MLB Player News

Tonkin agreed to a minor-league deal with the Rangers on Tuesday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Tonkin had previously spent parts of five seasons with the Twins, throwing 146.1 innings of relief with a 4.43 ERA. He pitched for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in Japan last season, finishing with a 3.71 ERA in 51 innings.

Leclerc pitched a scoreless 6.2 innings for Gigantes del Cibao in winter-league ball in the Dominican Republic. He allowed one hit and walked three while striking out eight.

Leclerc had thrown nearly double those innings each of the last two years of winter ball, but his team did not qualify for the playoffs this year. He adds those 6.2 scoreless innings to the 21 scoreless he pitched over his final 21 outings in 2018, including while serving as Texas' closer. New manager Chris Woodward has talked about using Leclerc in a variety of high-leverage spots, not rigidly marrying him to the ninth inning, but the 25-year-old was excellent as closer. We believe Leclerc will get most of the save opportunities to start the season and, if he continues the improved command he showed last season, will be the primary closer all season.

Smith (shoulder) signed a minor-league contract with the Red Sox on Sunday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Smith elected to become a free agent at the beginning of November, although he'll return to Boston on this farm deal. He posted a 3.77 ERA and 1.40 WHIP with 18 strikeouts across 14.1 frames as a reliever in 2018 and could make his way back to the big leagues if he performs well in spring training.

McHugh will rejoin the rotation in 2019, Brian McTaggart of the Astros' official site reports.

The Astros will have some churn in their rotation next season, brought upon by the departure of Charlie Morton, the expected departure of Dallas Keuchel, and an injury to Lance McCullers (elbow). McHugh was a starter for the Astros from 2014 to 2017, winning 19 games in 2015, before putting together a strong season as a reliever in 2018.

Executive vice president of baseball operations Billy Beane said Monday that Manaea (shoulder) could be ready to pitch around the All-Star break, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Though Manaea's timeline for a return remains fluid, it amounts to positive news that Beane isn't ruling the southpaw out for 2019, which was the initial expectation after he underwent surgery in September. The Athletics will probably consider any innings they get from Manaea during the upcoming campaign to be a bonus, so the 26-year-old likely won't warrant fantasy consideration outside of AL-only formats in early drafts.

Weber agreed to a minor-league deal with Boston on Friday that includes an invite to spring training, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Weber will provide extra depth to the Red Sox staff after spending last season in the Rays' organization. He only pitched in two big-league games but posted a 2.73 ERA and 1.22 WHIP with an 83:23 K:BB across 115.1 innings for Triple-A Durham. Weber has the ability to serve as a starter or multi-inning reliever.

Coulombe agreed to a minor-league deal with the Yankees on Thursday which includes an invite to spring training.

Coulombe will try to secure a spot on the Yankees' Opening Day roster after a tumultuous 2018 campaign in Oakland. The southpaw wound up being designated for assignment in early September after logging a pedestrian 4.56 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 23.2 innings across 27 relief appearances. Considering New York's bullpen is one of the best in baseball, it seems likely that Coulombe will begin the year back in the minors.

Oakland sent Pagan to Tampa Bay in a three-team deal Friday, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports.

There are a number of moving parts in this deal, including Jurickson Profar heading from the Rangers to the A's. Pagan will step into a relief role with the Rays after appearing in 55 games for Oakland this past season. The 27-year-old logged a 4.35 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 63:19 K:BB while giving up 1.9 home runs per nine innings. Pagan still has minor-league options remaining on his contract, so he could spend some time in Triple-A Durham next year, but the right-hander should be able to carve out a role in low-leverage spots.

Burke was traded to the Rangers as part of a three-team trade that also includes the A's, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports.

It is a very large trade in terms of players and additional assets, with Jurickson Profar heading to Oakland as the headliner. Burke was a pop-up prospect last season, logging a 1.95 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 25.8 K-BB percentage in nine starts at Double-A. A big 6-foot-4, 200-pound lefty, he has a plus fastball and plus curveball but will need to improve his changeup in order to stick as a starter. He is on the 40-man roster and could reach the big leagues in the second half of 2019.

Ramirez signed a minor-league contract with Detroit.

The converted first baseman couldn't duplicate his Double-A numbers at the Triple-A level in 2018, logging a 5.73 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and 18:21 K:BB over 37.2 innings with Colorado Springs in the Brewers' system last season. Ramirez spent most of his time coming out of the bullpen, which is where he's likely going to be utilized by the Tigers next year. Don't expect to see the 29-year-old in the majors barring a dramatic improvement.