7:00 AM ET After a season ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic, amidst a precedent-setting, slow-moving free-agency period, against the backdrop of MLB revenues in sharp decline, with multiple clubs nakedly dumping payroll and a bitter CBA fight on the horizon, baseball could use a purely positive story. Fernando Tatis Jr., the emphatic, electrifying, marketable 22-year-old
MLB
6:32 PM ET Right-handed reliever Pedro Baez has agreed to a two-year contract with the Houston Astros, a source told ESPN’s Jeff Passan, confirming multiple reports. The deal is pending a physical. Baez, 32, finished the 2020 season as the third-longest-tenured member of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization, behind only Clayton Kershaw and Kenley Jansen.
3:24 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is suspending all political contributions in the wake of last week’s invasion of the U.S. Capitol by a mob loyal to President Donald Trump, joining a wave of major corporations rethinking their efforts to lobby Washington. “In light of the unprecedented events last week
7:00 AM ET MLB InsidersESPN On Jan. 13, 2020, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred released his findings and announced the Houston Astros‘ punishment for electronically stealing signs during the team’s 2017 World Series run. Manager AJ Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow were each suspended one year by MLB before they were both fired by the Astros,
10:34 AM ET TORONTO — Mark Shapiro has been given a five-year contract extension as the Toronto Blue Jays‘ president and chief executive officer. Rogers Communications, which owns the team, made the announcement Wednesday. Rogers announces five-year contract extension for @BlueJays President & CEO @MarkShapiro pic.twitter.com/nqgHhp64lw — Rogers News (@AboutRogers) January 13, 2021 Shapiro worked
7:38 PM ET Associated Press DETROIT — Right-hander Michael Fulmer and the Detroit Tigers agreed Tuesday to a $3.1 million, one-year contract that avoided arbitration. The 2016 AL Rookie of the Year went 0-2 with an 8.78 ERA in 10 starts last season after missing all of 2019 because of Tommy John surgery. He earned
4:31 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Carlos Carrasco got a welcome call from new Mets owner Steven Cohen. “He was so excited. He can’t wait to meet me. I can’t wait to meet him, too,” the pitcher said Tuesday. “The way he talked, the way he said everything is — he looked like
8:20 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” While the trade market has brought most of MLB’s headlines this offseason, the Chicago White Sox spending big to land closer Liam Hendriks shows free agency could soon heat up as well.
9:26 AM ET Free agent Corey Kluber is out to prove he’s healthy, as the right-hander prepares for a bullpen session in front of major league teams Wednesday in Florida. The two time Cy Young winner has pitched in just eight games over the past two seasons but says his injuries are a thing of
10:57 PM ET Free agent closer Liam Hendriks and the Chicago White Sox are in agreement on a multiyear deal, pending a physical, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The deal is for three years and includes an option for a fourth, and guarantees Hendriks $54 million, sources said. Hendriks will make $39 million in the