Free-agent right-hander Luke Farrell signed a minor league deal with the Chicago Cubs on Monday. Farrell pitched with the Cubs in 2018, posting a 5.17 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 39 strikeouts in 31 1/3 innings over 20 appearances (two starts). He spent the 2021 season with the Minnesota Twins, where he had a 4.74 ERA, a 1.66 WHIP, 25 K's and 13 walks in 24 2/3 innings over 20 appearances (one start). The 30-year-old will likely head to Triple-A Iowa and will serve as organizational relief depth for the Cubbies. Fantasy managers can continue to ignore him everywhere.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Randy Dobnak's road to the major leagues was so far off the traditional path he even chauffeured some ride-share customers along the way. The Minnesota Twins delivered the overachieving right-hander another big-time moment on Monday, in the form of a $9.25 million, five-year contract that includes three club options and could be worth $29.75 million over eight seasons. “I always believed in myself, even since I was a little kid. You have career days and stuff when you’re in elementary school and whatnot, and I was always like, ‘I want to be a baseball player,'” said Dobnak, whose place as the swingman of the 13-pitcher staff was secured last week. He'll be the team’s primary long reliever for now, essentially the sixth starter behind José Berríos, Kenta Maeda, Matt Shoemaker, Michael Pineda and J.A. Happ. This is a lot of money to guarantee a pitcher with 75 career major league innings, but the Twins saw enough improvement in his fastball and his slider this spring to... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Texas Rangers on Friday declined the $18 million contract option on right-hander Corey Kluber, who lasted just one inning in his only start before a shoulder injury ended his season. Kluber gets a $1 million buyout, and the club has said it is interested in re-signing Kluber to a less expensive deal. The Rangers acquired the two-time Cy Young Award winner from Cleveland last offseason in a trade that sent hard-throwing reliever Emmanuel Clase to the Indians. Clase was suspended 80 games after testing positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance. Kluber threw 18 pitches in his only inning for the Rangers, leaving with shoulder tightness in a 5-2 loss to Colorado in the third game of the season. The 34-year-old was diagnosed with a small tear in his shoulder muscle the next day. It was Kluber's first appearance with a team other than Cleveland, and his first start in almost 15 months after his right forearm was broken by a line drive in what ended up being... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun had surgery to repair his broken jaw Monday, a day after being hit in the face by a fastball.“Hey guys, just want to thank everyone for your prayers," Calhoun tweeted Monday night. “I just got out of surgery and I’m doing well. Can’t wait to be back hitting homers soon."Surgeons were prepared to wire Calhoun's jaw shut but instead installed a plate to steady the fracture, which should make for a quicker recovery. Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said Calhoun would be released from the hospital this week, possibly Tuesday, and will be re-evaluated in two weeks, at which time Texas may get a better idea of his timetable for a return.Daniels said doctors had not yet determined if Calhoun had a concussion. While Calhoun is almost certain to open the season on the injured list, Daniels characterized the outcome of the surgery as relatively positive.“Certainly, in my opinion it is,” he said.The 25-year-old Calhoun set career highs... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun had surgery to repair his broken jaw Monday, a day after being hit in the face by a fastball.Surgeons were prepared to wire Calhoun's jaw shut but instead installed a plate to steady the fracture, which should make for a quicker recovery. Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said Calhoun would be released from the hospital this week, possibly Tuesday, and will be re-evaluated in two weeks, at which time Texas may get a better idea of his timetable for a return.Daniels said doctors had not yet determined if Calhoun had a concussion. While Calhoun is almost certain to open the season on the injured list, Daniels characterized the outcome of the surgery as relatively positive.“Certainly, in my opinion it is,” he said. The left-handed hitting Calhoun was hit by a first-inning fastball from Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Julio Urías — a former minor league teammate and friend of Calhoun's. Drafted by the Dodgers in 2015, Calhoun... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun was having surgery to repair his broken jaw Monday, a day after being hit in the face by a fastball.Rangers manager Chris Woodward said Calhoun was being operated on prior to Texas' spring training game against the Oakland Athletics. Woodward said doctors would decide during the procedure whether Calhoun would need to have his mouth wired shut, or if a plate would be inserted.The recovery if he only needs a plate is expected to be shorter. Woodward also said the team was not yet sure if Calhoun had a concussion.The left-handed hitting Calhoun was hit by a first-inning fastball from Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias — a former minor league teammate and friend of Calhoun's. Drafted by the Dodgers in 2015, Calhoun was traded to Texas in July 2017 in a package for Yu Darvish.Woodward said Urias texted Calhoun to express concern.The 25-year-old Calhoun was air-lifted to a hospital, and Woodward left Texas' game to meet... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck out a season-high 14 and allowed only two hits in six innings and the Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres 4-1 on Thursday to remain tied with Milwaukee for the NL's second wild card.The Padres scored in the ninth when Manny Machado was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and two outs, but Rowan Wick struck out Luis Urias to end it.Chicago split the four-game series and won for just the second time in seven games.Darvish (6-6) retired his first eight batters before allowing his first hit, an infield single by starter Dinelson Lamet (2-5). Darvish kicked the ball with his right foot and it caromed to third baseman Kris Bryant. Darvish struck out Greg Garcia to end the inning.The big right-hander had at least one strikeout in every inning. After Greg Garcia tripled leading off the sixth, Darvish finished strong by striking out the side, including Eric Hosmer for the third straight time.Darvish was one shy of his career high, set Aug. 12, 2013, at Houston... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck out a season-high 14 and allowed only two hits in six innings and the Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres 4-1 on Thursday to remain tied with Milwaukee for the NL's second wild card.The Padres scored in the ninth when Manny Machado was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and two outs, but Rowan Wick struck out Luis Urias to end it.Chicago split the four-game series and won for just the second time in seven games.Darvish (6-6) retired his first eight batters before allowing his first hit, an infield single by starter Dinelson Lamet (2-5). Darvish kicked the ball with his right foot and it caromed to third baseman Kris Bryant. Darvish struck out Greg Garcia to end the inning.The big right-hander had at least one strikeout in every inning. After Greg Garcia tripled leading off the sixth, Darvish finished strong by striking out the side, including Eric Hosmer for the third straight time.Darvish was one shy of his career high, set Aug. 12, 2013, at Houston... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck out a season-high 14 and allowed only two hits in six innings and the Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres 4-1 on Thursday to remain tied with Milwaukee for the NL's second wild card.The Padres scored in the ninth when Manny Machado was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and two outs, but Rowan Wick struck out Luis Urias to end it.Chicago split the four-game series and won for just the second time in seven games.Darvish (6-6) retired his first eight batters before allowing his first hit, an infield single by starter Dinelson Lamet (2-5). Darvish kicked the ball with his right foot and it caromed to third baseman Kris Bryant. Darvish struck out Greg Garcia to end the inning.The big right-hander had at least one strikeout in every inning. After Greg Garcia tripled leading off the sixth, Darvish finished strong by striking out the side, including Eric Hosmer for the third straight time.Darvish was one shy of his career high, set Aug. 12, 2013, at Houston... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Texas reliever Luke Farrell, out since being hit in the face by line drive in spring training, was activated from the 60-day injured list by the Rangers before their game Friday against the White Sox.The 28-year-old right-hander has spent the entire season rehabbing since suffering a non-displaced jaw fracture and concussion when he was struck by a comebacker off the bat of San Francisco's Jalen Miller in a March 2 game in Scottsdale, Arizona."It's been a long road to get back here and bounce back from the injury and everything," Farrell said. "I feel great and happy to join the team."Farrell, the son of former Red Sox manager John Farrell, said he was unable to return to baseball activities for weeks after the gruesome incident."It was, honestly, a migraine for two months," he said. "Really unable to handle light, noise, direct conversation, just really taxing. I can think of times I was trying maybe to tip at a restaurant or something and the brain just doesn't work, doesn't... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Rangers right-hander Luke Farrell had his jaw broken by a line drive during a spring training game against the San Francisco Giants.Farrell was struck on the right side of his jaw Saturday by a ball off the bat of Jalen Miller with one out in the ninth inning.The Rangers say Farrell had a CT scan and X-rays, which revealed a non-displaced fracture in the jaw. He was released from the hospital a few hours later and is expected to visit a maxillofacial specialist Monday.Farrell is the son of former Red Sox manager John Farrell. He became the first son to pitch against a team managed by his father in 2017 while with Cincinnati.The Giants and Rangers finished in a scoreless, nine-inning tie.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — Danny Farquhar took the mound in a game again. That was more than enough on Saturday.Farquhar's spring training appearance for the New York Yankees was his first game since the 32-year-old reliever collapsed in the Chicago White Sox dugout on April 20 because of a ruptured aneurysm and brain hemorrhage. The right-hander got one out and was charged with five runs in an 8-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates."I felt great out there," Farquhar said. "I was happy to be back on the mound. Obviously, the results weren't great but I call it a good day. I felt like a baseball player, again."Farquhar allowed three hits and walked two while throwing 19 pitches in the fourth inning. He is in camp with the Yankees on a minor league deal."The fact that he's on the mound and gotten to this point is pretty awesome," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "I found myself a little more emotional than I even thought. Even though it didn't go great, I think he really appreciated how special... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Texas Rangers have acquired right-handed pitcher Luke Farrell on a waiver claim from the Los Angeles Angels.Texas also Friday signed right-handers Adrian Sampson and Rafael Montero to minor league contracts with invitations to major league spring training.Farrell, the son of former big league manager John Farrell, went 3-4 with a 5.17 ERA in 20 appearances (two starts) for the Chicago Cubs last season before the Angels got him on a waiver claim Sept. 3. He never pitched for Los Angeles before being designated for assignment by the Angels last month.Kansas City selected Farrell in the sixth round of the 2013 draft out of Northwestern. He has made 30 major league appearances the past two seasons with the Royals, Cincinnati and the Cubs.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — It's the ninth major league team for Jesse Chavez, so he's not too worried about fitting in with the Chicago Cubs.Chavez was added to Chicago's roster as part of a flurry of moves before Saturday's day-night doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals. The veteran right-hander was acquired in a trade with Texas on Thursday for minor league pitcher Tyler Thomas."I've played with a couple guys in here," Chavez said. "Obviously, throughout the years you get to play each other and develop that on-field relationship a little bit. But now it's going to different, you know, developing that inside-clubhouse one."Chavez made his Chicago debut in the eighth inning in Game 1 and pitched two perfect innings in the Cubs' 7-2 victory."What he did out there, that's an experienced major league relief pitcher," manager Joe Maddon said. "He had a lead to work with. He wasn't going to mess around. He's not going to try to nitpick. I'm going to make you put the ball in play on the ground and... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — It's the ninth major league team for Jesse Chavez, so he's not too worried about fitting in with the Chicago Cubs.Chavez was added to Chicago's roster as part of a flurry of moves before Saturday's day-night doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals. The veteran right-hander was acquired in a trade with Texas on Thursday for minor league pitcher Tyler Thomas."I've played with a couple guys in here," Chavez said. "Obviously, throughout the years you get to play each other and develop that on-field relationship a little bit. But now it's going to different, you know, developing that inside-clubhouse one."The 34-year-old Chavez went 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in 30 appearances with the Rangers. He made his major league debut with Pittsburgh in 2008. He also has played for Atlanta, Kansas City, Toronto, Oakland and the Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels.Chavez has mostly pitched out of the bullpen, but he also has 70 career starts, including 21 last year with the Angels. He is known... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs have added reliever Jesse Chavez to their roster and placed right-hander Anthony Bass on the 10-day disabled list with a back injury.Chavez was acquired in a trade with Texas on Thursday for minor league pitcher Tyler Thomas. The 34-year-old Chavez went 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in 30 appearances with the Rangers this season.The Cubs also recalled reliever Dillon Maples from Triple-A Iowa and optioned right-hander James Norwood to their top farm club. Reliever Luke Farrell was brought up from Iowa to serve as the 26th man for Saturday's doubleheader against St. Louis.Bass has a strain on the right side of his back. He was just activated from the DL on Thursday after being sidelined by an illness.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani's pinch-hit home run in the seventh inning sent Andrew Heaney and the Los Angeles Angels to a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.Albert Pujols also went deep for the Angels, tying the score at 3 in the sixth. Justin Upton had a two-run single.Heaney (5-6) allowed only three hits and equaled a career high with 10 strikeouts in seven innings to help the Angels take two of three at home in the Freeway Series. He gave up an early three-run homer to Yasiel Puig, who later left with an oblique injury.Ohtani drove his first career pinch-hit homer a projected 443 feet to center field off reliever JT Chargois (2-2). It also was the Angels' first pinch-hit home run of the season and Ohtani's seventh in the majors.The two-way rookie star from Japan, unavailable to pitch lately because of an elbow injury, fouled a ball off his knee one day earlier and experienced soreness. Before the game, it was unclear if he would be able to come off the bench.Justin... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Brett Anderson came off the disabled list and pitched effectively into the sixth inning before turning things over to Oakland's outstanding bullpen as the Athletics downed the Cleveland Indians 6-0 on Sunday.Anderson (1-2) had been sidelined with a shoulder strain, one of several injuries to the A's starting staff. But the left-hander looked sharp in his first start since May 18, limiting the Indians to three hits and leaving with a 4-0 lead.Stephen Piscotty hit a two-run homer off rookie Shane Bieber (4-1), and Jed Lowrie had a solo shot as Oakland won for the 10th time in 12 games to take two of three from the Indians.The A's are 18-6 against AL Central teams.Yusmeiro Petit, Ryan Buchter and Emilio Pagan finished the combined five-hitter as the A's moved 10 games over .500.ASTROS 2, WHITE SOX 1HOUSTON (AP) — Dallas Keuchel pitched seven strong innings, Jose Altuve homered and Houston manufactured the go-ahead run in the seventh to complete a four-game sweep of Chicago.Altuve's... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Brett Anderson came off the disabled list and pitched effectively into the sixth inning before turning things over to Oakland's outstanding bullpen as the Athletics downed the Cleveland Indians 6-0 on Sunday.Anderson (1-2) had been sidelined with a shoulder strain, one of several injuries to the A's starting staff. But the left-hander looked sharp in his first start since May 18, limiting the Indians to three hits and leaving with a 4-0 lead.Stephen Piscotty hit a two-run homer off rookie Shane Bieber (4-1), and Jed Lowrie had a solo shot as Oakland won for the 10th time in 12 games to take two of three from the Indians.The A's are 18-6 against AL Central teams.Yusmeiro Petit, Ryan Buchter and Emilio Pagan finished the combined five-hitter as the A's moved 10 games over .500.ASTROS 2, WHITE SOX 1HOUSTON (AP) — Dallas Keuchel pitched seven strong innings, Jose Altuve homered and Houston manufactured the go-ahead run in the seventh to complete a four-game sweep of Chicago.Altuve's... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Chicago Cubs have placed Kris Bryant on the 10-day disabled list with left shoulder inflammation, marking the first time the fourth-year player has gone on the DL.Chicago announced the move Tuesday. It's retroactive to June 23, making Bryant eligible to return in a week.Cubs manager Joe Maddon says the injury is not considered serious and he expects Bryant to be activated next Tuesday. Maddon says the team wants to "make sure that he is well" and "cool down and just have him be well afterward."The 2016 NL MVP is batting .280 this season with nine home runs, 36 RBIs and an .864 OPS. He had a home run among his six hits in a series last week against the Dodgers, but was just 1 for 8 in the Cubs' previous series at Cincinnati.The Cubs recalled infielder David Bote from Triple-A Iowa to take Bryant's spot on the active roster.Chicago right-hander Justin Hancock was also placed on the DL with shoulder inflammation, and right-hander Duane Underwood Jr. was optioned to Iowa a day after making his major league debut. The Cubs recalled right-handers Luke Farrell and Dillon Maples.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball