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Cardinals Looking To Add Right-Handed Hitting Outfielder

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The Cardinals’ offseason is focused mostly on the players they’re trading away. Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras have already been shipped out, and it’s possible that each of Brendan Donovan, Nolan Arenado and JoJo Romero will also find themselves on the move. That doesn’t mean they won’t make some short-term pickups. They’ve added Dustin May on a $12.5MM deal in the rotation, and president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom identified a profile they’re pursuing on the position player side.

Bloom told reporters that the Cardinals would like to add an outfielder, ideally one who brings right-handed power (links via John Denton of MLB.com and Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch). That’s an indirect consequence of the Contreras trade. Alec Burleson only made 38 starts at first base this past season. That’s likely to rise in 2026, as Bloom implied that Burleson could replace Contreras as the primary first baseman. Burleson made 72 starts in the corner outfield and 18 at designated hitter.

St. Louis has Lars Nootbaar and Jordan Walker as their projected corner outfield tandem. Nootbaar is down to two years of arbitration control and could be traded this offseason. Walker was a well below replacement level performer in 2025 and still has a minor league option remaining. A righty corner bat could also spell lefty hitters Burleson and Iván Herrera at first base and designated hitter, respectively.

There aren’t a ton of options remaining in free agency. The Cards could kick the tires on a one-year deal for Miguel Andujar or Austin Hays, each of whom is coming off a big season with the platoon advantage. Old friend Tommy Pham is coming off a middling season against lefties but carries a .261/.368/.434 line in those situations over his career. Chas McCormick hasn’t hit in either of the past two years. He has a 20-homer season with a .273/.353/.489 showing in 2023 on his résumé.

The Cardinals could also look into a switch-hitting utility option like Willi Castro or Luis Rengifo. They’d have the added benefit of being able to fill in at second or third base if the Cardinals line up Donovan and/or Arenado trades. Nolan Gorman would be in line for the bulk of the third base playing time if Arenado is moved. Top prospect JJ Wetherholt should be up as the everyday second baseman at some point, assuming they trade Donovan, but the 23-year-old seems likely to open the season in Triple-A.

Nationals Hire Shawn O’Malley As Assistant Hitting Coach

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The Nationals announced their full 2026 coaching staff this afternoon. The only new development is the hiring of Shawn O’Malley as one of two assistant hitting coaches. Andrew Aydt’s hiring in that role was reported in November, while the Nats hired lead hitting coach Matt Borgschulte shortly before the Winter Meetings.

O’Malley joins a major league staff for the first time. The 37-year-old had a three-year playing career in the big leagues, appearing in 124 games from 2014-16. A switch-hitting utility player, O’Malley spent parts of 13 seasons in the minors. He was playing professionally through 2019 before moving into the coaching ranks. A Washington native and former Mariner player, O’Malley joined the Seattle organization as a minor league hitting instructor. He worked his way up from High-A to the Triple-A level by 2024.

Blake Butera is entering his first season as Washington’s manager. The rest of his staff is as follows: bench coach Michael Johns, pitching coach Simon Mathews, assistant pitching coach Sean Doolittle, bullpen coach Dustin Glant, base coaches Corey Ray and Victor Estevez, field coordinator Tyler Smarslok, catching coach Bobby Wilson, and development coach Grant Anders.

Phillies To Sign Levi Stoudt To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies and right-hander Levi Stoudt have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Ari Alexander of 7News Boston WHDH. The righty is represented by Gaeta Sports Management.

Stoudt, now 28, was once a notable prospect. The Mariners selected him with a third-round pick in 2019. He missed the 2020 season, both due to the pandemic and because Stoudt was recovering from Tommy John surgery. Over 2021 and the first half of 2022, he tossed 168 2/3 innings in Seattle’s system with a 4.32 earned run average, 23.7% strikeout rate and 8.3% walk rate.

He was one of four players traded to the Reds in the 2022 deadline deal which sent Luis Castillo to Seattle. Cincinnati gave him a 40-man spot in November of that year to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

Things didn’t work out with the Reds. He tossed 10 1/3 innings in the majors in 2023, allowing 11 earned runs. He also tossed 82 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level that year with a 6.23 ERA. His 15.1% strikeout rate and 13% walk rate were both poor figures.

The Reds designated him for assignment in the 2023-24 offseason. The Mariners grabbed him back via the waiver wire and kept him on optional assignment. They put him back on waivers in June. The Orioles claimed him but then passed him through waivers in July. Over 2024 and 2025, he had a 5.83 ERA in the minors with an 18.5% strikeout rate and 11.4% walk rate.

It’s been a while since Stoudt has been able to put up intriguing numbers but there’s an old saying that there’s no such thing as a bad minor league deal. Stoudt is still relatively young and could perhaps find another gear.

If he does so and earns a roster spot, he still has an option season, meaning the Phils could send him to Triple-A and back fairly freely for a year. He also has just ten days of big league service time, meaning he could be affordably controlled for years into the future, though a lot would have to go right before that even becomes a consideration.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Mets Interested In Austin Hays

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The Mets have interest in free agent outfielder Austin Hays, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Hays was previously connected to the Royals but that was before Kansas City signed Lane Thomas and acquired Isaac Collins. They are reportedly still exploring the outfield market but might have less urgency in that pursuit now.

For the Mets, adding to the outfield seems like an inevitability. They had nine players take more than one plate appearance as an outfielder in 2025. Seven of them are gone. Cedric Mullins, Starling Marte, Jesse Winker, Jose Siri and José Azócar became free agents at season’s end. This offseason, Brandon Nimmo was traded to the Rangers and Jeff McNeil to the Athletics.

That leaves the Mets with Juan Soto and Tyrone Taylor as holdovers. Soto is obviously part of the plans in 2026 but Taylor should be on shakier ground. Taylor has a decent floor from his speed and his defense but he has had subpar offense for three years running now, including a .223/.279/.319 line and 70 wRC+ in 2025.

The Mets have already avoided arbitration with Taylor, signing him for $3.8MM in 2026. Despite that commitment, he would ideally be bumped into a bench role.

It’s possible that prospect Carson Benge eventually takes the center field job from Taylor. President of baseball operations David Stearns has said Benge will get a chance to earn a job out of camp. Benge can play all three outfield spots but the Mets presumably want to give him a chance to stick in center, where he would have more value.

Hays wouldn’t be the best available option for filling that spot, especially with Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger still on the open market, but he has a decent track record.

He has generally been good for offense a bit above average. He has a .262/.313/.435 line in his career, which translates to a 105 wRC+. His 2025 season was in line with that, as he hit .266/.315/.453, also for a 105 wRC+.

He has been graded as a good defender in his career but less so in the past two seasons. He’s been slapped with a minus-10 grade from Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-2 from Outs Above Average dating back to the start of 2024. He’s also had a few injury challenges and hasn’t been able to get beyond 103 games played in those two seasons.

Hays has his attributes but is a better fit as a complementary player than a full-time solution. He swings from the right side and has been a subpar hitter against righty pitchers in his career. However, he has a .282/.340/.479 line and 124 wRC+ with the platoon advantage. The split was even more extreme in 2025, with Hays batting .319/.400/.549 for a 155 wRC+ against southpaws.

An outfielder who can crush lefties is still worth something. The Mariners just gave Rob Refsnyder $6.25MM for a similar profile.

Benge is a lefty and he showed notable splits in the minors this year, with a .232/.407/.326 line against lefties compared to a .295/.379/.512 line against righties.

The Mets have also been frequently connected to Luis Robert Jr. in rumors. He has flashed a borderline MVP upside but has been fairly Hays-ian in the past two years. He has struggled to stay on the field and provided subpar offense but with big numbers against lefties.

Robert is going to earn $20MM next year and would require the Mets to send prospects to the White Sox in return. Chicago might be willing to eat some of the money but that would only increase their demands in the prospect department.

Perhaps the Mets view Hays as a more affordable alternative to Robert. Hays hasn’t played center since 2023 but did so fairly regularly before his mounting injuries in recent seasons. Perhaps a short-side platoon role would help him stay healthy and maximize his contributions.

That could bump Taylor down into a fifth outfielder role where he could be used as a pinch runner and defensive replacement. Taylor is also a righty swinger but has fairly even splits in his career, making him less of a fit as a platoon guy.

Even if Hays is brought aboard, that shouldn’t finish the club’s work in the outfield. They’ve been connected to Bellinger and are a logical fit for Tucker. They’ve also reportedly shown interest in trade candidates such as Lars Nootbaar and Ramón Laureano. They presumably have interest in a number of other outfielders even if they haven’t been connected to them publicly.

Photo courtesy of Kirby Lee, Imagn Images

Pirates To Sign Ryan O’Hearn

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The Pirates and first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn have agreed to a two-year deal with a $29MM guarantee, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The ACES client can also earn an extra $500K each year via incentives. Per Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the $500K breaks down as $100K for 450 plate appearances, another $100K for 475, then $150K for 500 and 525 plate appearances. Pittsburgh has a full 40-man roster and will need to make a corresponding move for this to become official.

O’Hearn, now 32, has been enjoying a late-career breakout over the past three seasons. He played parts of five seasons with the Royals from 2018 to 2022 with just a .219/.293/.390 line to show for it.

The Royals designated O’Hearn for assignment in December of 2022. The Orioles saw enough potential in him to acquire him by sending cash considerations to Kansas City. Baltimore designated him for assignment shortly thereafter and passed him through waivers.

If you’ve ever wondered why a team would acquire a player and put him on waivers a week or two later, O’Hearn provides the explanation. The O’s opened a roster spot for other moves while keeping O’Hearn in a non-roster capacity. He had a strong spring in 2023 but Baltimore still sent him to the minors to begin the season, maintaining depth.

By the middle of April 2023, O’Hearn was back in the big leagues and has been on an upward trajectory since then. He hit 14 homers for Baltimore that year and slashed .289/.322/.480 for a 118 wRC+. His 4.1% walk rate was quite poor and he benefited from a .340 batting average on balls in play but it was a fantastic upgrade over his previous work.

More improvements came in 2024. His .264/.334/.427 batting line again led to a 118 wRC+, an exact match for the year prior, but it felt more earned this time. His BABIP dropped to a below-average .282 while his walk rate more than doubled to 9.3%.

In 2025, a year he split between the O’s and Padres after a deadline trade, he increased his walk rate yet again to 10.7%. His 17 home runs were a career high. His batted-ball luck turned again, as he posted a .330 BABIP. That all led to a .281/.366/.437 line and 127 wRC+.

He also seemed to have less of a platoon split. Like many lefty hitters, he has often struggled against southpaws. But in 2025, he had a .278/.358/.474 line and 135 wRC+ against lefties. That was in just 109 plate appearances and he had a .358 BABIP in the split but it was an encouraging development nonetheless.

In addition to his work at the plate, O’Hearn provided some defensive versatility. He mostly played first base but also logged around 150 outfield innings in each of the past three seasons.

The entire package lined O’Hearn up for a nice payday, though he wasn’t quite at the level of guys like Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso or Josh Naylor. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted O’Hearn to secure a two-year deal worth $26MM. He’s gone just a shade beyond that.

Few would have predicted the Pirates to be the club to pay O’Hearn. They have been one of the least active clubs in free agency in the past decade. They haven’t given any free agent a multi-year deal since Ivan Nova’s three-year pact back in 2016. Their last multi-year deal for a free agent hitter was two years and $8MM for John Jaso in 2015. The largest free agent guarantee in franchise history is still the three-year, $39MM deal for Francisco Liriano from 2014.

But they have clearly come into this offseason determined to overhaul their lineup. The past few seasons have seen them develop a big stockpile of pitching talent but they have had far less success with developing their position player prospects.

The Bucs flirted with contention in 2023 and 2024 but without making the postseason. The 2025 club sputtered and never really felt in it. The offense was a big part of the disappointment this year. The club had a collective .231/.305/.350 line and 82 wRC+, with the Rockies the only club with less offensive production. Spencer Horwitz was the only individual on the team with a wRC+ greater than 101.

Before the 2025 campaign was even over, it seemed likely that they would focus on adding offense this winter. The general expectation was that they would do that by trading from their deep supply of starting pitchers, which they have done, but they have been surprisingly active in free agency as well.

They reportedly offered Naylor a contract somewhere in the range of $80MM, before he returned to the Mariners on a deal paying him $92.5MM. They offered Schwarber around $120-125MM before the Phils brought him back with a $150MM deal.

Being a runner-up for a free agent is only worth so much but it has been clear that the Pirates are now more willing to spend than in other offseasons. They have also been connected to Jorge Polanco, before he signed with the Mets, Kazuma Okamoto, who is still a free agent, and some other hitters.

O’Hearn isn’t quite as exciting as Schwarber would have been. It’s also true that the club still has the embarrassing record of having never given a free agent $40MM. Still, O’Hearn is their biggest free agent splash in years and becomes one of their best hitters.

As mentioned, the Bucs have also used their pitching surplus to add more offense. They acquired Jhostynxon García in the trade sending Johan Oviedo to Boston. They sent Mike Burrows to Houston in a three-team trade that brought back Brandon Lowe and Jake Mangum from the Rays, alongside lefty reliever Mason Montgomery.

Time will tell if there’s more to come before Opening Day. For now, O’Hearn jumps into a position player that group which could develop in a few different ways.

The Pirates don’t really have a full-time designated hitter, with Andrew McCutchen currently unsigned. He has repeatedly re-signed with Pittsburgh in recent years but there have been some hints that the two sides are a bit less likely to reunite for 2026.

As of now, Lowe and Horwitz could be the regulars at second and first, respectively. Horwitz has a bit of second base experience but that was with the Blue Jays when the presence of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. made it hard for him to get playing time at first. The Bucs kept him at first base in 2025.

Lowe isn’t a great defender, so perhaps he could see regular time in the DH spot, or Horwitz and O’Hearn could share first base and DH.

There’s also room for O’Hearn in the outfield. Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds should have two spots spoken for. Guys like García, Mangum, Jack Suwinski and Billy Cook are in the mix for playing time but O’Hearn playing the outfield could leave the DH spot open for Lowe.

That would then leave more second base playing time for guys like Nick Yorke, Jared Triolo and Nick Gonzales. Triolo and Gonzales could also be factors at third base and shortstop but prospect Konnor Griffin might charge forward and become the shortstop before long, though he’s only 19 years old and hasn’t played the Triple-A level yet.

It’s possible the Bucs make even more moves in the coming months but a lot will be determined by the health and performance of the various moving parts on the roster.

RosterResource, assuming the O’Hearn deal has equal salaries in the two years, projects the Bucs for a $96MM payroll next year. That’s tiny compared to the other clubs in the league but high for them. According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, they got to just under $100MM in 2016 but have been below $90MM since 2017.

The coming weeks and months will shed light on if there’s more to come. For now, the Bucs have made yet another move to upgrade the lineup in 2026. This wouldn’t be an especially noteworthy commitment for any other club but it’s the biggest deal for Pittsburgh in quite some time. For O’Hearn himself, it’s got to be an especially gratifying day for a guy who was passed through waivers about three years ago.

Photos courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski, John Jones, Imagn Images

The Giants Should Chase Upside On The Trade Market

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The Giants have been fairly quiet through the offseason's first two months. They've added back-end starter Adrian Houser on a two-year, $22MM deal with a club option. Their only other moves have been cheap fliers on rehabbing relievers Jason Foley and Sam Hentges.

While technically in line with their offseason plan to focus on pitching, their moves to date aren't the type that'll move the needle. Chairman Greg Johnson and general manager Zack Minasian have downplayed the chance of making a long-term investment on the pitching staff. There are still a handful of players on the open market who fit on paper. Any of Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez or Zac Gallen would upgrade the rotation. Top free agent hitters Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger and Bo Bichette happen to fit at their respective biggest problem areas on the position player side (right field and second base, respectively).

It's possible ownership doesn't want to meet the asking prices necessary for anyone in that group. The Giants project for a $176MM payroll, as calculated by RosterResource. That's narrowly above their $173MM Opening Day mark from 2025. That doesn't include the $17MM payment they owe to Blake Snell on January 15, as they agreed to defer the signing bonus on his contract for the '24 season.

They're also on the hook for one of the most expensive managerial situations in MLB. They owe fired skipper Bob Melvin a $4MM salary. They paid a $3MM buyout to the University of Tennessee to get Tony Vitello out of his contract. Vitello is reportedly set for a $3.5MM salary, meaning they're committing $10.5MM to the position for the first season.

Even with an estimated $40MM until they hit the luxury tax threshold, the budget could be tight for a marquee free agent. However, that doesn't mean the offseason needs to be exclusively depth acquisitions. The Giants have a few ways to chase the extra wins needed to push them from their annual .500 finish to more firmly in the Wild Card picture.

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Cubs To Sign Jacob Webb

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The Cubs are in agreement with right-hander Jacob Webb on a one-year deal that includes a club option for the 2027 season, according to a report from Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. Per The Athletic’s Will Sammon, the righty is set to make $1.5MM in 2026 with a $2.5MM option for 2027, though incentives can push those figures up to $2MM and $3MM respectively. Webb is a client of KHG Sports Management. The Cubs have multiple 40-man vacancies and won’t need to make a corresponding move.

Webb, now 32, is coming off three straight solid seasons. He doesn’t overpower hitters or have pinpoint control but he can miss bats and also miss barrels.

He has thrown at least 53 2/3 innings in each of the past three campaigns. His earned run average has been 3.69 or lower in each of those. He walked 10.3% of batters faced in that time, a rate a bit higher than average. His 34.1% ground ball rate was also worse than par. His 23.5% strikeout rate was better than average but just barely.

Despite those underwhelming peripherals, he has kept runs off the board. He has perhaps had some help from the baseball gods, as he has allowed just a .235 batting average on balls in play over those three years, about 55 points below par. His 77.6% strand rate also leans to the fortunate side. His 4.11 FIP and 4.10 SIERA are skeptical of his 3.22 ERA for that span.

It might not be entirely luck, however. Statcast has pegged Webb’s exit velocity allowed as being in the 70th percentile or better in each of the past three years, including in the 95th percentile in 2025. His hard hit rate was middle of the pack in 2023 but 82nd percentile or better in each of the past two seasons. His barrel rate was 85th percentile or better in 2023 and 2025, though with a dip to 46th in 2024.

Despite the solid run of results, Webb has been fairly nomadic, perhaps since his arsenal isn’t dominant. His fastball has averaged in the 93 to 95 mile per hour range while he also throws a changeup and a sweeper in the low 80s. Teams love velocity and strikeouts these days and have perhaps been a bit skeptical of Webb’s numbers.

He was stuck in the minors in 2022 and sent through waivers unclaimed that year. Going into 2023, he settled for a minor league deal with the Angels. He eventually got a roster spot in Anaheim but went to the Orioles on waivers.

He stuck with the Orioles for a little over a year, from August of 2023 through the end of 2024. He posted a 3.02 ERA for Baltimore in 2024 and could have been retained for 2025, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting him for a modest $1.7MM salary, but the O’s surprisingly non-tendered him.

The Rangers scooped Webb up and gave him a $1.25MM guarantee plus incentives. That turned into a great investment for Texas, with Webb posting a flat ERA of 3.00 this year. But once again, Webb found himself non-tendered, despite a modest $2MM salary projection for 2026.

The Cubs love to build a bullpen on the cheap. President of baseball operations Jed Hoyer got his current title in November of 2020 and went five offseasons without giving a reliever a multi-year deal. Their 2025 relief corps featured contributions from Brad Keller, Caleb Thielbar, Drew Pomeranz, Ryan Pressly, Andrew Kittredge and Taylor Rogers, who were all acquired via trade or signed modest one-year deals, or sometimes even minor league deals.

That strategy has been effective for the Cubs as they have had some decent results from the bullpen without burdensome commitments. The downside is that so many short-term commitments means a big slate of guys reaching free agency at season’s end.

Going into 2026, there was work to do in rebuilding the relief corps. Hoyer finally broke his streak and gave a two-year deal to Phil Maton, though the $14.5MM guarantee was still quite affordable. The club has also added lefty Hoby Milner to a one-year deal with a $3.75MM guarantee. Perhaps coincidentally, each of Maton, Milner and Webb finished the 2025 season with the Rangers.

In addition to digging a runoff trench from Arlington to Wrigley, the Cubs also brought back Thielbar on a $4.5MM guarantee. Those four signees should slot in next to Daniel Palencia in the bullpen. The Cubs could give the final slots to in-house arms like Porter Hodge, Ethan Roberts, Luke Little and others but those guys still have options, so the Cubs could still find more external additions in what remains of the offseason.

Photo courtesy of David Frerker, Tim Heitman, Imagn Images

White Sox Sign Sean Newcomb

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The White Sox announced this morning that they’re in agreement with left-hander Sean Newcomb on a one-year deal that guarantees the southpaw $4.5MM this morning. Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that Newcomb “will at least get the chance to start” for Chicago. Lefty Ryan Rolison was designated for assignment to make room for Newcomb on the 40-man roster. Newcomb is a client of Tidal Sports Group.

Newcomb, 32, was a first-round pick by the Angels back in 2012 and spent years as a consensus top-100 prospect in the minors. The lefty made his big league debut with Atlanta back in 2017 after previously coming over as part of the Andrelton Simmons trade. He spent the first two seasons of his career as a rotation piece, with a 4.06 ERA (103 ERA+) and a 4.16 FIP that gave him the look of a decent back-end starter. Unfortunately, in 2019 early season struggles led to him being demoted to Triple-A and moved into a bullpen role upon his return. He started four games for the Braves in 2020 but struggled badly across those starts as well, and ultimately did not start another game for the team before being designated for assignment by the club.

The lefty was traded to the Cubs shortly after his DFA and moved to the bullpen for the club, but struggled to put things together over the next few seasons. He pitched to an atrocious 6.61 ERA in 47 2/3 innings of work at the major league level between the Cubs and A’s over the next three seasons, held back primarily by a whopping 15.0% walk rate. Back in January, Newcomb latched on with the Red Sox on a minor league deal and found a path back to a big league rotation job between a strong performance in Spring Training coupled with injuries to rotation pieces like Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello that kept them off the Opening Day roster.

Newcomb’s performance once added to the rotation was a mixed bag. He made five starts for the Red Sox and posted a lackluster 4.43 ERA, but did so with strong peripherals. He struck out 25.7% of his opponents while walking 10.5%. After moving to the bullpen, he posted a much stronger 3.38 ERA in seven relief outings for Boston, though his strikeout rate cratered during those outings. That led the Red Sox to designate him for assignment in late May, and he found himself traded back to the A’s shortly thereafter.

The lefty remained with the Athletics for the remainder of the 2025 season and did extremely well for himself with the club. In a full-time relief role for the A’s, Newcomb pitched to a dazzling 1.75 ERA with a 2.69 FIP in 51 1/3 innings of work. That excellent performance was backed up by strong peripherals, as he struck out 24.9% of his opponents, walked just 7.0%, and posted a strong 48.9% ground ball rate. His 3.22 SIERA in West Sacramento would be good for 44th among relievers with at least 50 innings of work last year if separated from his time in Boston. He’d also rank fifth by ERA and 18th by FIP.

That performance is more than strong enough to justify offering Newcomb a solid one-year guarantee to be a lefty bullpen arm, and the 32-year-old likely could have landed a similar dollar amount from a more competitive team for 2026 based on contracts offered to comparable lefties this offseason like Caleb Thielbar, who re-upped with the Cubs on a $4.5MM guarantee earlier this month. With that said, those contenders would have presumably wanted to keep Newcomb in a full-time bullpen role. The White Sox, by contrast, don’t have expectations of contention headed into 2026 and therefore can afford to offer Newcomb the opportunity to earn a rotation spot this spring.

Fellow offseason signing Anthony Kay figures to join Shane Smith and Davis Martin in the front three rotation spots for the White Sox this year. That leaves Newcomb to compete with players like Sean Burke, Jonathan Cannon, and Chris Murphy for the last two spots in the club’s rotation. It wouldn’t be a shock to see Newcomb land that role, though it’s certainly possible that he could also be used in a late-inning role given that the Sox bullpen has only Mike Vasil and Jordan Leasure as leverage options at the moment, with Tyler Gilbert as the top lefty option.

As for Rolison, the southpaw was claimed off waivers from Atlanta earlier this month. Rolison made his MLB debut as a member of the Rockies this past year, but struggled badly to the tune of a 7.02 ERA in 42 1/3 innings of work at the big league level for Colorado this year. The lefty will now be put through the waiver wire again, unless the Sox work out a deal involving Rolison before then. Should he pass through waivers unclaimed, Rolison figures to be outrighted to Triple-A as non-roster depth for Chicago headed into the 2026 season.

Tigers Re-Sign Tyler Mattison To Minor League Deal

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The Tigers have re-signed right-hander Tyler Mattison to a minor league deal, according to a report from Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. Mattison was non-tendered by the Tigers last month but now returns to the organization on a non-roster pact that includes an invite to big league Spring Training and will pay him $835K in the majors.

Mattison, 26, was a fourth-round pick by Detroit back in 2021. After spending most of his collegiate career as a starter, he moved to the bullpen upon joining the Tigers organization. While it took time for the righty to adjust to his new role, a strong performance in the Arizona Fall League at the end of his first pro season helped set him on course to take a bigger step forward during the 2023 campaign. In that year, Mattison reached the Double-A level and pitched to a sterling 1.62 ERA in 33 1/3 innings of work as a multi-inning reliever.

Unfortunately, Mattison’s ascent was put on hold when he underwent Tommy John surgery just before the 2024 campaign began. He missed the entire year and did not return to the mound until May 28 of this year. After two months of rehab, the right-hander was finally promoted to Triple-A on July 30 but posted middling results for the Mud Hens upon his arrival in Toledo. Across 20 appearances, Mattison posted a 3.79 ERA with an alarming 17.4% walk rate. That was enough to convince the Tigers to non-tender Mattison last month, even in spite of his previously strong results and solid 25.6% strikeout rate.

The decision to non-tender Mattison was largely motivated by a desire to no longer carry the righty on the club’s 40-man roster. As a player who has not yet made his big league debut, Mattison was of course not yet eligible for arbitration and wouldn’t be making more than the league minimum. Still, that roster spot was valuable and would have forced the Tigers to use one of Mattison’s option years to send him back to the minors. As a result, the team opted to risk him signing elsewhere in free agency for the chance to bring him back into the fold on a non-roster deal.

That gamble paid off, and it could wind up as a win/win scenario for both player and club should Mattison find his way back to the majors. The Tigers will have afforded themselves some additional roster flexibility for the offseason and early part of the 2026 campaign without losing an up-and-coming relief arm from their system, while Mattison will now enjoy a higher salary in the majors than he would have in the event he simply remained on the 40-man all offseason.

The Opener: Athletics, Mets, Outfield Market

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Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on throughout the day today:

1. Athletics add a bat:

Yesterday’s Jeff McNeil trade saw the A’s add a proven bat to a lineup that already had plenty of firepower. The 33-year-old veteran offers a substantially different look than the power-focused approaches of Nick Kurtz, Tyler Soderstrom, and Brent Rooker, as McNeil is a contact-heavy player good for just ten to 15 homers per season. That should be no problem for an A’s team heavy on power, and alongside fellow contact-oriented middle infielder Jacob Wilson should allow the A’s to field a more diverse lineup during their second year in West Sacramento. Whether they’ll be able to add more talent to a roster that had a much larger need for pitching than additional hitting talent remains to be seen, but yesterday undoubtedly saw an already-competitive AL West get just a little bit stronger.

2. Mets continue restructuring their roster:

The McNeil trade was the latest move in the Mets’ roster overhaul following a deeply disappointing 2025 season. McNeil joined outfielder Brandon Nimmo in being traded away, while Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz were both allowed to walk in free agency. The additions of Luke Weaver, Devin Williams, Jorge Polanco, and Marcus Semien haven’t exactly inspired confidence in the future within the fan base so far, though president of baseball operations David Stearns surely isn’t anywhere close to done with the team’s offseason moves. New York has been known to be searching for a top of the rotation starter all offseason, and it seems as though at least one more bat for an outfield mix that has little certainty outside of Juan Soto also appears to be a must. What will be the team’s next addition?

3. Movement on the outfield market?

The outfield market saw some of its first movement of the offseason yesterday, though it wasn’t a top-of-the-market bat like Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger coming off the board. Instead, veteran bench bat Rob Refsnyder landed with the Mariners on a one-year deal. The addition of Refsnyder looks to be a savvy one for a Mariners club that figures to rely on platoon players like Dominic Canzone and Luke Raley in significant roles next year, and while it’s unlikely to make a significant difference at the top of the market it could spark some action in the lower tiers of the market. Refsnyder joins Lane Thomas as a notable right-handed outfield bat who has now signed, with players like Austin Hays and Harrison Bader still unsigned among a dwindling group of available options in free agency. Could one of those names follow suit before the holidays?

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