MLB Player News

White (hip) was traded from Seattle to Atlanta on Sunday along with Jarred Kelenic and Marco Gonzales in exchange for Jackson Kowar and Cole Phillips.

White is entering his age-28 campaign and is owed $8 million over the next two seasons, but Seattle didn't use him in the majors in 2022 or 2023. Last season was a lost campaign for White, who ended up having hip surgery in May. He hasn't been a league-average hitter since his stint at Triple-A in 2021, and this was primarily a salary dump move by Seattle. White has a career .165/.235/.308 MLB slash line in 306 plate appearances.

Blandino signed a minor-league contract with the Reds on Wednesday.

Blandino joined the Giants on a minor-league deal ahead of the 2022 season before being traded to the Mariners. He was let go by Seattle in August of 2022 and didn't play last year, but he's slated to get another opportunity to provide organizational depth for the Reds in 2023. The 31-year-old played in 135 major-league games with the Reds between the 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons and hit .226 with two homers, 29 runs, 16 RBI and a steal. He should play mainly in the minors in 2023.

Porter signed a minor-league contract with the Royals on Saturday.

After being non-tendered by the Royals on Friday, Carter will officially remain with the organization. The 28-year-old backstop spent most of his time at Triple-A Omaha last season, slashing .232/.339/.377 with 13 homers and 48 RBI.

Smith was non-tendered by the Nationals on Friday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

The 28-year-old was designated for assignment Tuesday and is now officially a free agent. He showed a lot of promise in 2019-20 with the Mets but has slashed just .242/.316/.350 in 211 major-league games (738 plate appearances) since the beginning of the 2022 campaign.

Porter was non-tendered by the Royals on Friday.

Porter was designated for assignment earlier this week and is now officially a free agent. The 28-year-old catcher has appeared in only 11 career games at the MLB level.

Tellez became a free agent Friday after being non-tendered by the Brewers, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Tellez slashed just .215/.291/.376 over 105 games (351 plate appearances) in 2023 and was left off the roster for the Brewers' NL Wild Card Series matchup against the Diamondbacks. He popped 35 home runs in 2022 and is only 28 years old, but it's a tough market out there for 1B/DH types.

Porter was designated for assignment by the Royals on Tuesday.

Porter went 6-for-31 (.194) with 11 strikeouts over his first 11 major-league games in 2023. The 28-year-old catcher is no longer part of the 40-man roster in Kansas City.

The Nationals designated Smith for assignment Tuesday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Smith is due a bit of a raise in his final year of arbitration eligibility and the Nationals evidently weren't willing to give him a salary bump. The 28-year-old made $2 million in 2023 while slashing just .254/.326/.366 with 12 home runs over 153 games. Smith is still just 28, but with a .666 OPS since the start of the 2021 season, it might be difficult for him to find regular at-bats in 2024.

Higgins signed a minor-league contract with the Reds on Monday.

The deal includes an invitation to major-league spring training. The 30-year-old had a .639 OPS in 83 games for the Cubs from 2021 through 2022 but spent all of 2023 at the Triple-A level between the Diamondbacks and Cubs organizations, posting an .857 OPS with 11 home runs. The Reds already appear set at catcher with Tyler Stephenson and Luke Maile, so Higgins will likely begin the 2024 season at Triple-A Louisville.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said Wednesday that Casas (shoulder) is close to starting a hitting program, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Casas missed the final few weeks of the 2023 regular season because of inflammation in his right shoulder, but he is basically back to full strength here in early November. When healthy this year, the young first baseman put up a strong .856 OPS with 24 home runs and 65 RBI over 132 games.