Braves sign Ervin Santana

The Atlanta Braves agreed Wednesday on a one-year contract with right-hander Ervin Santana, bolstering their injury-plagued starting rotation.

The 33-year-old Santana went 9-10 with a 3.24 ERA in 32 starts for the Kansas City Royals last season and should make an immediate impact with the battered Braves, who are facing the prospect of opening the season with Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy and Mike Minor on the disabled list.

Dodgers’ Mattingly to miss two games

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Don Mattingly left spring training because of a death in his family and will miss a pair of exhibition games.

The Dodgers said bench coach Tim Wallach will manage Los Angeles against Arizona and versus Cincinnati on Thursday.

Mattingly is expected to return for Friday’s game against the Chicago Cubs.

Ryan returns to Astros as adviser

Nolan Ryan, the 67-year-old Hall of Famer, is back with the Astros, a team he pitched for during nine of his 27 major league seasons. He will serve as executive adviser.

The Astros are coming off four consecutive seasons of 100 or more losses.

Astros release IF Brett Wallace

Infielder Brett Wallace was given his unconditional release by the Houston Astros.

He was dropped from the 40-man roster last month to clear a spot for pitcher Jerome Williams.