MLB Player News

Eovaldi agreed to a two-year, $34 million contract with the Rangers on Tuesday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Eovaldi missed a solid chunk of last season with back and shoulder injuries, though he was able to turn in a decent campaign while healthy with a 3.87 ERA and 1.23 WHIP across 109.1 innings. If he can break his norm and avoid the injured list in 2023, Eovaldi could provide a solid addition to the middle of Texas' new-look rotation. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com, the contract includes a $20 million player option for 2025 that will vest if he exceeds 300 innings across the first two years of the deal.

Rucinski agreed to a one-year contract with the Athletics on Tuesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Rucinski's deal is for $3 million in 2023 and contains a $5 million club option for 2024.

Rucinski hasn't pitched in affiliated ball since 2018 and spent the past four years in the Korea Baseball Organization, where he had a 3.06 ERA across 121 starts. He'll turn 34 years old Dec. 30 and should have a chance to slot into the back end of Oakland's rotation to open 2023.

Lyles signed a two-year, $17 million deal with the Royals on Tuesday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

Lyles will be getting pretty good money for a 32-year-old with a 5.10 career ERA. His 4.42 ERA last season for the Orioles beat his career mark by a significant margin but still wasn't particularly strong, especially in a year in which offense dropped across the league. Lyles' 18.6 percent strikeout rate in 2022 was in line with his 17.6 percent career figure, so don't expect him to become a different pitcher any time soon. He should at least be able to eat a healthy amount of innings for the Royals, as his 62 starts over the past two seasons tie him for 13th in the league. Toss in his pitcher-friendly home park and relatively weak division and Lyles becomes a viable end-game option in deeper formats despite his rather bland numbers.

Milone signed a minor-league deal with the Mariners on Thursday, Paul Braverman, Director of Media Relations and Baseball Information for the Tacoma Rainiers reports.

Milone spent the majority of the 2022 season with Triple-A Tacoma and maintained a 2.68 ERA with a 1.02 WHIP across 40.1 innings. He appeared as a reliever for short stints in Seattle and will likely serve as organizational depth once again in 2023.

Rodon signed a six-year, $162 million contract with the Yankees on Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Rodon bet on himself by signing a one-year contract with San Francisco for the 2022 season. He delivered an excellent 2.88 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 237:52 K:BB across 178 innings and will now be rewarded with a lucrative long-term deal. In addition to his strong ratios and strikeout total, Rodon's inning total was also notable, as he overcame shoulder and elbow injuries from earlier in his career to prove he's capable of carrying a heavy workload. He'll join Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes (groin), and Luis Severino to form an imposing rotation in New York.

Lorenzen signed a one-year, $8.5 million contract with the Tigers on Wednesday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

After spending one season with the Angels, the 30-year-old righty is once again on the move. Lorenzen spent a bit of time on the injured list between July and September last season with a shoulder injury, though he was still able to put up a 4.24 ERA and 1.28 WHIP on the year -- both improvements from his 2021 campaign. He will likely take a spot toward the back end of the Tigers' rotation in 2023.

Eflin's three-year, $40 million contract with the Rays was formally announced by the team Tuesday.

The surprise deal was reported at the beginning of the month and has now been made official. Eflin held a 4.04 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 65:15 K:BB ratio over 20 appearances -- 13 starts -- for the Phillies in 2022. He's battled chronic knee issues and his career numbers are rather pedestrian, but the Rays have earned the benefit of the doubt when they see something in a pitchers. It wouldn't be a surprise if they're able to coax a career year out of Eflin in 2023.

The Blue Jays signed Bassitt to a three-year, $63 million contract Monday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

The righty will be a valuable addition to the middle of Toronto's already-strong starting rotation. Bassitt had a 3.42 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 167:49 K:BB in 181.2 innings with the Mets in 2022, numbers which fully merit the roughly $21 million AAV on this new contract. He joins a remarkably tough division in the AL East, but the NL East was no slouch, either, so it shouldn't change his 2023 outlook too drastically.

The Athletics acquired Muller from Atlanta on Monday in a three-team deal which also involved the Brewers, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.com reports.

Details of the trade are still emerging, but most notably, Atlanta acquired Sean Murphy and Milwaukee received William Contreras. Prospects Freddy Tarnok and Esteury Ruiz are going to Oakland alongside Muller, who was arguably Atlanta's top prospect. The left-handed starter struggled in three big-league appearances in 2022, but his Triple-A performance-3.41 ERA, 159:40 K:BB and a 1.18 WHIP in 134.2 innings inspire confidence in him becoming an effective big leaguer. Atlanta's strong rotation may have kept Muller in the minors longer than he needed. Oakland, on the other hand, figures to work Muller into its starting mix to begin the 2023 season.

Heaney's signing of a two-year, $25 million contract with the Rangers was formally announced by the team Friday.

Heaney reportedly turned down more money from other clubs in order to sign with Texas, which is close to his native Oklahoma. With the help of a new slider, the left-hander tallied a 3.10 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 110:19 K:BB ratio over 72.2 innings for the Dodgers in 2022. Heaney will remain a major health risk in 2023 but should be useful in fantasy leagues when on the mound.