Here's what's up with what's going down in Major League Baseball as of Thursday night:

In trying to show prospective teams that he is healthy again, outfielder Denard Span plans to showcase himself in individual workouts for interested teams sometime after Jan. 1, ESPN's Jerry Crasnick reports. Span ended the 2015 season on the disabled list because of a hip injury that required surgery. Span had two surgeries to correct a core muscle injury before the season even began, and hip and back problems he also endured recently are said to be related to his core trouble. Despite his health issues, Span hit .301 with a .796 OPS in 2015, and he's a .287/.352/.395 hitter with 152 stolen bases in 950 career games.

Along with the Nationals, with whom Span played the past three seasons, the Mets, Orioles, Royals, Giants, and Padres are said to be interested. Just not interested enough, apparently, for agent Scott Boras.

Denard Span wants a long-term contract.
Denard Span wants a long-term contract. (USATSI)

The Cubs also were said to be interested, at least before they signed Jason Heyward. Span would fit the role of leadoff hitter for them, however.      

From MLB Trade Rumors:

At his annual Winter Meetings scrum, Boras was asked by a reporter if Span could wind up signing on as someone’s fourth outfielder. After three seconds of silence, Boras tersely said “Next!” and moved along with his Q&A session. He also rejected the notion that Span might settle for a one-year deal rather than a multi-year pact. It’s still hard to see Span winding up as anyone’s reserve outfield option, but one has to wonder if Span is going to get the kind of deal he envisioned for himself a couple of months ago. 

TRANSACTIONS

Trade: The Pirates sent outfielder Keon Broxton and 19-year-old right-hander Trey Supak to the Brewers for infielder/outfielder Jason Rogers. It's possible that Rogers, who hit .296 with an .808 OPS and four homers in 169 plate appearaces for the Brewers, might be a right-handed platoon partner at first base in Pittsburgh. He turns 28 in March. Supak stands 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, and was a second-round pick of the Bucs in 2014. He has a career 5.85 ERA with 44 strikeouts in 52 1/3 innings. Broxton, 25, is a career .253/.333/.410 hitter with 150 stolen bases in 3,418 plate appearances.

Justin Ruggiano: Signed a one-year, $1.65 million deal with incentives with the Texas Rangers, CBS Sports MLB Insider Jon Heyman confirmed. He could make for a right-handed hitting platoon partner with someone in the Rangers outfield (how about Josh Hamilton?). (Jeff Wilson)

Cubs: Designated right-hander Yoervis Medina for assignment, clearing a roster spot for infielder Brendan Ryan, who came over from the Yankees in the Starlin Castro/Adam Warren trade. (MLB Trade Rumors)

Blue Jays: Invited left-hander Wade LeBlanc to spring training on a minor-league contract. He pitched in Japan in 2015, and before that posted a 4.47 ERA in 446 2/3 innings for five teams over parts of seven seasons in the majors. (Jerry Crasnick)

Brad Penny: Also signed with the Jays, on a minor-league deal, with an invite to spring camp in lovely (really) Dunedin, Fla. Penny, 37, pitched for the White Sox's Triple-A team in 2015, and owns a 4.29 ERA in the majors. He's said to throw 94 mph still. (Crasnick)

Phillies: Have signed right-handed relievers Edward Mujica and Andrew Bailey to minor-league contracts. Heyman has details on the money for Mujica. (MLB Trade Rumors)

Joe Thatcher: Left-hander reportedly will sign with the Indians. (Chris Cotillo)

Fernando Abad: Left-hander agreed with Twins. (Dustin Morse)

NEWS

Johnny Cueto: The Giants formally introduced him after his $130 million deal became official. Team CEO Larry Baer called Cueto the most important part of the team's offseason.

Wale: The DC based hip-hopper has dropped a track called "MVP" that is said to honor Nationals slugger Bryce Harper. (Big League Stew)

Negro Leagues Baseball Museum: Received a $500,000 grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, which will help fund museum operations, programs, exhibits and the opening of the Buck O’Neil Education and Research Center. (KMBC)

Chipper Jones: The Braves hired him as a special assisant after he enjoyed "a few years of decompressing." Jones, a likely Hall of Famer, retired from playing after the 2012 season.

John Baker: The former major-league catcher has been hired by the Cubs as a baseball operations assistant. (Sahadev Sharma)

Chris Johnson: Designated for assignment by the Indians after they added Rajai Davis in free agency. (MLBTR)

RUMORS & SPECULATION

Brandon Phillips: Tweeted about getting on an airplane that was to take him from Cincinnati to Washington, DC. He has been discussed in trade possibilities between the Reds and Nationals, where Phillips would be reunited with manager Dusty Baker:

Hisashi Iwakuma: The Dodgers reportedly have backed out of the deal over concerns regarding his health following a faulty physical.

Jake Odorizzi: The Dodgers are talking to the Rays about him, our own Jon Heyman notes.

Scott Kazmir: Left-hander on the Dodgers radar. (Evan Drellich)

Wei-Yin Chen: Reportedly is seeking a five-year, $100 million contract. He's a Scott Boras client. Chen, 30, has a 3.72 ERA with 547 strikeouts in 706 2/3 innings for his career. His 3.34 ERA in 2015 was seventh in the AL. (Roch Kubatko)

Antonio Bastardo: Reportedly is seeking a contract like the one signed by Tony Sipp (three years, $18 million). (Crasnick)

MISCELLANY

Winter Meetings: Go behind the scenes, in the New York Daily News, on how they come together annually. (Andy Martino)

Darryl Hamilton: A permanent memorial in his honor has been created at the MLB Network studios. (Heidi Watney)

The 'opt-out' clause: Our own Matt Snyder explains why it's the true star of free-agent season so far.