MLB Player News

Maton was added to the Phillies' 40-man roster Friday, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic reports.

Maton continued his development at the Phillies' alternate training site in 2020, and he'll now be protected from the Rule 5 draft as part of the 40-man roster. The 23-year-old advanced to Double-A Reading late in 2019, but he struggled a bit, hitting .210 with two home runs and 14 strikeouts over 62 at-bats.

Castro's contract was selected by the Pirates on Friday.

Castro is best known for posting some pretty elite exit velocity readings in the lower levels by middle infielder standards. He hit 14 home runs in 61 games at Low-A in 2019 as a 20-year-old, which is quite the feat, but he fell flat after a promotion to High-A. Castro will likely open the year at High-A or Double-A and could reach the majors in 2022.

Peraza was added to the Yankees' 40-man roster Friday.

Peraza wasn't part of the Yankees' 60-man roster during the 2020 season, but he'll be protected from the upcoming Rule 5 draft. He slashed .268/.343/.328 with 13 RBI and 17 stolen bases with Low-A Charleston in 2019.

Walls' contract was purchased by the Rays on Friday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Walls is a classic Rays player, as he is known for his control of the strike zone and ability to play multiple infield positions. He has not played above Double-A, but after a summer at the alternate training site, he is presumably poised to make his MLB debut sometime in 2021.

Burger's contract was purchased by the White Sox on Friday.

Burger's pro career has been greatly affected by Achilles injuries, but as the 11th overall pick in 2017, the team is too invested in his development to leave him exposed to the Rule 5 draft at this juncture. He is fully healthy but turns 25 in April and has never played above Low-A. Given his age and standing on the 40-man roster, he will probably be thrown into the deep end at some point during the 2021 season to see how he fares against upper-level pitching prospects.

Monasterio signed a minor-league contract to return to Cleveland on Tuesday.

The contract did not come with an invitation to big-league camp. That's hardly a surprise, as Monasterio has yet to advance beyond Double-A and posted a .217/.279/.253 slash line at that level in 70 games for Akron in 2019.

LeMahieu will decline the Yankees' one-year, $18.9 million qualifying offer for 2021 prior to Wednesday's deadline, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

The 32-year-old has been one of the best hitters in baseball for New York over the past two seasons with a .922 OPS, so it's not much of a surprise he'll be testing the open market in search of a longer-term deal. LeMahieu signed a two-year, $24 million deal with the Yankees in January 2019, and he should be able to exceed those figures this time around in free agency.

Vosler signed a major-league deal with the Giants on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old spent the shortened season at the Padres' alternate training site and had a .291/.367/.523 slash line with 20 home runs and 63 RBI in 116 games at Triple-A in 2019. Vosler has yet to make his major-league debut, but he's now on the 40-man roster and would seem to stand a strong chance of cracking San Francisco's Opening Day roster next year.

LeMahieu was extended the $18.9 million qualifying offer by the Yankees on Sunday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

LeMahieu has been one of the best hitters in the league in his two seasons with the Yankees, posting a .336/.386/.536 slash line with 36 homers, 43 doubles, 150 runs and 129 RBI in 195 games. New York is likely still attempting to retain him on a longer-term deal, but with the qualifying offer extended, it will receive a draft pick as compensation should he continue his career elsewhere.

Muncy went 2-for-3 with a walk and a solo homer in Sunday's World Series Game 5 win over the Rays.

Muncy's fifth-inning solo shot off Tyler Glasnow provided an insurance run that ultimately proved unnecessary, as no more runs would be scored the rest of the way. He's now homered three times in the postseason to go along with a .268/.461/.500 slash line, a huge step up from his .192/.331/.389 line during the regular season. A jump in BABIP from .203 in the regular season to .364 in the playoffs accounts for much of that difference.