MLB Player News

Linskey was Arizona’s 16th-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft out of Rice University in Houston and looked impressive last year in his full-season pro debut, posting a sterling 2.78 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 51/16 K/BB ratio across 32 1/3 innings (22 appearances) between three minor-league levels, finishing the year at High-A Hillsboro. The 22-year-old is an imposing presence at 6-foot-7 and represents an intriguing relief project for the Astros moving forward.

Baldwin received 21 out of the 30 first-place votes, with nine going to Cade Horton, who finished in second place. Caleb Durbin finished third and Isaac Collins finished fourth in the NL ROY balloting. The 24-year-old backstop broke out as Atlanta’s primary catcher, slashing .270/.340/.470 with 19 homers and an .810 OPS across 124 games. He’s the first catcher to take home the hardware since Buster Posey back in 2010.

Kurtz received all 30 first-place votes to become the 28th unanimous Rookie of the Year winner. His teammate Jacob Wilson finished second, while Roman Anthony placed third, with Noah Cameron and Colson Montgomery also receiving second-place votes in AL ROY balloting. The 22-year-old burgeoning superstar delivered one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in recent memory, slashing .290/.383/.618 with 64 extra-base hits — including 36 homers — and 86 RBI over 117 games. He seems destined to be one of the more polarizing fantasy sluggers next spring, but there’s a strong case for including him in the first-round conversation.

Darrell-Hicks passed through waivers unclaimed after being removed from Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster last week. The 27-year-old righty posted an inflated 7.45 ERA over 9 2/3 innings over seven appearances between the Pirates and Angels.

There were rumblings late in the regular season that Hendricks was considering retirement, and it appears he’s decided to hang up his spikes after 12 years in the majors. The soft-tossing 35-year-old spent his first 11 seasons with the Cubs, winning a World Series title in 2016, before finishing his career with the Angels. He retires with an impressive 3.37 ERA over 1,745 innings across 307 appearances (301 starts) dating back to 2014.

According to a league statement, these measures are intended to mitigate integrity risks and maintain the transparency and data-access benefits the regulated sports betting market provides. The announcement comes roughly 24 hours after Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz were indicted on charges related to a scheme to manipulate bets on pitches thrown in games.

Misner heads to Kansas City after being jettisoned from Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster earlier this week. The 27-year-old outfielder hit .213/.273/.345 with five homers, 22 RBI, and eight steals over 217 plate appearances in 71 games last season. He’ll provide the Royals with additional outfield depth behind Kyle Isbel, John Rave and Jac Caglianone heading into spring training.

Thames spent last season with the White Sox. He’ll work alongside Connor Dawson as one of two hitting coaches behind senior director of hitting performance Alec Zumwalt. Joe Dillon and Keoni DeRenne previously occupied the two roles behind Zumwalt, but they were let go after the season.

Evan after presumably moving on from Ramón Urías, the Astros are already looking at $220 million payroll for 2026, and adding a player like Cease, who figures to come in at around $30 million per year, would put them in luxury tax territory. It’ll be interesting to see if they’re really willing to go that high, especially since they’d seem to need more than one pitcher, what with Cease essentially replacing Framber Valdez.

Paredes never appeared in the majors last season while posting a 4.40 ERA in 57 1/3 innings as a reliever for the Braves’ Triple-A affiliate. The former Astro has a 3.00 ERA in a total of 55 innings in the majors since debuting in 2020.

After a three-year stint in Texas, the 70-year-old Bochy is returning to the team he managed from 2007-19 and with which he won three World Series. He’ll have the same job title as Dusty Baker.