What offseason? The 2016 MLS preseason is officially gets underway on Friday as 11 teams open camp. As the action starts to heat up, we'll be tracking all the lastest happenings around the league right here, so stay tuned!
Sounders re-sign veteran defender Zach Scott
The Seattle Sounders brought back their longest-tenured player, Zach Scott, in announcing on Friday the defender has re-signed with the club. Scott, 35, has been with Seattle through all of their MLS years to date, and will embark on his 15th season across all leagues with the Sounders.
"I'm pleased to announce that Zach is again a part of the team as we begin preparations for the 2016 season," said Sounders FC general manager & president of soccer Garth Lagerwey in a team statement. "He means a great deal to the Sounders organization and we're happy to have him back in camp."
The veteran center back has played 104 MLS regular season games with the Sounders, including 20 appearances last year, as well as three MLS Cup playoff appearances.
RELATED: Seattle Sounders
Dallas waive Escobar, Cirigliano
FC Dallas have freed up roster space, following their announcement that they have waived midfielders Rolando Escobar and Ezequiel Cirigliano. Both players were 2015 midseason additions to the club, with the Panamanian Escobar featuring in 14 regular season games before being sidelined with a facial fracture, and the Argentine Cirigliano making seven regular season appearances and playing in one playoff game last year.
The club's release notes that FC Dallas now have two open international slots.
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RSL sign Welshman
Real Salt Lake have signed forward Emery Welshman from their USL club, Real Monarchs SLC, the club announced Friday.
Welshman is the first player to sign with RSL from the Monarchs. Per league and club policy, terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
"We view the Monarchs as an in-house development system and take great pride in announcing Emery as the first player to move through our system and into the first team," Real Salt Lake general manager Craig Waibel said in a team release.
Welshman, the 16th-overall pick of Toronto FC in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft, was a standout with the Monarchs in 2015, scoring six goals in 19 appearances to finish second on the team. He also added two assists.
In addition to his success with the Monarchs, Welshman also made his international debut in 2015, playing five matches and netting three goals for Guyana, including two goals in a World Cup Qualifying match against St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
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Quakes' Alashe undergoes surgery
San Jose Earthquakes midfielder Fatai Alashe successfully underwent a procedure to repair a hernia on Friday morning, the team announced. The surgery was performed in Los Angeles and is expected to keep him out for four to six weeks.
Alashe finished second in voting for the MLS Rookie of the Year Award in 2015 after making 28 appearances (27 starts) and tallying two goals and two assists.
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Did Brek Shea really wear genie pants to Orlando media day?
You can probably guess the answer to this.
Yes. Yes, he did:
What we want to hear from you is: who wore it better?
RELATED: Orlando City
Timbers sign veteran defender
The Portland Timbers have added some experience to their backline as they load up for an MLS Cup title defense. The team announced Friday that it had signed 31-year-old defender Jermaine Taylor, their lone selection in the 2015 Re-Entry Draft.
Taylor, who is primarily a center back and can also play outside back, has 106 regular-season MLS appearances, one goal and four assists to his name, all with the Houston Dynamo, since making the move from his native Jamaica in 2011. He is also a mainstay with the Jamaican national team and has 83 international caps.
RELATED: Portland Timbers, Transactions
Union re-sign Fabinho
The Philadelphia Union are welcoming back a familiar face as their preseason gets underway, with the news that they had agreed a deal to re-sign veteran left back Fabinho.
The 30-year-old Brazilian has appeared in 59 games (52 starts) for the Union since joining on a free transfer in June 2013. He has two goals and seven assists in regular-season play for Philly.
RELATED: Philadelphia Union, Rosters
Galaxy-Sounders banter gets going early
The Seattle Sounders might have gone a little over the top with this tweet following their signing of coveted prospect Jordan Morris:
But their Western Conference rivals LA Galaxy were right there to give them a good ribbing for it:
We'll have to wait a little bit see which of the teams will have to eat their words, as they do not meet in the regular season until July 9.
RELATED: Seattle Sounders, LA Galaxy
Another MLSer being scouted by Peru?
Reports emerged yesterday that Peruvian national team head coach Ricardo Gareca would be meeting with New England defender Andrew Farrell about the possibility of playing for the South American nation, thanks to the 10 years he spent there as a child.
Now, it looks like there could be another MLS player on Gareca's radar, Chicago Fire Homegrown prospect Collin Fernandez. Fernandez, 18, is the son of a Peruvian father and an American mother, and has represented the US at the Under-18 and U-20 levels, but reportedly told a Peruvian radio station that "it would be an honor to play for and represent Peru."
RELATED: Chicago Fire
