The Colorado Rockies signed free-agent reliever John Curtiss to a minor-league deal with an invitation to big-league spring training on Thursday, according to a source. Curtiss is expected to be ready for the start of the 2024 season after having arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow last August. Before his injury, the 30-year-old right-hander allowed 10 earned runs on 17 hits (three home runs) while walking eight and striking out 16 in 19 2/3 innings over 15 appearances out of the bullpen for the New York Mets. He will open the year as minor-league relief depth for Colorado after posting a 3.81 ERA (3.98 FIP), 1.23 WHIP, two saves and 103 strikeouts in 106 1/3 innings over 91 appearances (five starts) in six big-league seasons with six different teams.

Free-agent relief pitcher Carl Edwards Jr. and the Chicago Cubs agreed to a minor-league deal on Friday, according to a source familiar with the deal. Edwards had a 3.69 ERA in 31 2/3 innings with the Washington Nationals last season. His deal with the Cubs includes an invitation to spring training. Edwards will be reuniting with the Cubs after breaking into the big leagues with them in 2015. He spent the first four seasons of his career in the Windy City before joining the San Diego Padres in 2019. The 32-year-old veteran right-hander will be attempting to make the Cubs' bullpen out of spring training to open the 2024 season, but he won't be anywhere near the fantasy radar. In his nine years in the majors, Edwards has gone 16-14 with a 3.54 ERA (3.71 FIP), 1.20 WHIP, seven saves and a 28.2 percent strikeout rate in 280 innings pitched over 295 relief appearances.

Texas Rangers general manager Chris Young announced on Friday that the team is re-signing outfielder Travis Jankowski to a one-year, $1.7 million deal plus performance bonuses for the 2024 season. Jankowski will return to give the World Series-champion Rangers outfield depth for the upcoming campaign. The 32-year-old left-handed hitter batted .263/.357/.332 with a home run, 30 RBI, 12 doubles, a triple, 19 stolen bases and 34 runs scored in 107 regular-season games in his first year with Texas. Speed is Jankowski's greatest asset, but as a bench bat for Texas, he won't really be of much use to fantasy managers in mixed leagues to open the year.

Houston Astros right-hander J.P. France intimated that he's adding a new pitch this offseason, but he wants to keep it "on the low down" before eventually debuting it in spring training. France was forced into starting-rotation duty in 2023 due to all of Houston's injuries and finished with 158 1/3 innings, including the playoffs, after never going over 114 innings in his first four minor-league seasons. Fatigue played a part late in the year, as opponents hit slugged .494 with an .855 OPS against him over the final two months of the season. The Astros might have to lean on France in their starting rotation early on, but when all of their starters are healthy, he could be relegated to more of a swing role for Houston. The 28-year-old won't have mixed-league fantasy value unless he's cemented in the team's rotation, but a lack of swing-and-miss stuff also limits his upside.

Houston Astros right-hander Hunter Brown, who threw 50 more innings last year than he had in any other season, wasn't as effective late in 2023 due to subtle mechanical changes after the All-Star break because fatigue was setting in. Brown finished the first half with a 4.12 ERA and 3.32 FIP but stumbled to a 6.57 ERA in 14 appearances after the All-Star break. "I was getting a little bit more crossfire, which diminished my ability to get the fastball away to right-handed hitters especially and leaving it more arm-side. Righties, in particular, were able to do more damage on my harder fastball (and) cutter because I wasn't getting it extension side due to those mechanics," Brown said. To remedy it, pitching coaches Josh Miller and Bill Murphy are working with Brown to develop a new, lower-velocity slider. The 25-year-old is one of the more intriguing young arms in the game, but he may be more of a swing man if Houston's starters are able to stay healthy.