MLB Player News

Merrifield agreed to a four-year, $16.25 million contract extension with the Royals on Sunday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Kansas City now has Merrifield locked up until after his three seasons of arbitration. The 30-year-old second baseman finished his second full year in the big leagues with a .304/.367/.438 slash line including 12 homers, 60 RBI and 45 stolen bases in 158 games. Merrifield will aim to piece together another stellar campaign heading into 2019 and could solidify himself as one of the top fantasy options at second base if he manages to pick up where he left off last season.

The Blue Jays announced Saturday that Biggio will be one of their 15 non-roster invitees to big-league spring training, John Lott of The Athletic reports.

Biggio noticed a major boost up in prospect lists in 2018 after a huge season at Double-A New Hampshire. He mashed 55 extra-base hits, stole 20 bases and walked in an astounding 18.2 percent of his plate appearances, with his 100 free passes pacing the Eastern League. The 23-year-old will presumably open the upcoming campaign at Triple-A Buffalo, where he'll look to continue his offensive excellence and showcase some defensive versatility. According to Ben Nicholson-Smith, Biggio has been taking reps in the outfield with the hope of accelerating his arrival to the big leagues. A natural second baseman, Biggio also drew 34 starts at third base and 22 at first base at Double-A last season.

Jones was invited to the Angels' major-league spring training Friday.

Jones reached Double-A Mobile for the first time last season. He hit a mediocre .245/.335/.375 in 48 games at that level, so he'll likely need some more seasoning before he's under serious consideration for a roster spot.

Elmore re-signed with the White Sox last week on a minor-league contract, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports.

Elmore spent the 2018 season in the White Sox organization, playing exclusively at Triple-A Charlotte and submitting a .289/.397/.359 slash line across 394 plate appearances. The utility man hasn't surfaced in the big leagues since 2016 and will face an uphill battle to appear for the White Sox at any point in 2019 while he remains off the 40-man roster.

General manager Al Avila said Beckham will compete for playing time at second base in spring training, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Beckham, a non-roster invitee, will compete with utility man Niko Goodrum for the starting gig. The 32-year-old owns a career .239/.302/.366 slash line across parts of 10 big-league seasons, so even if he wins the job out of camp, he doesn't figure to offer much fantasy upside.

Beckham signed a minor-league contract with the Tigers on Tuesday, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Beckham spent most of the 2018 season with Triple-A Tacoma, slashing .302/.400/.458 with 10 homers and six stolen bases across 94 games. He also made 22 appearances for the Mariners, struggling to a .182/.250/.205 line. Beckham should serve as organizational depth in 2019.

General manager Mike Hazen confirmed Marte will play center field in 2019, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Hazen also said Marte will play elsewhere, though following the acquisition of Wilmer Flores -- who projects as the starting second baseman -- it sounds like he'll spend most of his time as the Diamondbacks' center fielder, pushing Jarrod Dyson to a fourth outfielder role. The added positional flexibility should provide a boost to Marte's fantasy value.

Gimenez was invited to the Mets' major-league spring training Thursday.

Gimenez isn't a real candidate to break camp with the Mets, as the 20-year-old has yet to appear at Triple-A, but he'll get a chance to prove himself against big-league competition this spring after his breakout campaign in 2018. The youngster hit .281 and stole 38 bases across stops at High-A and Double-A. Look for him to return to the upper minors to begin the 2019 season.

Urias is progressing after a setback with his hamstring injury cancelled his plans to play winter ball this offseason, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

A pulled hamstring ended Urias' debut season in early September, but he had originally planned to play in the Mexican winter league. He felt something when resuming his running program, however, and elected to be cautious and take it easy. He is currently at about 75 percent and expects to be at 100 percent by the start of spring training. It sounds as if Urias will be unaffected to start the season, but a recurring hamstring issue is at least something to keep an eye on.

Hernandez agreed to a one-year contract with the Dodgers on Friday, avoiding arbitration, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

The Dodgers were able to reach deals with all seven of their remaining arb-eligible players. Hernandez played more than ever before in 2018 and put together an impressive campaign, grading out as 18 percent better than league average at the plate thanks to a big improvement against right-handed pitching. Hernandez should continue to see regular action while helping all around the diamond.