Phillies will spend big bucks in free agency, ‘maybe even be a little bit stupid about it’  —  ATLANTA — If anyone had any doubt about Philadelphia Phillies owner John Middleton's intentions this winter, he made it abundantly clear before leaving the Major League Baseball owners' meetings.

With best years behind them, Giants face tough task of starting over  —  There is perhaps one positive way to look at the San Francisco Giants ' 2018 season.  In 2017, the team lost 98 games and finished 40 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West …

Jeff Wilpon says an extension for Jacob deGrom is not the Mets' top priority right now  —  Jeff Wilpon said that he spoke with Jacob deGrom Wednesday night, but he did not mention an extension during his conversation with the 2018 Cy Young Award winner.  The Mets COO said Friday afternoon …

Rangers hire Julio Rangel to handle pitching staff  —  ARLINGTON, Texas — Julio Rangel has been hired by the Texas Rangers as pitching coach for new manager Chris Woodward.  —  Rangel will be with a big league staff for the first time after 12 years as a pitching instructor and coordinator …

Yelich near-unanimous pick as National League MVP; Carpenter finishes 9th  —  • Mookie Betts is ready to become an ambassador for baseball, now that he's won a batting title, World Series and Most Valuable Player award with Boston.  “I enjoy being kind of a face around the game.

Yankees moving toward Sonny Gray trade  —  Significant interest in the beleaguered righty  —  The Yankees have multiple offers on the table for RHP Sonny Gray and are in the process of weighing them, according to major league sources.  —  GM Brian Cashman has been open about Gray's need …

Digging into Harper's defensive slide; Keuchel is more reliable than dominant; Syndergaard to Padres?  —  Not surprisingly, agent Scott Boras has an explanation for the sharp decline in Bryce Harper's defensive metrics during the 2018 season.  —  The explanation derives from another …

For many players, this will be a long, cold winter  —  By the end of spring training this year, there was an angry undercurrent among players and in the union because of the sheer volume of established veterans who were mostly ignored in free agency.  Mark Reynolds, a solid defender …

Angels To Sign Peter Bourjos  —  The Angels have struck a deal to bring outfielder Peter Bourjos back to the organization, MLBTR's Steve Adams reports on Twitter.  It'll be a minor-league pact for the 31-year-old.  —  Bourjos has seen action in each of the past nine MLB campaigns, the first four of those coming in Los Angeles.