Infielder Joey Wendle is on the move, as the Tampa Bay Rays have traded the 31-year-old to the Miami Marlins in exchange for outfield prospect Kameron Misner. Wendle has spent the last four seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays, slashing .265/.319/.422 with 11 homers and eight steals in 2021. He should see plenty of playing time at second base, third base, and shortstop, and is under club control through the 2023 season via arbitration. The move opens up playing time in Tampa Bay for Taylor Walls and Vidal Brujan among others. Misner, meanwhile, has an outside shot to appear in the major leagues in 2022 but more likely will spend the season in the upper minors.

According to a tweet from ESPN's Jesse Rogers, the Chicago Cubs are reportedly close to signing free-agent outfielder Clint Frazier to a one-year contract. Frazier hit .186 with a .317 on-base percentage, five home runs, and a pair of stolen bases in 218 plate appearances for the New York Yankees last season. The 27-year-old has a career .195 ISO and 29 home runs in 807 lifetime plate appearances in the Majors. The outfielders currently on Chicago's 40-man roster include Jason Heyward, Ian Happ, Rafael Ortega, Harold Ramirez, Nelson Velazquez, Greg Deichmann, Michael Hermosillo, and Alexander Canario.

The Minnesota Twins have claimed right-handed pitcher Trevor Megill off waivers from the Chicago Cubs, according to a tweet from Dustin Morse, who works in the Twins' communications department. Megill made his Major League debut for the Cubs last season, throwing 23.2 innings while registering 30 strikeouts and eight walks. He pitched to an 8.37 ERA and a 5.62 FIP in those 23.2 innings and will give the Twins some extra bullpen depth heading into next season. Only nine teams had a bullpen with a higher FIP than Minnesota's group of relief pitchers last season.

The Washington Nationals have claimed infielder Lucius Fox off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles. The Nationals announced the move on Tuesday in a tweet from the team's official Twitter account. Fox has yet to appear at the Major League level but hit .242 with a .347 on-base percentage, four home runs, and 19 stolen bases in 252 plate appearances for Kansas City's Triple-A affiliate last season. A shortstop for most of his career, the 24-year-old also saw time at second base and in center field last season. He'll give the Nationals some extra infield depth. Washington's other infield options on the 40-man roster include Carter Kieboom, Luis Garcia, Josh Bell, Mike Ford, Alcides Escobar, and Yasel Antuna.

The Chicago White Sox are reportedly re-signing Leury Garcia, according to a tweet from MLB Network's Jon Heyman. Per Heyman's tweet, it's a three-year deal for the 30-year-old. In 474 plate appearances last season, Garcia hit .267 with a .335 on-base percentage, five home runs, and six stolen bases. He played all over the field for Tony La Russa's club, starting games at every position besides pitcher, catcher, and first base. He'll likely be a utility option again next season, though speculatively speaking, he could see extended time at second base if the White Sox don't make any additions at the position.

According to a tweet from MLB Network's Jon Heyman, a handful of teams are reportedly trying to sign free-agent first baseman Freddie Freeman. Heyman notes in his tweet that the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, and Toronto Blue Jays have all "reached out." Freeman hit .300 with a .393 on-base percentage, 31 home runs, and eight stolen bases in 695 plate appearances last season while leading the Atlanta Braves to a World Series title. He's one of the best free-agent hitters remaining alongside Carlos Correa and Trevor Story.

According to a tweet from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, Major League Baseball has announced discipline for Atlanta Braves outfielder Marcell Ozuna, citing its domestic-violence policy. Ozuna will receive a 20-game, unpaid suspension. Per Rosenthal, that suspension "includes all 20 regular-season games he served while on administrative leave" in September during the 2021 season. Rosenthal also notes that the outfielder can return immediately at the beginning of next season.

The Washington Nationals re-signed outfielder Andrew Stevenson and veteran left-hander Luis Avilan on Monday. Stevenson avoided arbitration and stands to earn a modest raise from his 2021 salary of $579,100. The 27-year-old remains the team's fourth outfielder, but both he and the Nationals will be hoping for more production in 2022 after he slashed .229/.294/.339 with five home runs and 23 RBI over 213 plate appearances last season. He hit just .184 with a .248 on-base percentage in 136 plate appearances as a starter compared to .319 with a .794 OPS and four of his five homers off the bench. Avilan appeared in only four games last year before needing Tommy John surgery on his elbow.

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed right-handed pitcher Jerad Eickhoff and catcher James Ritchie to minor league deals on Monday, according to a source. Eickhoff, 31, has made 85 appearances (80 starts) for the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets in his six-year career, and he had an 8.69 ERA with 10 walks, 13 strikeouts and nine home runs allowed in 19 2/3 innings over four starts with the Mets in 2021. His best season came in 2016 with the Phillies, when he went 11-14 with a 3.65 ERA with 167 K's and 42 walks in 197 1/3 innings over 33 starts. Ritchie, 28, has yet to make his MLB debut after being taken in the 13th round by the Houston Astros in 2014. He hit .317 with an .846 OPS in 79 games for Triple-A Reno in 2021.

The Atlanta Braves signed right-handed reliever Darren O'Day to a minor league deal on Monday. The 39-year-old side-armer signed a one-year deal with the New York Yankees last winter but pitched in only 10 2/3 innings due to a rotator cuff strain and a season-ending hamstring injury that required surgery. If he's in the majors with the Braves next season, he'll make $1 million. In his 14 big-league seasons, O'Day has a nice 2.53 ERA in 587 1/3 innings pitched. He previously pitched with Atlanta from 2019-20 but pitched only 21 2/3 innings due to injuries, and he hasn't gone over 20 innings pitched in a season since 2017. If O'Day cracks the Opening Day roster, he'll be a relief option against right-handed bats.

The Tampa Bay Rays signed left-hander Brooks Raley to a two-year deal worth $10 million on Monday. The deal includes an option for a third season. Raley will give the Rays a much-needed left-handed bullpen arm after the team parted ways with Ryan Sherriff, Cody Reed, Adam Conley and Dietrich Enns in the last month. Raley had a 4.78 ERA but struck out 65 hitters and walked only 16 in 49 innings over 58 appearances for the Houston Astros last year, and he also had two saves. The southpaw had just a 21.5% hard-hit percentage, and left-handed hitters batted only .195/.262/.221 with 35 strikeouts, four walks and two extra-base hits in 85 plate appearances against him. The 33-year-old doesn't throw hard, but he finished with scoreless outings in 11 of his last 12 outings of the season and had a 1.93 ERA in 21 games after July 28.

The Pittsburgh Pirates re-signed outfielder Ben Gamel to a one-year, $1.8 million deal on Monday to avoid salary arbitration. Gamel will have a chance to earn $100,000 for 450 plate appearances and $100,000 for 550 plate appearances, according to a source. The Pirates claimed Gamel off waivers from Cleveland last year after he was mostly a bench bat for the Milwaukee Brewers the previous two seasons. Gamel was a bit of a surprise for the Pirates last year, slashing .255/.352/.399 with eight home runs, 26 RBI, three steals and 42 runs scored in 383 plate appearances over 111 games while playing solid defense in the outfield.

The Los Angeles Angels agreed to a one-year deal worth roughly $7 million with free-agent right-hander Michael Lorenzen, according to a source. The 29-year-old has experience as both a starter and reliever, and he has a 4.07 ERA over 473 1/3 innings over seven seasons with the Cincinnati Reds. Lorenzen, who is one of the better hitting pitchers in the league, was born in Anaheim and played at Cal State Fullerton. He pitched only in relief in 2021 after not making his season debut until July due to a shoulder injury, and he wasn't terribly effective with a 5.59 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 29 innings. Lorenzen made 21 starts in his rookie year in 2015, but he's made just five starts since. He's been better in his career in relief (3.74 ERA), but given the Angels need for starters, Lorenzen is expected to compete for a rotation spot in spring training.

According to a tweet from ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed catcher Roberto Perez to a one-year contract. The 32-year-old hit .149 with a .245 on-base percentage, seven home runs, and a stolen bases in 161 plate appearances for Cleveland last season. He gives Pittsburgh a veteran option behind the plate after the team traded last season's starter, Jacob Stallings, to the Miami Marlins. Fellow catcher Michael Perez was designated for assignment and later outrighted to Triple-A by the Pirates earlier in the offseason.

Per a tweet from MLB Network's Jon Heyman, the Colorado Rockies are reportedly interested in free-agent third baseman Kris Bryant. Bryant hit .265 with a .353 on-base percentage, 25 home runs, and 10 stolen bases in 586 plate appearances last season for the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants. Colorado's third baseman finished with a collective 72 wRC+ last season, the third-worst number in the league, so they could certainly use the help at the position. Ryan McMahon received the bulk of the starts at third base last season for the Rockies, but he can also play second base and first base.

According to a tweet from MLB Network's Jon Heyman, the Colorado Rockies reportedly "would like to try to bring back Trevor Story." One of the offseason's best available free-agent position players, Story spent the first six years of his career in Colorado. A career .272 hitter with a lifetime 112 wRC+, Story hit .251 with a .329 on-base percentage, 24 home runs, and 20 stolen bases in 595 plate appearances last season. The National League West club's current shortstop options include Brendan Rodgers and Garrett Hampson. Rodgers was the more productive of the duo last season, batting .284 with a .328 on-base percentage and 15 home runs in 415 plate appearances. However, Hampson did register 11 home runs and 17 stolen bases in 494 plate appearances.

Many National League teams are pursuing free-agent designated hitter Nelson Cruz with the perception being that there will be a universal DH next year whenever a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is done. The 41-year-old continues to defy Father Time and made his seventh All-Star team while slashing .265/.334/.497 with 32 home runs, 86 RBI and 79 runs scored in 584 plate appearances over 140 games for the Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays in 2021. Although he did have 13 home runs in 238 plate appearances after being traded to Tampa, Cruz wasn't as productive in 55 games for the Rays, slashing only .226/.283/.442 with a .725 OPS. Staying at DH has kept Cruz healthy and productive late in his career, and he's hit 73 combined HRs in the last two seasons.

The Philadelphia Phillies are in hot pursuit of free-agent reliever Corey Knebel, according to baseball sources. Talks are serious with the 30-year-old, who saved 39 games for the Milwaukee Brewers while being named an All-Star as recently as 2017. If Knebel lands with the Phillies, he'd have a shot at potentially being named the closer heading into 2022. The Phillies have listed a closer as an offseason priority, but they also haven't ruled out filling the spot with more than one arm. Philadelphia has also had talks with free-agent Mychal Givens for a back-end bullpen role. Knebel had Tommy John surgery in 2019 and appeared in 27 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2021, posting a 2.45 ERA and 0.97 WHIP while missing three months with a lat strain.

The Philadelphia Phillies and Miami Marlins are among the teams linked to free-agent outfielder/first baseman Kyle Schwarber. In 91 games in National League East parks, Schwarber has 32 home runs, which equates to 57 home runs per 162 games. The left-handed slugger has a 1.188 career OPS against the New York Mets and a 1.189 OPS against the Marlins. The Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies and other teams are also in on Schwarber, who had a 145 wRC+ last season with the Washington Nationals and Red Sox. Schwarber turns 29 next March and hit 32 home runs while driving in 71 runs in 2021, and he remains one of the best power bats available on the open market.

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Max Muncy (elbow) referred to suffering a "torn UCL" in his left elbow and not recovering as quickly as he would like when talking with MLB Network's Alanna Rizzo on Monday. It's the first time that Muncy has acknowledged an injury to his dislocated elbow other than just "damage." The 31-year-old suffered a dislocated elbow in the regular season finale and is hoping to be ready for the start of the 2022 season. A torn UCL is pretty significant, though, but the good news is that it's to his non-throwing arm. We'll have to keep an eye on when Muncy might begin baseball activities, but there's a real chance he won't be ready on time in 2022, and the injury could affect his power stroke at the plate as well.