MLB Player News

The Angels designated Zuniga for assignment Tuesday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

The move clears a spot on the 40-man roster for the addition of Travis d'Arnaud, who was signed to a two-year deal Tuesday. Zuniga, 26, posted a 5.09 ERA and 12:8 K:BB over 17.2 innings this season while notching a pair of saves.

The Cardinals are not mulling a move to the rotation for Helsley, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

All 239 appearances for Helsley at the major-league level have come in relief, but he came up through the minors as a starting pitcher. While there has been some speculation the Cardinals might consider giving the 30-year-old another chance to start, it does not appear that is in the plans following Helsley's major-league-leading 49 saves in 2024. They will, however, reportedly entertain trade offers for Helsley, who is entering his final year of arbitration eligibility.

Oller has agreed to a contract with the KIA Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization, Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Oller will likely slide into the rotation of the defending KBO champions. The 30-year-old right-hander has posted a 6.54 ERA over 36 appearances (23 starts) across parts of three seasons at the major-league level.

Paredes agreed to a minor-league contract with Atlanta on Monday, which includes an invitation to spring training, Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Paredes returned to the big leagues in 2024 after spending the entire 2023 campaign at Triple-A. He made stops with the Cubs and Brewers, posting a 1.66 ERA and 1.06 WHIP with a 16:10 K:BB over 18 regular-season relief appearances (21.2 innings). Paredes will get the opportunity to make the Opening Day roster with his new club, who is looking for bullpen help following the news that Joe Jimenez is out for the next 8-to-12 months while recovering from knee surgery.

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

Leibrandt elected free agency after being dropped from Cincinnati's 40-man roster in October, and he'll now join the Yankees organization to help fill out the roster at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The 31-year-old southpaw put up a 4.41 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 87.2 minor-league innings last season across 18 starts.

Mushinski signed a minor-league contract with the Guardians on Friday and received an invitation to spring training, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Mushinski allowed eight earned runs over 11 innings in the big leagues with Houston last season. However, most of his time was spent at Triple-A, where the 28-year-old southpaw posted a 5.44 ERA over 44.2 frames. He will most likely fill in as organizational bullpen depth for the Guardians.

The Rockies claimed Herget off waivers from the Cubs on Friday.

Herget has now gone from Atlanta to Chicago to Colorado since September. The righty was one of the better relievers in the American League in 2022 with the Angels when he posted a 2.48 ERA and 0.91 WHIP while notching nine saves, but he has a 4.57 ERA and 1.38 WHIP over the last two seasons and has spent substantial time in the minors.

Athletics general manager David Forst said this week that the team isn't considering moving Miller back into a starting role, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

When the Athletics announced last offseason that Miller would be used as a reliever, they didn't rule out the right-hander eventually returning to the rotation. However, it appears that ship has now sailed and Miller's future is in the bullpen. He was one of the best closers in baseball in 2024, posting a 2.49 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 104:21 K:BB over 65 innings. Given his past health issues, it's not a surprise that the team has opted to leave Miller in a role in which he's proven he can stay heathy and effective.

The Angels designated Miller for assignment Thursday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Miller made his big-league debut in 2024 as a 28-year-old, maintaining a 4.15 ERA and 1.62 WHIP across 13 innings while working in relief. He'll remain in the Angels' organization and could have the chance to return to the majors at some point in 2025.

Hoffman is being pursued by some teams in free agency as a starting pitcher, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Hoffman, who turns 32 in January, broke out as a full-time reliever the last two seasons with the Phillies, posting a 2.28 ERA and 158:35 K:BB over 118.2 innings. He does have plenty of past experience as a starter and throws four pitches, so some clubs are intrigued by the possibility of giving him another shot to start. It's not clear what Hoffman's preference is -- or if he has one -- but he should be able to land a nice multi-year contract either way.