WASHINGTON (AP) — Infielder Starlin Castro finalized a two-year contract with the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, one of a flurry of recent moves by the World Series champions.Castro's deal gives the club someone who can start at second base and maybe also play some at third, where Anthony Rendon left as a free agent. Castro gets $5 million next season and $7 million in 2021 plus the chance to earn award bonuses.Last season with the Miami Marlins, Castro batted .270 with career highs of 22 homers and 86 RBIs. He appeared in all 162 games, making 115 starts at second and 42 at third, along with two at shortstop.Castro will turn 30 in March and is entering his 11th season in the majors. In addition to the Marlins, he has played for the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees and been an All-Star four times.For his career, Castro has hit .280, with a .319 on-base percentage, .414 slugging percentage, 133 homers and 636 RBIs.Other agreements for Washington in recent days included free agents Will Harris — a reliever whose three-year deal will pay him $8 million each season — and Eric Thames, a first baseman, as well as returning reliever Daniel Hudson.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) — Infielder Starlin Castro finalized a two-year contract with the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, one of a flurry of recent moves by the World Series champions.Castro's deal gives the club someone who can start at second base and maybe also play some at third, where Anthony Rendon left as a free agent.Last season with the Miami Marlins, Castro batted .270 with career highs of 22 homers and 86 RBIs. He appeared in all 162 games, making 115 starts at second and 42 at third, along with two at shortstop.Castro will turn 30 in March and is entering his 11th season in the majors. In addition to the Marlins, he has played for the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees and been an All-Star four times.For his career, Castro has hit .280, with a .319 on-base percentage, .414 slugging percentage, 133 homers and 636 RBIs.Other agreements for Washington in recent days included free agents Will Harris — a reliever whose three-year deal will pay him $8 million each season — and Eric Thames, a first baseman, as well as returning reliever Daniel Hudson.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) — Infielder Starlin Castro finalized a two-year contract with the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, one of a flurry of recent moves by the World Series champions.Castro's deal gives the club someone who can start at second base and maybe also play some at third, where Anthony Rendon left as a free agent.Last season with the Miami Marlins, Castro batted .270 with career highs of 22 homers and 86 RBIs. He appeared in all 162 games, making 115 starts at second and 42 at third, along with two at shortstop.Castro will turn 30 in March and is entering his 11th season in the majors. In addition to the Marlins, he has played for the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees and been an All-Star four times.For his career, Castro has hit .280, with a .319 on-base percentage, .414 slugging percentage, 133 homers and 636 RBIs.Other agreements for Washington in recent days included free agents Will Harris — a reliever whose three-year deal will pay him $8 million each season — and Eric Thames, a first baseman, as well as returning reliever Daniel Hudson.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) — Reliever Daniel Hudson agreed to terms on an $11 million, two-year contract to return to the Washington Nationals, and the World Series champions also added first baseman Eric Thames.Each deal was confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday by people who spoke on condition of anonymity because neither agreement had been announced.Thames, who gets a one-year contract guaranteeing $4 million, moves into the lefty-hitting first baseman role filled by Matt Adams last season. The 33-year-old Thames hit .247 with 25 homers, 61 RBIs and 140 strikeouts for the Milwaukee Brewers last year.Since returning to the majors after playing in South Korea from 2014-16, Thames averaged 24 homers per season in three years with the Brewers. Signed by Milwaukee to a $16 million, three-year contract, he became a free agent after the Brewers declined a $7.5 million option, triggering a $1 million buyout.Hudson was acquired in a trade-deadline swap with the Toronto Blue Jays on July 31 and eventually... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Reliever Daniel Hudson agreed to terms on an $11 million, two-year contract to return to the Washington Nationals, and the World Series champions also added first baseman Eric Thames.Each deal was confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday by people who spoke on condition of anonymity because neither agreement had been announced.Thames, who gets a one-year contract guaranteeing $4 million, moves into the lefty-hitting first baseman role filled by Matt Adams last season. The 33-year-old Thames hit .247 with 25 homers, 61 RBIs and 140 strikeouts for the Milwaukee Brewers last year.Since returning to the majors after playing in South Korea from 2014-16, Thames averaged 24 homers per season in three years with the Brewers. Signed by Milwaukee to a $16 million, three-year contract, he became a free agent after the Brewers declined a $7.5 million option, triggering a $1 million buyout.Hudson was acquired in a trade-deadline swap with the Toronto Blue Jays on July 31 and eventually... [More]

Relief pitcher Will Harris is joining the Washington Nationals after they beat him and the Houston Astros in Game 7 of the World Series.Harris and the Nationals have agreed to a $24 million, three-year contract, the team announced Friday. The 35-year-old right-hander dominated with Houston for much of the postseason, starting October with nine consecutive scoreless innings. The Nationals finally got to him late in the World Series, and Harris allowed Howie Kendrick's go-ahead home run in Game 7.Washington went on to win its first World Series. Harris was stuck with the loss. “There’s no bitterness or anything like that from my end other than: Would I have liked it to go a different way? I mean, of course,” Harris said. “But there’s a lot of moments in my career I wish had gone a different way.” Harris acknowledged feeling uneasy when the Nationals first approached him. “That’s the first Game 7 World Series homer I’ve ever given up and I plan on it being the last,” he said. “So didn’t really... [More]

Relief pitcher Will Harris is joining the Washington Nationals after they beat him in Game 7 of the World Series against the Houston Astros.Harris and the Nationals have agreed to a $24 million, three-year contract, the team announced Friday. The 35-year-old Harris dominated with Houston for much of the postseason, starting October with nine consecutive scoreless innings. The Nationals finally got to him late in the World Series, and Harris allowed Howie Kendrick's go-ahead home run in Game 7.Washington went on to win its first World Series. Harris was stuck with the loss. The right-handed Harris had a 1.50 ERA in 68 games for the Astros last season. He had been with Houston since 2015 and was an All-Star in 2016.Harris will try to bolster a bullpen that was among the worst in baseball last season. Nationals relievers blew 29 saves and had a 5.68 ERA, both worst in the NL. Harris is likely to slot behind left-hander Sean Doolittle as the team's top setup man.___Follow Jake Seiner: https://twitter.com/Jake_Seiner___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Relief pitcher Will Harris is joining the Washington Nationals after they beat him in Game 7 of the World Series against the Houston Astros.Harris and the Nationals have agreed to a $24 million, three-year contract, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Friday because the agreement has not been announced. The 35-year-old Harris dominated with Houston for much of the postseason, starting October with nine consecutive scoreless innings. The Nationals finally got to him late in the World Series, and Harris allowed Howie Kendrick's go-ahead home run in Game 7.Washington went on to win its first World Series. Harris was stuck with the loss. The right-handed Harris had a 1.50 ERA in 68 games for the Astros last season. He had been with Houston since 2015 and was an All-Star in 2016.Harris will try to bolster a bullpen that was among the worst in baseball last season. Nationals relievers blew 29 saves and had a 5.68 ERA, both worst in the NL. Harris is likely to slot behind left-hander Sean Doolittle as the team's top setup man.___Follow Jake Seiner: https://twitter.com/Jake_Seiner___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A mostly dreary winter meetings lacking spectacular swaps will be remembered as the Scott Boras show.Baseball's most prominent agent dominated each of the three full days of meetings with a nine-figure contract, deals for Stephen Strasburg, Gerrit Cole and Anthony Rendon that totaled $814 million.Just two trades were announced: The San Francisco Giants acquired shortstop Zack Cozart and infield prospect Will Wilson from the Los Angeles Angels for a player to be named or cash, and the Chicago White Sox obtained outfielder Nomar Mazara from the Texas Rangers for outfield prospect Steele Walker."I think it's hard to say that there hasn't been a trend," new Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said. "It's important not to get too focused on artificial timetables. You want to be prepared to do something when you think it's going to help you, but you don't want to force anything."The podium and dais remained in nearly pristine condition, hosting just one player announcement:... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Postseason star Howie Kendrick and the World Series champion Washington Nationals agreed to a $6.25 million, one-year contract, according to two people with knowledge of the negotiations.Speaking on condition of anonymity Friday because the deal was still pending a successful physical exam, the people confirmed to The Associated Press that an agreement was in place for Kendrick to return to Washington for what will be his 15th season in the majors. One of the people said the contract includes a mutual option for 2021.The 36-year-old Kendrick, who was a free agent, provides Washington with a middle-of-the-order bat and some flexibility in the field. He primarily plays at first base now, but started games at every infield position except shortstop in 2019.The righty batter hit .344 with 17 homers and 62 RBIs in 121 regular-season games before all of his postseason contributions provided some real pop in the postseason. He hit a tiebreaking grand slam off Joe Kelly in the... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Postseason star Howie Kendrick and the World Series champion Washington Nationals agreed to a $6.25 million, one-year contract, according to two people with knowledge of the negotiations.Speaking on condition of anonymity Friday because the deal was still pending a successful physical exam, the people confirmed to The Associated Press that an agreement was in place for Kendrick to return to Washington for what will be his 15th season in the majors. One of the people said the contract includes a mutual option for 2021.The 36-year-old Kendrick, who was a free agent, provides Washington with a middle-of-the-order bat and some flexibility in the field. He primarily plays at first base now, but started games at every infield position except shortstop in 2019.The righty batter hit .344 with 17 homers and 62 RBIs in 121 regular-season games before all of his postseason contributions provided some real pop in the postseason. He hit a tiebreaking grand slam off Joe Kelly in the... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Postseason star Howie Kendrick and the World Series champion Washington Nationals agreed in principle to a $6.25 million, one-year contract, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations.Speaking on condition of anonymity Friday because the deal was still pending a successful physical exam, the person confirmed to The Associated Press that an agreement was in place for Kendrick to return to Washington for what will be his 15th season in the majors. The 36-year-old Kendrick, who was a free agent, provides Washington with a middle-of-the-order bat and some flexibility in the field. He primarily plays at first base now, but started games at every infield position except shortstop in 2019.The righty batter hit .344 with 17 homers and 62 RBIs in 121 regular-season games before all of his postseason contributions provided some real pop in the postseason. He hit a tiebreaking grand slam off Joe Kelly in the 10th inning of Game 5 of the NL Division Series to lead the... [More]

Patrick Corbin was an exception last offseason.Amid a slow free agent market — some stars didn’t sign until after the start of spring training — Corbin’s search for a new home was over in December when he received a $140 million, six-year contract from Washington.That worked out pretty well for both team and player. Corbin was a key part of the Nationals’ starting rotation this year, and he threw three scoreless innings in relief in Game 7 of the World Series, helping the team win its first World Series title.Now, another offseason is in full swing. It’s hard to say whether teams will be more aggressive in pursuing free agents, hoping to land the next Corbin, but the Atlanta Braves already made a significant move, signing reliever Will Smith away from San Francisco.Here’s a look at the top free agents still available, broken down by position. Players are listed with their most recent teams, with their ages in parentheses:LEFT-HANDED STARTERHyun-Jin Ryu, Dodgers (32)The runner-up for the... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — It was well within their grasp.The Houston Astros had a shot at a mini dynasty with a second title in three seasons. Instead, they failed to get one win in two chances at home against the Washington Nationals and have an offseason as runner-ups to ponder what might have been."I've got a group of heartbroken men ... that did everything they could to try to bring a World Series championship to this city," manager AJ Hinch said. "And we fell one win shy."The Astros won a franchise-record and MLB-best 107 games to earn home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. It didn't help in a World Series in which they dropped all four games in Houston, capped by Wednesday night's 6-2 loss that left them to watch the Nationals celebrate on their home field.In a season where aces Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole powered their spectacular success, a bullpen implosion in the seventh inning in Game 7 ensured the Astros wouldn't get a second ring this year.Zack Greinke, picked up at the trade... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Howie Kendrick sure has a knack for the dramatic.At 36 — eight years removed from his only All-Star appearance — his go-ahead, two-run homer off Will Harris in the seventh inning lifted the Washington Nationals over the Houston Astros 6-2 Wednesday night in Game 7 for his team's first World Series title.Steady-handed and battle-tested, Kendrick came through at the biggest moments of the Nationals' October run."He's been one of the heart and souls of this team," Nationals manager Dave Martinez said.Kendrick's grand slam against Joe Kelly broke a 10th-inning tie in the decisive Game 5 of the Division Series, giving the Nationals a 7-3 win — just the second extra-inning slam in postseason history."The grand slam is still the biggest moment because we wouldn't be here without that," Kendrick said as teammates sprayed beer and bubbly on him in the boisterous visitors' clubhouse. "So for me, that's still got to be the top moment in my career, but this is truly special."Kendrick... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — When the Washington Nationals were down, Anthony Rendon made sure they were never out.He was Mr. Clutch all October.Houston starter Zack Greinke was cruising with a one-hit shutout and a 2-0 lead in Game 7 of the World Series on Wednesday night. It would be glib to say that's exactly where Rendon and the Nats wanted to be, but the way their season turned out, why not?Rendon stroked a changeup into the left-field Crawford Boxes for a solo home run with one out in the seventh inning, and Washington set off on its fifth, final and most famous comeback in an elimination game this year, a 6-2 victory over the Astros for its first title in the franchise's 51 seasons."We had nothing else to lose when people had written us off," Rendon said. "We were facing elimination games that people thought that we shouldn't have been there in the first place. So we just kept on fighting and happened to come out on top."Rendon, a free-agent-to-be playing perhaps his final games for Washington,... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Howie Kendrick sure has a knack for the dramatic.At 36 — eight years removed from his only All-Star appearance — his go-ahead, two-run homer off Will Harris in the seventh inning lifted the Washington Nationals over the Houston Astros 6-2 Wednesday night in Game 7 for his team's first World Series title.Steady-handed and battle-tested, Kendrick came through at the biggest moments of the Nationals' October run."He's been one of the heart and souls of this team," Nationals manager Dave Martinez said.Kendrick's grand slam against Joe Kelly broke a 10th-inning tie in the decisive Game 5 of the Division Series, giving the Nationals a 7-3 win — just the second extra-inning slam in postseason history."The grand slam is still the biggest moment because we wouldn't be here without that," Kendrick said as teammates sprayed beer and bubbly on him in the boisterous visitors' clubhouse. "So for me, that's still got to be the top moment in my career, but this is truly special."Kendrick... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Howie Kendrick sure has a knack for the dramatic.At 36 — eight years removed from his only All-Star appearance — his go-ahead, two-run homer off Will Harris in the seventh inning lifted the Washington Nationals over the Houston Astros 6-2 Wednesday night in Game 7 for his team's first World Series title.Steady-handed and battle-tested, Kendrick came through at the biggest moments of the Nationals' October run."He's been one of the heart and souls of this team," Nationals manager Dave Martinez said.Kendrick's grand slam against Joe Kelly broke a 10th-inning tie in the decisive Game 5 of the Division Series, giving the Nationals a 7-3 win — just the second extra-inning slam in postseason history."The grand slam is still the biggest moment because we wouldn't be here without that," Kendrick said as teammates sprayed beer and bubbly on him in the boisterous visitors' clubhouse. "So for me, that's still got to be the top moment in my career, but this is truly special."Kendrick... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Astros manager AJ Hinch had options.There was Zack Greinke, a veteran ace showing his first signs of fatigue. Out in the bullpen, Gerrit Cole was watching. And of course, Will Harris was warming.What came next, Hinch will contemplate for years."It's a decision I'll have to live with," he said.After Greinke allowed a homer to Anthony Rendon and walked Juan Soto, Hinch handed a 2-1 lead to Harris in the seventh inning of World Series Game 7. On Harris' second pitch, Howie Kendrick drove a two-run, go-ahead homer off the right field foul pole screen — a haymaker that stunned Houston in a 6-2 defeat that cost them the chance at a second title in two years."It's every reliever's nightmare that I get a chance to live," Harris said, his eyes red-rimmed from the emotional ending.Greinke, the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner who joined the Astros from Arizona at the trade deadline, had looked strong all night. He threw only 80 pitches, was just starting his third turn through the order,... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Astros manager AJ Hinch had options.There was Zack Greinke, a veteran ace showing his first signs of fatigue. Out in the bullpen, Gerrit Cole was watching. And of course, Will Harris was warming.What came next, Hinch will contemplate for years."It's a decision I'll have to live with," he said.After Greinke allowed a homer to Anthony Rendon and walked Juan Soto, Hinch handed a 2-1 lead to Harris in the seventh inning of World Series Game 7. In Harris' first at-bat, Howie Kendrick drove a two-run, go-ahead homer off the right field foul pole screen — a haymaker that stunned Houston in a 6-2 defeat that cost them the chance at a second title in two years.It was the second straight night Harris surrendered a home run after Rendon took him deep for two runs in Houston's 7-2 loss in Game 6. Harris hadn't allowed a run this postseason before that shot.Greinke, the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner who joined the Astros from Arizona at the trade deadline, had looked strong all night.... [More]