MLB Player News

Smith became a free agent Friday after the Athletics declined to tender him a contract.

The A's will officially move on from Smith after the 27-year-old infielder slashed just .185/.220/.326 through 146 big-league plate appearances. However, he put up an impressive 1.025 OPS with Triple-A Las Vegas, so he should be able to secure a minor-league deal relatively easily.

Gray signed a minor-league contract with the Marlins on Friday, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald reports.

It's the first transaction made by new president of baseball operations Peter Bendix. The former Rays executive is familiar with Gray from his time in Tampa Bay, where the 27-year-old went 2-for-5 with a home run during a short stint in the majors. Gray has hit 30-plus home runs each of the last two seasons at the Triple-A level while also striking out at a 31.7 percent rate. He'll presumably receive an invitation to major-league spring training.

Shewmake was traded from Atlanta to the White Sox on Thursday along with Michael Soroka (forearm), Jared Shuster, Nicky Lopez and Riley Gowens in exchange for Aaron Bummer.

Shewmake entered the 2022 season with a chance to win the starting shortstop job in Atlanta, but Orlando Arcia's strong form ended that opportunity. Even after posting a disappointing 72 wRC+ across 526 plate appearances with Triple-A Gwinnett, Shewmake should once again be in a position to vie for a consistent role in the majors during spring training thanks to this change of scenery.

Anderson is open to playing either shortstop or second base with his new team, Russell Dorsey of Stadium reports.

Anderson's defensive metrics at shortstop were good through 2021, but they've regressed there the last two seasons, and it's possible the club he signs with in free agency would prefer to shift him to the other side of the diamond. He played two games at second base for the White Sox this season and they kicked around the idea of moving him there full time before ultimately deciding against picking up his option for 2024. The 30-year-old was also used some at the keystone during the World Baseball Classic. Regardless of where he plays defensively, Anderson's bigger task next season will be to rebound at the plate after he posted a woeful .582 OPS across 524 plate appearances in 2023.

The Pirates selected Cheng to their 40-man roster Tuesday.

Cheng got off to a hot start in the first half of the season with High-A Greensboro, slashing .308/.406/.575 across 253 plate appearances. However, his OPS fell to .656 upon being promoted to Double-A Altoona in late June. A spot on the 40-man roster will prevent Cheng from being taken in next month's Rule 5 Draft, and he will likely return to Altoona to begin 2024.

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Wednesday that he expects Cruz (ankle) to be fully healthy by the start of spring training, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Cruz fractured his left ankle in the ninth game of the 2023 regular season and was unable to return before the end of the year after encountering multiple minor setbacks. He's in a good place now, though, and could even play some winter ball in the Dominican Republic to make up for lost time. "All of the updates we've gotten over the last couple weeks have been encouraging," Cherington said.

Atlanta general manager Alex Anthopoulos said Wednesday that the team is considering moving Grissom to left field, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Grissom has only played shortstop, second base and third base as a professional, but all of those positions are spoken for long term at the major-league level. Atlanta wants to find a clearer path for the 22-year-old, who slashed .330/.419/.501 across 468 plate appearances this past season with Triple-A Gwinnett.

Crawford's agent, Joel Wolfe, said Tuesday that his client intends to continue his playing career in 2024, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Crawford batted just .194/.273/.314 over 320 plate appearances with the Giants in 2023 and will turn 37 years old in January, but Wolfe told reporters at the GM Meetings in Arizona that "several teams have called" him about the veteran shortstop since he officially became a free agent earlier this week. Wolfe went on to note that Crawford "would consider" playing second or third base, so perhaps he'd be open to operating in a utility role in 2024 if such an opportunity were to present itself.

Lopez (oblique) was activated from the 60-day injured list Monday.

This is a procedural move for the Blue Jays after Lopez finished the 2023 season on the injured list due to a left oblique strain. He'll be ready to roll for the start of spring training.

Gray elected to become a free agent Monday, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.

Gray will test out free agency rather than accept the Rays' outright assignment. The 27-year-old got his first cup of coffee in the majors in 2023, going 2-for-5 with a home run. He's slugged 30-plus home runs each of the last two seasons at the Triple-A level, although that's also come with a 31.7 percent strikeout rate.