MLB Player News

Thaiss drew a one-out walk off of Max Meyer in the sixth inning and swiped second base, but the White Sox were unable to cash him in. He then drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh inning, increasing the White Sox’ lead to 5-2. On the season, he’s now hitting .226/.402/.339 with one homer, eight RBI and one stolen base. Astonishingly, that .226 batting average was the fourth highest average in the White Sox’ starting lineup on Friday. Yikes.

Chicago continues fortifying its bullpen with Harvey becoming the latest experience high-leverage arm entering the stable. The 31-year-old is more of a lottery ticket after being limited to just 12 appearances due to adductor and shoulder issues this past season with the Royals. He holds a strong 3.11 ERA — 3.16 FIP — and 26.8 percent strikeout rate across 185 innings since 2019. He projects as an impact late-inning arm for the Cubs, with the only real question being whether his health allows him to play a significant role.

The deal is now official. Bleday heads to Cincinnati as a relatively low-risk reclamation project after being non-tendered by the Athletics last month with top prospects Denzel Clarke and Colby Thomas taking over in center field with Tyler Soderstrom and Lawrence Butler in the corners. The 28-year-old former top-five pick figures to compete with Will Benson in spring training for playing time in a platoon role for the Reds next season. At a bare minimum, he’ll occupy a bench role as an insurance policy behind TJ Friedl in center field. His fantasy appeal is strictly limited to NL-only formats based on his pedestrian plate skills and lack of stolen base upside. He’s an extremely streaky hot-and-cold power hitter that will have stretches of fantasy relevance, especially in Cincinnati’s favorable offensive environment.

Thompson signed a one-year, $1.3 million contract with Cincinnati last month. The 30-year-old righty didn’t appear in the big leagues this past season after making 104 appearances for the Cubs since the start of 2021. The Reds are presumably hoping he’ll pass through waivers unclaimed and remain with the organization heading into spring training.

“Wherever we can get his bat in the lineup, that’s what we’re going to try to do. And we want to find a spot for him where he can be productive for the Padres, and there’s a lot of different places that I think he can fit,” newly-minted Padres skipper Craig Stammen told reporters earlier this week. He also floated the possibility of Song seeing time in the outfield, a notable wrinkle given that the 29-year-old spent most of the past few seasons in Korea at third base. The 29-year-old appears primed for a versatile super-utility role, which modestly boosts his fantasy appeal — particularly in deeper mixed leagues. He’s a challenging hitter to forecast for fantasy purposes but projecting double-digit homers and steals doesn’t seem outlandish.

Higgins is merely emergency organizational catching depth for the Reds entering his age 32 campaign. The well-traveled backstop has spent the past two seasons at Triple-A Louisville and hasn’t appeared in the majors since the 2022 campaign when he got into 74 games for the Cubs. He adds some additional insurance behind Tyler Stephenson and Jose Trevino.

Cabrera heads to Philadelphia to compete for a bullpen spot in spring training after being jettisoned from the Twins’ 40-man roster last month. The 29-year-old southpaw spent time with four different teams this past season, including the Mets, Cubs, Pirates and Twins, posting an underwhelming 6.54 ERA — 6.56 FIP — and 35/18 K/BB ratio across 42 2/3 innings over 42 2/3 innings this past season. He’s made 312 appearances in the big leagues dating back to 2019.

San Francisco’s front office continues throwing metaphorical darts at various left-handed relief options in the hopes that one of them pans out in spring training. Margevicius last appeared in the majors during the 2021 season, which is a half-decade ago at this juncture, and holds a lackluster 6.12 ERA — 5.12 FIP — across 110 1/3 innings over 32 appearances (22 starts) since 2019. He recorded a respectable 3.89 ERA — 3.60 FIP — and 22 percent strikeout rate across 74 innings at the Triple-A level this past season.

No surprise here after White was removed from the White Sox’ 40-man roster at the conclusion of the season. The 26-year-old former Rangers prospect made only three relief appearances for Chicago after being claimed off waivers from the Yankees back in spring training. He’ll attempt to rebuild his long-term value overseas in Korea.

Harris was cut loose by the Rangers at the conclusion of last season after going 8-for-40 with a 30.2 percent strikeout rate across 19 games at the big-league level. The 26-year-old bolsters Chicago’s outfield depth and will likely open the year at Triple-A Charlotte as an emergency option.

Bleday was very good for the Athletics back 2024, hitting .243/.324/.437 as their primary center fielder, but that’s the only real success he’s enjoyed in four seasons as a major leaguer. Overall, the 28-year-old former top-five pick has come in at .215/.307/.394 in 1,527 plate appearances. He figures to compete with Will Benson for one spot on Cincinnati’s roster. In a best-case scenario, he could be a starter against righties, but he’d have to earn it and there isn’t much reason to think he will.