MLB Player News

Miley (elbow) is aiming to pitch during the second half of spring training and be ready for major-league games by late April or early May, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

A free agent, Miley underwent a hybrid UCL repair on his left elbow in May. The left-hander is 38 years old but wants to continue his career and hopes he can make it back to a major-league mound just 12 months or less post-surgery. Miley said his shoulder and the UCL part of his elbow feel "amazing," but he has bone spurs in the back of his elbow that he's "not recovering from great right now." The southpaw hopes to re-sign with the Brewers, but if that isn't in the cards he plans to be selective about where he pitches because he has two young children.

Burnes and the Diamondbacks agreed on a six-year, $210 million dollar contract Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

The Diamondbacks had been mostly quiet during the early part of the offseason, but they made their second big splash within the past seven days -- the first was a trade for first baseman Josh Naylor last Saturday -- with the signing of Burnes. The 30-year-old right-hander put up impressive numbers in his lone campaign with Baltimore last year, posting a 2.92 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and career-high 15 wins over 194.1 innings across 32 starts. It's also worth noting -- especially for fantasy managers deciding where Burnes slots in among baseball's top arms -- that his strikeout rate fell to 23.1 percent, marking the fourth straight year it has dipped. Nonetheless, Burnes offers plenty to like from a fantasy perspective, including the ability to rack up starts (he's made at least 32 each of the past three years), limit walks and post strong ratios. In Arizona, he'll form an intimidating 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation with Zac Gallen for a Diamondbacks squad that has its sights set on being contenders in the National League.

The Phillies signed Ross to a one-year, $4 million contract Monday, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Ross essentially slides into the swingman role vacated by free agent Spencer Turnbull. The 31-year-old Ross fared much better in relief (1.98 ERA, 24.1 percent strikeout rate) than he did as a starter (4.98 ERA, 18.7 percent strikeout rate) with the Brewers in 2024.

The Red Sox signed Buehler to a one-year, $21.05 million contract Monday, Russell Dorsey of Yahoo Sports reports.

The salary matches this year's qualifying offer total, with Buehler having the ability to make more in incentives. Buehler held a 5.38 ERA over 16 regular-season starts in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery and has thrown just 140.1 innings over the last three seasons combined. The 30-year-old will attempt to re-establish his value in 2025 before re-entering the market next winter.

The Phillies acquired Luzardo (back) and catcher Paul McIntosh from the Marlins on Sunday in exchange for prospects Starlyn Caba and Emaarion Boyd, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

The 27-year-old lefty was nearly acquired by the Cubs earlier in the week, and it didn't take long for the Marlins to hammer out a deal with a new trade partner. Luzardo had a 5.00 ERA and 1.25 WHIP over 12 starts in 2024 as he missed the final three-plus months of the campaign due to a lumbar stress reaction. However, he had a 3.48 ERA and 10.6 K/9 in 279 innings across the previous two seasons and is under team control for two more years. Luzardo bolsters a strong Phillies rotation that already features Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Ranger Suarez and Cristopher Sanchez.

Cecconi was traded from Arizona to the Guardians on Saturday in exchange for Josh Naylor, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Cecconi appeared in 20 games for the Diamondbacks last season, with 13 of those outings coming as a starter. He put up poor numbers with a 6.66 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 18.9 percent strikeout rate over 77 innings, but his FIP was better at 5.02, and he ranked in the 92nd percentile leaguewide with a 5.0 percent walk rate. Cecconi could begin 2025 at the back end of Cleveland's rotation or continue to serve in a swingman role.

The Red Sox signed Sandoval (elbow) to a two-year, $18.25 million contract Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Sandoval underwent internal brace surgery in June and was non-tendered by the Angels last month. He will be sidelined until the second half of the 2025 season but nonetheless landed a contract from the Red Sox. It's a fit that makes sense on paper, as Sandoval has strong secondary pitches but a weak fastball, and the Red Sox's staff leaned on non-fastballs in 2024 under the guidance of new pitching coach Andrew Bailey.

The Reds claimed Contreras off waivers from the Rangers on Thursday.

It's the second time this offseason that Contreras has been on the move via the waivers process, as he previously went from the Angels to the Rangers. The 25-year-old held a 4.35 ERA and 56:31 K:BB over 68.1 innings between the Pirates and Angels in 2024. Contreras has experience as a starting pitcher and reliever, though it's not clear which role the Reds have in mind for him.

Soroka agreed to terms on a one-year, $9 million contract with the Nationals on Thursday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

Soroka started last season with a 6.39 ERA and 1.51 WHIP after nine starts with the White Sox. His performance improved dramatically after moving to the bullpen, posting a 2.75 ERA and 1.22 WHIP alongside a 60:20 K:BB over 36 frames as a reliever. The Nationals will attempt to transition Soroka back into a starting role, per Andrew Golden of The Washington Post, but given the 27-year-old's injury history and the fact he hasn't reached 100 innings since 2019, the Nationals may look to limit his workload.

Lorenzen's agent, Ryan Hamill, is marketing his client as a two-way player this offseason, with the goal of gaining a two-way roster designation, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

The only major league player to qualify for two-way status since it was introduced in 2020 is Shohei Ohtani. A player with the designation does not count against a team's 13-pitcher limit on their 26-man roster, effectively allowing them to serve as a 14th pitcher. Lorenzen's plan is to sign with a club -- likely a non-contender -- and then accrue 20-plus innings as a pitcher and play 20-plus games as a position player or designated hitter (with at least three plate appearances in each game), which would meet the necessary criteria for two-way status. Gaining the two-way designation would, in theory, make Lorenzen an attractive trade target for a contending club keen on taking advantage of having an extra pitcher on their roster. Lorenzen has not hit in a major-league game since 2021 and hasn't had more than one plate appearance since 2019, but he boasts a career .710 OPS with seven home runs over 321 plate appearances. He was an effective rotation piece for the Rangers and Royals last year with a 3.31 ERA across 130.1 innings during the regular season.