MLB Player News

Sardinas signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals on Saturday, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports.

Sardinas has received 500 major-league plate appearances across five seasons but has very little to show for it, hitting just .224/.274/.292. He's played all four infield positions plus left field, giving him multiple routes to the majors, but he'll likely only get called up in an emergency.

Story's elbow is feeling "great," Kyle Newman of The Denver Post reports.

Story experienced elbow issues in mid-September, which at one point appeared to be bad enough that Tommy John surgery was on the table, but he wound up missing just six games. He took time off after the season to let the elbow rest but has since resumed his normal routine without problems.

Seager (elbow/hip) said Saturday that he's trending well in his recovery and seemed cautiously optimistic that he'll be available for the start of the regular season, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Seager's 2018 campaign ended in late April, when he underwent Tommy John surgery to address a nagging elbow injury that had troubled him since the second half of 2017. With that procedure already keeping him idle, Seager also chose to address a torn labrum in his left hip with another surgery. Now several months removed from both operations, Seager has progressed to throwing from 120 feet, hitting off a tee and fielding grounders, though he has yet to resume live batting practice. It's expected that he'll add more baseball activities to his ledger within the next couple weeks before heading to spring camp, where he'll more than likely face some limitations in the early going following the lengthy layoff. So long as Seager avoids any setbacks and is able to get some competitive at-bats under his belt before Cactus League plays draws to a close, he should meet his goal of being ready for Opening Day.

Swanson hit off a tee for the first time Wednesday since undergoing offseason wrist surgery, although he's expected to take it slow at the beginning of spring training, Gabe Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

He had surgery to eradicate a loose body in his left wrist at the beginning of November. While Swanson is expected to be ready to go for Opening Day, the Braves will take it easy with their starting shortstop this spring to prevent further issue.

Ahmed agreed to a one-year deal with the Diamondbacks on Friday, avoiding arbitration.

Ahmed's batting averaged decreased to .234 in 2018, although he belted a career-high 16 homers and drove in 70 runs in 153 ballgames. Whether he'll be able to maintain this kind of power over two straight seasons will be something to keep an eye on as the 2019 campaign unfolds.

Story agreed to a one-year, $5 million contract with the Rockies on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Story's contract was announced well past the deadline, so although it looked as though a hearing would be required, the two sides did eventually come to an agreement. Colorado's starting shortstop set career highs in home runs (37), RBI (108), batting average (.291), OBP (.348) and OPS (.915) over 157 games in 2018 and appears to be on track to do more damage heading into the upcoming campaign.

Seager agreed to a one-year, $4 million contract with the Dodgers on Friday, avoiding arbitration, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Seager opted against elbow surgery last offseason and the decision cost him, as he was eventually forced under the knife after playing in just 26 games in 2018. He had another procedure later in the summer to address a hip issue. There is added risk here after the lost year, but with Seager going outside the top 80 on average in early drafts, he looks like he could be one of the top value picks on the board.

Baez and the Cubs avoided arbitration with a one-year, $5.2 million deal Friday, Jon Heyman of FancredSports.com reports.

Baez finished second in NL MVP voting last season after hitting 34 homers, stealing 21 bases and posting a .290/.326/.554 slash line, but baseball's economic setup will keep him a bargain for the Cubs due to his relative lack of service time. He lines up as the Cubs' Opening Day shortstop with Addison Russell suspended for the first month of the season and could play almost anywhere on the diamond once Russell returns.

Rojas signed a one-year, $3.155 million contract with the Marlins on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Rojas had a .252/.297/.346 slash line with 11 home runs in 2018 as he exceeded 300 at-bats for the first time in his major-league career. The 29-year-old's defense and positional versatility remain his best assets as his work at the plate makes him an nonviable fantasy option.

Turner and the Nationals avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $3.725 million deal Friday, Robert Murray of The Athletic reports.

Turner appeared in all 162 games for Washington last season, hitting a career-high 19 homers while swiping 43 bags. He'll be the Nationals' everyday shortstop again this year.