MLB Player News

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.

Guerrero's time at the Arizona Fall League will end early as the prospect left to attend a family matter Tuesday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Guerrero couldn't manage to hit a home run in 19 games in Arizona, but otherwise did nothing to quell the hype that surrounds him. The 19-year-old hit an impressive .351/.409/.442 with seven doubles in the AFL.

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.

Dixon was claimed off waivers by the Tigers on Friday.

Dixon made his major-league debut with the Reds in 2018, though he struggled to a .178/.218/.356 line with five homers in 74 games. The 26-year-old also appeared in 49 games with Triple-A Louisville, slashing .346/.389/.570 with six homers. Dixon should get an opportunity to compete for a utility role in spring training.

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.

Bohm spent his time in the instructional league working on his defense, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

Bohm hit a mediocre .252/.335/.324 in 40 games split across the three lowest levels of the minors in an injury-shortened first professional season. His bigger problems came on the defensive side of the ball, where he committed 10 errors and posted an .884 fielding percentage. That adds to the already-significant concerns that he'll be able to stick at third base, as only two players (Kris Bryant and Troy Glaus) 6-foot-5 or taller have ever played 200 games at the position in the majors. Bohm's bat obviously becomes less exciting at first base, though pre-draft evaluations suggested that it's strong enough to profile there as well.

Rizzo went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's division-tiebreaking loss to the Brewers.

Rizzo provided all of the offense that the Cubs could muster with his solo shot. For Rizzo, it was nice to see him hit his first homer since Sept. 3 to give him 25 on the year to go with 101 RBI. The Cubs will hope that he continues to show more power as they look to advance out of the wild-card round.

Rizzo went 4-for-4 with a walk, two doubles, an RBI and three runs scored Sunday against the Cardinals.

Rizzo reached base in all of his plate appearances Sunday, highlighted by his 28th and 29th doubles of the season. His lone RBI gave him exactly 100 for the season, marking the fourth straight campaign he's reached that plateau. On the other hand, Rizzo struggled to hit for power by his lofty standards, failing to record at least a .500 slugging percentage for the first time since 2014.