agreeing to an extension broke earlier Tuesday and the initial figures had the deal in the $100-million range, but the actual total ends up being a fair amount more than that. An eight-year deal keeps Freeman in Atlanta through 2021, when he'll be 32 years old.

Freeman has spent three seasons and change with the Braves, hitting .285/.358/.466 with 68 home runs and 280 RBI in 1,686 at-bats. He had his best statistical season in 2013, when he hit .319/.396/.501 with 23 home runs and 109 RBI in 551 at-bats.

The Braves extension with first baseman Freddie Freeman will be in the $100 million range, according to FoxSports.com.

Freeman was set to go to arbitration with the club, but avoided it by coming to a multi-year agreement. One source told FoxSports.com the deal could wind up being eight-years, $125 million. It was initially unclear whether the extension would buy out his remaining arbitration-eligible seasons, or if it would cover some of his free-agent years. If the deal is worth close to $100 million, it would surely buy out a few seasons of Freeman's free agency. Freeman is under team control through 2016. 

The Braves have agreed to an extension with Freddie Freeman, according to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman. 

It was reported early Tuesday that the two sides were nearing an agreement. Terms of the contract are not known at this time. Freeman was set to go to arbitration with the club in February. Freeman hit .319/.396/.501 in 551 at-bats last year.

The Braves are getting close to a multi-year extension with first baseman Freddie Freeman, according to FoxSports.com.

The team signed Jason Heyward to a two-year extension Tuesday, and are looking to lock up Freeman as well. It's unclear if the extension would cover Freeman's remaining arbitration seasons, like Heyward's deal, or if it would buy out some of his free-agent years. Freeman broke out last season, hitting .319/.396/.501 in 551 at-bats.

Braves general manager Frank Wren clarified the team's file and trial policy following the team handing out a two-year extension to outfielder Jason Heyward. 

Wren explained that the team's file and trial policy does not apply to multi-year contracts. There was some thought that the team abandoned their strategy, which would mean Freddie Freeman and Craig Kimbrel could sign before going to trial. That does not appear to be the case unless Freeman or Kimbrel are willing to accept multi-year deals. 

The Braves are set to go to arbitration with Jason Heyward, Craig Kimbrel and Freddie Freeman just days before the club gets together for spring training, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Heyward's hearing is set for February 11, Freeman's is on February 13 and Kimbrel's will take place February 17. Pitchers and catchers are set to report on the 12, while position players will report on the 18. All three players are expected to have the hearing, as the Braves are one of the teams that employ a "file to trial" method when it comes to arbitration.

Mets infielder Wilmer Flores began his pro career as a shortstop before his lack of mobility at the position forced the team to move him around the infield.

Well, Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said if Flores' offseason conditioning program pays the type of dividends they hope, then Flores could get some reps at shortstop this spring, per MLB.com.

"I don’t think we’d rule it out," Alderson said in a telephone interview. "Why should we? I think we have to see how spring training plays out for him -- is there going to be a spot for him in the lineup? Is there not? Is he going to be a bench player for us? Is he going to go to Las Vegas?"

Flores spent the offseason going through a team-supervised conditioning program instead of playing winter ball in Venezuela. The team wanted Flores to focus on his overall health.

"It became clear, if you watched him play last year and run the bases … that [conditioning] was an area that needed to improve," Alderson said. "Since he’d never done any conditioning at all, you say to yourself, ‘Gee, there may be substantial opportunity for improvement. Let’s see what happens. Let’s try it.’ And that’s what we’ve done. We won’t know the benefits of that until we get down to spring training. 

"I wouldn’t say [Flores to shortstop] is dead. I think that one of the things we want to see is how well he has done with his training regimen in Michigan."

The Phillies are "optimistic" about first baseman Ryan Howard's status heading into 2014, according to manager Ryne Sandberg. However, the team still has some concerns, particularly how Howard will perform against left-handed pitching, according to The Philadelphia Daily News.

Howard is a career .295 batter against right-handed pitchers, as opposed to a .224 batter against lefties. He's hit just .173 against lefties the last two seasons.

"He's going to get the opportunity to hit against lefties," Sandberg said. "That's in spring training . . . to get better at that. That's the first thing that takes place."

Still, unlike his predecessor -- Charlie Manuel -- who kept Howard in the lineup regularly, Sandberg alluded to benching Howard against lefties, if he doesn't improve.

"Not if we have a righthanded hitter that can go over there and hit. That's not a concern. 'Cause I can maybe do something about it," Sandberg said.

Yet, the Phillies are hoping it doesn't come to a platoon and remain confident Howard will be productive in 2014 after two straight disappointing seasons.

"I think he's going to be on the field and healthy and he's going to provide solid offense for us," general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "And I know if he's on the field, that's what he's doing, and we'll win games because he is on the field. He's 100 percent. There's nothing medically wrong with him. His knee's fine. His calf's fine. It's time for him to play and produce."

The Braves have exchanged salary arbitration figures with three players, CBSSports.com baseball insider Jon Heyman reports.

First baseman Freddie Freeman filed for $5.75 million, and the Braves offered $4.5 million. He is in his first year of arbitration eligibility after hitting .319/.396/.501 with 23 home runs and 109 RBI in 551 at-bats last season.

Outfielder Jason Heyward filed for $5.5 million, and the team offered $5.2 million. He is his second year of arbitration eligibility after making $3.65 million last season while hitting .254/.349/.427 with 14 home runs and 38 RBI in 382 at-bats.

Closer Craig Kimbrel filed for $9 million, and the team offered $6.55 million. He is in his first year of arbitration eligibility after leading the majors with 50 saves while posting a 1.21 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 98:20 K:BB ratio in 67 innings.