With just two weeks until pitchers and catchers begin to report for Spring Training, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Cubs 40-man roster moves incoming:
The Cubs and Astros have reached an agreement on a trade sending veteran reliever Ryan Pressly (and $5.5MM cash) to Chicago in exchange for minor leaguer Juan Bello. Last night, Pressly agreed to waive his no-trade clause, receiving both a new no-trade clause and an assignment bonus (to cover the difference in state taxes) as part of the deal. That trade has not yet been formally announced by the teams, but when it is the Cubs will need to clear space on the 40-man roster. Pressly isn’t the only player the club needs to make room for on the roster. Utilityman Jon Berti agreed to a one-year deal with the Cubs last week. Like the Pressly trade, that signing has also yet to be made official and will require the Cubs to open a 40-man roster spot.
2. Bregman headed home?
Longtime Astros third baseman Alex Bregman was the talk of baseball over the weekend. Late last week, reports began to percolate that the Astros and Bregman had reengaged despite Houston’s acquisitions of Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes to handle the infield corners seemingly signaling a split. The Astros held their annual FanFest over the weekend and, while comments from GM Dana Brown described a Bregman reunion as a “longshot,” franchise face Jose Altuve emphasized the importance of Bregman to the team and made clear he would be willing to move to the outfield if it meant bringing Bregman back into the fold. Will a deal reach the finish line soon, or could another suitor for Bregman like the Tigers or Blue Jays swoop in and get something done instead?
3. DFA resolution incoming:
Last week, the Pirates designated infielder Tristan Gray for assignment to make room for veteran DH Andrew McCutchen on the 40-man roster. Gray, 29 in March, has just 17 games of big league experience under his belt between the Rays, Marlins, and Athletics over the past two seasons but was claimed off waivers by the Pirates back in October as a first base depth option. He’s since been pushed further down the depth chart by the acquisition of Spencer Horwitz, leading the club to cut him from the 40-man roster. That move was a week ago to the day, and as such the one-week window for a DFA’d player to either be moved or clear waivers is closing. There should be an announcement regarding Gray’s future at some point today, whether that’s a waiver claim or him clearing waivers and being outrighted to the minor leagues.
DFA Resolution sounds like a regional wrestling PPV.
Ooh yeah
Woooooooo!!!
If I were Bregman, I’d ask HOU to just give me an extra 10mil on original offer just to save face and then go back.
Yeah, but in silver dollars.
Make it crypto!
toble – That’s what I was thinking, except it should be only an extra $5M max.
It’s amazing what players/agents do for the ability to brag “I got them to increase the offer”.
Still cracks me up that Buehler demanded from the Red Sox the exact same amount he would have gotten if the Dodgers had extended a QO.
Which in turn was the same amount they had offered Pivetta lol
FPG: it’s amazing what some people think is funny.
Blue – I dunno, I kinda liked the silver dollar and crypto jokes :O)
FPG,
The QO amount for Buehler’s contract might have been the Red Sox’s idea. I’m stunned he got that much.
gbs – I don’t see why the Red Sox would insist on adding $50K to his contract. Teams typically like to give out nice round numbers. That extra $50K was a message by Buehler to the Dodgers, saying the Dodgers could have had him for the exact same amount.
And yeah that contract is an absurd risk, the Red Sox don’t value solid health histories at all. They always prefer to take big gambles if it can potentially lead to saving a few bucks.
Should we talk about Bragman instead?
Ray – Safe to assume by your wordplay that Bregman has an ego? I hadn’t heard that about him, but I did hear that about Correa.
You’re right feva, I was sort of playing with the words. I think that Bregman is a good clubhouse guy and a helluva player
Make it fashionable though….like, in crypto. Be a trendsetter.
@t0bIe1CaN0bI
He can go play for the BayStars with Bauer. MLB doesn’t want Bregman anymore.
Old York: Why? What did Bregman do (or not do)?
@avenger65
Be too greedy. Now he’s realizing he won’t get as much as he had hoped for. Guy’s cooked!
Haha… nah, he’s a good player. He just needs a new agent.
The reason Dana Brown described it as a “longshot” was because the offer they had available for Alex before is no longer available. If the Astros were going to spend money on top of their current payroll it would be for a legitimate left-handed bat. If they could sign Bregman and have a trade in place to send Paredes elsewhere for that left-handed bat, it could theoretically happen. That’s a whole lot of moving parts that’s not likely to line up.
Why does he need to “save face”? If he gets an extra million it was worth it.
Let’s be real, he’s not getting an extra 10 million.
Because of human nature, many humans are an emotional bunch some egos to excess in order to maintain their confidence about themselves in every thing not just their skills in Baseball.
The character of Spock in Star Trek (albeit a science fiction) kind of poked fun at these traits. Anyone can of course disagree.
Psychology stuff I realize not all theories are perfect but they are generally good predictors – like probabilities
If I’m reading this correctly, you’re stating that Bregman is deep-down insecure and needs coddling?
Many humans are insecure – there are degrees and Baseball –
a game of failure requires as they say a short memory.
Coddling was your word. Bregman among most humans in the Big Picture is in a good place I would say
Relatively speaking MLB is it’s own world
@Yankee Bleacher Creature
Yes, and by Spock. Surely that’s clear? Or a Klingon (aka Boras the Klingon) but probably Spock…
I’ve never watched Star Trek. Is he like Yoda of Star Wars?
@Bleacher
We’ve reached a Boras impasse, because I’m not a big fan of Star Wars. But they both have wiggly ears according to my research (Spock & Yoda, not Boras). So yes. Wise and with wiggly ears.
Therefore Bregman must feel warm & cuddly within this triangle of extra terrestrials…
If Bregman was dfa’d mid season, some team would sign him to a minor league deal with a major league call up over the aaa and aa players they have since he’s a veteran, not counting the probables he was dfa’d.
YBC – I’ve never watched Star Wars, is Yoda like ET? From Entertainment Tonight?
A’s – Wiggly ears like Samantha?
Oh wait, it’s her nose that wiggled.
Wiggly like Jeannie?
Because he told them he was worth more than that by rejecting their offer.
But the truth is he’s not worth more than their offer. I believe the Astros put forth a very sincere, generous offer because they really wanted him back. If there was a better offer out there, he’d likely be signed. No offense, just my opinion
We need more DFAs in MLB. Far too many useless players currently in the league. I’d say probably about 80% of the league’s players are useless.
Tell us how you really feel.
@Canuckleball
I already did.
@OldYork,
Yes, but more details, please!
Old York: Because there are too many teams, unfortunately the dfa’s are needed just to fill out rosters. Hey, the entire White Sox roster is dfa’s except Robert.
@Bart Harley Jarvis
We need more DFAs in MLB. Far too many useless players currently in the league. I’d say probably about 80% of the league’s players are useless.
@avenger65
Agreed, far too many teams in the MLB. But when you got crybaby fans like in Jokeland, of course every team is a special princess.
No, there are not too many teams. They’re drawing from a bigger worldwide talent pool than ever. Many AAA players today are better than the guys who sat on benches in the majors back in the day.
@Hammerin’ Hank
Not really. We’ve seen a decline in the data for numerous position players. There is more focus on power over overall better player.
Hey! The missing evidence in the Kelner case! My God, he really was innocent!
@tom brunanskys black sock
Everyone is innocent.
Wung Woo’s? Are they back in business? I thought they closed down 3 years ago.
He went to the chair 2 years ago, frank.
much like this comment
@choof
Of course. What I say is of little value at all. But you read it so you seem to have put some value in reading it and replying.
I find value in you my friend
York – Without all the useless players getting the MLB minimum, the superstars wouldn’t be able to get the ridiculous overpays and owners wouldn’t be able to pocket as much money.
BTW – At the Twins Fan Fest they were charging $20 for Mickey Gasper’s autograph ….. MICKEY GASPER!!!
@Fever Pitch Guy
The Twins organization hasn’t always been the brightest bulb in the box or the sharpest tool in the toolkit. They’ve been lucky a few years being in one of the worst divisions in baseball to sneak into the playoffs. Fortunately, the Yankees are usually there so they will knock some reality into them. The Twins are one of the teams I wish would be removed from the league.
York – I know you’re not serious with most of your comments, but in all seriousness it’s sad how the Twins have been run for so long because they were a great baseball city just like Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Cleveland etc …. that whole region.
Hopefully new ownership will bring it back to respectfulness.
@Fever Pitch Guy
I get that ultimately, the goal of owning an MLB team is to make money not to win championships. So, for many of these owners, it doesn’t matter if they put significant investments to win games, because they have a monopoly over a certain region and team and can do as they please. Fans will always show up and buy merch and watch the games.
York – Yes the Twins ownership has been cheap, but management has also made really bad decisions. For instance the Vaz contract was ridiculous.
Flaherty nailed it when he said a lot of teams want to spend just enough to compete for a playoff spot, nothing more. The Twins definitely fall into that category, they play in a weaker division in which historically you don’t have to be a 90-win team to get that postseason revenue. They won the division with just 87 wins in 2023.
@Fever Pitch Guy
What’s the incentive to be better when you only need to get into the playoffs? They’re still making money from the TV revenue, fans and merch, along with revenue sharing they receive. Fans just need to understand that their owners aren’t there to win championships but to make money and see the value of their team increase from when they bought it. Once you understand this fact, you can better enjoy baseball. Fans need to understand that the owners aren’t cheap. They’re just spending to field a team.
York – The definition of cheap is spending far less a percentage of revenue than others.
Someone making minimum wage is not being cheap by refusing to pay $9 for a pint of ice cream, but someone making a million annually would be cheap.
The Red Sox had the 3rd-highest revenue in MLB, yet they lowered their payroll down to 13th-highest while they sank towards the bottom of the standings. That is clearly being cheap.
@Fever Pitch Guy
But ownership doesn’t view the need to constantly win championships in order to earn money. If the goal was the win every championship, the Sox could be in the WS every single year if ownership wanted them to be. It has nothing to do with being cheap. It’s about generating revenue and profit and if the owner has a certain percentage net profit, they is what they set as the goal of the team.
York – Your point isn’t clear.
Hoarding profits by keeping payroll to a minimum is being cheap.
They can reach bottom line goals just as easily by spending more and therefore increasing their revenue, as long as they don’t spend foolishly or mismanage the team.
@Fever Pitch Guy
There’s no opportunity to lose money when revenue sharing exists for those owners. Why bother investing in the team too much when you’ll still come out in the black
York – Big market teams like the Red Sox are not revenue sharing recipients.
The Red Sox profits have decreased the past few years, revenue sharing doesn’t help them maintain profits.
FPG / York — The Twins are cheap? They have signed big free agents and extended their own stars plenty.
As an Organization they seem to me a better example of baseball team than many. They develop, sign, and trade well.
Outcomes aside, they have made the effort, it would seem to me. Plenty of poorly run teams, just not seeing MIN as one of them.
@O’sSayCanYouSee
The Rays have done more than the Twins have with much less.
York — True. Not everyone can be the Rays, nor the Dodgers. Just saying MIN does well. Not a bottom 15 team in my eyes. Nor top 5. There are plenty of teams with more suspect abilities/actions, including my Orioles.
@O’sSayCanYouSee
I feel like the O’s, similar to the Jays, are wasting their contention window. I feel like this year is the 2nd last year for doing anything and if not, they’ll be in the same boat as the Jays are right now.
York — I get that, to a degree. Toronto really had less talent in their wave of Vlad Jr etc.
Westberg, Holliday, Mayo, Kjerstad, and Basllio are all 1 year of service time or under. Gunnar has 2 years service. Orioles are still in the dawn of the window.
It’s still Sunny in Baltimore.
O’s – Okay I took a look at their latest revenue, they are spending 52% of it on payroll ….. you’re right, they are no longer cheap.
They haven’t made it past the ALDS since 2002, so I wouldn’t classify them as well run though.
FPG — I was simply contending that MIN is better than the mean. They sign, develop, and trade well. They do sign top tier free agents.
Nobody’s perfect, and the Twins haven’t won in everything they’ve done, sure.
Post Season success is a way to determine Ownerships/MGMT’s stuardships of a club.
I’m saying by their actions, they are a healthy organization.
O’s – The Orioles at 42% are the 9th-cheapest in MLB.
You’ve got 3 years left of Adley, 2 years left of Mountcastle …. your highest paid player is O’Neill at $16.5M AAV ….. that’s pretty damn cheap. LOL
O’s – I guess it depends on what you consider healthy.
If you consider the Twins as healthy, then you must consider the Rays to be healthy ….. I would strongly disagree.
FPG — Yeap. Pretty cheap indeed. If there weren’t free agents to buy, I’d have loved a Gunnar Henderson deal on the Bobby Witt Jr lines. Time will tell.
O’s – I just hope they don’t waste this window that’s been created not only because of their talent but while the Sox and Jays are down.
Only one ALCS appearance since 1997 (swept in 2014) and no WS appearances since 1983 …. that’s a really long time. Baltimore is a great baseball town, I’ve been to many games there. The fans deserve better.
@Fever Pitch Guy
O’s should be crushing it right now and investing in some key FA pieces to fill in. I feel like they took a step back this winter. Sure, they’ll be competitive this year but they could have put more effort into their contention window.
FPG — Rays were a model organization for a long time, but I don’t think of them as the same as before.
They used to have Arms for days in their org, but now they seem to have not been able to maintain that key part of their development process. Their successes with position players seems less abundant then their Arms program. Dunno why they switched.
Rays to trade well, and had set the trend of signing young guys early to long term deals. Obviously Wander hurt them for clubs makeup.
The sun Rays aren’t as bright as they once were.
York – Yeah their offseason thus far has been quite disappointing, but you never know what could happen …. perhaps a trade for Cease?
In the immortal words of the virgin Mary, “Come again?”.
@Viveleempireevil
How would you like me to ‘come again’?
Old York: If you can’t come again so soon, at least breathe hard and fake it.
@Blue Baron
Yes, sir!
Grab your towels
“Useless”? Would you say that to a big leaguer’s face? I guess it’s easy to type anything on a keyboard. I mean, we are talking about the top 1% of the top 1%
But if a player could make very good money for a # of years they will probably be motivated to hang on as long as possible. I believe if you can last for 10 years you qualify for a pension.
I guess it might help to walk in their shoes (so to speak) and have some sense of what jobs they can get after their playing days
Half the players perform below the median! Waaaa!
Half the teams perform below the median! Waaaa!
Half the players are paid above the median! Waaaa!
Half the teams spend above the median! Waaaa!
Sometimes the problem is between your own two ears.
@MLB Top 100 Commenter
You hurt my feelings! I’m going to tell my mom on you!
One can only wonder what 40 man players he will lose to make room for his ” New” acquisitions. I know who I’d launch but last time he got rid of Arias which I definitely wouldn’t have. Festa, Merryweather, Cowles, Zastryzny. Pressly can basically take Merryweathers place actually for a ton more money. If they DFA Merryweather they might get more than cash for him in a trade. I’d say Hollowell but I don’t know enough about him really and they seem to like him? IDK. Come on Jed prove me wrong.
Unclemike1526: Out of curiosity, just how many Festa’s are there in the majors? Maybe it’s all the dfa’s. As a non-cub fan, to say the least, I still have to say to my misguided cub friends, they better hope Presley is better than their last Astros reliever, Neris.
I always like playing the guessing game with you on these bottom of the list guys, Uncle.
i kinda like your Merryweather stance—no options, just wasn’t the same after the injuries, yet probably good enough to fetch a little something.
All that said, I will guess Holowell and Vazquez ???
Mike127
I agree with your guesses
With Berti in fold, could Brujan be moved?
GREED! Boras & Bregman
Bregman turned down 6 years $156M
7 year deals not there & market shrinking
Teams have to give up 2 draft picks whether long-term or short-term deal
ASTROS CHEATING SCANDAL!Bregman
If Bregman doesn’t sign by Spring Training let him sit out 2025
Get over the cheating scandal like almost everyone else has.
You can be over it and still enjoy reminding people about it
No. No reason to ‘get over it.’ Since it didn’t happen to your team you probably don’t get it.
Canario will go to make room for Berti. Shouldn’t, but we all know Hoyer’s, uh, preferences
Canario has trade value and will probably be on the cubs opening day roster. It has to be festa and one of there other dumpster reliever adds.
I think Festa stays ahead of Hollowell, Brujan and Vasquez
Hoyer did trade for token, I mean Brujan. Everyone else seems to be awfully….. pigmentedly challenged.
Anyone know at what point in the season when the draft pick compensation tied to FA that rejected their QO (i.e. Pivetta, etc.) is dropped? I thought it was June for some reason.
Thanks in advance!
Hey RunDMC, I read somewhere that it is after the draft which i believe is now during the AllStar break. I could be wrong so do not take this as gospel
@Run: After googling your question w/out success, I googled the Dallas Keuchel free agent signing by the Braves. The MLBTR article by Mark Polishuk dated June 2 2019 stated that Keuchel, Craig Kimbrel, and Kendrys Morales were “the only players to escape the qualifying offer’s draft penalties by simply waiting out the draft itself to sign new contracts.” Don’t know if the most recent CBA changed that rule or not, but that’s the best example I could find.
After reading through the comment section from that 6 year old article, I noticed that you—RunDMC —had commented on that article, lol.
Hoyer needs to sack up and go get Bregman, trade Nico and one of their excess outfielders, and extend Tucker. It’s time to start handing out contracts to stars instead of 5 Colin Rea signings every year.
I’ll trade you Stroman and Lemahieu and for Suzuki and Nico.
Suzuki says no. And he can with a full NMC.
Why would the cubs want Stroman back when he was a cancer in the clubhouse which is why he left in the 1st place.
Stroman wasn’t a cancer in the clubhouse for the Cubs. In fact he was a model citizen. He just wasn’t very good anymore at the end and the Cubs didn’t want him anymore and still don’t. But you’re right about exactly WHY would the Cubs want either of them back. But we are talking about Hoyer here.
Honestly guys, I just threw it out there for fun conversation. I don’t think a trade like that would go down without at least a prospect and some money concessions going back with Stroman and DJ, but I also don’t think it’s too crazy given the needs of the teams. Stroman is a better 5th starter option than Rhea and Assad I think. DJ slots in multiple places.
maybe you’re right but stroman surely didn’t want to be here also plus Lemahieu has becojme more and more an injury risk waiting to happen plus his better years benind him..
I can see why NYY fans would like it but not CUB fans
Interestingly if this deal did go down at face value, the Cubs would pocket 11 or so million there in savings. That’s actually not bad.
Oh for sure, just players wise, NYY gets the two better players, but the Cubs would save about 11 million and if we gave them a lower prospect as well? Not terrible at all.
Well Assad is way better than Stroman, Rea and Boyd for that matter. Look Stroman isn’t coming here. You just have to deal with that fact. Not to mention Brown, Horton, Wicks and probably Birdsell are all better than Stroman. Cubs starters are deep and I have no idea why Hoyer got Boyd or Rea they are both wastes of money UNLESS Boyd can somehow transition into a Closer type if he flames out as a starter. Hoyer can’t even evaluate his own talent. He’s just bad at his job.
Oh I’m not banking on this trade so no worries, just giving parameters on how/why it would work.
Boyd could get injured but I would not expect him to flame out. You’ll like his bulldog style .
I don’t mind Boyd so much as Rea. But it seems the more Boyd pitches the more he gets hurt. And for what they’re paying him the only BP job that works is Closer. He has the stuff, But it takes more than that.
They still have the money to add but Bregman shouldn’t be the play. Maybe a Flaherty 3yr or just bank it for the deadline or a Tucker extension.
Astro Fans, want to know the disposition of the Bregman Saga? Past is prologue. See the story of another 30+ MLB FA 3B, Boras client coming off a down season:
Matt Chapman 2023-24 off season
Chapman passed on Blue Jays in-season extension of more than $100MM over 4-5 yr contract.
MLB Trade Rumors predicted FA Chapman, six-year, $150MM deal .
SFG inked Chapman for 3 yrs $54MM/annual opt outs. SFG ultimately signed Chapman to 6 yr $151MM contract based on strong bounce back 2024 season
Bregman ejected $156M offer from Astros, he’s a Boras client with spring training fast approaching, can’t get his expected AAV and contract yrs…a HUMBLE prediction is that Bregman takes a 3 yr $80MM contract with annual opt outs either with Tigers or Cubs. Only a miracle gets him back to Houston.
I wonder how often players demand adjustments to cover state payroll taxes when getting traded? Looks like the difference from Texas to Illinois was over $600K.
Any decent lefty rps out there?
Andrew Chafin – meh, at best, about to be 35 y/o.
Good grief, Bregman, sign with someone already. Tired of Boras drama queen crap.
Paying more than &20m on a five year deal for Bregman is going to be someone’s folly; let him stew…
franchise face Jose Altuve emphasized the importance of Bregman to the team and made clear he would be willing to move to the outfield
==============================
You linked an article to that statement, but Altuve didn’t say he would move to the OF. What he said was “I’m willing to do whatever for him to stay.”
Theoretically, that means a move to the OF. But if he was really going to move to the OF, I think he’d have said that, rather than say ‘whatever’.
The Cubs need to sign Bregman, put Shaw at 2b. And trade Horner for another solid starting pitcher. Ty his is a no brainer. You can get someone of high caliber for Horner.