MLB Player News

Berti signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Cubs on Wednesday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

A calf injury limited Berti to just 25 regular-season games in 2024, during which he slashed .273/.342/.318 with six RBI and five stolen bases across 74 plate appearances with the Yankees. If healthy this season, the 35-year-old infielder has a path to semi-regular playing time in Chicago, which is facing some uncertainty at third base. However, he'll likely face some competition during spring training in the form of top prospect Matt Shaw.

President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Wednesday that the Dodgers plan to use Sasaki in their major-league rotation from the beginning of the season, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Sasaki officially signed a minor-league contract with Los Angeles on Wednesday, but there are seemingly no plans to ease him into his first year with the Dodgers. However, the 23-year-old righty never pitched more than 129.1 innings in a year over his four seasons in Japan, so the Dodgers may look for other ways -- such as a six-man rotation -- to limit his rookie-season workload.

The Cubs signed McGuire to a minor-league contract Wednesday, Aram Leighton of Just Baseball reports.

McGuire, who will turn 30 in March, sports a career .252/.300/.364 batting line over parts of seven major-league seasons. The veteran backstop will likely begin the 2025 campaign at Triple-A Iowa as catching depth.

Swanson (abdomen) expects to be a full participant in spring training, Sahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic report.

Swanson underwent core muscle surgery in October for an injury which he revealed he'd been dealing with since 2023. However, he is not expected to have any limitations in camp and will be ready to roll for the Cubs' March 18-19 series against the Dodgers in Tokyo.

The Reds have extended Burns an invitation to big-league camp during spring training.

Burns has yet to make his professional debut after being taken with the second pick of the 2024 First-Year Player Draft, but the Reds will give the young right-hander a look-see in spring training. Cam Collier, Sal Stewart and Edwin Arroyo are among the team's other top prospects that will be in big-league camp.

Kopech could miss the first month of the season due to right forearm inflammation, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Kopech battled a forearm issue during the playoffs, although it never got to the point where he was unavailable to pitch. There's no indication the injury has gotten worse since then, with Nightengale noting that Kopech does not have any structural damage. However, the Dodgers are opting to take things slowly with the hard-throwing reliever. Once healthy, Kopech figures to be in the mix for saves, along with Tanner Scott, Kirby Yates, Blake Treinen and perhaps others.

Horton (shoulder) has been throwing light "touch-and-feel" sessions off the mound, Ryan Herrera of Just Baseball reports.

Horton didn't pitch after late May last season following a Grade 2 right subscapularis strain. However, he's been able to go through a normal throwing progression this offseason and said he's "feeling good and ready to go for spring training." Horton likely would have debuted in 2024 if not for the injury, and while he's slated to begin 2025 back at Triple-A Iowa, the 23-year-old could play an important role with the Cubs this season, if healthy.

Kopech (undisclosed) is expected to possibly miss the first month of the season, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Fabian Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic note that Kopech dealt with a forearm issue throughout the postseason, "but it was not deemed to be anything he couldn't pitch through." It's not clear whether it's the forearm problem or something else that might force the month-long absence. More information on Kopech's situation should come to light soon.

The Dodgers reached a contract agreement with Yates on Tuesday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Just a couple days after signing the top free-agent relief arm in Tanner Scott, the Dodgers have further fortified their bullpen with the addition of Yates. Slated to turn 38 in March, Yates collected a microscopic 1.17 ERA, 0.83 WHIP and 85:28 K:BB over 61.2 innings while notching 33 saves for the Rangers in 2024. It's not an ideal landing spot from a fantasy perspective, as he will have lots of competition for saves in the Dodgers' bullpen.

Gray was designated for assignment by Pittsburgh on Monday, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Gray will vacate the 40-man roster to make room for Andrew McCutchen, who was officially added to the roster Monday after putting pen to paper on a one-year deal in December. Gray found little success at the big-league level in 2024 during stops with the Marlins and Athletics, going 3-for-28 with one double and three walks over 15 games.