MLB Player News

Graves was outrighted to Triple-A New Orleans on Tuesday, Andre Fernandez of The Athletic reports.

Despite never having pitched at Triple-A, the 25-year-old made his major-league debut in 2018, posting a 5.40 ERA, 1.59 WHIP and 21:12 K:BB across 33.1 innings of relief.

Lorenzen could see some playing time in the outfield under new manager David Bell, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

In a small sample of 92 career plate appearances, Lorenzen has looked like a capable big-league hitter, posting a .250/.276/.500 slash line (good for a 101 wRC+) with six homers. His 31.5 percent strikeout rate and 2.2 percent walk rate cast some doubt on the idea that he should hit on a regular basis, however. As a pitcher, Lorenzen's 3.11 ERA in 81 innings last season was solid, but as a player who worked primarily as a non-closing reliever, his fantasy value was limited. If he does become something approaching a true two-way player, that would have appeal in certain formats, though it's not clear yet just how often Bell intends to use him in the field.

President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein said Friday that Darvish (elbow) looks healthy and is expected to resume throwing in a couple weeks, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

Darvish underwent an arthroscopic debridement procedure of his right elbow in mid-September after batting arm injuries throughout the course of the 2018 campaign. It should come as no surprise that he hasn't started throwing just yet, though there will be some cause for concern if he isn't cleared by the end of December, considering his previous issues. The right-hander was limited to just eight starts this past year, logging a 4.95 ERA and 1.42 WHIP across 40 innings.

Manager Mickey Callaway said he prefers to keep Lugo in the bullpen heading into the 2019 season, Matt Ehalt of The Record reports.

This shouldn't come as much of a surprise considering Lugo served exclusively as a reliever during the second half of this past season. He only would up starting five games in 54 appearances while logging a 2.10 ERA and 0.82 WHIP during the final two months. The 29-year-old figures to serve in a high-leverage, multi-inning setup role alongside Robert Gsellman with the recently-acquired Edwin Diaz set to close.

Kelly signed a two-year, $5.5 million contract with the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports.

The deal also includes a pair of club options. Kelly has yet to pitch in the majors, having topped out at Triple-A with the Rays in 2014 before moving to the KBO. The 30-year-old pitched well during his four seasons with SK Wyverns in Korea, notching a combined 3.86 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 641:206 K:BB across 119 appearances (118 starts, 729.2 innings). The right-hander figures to have the inside track for a rotation spot with Arizona in 2019.

Corbin agreed to a six-year contract with the Nationals on Tuesday, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports. The deal is worth $140 million, according to Jon Heyman of FancredSports.com.

Corbin will round out an impressive rotation in Washington that already sports Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. The 29-year-old Corbin was rewarded after his breakout campaign in 2018, during which he posted an impressive 3.15 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 246:48 K:BB across 200 innings (33 starts) with the Diamondbacks.

Nicasio (knee) was traded from Seattle to Philadelphia along with Jean Segura for Carlos Santana and J.P. Crawford on Monday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Nicasio battled a knee injury throughout 2018 and struggled to a 6.00 ERA in 42 innings, but his underlying numbers are quite promising and he's expected to be good to go in 2019 following a cleanup procedure. His 2.99 FIP was a near match for the 2.98 FIP he posted in 2017, and he walked an incredibly low 2.7 percent of batters while striking out a career-high 29.0 percent. If he experiences positive regression back towards his peripherals in 2019, he could be in contention for a high-leverage role in a Phillies bullpen which lacks an established hierarchy, though he's unlikely to have an inside shot on the closer role.

Solis signed a one-year, $850,000 contract with Washington on Friday to avoid arbitration, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.

Solis appeared in 56 games for the Nationals in 2018, though he posted a disastrous 6.41 ERA and 1.55 WHIP while working in low-leverage spots. He will likely be able to pin down an Opening Day roster spot, as his 4.95 FIP and 44:18 K:BB across 39.1 innings should've led to better results this past season.

McCreery was traded to the Dodgers from Atlanta on Wednesday in exchange for cash considerations.

In a corresponding move, the Dodgers designated Pat Venditte for assignment in order to make room on the 40-man roster for their newly-acquired pitcher. McCreery only appeared in one big-league game this past season but posted a 3.62 ERA and 71:37 K:BB across 54.2 innings between Double-A and Triple-A. In addition, the southpaw held left-handed hitters to a slash line of .218/.322/.282. He still has two options remaining so look for McCreery to begin the 2019 campaign back in the minor leagues.

McCreery was designated for assignment by Atlanta on Monday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

McCreery was bumped off the 40-man roster to make room for the addition of Josh Donaldson. McCreery made his big-league debut during the 2018 season but spent the majority of the year at Double-A Gwinnett, posting a 3.83 ERA and 1.72 WHIP with 61 strikeouts over 47 frames.