Meet The MLBTR Writing Team
MLB Trade Rumors employs a team of writers to bring you the latest hot stove news and analysis. Let’s meet the team:
Tim Dierkes started MLB Trade Rumors as a hobby in 2005, and has since written over 12,000 posts as MLBTR grew into baseball’s most popular hot stove website as well as his full-time job. MLBTR has received over 3.1 billion pageviews since its inception and is a favorite of baseball writers, executives, agents, players, and fans everywhere. A graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Tim currently lives in the Chicago suburbs with his wife and four children. Follow Tim on Twitter: @timdierkes.
Steve Adams is a full-time staff writer for MLB Trade Rumors. MLBTR’s longest-tenured writer, Steve grew up in the Twin Cities and currently resides in Minnesota. He is a graduate of St. Mary’s University of Minnesota, where he studied English Literature with a Writing Emphasis and Public Relations (when his fantasy baseball schedule permitted). Steve has been a baseball fan since he can remember, and is thankful to be (barely) old enough to have vivid memories of his beloved Twins’ most recent World Series title in 1991. Steve has been writing for MLBTR since May of 2008, and began providing fantasy analysis for MLB.com in May of 2011. He has also written about the Twins for SB Nation’s Twinkie Town and fears that his voice may never fully recover from 2009’s Game 163 tiebreaker against the Tigers. You can follow him on Twitter: @Adams_Steve.
Anthony Franco gave up his dream of being an MLB player when he went hitless all season his final year of youth baseball. A Buffalo, NY native, Anthony was a Cubs fan growing up but lost track of baseball for a few years once he stopped playing. He rediscovered his passion for the sport in college at the University at Buffalo, where he got his first opportunity to write about baseball for Fantrax, a fantasy sports site. A part-time writer at MLBTR since 2019, Anthony joined the full-time staff in June 2021. Anthony graduated from UB with a history degree in 2017 and graduated from Boston College Law School in 2020. You can find him on Twitter discussing baseball, complaining about the Las Vegas Raiders, and raving about the occasional 1950’s movie: @affranco10.
Darragh McDonald grew up in the Toronto area and got to watch the Blue Jays win the World Series when he was 9 and 10 years old, thus dooming him to a lifetime of baseball fandom. He started writing for MLBTR in March of 2020, which somehow got nudged out of the worldwide headlines that month. A graduate of the Ryerson University Film Studies program, Darragh has also occasionally worked in television and written bad screenplays.
Mark Polishuk has been part of the MLBTR crew since October 2009. He has also written about baseball, soccer and hockey for such outlets as Field Level Media, ESPN.com, The Boston Herald, The Canadian Press, The11.ca, Plastic Pitch, The Sports Xchange, The New York Post, and the official websites of both Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer. A native of London, Ontario, Mark holds a BA in English/Film Studies from the University Of Western Ontario. His greatest on-field achievement was performing an unassisted triple play during a softball game in eighth grade gym class — “Just like Bill Wambsganss!” Mark yelled at the time, a reference lost on his classmates.
Leo Morgenstern grew up in Toronto but fell in love with baseball through Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and the rest of the 2008 Phillies. Since graduating from the University of Toronto in 2020, he has written about baseball all over the internet, covering the Phillies for the dedicated team blogs at SB Nation and Sports Illustrated, the Blue Jays for DiamondCentric, and the game at large for FanGraphs, Baseball Prospectus, Just Baseball, Pitcher List, Lindy’s Sports, and, of course, MLB Trade Rumors. When he isn’t writing about, reading about, or actually watching baseball, he tries his best to be funny for The Beaverton, Canada’s least-trusted source of news. You can follow him on Bluesky @leomorgenstern.bsky.social.
Charlie Wright joined the MLBTR squad in September 2025. He grew up in Southern Maryland and has been a Nationals fan since their inception. Charlie still remembers skipping school in 4th grade to attend the Nats’ inaugural game in Philadelphia. A graduate of the University of Maryland with a degree in multiplatform journalism, Charlie began his writing career at his local newspaper, back when they still printed it. He’s also worked for RotoGrinders, Action Network, and Pitcher List, to name a few. You can follow Charlie on X (formerly known as Twitter): @Chuck_Wright5.
AJ Eustace grew up in Connecticut and started watching the Yankees regularly after witnessing Raul Ibañez’s clutch 2012 season. He graduated from the University of Virginia in 2022 with a double major in Statistics and Economics. While there, he wrote for the college’s Sports Business Society and correctly predicted that Justin Verlander would win the 2019 AL Cy Young over Gerrit Cole. He joined the MLBTR staff as a part-time writer in September 2025 and is currently getting his Master’s in Social Work at Ohio State. In his spare time, you can find him recording music, playing pickleball, and discovering obscure movies that star David Bowie.
Odds & Ends: Guzman, Sonnanstine, Jukich
Links for Wednesday…
- The Mets have no interest in trading for Cristian Guzman, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Guzman could have played shortstop in New York while the Mets wait for Jose Reyes to get healthy.
- Dave Allen at FanGraphs thinks the Rays should use Andy Sonnanstine as a long reliever to start the season with an eye towards trading him if something comes up. Sonnanstine is going to get squeezed out of Tampa's rotation in a numbers crunch, but he has minor league options remaining.
- The Cardinals are in trade talks with the Reds in hopes of keeping Rule 5 lefty Ben Jukich, reports Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- The Indians signed righty Justin Germano to a minor league deal, reports Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Germano, 27, posted a 4.38 ERA, 4.97 K/9, and 1.18 BB/9 in 76 innings for the Softbank Hawks last year.
- After working out for the Diamondbacks, Dominican outfielder Wagner Mateo will audition for at least four more teams according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
- Dan O'Dowd told Tyler Kepner of the New York Times he hopes Troy Tulowitzki retires a Rockie.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues explains why he does not expect the Yankees to sign Joe Mauer even if the superstar catcher reaches free agency.
- Kiko Calero received calls from a dozen teams this winter, reports Anthony McCarron of the New York Daily News.
- Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner finds Seattle to be lacking in middle infield depth.
The New Market For Cuban Players
When you think about Cuban players that signed with a Major League team this past offseason, the first name that will come to mind is Aroldis Chapman and his six-year, $30.25MM contract. However, as ESPN's Jorge Arangure writes, the contracts signed by Jose Iglesias, Adeiny Hechevarria, and Noel Arguelles may dictate the future of the Cuban market.
Arangure notes that at this time last year, Iglesias and Arguelles were expected to command only $1-2MM on the open market. They, of course, signed for $8.25MM and $6.9MM, respectively. If those players meet expectations, not only will teams start to specifically target Cuban prospects, but players in Cuba will surely take notice and attempt to defect at a younger age.
Even though players like Hechevarria and Iglesias are college-aged, they're perceived to be more advanced than their American counterparts because they've faced tougher competition growing up. However, for every Kendry Morales making an impact in the big leagues, there's a Juan Miranda stuck in Triple-A. The risk associated with young players is the same no matter where they come from, but the Cuban market is getting more and more expensive.
The 2012 Free Agent Class
Jeff Euston of Cot's Baseball Contracts recently posted an unofficial list of players who will become free agents after the 2011 season. That free agent class will be highlighted by a trio of first basemen: Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, and Ryan Howard, though there's a chance Albert Pujols will join them if he and the Cardinals can't work out an extension.
Some other notable players scheduled to become free agents after 2011 include Jason Bartlett, Carlos Beltran, Mark Buehrle, Edwin Jackson, Heath Bell, and Jonathan Papelbon. Robinson Cano, Yadier Molina, Grady Sizemore, and Matt Cain may also become free agents if their club options for 2012 are declined.
Obviously a lot will change between now and then, but it's never too early to look ahead!
Indians Claim Anderson Hernandez; Designate Bixler
The Indians claimed infielder Anderson Hernandez off waivers from the Mets, tweets Brian Costa of the Newark Star-Ledger. Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets that the Tribe designated Brian Bixler for assignment to make room for Hernandez.
Hernandez, 27, hit .251/.312/.339 in 404 plate appearances for the Nationals and Mets last year while playing second base and shortstop. Regarding his defense, Baseball America had this to say before the '07 season: "He has soft hands, plus range, and an above-average arm but sometimes gets lazy and doesn't charge balls aggressively enough."
Bixler, 27, was acquired by the Indians from the Pirates on January 18th. Heading into 2009 Baseball America labeled him an "average defensive shortstop," noting his ability to play second base and predicting a utility future.
25 Pitchers To Watch In 2010
I've named 25 pitchers for fantasy baseball players to watch in 2010 over at RotoAuthority. Check it out and let me know your sleepers in the comments.
Nationals Have Not Discussed Jermaine Dye
1:35pm: Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that "the Nationals will consider looking outside the organization for a replacement, although the team has not discussed free agent Jermaine Dye." Those are Kilgore's words, to be clear.
12:58pm: The Nationals strangely released Elijah Dukes for baseball reasons earlier today, opening up their right field job. According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson, they have interest in free agent Jermaine Dye as a potential replacement. The Nats are also mulling platoons involving Justin Maxwell, Willie Harris, and Mike Morse.
Dukes is an injury-prone 25-year-old with a .262/.364/.446 CHONE projection; it's still unclear why the Nationals are giving up on him now. As recently as February 20th, GM Mike Rizzo spoke of hope for "the re-emergence of a productive Dukes." Regardless, it's good news for Dye, who's still out of a job after turning down $3MM and $2MM offers during the winter.
Mariners Release Yusmeiro Petit
The Mariners released pitcher Yusmeiro Petit, tweets Ryan Divish of the Tacoma News Tribune. He'd allowed two earned runs in 4.6 innings for the Ms this spring.
Petit was claimed off waivers from the Diamondbacks by the Mariners in November. He was designated for assignment in February to make room for Erik Bedard, and cleared waivers a few days later. The 25-year-old posted a 5.82 ERA, 7.4 K/9, and 3.4 BB/9 in 89.6 innings for Arizona last year, allowing 19 home runs.
White Sox Release Daniel Cabrera, Jason Botts
The White Sox released pitcher Daniel Cabrera and outfielder Jason Botts, according to a team press release.
Cabrera, 29 in May, allowed eight hits and seven runs in three spring innings. He was coming off an ugly 2009 season in which he walked 42 and struck out 23 in 51 innings for the Nationals and Diamondbacks. It's been a while since we saw the Cabrera who averaged 95 mph on his fastball, though he's always been able to get groundballs.
Botts, 29, spent the 2009 season in Japan but tallied only 24 plate appearances for the Nippon Ham Fighters. He went 1 for 12 this spring.
Offseason In Review: Houston Astros
Next in our Offseason In Review series, the Astros.
Major League Signings
- Brandon Lyon, RP: three years, $15MM.
- Brett Myers, SP: one year, $5.1MM. Includes $8MM mutual option for 2011 with a $2MM buyout.
- Pedro Feliz, 3B: one year, $4.5MM.
- Brian Moehler, P: one year, $3MM. Mutual option exercised.
- Geoff Blum, IF: one year, $1.5MM. Includes $1.65MM mutual option for 2011.
- Jason Michaels, OF: one year, $800K.
- Total spend: $29.9MM.
Notable Minor League Signings
- Josh Banks, Gustavo Chacin, Roy Corcoran, Casey Daigle, Shane Loux, Gary Majewski, Kevin Cash, Drew Meyer, Chris Shelton, Jason Bourgeois, Cory Sullivan
Trades and Claims
- Acquired RP Matt Lindstrom from Marlins for Rule 5 pick 3B Jorge Jimenez, SS Luis Bryan, and P Robert Bono
Notable Losses
- Miguel Tejada, Darin Erstad, Chris Coste, Mike Hampton, Russ Ortiz, LaTroy Hawkins, Jose Valverde, Geoff Geary, Doug Brocail, Brandon Backe, Jorge Jimenez, Luis Bryan, Robert Bono
Summary
Early in the offseason, it was suggested by some reporters that the Astros had the payroll flexibility to make only minor moves. As Jeff Euston wrote for Baseball Prospectus in February, the team did ultimately trim roughly $15MM from their year-end payroll. GM Ed Wade still is able to pay his offseason acquisitions about $20MM in 2010, since the '09 payroll featured larger commitments to veterans such as Tejada, Valverde, Hawkins, Brocail, Hampton, Erstad, and Backe.
I wrote in October that the Astros could contend in 2010 with the right additions. Starting with the bullpen, Wade replaced Valverde and Hawkins with Lyon and Lindstrom. The Astros might not lose much in performance here, and they will pay the new pair $4.125MM less in 2010 than the old tandem will earn. Plus, the Astros snagged the #19 pick in the draft from the Tigers. The downside to this bullpen swap: Lyon's contract is quite excessive, the pair comes with increased health risks, and Jimenez might've been useful.
Myers is a wild card as the new #3 starter; the Astros are looking for him to return to his 2006 level of performance (3.91 ERA in 198 innings). My beef is with the Astros bringing back Moehler at $3MM. There was no reason to overcommit to him in October.
There was early talk that the Astros would go with rookies Tommy Manzella and Chris Johnson on the left side of their infield in 2010. Instead Feliz will handle the hot corner as the Astros take a defense-first approach toward the two positions.
For the Astros to contend in 2010, they'll need a huge performance from their rotation. Roy Oswalt, Wandy Rodriguez, Myers, Bud Norris, and Felipe Paulino are all capable of big things. They won't get much run support – the lineup is littered with easy outs and is the worst of the eight NL clubs I've projected so far (using CHONE and Baseball Musings' lineup analysis tool).