MLB Player News

Cartaya has resumed taking live batting practice and participating in drills at the Dodgers' minor-league spring training after missing the final two and a half months of the 2021 season due to back issues, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

The back injury coupled with the cancellation of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic has thus far limited Cartaya to 80 minor-league games since he signed with the Dodgers for $2.5 million in July 2018 as an 18-year-old out of Venezuela. Despite the relative lack of experience, the now-20-year-old is regarded as the organization's top catching prospect following last season's trade that sent Keibert Ruiz to the Nationals. Cartaya demonstrated an advanced two-way skill set during his injury-shortened stint at at Low-A Rancho Cucamonga in 2021, posting a monstrous 1.023 OPS while showing strong receiving skills and a good arm behind the plate. He'll likely return to Low-A to begin the 2022 campaign, but if can show more durability and cut down on his strikeout rate, a promotion to High-A Great Lakes could come quickly.

Rogers (forearm) announced Monday via his personal Twitter account that he has began a throwing program.

Due to MLB's ongoing lockout, Rogers is unable to take part in spring training, but the Tigers aren't counting on the 26-year-old to be ready to play until late in the season anyway -- if at all -- while he recovers from the Tommy John surgery he underwent last September. The fact that Rogers is playing catch again six months after surgery is a positive sign, but he'll still need to resume hitting in addition to increasing his throwing distance and velocity before he's even cleared to play in minor-league rehab games. With Rogers out of the mix for at least the next few months, the Tigers will turn to Tucker Barnhart and Eric Haase to handle catching duties.

Soderstrom reported to minor-league spring training at full health after he was sidelined for the final two months of the 2021 season plus the Arizona Fall League with an oblique strain, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.

The injury spelled an early end to an impressive professional debut season for the 20-year-old catcher, who was a 2020 first-round selection. He saw action in 54 games for Low-A Stockton, slashing .306/.390/.568 with 33 extra-base hits and a 10.8 percent walk rate across 254 plate appearances. Soderstrom profiles as one of the top backstop prospects in all of baseball, but his bat remains firmly ahead of his glove at this stage of his development, making it uncertain whether he'll stick behind the plate long term. He's expected to begin the 2022 campaign at High-A Lansing.

Bethancourt signed a minor-league contract with the Athletics on Nov. 25.

Bethancourt will likely report to Triple-A Las Vegas to begin the 2022 campaign, but he could be the first catcher in line for a promotion to the big club, given that the Athletics currently have only two backstops (Sean Murphy and Austin Allen) on the 40-man roster. The 30-year-old has previously seen big-league action with Atlanta and San Diego across five seasons from 2013 through 2017, slashing a collective .222/.252/.316 in 489 career plate appearances.

Perez signed a minor-league contract with the Rockies on Sunday.

Perez spent 2021 with the A's at the Triple-A level and hit .269/.337/.572 with 31 homers, 89 RBI and 61 runs in 97 games, crushing his previous season high of 14 home runs. The 31-year-old should serve as organizational depth but could receive a big-league opportunity with another strong campaign.

Bemboom signed a minor-league contract with the Orioles on Thursday, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.

Bemboom spent most of the 2021 season at the Triple-A level and slashed .232/.352/.412 with eight home runs, 37 RBI and 35 runs across 65 games. He appeared in eight major-league games with the Angels and should be in the mix to join the Orioles' active roster at some point in 2022.

Plawecki signed a one-year, $2.25 million contract with the Red Sox on Wednesday, avoiding arbitration, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Plawecki served mainly as a secondary option at catcher behind Christian Vazquez in 2021, and he'll likely take on a similar role to begin the 2022 campaign. Across 64 appearances last year, the 30-year-old hit .287 with three homers, 15 runs and 15 RBI.

Perez signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Pirates on Tuesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

The Pirates didn't have a catcher on the roster after trading Jacob Stallings to the Marlins on Monday. That could mean Perez has an easy path to the primary catcher role in 2022, though his .155/.253/.277 slash line over the last two seasons suggests that the Pirates may want to bring in an alternative alongside him.

Gomes agreed to a two-year, $13 million contract with the Cubs on Tuesday, Craig Mish of SportsGrid.com reports.

It's a bit unusual to see the Cubs give a multi-year deal to a 34-year-old when they don't appear to be close to playoff contention, but they could see Gomes as a potential mentor for their next wave of pitchers or perhaps as someone they can flip at the deadline. The veteran has been a slightly below-average hitter for most of his career, with his 93 wRC+ last season nearly matching his career wRC+ of 91. That's an unexciting mark but an adequate one for a backstop. He doesn't appear to have a path for more than backup at-bats unless Willson Contreras is traded, but he could do enough in that small role to matter in deep, two-catcher formats.

Stallings was traded from the Pirates to the Marlins in exchange for Zach Thompson, Kyle Nicolas and Connor Scott on Monday, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

Stallings spent his first six major-league seasons in Pittsburgh, and he appeared in a career-high 112 games during the 2021 season. He hit .246 with eight home runs, 53 RBI and 38 runs last year and appears to be in line to serve as the Marlins' primary catcher in 2022.