MLB Player News

The Nationals selected Herz to their 40-man roster Tuesday.

Herz was acquired from the Cubs this past July as part of the Jeimer Candelario trade and is now protected from being plucked away from another organization in next month's Rule 5 Draft. The 22-year-old left-hander holds a career 3.64 ERA with a whopping 413 strikeouts in 281.2 total minor-league innings.

The Brewers selected Blalock to their 40-man roster Monday, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

The 22-year-old right-hander is likely at least a year away from putting himself in consideration for a spot in the big leagues, but the Brewers saw enough from Blalock following his Aug. 1 acquisition from the Red Sox to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft this winter. After missing most of the first two months of the past season season while finishing up his recovery from March 2022 Tommy John surgery, Blalock proceeded to turn in a 2.82 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 75:20 K:BB over 67 innings between stops at the Single-A and High-A levels.

Oviedo is dealing with a right elbow injury which could potentially require Tommy John surgery, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Oviedo didn't battle any known elbow issues during the regular season, so this news comes out of the blue. Mackey notes that while nothing has been decided yet in regards to how the injury will be treated, Tommy John surgery "has been discussed." Oviedo would be sidelined until 2025 if that procedure is ultimately required. The right-hander went through ups and downs with the Pirates in 2023 but had a fairly encouraging season overall in collecting a 4.31 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 158:83 K:BB over 177.2 innings. It was more than a 60-inning jump from his 2022 workload.

The Giants pulled Bednar from the Arizona Fall League due to recurring back discomfort, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Bednar made six appearances in the Fall League before being pulled, surrendering eight runs over 5.1 innings. This isn't the first time Bednar's back has been an issue, as he was limited to just four appearances in the Arizona Complex League this season and hasn't pitched in Single-A since 2022.

Peterson underwent surgery Monday to repair the labrum in his left hip, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

The Mets noted that the procedure usually takes 6-to-7 months to recover from, which means Peterson could miss roughly the first two months of next season. It's unclear how long the hip has been bothering Peterson, but it's possible it contributed to an up-and-down 2023 season which saw the lefty hold a 5.03 ERA and 128:50 K:BB over 111 innings. The Mets had already figured to be in the market for rotation help this offseason, and this news only reinforces that notion.

Smyly exercised his $8.5 million player option for the 2024 season Monday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

Smyly will remain in Chicago for the 2024 campaign, as he was unlikely to surpass his guaranteed money elsewhere over the next year. He'll look to bounce back after a rocky 2023 season, accruing a 5.00 ERA and 1.43 WHIP with a 141:56 K:BB across 142.1 innings.

Battenfield cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday.

He's no longer part of the Mets' 40-man roster but will remain in the organization. Battenfield collected a 5.19 ERA over 34.2 innings at the major-league level in 2023.

Plassmeyer cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday.

He's no longer on the Phillies; 40-man roster but will remain in the organization for the time being. Plassmeyer was rocked for 10 runs (nine earned) over 3.2 innings in his lone appearance for Philadelphia this season.

Atlanta exercised Morton's $20 million team option for the 2024 season on Monday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

According to Passan, the organization had some uncertainty at bringing Morton back for his age-40 season at a sizable salary, but the veteran right-hander will ultimately stick around in Atlanta for what could be his final campaign in the big leagues. Though his 11.6 percent walk rate in 2023 represented his worst mark since his rookie campaign, Morton struck out more than a quarter of the batters he faced for the third season in a row and was able to suppress home runs (0.77 HR/9). Even in the twilight of his career, Morton still looks like a strong mid-to-back-end rotation arm, and his fantasy outlook is made more promising by the fact that he'll be back by one of the top offenses in baseball.

The Giants exercised Cobb's (hip) $10 team million option for 2024 on Monday, Danny Emerman of KNBR 680 San Francisco reports.

Cobb is expected to be sidelined for at least the first month or so of the 2024 season after having surgery last week to repair his left hip. Even with that, the Giants decided it was worth bringing the right-hander back rather than pay him a $2 million buyout. Cobb pitched well in 2023 when healthy, collecting a 3.87 ERA and 131:37 K:BB over 151.1 frames covering 28 starts.