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Yankees Claim Dom Hamel; Designate Marco Luciano, Jayvien Sandridge For Assignment

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The Yankees announced that they have claimed right-hander Dom Hamel off waivers from the Rangers. They also designated left-hander Jayvien Sandridge and outfielder Marco Luciano for assignment. The two DFAs open roster spots for Hamel and for Cody Bellinger, whose five-year deal was made official yesterday. Texas designated Hamel for assignment a week ago when they signed Jakob Junis.

Hamel, 27 in March, just made his major league debut not too long ago. He tossed a scoreless inning for the Mets on September 17th, which is still his only big league appearance. Shortly thereafter, the Mets put him on waivers, with the Orioles and Rangers claiming him in quick succession. Texas held him for a few months but put him back on the wire this week.

The righty came up through the Mets’ system as a starting pitcher but a lack of control pushed him to the bullpen in 2025. He logged 67 2/3 innings over 31 Triple-A appearances last year. 11 of those were officially starts but they were mostly in opener style. His 5.32 earned run average wasn’t great but he did strike out 25.2% of batters faced and showed improved control with a 7.4% walk rate. His four-seamer and sinker both averaged in the low 90s while he also mixed in a cutter, slider and changeup.

Hamel still has a couple of options, so the Yankees could keep him as depth in the minors. They could also try putting him back on waivers in the future. He doesn’t have a previous career outright and has less than three years of service time, which means he would not have the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency.

Speaking of players getting put back on waivers, that’s been the story of Luciano’s offseason. Once a top prospect, his stock has dropped as he has exhausted his option years. That has pushed him to a fringe roster position and it seems that there are several clubs hoping to be the one to pass him through waivers, at which point he could be kept in the minors as non-roster depth. He finished the 2025 season with the Giants but has subsequently gone to the Pirates, Orioles and Yankees via the waiver wire.

He has a rough career batting line of .217/.286/.304 in his big league career while striking out in 35.7% of his plate appearances. His Triple-A line of .227/.351/.401 is better but came in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League and still saw him strike out 29.6% of the time. He was moved from the middle infield to left field last year, which only put more pressure on him to produce offensively.

The numbers have not been great but Luciano is only 24 years old and was a top 100 prospect not too long ago. His service time is still under a year, meaning he can theoretically be retained for six full seasons by some club. It’s understandable that teams would hope to have that player on hand in case he does finally break out. Now that he’s in DFA limbo once more, he will be on the move again or outrighted in the next week.

Sandridge, 27 next month, got a major league roster spot for the first time with the Yankees last year. He made just one appearance, which came against the Mets on July 5th. He was given a rude awakening, as he walked Juan Soto and then allowed a home run to Pete Alonso. He settled down somewhat by striking out Brandon Nimmo and Mark Vientos, but then walked Luis Torrens and hit Jeff McNeil with a pitch before being removed.

That one appearance has some commonalities with his minor league track record, which has featured lots of strikeouts but a lack of control. He tossed 36 2/3 innings on the farm for the Yankees last year with a 4.66 ERA. He struck out 32.7% of batters faced but issued 19 walks, an 11.4% pace. He also hit three more batters and tossed six wild pitches. He averaged around 95 miles per hour with his four-seamer and sinker while also throwing a splitter and slider.

He will now be in DFA limbo for a week at most. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Yankees could take five days to field trade interest, but they could also put him on the wire sooner. Since he has a couple of options, he could have appeal if there’s a club that is both intrigued by the arsenal and looking for some extra relief depth.

Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images

Top Picks: Best Sports Memorabilia Products for 2026! (Sponsored)

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About Legends Memorabilia:

At Legends Memorabilia Collection, their mission is to honor the legacy of the game by preserving and showcasing iconic sports memorabilia—while giving back to the legends who made it all possible. They are committed to putting money back into the pockets of the players, ensuring they share in the value of the memories they helped create. By connecting fans with authentic, player-backed collectibles, they celebrate the past, empower the present, and invest in the future of sports history.

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Visit ShopLegends.com often or subscribe to their email list this offseason to stay up to date on all happenings.

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Legends Memorabilia offers a wide range of authentic autographed baseballs signed by current and legendary players. These range from game-specific commemorative balls to classic signature balls. Examples include high-profile autographs from stars such as Freddie Freeman and Mike Trout, among others — often with special inscriptions or commemorative logos tied to events like World Series games.

3. Autographed Jerseys

Collectors can find authentic autographed jerseys from notable players across baseball and sometimes other professional leagues. These jerseys are often presented with the player’s signature visible and may come with inscriptions or additional storytelling elements attached — making them prized display pieces for fans.

4. Autographed Bats and Bats with Player Inscriptions

Autographed bats are core pieces for any baseball memorabilia collector. Legends Memorabilia lists bats signed by both contemporary stars and up-and-coming players, often with inscriptions that denote a special achievement or designation. These are classic centerpiece items for any collector’s display.

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Photographic prints featuring important moments or player portraits, signed directly by athletes, make great framed memorabilia. These pieces often capture iconic moments or specific milestones, adding narrative value to the signature.

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This special category includes unique pieces from athletes’ personal closets, often one-of-a-kind or limited-quantity memorabilia, such as game-worn gear or personally curated items selected by the athlete. These items can be especially meaningful for serious collectors because of their uniqueness and direct player connection.

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Legends frequently lists newly arrived items that include autographed balls, photos, helmets, and collectibles from recent signings or presale drops. This often includes signed World Series- related baseballs, position-specific items, or limited runs tied to current league events.

Again, make sure to use “TR10” for 10% off any purchase sitewide!

This is a sponsored post from Legends Memorabilia.

Angels Claim Osvaldo Bido

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The Angels announced that they have claimed right-hander Osvaldo Bido off waivers from the Marlins. Miami had designated Bido for assignment last week when they acquired Bradley Blalock from the Rockies. The Halos have an open 40-man roster spot for this claim but their agreement with infielder Yoán Moncada is not yet official. By filling up their last 40-man spot today, they will now have to make a corresponding move whenever Moncada’s deal does become official.

Bido, 30, seems to fall into an unfortunate fringe roster position where several teams like him but not enough to hold a roster position for very long. He has worked as an up-and-down swingman in recent years with some encouraging results at times. However, he is now out of options. He ended 2025 with the Athletics but has since gone to Atlanta, Tampa, Miami and now Anaheim via waiver claims.

It seems likely that several different teams would like to pass him through waivers unclaimed, which would allow them to have him in the minors as non-roster depth. He has never been outrighted in his career and has less than three years of service time, so he wouldn’t have the right to elect free agency if he were eventually outrighted.

Bido’s best showing in the major leagues thus far came in 2024. He gave the A’s 63 1/3 innings over nine starts and seven relief appearances, allowing 3.41 earned runs per nine. He struck out 24.3% of batters faced and gave out walks at a 10% clip. His fly ball rate was on the high side but that worked well while the A’s were still playing in Oakland and the pitcher-friendly confines of the Coliseum.

The club moved to a minor league park in 2025, which seemed to significantly hurt Bido’s results. He had only allowed three home runs in 2024 but then allowed 19 in 2025, in a slightly larger sample size of 79 2/3 innings. His strikeout rate also dropped a bit to 18.7%. The result was a 5.87 ERA, which presumably helped launch him into the DFA carousel this winter.

Perhaps he will find himself on waivers yet again but he has a spot with the Angels for now. The Halos have a decent amount of question marks in their rotation. Yusei Kikuchi and José Soriano should be in two spots but there’s not much certainty beyond those two. Reid Detmers is going to get another chance but was in relief last year. Grayson Rodriguez and Alek Manoah will be looking to bounce back from injury absences. Caden Dana, Sam Aldegheri, Jack Kochanowicz and various others are on the roster but could be kept in the minors as depth.

The bullpen is also fairly open. Four spots are likely taken by Robert Stephenson, Drew Pomeranz, Jordan Romano and Kirby Yates. That still leaves four spots for other arms. Chase Silseth is out of options and could have one. Guys like Ryan Zeferjahn, José Fermín, Sam Bachman and Cody Laweryson will be in the mix but have options.

If Bido hangs onto his roster spot with the Angels, there should be opportunities, especially since he has experience both starting and relieving. If he still has a roster spot at season’s end, he can be retained for future seasons via arbitration.

Photo courtesy of Darren Yamashita, Imagn Images

MLBTR Chat Transcript

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Steve Adams

  • Good morning! We’ll get going at 1pm CT today, but feel free to submit questions ahead of time.
  • Good afternoon and happy Tuesday — let’s get going

Not my job to win a World Series

  • Peralta return higher than the Burnes return?  Any moves left for the Brewers this offseason?

Steve Adams

  • They’re pretty comparable returns — two top prospects on the back-end of most top-100 lists. I think the prospects themselves here are a bit more interesting than the Hall/Ortiz combo they got from Burnes, but they also got a Competitive Balance draft pick for Burnes, which has plenty of value itself.I imagine the Brewers will still look into some low-cost bullpen/bench additions as guys who are lingering on the market bring their demands down and accept lesser deals just to get into camp somewhere.

Pedro4eva

  • Do you see the Red Sox making a move for Suarez at 3rd? If not do they just give it to Meyer?

Steve Adams

  • No, I think if there’s an addition at this point it feels much likelier to be a second baseman. Mayer at third base feels like it could be the plan at this point.

Guest

  • David Peterson for Jeremiah Estrada. Who says no?

Steve Adams

  • I like David Peterson, but I’m not giving up four years of Estrada for one of Peterson if I’m the Padres.

Brewer Fan

  • Jett Williams and Josh Knoth for CJ Abrams. Who says no?

Steve Adams

  • Washington, pretty easily.

Guest

  • Who do you think will play first base for the Padres ?

Read more

Twins Notes: Bullpen, Rogers, Keaschall

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Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey implied last week after reuniting with lefty Taylor Rogers that subsequent bullpen additions could be on the horizon. Executive chair Tom Pohlad was more direct over the weekend, telling fans at the team’s annual TwinsFest event (link via Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune):

“Yeah, we’re going to continue. The clock doesn’t stop until Opening Day, right? For better or worse, [Falvey] and [GM Jeremy Zoll] have a history of adding pieces late. I’m sure you are going to continue to see that. We know that we have to continue to improve the bullpen.”

Minnesota’s current payroll of about $108MM sits nearly $30MM shy of last year’s mark. The team has made no secret of its plans to scale back payroll after sitting between $130-160MM each season from 2022-25, but there’s room for another reliever or two while still keeping the 2026 tally well below the levels we’ve seen in the four preceding seasons. Even with some additions seemingly on the horizon, Falvey indicated last week that the Twins would be counting on some younger, less-experienced pitchers to step up and solidify themselves as viable bullpen options this coming season.

Entering the season, the Twins have Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober locked into rotation spots. Simeon Woods Richardson is out of minor league options and pitched well in 2025 after a brief demotion to the minors; he finished the year with a 4.04 ERA in 111 1/3 frames but was particularly sharp upon returning from Triple-A. In his final 14 starts of the season, Woods Richardson logged 69 innings with a 3.00 ERA (4.16 FIP, 4.37 SIERA), a 24.4% strikeout rate and a 10.4% walk rate. That finish and his lack of minor league options make him a clear favorite for the fourth spot on the staff.

The fifth spot will presumably be a battle of several promising young arms. Right-handers Taj Bradley, Mick Abel, David Festa and Zebby Matthews are all in the mix for that opening. All four ranked among the game’s top 100 prospects prior to their respective MLB debuts. All four have shown some flashes of success but also lacked consistency. Bradley has one minor league option remaining. The other three all have a pair of options left. Any of that quartet could emerge as a bullpen option, too, as could prospects like Connor Prielipp and Marco Raya.

At the moment, Rogers is the most experienced arm and the de facto favorite for saves, but subsequent additions could push him further down the pecking order. The 35-year-old southpaw was an All-Star closer for Minnesota back in 2021 but has been pitching more in middle relief across the past two seasons amid declines in his fastball and slider velocity.

A reunion with the Twins was something that Rogers himself pushed for, it seems. The left-hander told the Twins beat that he instructed his reps at Frontline Athlete Management to make clear to Minnesota’s front office at the Winter Meetings that he’d be open to a reunion (link via Matthew Leach of MLB.com). That didn’t result in an immediate deal, but the Twins touched base with Rogers’ camp again in January and a deal came together in a matter of days. Pitching for new manager Derek Shelton, who was predecessor Rocco Baldelli’s bench coach for a couple of years during Rogers’ initial Twins stint, was a big factor.

“I told Shelty on the phone, if he was managing a team in Fargo, North Dakota, I would want to want to go there,” said Rogers. “Same with an opportunity to work with [new bullpen coach LaTroy Hawkins].”

On the position player side of the roster, the Twins could move standout second baseman Luke Keaschall around the diamond a bit more this season. The former second-round pick and top prospect had Tommy John surgery in 2024, and Minnesota kept him at second base and DH this past season. Dan Hayes of The Athletic writes that with Keaschall now more than 16 months removed from surgery on his throwing arm, he’s more confident in his throwing and his strength has improved. Keaschall has played some center field in the minors and left field in college and summer ball before being drafted.

The 23-year-old Keaschall was a bright spot in a bleak Twins season. He made his big league debut in mid-April and slashed .302/.385/.445 with four home runs, 14 doubles, 14 stolen bases (in 17 attempts), a 9.2% walk rate and just a 14% strikeout rate in 207 trips to the plate. Had he not suffered a broken forearm in late May and been on the shelf through early August, it’s not unreasonable to think that Keaschall might’ve been in the Rookie of the Year running in the American League.

Minnesota’s outfield currently has Byron Buxton locked into center. He’ll be flanked by a combination of Matt Wallner, Alan Roden, Trevor Larnach and Austin Martin. Roden, Wallner and particularly Larnach would benefit from right-handed platoon partners. Martin is one option to fill that role, and if Keaschall looks comfortable on the grass during spring training, he could factor into that group as well. Top prospects Walker Jenkins, Emmanuel Rodriguez and Gabriel Gonzalez could all debut at some point this season as well; the former two are lefty swingers, while the latter hits from the right side. Wherever Keaschall lines up defensively, his bat will be in the lineup regularly based on last year’s strong rookie showing and his minor league track record (.294/.411/.458 in parts of three seasons).

Cubs, Dylan Carlson Agree To Minor League Deal

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January 27th: Carlson will make $2MM if he cracks the majors, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post, with another $1MM available via incentives.

January 26th: The Cubs have agreed to a minor league contract with free agent outfielder Dylan Carlson, as first reported by Greg Zumach. The ALIGND Sports client receives a non-roster invitation to major league spring training, where he’ll compete for a bench job.

Carlson is the second veteran outfielder to sign a minor league deal with the Cubs in the past week. Former Astros outfielder Chas McCormick also received an NRI from Chicago and will be in the mix for a bench spot.

The 27-year-old Carlson was the No. 33 overall pick in the 2016 draft by the Cubs’ archrivals in St. Louis. He ranked as one of the ten best prospects in the sport prior to his big league debut and had a nice showing in his first full season back in 2021 (.266/.343/.437, 18 homers) but has seen his bat stall out since. Carlson was a league-average hitter in 2022, but in three subsequent big league seasons has mustered only a .210/.294/.314 batting line in 761 trips to the plate between the Cardinals, Rays and Orioles. He’s dealt with shoulder, ankle, hamstring, thumb and wrist injuries along the way. The ankle injury, suffered in 2023, required season-ending surgery.

Carlson, a switch-hitter, had an uncharacteristically poor showing against left-handed pitching last year, but that came in a small sample with Baltimore. He’s been good against lefties throughout his career, hitting them at a .274/.347/.410 clip in 566 plate appearances. His left-handed swing and approach haven’t been nearly as refined; in 1421 turns at the plate versus right-handed pitching, he’s a .217/.298/.356 hitter.

The versatile Carlson can handle any of the three outfield spots, though his defensive grades in center field have slipped in small samples over the past couple seasons. Statcast graded his sprint speed comfortably above average earlier in his career, but Carlson was closer to the mean in 2025, sitting in the 56th percentile of big leaguers in that regard. He typically shows plus arm strength, based on the velocity of his throws from the outfield, but was closer to average in that regard this past season as well.

Carlson may not have developed into the star the Cardinals hoped, or even a quality regular, but if he can get back on track against left-handed pitching and play solid defense across the three outfield spots, he’s a fine fourth outfielder. Chicago’s outfield is set with Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Seiya Suzuki lining up from left to right, but Crow-Armstrong hit only .188/.217/.376 against lefties this past season.

If the Cubs want to give Crow-Armstrong some breaks against tough southpaws or even move to more of a platoon system, Carlson’s skill set could lend itself well to a complementary role, though the same could be said for fellow NRI McCormick. Waiver claim Justin Dean and prospect Kevin Alcantara are both on the 40-man roster as well. Both hit from the right side of the plate and can handle all three outfield spots.

Royals, Aaron Sanchez Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Royals and right-hander Aaron Sanchez are in agreement on a minor league contract, reports Robert Murray of Fansided. The former Blue Jays All-Star will be in big league camp as a non-roster invitee. Sanchez would earn $1.5MM on the big league roster and has another $1.35MM available to him via incentives, a source tells MLBTR. The contract contains opt-out/release dates on April 15 and May 15, per Murray’s report. Sanchez is represented by Smooth Baseball.

Sanchez hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2022 and was out of baseball entirely in 2025. The 33-year-old set his sights on a comeback effort this winter though and more than earned a look with a big league club while pitching in the Dominican Winter League. He started eight games, pitched 46 1/3 innings and recorded a pristine 1.55 earned run average. Sanchez’s 19.1% strikeout rate isn’t much to look at, but he also walked only 5% of his opponents and has always been more of a ground-ball pitcher than a premium strikeout arm anyhow (career 52.7% grounder rate).

A former top prospect and No. 34 overall draft pick with the Blue Jays, Sanchez looked like a budding star in 2016. He paced the American League with a flat 3.00 ERA in 192 innings, finished seventh in Cy Young voting and made his lone All-Star team that year. Injuries have derailed him since. In addition to recurring blister troubles on his pitching hand, Sanchez has been plagued by a lat strain, a biceps strain and a torn capsule in his right shoulder.

Since that brilliant 2016 showing, Sanchez has managed only 367 2/3 innings in the majors. He’s pitched to a 5.29 ERA with a 17.5% strikeout rate, 10.6% walk rate and 49% ground-ball rate in that time, bouncing between five major league clubs along the way.

The Royals have a strong rotation, but clubs are always on the hunt for low-cost depth starting pitching depth. Cole Ragans, Kris Bubic, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha and Noah Cameron give the club five quality arms to carry into the season. Right-handers Alec Marsh, Ryan Bergert, Stephen Kolek and Mason Black are on the 40-man roster and all have starting experience in the majors, as does out-of-options left-hander Bailey Falter, who seems ticketed for a swingman role.

Diamondbacks Notes: Bullpen, First Base

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The D-backs have bolstered their rotation mix this winter by agreeing to a two-year reunion with Merrill Kelly and bringing Michael Soroka in on a one-year deal, but the bullpen remains largely untouched. Taylor Clarke’s low-cost, one-year deal is the only addition of any real note. General manager Mike Hazen emphasized to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that he still plans to add to his relief corps, but the focus for much of the winter was on the rotation.

“The bullpen market isn’t done,” Hazen told Piecoro over the weekend. “There’s trades out there. … There are still active conversations all over the place in this area.”

While that doesn’t necessarily mean that the D-backs are lock to trade for an established reliever rather than sign one of the remaining free agent arms, it at least lends some credence to the belief that the trade market is the preferred route. Diamondbacks brass has been candid about the fact that payroll will be reduced in 2026 even as the team keeps aiming to contend. Hazen implied to Piecoro that if he’d signed a more prominent, established reliever in free agency, that doing so would have come at the expense of being able to re-sign Kelly, who commanded a two-year, $40MM contract.

Pinning down viable trade candidates, particularly in the bullpen, is often a tricky endeavor — particularly at this point of the offseason when many names have already moved. Cardinals lefty JoJo Romero is an obvious trade candidate, but the D-backs and Cards already pulled off one notable deal (Nolan Arenado) and clearly didn’t line up on a way to include Romero in that deal. The Rockies have some young, controllable relievers who’ve garnered interest (e.g. Victor Vodnik, Seth Halvorsen, Juan Mejia), but trading with a division foe is always a bit more complicated. Milwaukee’s Trevor Megill was in trade rumblings earlier in the winter, but the Brewers might not feel as urgent to shed his salary after trading a more expensive Freddy Peralta to the Mets.

However it shakes out, Hazen’s comment aren’t the lone indicator that the Diamondbacks could prefer the trade market as an avenue to bolster manager Torey Lovullo’s relief options. John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM Arizona Sports suggested last week (prior to Hazen’s comments) that adding more bullpen help, specifically via the trade market, and bringing in a righty-hitting first baseman were likely goals for the front office.

A righty-hitting first baseman is a natural target. Arizona hoped to be adding just that last summer when scooping up former top prospect Tyler Locklear from the Mariners as part of the Eugenio Suarez return, but Locklear suffered a torn ligament in his left elbow and injured the labrum in his left shoulder on a collision at first base in September. He underwent season-ending surgery shortly thereafter and isn’t a lock to be ready for the early portion of the season. The 25-year-old Locklear has yet to hit in 165 big league plate appearances, but he bashed Triple-A pitching at a .316/.401/.542 pace last year (136 wRC+) and logged strong offensive performances in 2024 (131 wRC+ between Double-A, Triple-A) and in 2023 (145 wRC+ between High-A and Double-A).

As it stands, Arizona has Pavin Smith penciled in for the majority of work at first base. He’s a career .253/.333/.439 hitter against righties (111 wRC+) but has been considerably better across the past two seasons, albeit while battling some notable injuries that have limited his time on the field. Still, the late-blooming Smith has posted a big .271/.359/.493 slash (134 wRC+) with 16 home runs, 26 doubles and a triple in 399 plate appearances against righties across the past two seasons. Unfortunately, he’s a career .222/.296/.301 hitter against fellow lefties, which only underscores the need for a platoon partner.

There’s been plenty of speculation among D-backs fans about a reunion with Paul Goldschmidt, who of course starred for Arizona for the first eight seasons of his career before being traded to St. Louis in the 2018-19 offseason. The 38-year-old’s .274/.328/.403 slash with the Yankees last year was about league average, but he did nearly all of his damage against lefties, hitting them at a .336/.411/.570 clip compared to just .247/.289/.329 against fellow righties. If Goldschmidt is amenable to a limited role coupled with a Phoenix homecoming, he’d indeed be a fine fit. Speculative alternatives on the free agent market include Rhys Hoskins, Ty France and Justin Turner.

The Opener: Yankees, DFA Resolutions, MLBTR Chat

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Here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye out for throughout the day today:

1. Yankees 40-man move incoming:

The Yankees officially announced their move to re-sign Cody Bellinger on a five-year pact yesterday, restoring their lineup to where it was last season in conjunction with the returns of Trent Grisham and Amed Rosario. The team did so without announcing a corresponding 40-man move, however. That means New York will have to clear a roster spot in the near future to accommodate the addition of Bellinger. That could come by way of a simple DFA to clear a roster spot, though it’s also possible that New York could try to clear a roster spot by working out a minor trade that sends a 40-man player out for non-roster talent or cash.

2. DFA resolutions expected:

A handful of players who have recently been designated for assignment are expected to have their situations resolved today. Nationals righty Andry Lara, Rangers righty Dom Hamel, and Marlins right-hander Osvaldo Bido were all pushed off their respective team’s 40-man roster last week. Bido was moved to make room for Miami’s acquisition of Bradley Blalock, while D.C. parted ways with Lara to make room for a waiver claim of Mickey Gasper. Hamel was squeezed out of the mix in Texas by the club’s signing of righty Jakob Junis. Hamel and Lara both made their big league debuts last year and have ten combined relief appearances in the majors, while Bido has a career 5.07 ERA in parts of three MLB seasons. All three players have now been in DFA limbo for one week, and either a waiver claim or outright assignment should be expected in short order.

3. MLBTR chat today:

Pitchers and catchers will begin reporting in just a couple of weeks, but some offseason questions still remain. Framber Valdez and Eugenio Suárez are among the top free agents still available, while the trade market still holds intriguing talents like Brendan Donovan, CJ Abrams and Mark Vientos who could still be moved. If you’re wondering what’s left for your favorite team to do before spring begins or simply looking for the latest hot stove buzz, MLBTR’s Steve Adams has you covered with a live chat scheduled for 1pm CT today. Readers can use this link to ask a question in advance, follow along when the chat begins, and read the transcript after the chat concludes.

Giants To Sign Harrison Bader

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The Giants have a notable upgrade to their outfield defense in place, reportedly agreeing to a two-year, $20.5MM contract with free agent outfielder Harrison Bader. The Vayner Sports client can earn an additional $500K via incentives, bringing the deal’s maximum value to $21MM.

Bader, 31, has been a free agent for three consecutive offseasons but now lands the multi-year deal that’s previously eluded him. He signed one-year deals with the Mets and Twins, respectively, over the past two winters. Bader turned in a career-best performance in Minnesota and was red hot for the Phillies down the stretch after joining them in a deadline swap, and the market has rewarded that strong 2025 performance.

In 501 plate appearances between Minnesota and Philadelphia last year, Bader slashed .277/.347/.449 with 17 homers, 24 doubles, a triple and 11 steals (albeit in 18 attempts). His 7.8% walk rate was the second-best he’s posted in a 162-game season, though 2025’s bloated 27.1% strikeout rate was also his worst full-season mark since 2019. Much of Bader’s success can be attributed to an increase in playing time and a hefty .359 average on balls in play, but it bears mentioning that his 10.2% barrel rate and 40.3% hard-hit rate were personal bests in a full big league season.

Strong as last year’s performance was — 22% better than league-average, by measure of wRC+ — offense has never been Bader’s calling card. He’s been clearly above average in four of his nine MLB campaigns, but on the whole, Bader is a .247/.313/.401 hitter in a bit more than 3000 career plate appearances, which just barely shy of average. His glovework, however, is among the best in all of baseball, regardless of position.

Bader has played 5925 innings of center field defense in his career and been credited with a gaudy 51 Defensive Runs Saved and 67 Outs Above Average. He played more left field than center field in Minnesota, largely in deference to Byron Buxton, and notched positive marks in both DRS (7) and OAA (3) through 496 frames.

Overall, Bader has played 6799 innings of outfield defense in the majors, dating back to his 2017 MLB debut. In that time, only four outfielders — Mookie Betts, Kevin Kiermaier, Daulton Varsho, Michael A. Taylor — have bested his 67 DRS. No outfielder in that time has topped Bader’s 77 OAA. Francisco Lindor, Nick Ahmed, Nolan Arenado and Ke’Bryan Hayes are the only four majors leaguers at any position with a better OAA total in that time.

With Bader turning 32 in June, it’s fair to at least wonder whether he’ll begin to slow down over the next two seasons. However, there’s no reason to think that’ll be the case — at least based on recent history. This past season’s average sprint speed of 28.8 feet per second was actually an improvement over Bader’s 2024 mark of 28.2 ft/sec and right in line with his 2023 mark. He’s no longer covering the flat-out elite 30 ft/sec he did earlier in his career, but Bader’s 2025 sprint speed still landed in the 85th percentile of all big league position players. He’s a clear plus runner.

It’s a near certainty that Bader will take that plus speed and range to Oracle Park as the Giants’ new center fielder. Jung Hoo Lee handled the bulk of center field work in San Francisco this past offseason but ranked as one of the worst defenders in the game along the way (-18 DRS, -5 OAA). Lee’s arm strength sat in the 91st percentile of big league outfielders, per Statcast, but his range was near the bottom of the scale. Lee should have the arm to move to right field, where his lack of range would be better suited. Even if Bader’s bat regresses and checks in a bit shy of average, the defensive upgrade alone will be enormous for the Giants.

Assuming even distribution of that $20.5MM, Bader’s contract bumps San Francisco’s actual cash payroll to a projected $195MM, per RosterResource. Their luxury tax payroll is quite a bit higher, clocking in at about $221.5MM, but that still leaves more than $20MM between their current standing and the $244MM threshold at which luxury penalties begin. San Francisco has paid the tax in the past, but only rarely. They were over the line in 2024, which stands as their only time exceeding the threshold in recent memory.

For the time being, it doesn’t seem likely that the Giants will climb back to that level of spending. San Francisco is in the market for a second baseman but has been looking at the trade market — specifically, affordable targets like CJ Abrams and Brendan Donovan (“affordable” in terms of salary — not necessarily prospect capital). They’ve added Adrian Houser and Tyler Mahle to the rotation and could continue to poke around the rotation and bullpen markets, but ownership has publicly expressed an aversion to signing any free agent pitcher to a long-term deal, making a run at a top free agent like Framber Valdez feel unlikely.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the two-year agreement. Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the financial terms.

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