MLB Player News

Bieber (elbow) agreed to a one-year, $14 million contract with the Guardians on Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Bieber's new deal also includes a $16 million player option for 2026. The 29-year-old righty was dominant in two starts last season, pitching 12 shutout innings while striking out 20 batters and walking one against the A's and Mariners, but his campaign was cut short by Tommy John surgery in mid-April. He's expected to miss the first couple months of the 2025 season while he finishes up his rehab, but the 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner could be a strong fantasy asset once he returns.

The Athletics agreed to a three-year, $67 million contract with Severino on Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Per Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the deal includes an opt out after the second year. It's an unexpected landing spot for Severino, to say the least, as the $67 million guarantee is the largest in Athletics history. Severino held a 3.91 ERA and 161:60 K:BB over 182 innings across 31 regular-season starts for the Mets in 2024. The A's will play the 2025-27 seasons in Sacramento before moving to their permanent home in Las Vegas in 2028.

The Tigers re-signed Flores to a minor-league contract Thursday that includes an invitation to spring training, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Flores was non-tendered by the Tigers in November following a 2024 campaign which saw him post a 7.84 ERA while being limited to just 31 innings because of shoulder trouble. The 23-year-old finished the season healthy and was considered a top-100 prospect a couple years ago, so retaining him on a minor-league deal looks like a no-brainer for the Tigers.

The Royals intend to move Bubic back into their starting rotation in 2025, per Will Sammon, Katie Woo and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

After recovering from a Tommy John procedure he underwent in April 2023, Bubic appeared exclusively out of the bullpen during the final three months of the 2024 campaign. In 27 regular-season appearances, the lefty posted a strong 2.67 ERA and 1.02 WHIP alongside a 39:5 K:BB over 30.1 frames. Assuming the 27-year-old is able to turn in similar numbers during spring training, he should have little trouble securing a spot in the Royals' rotation, which lost some depth after the trade that sent Brady Singer to Cincinnati.

Rogers has been training at Driveline Baseball in Arizona this offseason in hopes of regaining some velocity, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.

Rogers averaged just 91.9 mph with his four-seamer in 2024, which was down 1.3 mph from 2023 and nearly three mph from its peak in 2022. Testing at Driveline revealed that Rogers' lower-body strength was lacking, and he believes getting a stronger lower half will allow him to rediscover a few ticks on his fastball. The pitcher also noted that he entered the offseason fully healthy for the first time in a couple years, which has allowed him "to do things in the weight room that I have not been able to do." Rogers posted a 4.92 ERA and 97:56 K:BB over 124.1 innings between the Marlins and Orioles in 2024 and spent the final five weeks of the season in the minors. He'll have to compete for a job in Baltimore's rotation, but upping his velocity will give him a better chance to bounce back in 2025.

The Angels signed Kikuchi to a three-year, $63 million contract Monday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

The Angels have been aggressive early in the offseason, adding around $100 million in payroll via signings and trades. Kikuchi is their biggest get so far and adds some much-needed rotation help. The southpaw collected a 4.05 ERA and 206:44 K:BB over 175.2 innings between the Blue Jays and Astros in 2024. He was particularly good down the stretch after landing in Houston at the trade deadline with a 2.70 ERA and 76:14 K:BB across 60 frames.

Brubaker (oblique) agreed to a one-year contract with the Yankees on Friday to avoid arbitration.

Brubaker began the 2024 season sidelined while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He was able to begin a rehab assignment in mid-June but that was halted by an oblique injury, and he was limited to only 16.2 innings across four levels of the minor leagues in 2024. Brubaker is expected to be healthy to begin the 2025 campaign.

Suarez signed a one-year contract with the Angels on Friday to avoid arbitration, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

Suarez will remain with the Angels for a seventh season. Across 22 major-league outings in 2024, he posted a 6.02 ERA, 1.61 WHIP and 56:27 K:BB across 52.1 innings.

Lively signed a one-year, $2.25 million deal with the Guardians to avoid arbitration Friday, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Lively was an effective member of the Guardians' rotation in 2024, maintaining a 3.81 ERA with a 118:49 K:BB across 151 innings. He battled some inconsistency due to his contact-heavy approach, but he is a strong candidate to begin the season in the rotation.

Dunning signed a one-year, $2.66 million contract with the Rangers on Friday to avoid arbitration, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Dunning's 2025 salary represents a $670,000 pay cut from 2024, though he'll have opportunities to earn more money through incentives. It's not too surprising to see the 29-year-old righty receive a lower base salary after putting up a career-worst 5.31 ERA and 1.44 WHIP over 95 innings.