MLB Player News

Miley is expected to claim the fourth spot in Houston's starting rotation, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Miley's careening career may have been salvaged in 2018, when he threw his cutter more than any other pitch. His pitch mix helped fuel a career-best 2.57 ERA over 80.2 innings with the Brewers. While it's prudent for fantasy owners to be circumspect of the left-hander's sudden break from empirical evidence, his success in 2018 appears to be more than just a fluke occurrence. Opponents will make adjustments, so we're hesitant to conclude Miley will replicate last season's production, but he may be useful pitching in front of a high-octane Astros offense, which finished sixth in runs scored last year.

Miley signed a one-year, $4.5 million contract with the Astros on Thursday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Miley is coming off a surprise 2018 campaign that saw him post a 2.57 ERA and 1.22 WHIP across 16 starts (80.2 innings) with the Brewers. The veteran southpaw figures to slide into the back end of Houston's starting rotation. The ERA estimators -- 3.59 FIP, 4.30 xFIP -- suggest it would be unwise to expect a repeat campaign from Miley in 2019.

Houck had his pitch mix adjusted midseason in 2018 and had better results following the change, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Houck, 22, came out of Missouri with a two-seam fastball-slider mix, but the Red Sox had him focus on throwing four-seamers to start 2018. Things didn't go so well -- he had a 6.16 ERA and 1.91 WHIP over his first 11 starts -- and the right-hander returned to throwing the two-seamer as his main pitch. That led to a 2.86 ERA and 1.08 WHIP over his final 12 starts at High-A Salem. It looks like the organization found the right pitch mix for Houck. "He went back to primarily a two-seam fastball with the knuckle-curve, elevating the four-seamer, sinking the changeup. And I think for now, that's a really good mix for him with everything we've seen from him and as he continues his journey through the minor leagues," vice president of pitching development Brian Bannister told Smith.

Baxendale signed a minor-league contract with the Twins on Monday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Baxendale is back with the Twins after spending the entire 2018 campaign with Triple-A Rochester, posting a 3.74 ERA and 61:19 K:BB across 67.1 innings. The 28-year-old right-hander figures to serve as organizational pitching depth for Minnesota.

Cease will begin the 2019 season at Triple-A Charlotte, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

With Michael Kopech sidelined by Tommy John elbow surgery, Cease becomes the starter prospect most likely to make an impact at the major-league level in 2019. The right-hander exhibited no dropoff moving from High-A to Double-A last year, and if he remains on that trajectory, pitching in Chicago after the All-Star break is a real possibility.

Luzardo was among the pitchers general manager David Forst named Friday as candidates for the Oakland rotation this season, Chris Haft of MLB.com reports. "We're not going to rule [Luzardo making the Opening Day rotation] out. I think we've said that for a little while," Forst said. "If he's good enough, there's no reason not to have him in the rotation. It's obviously a big leap for someone who has thrown only a few innings at Triple-A. But he's going to get a nice, long look in spring training -- as long a look as you can get in 32 days, or however long we're down there."

Beyond free-agent signings Mike Fiers and Marco Estrada, Oakland appears to have no other surefire rotation members from a group that includes Luzardo, Daniel Mengden, Paul Blackburn, Chris Bassitt, Aaron Brooks and Frankie Montas. While Haft notes that Forst rattled off five of those names before mentioning Luzardo, the 21-year-old lefty unquestionably has the highest fantasy upside of the lot. Across stops at three minor-league levels in 2018, Luzardo rode his big fastball to a 2.88 ERA and 129 strikeouts over 109.1 frames. Now almost three years removed from March 2016 Tommy John surgery, Luzardo could push for over 150 innings, with a decent chunk -- if not all -- likely to come at Oakland if the organization determines he's sufficiently battle tested in the high minors.

Canning was invited to the Angels' major-league spring training camp Friday.

Despite the invitation, Canning isn't expected to open the year with the big-league club. He had an excellent 1.97 ERA in 10 starts for Double-A Mobile but sputtered to a 5.49 ERA in 13 starts following a promotion to Triple-A Salt Lake. Conquering that level should give him a shot to debut at some point later this season.

Bridwell was designated for assignment by the Athletics on Friday, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

Bridwell was claimed off waivers by the A's on Tuesday but ends up with a potentially short stay in Oakland. The team signed Marco Estrada to a one-year deal, prompting the move to clear space on the 40-man roster. Bridwell could remain with the Athletics, but he would first have to clear waivers.

Boyd shed 15 pounds of fat this offseason as he changed his diet and workout routine, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Boyd had a solid season in 2018 with a 4.39 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 159:51 K:BB over 170.1 innings and reached a $2.6 million deal with the Tigers earlier in January to avoid arbitration. The left-hander -- who turns 28 in early February -- should begin the season as Detroit's top arm in the starting rotation, and it should be interesting to see what impact his leaner frame has on his production, if any.

Gibson is recovering from E. coli, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Gibson's illness originally came out due to his unavailability for TwinsFest, but now there's finally a name to the issue at hand. This doesn't seem like an issue that will keep him out of spring training much if at all, but more information on his status should come forth as he moves along in his recovery process at the team's facility in Fort Myers.