LOS ANGELES (AP) — New Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Corey Knebel agreed to a $5.25 million, one-year contract on Thursday that avoided salary arbitration, and pitcher Dylan Floro agreed to $975,000. The 29-year-old Knebel was acquired from Milwaukee on Dec. 2 ahead of the deadline for teams to offer 2021 contracts to unsigned players on their 40-man rosters. He earned $1,898,148 in prorated pay last year from a $5,125,000 salary. Knebel was an All-Star in 2017 and a key part of the Brewers’ bullpen during their run to the 2018 NL Championship Series. The right-hander missed the 2019 season with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and struggled after returning last season. Knebel’s best season came in 2017, when he went 1-4 with 39 saves and a 1.78 ERA in 76 appearances. He had a 6.08 ERA in 15 games last season. The 2013 first-round draft pick has a career ERA of 3.31 with 57 saves in 239 relief appearances. He pitched eight games for Detroit in 2014 and had been with... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — New Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Corey Knebel agreed to a $5.25 million, one-year contract on Thursday that avoided salary arbitration. The 29-year-old was acquired from Milwaukee on Dec. 2 ahead of the deadline for teams to offer 2021 contracts to unsigned players on their 40-man rosters. He earned $1,898,148 in prorated pay last year from a $5,125,000 salary. Knebel was an All-Star in 2017 and a key part of the Brewers’ bullpen during their run to the 2018 NL Championship Series. The right-hander missed the 2019 season with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and struggled after returning last season. Knebel’s best season came in 2017, when he went 1-4 with 39 saves and a 1.78 ERA in 76 appearances. He had a 6.08 ERA in 15 games last season. The 2013 first-round draft pick has a career ERA of 3.31 with 57 saves in 239 relief appearances. He pitched eight games for Detroit in 2014 and had been with Milwaukee ever since. Six players remain eligible to exchange proposed arbitration salaries with the World Series champion Dodgers on Friday: outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger, shortstop Corey Seager, right-hander Walker Buehler, catcher Austin Barnes, right-hander Dylan Floro and left-hander Julio Urías. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired minor league left-handed pitcher Leo Crawford to complete the trade that sent former All-Star reliever Corey Knebel to the Los Angeles Dodgers. When the trade was announced Dec. 2, the Dodgers received Knebel for a player to be named or cash. The player heading to Milwaukee was identified as Crawford on Friday. Crawford, who turns 24 on Feb. 2, went 7-4 with a 2.81 ERA and 134 strikeouts in 121 2/3 innings while splitting the 2019 season between the Dodgers’ Single-A affiliate in Rancho Cucamonga and Double-A team in Tulsa. He made 21 starts that year. Milwaukee president of baseball operations David Stearns said Crawford has some similarities to current Brewers left-hander Brent Suter in that both rely on deception to overcome a relative lack of velocity. “He’s left-handed, he throws in the high 80s, so you’re going to get some of that,” Stearns said. “He relies on deception and changing his offerings. There is some of that. I think... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Schwarber and Albert Almora Jr. were cut loose by the Chicago Cubs after helping the team win its first World Series title in more than a century, among a record 59 players who became free agents as part of the fallout from the coranavirus pandemic when their teams declined to offer them 2021 contracts by Wednesday night’s deadline. Cincinnati reliever Archie Bradley, Atlanta outfielder Adam Duvall, Colorado outfielder David Dahl and Minnesota outfielder Eddie Rosario also were let go by their clubs, who did not want to allow those players to become eligible for salary arbitration in February, which would have been their right had they been tendered contracts. The total cut was one more than the previous high at the tender deadline, ahead of the 2004 season. Schwarber earned $2,596,296 in prorated pay from his $7.01 million salary last season but hit .188 with 11 homers in 59 games, down from 38 homers, 92 RBIs and a .250 batting average in 155 games in 2019. Almora... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Schwarber and Albert Almora Jr. were cut loose by the Chicago Cubs after helping the team win its first World Series title in more than a century, among 59 players who became free agents as part of the fallout from the coranavirus pandemic when their teams declined to offer them 2021 contracts by Wednesday night’s deadline. Cincinnati reliever Archie Bradley, Atlanta outfielder Adam Duvall, Colorado outfielder David Dahl and Minnesota outfielder Eddie Rosario also were let go by their clubs, who did not want to allow those players to become eligible for salary arbitration in February, which would have been their right had they been tendered contracts. Schwarber earned $2,596,296 in prorated pay from his $7.01 million salary last season but hit .188 with 11 homers in 59 games, down from 38 homers, 92 RBIs and a .250 batting average in 155 games in 2019. Almora batted .167 in 28 games last season and earned $1,667,667 prorated from $4.5 million, down from a .236 average,... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers traded reliever Corey Knebel to the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday for a player to be named or cash. The Brewers also announced they did not offer 2021 contracts to left-hander Alex Claudio, outfielder Ben Gamel and utilityman Jace Peterson. The team reached one-year deals with shortstop Orlando Arcia ($2 million), first baseman Daniel Vogelbach ($1.4 million) and catchers Omar Narváez ($2.5 million) and Manny Piña ($1.65 million). In another move, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press the Brewers agreed to terms on a major league contract with catcher Luke Maile. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the deal had not been announced. Milwaukee faced a Wednesday night deadline on whether to tender Knebel a contract for next year. Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns said the deal with the Dodgers was completed before that deadline. The 29-year-old Knebel was an... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired reliever Corey Knebel from the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday for a player to be named or cash. Coming off their first World Series championship since 1988, the Dodgers also agreed with reliever Scott Alexander on a one-year deal for $1 million, avoiding arbitration with the left-hander before Wednesday night's deadline for teams to offer 2021 contracts to their unsigned players. The 29-year-old Knebel was an All-Star in 2017 and a key part of the Brewers’ bullpen during their run to the 2018 NL Championship Series. The right-hander missed the 2019 season with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and struggled after returning last season. “Corey had a tremendous career as a Brewer,” Milwaukee president of baseball operations David Stearns said. “He pitched in some of the biggest games in the history of this franchise, and he pitched incredibly well in those games. ... Corey’s meant a lot to this franchise. He’s earned... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Schwarber and Albert Almora Jr. were cut loose by the Chicago Cubs after helping the team win its first World Series title in more than a century, among 59 players who became free agents as part of the fallout from the coranavirus pandemic when their teams failed to offer them 2021 contracts by Wednesday night’s deadline. Cincinnati reliever Archie Bradley, Atlanta outfielder Adam Duvall, Colorado outfielder David Dahl and Minnesota outfielder Eddie Rosario also were let go by their clubs, who did not want to allow those players to become eligible for salary arbitration in February, which would have been their right had they been tendered contracts. Schwarber earned $2,596,296 in prorated pay from his $7.01 million salary last season but hit .188 with 11 homers in 59 games, down from 38 homers, 92 RBIs and a .250 batting average in 155 games in 2019. Almora batted .167 in 28 games last season and earned $1,667,667 prorated from $4.5 million, down from a .236 average,... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers acquired reliever Corey Knebel from the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday for a player to be named or cash. Milwaukee had been facing a Wednesday night deadline on whether to offer Knebel a 2021 contract. Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns said the deal was completed before that deadline. The 29-year-old Knebel was an All-Star in 2017 and a key part of the Brewers' bullpen during their run to the 2018 NL Championship Series. The right-hander missed the 2019 season with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and struggled after returning last season. “Corey had a tremendous career as a Brewer,” Stearns said. “He pitched in some of the biggest games in the history of this franchise, and he pitched incredibly well in those games. ... Corey's meant a lot to this franchise. He's earned the respect of a lot of people around the Brewers, and we wish him very well." Knebel's best season came in 2017,... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Schwarber and Albert Almora Jr. were cut loose by the Chicago Cubs after helping the team win its first World Series title in more than a century, among 59 players who became free agents as part of the fallout from the coranavirus pandemic when their teams failed to offer them 2021 contracts by Wednesday night’s deadline. Cincinnati reliever Archie Bradley, Atlanta outfielder Adam Duvall, Colorado outfielder David Dahl and Minnesota outfielder Eddie Rosario also were let go by their clubs, who did not want to allow those players to become eligible for salary arbitration in February, which would have been their right had they been tendered contracts. Schwarber earned $2,596,296 in prorated pay from his $7.01 million salary last season but hit .188 with 11 homers in 59 games, down from 38 homers, 92 RBIs and a .250 batting average in 155 games in 2019. Almora batted .167 in 28 games last season and earned $1,667,667 prorated from $4.5 million, down from a .236 average,... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers acquired reliever Corey Knebel from the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday for a player to be named or cash. Milwaukee had been facing a Wednesday night deadline on whether to offer Knebel a 2021 contract. Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns said the deal was completed before that deadline. The 29-year-old Knebel was an All-Star in 2017 and a key part of the Brewers' bullpen during their run to the 2018 NL Championship Series. The right-hander missed the 2019 season with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and struggled after returning last season. “Corey had a tremendous career as a Brewer,” Stearns said. “He pitched in some of the biggest games in the history of this franchise, and he pitched incredibly well in those games. ... Corey's meant a lot to this franchise. He's earned the respect of a lot of people around the Brewers, and we wish him very well." Knebel's best season came in 2017,... [More]

Twins second. Marwin Gonzalez grounds out to shortstop, Orlando Arcia to Justin Smoak. Miguel Sano doubles. Eddie Rosario singles to center field. Miguel Sano scores. Ehire Adrianza strikes out swinging. Eddie Rosario caught stealing second.1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Twins 1, Brewers 0.Brewers third. Justin Smoak grounds out to shallow left field, Ehire Adrianza to Miguel Sano. Luis Urias called out on strikes. Orlando Arcia walks. Ryan Braun homers to left field. Orlando Arcia scores. Christian Yelich walks. Keston Hiura singles to center field. Christian Yelich to third. Jedd Gyorko walks. Keston Hiura to second. Avisail Garcia singles to left field, advances to 2nd. Jedd Gyorko to third. Keston Hiura scores. Christian Yelich scores. Throwing error by Eddie Rosario. Manny Pina strikes out swinging.4 runs, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 left on. Brewers 4, Twins 1.Brewers fifth. Ryan Braun singles to center field. Christian Yelich homers to center field. Ryan Braun scores. Keston Hiura walks.... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out a season-high 10 in six innings and the New York Mets snapped a five-game skid Monday night with a 7-2 victory over the Braves that was overshadowed by a season-ending injury to Atlanta ace Mike Soroka. Soroka tore his Achilles tendon in the third inning as he took a step toward first to cover the bag — a huge blow to the two-time defending NL East champions. Robinson Canó had three RBIs before leaving the game himself — one of three New York infielders who went down with injuries. Wilson Ramos added a two-run homer for the Mets, who avoided a four-game sweep and ended Atlanta’s five-game winning streak. Travis d’Arnaud homered off deGrom (1-0) in the fifth.Soroka (0-1) allowed three hits, walked four and wound up being charged with four earned runs in 2 1/3 innings, the second-shortest outing of his career.The Mets had injury concerns, too. Jeff McNeil was scratched just before the first pitch with back tightness, and Canó exited with left groin tightness... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out a season-high 10 in six innings and the New York Mets snapped a five-game skid Monday night with a 7-2 victory over the Braves that was overshadowed by a season-ending injury to Atlanta ace Mike Soroka. Soroka tore his Achilles tendon in the third inning as he took a step toward first to cover the bag — a huge blow to the two-time defending NL East champions. Robinson Canó had three RBIs before leaving the game himself — one of three New York infielders who went down with injuries. Wilson Ramos added a two-run homer for the Mets, who avoided a four-game sweep and ended Atlanta’s five-game winning streak. Travis d’Arnaud homered off deGrom in the fifth.DeGrom (1-0) turned in another sterling effort. He threw 104 pitches.When Davis grounded the ball toward first baseman Freddie Freeman, Soroka broke in that direction to cover the bag if necessary — only to go down on his first step off the mound. Soroka (0-1) allowed three hits, walked four and wound... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers reliever Corey Knebel believes the pandemic-imposed hiatus will enable him to be ready for the start of the season as he returns from Tommy John surgery.“I’m feeling very confident that I’ll be ready to go,” Knebel said after throwing an inning of scoreless relief in a Friday afternoon scrimmage.Knebel didn’t pitch at all last year after tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow during spring training, an injury that required him to undergo surgery in April 2019. Knebel said that if the 2020 season had started on time, he probably wouldn’t have been able to join the active roster until June.The delay to the start of the season now means the 28-year-old right-hander shouldn’t miss any more time.“I want to say all of April was going to be rehab outings, and the plan was to join the team around June 4 or June 5,” Knebel said.The Brewers are now scheduled to open on July 24. Knebel said the delayed start to the season gave him “a lot of time... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers reliever Corey Knebel believes the pandemic-imposed hiatus will enable him to be ready for the start of the season as he returns from Tommy John surgery.“I’m feeling very confident that I’ll be ready to go,” Knebel said after throwing an inning of scoreless relief in a Friday afternoon scrimmage.Knebel didn’t pitch at all last year after tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow during spring training, an injury that required him to undergo surgery in April 2019. Knebel said that if the 2020 season had started on time, he probably wouldn’t have been able to join the active roster until June.The delay to the start of the season now means the 28-year-old right-hander shouldn’t miss any more time.“I want to say all of April was going to be rehab outings, and the plan was to join the team around June 4 or June 5,” Knebel said.The Brewers are now scheduled to open on July 24. Knebel said the delayed start to the season gave him “a lot of time... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Freddy Peralta gave his mom an unforgettable Mother's Day in 2018, striking out 13 while winning his major league debut as she looked on at Coors Field.Two years later he gained financial security for his family, finalizing a $15.5 million, five-year contract with the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday.The deal for the 23-year-old right-hander covers two years of club salary control and his three years of arbitration eligibility. There are a pair of team options that if exercised would raise the value to $30 million over seven seasons.If he turns into a star, the Brewers will have him at far under market value. But for now, he has a contract guaranteeing nearly 30 times the $533,258 he earned last year."I'm happy," Peralta said. "Really, really happy. It's something that I've been working for."His mother, Octavia, cried when he called on Wednesday to give her and his father, Pedro, news of the deal."She was just remembering things that happened before, a long time ago," Peralta... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Baseball's arbitration model for relief pitchers is broken, Milwaukee closer Josh Hader said Friday after losing his case against the Milwaukee Brewers.Hader will earn $4.1 million rather than his $6.4 million request, a decision that dropped players to 1-6 in hearings this year. Arbitrators Mark Burstein, Dan Brent and Frederic Horowitz made the decision, a day after hearing arguments."We're in a unique position, the way we're used as relievers nowadays," Hader said. "I think the system's just outdated on how we're used. We're mostly being used for lineups, not innings."While teams used to have set roles for pitchers in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, computer algorithms now determine which matchups in the batting order are best for which pitcher."We're going to a new part where guys are pitching in situations that could come in the fourth inning and you're facing the middle of the lineup to get maybe out of a jam," Hader said. Hader made his big league debut in June... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Baseball's arbitration model for relief pitchers is broken, Milwaukee closer Josh Hader said Friday after losing his case against the Milwaukee Brewers.Hader will earn $4.1 million rather than his $6.4 million request, a decision that dropped players to 1-6 in hearings this year. Arbitrators Mark Burstein, Dan Brent and Frederic Horowitz made the decision, a day after hearing arguments."We're in a unique position, the way we're used as relievers nowadays," Hader said. "I think the system's just outdated on how we're used. We're mostly being used for lineups, not innings."While teams used to have set roles for pitchers in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, computer algorithms now determine which matchups in the batting order are best for which pitcher."We're going to a new part where guys are pitching in situations that could come in the fourth inning and you're facing the middle of the lineup to get maybe out of a jam," Hader said. Hader made his big league debut in June... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers agreed to a one-year contract for $5,125,000 with pitcher Corey Knebel, who is returning from Tommy John surgery.A 28-year-old right-hander, Knebel hurt his elbow during spring training and had surgery April 3. He had been eligible for salary arbitration and will have the same salary as in 2019.His deal includes a $50,000 bonus for comeback player of the year along with other award bonuses.Knebel had 39 saves in 2017, when he was an All-Star, and 16 the following season.His deal was announced Tuesday.___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports