MLB - NEWS & NOTES

Yankees sign Neil Walker

Jeff Passan of Yahoo reports that the Yankees have agreed to a contract with free agent second baseman Neil Walker. The deal is pending a physical. Jon Heyman reports that it’ll be a one-year deal for $5 million. That’s a massive pay cut for Walker, who accepted the qualifying offer from the Mets last year, paying him $17.2 million.

Walker 32, hit .265/.362/.439 with 14 home runs in 448 PA with the Mets and Brewers last season. While that was a falloff from his 2016, part of his regression can be traced back to a left hamstring strain which landed him on the disabled list for over six weeks in June. All in all he was pretty close to his career norms last year, and saw his production improve after being traded to Milwaukee in August. In nine seasons, Walker has a line of .272/.341/.437 (OPS+ 113). The switch-hitting Walker has slugged considerably higher as a lefty in the course of his career, so the short porch in right field is going to treat him pretty well.

 

Phils send the personal plane to pick up Jake Arrieta. Welcome to Philly. Burr.

 

Troy Tulowitzki to miss beginning of the season due to a bone spurs...

 

Astros sign Jose Altuve to five-year, $150 million extension

Once official, the deal will be the richest in franchise history.

 

$30 a year for the AL MVP. Wow. Some big money there. Can't wait to see what Machado. Harper and Kershaw get. Will someone really pay 10 years/$400 million ?

 

X-rays confirmed that LA's Justin Turner suffered a broken left wrist after being hit by a pitch Monday against Oakland... ouch.

 

Bummer this happens to close to the season opener.

 

Wrist injuries are a bitch for hitters to come back from, too.

 

^I can't imagine the pain either. I broke a tiny bone under my thumb and to not use my left hand was a bitch. had to put it in a trash bag to shower. couldn't drive left handed, which is what I do. couldn't fasten a button closed on a dress shirt. couldn't undo my pant buttons or belt. it sucked. I can't imagine breaking the entire wrist for a regular person, let alone a pro baseball player.

 

Who steps in for Turner at the Hot Corner?

 

Will-good question. I don't know. I think that 1 guy can play like 4 spots. He was awesome to have in Fantasy baseball last year.

 

That was from the; LA SportsHub...

 

I'd guess Forsythe, he was usualy the first choice to fill in for him last year. Between Kike Hernandez, Austin Barnes, and Chris Taylor, they've got a lot of flexibility to move guys around from day to day, though.

 

Your right on, Underdog. Cant replace the bat, but defensively they should be ok.

 

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/...gers-for-several-weeks-but-they-have-options/

I guy I was thinking of was Chris Taylor. I thought he played or was eligible to play a bunch of positions, so that was my answer to the Dodgers 3b issues. he was solid last year.

 

Cobb, Orioles reach 4-year agreement

SARASOTA, Fla. -- The Orioles' spring search for pitching took another big turn on Tuesday night, as the club has reached a four-year agreement with the best remaining free-agent arm, starter Alex Cobb, with the deal worth between $56 million and $60 million, sources told MLB Network insider Jon Heyman and MLB.com.

The club has not confirmed the deal, which is not official and is still pending a physical. Still, the agreement represents a significant change in philosophy for the Orioles, who have been incredibly reluctant to hand out deals longer than three years to free-agent starters. Their last four-year pact to Ubaldo Jimenez ended up being a disappointing contract, but sources told MLB.com that Cobb's camp wanted the length and ultimately the Orioles agreed to it.

The O's have long been rumored to have interest in Cobb, whose experience in the American League East is seen as a major plus. Cobb logged a career-high 179 1/3 innings and 12 wins to go with a 3.66 ERA in what was his first full season back from Tommy John surgery in 2017.

Cobb was among nine free agents who received a qualifying offer this offseason, which means the signing will result in the Orioles forfeiting a Draft pick. Because Baltimore is among the 16 clubs that receive revenue sharing, it will lose its third-highest pick in the Draft as a result of this deal -- the No. 51 pick overall.

The Rays, on the other hand, will receive Draft-pick compensation by virtue of losing Cobb, and they are benefiting from the size of the reported contract: Because they also receive revenue sharing and the deal exceeded $50 million in overall value, that pick will come after the first round and before Competitive Balance Round A.

The Rays will get pick No. 31, because they had a worse record than the Royals, who got pick No. 33 for losing Lorenzo Cain and No. 34 for losing Eric Hosmer to free agency. The Rays were locked into the No. 32 spot after they were unable to sign Drew Rasmussen, who was the No. 31 overall pick last June. (MLB.com)

 

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Dodgers All-Star third baseman Justin Turner, who sustained a small non-displaced fracture of his left wrist on Monday night when hit by a Kendall Graveman pitch, revealed "good news" on Tuesday, telling MLB.com he will not need to undergo surgery. Turner's wrist will be in a brace for a few days, after which he will begin range-of-motion exercises, Turner said.

Turner, who will open the season on the disabled list, was re-examined by a local hand specialist, Dr. Brian Shafer, on Tuesday.

General manager Farhan Zaidi said this type of injury is "usually on the order of weeks" and that the club is not looking to replace Turner with an acquisition because of confidence in its internal depth.

"You feel for the player and we're not as good a team without J.T., no doubt about that," said Zaidi. "The rest of the guys are going to have to do more for us to play at the same level. (MLB.com)

 

not happy with the cobb deal as the phils lost another pitcher to injury and I wanted cobb all along. 4/60 is a bargain. they go out and get arietta but pass on lynn and cobb. baffling.

 

Samardzija diagnosed with strained pectoral

That's a better diagnosis than what some were fearing, but Samardzija will open the season on the disabled list and could miss a good chunk of April.