MLB Player News

Athletics general manager David Forst said last month that Puk will get another chance to start in 2023, per Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Puk joins the long list of possible candidates for the final few spots in Oakland's season-opening rotation. He essentially shifted into full-time relief after undergoing Tommy John surgery back in 2017, but the 27-year-old former top prospect has stated a desire to take on a larger workload moving forward. "You are talking about a guy who was a starter for a long time in college and the minor leagues, so it's not like he's transitioning and has never done it," said Forst. "I think performance aside, we'll keep track of his health and how he feels getting back into that role."

The Cardinals designated Naile for assignment Wednesday.

Naile loses his roster spot to make room for newly acquired Anthony Misiewicz, whom the Cardinals traded for Wednesday. With a 5.00 ERA across nine innings in his debut season in 2022, Naile could earn a call-up at some point during the 2023 campaign.

The Cardinals acquired Misiewicz from the Royals on Wednesday in exchange for cash considerations.

In 32 appearances last season between Seattle and Kansas City, Misiewicz pitched to a 4.34 ERA and 27:10 K:BB over 29 innings. The lefty is expected to compete for a middle-relief role in St. Louis' bullpen during spring training.

Antone (elbow) will miss the start of the 2023 season, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Antone made the announcement on his instagram account, and said that he recently received a PRP injection for a flexor strain in his right elbow that will keep him out for the first half of the year. The 29-year-old had been slowed during the offseason as he recovers from Tommy John surgery that forced him to miss the entire 2022 season, and this latest setback will see his 2023 debut occur after Opening Day. When healthy, Antone has been an excellent relief option, and once recovered, he should be a high-leverage option for the Reds.

Ramirez signed a minor-league contract Tuesday with the Yankees that includes an invitation to major-league spring training.

Ramirez spent the 2022 season with the Triple-A affiliate of the Mariners and worked to a 2.93 ERA and 53:13 K:BB ratio in 55.1 innings. The former first baseman will function as organizational relief depth for New York heading into the 2023 campaign.

Gage was placed on unconditional release waivers Monday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

All 29 other teams will have a chance to claim Gage and add him to the 40-man roster, however, the southpaw also has the option of rejecting the claim and testing free agency. Either way, his tenure in Toronto will come to an end. Gage appeared in 11 games for the Blue Jays in 2022, posting a 1.38 ERA and 0.92 WHIP with a 12:6 K:BB across 13 frames.

The Mets claimed Coonrod off waivers Monday from the Phillies, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Coonrod was designated for assignment Jan. 30 after the Phillies completed the signing of Josh Harrison. The right-hander made 12 appearances for Philadelphia in 2022 with a 7.82 ERA and 1.50 WHIP over 12.2 innings. He'll compete for one of the final spots in the Mets' bullpen during spring training.

Hildenberger was re-signed by the Giants on Monday to a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to spring training, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Hildenberger was limited to just six appearances in the minors last year with four of those coming with Triple-A Sacramento. The right-handed hurler has not pitched in the majors since 2021, when he made two appearances with the Mets. He provides some relief depth for the minors and isn't likely to be a factor for the Giants again in 2023.

Kay, who recently accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Iowa, will join the MLB team for spring training.

Kay went unclaimed after being designated for assignment near the end of January. The 27-year-old southpaw has made 28 MLB appearances over parts of four seasons from 2018-2022, and has registered a 5.48 ERA with a 77:38 K:BB over 70.2 innings of work. He doesn't appear to have a realistic shot of making Chicago's Opening Day pitching staff, and will all but assuredly begin the 2023 campaign with Triple-A Iowa.

Burdi, whom the Cubs selected in the minor-league Rule 5 draft in December, will join the MLB team for spring training.

The 29-year-old right-hander previously saw big-league action with the Pirates in parts of three seasons between 2018 and 2020, but he hasn't appeared in affiliated ball in either of the past two years after undergoing his second career Tommy John surgery in October 2020. The fact that he wasn't able to pitch even in the second half of the 2022 campaign suggests that he might have experienced a setback at some point along the way, but he looks as though he'll be healthy for spring training. Given his lengthy layoff from pitching, Burdi probably won't have a realistic chance at winning a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day bullpen and will most likely be ticketed for Triple-A Iowa.