MLB Player News

McBride reached a minor-league agreement with Philadelphia on Friday which includes an invitation to spring training.

McBride was in the same exact position a year ago and wound up spending the entire season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He slashed .242/.333/.479 with 10 home runs and 26 RBI, solid numbers but nothing worthy of a promotion. Expect to see him back with the IronPigs in 2019.

The Diamondbacks traded Goldschmidt to the Cardinals on Wednesday in exchange for Luke Weaver, Carson Kelly, Andrew Young and a 2019 Competitive Balance Round B draft pick, Jon Heyman of FancredSports.com reports.

Talks between the two clubs quickly escalated Wednesday afternoon, and a deal has been struck to send the perennial All-Star to St. Louis. Goldschmidt will immediately provide a strong middle-of-the-order bat to the Cardinals after slashing .290/.389/.533 with 33 home runs and 83 RBI last season, which is all the more impressive considering he was barely above the Mendoza Line at the end of May.

Cooper (wrist) is hopeful that he'll be healthy by spring training, but is yet to resume any "functional activity," according to President of Baseball Operations Michael Hill, Wells Dusenbury of The Sun Sentinel reports.

Cooper underwent surgery on his right wrist tendon in late August after hitting the disabled list with a sprain in July. The 27-year-old still has a few months to get back into the swing of things, though his availability this spring is vital in securing an Opening Day roster spot. In just 14 games with the big-league team last year, he went 7-for-33 with two RBI.

Beaty was added to the Dodgers' 40-man roster Tuesday.

A 25-year-old corner infielder, Beaty plays primarily first base, so there will be a lot of pressure on his bat in the coming years. He has been at least 10 percent better than league average at every stop, but may not hit for enough power to profile as an everyday player. Last year he hit .277/.378/.406 with one home run in 31 games at Triple-A.

France was added to the Padres' 40-man roster Tuesday.

France began the 2018 season with Double-A San Antonio and had a .798 OPS and 17 home runs in 112 games before earning a promotion to Triple-A El Paso. The 24-year-old fared even better with the Chihuahuas, posting a .914 OPS with five home runs over 25 games.

Hiura was named the MVP of the Arizona Fall League, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports.

Hiura started hitting early in the fall season and never slowed down, and when it was all said and done, he hit .323/.371/.563 with five home runs and 33 RBI over 23 games. Considered the Brewers' best hitting prospect, Hiura reached the Double-A level for the first time in 2018 and posted a .755 OPS over 73 games. It seems unlikely he heads into 2019 as the Brewers' starting second baseman, but if he continues hitting like he has at every level to this point, he could make his big-league debut at some point next year.

Bour was cast off the 40-man roster and outrighted to the minors Wednesday, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Bour is now available to be claimed off waivers after the Phillies elected to free up his 40-man spot for a younger prospect they want to protect ahead of the Rule 5 draft. The first baseman was traded to Philadelphia from Miami in mid-August, and wound up slashing just .224/.296/.347 with one home run and five RBI in his brief time on the diamond (49 plate appearances) with his new team. A disabled list stint due to an oblique injury didn't help matters, but Bour was barely utilized in Philadelphia, only making a handful of starts in his month-and-a-half stay. In 2017, Bour hit .289 with a .902 OPS, 25 home runs and 83 RBI, so he has the potential to to be a strong left-handed bat for a team in need. In the event that Bour clears waivers, expect him to reject an outright assignment to the minors and choose to become a free agent.

General manager Brodie Van Wagenen said Flores (knee) is fully healthy, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

Flores was shut down in mid-September with early onset arthritis in his knees, but he's apparently back to full health heading into winter. At this point, it's unclear if the Mets will tender the utility man a contract after he hit .267/.319/.417 with 11 homers in 126 games in 2018.

Alonso will be invited to spring training and is expected to have the opportunity to compete for the starting job at first base, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

Alonso has yet to make his major-league debut despite putting together a .260/.355/.585 slash line with 21 home runs and 67 RBI across 67 games at Triple-A Las Vegas in 2018. He's expected to see a lot of at-bats during spring training and could ultimately earn a starting role if he's able to impress.

The Diamondbacks exercised Goldschmidt's $14.5 million option for 2019, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

This comes as no surprise, as Goldschmidt posted another MVP-caliber season for the Diamondbacks in 2018, hitting .290/.389/.533 with 33 homers, 83 RBI and seven stolen bases in 158 games. Arizona is reportedly shopping him this offseason, although there is no guarantee that their logically steep asking price will be met.