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Spring Training 2017: Cardinals sign a top Cuban prospect

Jose Adolis Garcia is the new member of the St. Louis Cardinals. (AP)
Jose Adolis Garcia is the new member of the St. Louis Cardinals. (AP)

Welcome to The Stew’s Spring Headlines, our daily look at the biggest MLB stories and news items from around spring training. Here you’ll find a quick recap of all the day’s action and other fun stuff from around the internet that we think is worth your time.

BIGGEST NEWS OF THE DAY: The St. Louis Cardinals announced the signing of Cuban free agent Jose Adolis Garcia on Friday. The 24-year-old outfielder is the younger brother of Braves third baseman Adonis Garcia. It’s a minor-league deal, but it carries a $2.5M bonus, according to MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez.

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Ben Badler of Baseball America believes Garcia is not yet a polished prospect, which is why he had to settle for a minor-league deal. He’s expected to start the season in Double-A or Triple-A, but a major league callup seems unlikely this season. Garcia was a .315/.395/.517 hitter over his most recent 380 plate appearances, according to MLB Trade Rumors. [@JesseSanchezMLB]

LOCKED IN: The Cubs have signed setup man Pedro Strop to a one-year, $5.85M contract extension that will cover the 2018 season. The 31-year-old right-hander avoided arbitration earlier this month, agreeing to a one-year, $5.5M contract, which covers 2017. His new deal also includes a $6.25M club option for 2019.

Strop has proven his value to Chicago. Since coming over with Jake Arrieta at the 2013 trade deadline, he’s posted a 2.68 ERA with 254 strikeouts over 211 1/3 relief innings. Even with Wade Davis and Koji Uehara now in the mix, his role will remain vital to the team’s success. [ESPN]

STILL LOOKING: The Marlins are reportedly still looking for pitching depth. A trade doesn’t seem likely at this point, but they could look at unsigned veterans such as Henderson Alvarez, Doug Fister, Colby Lewis and Jake Peavy. [Miami Herald]

UNWELCOME: Orioles vice president John Angelos would not be willing to welcome President Donald Trump to Camden Yards. [The Stew]

Matt Wieters is officially a Washington National. (Getty Images)
Matt Wieters is officially a Washington National. (Getty Images)

IT’S OFFICIAL: The Washington Nationals officially announced their two-year, $21.5M contract with Matt Wieters on Friday. We also learned details of a non-baseball related injury that may have hampered Wieters’ efforts to land a deal this winter. According to Wieters himself, he dropped a glass water jug on his left forearm/wrist in early November that resulted in a cut and required several stitches. The injury held him out of any baseball activity for 10 weeks, but he’s expected to be fine moving forward. [@chelsea_janes]

AIM HIGH: We know the Dodgers aren’t shy about making splashy moves. According to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, they hoped to pull off another big trade this winter after inquiring about Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander. Of course, we also heard the Tigers were open to trading anybody and everybody too for a time, so Verlander’s name being connected to Los Angeles isn’t a huge surprise. Obviously though, nothing came to fruition. [FanRag Sports]

PROGRESS: Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre was able to do some jogging on Friday as he recovers from a strained left calf. Beltre suffered the injury last week, and is expected to be unavailable for the Dominican Republic during the World Baseball Classic. Barring a setback though, Beltre should be ready for opening day. [@Sullivan_Rangers]

WBC PREVIEW: Here’s everything you need to know about the team from Colombia. [The Stew]

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!