MLB Player News

Toussaint signed a minor-league contract with the Guardians on Wednesday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

Toussaint will join the Guardians ahead of the 2023 campaign and his minor-league deal includes a big-league spring training invite, giving him a shot to prove himself with his new team. The right-hander posted a 4.62 ERA and 1.34 WHIP with 26 strikeouts over 25.1 innings in eight appearances, including two starts, with the Angels last season. After a promising start to his career in 2018 with Atlanta, Toussaint has struggled with consistency over the past few seasons, something he'll look to correct with Cleveland, a franchise that just seems to pump out quality pitching every year.

Ryu (elbow) said Wednesday he's targeting July for his return from Tommy John surgery, Jee-ho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency reports.

The 35-year-old underwent the procedure in June 2022, so a return in July would be on the short end of the usual 12-to-18-month recovery timeline. Even if cleared for game action in July, Ryu could have a limited workload down the stretch coming off the injury.

Kluber and the Red Sox agreed Wednesday on a one-year, $10 million contract that includes an $11 million club option for 2024 and additional incentives, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

The 36-year-old makes his offseason home in Massachusetts, which may have factored into his decision to continue his career in Boston after a one-year stint in Tampa Bay. Though Kluber was able to steer clear of the health concerns that derailed him in each of the prior three seasons, the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner didn't return to peak form in 2022. His strikeout rate (20.2 percent) took a dramatic dip along with fastball velocity (88.9 miles per hour average), though a career-best 3.0 percent walk rate helped him maintain a respectable 1.21 WHIP over 164 innings. Altogether, Kluber still performed comfortably above the league median (117 ERA-, with 100 being average), so his addition should bring some stability to a Boston rotation that will be counting on two veterans with even more troubling injury histories (Chris Sale and James Paxton), not to mention younger arms such as Garrett Whitlock, Tanner Houck and Brayan Bello with more limited track records as starters at the big-league level.

Eovaldi agreed to a two-year, $34 million contract with the Rangers on Tuesday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Eovaldi missed a solid chunk of last season with back and shoulder injuries, though he was able to turn in a decent campaign while healthy with a 3.87 ERA and 1.23 WHIP across 109.1 innings. If he can break his norm and avoid the injured list in 2023, Eovaldi could provide a solid addition to the middle of Texas' new-look rotation. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com, the contract includes a $20 million player option for 2025 that will vest if he exceeds 300 innings across the first two years of the deal.

Hill signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Pirates on Tuesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Hill is coming off a season with the Red Sox which saw him put up a 4.27 ERA and 1.30 WHIP with 109 strikeouts over 124.1 innings covering 26 starts. He'll turn 43 in March but has remained mostly effective in recent years, albeit with a drop in strikeout rate. Hill will be a candidate to be traded to a contender at the deadline if he's healthy and pitching well.

Lucchesi agreed to a one-year, $1.15 million contract with the Mets to avoid arbitration Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Lucchesi's salary will remain identical to what he earned in 2022, though he didn't pitch at all while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Lucchesi was able to build up to multiple innings in late September on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse, which should provide some optimism that he'll be ready to pitch to start 2023. He'll likely begin the season in the Mets' bullpen, though he could make spot starts as needed.

Smyly signed a two-year, $19 million contract with the Cubs on Thursday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Smyly will return to Chicago for at least two more seasons after he declined a mutual option worth $10 million with the club earlier in the offseason. In 2022 -- his first season with the Cubs -- Smyly maintained a solid 3.47 ERA and 1.19 WHIP, though he was limited to 106.1 innings due to an oblique strain. According to Murray, Smyly's new deal also includes a mutual option worth $10 million for the 2025 campaign and it includes a $2.5 million buyout.

Rucinski agreed to a one-year contract with the Athletics on Tuesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Rucinski's deal is for $3 million in 2023 and contains a $5 million club option for 2024.

Rucinski hasn't pitched in affiliated ball since 2018 and spent the past four years in the Korea Baseball Organization, where he had a 3.06 ERA across 121 starts. He'll turn 34 years old Dec. 30 and should have a chance to slot into the back end of Oakland's rotation to open 2023.

Lyles signed a two-year, $17 million deal with the Royals on Tuesday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

Lyles will be getting pretty good money for a 32-year-old with a 5.10 career ERA. His 4.42 ERA last season for the Orioles beat his career mark by a significant margin but still wasn't particularly strong, especially in a year in which offense dropped across the league. Lyles' 18.6 percent strikeout rate in 2022 was in line with his 17.6 percent career figure, so don't expect him to become a different pitcher any time soon. He should at least be able to eat a healthy amount of innings for the Royals, as his 62 starts over the past two seasons tie him for 13th in the league. Toss in his pitcher-friendly home park and relatively weak division and Lyles becomes a viable end-game option in deeper formats despite his rather bland numbers.

Lugo agreed to a one-year, $7.5 million deal with the Padres on Monday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.

Lugo's deal includes a $7.5 million player option for 2024 and also contains incentives for starting and relieving, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports. Heading into spring, the Padres are expected to have Lugo build up as a starter, but it's easy to imagine him shifting to the bullpen at some point like Nick Martinez did in 2022. While working exclusively in relief for the Mets a season ago, Lugo posted a 3.60 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 69:18 K:BB in 65 innings.Having not started games since 2020, the righty figures to be on somewhat of an innings limit early in 2023 if he becomes a fixture in the San Diego rotation.