MLB Player News

The soft-tossing 26-year-old right-hander owns a 5.51 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 33/9 K/BB ratio over 63 2/3 innings at the major-league level, with nearly all of those frames logged during the 2017 season with the Mariners. He’s also spent time with minor-league affiliates within the Giants and Rays organizations over the last few years. He’ll add much-needed organizational bullpen depth for the Tigers.

The deal is now official. The 25-year-old slugger comes to Major League Baseball after blasting 265 home runs in eight seasons in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, including a record 56 long balls during the 2022 season. He’s expected to serve as the White Sox’ everyday first baseman and will play half of his games in the friendly confines of Rate Field in Chicago. His counting stats will be negatively impacted by the overall quality of the White Sox’ lineup, but in terms of overall landing spots, it’s not terrible. He’ll also be incredibly motivated to prove his worth after the bidding on his services was underwhelming.

Machín appeared in just four big league contests with the Orioles in 2025, going 1-for-11 (.091) with a solo homer and a 2/1 K/BB ratio. He’ll get an opportunity in Cactus League action to compete for a reserve spot on the Rockies’ Opening Day roster, though he’ll be facing an uphill battle.

Hernández, 29, missed the majority of the 2025 season due to elbow and shoulder issues. He wound up logging just 12 innings for the Rays at Triple-A Durham where he posted a 2.25 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and a 13/6 K/BB ratio. As long as he’s healthy, Hernández adds solid bullpen depth for the Phillies and should get an opportunity at some point during the 2026 season.

The 27-year-old spent the first seven years of his minor league career in the Tigers’ organization. In 2025, he slashed .257/.349/.479 with 19 long balls, 66 RBI, six stolen bases and a 118/54 K/BB ratio over 464 plate appearances at Double-A Erie. He adds minor league depth at first base for the Giants.

The White Sox made waves on Sunday morning when it was announced that they had signed the Japanese slugger to a two-year, $34 million contract. While it’s a bit surprising that he didn’t generate more interest around the league, he does add right-handed power to the middle of the White Sox’ lineup. His arrival likely pushes Miguel Vargas over to third base while potentially taking at-bats away from Lenyn Sosa or Edgar Quero.

This might be one of Nightengale’s exaggerations, but Robert, who will earn $20 million next season, has already been linked to both teams and the Padres as well. The White Sox certainly don’t need to trade him; even after signing Munetaka Murakami, their payroll is still just right around $80 million, and they will have another club option that they could use to keep him around in 2027. Robert, Murakami, Andrew Benintendi and Anthony Kay are their only players making more than $1 million.

The Mariners trading DeLoach and Prelander Berroa to the White Sox for Gregory Santos seemed pretty interesting at the time, but two years later, only Berroa has stuck with his organization, and he just missed all of 2025 after Tommy John. DeLoach, 27, played in 22 games for the White Sox in 2024, hitting .209/.293/.328 and then got dropped from the 40-man after the season. He went on to miss much of 2025 and never appeared in the majors, finishing up at .236/.326/.414 in 51 games for Triple-A Charlotte.

He’ll make $100,000 extra for 80, 90, 100, 110 and 120 innings thrown. Blackburn will probably compete with Ryan Yarbrough for the fifth rotation spot coming out of spring training, with the loser of the battle going to middle relief. However, Carlos Rodón could be back to claim the rotation spot before the end of April.

Well, this is pretty clear confirmation that no team was especially high on Murakami. The 2022 Central League MVP is just 25 (26 in February) and he’s coming off a season in which he hit .273/.379/.663, but his soaring strikeout rate and questions about his defense scared off much of MLB. The White Sox really have nothing to lose here. They’ll probably plug him in at first base, with Miguel Vargas sticking at third. If he thrives, he’ll be great trade bait in July or potentially a key figure on a team that might be ready to compete in 2027.

With just two days left before his deadline to sign with a major league team, there have been very little in the way of good rumors involving Murakami, which many have taken as a sign that MLB teams just aren’t very high on him. However, it’s also true that MLB teams are simply much better at keeping these things out of the news now than they were 10-15 years ago, and posted players almost always seem to take it to the very end. We’re not sure whether Murakami will thrive in MLB, but it’s certainly worth a roll of the dice for a White Sox team in need of firepower and one with few other significant financial commitments. The Pirates and Marlins would also fit that description, and it’s still quite possible some big-budget teams are involved. The Angels are another club that has been whispered about here.