MLB Player News

The Diamondbacks outrighted Miller to Triple-A Reno on Friday.

Miller cleared waivers after Arizona designated him for assignment last week when it needed to clear a 40-man roster spot for the newly signed Wilmer Flores. The southpaw reliever will likely open the upcoming campaign at Reno, where he posted a 7.71 ERA and 52:63 K:BB across 42 frames in 2018.

Wittgren was designated for assignment by the Marlins on Tuesday, Andre Fernandez of The Athletic reports.

This is somewhat surprising, as Wittgren has compiled a serviceable 3.60 ERA across parts of three major-league seasons (127.2 innings), including a 2.94 ERA across 33.2 frames in 2018. The right-hander could draw interest on waivers given his prior major-league experience.

Howard re-signed with the Rockies on a minor-league contract earlier this month, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports.

Howard made four appearances out of the Colorado bullpen in 2018 but wasn't able to maintain his spot on the 40-man roster heading into the winter. He'll get the opportunity to compete for a bullpen gig with the big club in spring training, though it's most likely he'll end up at Triple-A Albuquerque to begin the campaign.

Suter (elbow) has started playing catch, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

While Suter will likely miss nearly the entire 2019 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August, it's a good sign that his rehab is going smoothly to this point. Expect further updates on the left-hander's status as he clears more hurdles on the road to recovery.

Jansen threw his first offseason bullpen session Thursday and is feeling normal following November heart surgery, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Reports earlier in the offseason suggested things were going well for Jansen following a procedure to fix his irregular heartbeat, and it appears that things are continuing to trend in the right direction. Jansen is off his heart medication and does not expect to be affected by the issue moving forward. Assuming the problems don't resurface, expect him to continue being one of the top closers in the game in 2019.

Kontos agreed to a minor-league contract with the Cubs on Friday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Kontos spent time with the Pirates, Indians and Yankees last season without much success, finishing with a 4.39 ERA in 26.2 innings while striking out just 12.9 percent of opposing hitters. He reportedly increased his velocity by as much as three mph at Driveline over the offseason, though it would take a major leap for him to be anything other than a low-leverage reliever.

Wilson signed a contract with the Mets on Friday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Wilson spent the last season and a half with the Cubs and posted a 3.86 ERA and 1.59 WHIP over 72.1 innings. The 31-year-old's 6.5 BB/9 is somewhat concerning, but his 3.4 BB/9 over the previous five seasons could mean that's an anomoly. According to Jon Heyman of FancredSports.com, it's a two-year deal worth $10 million. Wilson helps solidify the Mets bullpen and should serve as the top left-handed option in front of closer Edwin Diaz.

Pomeranz agreed to a one-year deal with the Giants on Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Pomeranz battled injuries for much of last campaign, throwing just 74 innings and posting an ugly 6.08 ERA. That number was well-deserved, as his strikeout rate fell 4.3 points to 19.2 percent, while his walk rate jumped 3.5 points to 12.8 percent. There's no guarantee the injury issues will dissipate over the offseason, but the lefty did manage four straight seasons with an ERA no higher than 3.66 from 2014 to 2017, so there's certainly upside in the move for San Francisco. A move to a very pitcher-friendly home park will also help boost his value.

Miller was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks on Monday, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Miller was the roster casualty needed to free up a spot for Wilmer Flores, who officially signed a one-year deal with the Diamondbacks on Monday. The southpaw spent the majority of 2018 with Triple-A Reno, struggling to a 7.71 ERA, 2.60 WHIP and 52:63 K:BB across 42 innings of relief.

President of baseball operations John Mozeliak recently said that Reyes (lat) has been making "continued steady progress with his throwing progression" as part of the Cardinals' instructional league program in Jupiter, Fla. this offseason, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Despite starting games for the big club in 2016 and 2018, Reyes retains prospect eligibility after a pair of season-ending injuries prevented him from cementing his spot in the St. Louis rotation. Reyes, who required surgery in early June to address a torn right lat, isn't expected to face any limitations this spring, though the Cardinals have yet to formally decide how or where he'll be used to open the season. The 24-year-old will presumably audition for a rotation gig with the big club, but as a means of monitoring his workload coming off injury, the Cardinals could deploy Reyes out of the bullpen or even send him to Triple-A Memphis once camp comes to a close. On a more fortunate note, any restrictions Reyes might face this season aren't likely to be overly significant, with Mozeliak relaying to Goold on Saturday that getting only 50 innings of relief from right-hander wouldn't be ideal for his development.