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Baseball-Major League Baseball roundup

Reuters

Dec 24 (The Sports Xchange) - Free-agent second baseman Daniel Murphy reached agreement on a three-year contract Thursday with the Washington Nationals, according to reports. Financial terms of the deal were not immediately available, ESPN reported. The Nationals will give up a first-round draft pick (No. 18 overall) in 2016 for Murphy. The 30-year-old Murphy elevated his status with home runs in a major-league record six consecutive games during the playoffs last fall for the New York Mets and was named National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player. During the regular season, Murphy batted .281 with 14 home runs and 73 RBIs for the Mets. He has a career .288 batting average with 62 home runs and 402 RBIs. After the season, Murphy rejected the Mets' one-year qualifying offer worth $15.8 million and opted for free agency. Murphy is expected to become the Nationals' everyday second baseman as Anthony Rendon moves full time to third base and Danny Espinosa assumes a backup role. - - - A woman who said she had an affair with New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has pleaded guilty to extortion, perjury and criminal impersonation. Louise Neathway, 39, was sentenced to five years' probation. She entered a plea that did not admit guilt but acknowledged there was sufficient evidence for conviction. Cashman, who is married, declined comment. Neathway also goes by the alias Louise Meanwell. She was charged with harassing Cashman in 2012 and with extorting $6,000 by threatening to damage his reputation. - - - Yoenis Cespedes and the New York Mets cut off contract talks and the Cuban outfielder is moving on to a fifth team in just over two years. Which team? That is to be determined, but Cespedes did not find any path to a return to the Mets, who signed complementary outfielder Alejandro De Aza this week and CBS Sports' Jon Heyman reports Steven Pearce is on New York's radar. A middle-of-the-order run producer, Cespedes had 35 homers and 105 RBIs in 2015. - - - (Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)