UNDATED (AP) — Sluggers Freddie Freeman and Kris Bryant have found new homes.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed Freeman to a six-year, $162 million package. Freeman had spent his entire career with the Braves and just helped Atlanta win the World Series. The first baseman was also courted by the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays.
Freeman led the National League with 120 runs scored last year while hitting .300 with 31 home runs and 83 RBIs. He’s a lifetime .295 hitter with 271 homers and 941 ribbies over 12 seasons.
Bryant has agreed to a $182 million, seven-year deal to join the Colorado Rockies. That’s according to a person familiar with the agreement.
Bryant is headed to his third team in eight months after spending his first six major league seasons with the Cubs, who traded him to San Francisco last July.
The 2016 NL MVP and World Series champion batted a combined .265 with 25 homers and 73 RBIs last season. Bryant also pounded out eight hits in the Giants’ five-game playoff loss to the Dodgers.
In other baseball news:
— A person familiar with the situation says the Chicago Cubs and star Japanese outfielder Seiya Suzuki have agreed to a five-year, $85-million deal, pending a physical. The 27-year-old Suzuki was a five-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner over nine seasons with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp.
— The Braves have signed outfielder Eddie Rosario to a two-year contract with $18 million guaranteed. The Braves also added more outfield depth by signing Alex Dickerson to a $1 million, one-year deal that is not guaranteed. The addition of Rosario adds important depth to an outfield that may be without Ronald Acuña Jr., who continues to recover from knee surgery, for the first month of the season.
— Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale has a stress fracture in his rib cage and will miss the start of the season. Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom told reporters that Sale had the problem when he reported to the team’s spring training complex at the end of the lockout. Bloom says it will be weeks before Sale can throw again.
— Angels right-hander Griffin Canning won’t be ready for opening day after a setback in his recovery from a back injury. The Orange County native and UCLA product was expected to be a strong candidate for the sixth spot in the Angels’ rotation this spring.
— All-Star third baseman Matt Chapman has been acquired by the Blue Jays from the payroll-shredding Athletics for four players. The five-year veteran and three-time Gold Glove winner hit .201 with 27 home runs and 72 RBIs in 151 games for the Athletics last season.
— A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that outfielder Kyle Schwarber has agreed to a four-year deal with the Phillies worth about $80 million, subject to a successful physical. Schwarber hit 32 home runs last season with Washington and Boston.
— The Royals have signed six-time All-Star pitcher 38-year-old Zack Greinke to a $13 million contract for this season, reuniting the left-hander with the club that drafted him in the first round two decades ago. Greinke also can make up to $2 million in performance bonuses.
— Ian Kennedy and the Diamondbacks have finalized a one-year, $4.75 million contract that returns the right-hander to Arizona.
— MLB has scheduled 30 additional doubleheaders to make up some of the 91 games postponed by the lockout that delayed opening day until April 7. The slate has extended the last day of the regular season by three days to Oct. 5. Five games were rescheduled for Thursday, July 21, the second day after the All-Star Game.
— Major League Baseball is dropping regular COVID-19 testing for all but symptomatic individuals while maintaining an ability to move games if the public health situation in an area deteriorates.
— The ownership of the Cubs says it will make a bid to buy Premier League club Chelsea. The Ricketts family went public with its interest in the buyout with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. The British government has forced Abramovich to sell the club and banned him from the Premier League.
— Padres All-Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. has had surgery on his broken left wrist. General manager A.J. Preller said earlier this week that the $340 million superstar is expected to miss three months.
— A federal judge has ruled that minor leaguers are year-round employees who work during training time and found Major League Baseball violated Arizona state minimum wage law and is liable for triple damages. Chief Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero in San Francisco also ruled MLB did not comply with California wage statement requirements and awarded nearly $1.9 million in penalties.
