Done Deals: Darren O’Day officially agrees to return to Baltimore

This is The Stew’s running list of trades and signings that happen during baseball’s Winter Meetings. We’ll update this post as news happens. For up-to-the-second chatter and rumors, be sure to check out our Winter Meeting tracker.

MONDAY
Darren O’Day officially agrees to return to the Orioles
After some back-and-forth, it appears Darren O’Day is going back to the Baltimore Orioles. News broke that O’Day had signed with the club Sunday, but he initially refuted that report. Things became a little more clear Monday, and it looks like the deal is official now pending a physical.

#orioles now have officially reached agreement with RHP Darren O’Day on 4-year deal, pending a physical.

— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) December 8, 2015

BLS take: We here at The Stew covered the O’Day signing when the news initially broke. O’Day is an elite option in the bullpen, but there’s some reason to be concerned about the fact that he’s receiving four years. Relievers don’t usually remain at such a high level for such a long time but, until he breaks, O’Day is going to give the Orioles tremendous production.

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Mariners get Wade Miley in trade with Red Sox
The Seattle Mariners, after losing Hisashi Iwakuma in free agency, reacted quick and landed Wade Miley in trade with the Boston Red Sox. The deal sends starter Roenis Elías and reliever Carson Smith to the Red Sox. The Mariners are also getting pitcher Jonathan Aro.

#Mariners acquire LHP Wade Miley and RHP Jonathan Aro from Boston in exchange for RHP Carson Smith and LHP Roenis Elias.

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) December 7, 2015

BLS take: Smith is a good get for the Red Sox, who need bullpen help. He has a high ceiling. He’s young, under club control for a long time and struck out 92 batters in 70 innings last year. On the other side, Miley isn’t great, but he’s an innings eater who made at least 30 starts each of the past four seasons. We wrote more about the trade here.

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Trevor Cahill returns to the Cubs
It’s appears Trevor Cahill enjoyed his time with the Chicago Cubs last season. After experiencing a brief resurgence with the club in the bullpen, Cahill has agreed to return to Chicago, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.

Trevor Cahill enjoyed his experience with the Cubs: He has agreed to return to them on a new contract.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 7, 2015

BLS take: Cahill was once a promising starter who was starting to look like he bound for the minors after a couple tough seasons. While his initial conversion to the bullpen didn’t go well with the Atlanta Braves, the Cubs, and pitching coach Chris Bosio, appeared to find a way to turn Cahill into a viable late-inning option. It’s a small sample, but Cahill posted a 2.12 ERA over 17 innings with Chicago. His strikeout rate rose dramatically, which could mean Bosio figured something out that could make Cahill effective moving forward. There’s still some reason to be skeptical about Cahill being a knockout reliever moving forward, but staying with the Cubs gives him the best chance to reach that ceiling.

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The Dodgers will welcome both Hisashi Iwakuma and Aroldis Chapman to Los Angeles
Los Angeles made the biggest splash early Monday, trading for Cincinnati Reds All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman. They also officially signed pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma to a three-year deal.

BREAKING: #Dodgers agree to acquire Chapman from #Reds for two prospects. Deal is pending review of medical records, sources say.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 7, 2015

BLS take: Our own Tim Brown covered the Iwakuma signing here. Jeff Passan wrote up the Chapman trade.

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The Royals sign pitchers Chris Young, Joakim Soria
On the first morning of the MLB Winter Meetings, the World Series-winning Kansas City Royals added two pitchers to keep their championship staff going strong.

That’s lanky starter Chris Young, who was with the Royals last season, and free agent reliever Joakim Soria, who they’re reportedly paying $25 million over three years. That Soria news was first reported by Jerry Crasnick of ESPN early Monday morning. The Young news was said to be “just a matter of time” for a few days now.

Here’s the latest from the Royals, via Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com.

Hearing both the Young and Soria deals are now just pending physicals. Also hearing Young is in KC. #Royals

— Jeffrey Flanagan (@FlannyMLB) December 7, 2015

BLS take: The Kansas City Royals know how to win and they’ll have the World Series rings to prove it in a few months. One of their keys is pitching, particularly their bullpen, so getting Soria is a move that makes a ton of sense for K.C. They lost Ryan Madson in free agency and Greg Holland is gone too, so they want another arm to go with Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera. As for Young, the Royals know what they’re getting with him. He’s versatile (can pitch in long relief or start), smart and experienced. The 36-year-old was 11-6 with a 3.06 ERA last season, so getting him for two years and close to $12 million (as reported) seems like a bargain.

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Tigers add reliever Mark Lowe on two-year deal
The Detroit Tigers, still trying to bulk up that bullpen, have landed Mark Lowe on a two-year deal. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick first said they were close and CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman said it was a done deal.

Mark Lowe has deal with tigers. 2 years. @jcrasnick on it

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 7, 2015

BLS take: Lowe is 32, but found new life on his fastball last season, making him alluring for the Tigers. He had a 1.96 ERA in 57 appearances for the Mariners and Blue Jays, striking out more than a batter per inning. We don’t know yet what the Tigers paid, so it’s hard to judge the value. Lowe figures to be a setup man for new Tigers closer Francisco Rodriguez.

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