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Phillies Acquire Yoniel Curet

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3:31pm: Both clubs have now officially announced the swap.

1:50pm: The Phillies are going to acquire right-hander Yoniel Curet from the Rays. Right-hander Tommy McCollum is going the other way. The Rays designated the Curet for assignment recently to open a roster spot when they signed outfielder Cedric Mullins. Philadelphia’s 40-man roster count jumps from 34 to 35. Reporter Mike Rodriguez first noted that Curet was going to Philly. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported on McCollum’s inclusion.

Curet, now 23, joins a new organization for the first time. The Rays signed him as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic. By the end of 2023, he was eligible for the Rule 5 draft. He hadn’t even climbed as high as Double-A yet and had shown clear control problems, but he also racked up strikeouts. From 2021 to 2023, he logged 197 innings across various levels with a 2.97 earned run average. He walked 15.3% of batters he faced but also punched them out at a 31.7% clip.

The Rays didn’t want to risk losing him in the Rule 5, so they gave him a 40-man spot. His 2024 season was quite strong. He made 26 starts between High-A and Double-A, throwing 119 innings with a 2.95 ERA. His 11.9% walk rate was still high but an improvement for him, while his 31.5% strikeout rate was relatively unchanged. He had enough hype that Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs ranked him as the #61 prospect in the whole league going into 2025.

But this year was a bit of a setback for him. He was on the injured list for most of the first half due to an injury in his throwing shoulder. Once healthy, he tossed 55 1/3 innings with a 3.90 ERA, 12.8% walk rate and 25.5% strikeout rate. FanGraphs now lists him as the 11th-best prospect in the Rays’ system.

Due to his control problems, Curet might end up getting pushed to the bullpen. However, he still young and has an option remaining. The Phils can send him to Triple-A and either keep him stretched out or see if his stuff plays up in a relief role.

The Rays squeezed Curet off their roster but are getting a non-roster player in return. McCollum was available in today’s Rule 5 draft but wasn’t selected. According to JJ Cooper of Baseball America, this trade wasn’t able to be finalized until the draft was completed with McCollum going unselected.

McCollum, 27 in June, was an undrafted free agent in 2021. The Phils signed him and he has been pitching as a reliever in their system since then. Somewhat similar to Curet, he has a history of striking guys out while also giving them free passes. From 2021 to 2024, McCollum threw 134 innings with a 3.56 ERA, 31.8% strikeout rate and 15.6% walk rate. In 2025, he reduced the walk rate all the way down to 6.9% but his strikeout rate also fell to 25.5%. He posted a 3.07 ERA in 55 2/3 innings.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Blue Jays Interested In Brad Keller

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The Blue Jays have been busy adding to their rotation this offseason but they’re not necessarily done. Ben Nicholson-Smith and Shi Davidi of Sportsnet report that the Jays are still open to adding more starting options, with right-hander Brad Keller one guy they have interest in.

The club has already signed Dylan Cease and reportedly has an agreement in place with Cody Ponce as well. That now gives the Jays an on-paper rotation of Cease, Ponce, Kevin Gausman, Shane Bieber, Trey Yesavage and José Berríos, with Eric Lauer, Bowden Francis, Ricky Tiedemann and others in the mix as well.

That’s plenty of depth in a sense but there are also some questions in there. Ponce is fairly unproven as he has been pitching in Asia and his last MLB game was several years ago. It was reported this week that Bieber dealt with forearm fatigue late in the 2025 campaign and is now questionable for Opening Day 2026. Berríos was bumped from the rotation late in the season and also wound up on the injured list with an elbow injury. He appears to be healthy now but there may be some discontent there and the Jays are reportedly open to trading him. Lauer pitched both as a starter and reliever in 2025 and could be in line for the same type of role next year. Francis and Tiedemann are both coming off seasons lost to injuries. There’s plenty of long-term uncertainty as well. Gausman, Bieber and Lauer are all slated for free agency after 2026. Berríos has an opt-out in his deal at that time as well.

Keller is a logical target for the Jays, and many other clubs, since he could be deployed either out of the rotation or the bullpen. If the Jays were to sign him, his role could depend on his own performance as well as future moves, the health of Bieber, and various other factors.

Earlier in his career, Keller was a decent starter for the Royals. He didn’t get a ton of strikeouts but he got opponents to hit the ball into the the ground. From 2018 to 2020, he posted a 3.50 earned average with a 16.8% strikeout rate and 52.1% ground ball rate. He then endured a few years of struggle, with a 5.14 ERA from 2021 to 2023. He underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome in October of 2023. He returned to action in 2024 but without much success, posting a 5.44 ERA as a swingman.

In 2025, he got a relief role with the Cubs and ran with it. He logged 69 2/3 innings on the year overall with a tiny ERA of 2.07. His 56.1% ground ball rate was in his usual range but he also managed to punch out 27.2% of batters he faced, almost double his early-career rate.

In recent years, it has become quite common to stretch out successful relievers, often in cases involving guys with previous starting experience. Garrett Crochet, Seth Lugo, Michael King, Clay Holmes and Reynaldo López have had varying degrees of success with the switch. It didn’t go quite as well with guys like A.J. Puk and Jordan Hicks. But the appeal for a team is clear, as it’s usually an attempt to get a starter for a reliever price.

At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Keller to secure a $36MM guarantee over three years, with that prediction baking in the possibility some clubs would view him as a starter. $12MM annually isn’t nothing but it’s still cheaper than veteran injury reclamation deals. Guys like Alex Cobb and Max Scherzer got $15MM contracts last winter, for instance. The top guys, like Cease, get about double that annually.

Keller has indeed received interest as a starter this winter, with the Tigers and Yankees reportedly interested in him. The connection to the Tigers came before they signed Drew Anderson, so it’s possible that deal diminishes their interest in Keller somewhat. For the Yankees, they have a number of starters who are going to start the season on the injured list, so it seems the plan would be for Keller to start initially. As other pitchers get healthy, perhaps he could end up pushed into a relief role.

As mentioned, the thinking with the Jays would be somewhat similar. Bringing Keller into the mix could bolster the rotation but he could also end up in the bullpen if he’s not one of the top five rotation options. The Jays will presumably be balancing their desire to sign Keller with their other priorities.

RosterResource projects the Jays for a payroll of $268MM next year, which is already $10MM above where they finished in 2025. They seem to still be in the market for a closer and a big bat, with frequent connections to Bo Bichette and Kyle Tucker. Doing those things and also signing Keller will depend on how high the budget can go after their deep playoff run this year.

Photo courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images

Brewers’ Nick Mears Garnering Trade Interest

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The Brewers are getting calls about right-handed reliever Nick Mears as teams around the league look for under-the-radar bullpen help, per Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic. Milwaukee has also gotten plenty of interest in closer Trevor Megill and ace Freddy Peralta this winter. There’s no indication the Brewers are especially motivated to part with any of the bunch.

Mears, 29, landed with the Brewers ahead of the 2024 trade deadline in a deal sending pitchers Bradley Blalock and Yujanyer Herrera back to the Rockies. An undrafted free agent signed by the Pirates following the 2018 draft, Mears was traded to the Rockies for Connor Joe, claimed off waivers by the Rangers and reclaimed by the Rockies before settling into a bullpen role in Denver during that 2024 campaign.

At the time of the trade, Mears had an ERA in the mid-5.00s but had shown quality swing-and-miss ability. He struggled to a 7.30 ERA down the stretch in Milwaukee, but the Brewers kept him for the 2025 season anyhow. Mears rewarded that faith by breaking out as a solid setup arm.

In 56 2/3 innings this past season, Mears notched 16 holds and a save while pitching to a 3.49 earned run average. The 6’3″, 217-pound righty scaled back his fastball usage and ramped up his slider usage with the Brewers. He actually struck out fewer hitters in 2025 than in 2024 but continued to post terrific swinging-strike and opponents’ chase rates. Mears has also dramatically improved his command as a Brewer; after walking more than 12% of his opponents in parts of two seasons with the Rox, he’s issued a free pass to only 5.8% of his opponents with the Brew Crew.

Mears is under club control through the 2027 season. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a modest $1.6MM salary for the well-traveled righty after that 2025 breakout. Given that modest salary expectation, there’s little to no financial incentive for the Brewers to move him. However, Milwaukee is always open-minded about trading players as they inch closer to free agency. Mears has the potential to be an important piece of manager Pat Murphy’s late-inning relief corps this season, but he could also fetch a modest prospect if the Brewers feel confident that they can weather his loss.

Megill, Abner Uribe, Grant Anderson, Jared Koenig and Aaron Ashby all pitched to earned run averages of 3.23 or better in 2025 — each of them with a better-than-average strikeout rate. No one from that group walked more than Anderson’s 9.7% of opponents, so there aren’t many command issues with the quintet, either. Lefties Rob Zastryzny and DL Hall logged solid ERA marks as well, albeit with less impressive strikeout and walk rates. The Brewers also have 26-year-old Craig Yoho, who posted video-game numbers in the upper minors this season, as well as a plethora of young starters who could move to relief roles due to the depth in the system (e.g. Tobias Myers, Coleman Crow).

Notably, Mears is one of just two out-of-options relievers the Brewers have (in addition to Zastryzny). That fact could make him slightly easier to pry loose than some of his optionable bullpen counterparts, who inherently provide more flexibility to a Brewers team that often takes an all-hands-on-deck approach to its pitching usage and regularly shuffles up the lower-leverage portion of its relief corps. Time will tell whether the depth they possess ultimately leads to a trade, of course, but Mears is at least a name for fans of payroll-conscious clubs in need of bullpen help to keep in the back of their minds.

Mets Interested In Tyler Rogers

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Acquired in a deadline deal from the Giants, Tyler Rogers performed well over his two months in a Mets uniform, posting a 2.30 ERA over 27 1/3 innings.  The Amazins are now interested in a reunion, as Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that the Mets are one of the interested teams within “a very strong market” for the veteran right-hander.

Rogers is entering his age-35 season, he has only a 17.6% career strikeout rate, and his fastball velocity averaged just 83.5mph in 2025.  All of these factors would seemingly make modern front offices steer clear of Rogers, yet the results don’t lie — few pitchers in all of baseball are better at limiting hard contact, inducing grounders, or limiting walks.  A unique submarine-style delivery only adds to Rogers’ old-school approach, contributing to his 2.76 ERA over 424 career innings as a bullpen workhorse.

MLB Trade Rumors ranked Rogers 42nd on our list of the offseason’s top 50 free agents, and projected a two-year, $18MM deal for the righty.  Over the weekend, ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote that Rogers looks “primed to get a three-year deal,” whih speaks to the robust interest in the reliever’s services.  The Mets join the Marlins and Mariners as the only other teams publicly linked to Rogers, yet it is fair to guess that most teams in need of bullpen help have at least checked in on his market.

New York has added Devin Williams to its late-game mix, Cooper Criswell was added on waivers, and some other arms have been signed on minor league contracts.  However, the Mets are in greater need of bullpen help than when they started the offseason, since Edwin Diaz, Gregory Soto, and Ryan Helsley have all signed elsewhere.  Bringing Rogers back as an innings-eater and stabilizing force within the pen would be a huge help for the Mets as another step toward rebuilding their relief corps.

Orioles Remain Involved On Top Free Agent Starters After Alonso Deal

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After making a massive splash on offense, the Orioles figure to turn their attention to the rotation. That could also come via the open market, as the MLB Network’s Jon Morosi relays that Baltimore remains in the mix for the top free agent starters. Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner similarly suggests that the O’s have ongoing interest in Ranger Suárez.

Baltimore committed $31MM annually on a surprising five-year deal to add Pete Alonso. It’s easily the biggest free agent move of Mike Elias’ tenure leading baseball operations. That also means the long-term books are still fairly open. Alonso joins Ryan Helsley, Tyler O’Neill and Samuel Basallo as the only players signed beyond next season. Helsley and O’Neill come off the books after 2027, while Basallo won’t make more than $4MM in a season until 2030.

A significant arbitration class clutters the short-term picture a little more. RosterResource projects their 2026 payroll obligations around $148MM. (That’s using a $31MM estimated salary for Alonso, but the annual breakdown on his deal hasn’t been reported.) Baltimore had a little more than $159MM committed to their Opening Day payroll in 2025. They’d need to push that higher to make a second notable free agent move, but that appears to be in play headed into the second full season of David Rubenstein’s ownership tenure.

Adding a front-line starter alongside Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish is the clear objective now for Elias and company. Alongside Suárez, they’ve been tied to Framber Valdez, Michael King and Tatsuya Imai. Elias has already said he’s open to sacrificing a draft pick to sign a player who rejected a qualifying offer. That applies to Valdez, Suárez and King. They did not give up any draft capital to sign Alonso, who was ineligible for a QO, but their unsuccessful $150MM bid for Kyle Schwarber demonstrates that willingness to add a qualified free agent.

Baltimore is juggling the free agent pursuits against possibilities on the trade front. (Adding another right-handed power bat only further clouds the path to playing time for former top corner infield prospect Coby Mayo, for instance.) The Athletic reported last night that they’ve been among the most aggressive teams in talks with the Marlins regarding Edward Cabrera. Morosi also mentioned Nationals lefty MacKenzie Gore as a potential trade target for the O’s. The two parties have had multiple conversations surrounding Gore, who’s controlled for two more seasons via arbitration.

Gore is a natural target for any team seeking rotation help. The former No. 3 overall pick was once the top pitching prospect in the sport, and while he’s yet to develop into an established ace, he’s shown glimpses of that ability. Gore has made at least 27 starts in three straight seasons for Washington. His 4.15 earned run average in that time is solid but not particularly eye-catching. Metrics like SIERA (3.99) and FIP (4.01) are only a bit more bullish.

That said, Gore spent much of the season’s first half pitching like a Cy Young contender. He carried a sparkling 3.02 ERA into the All-Star break — a mark supported by a dominant 30.5% strikeout rate and a strong 7.7% walk rate. That strikeout rate trailed only Tarik Skubal, Zack Wheeler, Garrett Crochet and Hunter Brown. His 14.2% swinging-strike rate checked in behind only Skubal, Wheeler and Dylan Cease. Gore looked to be in the midst of a full-fledged breakout, finally realizing his ceiling as a No. 1 or 2 starter.

The next three starts were a nightmare. Gore was rocked for 23 runs in just 15 1/3 innings, ballooning his ERA into the mid-4.00s. He rebounded over his final seven starts but also spent a couple weeks on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. The 26-year-old lefty (27 in February) finished out what had looked like such a promising campaign with a respectable but unremarkable 4.17 ERA in 159 2/3 innings.

Gore is something of an unfinished product, though other more analytically inclined clubs might hope they can coax another level of performance out of him. The Nationals remade their front office this offseason but had generally been viewed as behind the curve when it comes to incorporating data into their pitching development. On a smaller scale, we saw a big jump in Kyle Finnegan’s performance with Detroit. An acquiring team would surely be hoping for similar improvements from Gore. The pieces are certainly in place. Gore’s 95.5 mph average four-seamer is strong, particularly for a lefty, and his 13.3% swinging-strike rate is already excellent as well.

While Alonso isn’t limiting the free agent pitching possibilities, it probably takes them out of the running for another massive move on a bat. Morosi reported yesterday that the O’s had been in contact with Kyle Tucker’s camp. Baltimore always seemed like a longer shot on Tucker, and it’d be shocking if they add him on top of the Alonso agreement. The O’s already brought in Taylor Ward via trade and have a crowded corner outfield mix with O’Neill, Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers. They’re likely to give some DH at-bats to whomever of Basallo and Adley Rutschman isn’t behind the plate and need to sort out whether there’s room on the roster at all for Mayo and Ryan Mountcastle.

Orioles Claim Josh Walker, Designate Drew Romo For Assignment

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The Orioles have designated catcher Drew Romo for assignment, 7News Boston’s Ari Alexander reports.  The move opens up space on Baltimore’s 40-man roster for left-hander Josh Walker, as the O’s announced that Walker has been claimed off waivers from the Braves.

Romo only just arrived in Baltimore’s organization a few days ago, via a waiver claim off the Rockies’ roster.  Romo has been never outrighted before and had has only 73 days of MLB service time, so if he clears waivers here, he would have no choice but to accept an outright assignment to the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate.  Another waiver claim seems possible, as teams are always in need of catching depth, and Romo has some past prospect pedigree as a former first-rounder.

Selected 35th overall by the Rockies in the 2020 draft, Romo was drawing some top-100 prospect attention prior to the 2023 season, but his star diminished as he posted okay but unspectacular numbers in the context of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.  Romo has a career .286/.337/.466 slash line and 21 homers over 632 PA with Triple-A Albuquerque, spending time at Colorado’s top affiliate in each of the last three seasons.  In 2025, his Triple-A production dropped to .264/.329/.409 over 244 PA.

Romo has also gotten some brief playing time in the majors, producing just a .419 OPS in 56 PA over 19 games with Colorado over the last two seasons.  The Rockies opted to move on and the Orioles made the claim, even if Baltimore is already quite set at catcher between Adley Rutschmann and Samuel Basallo (not to mention Maverick Handley also on the 40-man).

Keegan Akin, Dietrich Enns, and Grant Wolfram are the only left-handed relief options on the Orioles’ 40-man roster, so adding Walker gives Baltimore a bit more depth in that area.  The O’s are already familiar with Walker, as he first joined the team on another waiver claim off the Phillies’ roster back in August, and Walker was then signed to a big league contract in November.  This guaranteed salary didn’t stop the Braves from claiming Walker away when the Orioles designated him in November, but the offseason roster churn has now seen Walker land back in Baltimore just a month later.

Walker has pitched in each of the last three MLB seasons, delivering a 6.59 ERA, 24.2% strikeout rate, and 10.9% walk rate over 27 1/3 career innings with the Mets and Blue Jays.  The southpaw had spent his whole pro career in the Mets organization before he was dealt to the Pirates at the 2024 trade deadline, and Walker has since bounced around to multiple teams in journeyman fashion.

Since transitioning to bullpen work in 2022, Walker saw an uptick in his minor league strikeout numbers, but also an increase in his walks.  The 2025 season also saw Walker struggle to keep the ball in the yard, as he gave up seven home runs over 42 2/3 combined innings with the Triple-A affiliates of the Orioles, Blue Jays, and Phillies.  Walker is out of minor league options, so more DFAs and claims could be in his future as the O’s or other teams try to sneak him through waivers.

2025 Rule 5 Draft Results

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The 2025 Rule 5 draft is taking place this afternoon at the Winter Meetings in Orlando. This post will be updated with the results as they come in.

As a refresher, the Rule 5 draft is a way for players potentially talented enough for the big leagues but blocked by their current clubs to find opportunities elsewhere. Any players that were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and went professional in 2021, and any players who turned pro at 19 years of age or older in 2022, are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft if they are not on a 40-man roster.

Though the amateur (Rule 4) draft now has a lottery to determine the selection order, the Rule 5 draft still goes the old-fashioned way of reverse order of standings from the season that just ended. Clubs need to have an open 40-man roster spot in order to make a pick but aren’t obligated to make a selection on their turn. If they do make a pick, they will have to pay $100K to the team they select from. The selected players must stay on the active roster (or injured list) for the entire 2026 season or else be placed on waivers. If they clear waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. They cannot be optioned to the minors.

Players like Anthony Santander and Ryan Pressly have been notable picks in other recent years while guys like George Bell and Roberto Clemente are found deeper in the history books. Last year, 15 players were selected. Only four of those remain with the club who selected them and only three of those have had their rights fully transferred to their new club. The White Sox took Shane Smith from the Brewers. The Marlins took Liam Hicks from the Tigers. Mike Vasil was taken by the Phillies from the Mets but was later traded to the Rays and then went to the White Sox via waivers.

The one other pick from last year’s draft which is still live is Angel Bastardo, who the Blue Jays took from the Red Sox. He was recovering from Tommy John surgery and spent the entire 2025 season on the injured list. He is still on Toronto’s 40-man but they don’t yet have his full rights, as a player needs at least 90 active days to remove the Rule 5 restrictions. If the Jays are willing to roster him for about three months during the 2026 season, they could then gain his full rights and option him to the minors. All other picks were eventually returned to their original organization and/or became free agents.

This year’s picks will be featured below as they come in…

  1. Rockies: RHP RJ Petit (from the Tigers) (Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs was on this before the official announcement)
  2. White Sox: RHP Jedixson Paez (Red Sox)
  3. Nationals: RHP Griff McGarry (Phillies)
  4. Twins: C Daniel Susac (Athletics) (Susac was then traded to the Giants, per Longenhagen. The Twins will get minor league catcher Miguel Caraballo in return, per Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune)
  5. Pirates: RHP Carter Baumler (Orioles) (The Pirates then traded Baumler to the Rangers for RHP Jaiker Garcia. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News previously suggested Texas would likely get Baumler)
  6. Angels: pass
  7. Orioles: pass
  8. Athletics: RHP Ryan Watson (Giants) (Will be traded to Red Sox, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive. The A’s will get Justin Riemer in return, per Cotillo.)
  9. Braves: pass
  10. Rays: pass
  11. Cardinals: RHP Matt Pushard (Marlins)
  12. Marlins: pass
  13. Diamondbacks: pass
  14. Rangers: pass
  15. Giants: pass
  16. Royals: pass
  17. Reds: pass
  18. Mets: pass
  19. Tigers: pass
  20. Astros: RHP Roddery Muñoz (Reds)
  21. Guardians: RHP Peyton Pallette (White Sox)
  22. Red Sox: pass
  23. Mariners: pass
  24. Padres: pass
  25. Cubs: pass
  26. Dodgers: pass
  27. Blue Jays: RHP Spencer Miles (Giants)
  28. Yankees: RHP Cade Winquest (Cardinals)
  29. Phillies: RHP Zach McCambley (Marlins)
  30. Brewers: pass

Second round (all others passed)

Photo courtesy of Mike Watters, Imagn Images

Mets, Padres, Phillies, Yankees Among Teams Interested In Brenton Doyle

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Rockies center fielder Brenton Doyle is garnering “widespread trade interest,” according to Ari Alexander of 7News Boston.  The Padres, Phillies, Yankees, and Mets are just some of the “many” teams who have checked in with the Rox about the two-time Gold Glover.

Doyle won the NL center field Gold Glove in both the 2023 and 2024 seasons, and he won a Fielding Bible Award as well in 2024.  However, his stellar defense took a step backwards in 2025, as per such public defensive metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average.  After recording 14 OAA each in both 2023 and 2024, Doyle had “only” six OAA in 2025, though naturally this is still very strong.  The DRS dropoff was more severe, as Doyle went from +29 DRS over the 2023-24 seasons to an even 0 total last year.

The focus on Doyle’s defense is necessary since he has yet to show that he contribute as a big league hitter.  He had only a 44 wRC+ over 431 in his 2023 rookie season, but boosted that wRC+ up to 97 in 2024 by hitting .260/.317/.446 with 23 home runs and 30 stolen bases over 603 plate appearances.  This improved offense and Doyle’s superb defense combined for a 3.6 fWAR season, making him an immensely valuable player if he could generate anything close to league-average production at the plate.

Unfortunately, Doyle badly regressed to a 65 wRC+ in 2025, hitting only .233/.274/.376 over 538 PA.  Between this lack of offense and his diminished defense, Doyle barely topped replacement-level production in posting 0.4 fWAR.  It is very possible and understandable that Doyle’s mind was on matters far more important than baseball last year, as the outfielder and wife lost their unborn child in April, 12 weeks into the pregnancy.

Doyle’s 2025 numbers apparently haven’t had much impact on his trade value, which isn’t that surprising for a few reasons.  The 27-year-old is a Super Two player who is controlled through the 2029 season, and Doyle is projected for a $3.2MM salary in his first trip through the arbitration process this winter.  At worst, Doyle is still an excellent defender and a strong baserunner, with 70 steals in 82 attempts during his big league career.  Though Doyle strikes out a lot and doesn’t walk much, he makes a lot of solid contact and has some pop in his bat, and could break out in a more normalized offensive environment than Coors Field.

This potential for offensive improvement could appeal to the Mets, who already have a glove-first player in Tyrone Taylor as their top option in center field.  The Phillies plan to give top prospect Justin Crawford a look in their big league outfield this year, though since it isn’t known if Crawford will be a center fielder over the long term, installing Doyle would allow Crawford to take on a less pressurized role in the corner outfield.

The Yankees and Padres have more crowded outfield pictures.  With Trent Grisham accepting the qualifying offer, New York’s starting outfield is ostensibly set between Grisham, Aaron Judge, and Jasson Dominguez, plus the club is still interested in re-signing Cody Bellinger.  Doyle might be viewed as a fallback plan if Bellinger signs elsewhere, and Doyle’s would both provide some guard if Dominguez still isn’t fully ready for the Show, or if Grisham’s sharp defensive decline from 2025 carries over into next year.  Doyle is a right-handed hitter, so he could split time with the lefty-swinging Grisham in center field.

San Diego has Jackson Merrill in center field, flanked in the corners by Fernando Tatis Jr. and (after his club option was exercised) Ramon Laureano.  Merrill is coming off an injury-marred 2025 season but he was still productive at the plate, and though defensive metrics are split on his work in center field, he has done an overall solid job considering that he learned center field on the fly prior to making his MLB debut in 2024.  Tatis and Merrill are locked up over the long term, so Doyle could be a fourth outfielder in 2026, and the Padres could re-evaluate the situation once Laureano’s contract is up next winter.  The fact that the Padres and Rockies are division rivals might complicate any trade, however.

In regards to the Rox, it remains to be seen if the team will even trade Doyle at all, since they’d be selling low on a player who might well be in line for a rebound year.  Trade interest in Doyle has stretched back to at least last summer’s trade deadline, and there is a sense that Colorado might move an outfielder since the outfield is one of the few relative positions of depth on the roster.  New president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta is open to basically anything as he tries to turn around a 119-loss team, so if another team makes a big enough offer for Doyle, DePodesta could very well consider swinging a trade now in order bring some much-needed young talent into the organization.

Guardians Notes: Kwan, Bullpen, Valera, Rocchio

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As expected, it has been a quiet start to the offseason for the Guardians. Their only major league moves thus far have been to re-sign backup catcher Austin Hedges and add middle reliever Connor Brogdon. Cleveland rarely attacks free agency, and they seem generally unlikely to make major moves on the trade front in either direction this winter.

The Guardians heard teams out on Steven Kwan at the deadline. They didn’t find an offer to their liking, and they’re less inclined to sell after making a surprise late-season run to another AL Central title. Unsurprisingly, ESPN’s Buster Olney wrote this morning that while the Guards aren’t going to close themselves off to offers, they’re currently inclined to hold him into next season.

An offseason trade would be selling at a bit of a low point. Kwan had a .700 OPS or worse in each of the final four months. His overall .272/.330/.374 line was league average, but that was carried mostly by a fantastic April. It’s primarily a reflection of a drop in his batting average on balls in play. BABIP volatility is to be expected for a player who rarely hits the ball hard but is one of the sport’s five best pure contact hitters. The bat-to-ball skills and plus defense in left field give him a solid floor, and both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference valued him around three wins above replacement.

Kwan is under team control for two seasons. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for an $8.8MM salary. The Guardians don’t have much on the books beyond the well below-market José Ramírez contract. They’re not under any financial pressure to move him. Even if other teams value him just as highly as they did over the summer, a trade would remove the only established outfielder from Stephen Vogt’s lineup. Rookies Chase DeLauter, Petey Halpin and George Valera and the out-of-options Nolan Jones are currently in line to divide the center and right field playing time. The Guards already need to add to the outfield, and a Kwan trade would only push that further.

Cleveland is also in the market for multiple relievers, Vogt told reporters at the Winter Meetings (link via Tim Stebbins of MLB.com). “We need depth in the bullpen,” the two-time AL Manager of the Year said. “We have four, maybe five guys in our bullpen, and we need eight.”

It’s safe to assume Emmanuel Clase isn’t coming back. That keeps Cade Smith in the closer role. Hunter Gaddis is a quality setup arm from the right side. The rest of the group is in flux. Brogdon and Matt Festa are out of options and probably set to open the season in middle relief. Neither should be ticketed for leverage spots. There’s even less certainly from the left side. Tim Herrin and Erik Sabrowski have each shown promise but struggled to throw strikes. Even if a depth starter like Joey Cantillo or Doug Nikhazy ends up in long relief, they need more trustworthy arms.

Additionally, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports that the Guardians have been granted a fourth option year on both Valera and second base prospect Juan Brito. Players can typically only be optioned to the minor leagues in three separate seasons after being added to the 40-man roster. After that, teams need to pass them through waivers and outright them off the 40-man to send them down.

Exceptions are made for players who have less than five full seasons (90+ days) on an MLB or minor league active roster. That usually occurs because the player took a while to reach full-season ball — especially for international signings who signed their first contract at 16 — and/or missed chunks of a season to injury. Valera didn’t play a full minor league season until 2021 and missed most of this past season working back from knee surgery. Brito didn’t play a full season until 2022, so he’d have been eligible for the fourth option even if he were fully healthy. He missed most of the ’25 season because of thumb and hamstring issues.

Valera and Brito could each be in the mix for Opening Day roster spots. The Guardians have the flexibility to send them to Triple-A Columbus for another season, though both right field and second base are open in the short term. There’s probably more pressure on Brito to break out, as top prospect Travis Bazzana has already hit his way to Triple-A. Bazzana has the higher ceiling and is viewed as the long-term second baseman, meaning Brito might not have much runway even if he breaks camp.

Vogt told reporters that Brayan Rocchio will play a lot of shortstop during Spring Training. They’ll move Gabriel Arias around in a utility role, leaving the door open for Brito or Bazzana to play their way into the second base job early in the season. Rocchio divided his time evenly between the middle infield spots this year, though he was mostly at the keystone in the second half. He’s out of options and probably isn’t in jeopardy of losing his roster spot, but he’s a .222/.293/.327 in more than 900 plate appearances over parts of three seasons. He’s entering his age-25 campaign and in a bit of a make-or-break spot himself if he’s going to remain an everyday player.

Orioles, Pete Alonso Agree To Five-Year Deal

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The Orioles missed out on Kyle Schwarber yesterday but are getting their big bat today, as ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports that they’re finalizing a five-year, $155MM deal with longtime Mets first baseman Pete Alonso. The agreement is in place with only a physical yet to be completed, Joel Sherman of the New York Post adds. There are no deferrals or opt-outs in the contract, per MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner adds that Alonso receives a limited no-trade clause. Alonso is represented by the Boras Corporation.

It’s the second major defection from the Mets in as many days. Edwin Diaz spurned Queens for a three-year, $69MM deal with the Dodgers just yesterday. Alonso now heads to the Orioles, with whom he met in person at this week’s Winter Meetings (which are being held in Orlando, not all that far from Alonso’s Tampa-area home).

Although bolstering the rotation has been the obvious goal for Baltimore all offseason, the O’s have also been in pursuit of a major upgrade to the lineup. They offered Kyle Schwarber the same five-year, $150MM terms to which he agreed in his return to the Phillies and have now pushed incrementally further to give Alonso a record-setting average annual value for a first baseman over that same five-year term.

Alonso, who turned 31 over the weekend, famously rejected a reported seven-year, $158MM extension offer from the Mets back in 2023. He drew a fair bit of criticism for that decision, particularly when his market didn’t develop as hoped during last offseason’s initial foray into free agency. Alonso wound up returning to the Mets on a two-year, $54MM deal that was frontloaded with a $30MM salary in 2025 and allowed him to opt back into free agency this winter.

Between that $30MM, the $20.5MM he earned in his final season of arbitration eligibility and the newly promised $155MM from the Orioles, Alonso will end up with $205.5MM over the same seven years that would’ve been covered under the extension offer he turned down.

In Alonso, the Orioles are adding one of the steadiest power hitters on the planet. He’s slugged at least 34 home runs in every 162-game season since his 2019 debut, plus another 16 round-trippers in the shortened 2020 campaign. Dating back to 2019, Schwarber (268) and Aaron Judge (285) are the only players with more home runs than Alonso’s 264.

Steady as his power output has been, Alonso needed a “rebound” campaign of sorts in order to get this type of long-term deal. While his market last offseason was surely weighed down by a qualifying offer — players can only receive one QO in their career, so that wasn’t an issue this time around — Alonso had slugged a career-low 34 home runs with an increase in strikeouts and a downturn in his batted-ball metrics. His .240/.329/.459 output in 2024 was more good than elite.

The 2025 campaign brought improvements across the board. Alonso belted 38 homers and 41 doubles (up from 31 the year prior) while slashing .272/.347/.524 (141 wRC+). He lopped two percentage points off his strikeout rate, cutting it to a roughly average 22.8%, and saw enormous upticks in his average exit velocity (93.5 mph in ’25, 89.8 mph in ’24), barrel rate (18.9% vs. 13.2%) and hard-hit rate (54.4% vs. 46.4%). Alonso struggled through a poor month of July, but as the Mets were fighting for their postseason lives (and ultimately falling short), Alonso put the team’s offense on his back alongside fellow stars Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor. From Aug. 1 onward, the “Polar Bear” raked at a .297/.339/.584 clip (153 wRC+) with 16 home runs and 15 doubles in 239 plate appearances.

Despite that Herculean finish to the season, Alonso received tepid interest from the only club he’s ever known. The Mets were reportedly reluctant to go beyond three years in their talks with Alonso, and the New York Post’s Joel Sherman reported in the aftermath of today’s agreement that they never made a formal offer once it became clear where Alonso’s market was headed. That’s surely a point of frustration for the majority of Mets fans but also shouldn’t come as a major surprise; if the Mets were going to commit to Alonso long-term under president of baseball operations David Stearns and owner Steve Cohen, that likely would have happened last winter. The Mets were only comfortable with a short-term deal then and clearly didn’t change that thinking this time around.

Alonso is the second 30-homer slugger acquired by Baltimore president of baseball operations Mike Elias this winter. The O’s also picked up outfielder Taylor Ward (36 homers in 2025) in a trade sending talented but oft-injured righty Grayson Rodriguez to the Angels. The additions of Alonso and Ward should both add an influx of right-handed power to a team that hit just .231/.297/.364 against left-handed pitching in 2025 and also create myriad trade possibilities for Elias and his staff.

It’s feasible that the Orioles simply add a prominent starting pitcher via free agency as their primary means of addressing the rotation, but their newly acquired thumpers open the space for more creativity. Alonso’s addition could make it easier to trade young corner infielder Coby Mayo, while plugging Ward into a corner outfield spot makes one of Dylan Beavers or Colton Cowser easier to include in a trade for pitching help. Baltimore’s decision to tender a contract to Ryan Mountcastle, a defensively limited right-handed slugger coming off a poor season, now looks like all the more of a head-scratcher, though. The O’s could try to find a taker willing to buy low on him or, alternatively, hope that he can bounce back and be part of the solution between first base and designated hitter.

Payroll-wise, there was always clear runway to add a major contract to the books. The Orioles have spent the better part of the past decade in a rebuild and thus haven’t been handing out multi-year deals very often. The only players guaranteed anything beyond the upcoming 2026 season are Tyler O’Neill, Ryan Helsley and Samuel Basallo. O’Neill and Helsley are only signed through 2027, and Helsley can opt out of his contract following the 2026 season. (O’Neill’s $16.5MM salary in 2027 is all but immovable after his ugly 2025 showing.) Basallo’s eight-year, $67MM extension has just an $8.375MM average annual value. His salary will sit at just $1MM in each of the next three seasons and won’t top $10MM until 2031, at which point Alonso’s contract will have already wrapped up.

Alonso adds $31MM per year to the ledger — assuming an even distribution of his $155MM — but the rest of the books are so clean that it shouldn’t impede the Orioles from future additions of note and/or extensions for prominent young players. RosterResource now projects them for a payroll just under $148MM in 2026, but the 2027 books only have $62.5MM in guaranteed money ($48.5MM if Helsley turns down his player option). By 2028, Alonso and Basallo are the only players guaranteed anything.

Alonso’s contract becomes the second-largest in Orioles history, trailing only the seven-year, $161MM contract given to first baseman Chris Davis under a prior ownership and front office regime. That contract was laden with deferrals, too, which considerably weighed down the net present value.

When considering that wrinkle, the investment in Alonso can be considered the most significant expenditure in franchise history — but it’s also just one of several steps the Orioles will take this winter. Elias is still angling to upgrade his team’s rotation, and the O’s could still use help in the bullpen. This could very well end up being viewed as the signature move of the offseason — if not the entire Elias era to date — but the O’s aren’t likely to coast from here to spring training. There’s more on the horizon.

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