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The Boston Red Sox acquired relief pitcher Tyler Thornburg from the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday in exchange for a package headlined by third baseman Travis Shaw. 

The Brewers officially announced the trade, which also includes shortstop Mauricio Dubon and starting pitcher Josh Pennington joining the Milwaukee organization.

Shaw posted a message on social media about the deal:

Thornburg enjoyed a breakout 2016 campaign for the Brewers. The 28-year-old right-hander posted a 2.15 ERA and 0.94 WHIP with 90 strikeouts in 67 innings. He also racked up 20 holds and 13 saves while pitching in high-leverage situations late in games.

The Red Sox already feature one of the best closers in baseball, Craig Kimbrel. The newest addition will likely serve in a setup role alongside lefty Robbie Ross Jr., who accumulated a 1.69 ERA after the All-Star break last season and is especially tough on lefties (.545 OPS).

In addition, the trade appears to suggest Boston is comfortable entering the 2017 season with Pablo Sandoval as its starting third baseman. He struggled mightily after signing a monster contract in 2015 and missed almost all of last season with a shoulder injury.

He owns a clear path to the starting job with Shaw out of the picture, though. The 26-year-old Kent State product had previously beat him out at the hot corner last spring.

Now Shaw will take over at third for Milwaukee. The slugger started the 2016 season strong with seven home runs over the first two months, but he faded from there. He finished the year with a lackluster .306 on-base percentage with 16 homers.

Dubon and Pennington are both future assets. MLB.com ranked Dubon, 22, as the No. 12 prospect in the Boston organization before the trade. Pennington, 21, owns a 2.29 ERA through 20 appearances (19 starts) in the lower levels of the minor leagues.

Ultimately, the Red Sox are betting Sandoval can enjoy a bounce-back season after a forgettable first two years in Boston. If his struggles continue, then the focus will shift to seeing whether highly touted prospect Yoan Moncada is ready for prime time.

As long as either Sandoval or Moncada provides consistent production, it’s a nice deal for the AL East contenders to pick up a reliable late-inning reliever. Meanwhile, Milwaukee fills a void at third and picks up a few promising pieces for the future in the process.

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The Philadelphia Phillies took a big step toward shoring up their bullpen with the addition of Joaquin Benoit on Monday. 

According to Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball, the 39-year-old reliever signed with the club after Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com reported the two sides were close Sunday night.

Benoit had two very different seasons in 2016, struggling to the tune of a 5.18 ERA with the Seattle Mariners before eventually being traded at the deadline. He was lights out with the Toronto Blue Jays, however, allowing just one run in 23.2 innings. 

Unfortunately, the right-handed pitcher tore his calf attempting to run in from the bullpen in a late-season, bench-clearing brawl. He missed the last week of the regular season and the entire postseason, unable to help the Blue Jays in their eventual loss in the American League Championship Series.

“It’s a big loss, no doubt about it,” manager John Gibbons said at the time of the injury, per ESPN.com. “He’s been so good.”

According to sports broadcaster Hazel Mae (via Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet), he was off crutches and throwing off flat ground by mid-October, so the issue shouldn’t be a concern going forward.

Assuming he is healthy, Philadelphia should get a big contribution from one of the more consistent relievers in the league. Even with his struggles in Seattle, Benoit has finished the season with a sub-3.00 ERA in six of the last seven seasons and had over 50 strikeouts each year.

The pitcher has spent over 15 years in the major leagues with six different organizations, accumulating 57 wins, 51 saves and a 3.79 ERA.

Benoit could be a major boost for a team that finished with the third-highest bullpen ERA in 2016 at 5.05.

While he is getting up there in age, Benoit has shown he can still be an effective reliever and should make an impact right away with his new team.

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The Toronto Blue Jays added a high-upside player to the roster Monday with the signing of Steve Pearce to a two-year, $12.5 million deal.

The Blue Jays confirmed the deal on Monday after ESPN’s Buster Olney first reported the agreement and terms. 

The 33-year-old veteran is coming off season-ending arm surgery to repair his flexor tendons, but when healthy, the versatile player is capable of making big contributions to the lineup.

Pearce finished last season hitting .288 with a .374 on-base percentage and 13 home runs in 85 games with the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles. His best season came with Baltimore in 2014 when he hit 21 home runs with a .930 on-base plus slugging percentage.

According to Baseball-Reference.com, he ranked ninth in the American League that season at 5.9 wins above replacement despite playing just 102 games.

Altogether, Pearce has spent time with five different teams across his 10 seasons in the major leagues.

In addition to providing quality hitting from the right side of the plate, Pearce also adds value with his positional versatility. He has experience at first base, second base and in both corner outfield spots over the past few seasons and can give his team plenty of options in the lineup.

While this isn’t likely the type of signing that will excite fans, the utility player could provide quality depth to the Blue Jays lineup throughout the season.

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Left-handed pitcher Jaime Garcia has spent his entire MLB career with the St. Louis Cardinals, but the Atlanta Braves announced on Thursday they acquired the southpaw in exchange for prospects John Gant, Chris Ellis and Luke Dykstra. 

Mark Saxon of ESPN.com first reported the trade. Gant and Ellis are each right-handed pitchers, while Dykstra is an infielder. 

MLB.com ranked Ellis, Gant and Dykstra as Atlanta’s 17th-, 21st- and 29th-best prospects, respectively, in 2016.

Garcia is the headliner in the trade, though he had mixed results in 2016. On one hand, he appeared in 32 games, which tied for his career high and represented significant strides after an injury-marred stretch. He made 20 starts in 2012, nine in 2013, seven in 2014 and 20 in 2015.

He underwent season-ending surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome and suffered partial labrum and rotator cuff tears during that span. He also dealt with groin issues in 2015.

While Garcia proved he can handle the rigors of an entire season in 2016, he was nowhere near as effective as he was in 2010 and 2011, when he posted 2.70 and 3.56 ERAs, respectively.

He finished the 2016 campaign with a 4.67 ERA and 1.37 WHIP, which were his highest marks since he made 10 appearances as a rookie in 2008. Home runs were one of the biggest problems for the southpaw, who allowed 26 on a Cardinals team that finished 86-76 and missed out on the playoffs.

However, his strikeout totals increased with more innings of work:

Garcia represents the latest veteran addition for the Braves pitching staff, which has also added 43-year-old Bartolo Colon and 42-year-old R.A. Dickey in the offseason.

At 30 years old, Garcia is younger than those two righties, but injuries have to be a concern as he racks up additional mileage on his arm.

Still, Atlanta needed to make changes to its starting rotation after finishing 28th in the big leagues with a 4.87 ERA. Atlanta has plenty of ground to make up in the National League East after finishing in last place at 68-93, but addressing the woeful starting rotation was an ideal place to start.

Garcia comes with risks, but he also has a track record that includes a handful of notable seasons.

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The Milwaukee Brewers added a potentially huge power bat Tuesday by signing first baseman Eric Thames to a three-year contract.

MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy was the first to report the move. Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel confirmed the signing and added there is a fourth-year option as part of the deal.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports shared the terms of the agreement:

Per ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick, Thames will make $15 million in guaranteed money.

Following the signing, the Brewers announced they designated first baseman Chris Carter for assignment.

While Carter hit 41 home runs and drove in 94 runs last season, he hit just .222, and McCalvy pointed out Milwaukee wanted more balance in its lineup:

The 30-year-old Thames has spent the past three seasons playing in the Korean Baseball Organization, where he averaged 41 home runs and 126 RBI per year. He also stole 40 bases in 2015 and posted an on-base percentage of .497.

Thames previously appeared in 181 MLB games over the course of two seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners in 2011 and 2012.

The former seventh-round draft pick hit .262 with 12 homers and 37 RBI as a rookie before slipping to .232 with nine home runs and 25 RBI in his second campaign.

Thames is capable of playing both first base and the outfield, and he represents a major wild card for the Brew Crew.

While Thames’ production in Korea is undeniable, it is difficult to predict how it will project to Major League Baseball.

A recent similar case is that of Dae-Ho Lee, who slugged 44 home runs in Korea in 2010 before hitting 14 for the Mariners in 292 at-bats last season.

Thames will be hard-pressed to match Carter’s power production, but if he can cut down significantly on Carter’s strikeout numbers (206 in 160 games last season) and reach base with regularity, he could prove to be an upgrade even if the home runs drop.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.

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The Atlanta Braves announced Monday night they traded right-handers Rob Whalen and Max Povse to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for outfielder Alex Jackson and a player to be named later.

Whalen took to Twitter to thank the Braves:

The 22-year-old made his MLB debut last year after beginning the campaign in Double-A.

He finished the season with a 7-6 record and 2.40 ERA in the minors, and in his five MLB starts, he went 1-2 with a 6.57 ERA. He averaged 8.4 strikeouts and 3.3 walks per nine innings, illustrating his erratic command.

Povse split his season between High-A and Double-A, making 26 starts and posting a 3.36 ERA. Rotoworld’s Christopher Crawford believes he’ll be a nice addition for Seattle:

The Mariners selected Jackson with the sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft. He spent the 2016 season with the Single-A Clinton LumberKings, batting .243 with 11 home runs and 55 RBI. MLB.com ranked the 20-year-old as the sixth-best prospect in Seattle’s farm system.

Matthew Pouliot of Rotoworld questioned why Seattle parted ways with the highly touted prospect:

The trade makes sense for both teams.

After starting their rebuild, the Braves have assembled a strong core of young arms. They selected pitchers with their first three picks in 2016 and drafted Kolby Allard and Mike Soroka in the first round in 2015. Through trades, Atlanta also acquired Sean Newcomb and Touki Toussaint.

Baseball America‘s JJ Cooper pointed out how difficult it would’ve been for Povse, in particular, to break through:

The Braves can afford to part ways with Whalen and Povse since neither has shown the makings of a future ace. The Mariners, meanwhile, will benefit from bolstering their rotation depth.

Trading Jackson is risky given his age and potential, but the 20-year-old may never reach his MLB ceiling. He struck out 103 times in 92 games in 2016, a year after collecting 96 punchouts in 76 games, which is concerning.

Jackson has the power to become a staple in the middle of Atlanta’s lineup, the possibility of which is worth the price of surrendering two talented pitchers.

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Major League Baseball’s 2016 season officially came to an end on Friday night with Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout taking home top honors as the best major leaguer at the Esurance MLB Awards show. 

That was one of 19 awards given out as voted on by former MLB players, front-office executives, media and fans to determine the best of the best in the sport last season.  

Here is a full list of winners in each category, per MLB.com:

While the Chicago Cubs’ thrilling World Series victory was the dominant topic of the 2016 season, no discussion of this year would be complete without a tribute to Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. 

It was only fitting that after 67 years of calling Dodgers games, Scully would be given the opportunity to showcase his brilliance in dramatic fashion as the team won the National League West on Charlie Culberson’s walk-off home run in the 10th inning against the Colorado Rockies.

There are many great announcers in MLB, but there was no other call in 2016 that deserved to be honored more than Scully‘s final call at Dodger Stadium.

Sticking with the Dodgers, star shortstop Corey Seager capped off a huge week by winning the award for best rookie in 2016. He took home NL Rookie of the Year honors from the Baseball Writers Association of America on Monday and was an NL MVP finalist on Thursday. 

Per ESPN Stats & Info, Seager‘s Rookie of the Year win increased the number of Dodgers’ already-massive lead in that category over the rest of the NL:

Just as Seager was a repeat winner in the rookie category, Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer comes away from this week with multiple trophies after being named the best pitcher in MLB and earning best performance for his 20-strikeout game against the Detroit Tigers in May. 

The celebration for Scherzer‘s Esurance win wasn’t televised, though it would be hard to top what happened after he was named NL Cy Young winner on Wednesday, per MLB GIFs:

The Cubs and Cleveland Indians were well-represented in the awards, as was expected for the two best teams in the sport in 2016. 

The American League champion Indians had two of their most memorable moments rewarded. Tyler Naquin’s walk-off inside-the-park homer against the Toronto Blue Jays was arguably their biggest moment of the regular season, capping off a thrilling come-from-behind win against one of the AL’s top teams. 

In what would have been the defining moment of the MLB season if things played out differently in Game 7 of the World Series, Rajai Davis’ game-tying home run against Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman was awarded best postseason moment. 

Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor took home the honor for best defensive player after receiving his first career Gold Glove award earlier this month. 

Fortunately for Lindor, he wasn’t punished by the voters when his brother caused a stir during the young shortstop’s 23rd birthday with a cake mishap, which he posted to Twitter:

Other Indians rewarded for their efforts included Terry Francona as best manager for navigating the team through pitching injuries to their first division title since 2007 and ace reliever Andrew Miller for best postseason player. 

Per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian, Miller set three postseason records for relief pitchers:

The Cubs, who beat the Indians in the World Series to end their 108-year title drought, took home four trophies. 

Theo Epstein was the easiest choice of the night in any category as best executive. The babyface president of the Cubs took over the team in 2011, rebuilt the entire foundation by hitting big on draft picks like Kris Bryant and Kyle Schwarber, stealing Anthony Rizzo, Addison Russell, Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks in trades and investing wisely in free agency for Jon Lester. 

With Francona and Epstein being honored on this night, it’s only fitting their last link to the 2004 Boston Red Sox also took home a trophy, as David Ortiz was honored as the best hitter. 

Ortiz, who will enjoy retirement before Cooperstown calls him in five years, had an incredible final season with a .315/.401/.620 slash line and 38 home runs. 

Per Christopher Kamka of Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Ortiz shattered the MLB record for most extra-base hits in a season by a player in aged 40 or older:

The Red Sox were unable to send Ortiz into the sunset with his fourth World Series title, but it’s hard to argue with how his career came to a close. 

In the final award given out, Trout just continues to rack up trophies for being awesome. That’s not a scientific term, but there’s no better way to describe what the Angels star has done through each of his first five full MLB seasons. 

Trout took home his second AL MVP award on Thursday, beating out Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts and Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve. The 25-year-old has never finished lower than second in MVP voting and led the league in runs (123), walks (116) and on-base percentage (.441) in 2016. 

The comparisons between Trout and Mickey Mantle have been made dating back to 2012, with the YES Network providing the latest evidence these two might actually be the same player:

It’s difficult to say Trout will get better next season, because how do you improve upon two MVP awards at the age of 25? Yet there truly seems to be no limit on what the Angels star is capable of doing on a baseball field. 

The Angels need to do a better job of building a team around Trout to maximize his skills while they still can. For now, though, admiring what the young star is doing will carry you through the long winter until baseball returns in 2017. 

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Capping a memorable awards season Thursday, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels and Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs took home American League and National League MVP honors, respectively.

Even though Trout has been the best player in baseball since 2012, his MVP candidacy this year was far from a lock, since writers have ignored players whose teams missed the playoffs in the past.

Bryant was the heavy favorite in the NL after leading the Cubs to the NL Central title and solidifying his standing as one of the best young stars in Major League Baseball.

Here’s how the final voting for this year’s MVP awards played out, per the Baseball Writers’ Association of America:

The BBWAA chose Bryant over Corey Seager of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Daniel Murphy of the Washington Nationals, making Bryant the first Cubs player to be named the MVP since Sammy Sosa in 1998.

Bryant followed up his stellar NL Rookie of the Year campaign by getting better in virtually every category this season.

Per ESPN Stats & Info, the Cubs superstar satisfied all of the statistical measurements for voters old and new:

The 24-year-old’s MVP win also puts him in exclusive territory as the fourth player in MLB history to take home the honor one year after being named the Rookie of the Year. Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia (2007-08) was the last to accomplish the feat.

Coming into spring training, Cubs manager Joe Maddon told Carrie Muskat of MLB.com about conversations he had with Bryant last year, when the third baseman was briefly sent down to Triple-A to start the season:

I was confident he would respond well. We had some good conversations, me and him, in the office — very candid, frank, open, all of the above. I got a good feel from him. He was very self-confident. He was disappointed he was not starting with us but had the team goals in mind.

He was straight up with me and looked me right in the eye balls [saying he belonged in big leagues] and I don’t blame him. When he got up here, he showed it was true.

It was immediately true, yet Bryant found new ways to improve his game in 2016. The biggest adjustment was changing his swing slightly so he wasn’t hitting at a steep upward angle, which can help generate power but also lead to high strikeout totals.

Bryant’s strikeout percentage went from 30.6 in 2015 to 22.0 in 2016, per FanGraphs. By making more contact, the 24-year-old increased his home run total from 26 to 39 and went from a .488 slugging percentage to .554.

On Thursday’s MLB Network broadcast (via Muskat), Bryant said, “You can’t put into words what this means.”

Christopher Kamka of CSN Chicago noted the list of accolades Bryant has racked up over the last three years, dating back to his final college season:

If that’s not enough, Bryant will start 2017 by getting married in January. That’s not a bad run for the 24-year-old sensation.

Switching to the AL, Trout remains the best player in baseball. Per ESPN Stats & Info, the Angels all-world star has had a five-year run fans haven’t seen since Babe Ruth:

WAR isn’t the be-all, end-all stat by which to determine an MVP, but it does provide a good jumping-off point. Trout finished one full win ahead of Bryant in the category and 1.6 wins ahead of Red Sox star Mookie Betts, per FanGraphs.

That’s not criticism of Betts or Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, the other AL MVP finalists, because both players were fantastic in their own right. It’s just a bad time to be an AL player if you want to be in the mix for the top spot.

Per SportsCenter, Trout’s name now sits alongside Barry Bonds in MLB history:

After being announced as the AL MVP, the 25-year-old didn’t know what to say, per MLB Network PR: “I was surprised. … I’m speechless, man.”

Of course, the anti-playoff backlash for Trout was inevitable, per Tony Massarotti of 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston:

Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports had some fun with Trout’s win by invoking a notable Twitter incident after Wednesday’s AL Cy Young voting:

ESPN’s Buster Olney provided this incredible stat:

There’s no way to argue against Trout. The only knock anyone could try to present against him is that the Angels went 74-88, but you can’t punish an individual player for the lack of talent around him.

The BBWAA gets a bad rap for some of its antiquated thinking, though there has been a clear shift in recent years.

Trout and Bryant were the two best players in MLB, and they deserved to be rewarded for their efforts.

The pressure is on for 2017, though Trout and Bryant have shown in their young careers there is no ceiling to what they are capable of doing on the baseball field.

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Veteran outfielder Josh Reddick has reached an agreement with the Houston Astros, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported Thursday.

Passan noted the deal is for $52 million over four seasons.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports confirmed Reddick will sign with the Astros, pending a physical.

Reddick is a streaky player, but his net impact on a team has almost always been positive. He’s accumulated 15.9 WAR across eight seasons, and he’s rated above replacement level every year except 2009, when he played just 27 games for the Boston Red Sox in his debut campaign, per FanGraphs.

The 29-year-old Georgia native split the 2016 season between the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. He posted a career-high .345 on-base percentage in 115 games but racked up just 10 home runs, his lowest total since 2011.

His up-and-down play was on full display after he joined the Dodgers in a midseason trade. He hit just .161 with a miserable .395 OPS in August before rebounding with a strong September to help the club clinch a playoff berth by winning the National League West.

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times highlighted the type of production the outfielder can provide when he’s in a zone at the plate:

Interestingly, Reddick told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register the resurgence wasn’t about making changes but rather sticking to his normal routine until he broke out of the slump.

“I learned that probably last year,” he said. “For the most part, when I’m going well, my cage work is limited to almost none at all. Pregame, right before the game, I go in there and do my routine.”

Another thing he didn’t spend much time thinking about was his impending foray into the free-agent market. He explained his mindset early in the season, per Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com.

“I’m one of the guys that doesn’t think about that,” Reddick said. “I’m not going into the box thinking, ‘If I don’t get this run in, or I don’t get this amount of home runs, I’m not going to be the free-agent player I need to be.’ That’s just something I’ve put very far back in my mind.”

The plan worked. Even with the drop-off in the power department, Reddick’s overall performance allowed him to maintain his value.

In the end, Reddick is heading to his third team in the past year. The upside is that going through the transition of joining the Dodgers should make the latest change of scenery easier to deal with during spring training.

Now the question is whether Reddick can put everything together. He’s shown the ability to hit for power, with 32 homers in 2012, and he recorded a strong on-base percentage this past season. If he combines those, he could be a bargain.

It’s a risk worth taking for the Astros. Even if he doesn’t have a huge year at the plate, he’ll likely be a solid hitter who plays plus defense, and that combination carries plenty of value.

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With Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, one topic being discussed is the size of the rosters teams can use during the season.

On Thursday, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported the proposal the sides are discussing would expand rosters from 25 players to 26 for the bulk of the campaign. In exchange, the agreement would introduce a new limit in September, when rosters have traditionally expanded to 40 players. 

September roster expansion has drawn criticism because it changes the dynamic for managers as they navigate their way through games with more players at their disposal than the rest of the year. 

After speaking to multiple general managers and team executives, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wrote about roster expansion in August, noting the union may not be “as on board with the change as much as MLB because it would limit major league participation.”

Baltimore Orioles general manager Dan Duquette suggested keeping the roster size at 40 players, with teams having to designate 30 players from that group as active before each game. 

Rosenthal noted the sides have discussed a similar scenario in their negotiations: “The new limit likely would be 28, and the rules would permit teams to swap out players, though not on a daily basis.”

One reason the union may not be keen to give up roster spots is because it would limit service time for many players, which would prevent them from reaching arbitration and free agency as quickly.

A lot of players who get called up in September are relievers, which allows managers to ease the burden on pitchers who have had heavy workloads over the first five months of the season. In July, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told ESPN’s Mike & Mike (via ESPN.com) that he would be in favor of placing a restriction on the number of relief pitchers who can be used in an inning or game. 

Rosenthal noted the topic is also being discussed during CBA negotiations, though it “could be resolved separately from the CBA,” per a source.

The CBA will expire Dec. 1. There’s been little to suggest a work stoppage is looming, and there is plenty of time for the sides to come to an agreement.

MLB hasn’t had a work stoppage since the 1994-95 strike, which led to the cancellation of the 1994 postseason and a shortened 144-game schedule in 1995.

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