MLB Player News

Sanchez and Gio Urshela were traded from the Yankees to the Twins on Sunday in exchange for Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ben Rortvedt, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

After bursting onto the scene early in his career, Sanchez has had some issues with contact across the last several years, hitting just .201 across the last four seasons. Despite splitting time with Kyle Higashioka in recent years, the 29-year-old Sanchez has still hit double-digit home runs in each of his major-league seasons since 2016. While Sanchez should have the chance to compete with Ryan Jeffers for playing time behind the dish after the Twins traded Mitch Garver to the Rangers on Saturday, Minnesota plans to use the 29-year-old as a designated hitter and backup catcher to begin his time with the club, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Rutschman will serve as a non-roster invitee for the Orioles during spring training in 2022, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.

Rutschman's invitation to big-league camp doesn't come as a surprise after he had a strong showing across 33 games at Triple-A Norfolk in 2021. During his time in Norfolk, Baltimore's top prospect slashed .312/.405/.490 with five homers, 25 runs, 20 RBI and two stolen bases. The 24-year-old will be a strong contender for the Orioles' starting job behind the dish on Opening Day, but it's also possible that the team sends him back to Triple-A to begin the year in an attempt to manipulate his service time.

Fry was traded to the Guardians from the Brewers on Sunday.

Milwaukee acquired J.C. Mejia from Cleveland in November, and Fry will serve as the player to be named later in order to complete the deal. Friday spent most of 2021 at the Double-A level and hit .248/.341/.447 with 11 homers and 41 RBI in 75 games before a late-season promotion to Triple-A.

The Mariners designated Godoy for assignment Sunday, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Seattle dropped both Godoy and lefty reliever Aaron Fletcher from the 40-man roster, presumably for the purpose of clearing up openings for potential free-agent signings or trade pickups. If Godoy passes through waivers unclaimed, he'll remain in the Seattle organization and provide catching depth at Triple-A Tacoma for the upcoming season. The 27-year-old backstop reached the majors for the first time in 2021, batting .162 across 40 plate appearances over 16 games with the Mariners.

Haase could work in a utility role this season, potentially working as a backup catcher as well as an option at first base and in the outfield, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

The Tigers acquired Tucker Barnhart in November, and he will likely serve as the team's No. 1 catcher. Haase figures to work as the primary backup, though Dustin Garneau is also in the mix. Haase also has the ability to play at first and in the corner outfield spots, which should help his playing time outlook. Haase popped a career-best 22 home runs in 2021, so he could be a decent fantasy option as long as he sees the field often enough.

Heineman agreed Sunday with the Blue Jays on a minor-league contract, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Heineman is expected to slot in as catching depth for Toronto at Triple-A Buffalo in 2022 after he spent the entire 2021 campaign between two Triple-A affiliates in Lehigh Valley and Memphis as a member of the Phillies and Cardinals organizations, respectively. The 30-year-old backstop has previously gotten tastes of the big leagues in the 2019 season with the Marlins and the 2020 season with the Giants, slashing a collective .208/.288/.302 over 62 career plate appearances.

Maile signed a minor-league deal with the Guardians on Saturday, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

The contract pays Maile $900,000 if he makes the major-league roster. The 31-year-old hasn't done much at the plate over the course of his career, hitting .203/.258/.310, though he did post an .816 OPS in 15 games for the Brewers last season. If he's able to break camp with the Guardians, Maile would likely serve as the No. 2 catcher behind Austin Hedges.

Jeffers may head into the season as Minnesota's clear top backstop, following Saturday's trade that sent Mitch Garver to Texas.

This move was a big boost for Jeffers' fantasy value, barring any other moves to bring in a catcher. The Twins' only other catchers on the 40-man roster are Ben Rortvedt and Tomas Telis. Jeffers hit .273 in 2020 but regressed in 2021, hitting .199 with a 36.9 K%. Even so, he had nothing but success in the minors and is a great defensive catcher, so the playing time will likely be there.

Heim appears set to lose out on playing time following the Rangers' acquisition of Mitch Garver from the Twins on Saturday.

He was set to be nominally atop the depth chart prior to this move, but Garver will now clearly be the top Rangers catcher when healthy. Jose Trevino is also a viable big-leaguer, so perhaps there is another move coming for Texas.

Garver was traded from the Twins to the Rangers on Saturday in exchange for Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ronny Henriquez, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

He will head to a slightly worse lineup, with a negligible change in home parks for a right-handed hitter. With Garver, the expectation should be that he will be a very productive fantasy catcher when he is in the lineup, but durability has been an issue in the past. He has only played in 100 games once (103 in 2018) and was limited to 93 games in 2019, 23 games in the shortened 2020 season and 68 games in 2021.