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The Best Fits For Alex Bregman

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Each offseason at MLBTR, we take a look at the potential markets for some of the top names in free agency. We've already taken a look at both Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette and Framber Valdez. Let's move onto star third baseman Alex Bregman, who opted out of the remaining two years and $80MM on his Red Sox contract earlier in the offseason. Bregman was ineligible to receive a qualifying offer, having gotten one previously in his career, so he can be signed without any draft forfeitures.

Bregman was a free agent last winter as well, but when the market didn't produce a $200MM+ deal to his liking, he signed for three years and $120MM (with plenty of deferred money) in Boston. That contract allowed him to opt out after each season.

Early in 2025, Bregman played like an MVP candidate. Through May 23, he was hitting .299/.385/.553 with 11 home runs, 17 doubles, an 18.6% strikeout rate and a 9.7% walk rate. He suffered a quad strain that sidelined him for nearly two months, throwing a wrench into one of the hottest starts of his career.

There's a narrative that Bregman struggled down the stretch after returning from injury. That's not entirely true. For the first 130 plate appearances post-injury, Bregman picked up right where he left off. He hit .325/.408/.518 with more walks (11.5%) than strikeouts (8.5%). His bat tanked for the next three weeks (.151/.223/.215, 103 plate appearances), and Bregman then finished out the season hitting .276/.417/.414 in his final 36 trips to the batter's box. The concept of his post-injury "swoon" is largely a misnomer. Bregman was healthy for the final 11 weeks of the season and really only struggled for three of them -- the extent of those struggles was just alarming. Unsurprisingly, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said after the season that Bregman probably came back a bit earlier and wasn't playing at 100%.

On the whole, Bregman hit .273/.360/.462 (125 wRC+) with a revitalized walk rate and improved batted-ball metrics. His defense, even with an ailing quadriceps, graded out better than average. Both FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference peg him at 3.5 WAR in only 114 games. There’s a pretty easy case that Bregman is a bankable four- to five-WAR player, and while talk of veteran presence/clubhouse leadership/intangibles is often overstated, it seems genuine that front offices are captivated by his leadership skills and personality.

Bregman could have more demand than he did last winter. He's a year older now, but there's no QO attached to him and his plate discipline/approach rebounded after an uncharacteristic 6.9% walk rate and .315 OBP in 2024. Let’s run through Bregman's likeliest landing spots, based on roster composition and payroll outlook, and see if there are any viable dark horse candidates to bring him aboard.

Known/Likely Suitors (listed alphabetically)

Cubs: Pitching is the Cubs' primary focus this winter, even after Shota Imanaga accepted his qualifying offer and will now return for the 2026 season. However, the Cubs were in on Bregman last offseason and have already been linked to him again. The fit is clear. Top prospect Matt Shaw didn't solidify himself as an everyday option at the hot corner when handed the reins at the position in 2025. Shaw is still only 24 years old and did have an encouraging month following the All-Star break ... before cratering once again in his final 133 plate appearances (.220/.293/.373). Shaw hit .226/.295/.394 overall. He's still a promising young player, but promising young players don't always become solid big leaguers.

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Jeff Kent Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame

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Jeff Kent was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, as revealed by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee tonight.  Kent received 14 of a possible 16 votes from the Era Committee, easily topping the 75% (12 of 16) threshold needed for induction to Cooperstown.  Of the other seven candidates under consideration, Carlos Delgado was the next-closest candidate with nine votes, and Dale Murphy and Don Mattingly each received six votes.  Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Gary Sheffield, and Fernando Valenzuela all received less than five votes.

A veteran of 17 Major League seasons with the Blue Jays, Mets, Indians, Giants, Astros, and Dodgers from 1992-2008, Kent hit more homers as a second baseman than any other player in history, going yard 351 times from the position.  His resume includes four Silver Slugger awards and five All-Star nods, as well as the 2000 NL MVP Award when Kent was a member of the Giants.

Kent is primarily remembered for his six seasons in San Francisco and five seasons with the Mets.  Beginning his career as a well-regarded prospect in the Blue Jays’ farm system, Roberto Alomar’s presence in Toronto made Kent expendable, and the Jays dealt Kent for David Cone in August 1992.  Cone’s presence helped the Blue Jays capture the 1992 World Series, while Kent went onto establish himself as a solid regular during his time in New York.

The 1996 trade deadline saw Kent again on the move, this time to Cleveland.  During the 1996-97 offseason, the Tribe flipped Kent to San Francisco, where he truly rose to stardom.  Kent hit .297/.368/.535 with 175 homers over 3903 plate appearances and an even 900 games with the Giants from 1997-2002, teaming with Bonds to form a devastating one-two punch in the lineup.  The 2002 Giants reached the World Series for Kent’s only appearance in the Fall Classic, as the team fell just short in a seven-game loss to the Angels.  For his career in the postseason, Kent hit a solid .276/.340/.500 over 189 PA.

Kent spent his final six seasons with the Astros (2003-04) and Dodgers (05-08), and remained an offensive force at the plate until his production finally trailed off in his 17th and final MLB season.  Over 2298 career games and 9537 PA, Kent hit .290/.356/.500 with 377 home runs, 1518 RBI, and 1320 runs scored.

Despite his impressive career numbers, Kent didn’t gain much traction during his 10 years on the writers’ ballot, as he never received more than 46.5% of the vote.  A crowded ballot during Kent’s era didn’t help, yet his subpar defense and surly reputation probably also didn’t help curry much favor with voters.  Clubhouse controversy followed Kent during his time with the Mets and Giants, and his stint in San Francisco included a well-publicized feud with Bonds.  There is some irony, therefore, in the fact that Kent is finally making it into Cooperstown while on the same Era Committee ballot as his former Giants teammate.

Formerly known as the Veterans Committee, the Era Committee is the latest incarnation of the process that for decades has given some fresh evaluation and a second chance to players initially overlooked on the writers’ ballot.  This year’s version of the Era Committee focused on players whose greatest contributions came during the “Contemporary Baseball” (1980-present) era.  Next year’s ballot will focus on managers, executives, and umpires from the Contemporary Baseball era, and the 2027 ballot will consider candidates from the “Classic Baseball” era (prior to 1980) before Contemporary Players are again considered in 2028.

A rule change introduced this year added an extra layer of intrigue (or even controversy) to this year’s proceedings.  Because they received less than five votes on this year’s ballot, Bonds, Clemens, Sheffield, and Valenzuela must be omitted from the next voting cycle, and can’t return to the Contemporary Players ballot until at least 2031.  If any of these four players then don’t receive at least five votes in 2031 or on any future ballot, they are no longer eligible for inclusion on any Contemporary Players ballot.

The aim of this new rule is to allow more candidates to be included on Era Committee ballots on a regular basis.  The concept of permanent disqualification from ballots, however, has been viewed by some as a way for the Hall of Fame to sidestep the ongoing controversy about Bonds, Clemens, Sheffield, or other prominent superstars (i.e. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro) who were linked to PEDs.  While obviously Era Committee rules could again be altered down the road, for now, the path to Cooperstown has gotten even narrower for Bonds, Clemens, or Sheffield.

The results of the writers’ ballot will be announced on January 20, with such players as Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones seen as strong candidates to finally get over the 75% threshold after multiple years on the ballot (nine years for Jones, four years for Beltran).  Any players elected on January 20 will join Kent in being officially inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 26 in Cooperstown.

The 16 members of this year’s Era Committee could vote for as many as three players, and as few as zero players.  This year’s Era Committee was comprised of seven Hall of Famers (Ferguson Jenkins, Jim Kaat, Juan Marichal, Tony Perez, Ozzie Smith, Alan Trammell, Robin Yount), four former MLB general managers (Doug Melvin, Kim Ng, Tony Reagins, Terry Ryan), two current MLB owners (the Brewers’ Mark Attansio and the Angels’ Arte Moreno), two media members (the Athletic’s Tyler Kepner and Jayson Stark), and historian Steve Hirdt.

Astros Outright Taylor Trammell, Logan VanWey

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The Astros have sent outfielder Taylor Trammell and right-hander Logan VanWey outright to Triple-A Sugar Land. Chandler Rome of The Athletic was among those to pass the info along. It wasn’t previously reported that the club had removed either from the roster but it appears Houston put them on waivers to clear up a couple of roster spots, perhaps to make a selection in next week’s Rule 5 draft. The 40-man count is technically down to 38 but the Astros reportedly have an agreement in place with Ryan Weiss, so he will need a spot whenever that deal becomes official.

Trammell, now 28, was once a Top 100 prospect but he hasn’t been able to establish himself as a viable big leaguer. Over the past five seasons, he has stepped to the plate 494 times, split between the Mariners, Dodgers, Yankees and Astros. He has 18 home runs and a strong 11.5% walk rate but has also been punched out at a 35.2% rate. That’s led to a .175/.277/.355 batting line and 80 wRC+.

He exhausted his final option season with the Mariners in 2023. That made it harder for him to hang onto a roster spot. In early 2024, he went to the Dodgers and Yankees via waivers. The Yankees then sent him outright in May of 2024 but added him back to the roster at season’s end to prevent him from reaching free agency and then flipped him to Houston. He managed to hang onto his roster spot with the Astros all year but with significant time spent on the injured list. He only got into 52 games and his offensive production stayed around his previous levels.

Since Trammell has a previous career outright, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency. However, he is unlikely to do so. Since he has less than five years of big league service, electing free agency means walking away from any money he is still owed. He qualified for arbitration this winter as a Super Two player. He and the Astros avoided arbitration last month by agreeing to a split deal which pays him $900K in the majors and $500K in the minors. Presumably, he’ll accept the assignment to keep that contract in place, which means the Astros can keep him as non-roster outfield depth.

VanWey, 27 in February, was an undrafted free agent who just made it to the big leagues for the first time in April. He was shuttled to Triple-A and back a few times this year, tossing 10 2/3 innings over nine big league appearances. He allowed six earned runs on 15 hits, three walks and one hit-by-pitch while striking out seven. This is his first career outright and he doesn’t have three years of big league service, meaning he doesn’t have the right to elect free agency. He’ll stick with the Astros as non-roster depth.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Jairaj, Imagn Images

Astros, Orioles Among Clubs Interested In Ranger Suárez

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Left-hander Ranger Suárez is one of the top free agent starting pitchers still available. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports that the Astros, Cubs and Orioles are the clubs most likely to pluck him away from the Philadelphia, though the Phillies remain in the mix. Feinsand adds that the Mets and Tigers are also involved in the southpaw’s market. Jeff Passan of ESPN adds that Suárez has long been a target of Houston and Baltimore.

Suárez, 30, has been pretty consistent in terms of his results in recent years. He’s generally been able to combine decent strikeout and walk rates with strong ground ball numbers. However, he also has some question marks since his velocity isn’t huge by modern standards and some injuries have prevented him from being a workhorse.

Over the past four seasons, Suárez has tossed 588 1/3 innings for the Phillies, allowing 3.59 earned runs per nine. He punched out 21.9% of batters faced in that time and gave out walks at a 7.5% pace, both marks being close to typical league averages. His 50.8% ground ball rate in that span was quite strong.

He has spent at least some time on the injured list in each of those campaigns. Back problems are a recurring issue but there was also an elbow strain and a hamstring strain mixed in. Due to those injury setbacks, he has never hit the 160-inning mark in any season of his career. As for the velocity, he was able to average in the 93-94 mile per hour range with his fastball a few years ago. However, over the past two seasons, he’s been in the 91-92 mph range.

It’s not a perfect profile but Suárez is still one of the better arms out there. At the beginning of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Suárez could secure a five-year, $115MM deal. He was the fourth starting pitcher on the list, behind Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez and Tatsuya Imai. Cease has signed with the Blue Jays but Valdez, Imai and Suárez remain three of the most attractive starting pitchers available. Suárez rejected a qualifying offer from the Phillies, meaning any other team that signs him would be subject to the associated penalties.

Valdez is a fairly similar pitcher, since he’s also a ground ball guy, but he edges past Suárez for a few reasons. Though he’s two years older, he’s been more durable. While Suárez has never got to 160 innings, Valdez got to at least 176 in each of the past four seasons, including three with at least 192 frames. His ground ball rate is usually in the 60% range, about 10 points ahead of Suárez. His velocity has also been a few ticks above Suárez of late. MLBTR predicted Valdez for $150MM over five years.

The Astros just lost Valdez to free agency and need help in the rotation due to a large number of injuries. They seem to have a tight budget, with an apparent desire to avoid the competitive balance tax. It therefore makes sense that they might look to pivot to Suárez as a way to effectively replace Valdez at a discount.

RosterResource has Houston’s CBT number around $220MM, putting them roughly $24MM below next year’s base threshold of the tax. Signing Suárez would likely put them right up against the line but they could also create some more room by trading someone like Jake Meyers, Jesús Sánchez or Christian Walker.

Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias has publicly admitted that the club is looking for a front-of-rotation starter to slot next to Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish. They have generally avoided big splashes on the pitching side. They also needed rotation help last year and ended up giving one-year deals to Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano, relatively older guys without much upside. It’s possible they make a bolder strike this offseason, having been connected to Imai, Valdez and others.

The Cubs are also known to be on the lookout for rotation upgrades. They have a number of decent arms already on the roster but clearly want to raise the ceiling by adding a playoff-caliber arm. They were interested in Cease before he came off the board and have also been connected to Imai, Michael King and others.

RosterResource has them less than $50MM away from the tax line, which they have generally tried not to cross in recent years. They could also consider a big offensive upgrade, such as going after Alex Bregman. Getting both a big-name starter and Bregman could push them close to that line.

The Tigers have a big ace in Tarik Skubal but could upgrade the group behind him. As of now, Reese Olson, Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty are his best supports but the club could get an external upgrade and bump each of those guys down a peg. They haven’t been signing top free agents for a while but the tier below seems possible. They have been connected to King and now Suárez this offseason.

The Mets dealt with a lot of rotation injuries in 2025, forcing them to rely on rookies Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat. There’s talent there but the club clearly wants to make additions after a narrow playoff miss. They have been connected to Imai as well as Joe Ryan of the Twins.

They have a lot of moving parts in their offseason. Acquiring Marcus Semien might push Jeff McNeil to the trade block. They also might want to flip out Kodai Senga as they also add to the rotation. They may or may not re-sign Pete Alonso and Edwin Díaz. They also might be in the markets for Cody Bellinger and other free agents.

As for the Phillies, they could try to bring back Suárez but it might not be their priority right now. Zack Wheeler may miss the beginning of the season due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery but it’s possible he can rejoin the club fairly early in the campaign. Once back, he would slot into the rotation with Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker and Andrew Painter.

The Phils could bolster that group but they also have other things on the to-do list. They want to re-sign Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto while also remaking their outfield. Amid all of that, it’s possible one of these other clubs has a chance to lure Suárez away.

Photo courtesy of Bill Streicher, Imagn Images

Astros Have Received Interest In Jesus Sanchez

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The Astros are losing Framber Valdez to free agency, leaving them in need of multiple starting pitchers behind ace Hunter Brown. Houston has taken cheap one-year fliers on former top prospect Nate Pearson and KBO returnee Ryan Weiss to compete for spots at the back of the staff. Those are fine dice rolls, but they’ll need to acquire someone whom they can comfortably slot alongside Cristian Javier in the middle of the rotation.

If owner Jim Crane remains loathe to cross the luxury tax line, the front office won’t have much flexibility to add free agent starting pitching. Chandler Rome of The Athletic writes that the club is indeed more likely to address the rotation via trade. One of the league’s weakest farm systems won’t do them any favors, so they might be looking at dealing from the MLB roster to accomplish that.

Houston is reportedly open to dealing standout defensive center fielder Jake Meyers for pitching. Meyers is coming off a career-best season at the plate and is controllable via arbitration for two seasons. He’s the best trade chip in the Houston outfield, but he’s not the only candidate to move this offseason. Rome reports that the Astros have gotten interest from other clubs in right fielder Jesús Sánchez as well.

That could explain why Sánchez remains on the roster at all. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a $6.5MM salary in his third of four trips through the arbitration process. It came as a surprise that Houston tendered him a contract. Sánchez had a very poor finish to the 2025 season, batting .199/.269/.342 over 160 plate appearances after being acquired from Miami at the trade deadline. Combined with the escalating salaries and the payroll restrictions, it made him a non-tender candidate.

General manager Dana Brown acknowledged at last month’s GM Meetings that he was open to trade inquiries on Sánchez. Even if they’re not especially interested in paying him $6-7MM, it seems they found enough interest that they didn’t want to let him go for no return.

Sánchez isn’t going to net a mid-rotation arm, but it’s possible they swap him for a back-end starter. Teams like the Royals, Pirates, Guardians and Phillies could look to the trade market for a corner outfielder. While Sánchez has never lived up to his billing as a top prospect, he was an alright everyday player throughout his time with the Marlins. He was a league average hitter between 2021 and the ’25 deadline, hitting .246/.312/.432 in nearly 1900 plate appearances. He has plus bat speed and has typically posted strong exit velocities, though his batted ball metrics also collapsed in Houston.

Even if the Astros are unlikely to swap Sánchez for their biggest rotation pickup of the offseason, a change-of-scenery deal would create a bit of spending room. Trading both Sánchez and Meyers would leave them very thin in the outfield, and dealing the former would subtract one of their few left-handed bats. While Dana Brown has already said they’re not interested in moving Isaac Paredes, that might be something the front office needs to consider later in the offseason if they can’t find a mid-rotation arm in a different way.

Astros Open To Moving Jake Meyers In Search For Rotation Help

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The Astros don’t have a ton of breathing room between their current payroll figures and the first tier of the luxury tax threshold — a line owner Jim Crane is once again reportedly loath to cross. With a prominent need in the rotation, they’ve been exploring both the free agent and trade markets. One scenario in play, per Ken Rosenthal and Chandler Rome of The Athletic, is to trade center fielder Jake Meyers for pitching help. Meyers is drawing plenty trade interest, per the report, and Houston brass is open to moving him if it’d mean adding a starter with multiple years of club control remaining.

The 29-year-old Meyers (30 next June) isn’t necessarily a household name, but the defensive standout is coming off a strong all-around season. In 381 trips to the plate, Meyers hit .292/.354/.373 with a career-best 8.1% walk rate and career-low 17.6% strikeout rate. He hit three home runs, 15 doubles and two triples and added 16 steals in 21 attempts.

Meyers’ power output in 2025 was a career-low, but he didn’t experience an especially alarming dip in his quality of contact. He averaged 88.1 mph off the bat, which is south of the league average but right in line with the 88.2 mph he averaged in 2024, when he hit a career-high 13 homers in 513 plate appearances. His 38.9% hard-hit rate was actually higher than the 37% mark he posted in ’24. Meyers hit more line drives and grounders in 2025, however. His 28.4% fly-ball rate was his lowest since 2022, and his percentage of fly-balls that left the yard — just 3.8% — was a career-low mark. A .353 average on balls in play boosted his production but also feels ripe for regression.

Even if there’s some regression in store, though, Meyers is a potentially impactful player when considering the totality of his skill set. He’s never posted a below-average (or even average) season in center in the eyes of Statcast, Defensive Runs Saved or Ultimate Zone Rating. In nearly 3500 career innings in center, Meyers has posted 22 DRS and 41 Outs Above Average.

Meyers has had elite sprint speed in the past, sitting as high as the 92nd percentile of big league position players as recently as 2023. His sprint speed wilted in a 2025 season that saw him endure a pair of IL stints due to calf injuries, though it still sat well above average (71st percentile). It’s feasible that with better health in his legs, his speed and defensive grades could trend upward. Notably, he’d already swiped 14 bags by the end of June but stole only twice more the rest of the way; his first IL placement due to a calf strain came in early July.

It seems fair to infer that Meyers wasn’t operating at full speed at any point down the stretch. He was out from early July through early September and hit just .204/.271/.204 in 59 plate appearances following his return from the IL. He was sporting a .308/.369/.405 batting line (buoyed by a .374 BABIP) at the time of his injury.

Meyers is controllable for another two seasons via arbitration. He’s also quite affordable, projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn just $3.5MM in 2026. His availability comes at a time when the center field market is otherwise paper-thin. Trent Grisham accepted his qualifying offer from the Yankees. Cody Bellinger is a free agent but is more of a corner outfielder/first baseman and occasional center fielder than an everyday option in center. Harrison Bader is a free agent but has an inconsistent track record at the plate. Free agents Cedric Mullins and Lane Thomas are pure rebound candidates. The trade market offers names like Alek Thomas and Jarren Duran, but the former has never hit in the majors and the latter played primarily left field in 2025. Duran would also have a steeper acquisition cost than Meyers.

Of course, trading Meyers would create a center field void for the Astros themselves. They got some nice production out of 25-year-old Zach Cole in his 15-game debut late in the season, but it’s worth taking with a heavy grain of salt. Cole hit .255/.327/.553 with four homers in just 52 plate appearances, but he also fanned at a 38.5% clip. If that alarming strikeout rate were unique to his big league tenure, perhaps it could be chalked up to simple small-sample noise — but that’s not the case. Cole went down on strikes in a colossal 35.1% of his 416 minor league plate appearances in 2025 as well. He punched out in more than 38% of his Double-A plate appearances in 2024, too.

Impressive as Cole’s brief debut was, he’s not going to be able to cut it as a big league regular with such a glaringly deficient hit tool. Former top prospect Jacob Melton gives the ’Stros another potential option, but he was limited to just 67 games between Triple-A and the majors thanks to injuries this past season. He hit very well in 150 Triple-A plate appearances (.286/.389/.556) and quite poorly in 78 major league turns at the plate (.157/.234/.186, 37.7 K%). Taylor Trammell, an older and more traveled former top prospect, didn’t fare much better in 135 plate appearances (.197/.296/.333).

The Astros gave 2023 first-round pick Brice Matthews nine games in center field at the Triple-A level last season. He’s traditionally been a middle infielder, but with Carlos Correa joining an infield mix that also includes Jeremy Pena, Isaac Paredes and Jose Altuve, there’s no room in the middle infield. Matthews hit .260/.371/.458 (118 wRC+) in 498 Triple-A plate appearances last year but just .167/.222/.452 with a 42.6% strikeout rate in 47 MLB plate appearances.

If the Astros feel confident that some combination of Matthews, Melton and Cole can hold down the fort in center field next season, then trading Meyers becomes easier to stomach. However, it’s also fair to wonder what type of arm Houston could acquire in return for Meyers. He certainly has trade value, but two years of a slick-fielding, light-hitting center fielder isn’t likely to net a pitcher who can fill the shoes of the outgoing Framber Valdez. The Astros could likely bring in a back-of-the-rotation arm or perhaps some kind of rebound/upside play with multiple seasons of club control, but even if they deepen the rotation by way of a Meyers trade, they’ll be counting on Cristian Javier and/or Lance McCullers Jr. to return to their pre-injury form after shaky 2025 comebacks.

Astros Hire Ethan Katz As Assistant Pitching Coach

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The Astros finalized their 2026 coaching staff. Ethan Katz has been hired as an assistant pitching coach, which was first reported by Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Houston also hired Tim Cossins as catching coach, a move that Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported last week.

The rest of Joe Espada’s staff had been previously reported. Victor Rodriguez comes over from the Padres as hitting coach, with Anthony Iapoce tabbed as his assistant. Dan Hennigan has officially been hired as director of hitting/offensive coordinator, which GM Dana Brown announced alongside the Iapoce hiring.

Josh Miller will be the team’s sole lead pitching coach after jointly holding that role with Bill Murphy for the past three seasons. Murphy left to take the same job with the Pirates last month. Bench coach Omar Lopez, base coaches Dave Clark (first) and Tony Perezchica (third), quality assurance coach Jason Bell, and game planning coach Tommy Kawamura are back in their previous positions.

Katz, 42, heads to Houston after five seasons as the top pitching coach with the White Sox. He’d previously worked in the minors with the Angels and Mariners and spent one year as an assistant pitching coach with the Giants. Chicago got excellent seasons from Dylan Cease and Lucas Giolito early in Katz’s tenure. They’ve predictably gone downhill since kicking off a rebuild in 2022. Only the Angels, Athletics, Nationals and Rockies have a higher ERA than the White Sox’s 4.61 mark over the past three seasons.

The Sox parted ways with Katz at the end of the ’25 campaign. Second-year manager Will Venable tabbed Royals assistant Zach Bove as their new pitching coach. Cossins, who’ll work with Yainer Diaz and quite likely an outside acquisition behind the plate, has spent the past seven seasons with the Orioles as catching instructor/field coordinator. He was dismissed in May 2025 when the Orioles fired manager Brandon Hyde.

MLBTR Podcast: Some “Classic Baseball Trades,” Nimmo For Semien, And Ward For Rodriguez

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

  • Offseason Preview Megapod: Top 50 Free Agents – listen here
  • Surprising Option Decisions, Qualifying Offers, And Paul DePodesta – listen here
  • Offseason Preview Megapod: Top Trade Candidates – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images

Josh Hader “Back To Normal” After Season-Ending Shoulder Injury

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The Astros played the final two months of the 2025 season without their star closer. Josh Hader suffered an ill-timed capsule sprain in his throwing shoulder a couple weeks into August. The injury came too late into the season for the front office to respond with an impact trade addition. Hader expressed hope that he could make a long shot return in the playoffs, but the Astros struggled down the stretch and found themselves on the outside looking in during the final weekend.

For many players, a capsule injury requires surgery and a potential year-plus absence. The Astros have maintained they expect Hader to be able to return without going under the knife. General manager Dana Brown said at the GM Meetings that the team was hopeful the six-time All-Star would be ready for Opening Day.

Hader offered similar sentiments this evening, saying he’s in a good spot after completing a throwing program a few weeks ago. “It should be normal. Obviously, intensity gets up (in Spring Training) and we’ll see how that goes and how I’m recovering, bouncing back from that,” the veteran lefty said (link via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). “But as of now, everything is status quo, back to normal.”

Before the injury, Hader was amidst yet another excellent season. He carried a 2.05 ERA while striking out 37% of opponents across 52 2/3 innings. Hader locked down 28 of 29 save chances and was well on his way to what would have been his sixth straight full season with at least 30 saves. It was a strong rebound effort from a little less consistent first season in Houston. Hader posted a 3.80 ERA, the second-highest mark of his career, across 71 appearances in 2024.

Hader worked more than one inning in seven appearances this year. He completed two full frames four times, including in what wound up being his last outing of the season on August 8. Hader tossed a season-high 36 pitches in that appearance. That could certainly be coincidental — he twice threw 35 pitches in a game earlier in the year and didn’t get hurt — but the timing at least raises some questions about his workload. Hader didn’t throw more than one inning in any regular season game between 2021-23, seemingly out of concern about suffering an injury before he’d locked in a significant free agent contract.

Once the Astros signed him to a five-year, $95MM deal, Hader reversed course. He said tonight he remains open to pitching multiple innings despite the shoulder issue, though he added he hasn’t heard anything from the team regarding their usage plans. “For sure. They committed to me to be here for multiple years and gave me the opportunity to pitch. That’s all I can ever ask for. And my commitment to them is committing to be there and be available as much as possible,” Hader replied when asked about working more than one inning.

The Astros were forced to press Bryan Abreu into the closer role for the final six weeks of the season. Abreu had a rough patch between August 30 and September 9 when he allowed multiple runs in three out of four games. He was otherwise flawless, tossing scoreless appearances in his remaining 14 outings while securing seven saves. Abreu is one of the best setup arms in MLB and could certainly close if necessary, but the Astros felt the effects of losing Hader on the overall bullpen. Kaleb Ort and Enyel De Los Santos were their top right-handers to handle leverage spots that arose earlier in games. That’s not sufficient for a playoff hopeful.

It doesn’t seem Houston will know if they’re out of the woods with Hader’s shoulder until he fully builds up in March. The early returns are encouraging, though, which is pivotal for a team that’ll again face questions about the bullpen depth. The front office appears to be working under relatively tight payroll constraints from ownership and also needs to solidify the middle of the rotation while ideally adding a left-handed bat.

American League Non-Tenders: 11/21/25

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Every American League team has officially announced their non-tender decisions. It was a quiet evening in terms of subtractions, with only the Rangers parting with any marquee players. All players who were non-tendered are free agents without going on waivers. A few teams dropped pre-arbitration players from the back of the 40-man roster. It’s possible they preferred not to expose them to waivers and are hopeful of re-signing them to non-roster deals.

Here’s a full list of today’s activity in the AL, while the National League moves are available here. All projected salaries are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

  • The Angels announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Gustavo Campero and catcher Sebastian Rivero. Campero is a depth outfielder who has hit .202/.272/.346 over the past two seasons. Rivero operated as the club’s third catcher for most of the season but spent the final few weeks on the active roster. Neither player had been eligible for arbitration. All their arb-eligible players were easy calls to retain.
  • The Astros technically made one non-tender, dropping infielder Ramón Urías after he was designated for assignment earlier in the week. He’d been projected at $4.4MM.
  • The Athletics officially non-tendered outfielder JJ Bleday, the club announced. He’d been designated for assignment on Tuesday, so this was inevitable unless they found a trade partner. Bleday had been projected at $2.2MM.
  • The only non-tenders for the Red Sox were first baseman Nathaniel Lowe and reliever Josh Winckowski, each of whom had been designated for assignment on Tuesday. Lowe was projected at $13.5MM, while Winckowski was at $800K.
  • The Guardians non-tendered outfielder Will Brennan and relievers Sam Hentges and Nic Enright. The latter had been designated for assignment on Tuesday. Hentges hasn’t pitched since undergoing shoulder surgery in September 2024. He underwent a right knee procedure a few months ago and will be delayed this offseason. Brennan only appeared in six MLB games this year and underwent Tommy John surgery while in the minors in June. He’d been projected at $900K.
  • The Mariners non-tendered reliever Gregory Santos, reports Francys Romero. He’d only been projected at $800K, narrowly above the MLB minimum, so the move was about dropping him from the 40-man roster. Seattle acquired the 26-year-old righty from the White Sox over the 2023-24 offseason. He has only made 16 MLB appearances with a 5.02 earned run average over the past two years because of lat and knee injuries. Seattle also non-tendered relievers Trent Thornton and Tayler Saucedo (the latter of whom was designated for assignment on Tuesday). Thornton had been projected at $2.5MM and is coming off a 4.68 ERA through 33 appearances. He suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in August.
  • The Orioles non-tendered swingman Albert Suárez, the team announced. Everyone else in their arbitration class was offered a contract, surprisingly including first baseman Ryan Mountcastle (as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan). Suárez, 36, was a solid depth starter in 2024. He was limited to five MLB appearances this past season by a flexor strain but is not expected to require surgery.
  • The Rangers non-tendered each of Adolis García, Jonah Heim, Josh Sborz and Jacob Webb. MLBTR covered those moves in greater detail.
  • The Rays only non-tendered outfielders Christopher Morel and Jake Fraley, each of whom had been designated for assignment earlier in the week. Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reported last night that the Rays were open to bringing back Fraley at a lower price than his $3.6MM arbitration projection.
  • The Royals non-tendered outfielder MJ Melendez and reliever Taylor Clarke, per a club announcement. Melendez, who’d been projected at $2.65MM, was an obvious decision. The former top prospect never developed as hoped and is a career .215/.297/.388 hitter over parts of four seasons. Clarke isn’t as big a name but comes as the more surprising cut. He’d been projected at just $1.9MM and is coming off a 3.25 ERA with a 21.4% strikeout rate over 55 1/3 innings out of the bullpen.
  • The Tigers are non-tendering utility player Andy Ibáñez, according to Romero. He’d been projected at $1.8MM. The righty-hitting Ibáñez had been a solid short-side platoon bat for Detroit between 2023-24. His production against southpaws dropped this year (.258/.311/.403), limiting his value. The Tigers optioned the 32-year-old to Triple-A in early June and kept him in the minors until shortly before the trade deadline. Detroit also dropped the six pitchers they’d designated for assignment earlier in the week: Tanner Rainey, Dugan Darnell, Tyler Mattison, Jason Foley, Jack Little and Sean Guenther.
  • The only Twins non-tender was outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who’d been designated for assignment this morning to make room for the Alex Jackson trade. Everyone in the arbitration class was brought back.
  • The White Sox non-tendered outfielder Mike Tauchman, as first reported by Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. The lefty hitter turned in a solid .263/.356/.400 line in 93 games this past season. Tauchman has gotten on base at plus rates in three straight years but was also non-tendered by the Cubs a year ago. The 34-year-old (35 next month) had been projected for a $3.4MM salary. The Sox also announced they’ve dropped lefty reliever Cam Booser and first baseman Tim Elko. Neither had been eligible for arbitration. The former posted a 5.52 ERA in 39 appearances after being acquired from the Red Sox last winter, while the latter hit .134 in his first 23 MLB games despite a 26-homer season in Triple-A.
  • The Yankees announced five non-tenders. Relievers Mark Leiter Jr., Scott Effross, Jake Cousins and Ian Hamilton were all cut loose, as was pre-arbitration righty Michael Arias. Leiter, who’d been projected at $3MM, never clicked in the Bronx after being acquired at the 2024 deadline. He posted a 4.89 ERA in 70 innings as a Yankee. Hamilton, Effross and Cousins were all projected just above the MLB minimum but are cut to clear roster space. Hamilton was on and off the active roster and posted a 4.28 ERA in 40 big league frames this year. Effross was limited to 11 appearances and has been plagued by various injuries for the past three and a half years, while Cousins is working back from Tommy John surgery. Arias has never pitched in the big leagues and could be brought back on a minor league deal.

The Blue Jays tendered contracts to all unsigned players on the 40-man roster.

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