MLB Player News

After hitting 10 homers with a .333 on-base percentage in 285 plate appearances last season, Dickerson is the favorite to start in left field on Opening Day.

If you extrapolate Dickerson's numbers over the course of a whole season, you could be looking at a poor man's Kole Calhoun (18-20 homers with solid on-base totals) for leagues that use on-base percentage instead of batting average. Dickerson also showed no ill effects from playing half his games at Petco Park. In fact, he was a better hitter at home (.294 and 25.8 PA/HR) than on the road (.229 and 31.2 PA/HR).

Cespedes has been working hard in the offseason to strengthen his lower body and avoid a repeat of the quad injury that limited him in the second half of 2016, The NY Post reports. "I've really been concentrating on my legs so I can work from the ground up,'' Cespedes said earlier this week. "I am the only one who knew how much pain I was in [last season]. I was trying to mask it, trying to play through it and do as much as I could to help the team. After the games I was icing to try to be on the field as much as I could.''

The Mets made a $110 million commitment to Cespedes this offseason, and the 31-year-old has responded in kind by reporting early to the team's spring training complex and fully participating in the regimen that strength and conditioning coach Mike Barwis has laid out for him. Cespedes has posted back-to-back campaigns with more than 30 home runs and a batting average of .280 or better, and after bouncing through four organizations in his first four MLB seasons, he's found a home in New York. A career year in 2017 could be in the offing now that his maturity level seems to have caught up to his physical tools.

Blackmon and the Rockies avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $7.3 million contract Friday, Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball reports.

Blackmon will receive more than double his salary from 2016 in his second year of arbitration eligibility. Blackmon's production in the stolen-base department took a hit last year, but he made up for that by posting career bests with 29 home runs, 82 RBI, 11 runs, and a .933 OPS while batting almost exclusively leadoff. He figures to occupy the same spot in the batting order again this year while serving as the Rockies' everyday center fielder.

Ozuna avoided arbitration with the Marlins on Friday with a $3.5 million deal, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Ozuna bounced back from a difficult 2015 season with a .266/.321/.452 line with 23 home runs and a first career All-Star berth in 2016. That'll get him a decent salary for his first round of arbitration.

Harper signed a one-year, $13.625 million deal with the Nationals on Friday, avoiding arbitration, FanRag Sports' Jon Heyman reports.

This is Harper's second to last season before he hits free agency after the 2018 campaign. He received a healthy bump in pay from the $5 million he earned in 2016. While he is coming off a bit of a down year that was dragged down by injuries, Harper will still cost a premium as a late first-round pick in most drafts this season.

Turner agreed to a four-year, $64 million contract with the Dodgers on Monday, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports.

Turner has been worth 12.9 wins above replacement (according to Fangraphs) over the past three years, but he is also entering his age-32 season, so this seems like a fair deal for both parties. He hit a career-high 27 home runs last year -- his previous career high was 16 -- and while he seems unlikely to duplicate that power performance, his career .282 average seems like a good projection for 2017. If he can stay healthy he should also be good for 75-plus runs and RBI, hitting near the top of the Dodgers' lineup.

Speaking at the team's Piratefest on Saturday, McCutchen refused to blame thumb and knee injuries for his poor performance in 2016. "I just didn't have it," he told DK Pittsburgh Sports. "It just wasn't there. It had nothing to do with injuries. I didn't produce the way that I wanted to, that's plain and simple. I appreciate it, because people are like, 'Something's not right. Something's off. He has to be injured to not be performing.' Honestly, it was nothing. The performance just wasn't there."

McCutchen is unsure whether he'll remain in center field. "Who knows if something changes," he said. "I don't know that, all the way. Hopefully we'll have a more definitive answer going into spring training. ... Center field, right, left, I'm just happy to be playing." The outfielder also cleared the air with GM Neal Huntington after hearing his name mentioned in trade talks at the winter meetings. "We had a good conversation and basically ended it on good terms and went from there," McCutchen noted.

Blackmon was part of an unsuccessful trade attempt when the Rockies tried to acquire right-handed pitcher Marcus Stroman from the Blue Jays, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.

Rumors of Blackmon being traded have been swirling, but the Rockies have struggled to find suitors for the outfielder. The Blue Jays weren't willing to part with Stroman in a one-for-one deal. MLB Trade Rumors projects that Blackmon will earn $9 million in 2017 through arbitration. Clearing that potential salary could keep the Rockies in play for some of the bigger-ticket free agents. The 30-year-old is coming off a career-best season in which he set personal records in average, OBP, slugging percentage, home runs and RBI.

Torrens, who was selected by the Reds in the Rule 5 draft, was traded to the Padres on Thursday, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo reports.

The Reds will receive cash and a player to be named later in the deal. Torrens, a 20-year-old catching prospect, missed all of the 2015 season following surgery to repair a torn labrum and played in just 52 games in 2016. He has some on-base skills, posting a 13.4 percent walk rate at Low-A, but he won't be fantasy relevant anytime soon. The Padres will have to keep Torrens on the active roster all season, otherwise he will be exposed to waivers and offered back to the Yankees. He will probably be stashed on the bench if he breaks camp with the club, as he is unlikely to be ready to handle the offensive or defensive side of the game at the big league level.

McCutchen is increasingly likely to remain in Pittsburgh in 2017 with a move from center field to one of the corner spots, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports.

With a trade market full of quality veteran outfielders, the Pirates may be changing course with McCutchen and considering dealing other pieces, perhaps prospects, from the organization instead. McCutchen's contract can keep him in Pittsburgh through the 2018 season, as he'll collect $14 million in 2017 before a $14.5 million option is on the table for 2018.