Rockies, reliever Mike Dunn agree on $19M, 3-year deal

By PAT GRAHAM
Associated Press

DENVER (AP) -- The Colorado Rockies shored up their shaky bullpen by agreeing to a $19 million, three-year contract with reliever Mike Dunn on Thursday.

Colorado desperately needed bullpen help after blowing 28 saves last season. The 31-year-old left-hander went 6-1 with a 3.40 ERA in 51 appearances for the Miami Marlins last season. He also had eight holds and four blown saves.

Dunn was to be introduced at a news conference at Coors Field. On his Twitter account, he thanked the Marlins organization and their fans for the last six years and added: "We are ready to start the next chapter in our lives. Denver here we come."

Dunn was picked by the New York Yankees in the 33rd round of the 2004 amateur draft. He is 28-25 over his career with the Yankees, Atlanta Braves and the Marlins.

Dunn becomes the second splashy free agent signing by the Rockies this offseason following a $70 million, five-year deal with All-Star outfielder Ian Desmond, who is switching to first base.

Colorado general manager Jeff Bridich hinted at the Desmond news conference this week that he may not be done retooling the team for first-year Colorado manager Bud Black. The Rockies went 75-87 last season, their best record since 2010, and are trying to close the gap on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

"We are still focused on if we can add impact pitching to where we are here," Bridich said. "There are still a lot of players out there."

Former top draft pick Phil Bickford suspended 50 games

NEW YORK (AP) -- Milwaukee right-hander Phil Bickford, the 18th overall pick in baseball's 2015 amateur draft, has been suspended for the first 50 games of next season following a second positive test for a drug of abuse under the sport's minor league drug program.

Bickford, 21, is on the roster of Milwaukee's Class A Carolina Mudcats of the Carolina League. He signed with the San Francisco for a $2,333,800 bonus and was traded at this year's Aug. 1 deadline to the Brewers along with catcher Andrew Susac for left-hander Will Smith.

Bickford was 7-7 with a 2.93 ERA in 22 starts and one relief appearance for three Class A teams this year, striking out 135 in 120 innings. He pitched in the All-Star Futures Game in San Diego.

In addition, Toronto right-hander Pedro Loficial was suspended for 72 games following a positive test for metabolites of Stanozolol and Miami outfielder Casey Soltis was banned 50 games following a second positive test for a drug of abuse.

Loficial, 21, was 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA in three relief appearances and 6 2/3 innings for the Dominican Summer League Blue Jays.

The 21-year-old Soltis, a fifth-round pick in 2014, hit .190 this year in 52 games at Class A Greensboro of the South-Atlantic League.

Major League Baseball announced the discipline Friday. There have been 95 suspensions this year under the minor league drug program and 13 under the major league program.

Yankees sign outfielder Matt Holliday to one-year contract extending through the 2017 season

The New York Yankees yesterday announced they have signed seven-time All-Star (2006-08, '10-12, '15) and four-time Silver Slugger Award-winning (2006-08, '10) outfielder Matt Holliday to a one-year contract extending through the 2017 season.

Holliday, 36, batted .246 (94-for-382) with 48R, 20 doubles, 1 triple, 20HR and 62RBI in 110 games with the Cardinals in 2016, hitting at least 20 doubles for the 12th time in his career and at least 20HR for the 10th time. Holliday missed 44 team games on the disabled list from August 13 through September 30 after being hit by a pitch on August 12 and fracturing his left thumb. He returned for the Cardinals' final three games of the year, going 2-for-2 with a solo home run and an RBI single in two plate appearances. In eight games as a designated hitter last season, he hit .368 (14-for-38) with 4 doubles, 5HR and 12RBI.

Among batters who had least 100 batted balls in play in 2016, Holliday ranked third in the Majors with an average exit velocity of 94.7 mph, trailing only Nelson Cruz (95.9) and Giancarlo Stanton (95.1) according to MLB.com's Statcast. Holliday hit the ball at least 100 mph 42.5% of the time, marking the fourth-best percentage among the 247 hitters to put the ball in play at least 200 times.

During his 13-year Major League career, the right-handed hitter has batted .303 (1,995-for-6,538) with 1,104R, 448 doubles, 32 triples, 295HR and 1,153RBI in 1,773 games with Colorado (2004-08), Oakland (2009) and St. Louis (2009-16). From 2006-14, Holliday was the only Major Leaguer to record at least 20HR, 30 doubles and 75RBI each season, and he is one of just 19 players in Baseball history to have at least nine such seasons in their careers. Since 2013, he has batted .349 (148-for-424) with 33 doubles, 16HR, 202RBI, 66 walks and a .442 on-base percentage with runners in scoring position. Holliday has appeared in 72 career postseason games, advancing to the World Series three times (2007, '11 and '13) and winning a World Series championship with the Cardinals in 2011. His 13 career home runs during the playoffs are tied for the 14th-most all time.

With the Rockies in 2007, he won the National League batting title and ranked second in National League MVP voting, hitting .340 (216-for-636) with 120R, 50 doubles, 36HR, 6 triples and 137RBI in 158 games and setting career highs in runs scored, hits, doubles, home runs and RBI. He scored the game-winning run in the 13th inning of Game 163 vs. San Diego to send the Rockies to their first postseason appearance since 1995. He hit a Major League-best 5HR during that postseason and won NLCS MVP honors en route to leading Colorado to its first-ever World Series appearance.

A native of Stillwater, Okla., Holliday was originally selected by Colorado in the seventh round of the 1998 First-Year Player Draft. Among Oklahoma-born players in Major League history, he ranks fifth in home runs behind only Mickey Mantle (536), Willie Stargell (475), Joe Carter (396) and Johnny Bench (389). In 2006, he appeared in three games for Team USA in the inaugural World Baseball Classic.

The Yankees' 40-man roster now stands at 40.

- New York Yankees

AP source: Chapman, Yankees reach deal for $86M, 5 years

ASSOCIATED PRESS

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) — Aroldis Chapman found a spot in a most familiar bullpen — a very rich spot, too.

The hard-throwing closer reached agreement to return to the New York Yankees on Wednesday night with the highest-priced contract ever for a relief pitcher, an $86 million deal for five years.

A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that the contract was pending a physical. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet complete.

Once it's done, the 28-year-old lefty whose fastballs routinely top 100 mph would shatter the previous richest contract for a reliever — that was the $62 million, four-year deal Mark Melancon signed with San Francisco just a couple days ago during the winter meetings.

Chapman was acquired by New York from the Cincinnati Reds last offseason, then missed the first 29 games of the season due to a domestic violence suspension from Major League Baseball. The Cuban was traded to the Chicago Cubs in late July and helped them win the World Series, becoming a free agent when it was over.

Chapman went 4-1 with 36 saves and a 1.55 ERA in a combined 59 games for the Yankees and Cubs. He struggled some in the postseason as the Cubs beat Cleveland for their first championship since 1908.

With the Yankees this season, Chapman teamed with Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances in one of the most dominant bullpens in baseball history. Miller was later traded to Cleveland, but Betances is still with New York.

Earlier this week, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said the team was interested in both Chapman and fellow free agent closer Kenley Jansen. The Yankees had already made one deal at these meetings, signing slugger Matt Holliday, before paying a lot more to bring Chapman back to the Bronx.

Fox Sports first reported the agreement.

Report: Chris Sale traded to Boston by White Sox

FOX Sports MLB Analysis Ken Rosenthal reported on Tuesday that the Boston Red Sox reportedly acquire LHP Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox for INF Yoan Moncada, RHP Michael Kopech, and 2 additional prospects.

Neither club has confirmed the deal.

The Washington Nationals also made offers to the White Sox to land Sale, but Boston's deal must have been liked more by Chicago.

Red Sox acquire right-handed pitcher Tyler Thornburg from Milwaukee

The Boston Red Sox today acquired right-handed relief pitcher Tyler Thornburg from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for infielder Travis Shaw, minor league infielder Mauricio Dubon, minor league right-handed pitcher Josh Pennington, and a player to be named later or cash considerations.

President of Baseball Operations David Dombrowski made the announcement.

Thornburg, 28, set career highs for the Brewers in 2016 with 67 appearances, 67.0 innings pitched, eight wins, 13 saves, and 90 strikeouts. Among National League pitchers with at least 50.0 innings pitched, he finished eighth in ERA (2.15), seventh in WHIP (0.94), third in opponent batting average (.162), and fifth in strikeouts per nine innings (12.09). He limited left-handed hitters to a .130 batting average, the third-lowest mark among major leaguers who faced at least 100 lefties.

The right-hander became Milwaukee's full-time closer on August 1, and in 23 games after that date he went 4-1 with 11 saves and a 1.85 ERA (5 ER/24.1 IP). From May 19-June 7, Thornburg retired 26 consecutive hitters, setting a Brewers franchise record for relievers. During a stretch of 49 appearances from May 13-September 22, he posted a 0.54 ERA (3 ER/49.2 IP) and .116 opponent batting average, allowing zero earned runs in 46 of those outings.

Originally selected by Milwaukee in the third round of the 2010 June Draft, Thornburg has made 144 appearances (10 starts) over parts of five major league seasons (2012-16), posting a 14-9 record and a 2.87 ERA with 220 strikeouts and 91 walks in 219.2 innings. Over the course of his career, he has held opposing left-handed hitters to a .181 batting average and a .253 slugging percentage, having surrendered only six home runs in 364 at-bats against lefties.

In his first full major league season, Shaw, 26, hit .242 (116-for-480) with 34 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs, and 71 RBI for Boston this past year. A ninth-round selection of the Red Sox in the 2011 June Draft, Shaw made his first Opening Day Roster in 2016 and started the season opener at third base for the club in Cleveland. Defensively, he led the team with 105 games (99 starts) at third base, made 50 appearances at first base (28 starts), and appeared in one game in left field. Shaw recorded five RBI in a single game four times in 2016, tied for the most such games in the majors on the year. Over his major league career, Shaw, who is the son of former major league pitcher Jeff Shaw, has hit .251 (177-for-706) with 44 doubles, two triples, 29 home runs, and 107 RBI in 210 games all for the Red Sox (2015-16).

Dubon, 22, played in 62 games with High-A Salem and 62 with Double-A Portland in 2016, batting .323 (157-for-486) with 101 runs scored, 31 doubles, nine triples, six home runs, and 69 RBI between the teams. Named the Red Sox Minor League Base Runner of the Year, he also stole 30 bases in 37 attempts. Following the season, the California native made 18 starts for Surprise of the Arizona Fall League, where he batted .211 (15-for-71) with three home runs. Signed by Boston in the 26th round of the 2013 June Draft, Dubon has hit .306 (388-for-1,268) with a .765 OPS in 330 career games. He has been named a mid-season All-Star in each of the last three years in the New York-Penn League (2014), the South Atlantic League (2015), and the Carolina League (2016).

Pennington, 21, spent his entire 2016 season with Short-A Lowell, going 5-3 with a 2.86 ERA (18 ER/56.2 IP) and .200 opponent batting average in 13 appearances, all starts. The right-hander won each of his final three starts of the season from August 20-30, allowing only two runs in 17.0 innings for a 1.06 ERA in that span. Pennington was signed by the Red Sox in the 29th round of the 2014 June Draft and made his professional debut in 2015, appearing in seven games (six starts) and going 2-1 with a 0.82 ERA (3 ER/22.0 IP). Following the 2015 season, he was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 29 prospect in the Red Sox organization.

- Boston Red Sox

AP NEWS BREAK: All-Star Game no longer determines series start

NEW YORK (AP) -- The league that wins baseball's All-Star Game no longer will get home-field advantage in the World Series, which instead will go to the pennant winner with the better regular-season record.

The change was included in Major League Baseball's tentative new collective bargaining agreement and disclosed early Thursday to The Associated Press by a person familiar with the agreement. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because details of the deal, reached Wednesday evening in Irving, Texas, had not been announced.

In addition, players and management agreed the minimum stay on the disabled list will be reduced from 15 days to 10.

Home-field advantage in the World Series generally rotated between the leagues through 2002. Baseball, led by then-Commissioner Bud Selig, and Fox television promoted the "This Time It Counts" innovation after the 2002 All-Star Game in Milwaukee ended in a 7-7, 11-inning tie when both teams ran out of pitchers. Selig was booed in his own Milwaukee backyard.

"This energizes it. This gives them something to really play for," Selig said after owners approved the change by a 30-0 vote in January 2003. "People pay a lot of money to see that game. They deserve to see the same intensity they see all year long. Television people pay a lot of money for the game. It was not and should not be a meaningless exhibition game."

What began as a two-year experiment was extended. The American League won 11 of 14 All-Star Games played under the rule, and the AL representative won eight World Series in those years.

"It will put back a little of the sizzle," San Francisco Giants executive Larry Baer said in 2003.

As part of the changes for next year, players in the All-Star Game will have the incentive to play for a pool of money.

The DL change will allow teams to make quicker decisions on whether to bring up a roster replacement rather than wait to see whether the injured player would be ready to return to action in less than two weeks.

An international play plan is part of the new agreement that includes a payment schedule for potential games in Asia, Mexico, Latin America and Britain, plus U.S.-based special events such as this year's July 3 game between Atlanta and Miami in a specially built ballpark on a military base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.