MLB Player News

Martin (shoulder) and the Rangers agreed on a one-year, $1.275 million contract Friday, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Martin and the team were able to avoid dealing with the arbitration process. The left-hander ended the 2022 season on the 15-day injured list with a shoulder injury, and he recently suffered a setback that will affect his availability for most of the 2023 campaign. Martin will require surgery and should be considered out indefinitely until the team releases a recovery timeline.

Mayza agreed to a one-year, $2.1 million contract with the Blue Jays on Friday to avoid arbitration, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Mayza was once again a solid bullpen piece for Toronto in 2022 and recorded two saves and 16 holds with a 3.14 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 44:12 K:BB across 48.2 innings. The veteran lefty should fill a similar role out of the bullpen in 2023.

Richards signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Blue Jays on Friday to avoid arbitration, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The 29-year-old held a 5.34 ERA but also struck out 82 over 64 innings for the Blue Jays last season. Richards has plenty of past starting experience but appears pegged for a full-time relief gig again in 2023. He did serve as an opener for the Jays a few times in 2022 and might be used some in that role again for the upcoming season.

Alcala (elbow) signed a one-year, $790,000 contract with the Twins on Friday to avoid arbitration, Darren Wolfson of Channel 5 Saint Paul reports.

Alcala was limited to just two appearances for the Twins in 2022 due to an elbow issue while eventually required surgery in August. He's expected to be ready for Opening Day and has the potential to be a high-leverage bullpen option if he can stay healthy.

Bowman re-signed with the Yankees on a minor-league contract Friday.

Bowman hasn't pitched anywhere since 2019, as his career has been sidetracked by elbow problems. It would appear that he could finally be healthy now, although he'll have plenty of rust to knock off before being a consideration for the Yankees.

Taylor and the Astros agreed on a one-year, $830,000 contract Friday to avoid arbitration, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The left-handed reliever appeared in 19 games with the Astros last season, producing a 3.94 ERA and 1.56 WHIP with 19 strikeouts over 16 innings pitched. Taylor will likely remain a middle relief option for Houston in 2023.

Littell signed a minor-league contract with the Rangers on Thursday, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.com reports.

Littell will be in big-league camp as a non-roster invitee. The 27-year-old was highly effective out of the Giants' bullpen in 2021 before stumbling to a 5.08 ERA in 2022. He should have a decent chance to win a middle-relief role in Texas.

Taylor (back) signed a one-year, $1.025 million contract with the Red Sox on Thursday to avoid arbitration, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Taylor missed the entire 2022 campaign with a back injury, but he was effective for Boston in 2021 with a 3.40 ERA and 60 strikeouts over 47.2 innings. Assuming he's over his back issue, he'll open 2023 as one of the team's left-handed relievers.

Jackson agreed to a minor-league contract with the Blue Jays on Wednesday, which includes an invite to major-league spring training, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Jackson spent the 2022 campaign with Atlanta but appeared in just two big-league contests. He pitched well at the Triple-A level with a 2.29 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 25:4 K:BB across 19.2 innings after he sat out first couple months of the season with a lat strain.

Fujinami agreed Wednesday with the Athletics on a one-year contract, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

According to Passan, the 28-year-old right-hander is expected to slot into the Oakland rotation while he makes the jump to MLB after spending the past 10 seasons in his native Japan with Nippon Professional Baseball's Hanshin Tigers. Fujinami stands at imposing 6-foot-6 and sports an upper-90s fastball that can touch the triple digits, but he didn't dominate against NPB competition to the extent his skill set might suggest. While moving between the rotation and bullpen in 2022 for Hanshin, he turned in a 3.38 ERA and struck out 23.6 percent of the batters he faced. He was able to trim his walk rate to a palatable 7.5 percent after often struggling with his control in his prior seasons with Japan, but the move to MLB could make it difficult to maintain that improvement while he faces higher-caliber hitters.