MLB Player News

Jackson was outrighted to Triple-A Gwinnett on Thursday.

Jackson was designated for assignment by the Braves on Dec. 20, and passed through waivers unclaimed to remain with the organization. During the 2017 season, Jackson accumulated a 4.62 ERA and 33:19 K:BB in 50.2 innings.

Floro agreed to a minor-league deal with the Reds on Wednesday, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reports.

Floro will remain in the NL Central after appearing in three games with the Cubs in 2017. During that time, he posted an unsightly 6.52 ERA and 1.76 WHIP over 9.2 innings of relief. The 27-year-old spent most of the past season at the Triple-A level, which is where he will likely begin the 2018 campaign within the Reds' system.

Ames agreed to a minor-league deal with the Nationals on Thursday, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reports.

Ames -- a first-round pick in the 2011 draft -- has spent the last seven years of his career climbing the minor-league ranks within the Rays' organization. He spent the 2017 campaign with Triple-A Durham, posting a 3.98 ERA and 78:35 K:BB over 63.1 innings of work. The righty will need to cut down on his inflated walk rate if he hopes to play his way into a big-league relief role with his new club.

Bass announced that he signed with the Cubs on Thursday, via his personal Twitter account.

Bass likely agreed to a minor-league contract with the team, which comes after he was designated for assignment at the tail-end of the season by the Rangers. He only appeared in a pair of big-league games last year -- and played the previous season in Japan with the Nippon Ham Fighters -- after being a solid contributor for the club's bullpen in 2015. But he spent a majority of his time at Triple-A Round Rock in 2017, posting a 4.18 ERA and 1.42 WHIP while holding an 87:28 K:BB over 75.1 innings. Looking ahead, he will provide organizational depth for the Cubs next year, but may not see much time at the major-league level barring some injuries.

Smith signed a minor-league deal with the Nationals on Thursday that includes an invitation to spring training, Keegan Matheson of Sportsnet reports.

Smith made his major-league debut with the Blue Jays as a 28-year-old last season, striking out one batter in five innings and posting a 5.40 ERA. He recorded a mediocre 4.46 ERA in 34.1 innings at Triple-A Buffalo last year, striking out just 16.7 percent of batters and generating a very low 29.1 percent groundball rate. He did demonstrate good control, walking just 4.2 percent of the batters he faced, but he's unlikely to provide anything more than organizational depth for the Nationals and should only be expected to reach the majors in the event of an injury crisis.

Jackson was designated for assignment by the Braves on Wednesday.

Jackson was dropped from the 40-man roster in order to make room for the recently-acquired Preston Tucker in a deal with the Astros. During the 2017 season, Jackson appeared in 43 games out of the bullpen for Atlanta, posting a 4.62 ERA and 1.46 WHIP over 50.2 innings. Although he provided another middle-relief arm for the Braves this past year, Jackson wasn't able to make hitters miss, accumulating just 33 strikeouts, which has been indicative of his professional career up to this point.

Zagurski has agreed to a minor-league deal with Milwaukee, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports.

Zagurski has bounced around throughout his career, spending time with four other teams before signing with the Brewers. He last saw an opportunity to pitch in the major leagues back in 2013, tossing just 6.1 innings and accruing a 17.05 ERA. Zagurski will look to find his niche in Milwaukee, though he'll likely start the season at Triple-A Colorado Springs.

Collins signed a minor-league deal to return to Washington on Friday, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.

Collins made his first appearance in professional baseball since 2014 this summer, following a pair of Tommy John surgeries. Over 18 games with various affiliates in the Nationals' system, the 28-year-old posted a 7.79 ERA and 1.79 WHIP while holding a 23:14 K:BB. Collins still has a lot of work to do to prove he can regain his old form, making him a long shot to return to the majors in 2018.

De Los Santos was traded to the Phillies on Friday in exchange for Freddy Galvis, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

A 6-foot-3 righty who turns 22 later this month, De Los Santos commands a plus fastball and logged 150 innings at Double-A in the Padres' system last year. His secondary pitches are inconsistent, but his command is decent enough. If he can make strides with his breaking ball and changeup, he could become a No. 3 or No. 4 starter, but the most likely scenario is that he ends up as a seventh- or eighth-inning reliever. De Los Santos notched a 3.78 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 138 strikeouts in 150 innings in the Texas League last season. He will likely head to Triple-A and could get an audition in the big-league rotation this summer.

Burdi (elbow) was traded to the Pirates for international slot money.

Originally selected by the Phillies with the third pick in Thursday's Rule 5 draft, he was then sent to Pittsburgh. The hard-throwing righty is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, which he underwent in late May. He made 75 pitches from 80 feet earlier this week, so his rehab appears to be going well. Burdi can touch triple digits with his fastball and has a wipeout slider, but his command/control was an issue even before the surgery, so it may be a year or two before he can locate well enough to reliably handle high-leverage situations. The Pirates can stash him on the disabled list to start the season, but he must be active (off the DL) for a minimum of 90 days in 2018, otherwise they would need to keep him on the active roster throughout the offseason and into the 2019 season. Burdi could return to game action sometime this summer.