MLB Player News

Soriano (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.

Soriano was selected by the Pirates with the first pick of the Rule 5 draft in December, but he'll begin the season on the injured list after undergoing Tommy John surgery in February 2020. The move will clear a spot on the 40-man roster for southpaw Tyler Anderson. Prior to his surgery, Soriano recorded a 2.55 ERA and 84:48 K:BB over 77.2 innings at the Low-A level.

Strop signed a minor-league contract with the Cubs on Wednesday as a non-roster invitee, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Strop signed with the Cubs for the final month of the 2020 season, and he'll return to the team to compete for a major-league roster spot during spring training. The right-hander failed to appear in the big leagues with Chicago last year but has made 54 relief appearances with the Cubs and Reds over the past two seasons. During that time, he posted a 4.91 ERA and 52:26 K:BB over 44 innings.

The Marlins acquired Curtiss from the Rays on Wednesday in exchange for first baseman Evan Edwards, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Curtiss emerged from relative obscurity to become a key piece in the Tampa Bay bullpen in 2020, submitting a 1.80 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 22.2 K-BB% over 25 innings. The 27-year-old looked on track to factor into the setup mix for Tampa Bay in 2021, but the organization instead elected to cash him in for a minor-league prospect in Edwards to clear up space on the 40-man roster. The move to Miami should at least put Curtiss in better position to contend for saves and holds, as the Marlins' late-inning pecking order remains unsettled heading into spring training. Anthony Bass, who inked a two-year deal with Miami in the offseason, will presumably enter the spring as the frontrunner for the closer's gig, but Curtiss could eventually gain traction in the ninth inning if he's able to carry over his strong form from 2020.

Varland will join the Dodgers at their big-league camp in spring training, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

Varland was acquired by the defending champions from Oakland in a trade last week, and he'll now get a chance to show off his ability during spring training. The right-hander has shown considerable success across 64.1 minor-league innings, though he has yet to pitch above the High-A level.

Hicks, who missed the 2020 season due to the completion of his recovery from Tommy John surgery and his decision to opt out for precautionary health reasons, is expected to eventually return to full-time closing duties, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Goold answers a reader question about whether the hard-throwing right-hander has a chance to be named the official closer by Opening Day by emphasizing there are likely to be a couple of moving parts to the equation. How Hicks looks after last pitching in a major-league game June 22, 2019 will naturally be one of the major factors at play, as well as how others capable of handling ninth-inning work such as Andrew Miller and Giovanny Gallegos perform in exhibition play. Goold adds it's his belief the Cardinals will unsurprisingly err on the side of caution with Hicks and allow him to reacclimate at his own pace, as opposed to applying any indirect pressure by officially labeling him the closer early in camp.

Kimbrel was listed as the Cubs' closer by manager David Ross on Tuesday, Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Kimbrel's track record made him the obvious favorite, though his performance since joining the Cubs in the middle of the 2019 season means his grip on the role may not be too firm. In 36 innings for Chicago, he owns a 6.00 ERA, with his 35.2 percent strikeout rate proving insufficient when combined with a 14.5 percent walk rate and 2.8 HR/9. He can safely be drafted as if he'll be the team's closer on Opening Day following Ross' vote of confidence, especially as top alternative Rowan Wick is dealing with an intercostal strain, but he'll need much better numbers if he's to keep hold of the job.

Sborz cleared waivers Tuesday and will remain part of the Dodgers organization, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

As a 27-year-old with a 6.08 career ERA in just 13.1 total innings at the highest level, Sborz didn't generate any interest on the waiver wire. He'll serve as organizational depth this season and is unlikely to fill more than a low-leverage relief role.

Alzolay is vying for an open rotation spot with the Cubs this spring, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Yu Darvish, Jon Lester, Jose Quintana and Tyler Chatwood are all gone, and Zach Davies and Jake Arrieta have been added to the mix. Behind those two additions and returning starters Kyle Hendricks and Alec Mills, the Cubs seem to have a wide open fifth spot, and Alzolay may emerge as the favorite. He looked good in limited opportunities last season, posting a 2.95 ERA and 1.17 WHIP across six appearances (four starts). The 25-year-old had some decent prospect buzz as he moved up in Chicago's system, so the organization could be inclined to give him a shot.

Underwood is one of several players who will vie for an open rotation spot with the Cubs this spring, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

The Cubs have parted ways with Yu Darvish, Jon Lester, Jose Quintana and Tyler Chatwood this offseason. The team did acquire Zach Davies in the Darvish trade and decided to bring back Jake Arrieta, but there are still innings to fill behind staff ace Kyle Hendricks. Underwood has made 30 appearances for the Cubs the past three seasons but only one of them was a start, so he's likely more of a longshot rotation option at this point, but his status will likely become clearer during spring training.

Boxberger signed a minor-league contract with the Brewers on Sunday as a non-roster invitee, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN reports.

Boxberger made 23 relief appearances for the Marlins in 2020, posting a 3.00 ERA and 1.39 WHIP over 18.0 innings. He'll now join his fifth team in as many seasons and will compete for a major-league roster spot with the Brewers during spring training.