Braves purchased the contracts of LHPs Lee Hyde, Jose Ortegano and Jonny Venters and RHPs Jeff Lyman and Kyle Coffield.
The move protects all five pitchers from the Rule 5 Draft. These guys are far away from the majors, but are still promising members of the Braves organization. Hyde, a 24 year-old left-hander, posted a 3.00 ERA and 13/12 K/BB ratio in the Arizona Fall League this season.
Orioles designated LHP Chris Waters for assignment.
Waters appeared in five games (one start) this season on the major league level, posting a 5.40 ERA and 5/5 K/BB ratio in 11 2/3 innings. He had a 4.49 ERA in 29 appearances (20 starts) at Triple-A.
Cubs signed LHP John Grabow to a two-year, $7.5 million contract.
The deal, for some reason, took over a week to finalize. Perhaps the Cubs were having second thoughts. Grabow, 31, was a very solid left-handed reliever this season, but the salary does seem a bit high. He'll need to prove that his 3.36 2009 ERA was no fluke to justify the chunk of change. And with a 4.03 career ERA and 1.44 career WHIP, the odds are against him.
Reds OF Laynce Nix has elected free agency rather than accept an outright assignment to Triple-A Louisville.
Nix, 29, hit .239/.291/.476 this past season with a career-high 15 homers, 26 doubles and 46 RBI in 309 at-bats. He'll no doubt draw interest this winter from teams looking for a reliable utility outfielder.
Rockies signed C Paul Phillips to a minor league contract.
Phillips, 32, hit .311/.396/.422 this season with a homer and nine RBI in 45 at-bats on the major league level. The new deal comes with a clause that will grant him $450,000 if he reaches the bigs again next year.
Marlins purchased the contracts of RHP Jose Ceda, RHP Jay Buente, RHP Brett Sinkbeil, RHP Kris Harvey and OF Scott Cousins.
The players are now safe from MLB's Rule 5 Draft. Ceda missed most of 2008 and the entire 2009 season with a right shoulder injury, but the Marlins still believe in the 22-year-old's potential.
Royals designated infielder Tug Hulett for assignment.
The Royals cut Hulett to make room on the 40-man roster. The 26-year-old infielder spent most of the season at Triple-A Tacoma, but batted .111/.158/.111 with one RBI in 18 at-bats with the big club. Hulett hasn't done much at the major league level, but he has shown good on-base skills while playing all over the diamond in the minors.
Dodgers re-signed outfielder Manny Ramirez to a two-year, $45 million contract.
Ramirez passed his physical on Wednesday. The deal guarantees him salaries of $25 million in 2009 and $20 million in 2010, which is a player option. The contract will be paid out over five years, with Ramirez receiving $10 million each of the next four years and $5 million in 2013. Ramirez is expected to be in Dodgers camp on Thursday. Manager Joe Torre estimates it will take him a week to get ready for game action.
Pirates claimed RHP Chris Jakubauskas off waivers from the Mariners.
Jakubauskas posted a 5.32 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 35 appearances (eight starts) with the Mariners this season while battling a few shoulder issues. He turns 31 in December, but the Bucs are desperate for pitching.
Recent Fantasy Baseball Columns
Top 10 Player Searches
Listed below are the highest searched players over the last seven days.
Cubs finalize two-year, $7.5M deal for Grabow 
PREVIOUS TRANSACTIONS
