Pirates sign Taylor to 1-year deal; Mikolas to open season for Cards
The Pittsburgh Pirates added Gold Glove outfielder Michael A. Taylor on a one-year deal Saturday, with ESPN reporting the pact is worth $4 million.
Taylor, 32, was a Gold Glove center fielder in 2021 with the Kansas City Royals and is coming off a season when he hit a career-best 21 home runs for the Minnesota Twins.
In 10 career seasons for the Washington Nationals (2014-20), Royals (202122) and Twins, Taylor is a career .239 hitter with 95 home runs and 332 RBI. In addition to his Gold Glove award the speedy Taylor has 108 career stolen bases in 139 attempts.
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Rays: Tampa Bay outfielder Josh Lowe will start the season on the injured list with an oblique injury, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
No timetable for a return was revealed for Lowe, who had been dealing with a sore hip throughout spring training. Lowe, 26, hit 20 home runs with 83 RBI and stole 32 bases last season in a career-best 135 games. He had two home runs, 13
RBI and four steals in 54 previous games for Tampa Bay in 2021 and 2022.
It is a second blow to the Rays’ outfield depth in a matter of days after Jonny DeLuca fractured his right hand. DeLuca is in his first season with the Rays after making his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers last season and hitting two home runs with six RBIs in 24 games.
Cardinals: St. Louis right-hander Miles Mikolas will be the team’s starter for Opening Day in Los Angeles against the Dodgers on March 28, manager Oliver Marmol announced Sunday.
Mikolas is getting the nod over right-hander
Sonny Gray, who is working his way back from a hamstring injury.
Mikolas, 35, posted a 9-13 record with a 4.78 ERA in 35 appearances (all starts) last season. He struck out 137 batters and walked 39 in 201 1⁄3 innings. A two-time All-Star, Mikolas is 54-53 with a 3.93 ERA in 178 career games (150 starts) with the San Diego Padres (2012-13), Texas Rangers (2014) and Cardinals. He began playing with St. Louis in 2018 after competing with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan from 2015-17.
Gray, 34, was removed from a start earlier this month due to tightness in his right hamstring.
The Cardinals signed Gray to a three-year, $75 million deal in free agency, part of a remake of their pitching staff that included adding Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson.
Last season with the Minnesota Twins, Gray finished second in Cy Young Award balloting with an 8-8 record and 2.79 ERA in 32 starts.
In his career with the Oakland Athletics (2013-17), New York Yankees (2017-18), Cincinnati Reds (2019-21) and Twins, Gray has a 98-85 record with a 3.47 ERA in 279 appearances (270 starts) and 1,571 innings.