Bickford signed a minor-league contract with the Cubs on Friday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Bickford spent the majority of 2024 with the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate, where he logged a 3.40 ERA and 1.14 WHIP over 50.1 innings. His minor-league success didn't translate to the bigs, however, as he gave up eight earned runs in just 8.1 frames with New York. Now with the Cubs, the 29-year-old righty will likely begin 2025 as bullpen depth at Triple-A Iowa.
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Yankees' Phil Bickford: Clears waivers
Rotowire
The Yankees outrighted Bickford to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday.
Bickford will stick around in the New York organization after clearing waivers. The right-hander has given up eight earned runs on 10 hits and one walk over 8.1 innings in eight appearances out of the big-league bullpen.
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Yankees' Phil Bickford: Pushed off 40-man
Rotowire
The Yankees designated Bickford for assignment Saturday.
With Clarke Schmidt (lat) and Ian Hamilton (lat) both returning from the 60-day IL, Bickford and Nick Burdi will both lose their spots on the Yankees' 40-man roster. Bickford appeared in three games for the Yankees after being selected to the active roster Aug. 25, striking out two batters across 3.1 scoreless innings, although he still owns an 8.64 ERA in the big leagues this season.
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Yankees' Phil Bickford: Selected from Triple-A
Rotowire
The Yankees selected Bickford's contract from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday.
He'll join the 40-man roster and 26-man active roster as a replacement in the bullpen for right-hander Michael Tonkin, who was designated for assignment. Bickford had previously made five relief appearances for New York earlier this season and was hit hard over five innings, yielding eight earned runs on eight hits and one walk.
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Phil Bickford: Elects free agency
Rotowire
The Yankees released Bickford on Wednesday.
Bickford cleared waivers after being removed from the 40-man roster but has elected free agency rather than accepting an outright assignment. The veteran reliever should be scooped up by some team, but he might have to go to the minors first.
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Yankees' Phil Bickford: Dropped from 40-man roster
Rotowire
The Yankees designated Bickford for assignment Sunday.
New York selected Bickford's contract June 21, and he surrendered eight earned runs with a 4:1 K:BB over five innings. He was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Josh Maciejewski, who was added to the big-league roster Sunday.
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Yankees' Phil Bickford: Inks MiLB deal
Rotowire
Bickford signed a minor-league contract with the Yankees on Tuesday, Conor Foley of YES Network reports.
The right-hander was let go by the Mets just ahead of Opening Day but will stick around the tri-state area as he reports to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Bickford made 61 appearances between the Dodgers and Mets last season and had a 4.95 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 76:39 K:BB over 67.1 innings.
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Mets' Phil Bickford: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
The Mets designated Bickford for assignment Saturday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Bickford will lose his spot on the Mets' 40-man roster in order to make space for J.D. Martinez, who officially signed with the team Saturday. Bickford gave up three earned runs over 4.2 innings during spring training and turned in a 4.95 ERA through 67.1 frames last season. He could receive attention on the waiver wire, but the 28-year-old reliever would almost certainly be limited to low-leverage work no matter where he ends up.
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Mets' Phil Bickford: Nabs first win with new team
Rotowire
Bickford (3-4) gave up a hit and struck out three over 1.1 scoreless relief innings Monday to pick up the win in a 10-4 victory over Atlanta.
Starter David Peterson failed to last five innings, and Bickford took over from the southpaw with the Mets already ahead 7-4 to get credit for the win. It's his first victory in 10 appearances since joining New York at the beginning of August, but his 8.38 ERA, 1.66 WHIP and 13:6 K:BB through 9.2 innings for his new team will keep him in a low-leverage role.
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Mets' Phil Bickford: Bags first save
Rotowire
Bickford earned a save against the Cubs on Wednesday, issuing one walk and striking out two batters over a scoreless inning.
Adam Ottavino got the call from the bullpen with the Mets up 4-2 heading into the ninth inning, but he allowed a solo home run followed by a single and a walk before being pulled without retiring any batters. Bickford came to the rescue, striking out a pair and preventing the tying run from crossing the plate. As a result, he earned the second save of his career and first since joining New York in a deadline deal. The Mets' closer role is unsettled with David Robertson recently being dealt to Miami, so it's not out of the question that Bickford could get additional ninth-inning opportunities down the line.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Nabs win in return
Rotowire
Bickford (2-2) earned the win over Houston on Saturday, striking out four batters over two perfect innings.
Bickford was impressive in his return from a back injury, striking out two Astros in each of his two frames and retiring all six batters he faced. The right-hander had been struggling mightily prior to going on the injured list June 3, allowing 12 runs over his prior 7.1 innings. The Dodgers bullpen has been among the worst in the NL this season, so Bickford could get a chance to work up to a high-leverage role if he shows the ability to consistently pitch well.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Activated off injured list
Rotowire
Bickford (back) was activated off the 15-day injured list Friday, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.
Bickford missed three weeks while dealing with tightness in his lower back. He'll return to a middle-innings role with the Dodgers. Alex Vesia heads back to Triple-A Oklahoma City in a corresponding transaction.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Placed on injured list
Rotowire
The Dodgers placed Bickford on the 15-day injured list Saturday with lower back tightness.
Bickford had a strong start to the season but has since fallen off, allowing 16 earned runs through 12 innings across his last 10 appearances. He'll head to the IL to ensure he's at 100 percent his next time out, while Tayler Scott will come up from Triple-A Oklahoma City to fill out the bullpen.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Out with shoulder fatigue
Rotowire
Bickford was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right shoulder fatigue.
Bickford hasn't pitched since Sept. 23 when he surrendered four runs (three earned) across 1.1 innings, including Albert Pujols' 700th home run. The right-hander will miss the rest of the regular season and will be eligible to be activated during the playoffs; however, even if healthy, his 4.72 ERA doesn't make much of a case for him to be included on the postseason roster.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Serves up Pujols' 700th homer
Rotowire
Bickford pitched 1.1 innings against St. Louis on Friday, allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits and no walks while striking out two batters.
Bickford had his name etched into the history books when he became the fourth pitcher even to serve up career homer No. 700 to an opposing batter, as Albert Pujols tagged him for a three-run shot in the fourth inning. That was one of two homers Bickford gave up in the outing -- Lars Nootbaar got to him for a much less memorable two-run shot in the fifth frame. The long ball has been a problem for Bickford this season, as he has now served up 12 in 61 innings of work. The righty reliever entered Friday having yielded just one run over his previous 12.2 innings, so he'll look to move past this hiccup and get back on track as he vies for a spot on the NLDS roster.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Returns to big club
Rotowire
The Dodgers recalled Bickford from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Despite being optioned to Triple-A just two days ago, Bickford is eligible to rejoin the big club after the Dodgers placed fellow reliever Brusdar Graterol (elbow) on the 15-day injured list in a corresponding move. Bickford is likely to see most of his work in low-leverage spots during his upcoming stint in the majors.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Drops down to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Dodgers optioned Bickford to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday.
Bickford covered 2.2 innings in total while making relief appearances in three of the past four days, so his demotion is likely the result of the Dodgers wanting to add a fresh arm to the bullpen in advance of Tuesday's game against the Mets. Right-hander Jake Reed was recalled from Triple-A and will replace Bickford in the bullpen.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Credited with win Saturday
Rotowire
Bickford (2-1) allowed one hit while striking out two batters over 1.1 innings to pick up the win over Kansas City on Saturday.
Starter Andrew Heaney departed early after being hit on the left arm by a line drive, and Los Angeles trotted out five different relievers to finish off the game. Bickford was arguably the most effective of the group, throwing 19 of 25 pitches for strikes and allowing just one hit while punching out two batters. The win was his first decision of any kind since mid-July, as he's been working mostly in lower-leverage situations. Bickford has a 5.05 ERA this season due largely to allowing eight home runs over 41 innings.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Notches fourth hold
Rotowire
Bickford earned a hold against Colorado on Monday, pitching a perfect inning during which he struck out one batter.
After Dodgers starter Julio Urias allowed just one run over six frames, Bickford took over for the seventh inning. The right-hander began his outing with a strikeout and set the side down in order on 15 pitches. Bickford allowed four runs across two-thirds of an inning in a poor outing against Cincinnati on June 23, but around that blowup he's notched seven scoreless outings during which he's posted an 8:0 K:BB over seven frames.
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Dodgers' Phil Bickford: Recalled from minors
Rotowire
Bickford was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.
Bickford was sent down by the Dodgers on May 27, but he'll rejoin the major-league club to provide bullpen depth after Craig Kimbrel was placed on the paternity list Tuesday. Over 17 relief appearances in the majors this year, Bickford has posted a 3.45 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 15.2 innings.
