MLB Player News

Jimenez was added to the White Sox's 40-man roster on Monday to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

One of the top prospects in the game, Jimenez was perhaps the best hitter in all the minors after getting traded from the Cubs in the Jose Quintana trade this past summer. He has monstrous raw power and an excellent hit tool, profiling very nicely as a future cleanup-hitting right fielder. The White Sox will face a difficult decision with Jimenez this season, as he could be forcing the issue for a promotion to the majors at some point this summer, but if they are disciplined enough to hold him down until April 2019, they would gain an extra year of control.

Ohtani's (ankle) move to MLB in 2018 is not certain to happen, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.

The MLB Players Union set up a deadline of 8 p.m. ET on Monday for themselves, MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball to come to terms on a new posting agreement. It was reported last week that Ohtani had been posted, but MLBPA's concerns regarding the new posting system could result in the Nippon-Ham Fighters not posting him this season. We should know by the end of the day whether an agreement has been reached that would allow Ohtani to come over this season.

Stanton was named National League MVP on Thursday.

Stanton ended up narrowly edging out Joey Votto to take home his first MVP award. The slugging outfielder put together a historic campaign during which he led the majors in both homers (59) and RBI (132), while also hitting an impressive .281/.376/.631 in 159 games. He'll be the subject of trade talks all offseason, though he ultimately has the right to veto or accept any trade.

Jimenez (leg/illness) returned to action Sunday in the Dominican Winter League, Junior Matrille of Fiebredeportiva.com reports.

It was originally reported that he suffered a minor leg injury, but he also dealt with the flu over the past few days. When healthy, Jimenez has been a dominant force in the Dominican Winter League. He has four home runs and a 1.175 OPS in 15 games, picking up where he left off at the end of the minor-league season at Double-A. Jimenez could earn an assignment to Triple-A out of spring training, with a chance to force a big-league promotion this summer.

Trade talks between the Marlins and Red Sox for Stanton "may be heating up," according to an MLB source, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports. "They're definitely in play," the source said of the Red Sox, who are at least exploring the possibility of acquiring MLB's reigning home-run king.

The Marlins are believed to be prepared to entertain offers for Stanton at next week's meeting of general managers that kicks off Monday in Orlando. Other teams are reportedly in the mix, including the Cardinals, Phillies and Giants. Stanton has the right to veto or accept any trade, and there's speculation that he would prefer to play on one of the coasts. The Red Sox are circling in after a year in which they experienced a drop in power.

Ohtani (ankle) will be available this winter after being posted by the Nippon-Ham Fighters on Friday, Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times reports.

Although this was one of the most expected announcements of the offseason, it is now official, and teams will be able to negotiate for the 23-year-old's services in the near future. At this point, it would be very surprising if Ohtani is not wearing an MLB uniform by the time spring training rolls around. He's coming off ankle surgery in October but is fully expected to be ready for spring training.

Canha had surgery on his right wrist to remove a cyst Tuesday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Canha should be all healed up and ready to go by the time spring training rolls around, barring any sort of setback that stems from this procedure. During the 2017 season, the outfielder played in 57 big-league games for the A's, slashing .208/.262/.382 with five home runs and 14 RBI.

Jimenez injured his leg during Wednesday's game in the Dominican Winter League, Phil Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Jimenez apparently tweaked his leg while running the bases in Wednesday's game with Gigantes del Cibao of the Dominican Winter League. The injury isn't considered serious and the top prospect shouldn't be sidelined for too long. Jimenez is off to a strong start this winter, hitting .367 with three home runs and a 1.090 OPS in 49 at-bats.

Brantley (ankle) will remain with the Indians next year after the team decided to pick up his $12 million option for 2018, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

Brantley underwent ankle surgery a couple of weeks ago, which could wind up causing him to miss the beginning of spring training, but it appears as though Cleveland isn't too worried about his status. The team elected to retain Brantley's services for another season, which will come after a rough couple of injury-plagued campaigns in 2016 and 2017. Although he only played in 90 regular-season games this past season, he did slash .299/.357/.444 with nine home runs and 52 RBI, giving the team confidence that if he can get healthy, the 30-year-old can be a weapon in 2018.

The Pirates picked up McCutchen's $14.5 million club option for 2018 on Friday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

McCutchen will return to Pittsburgh for another season following this announcement, as the 31-year-old underwent an up-and-down season in 2017. All in all, he wound up slashing .279/.363/.486 with 28 home runs and 88 RBI, and he hit .361 after May 26.