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Cardinals Trade Nolan Arenado To Diamondbacks

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After more than a yearlong residency on the rumor mill, Nolan Arenado’s time in St. Louis is over. The Cardinals announced Tuesday that they’ve traded Arenado and cash to the D-backs in exchange for minor league right-hander Jack Martinez (Arizona’s eighth-round pick in the 2025 draft). The Cardinals are including a reported $26MM in cash to help facilitate the trade.

With the Cardinals entering a rebuild under new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, trading the 34-year-old Arenado (35 in April) has been a primary goal this offseason. He’s still owed two years and $42MM, though the Rockies are on the hook for $5MM of that sum. Arizona is on the hook for $5MM this season and $6MM next year.

Three years ago, a salary dump of Arenado would’ve been hard to imagine. He was a National League MVP finalist after hitting .293/.358/.533 with 30 home runs and his typical brand of elite defense during that 2022 season. His offense slipped considerably in 2023 (.266/.315/.459) but was still north of league average. It dipped to about average in 2024, however, and plummeted well below par this past season.

In 436 plate appearances with the Cardinals in 2025, Arenado turned in an anemic .237/.289/.377 batting line. By measure of wRC+, he was 16% worse than an average hitter at the plate. Arenado’s 12 home runs were his lowest in a full season since his rookie year back in 2013. This year’s 6.4% walk rate was his lowest since 2015. When considering that his 34.1% chase rate on pitches off the plate was also his worst since 2015, that’s not particularly surprising. Arenado’s 11.2% strikeout rate was one of the lowest in MLB and one of the best in his career, but he also posted his highest-ever infield fly rate — 16.5% of his fly-balls were harmless pop-ups — and recorded some of the worst exit velocity and hard-hit numbers of his career.

Suffice it to say, Arenado’s decline at the plate has been steep. He still possesses plus contact skills but will need to scale back his chase rate and cut out some of those weak pop-ups if he’s to improve in a meaningful way. Fortunately for Arenado, he’s going to a more favorable offensive environment than the one he’s been calling home in St. Louis. While Phoenix’s Chase Field isn’t the hitters’ haven it once was, it plays largely neutral to right-handed power now — a stark gain for Arenado relative to St. Louis’ Busch Stadium, which is the fifth-worst park for right-handed home run power over the past three years, per Statcast’s Park Factors.

Prior to adding Arenado, the Diamondbacks had been involved in the market for Alex Bregman. A match there always seemed like something of a long shot, given Arizona’s intent to reduce payroll in 2026, but the interest was legitimate. The Snakes quickly pivoted and brought in a much more affordable option to hold down the hot corner for the next two seasons. Arenado’s glove has also taken some steps back in recent years, but he’s still an above-average defender. He’ll give manager Torey Lovullo a quality pair of defenders on the left side of the infield, joining breakout shortstop Geraldo Perdomo in that regard.

Acquiring Arenado leaves the Diamondbacks with little opportunity for former No. 6 overall pick and top prospect Jordan Lawlar. Perdomo’s breakout appeared to push Lawlar down the defensive spectrum to third base, but he looked overmatched both with the glove and in the batter’s box during his first few tests against MLB pitching. The D-backs were considering giving him some time in the outfield, and perhaps with Jake McCarthy now in Colorado following this weekend’s trade, there’ll be a clearer path to that experiment. If not, Lawlar has a minor league option remaining and can be sent back to Triple-A (where he’s routinely thrashed opposing pitchers) — or even included in a potential trade package to address needs elsewhere on the roster.

Even with the Snakes looking to cut payroll, the addition of that fraction of Arenado’s contract amounts to little more than a footnote. He’s effectively replacing a league-minimum player, so this trade adds a net $4.2MM to the team’s books. Per RosterResource’s estimates, that brings Arizona’s payroll just north of $170MM. That’s more than $17MM shy of last year’s Opening Day payroll. An exact target isn’t clear, but there should be room to add a reliever or two, at the very least, and further trades could always change the payroll outlook one way or another.

If the money changing hands (and the frequent reporting in the year-plus leading up to today’s trade) wasn’t indicative enough that this amounts to a salary dump for St. Louis, the return should be. Martinez hasn’t pitched an inning in professional ball yet. The Diamondbacks selected him with their eighth-round pick last year out of Arizona State University. His $167K signing bonus checked in south of his No. 243 overall selection’s $223K slot value.

A 6’4″, 215-pound righty, Martinez started his college career playing Division-III ball before transferring twice and ending up in the Sun Devils’ rotation as a senior. He was tagged for a 5.47 ERA through 15 starts during his senior year. It’s not an encouraging number, but Martinez punched out 32.3% of his opponents and can run his fastball up to 97 mph, per MLB.com’s scouting report. He has a four-pitch mix with a changeup serving as his best secondary offering, but Martinez is a pure lottery ticket for the Cardinals’ reshaped player development department.

Katie Woo of The Athletic first reported that the two sides were in serious discussions. John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM Arizona Sports broke the news that an agreement was in place and added that Martinez was going back to St. Louis. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic first reported details on the cash changing hands.

More to come.

Mets Reportedly In Three-Year, $120-140MM Range In Kyle Tucker Talks

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The top free agent of the offseason is still unsigned with about a month to go until pitchers and catchers report to spring training. Some recent reporting, including from Jim Duquette of MLB Network Radio, has suggested the Blue Jays, Dodgers and Mets are the top suitors for Kyle Tucker at this point. All three have recently met with Tucker, either in person or over Zoom, per Duquette. Will Sammon of The Athletic reports today that the Mets are in the range of offering him $120MM to $140MM on a three-year deal. Sammon says Tucker could make his decision as soon as this week.

More to come.

Giants Aggressively Pursuing Second Base Upgrade

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That the Giants are in the market for help at second base is well known at this point, but ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports that San Francisco has been particularly “aggressive” in its pursuit of late, with recent talks regarding a pair of NL Central standouts: Nico Hoerner of the Cubs and Brendan Donovan of the Cardinals. Both were known targets for the Giants already, but it’s notable that they’re ostensibly ramping up their efforts to make a deal happen.

Giants second basemen were among the least-productive in all of baseball in 2025, hitting a combined .217/.273/.343. The resulting 73 wRC+ (indicating they were 27% worse than average at the plate) ranked 27th in the majors, leading only the Angels, A’s and Rockies. Tyler Fitzgerald led San Francisco with 233 plate appearances as the team’s second baseman, followed by Casey Schmitt (193), Christian Koss (137) and Brett Wisely (43). All four posted well below-average numbers with the bat while playing second base (though Schmitt hit better while playing other positions and was close to league-average with the bat overall).

Either Donovan or Hoerner would stand as a major upgrade. Both will play next season at 29 years old. Both are established contact hitters with defensive versatility, although the presence of Matt Chapman and Willy Adames on the left side of the infield would lessen the Giants’ need to take advantage of that positional flexibility. Donovan, who agreed to a one-year deal worth $5.8MM to avoid arbitration last week, is controlled through the 2027 season. Hoerner is owed $12MM in the final season of his three-year, $35MM contract this season.

Donovan figures to be the more readily available of the two in trade talks. The Cardinals are in the early stages of a multiyear rebuilding effort under new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. They’ve already shipped out Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras in separate trades to the Red Sox, and they’ve been fielding interest in lefty JoJo Romero while also working to find a taker for Nolan Arenado. Donovan’s remaining two years of club control don’t align with a realistic path to contention in St. Louis, and of all the team’s offseason trade assets, he stands as the one most likely to net a significant return.

Since making his MLB debut four years ago, Donovan has done nothing but hit. He carries a lifetime .282/.361/.411 slash in the batter’s box (119 wRC+) and has regularly proven to be one of the game’s toughest strikeouts. He drew a walk in 8.2% of his plate appearances in 2025 (9.1% career) and fanned at only a 13% clip (13.5% career). Donovan’s power is below average — he’s never topped 14 homers in a season — but he’s a former All-Star and Gold Glove winner who can also handle third base and the outfield corners (and perhaps some shortstop, in a pinch).

Hoerner is statistically one of Donovan’s most comparable hitters. Over the past five seasons, his .285/.342/.388 line (106 wRC+) closely resembles Donovan’s production. Hoerner runs far more often (131 steals to Donovan’s 15) and would be a plus defender at shortstop if not for the fact that he slid over to second base in deference to Dansby Swanson at shortstop.

Unlike the Cardinals, however, the Cubs are in clear win-now mode. Trading Hoerner just days after agreeing to a five-year deal with Alex Bregman would offset much of the good brought about by that Bregman signing. Given that, it seems quite likely that the Cubs would seek immediate MLB talent in any trade involving Hoerner, and the cost of acquisition would be fairly steep. Chicago could always move former top prospect Matt Shaw to second base — he might be the heir-apparent there now anyhow — but the Cubs could also simply keep all three infielders for the 2026 season and use Shaw in a utility role before handing second base to him full-time in 2027.

Payroll-wise, the Giants should have little problem fitting either player into the picture. RosterResource currently projects a $185MM payroll for San Francisco. That’s up a few million from last year’s levels but also a ways shy of the $200MM franchise record set back in 2018. And considering the fact that over the past 18 months, ownership has made three separate nine-figure commitments (Chapman’s $151MM extension, Adames’ $182MM contract, the $250MM+ remaining on Devers’ contract), it stands to reason that they’re at least open to further additions.

It bears mentioning that there’s no indication from Passan that Hoerner and Donovan are the only two targets on which the Giants are focused. The free-agent market still has one high-profile option in Bo Bichette, and even if he lands elsewhere, that deal itself could create some potential avenues for the Giants to explore. If Bichette were to sign in Philadelphia, for instance, the Phillies might be more inclined to part with Bryson Stott than would otherwise be the case. If he ended up in Boston, the Red Sox might have some additional infielders to discuss in trades. There are various paths the Giants can consider and other needs left to address on the roster (namely the bullpen), but having added Tyler Mahle and Adrian Houser in the rotation, it appears second base is their focus for the time being.

Diamondbacks, Shawn Dubin Agree To Minor League Deal

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The D-backs and free agent righty Shawn Dubin agreed to a minor league deal, per Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. The agreement was actually reached last month, based on Dubin’s transaction log at MLB.com, but apparently didn’t become finalized until more recently. He’s represented by Excel Sports Management.

Dubin, 30, has spent nearly his entire career in the Astros organization. Houston selected him in the 13th round of the 2018 draft, and he’s pitched in parts of each of the past three seasons with them. Dubin has posted decent results and strong strikeout rates in the upper minors, and he showed some promise with the ’24 Astros when he logged 45 1/3 innings with a 4.17 ERA and a 23.7% strikeout rate. Command has long been an issue for the righty, however, and that was the case in ’24 as well, when he issued a walk to 12.6% of his opponents.

In 2025, Dubin turned in strong Triple-A results in a small sample (one run, four hits, one walk, 14 strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings) before being summoned to the majors. He was tagged for a 5.61 ERA with a surprisingly sharp 7.2% walk rate but also a diminished 18.9% strikeout rate in 25 2/3 innings. Houston designated him for assignment in late August.

The Orioles claimed Dubin, and he pitched eight innings for them in the final few weeks of the season. He allowed only three runs in that time, but he missed time with an elbow injury. Dubin has typically sat 94-96 mph with his fastball, but his average velocity with the Orioles checked in at 93.6 mph, which stood as a clear red flag. Imaging on did not reveal any major damage, however, and Dubin told the Orioles beat in September that he expected to avoid surgery and have a normal offseason after a few weeks of downtime (via the Baltimore Banner’s Andy Kostka). Baltimore outrighted him off the roster following the season. He elected to become a minor league free agent.

Dubin has extensive experience working as both a starter and a reliever. Assuming he’s healthy and invited to major league camp this spring, he can compete for a swingman role on a D-backs staff that is generally short on innings. Re-signing Merrill Kelly gave the Snakes a veteran anchor, and he’ll join Ryne Nelson, Brandon Pfaadt, Eduardo Rodriguez and Michael Soroka in the rotation as things currently stand. Rodriguez and especially Soroka have both missed time with injuries in recent seasons, however, and the depth options beyond that top quintet are mostly lacking in major league experience.

The Opener: Bellinger, Relief Market, MLBTR Chat

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

1. Bellinger, Yankees negotiations continue:

The Yankees and outfielder Cody Bellinger were recently reported to be at an impasse in contract negotiations. Both sides are interested in a reunion, but Bellinger has interest from other clubs, including the Mets and Dodgers. (The Angels, Phillies and Giants all at least checked in earlier in the offseason as well.) The Yankees have reportedly explored alternatives to Bellinger ranging from free agents like Bo Bichette and Kyle Tucker to trade candidates like Luis Robert Jr. and Nico Hoerner.

While contract length seems to be a sticking point, with Bellinger seeking a longer deal than the Yankees’ five-year offer, New York is reportedly open to bridging the gap by including opt-outs. If structured favorably, that could allow Bellinger to bank significant money over the next couple of years before returning to free agency at a later date. That’s the tactic he ended up taking during his last trip through free agency, when he sought a massive contract but ultimately settled for three years and $80MM from the Cubs.

2. What’s left on the relief market?

The Reds’ weekend deal with right-hander Pierce Johnson took yet another name off the board on a dwindling relief market. For other teams looking to bolster their bullpen, the options are waning. Seranthony Dominguez is among the top names still on the market, and he’s garnered some recent interest from the Twins. Michael Kopech, Jorge Lopez, Jose Leclerc, Paul Sewald, and Tommy Kahnle all remain available as well, but each comes with warts due to some combination of recent injury history and poor results. Lefties Taylor Rogers and Danny Coulombe remain available as interesting options and could be particularly valuable to a team without a quality southpaw for the late innings. Virtually every team could stand to improve its bullpen, but the Twins are joined by the Nationals, Diamondbacks, and Rangers as teams that appear to have a particularly significant need in their relief corps at this point.

3. MLBTR chat today:

Pitchers and catchers will begin reporting in mid-February, but plenty of questions about this offseason remain. Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette, and Framber Valdez are among the top-flight free agents still available, while the trade market holds intriguing talents like Freddy Peralta and Brendan Donovan who could still be moved. If you’re wondering what’s left for your favorite team to do before pitchers and catchers report 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.

Yankees Open To Including Opt-Outs In Bellinger Offer

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The Yankees reportedly have a five-year offer at more than $30MM annually on the table to Cody Bellinger. ESPN’s Buster Olney nevertheless wrote over the weekend that New York was preparing for the possibility that the outfielder could head elsewhere, potentially on a six-plus year contract.

Brendan Kuty of The Athletic added a few specifics on the Yankees’ position in a report this evening. Kuty writes that the five-year proposal came with a “true” $31-32MM average annual value, as it did not include any deferred money. He adds that the Yankees are willing to discuss opt-out possibilities as well, though it’s not known if their most recent offer actually included such a clause. Jon Heyman of The New York Post similarly suggested that some kind of opt-out was a possibility.

Contract length appears to be the significant stumbling block. Bellinger’s camp at the Boras Corporation is reportedly looking for a seven-year guarantee. Olney suggested over the weekend that he also wanted more than the Yankees were offering on an annual basis, yet the extra year or two seems the bigger hurdle. Bellinger is entering his age-30 season (though he turns 31 in July, less than two weeks after the unofficial July 1 cutoff for a player’s seasonal age).

As shown on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker for Front Office subscribers, Brandon Nimmo signed the most recent six-plus year free agent deal for a hitter in his 30s. That eight-year pact was one of four such contracts over the 2022-23 offseason, but there hasn’t been one within the last two offseasons. Alex Bregman rejected a six-year offer from Detroit last winter in advance of his age-31 campaign. Bregman went on to agree to a five-year deal last week that’ll run through age-36, the same age at which a seven-year deal for Bellinger would conclude. Kyle Schwarber signed a five-year contract covering ages 33-37 last month.

Bellinger went short term with opt-outs during his last free agent trip. He signed a three-year, $80MM guarantee with outs after each of the first two seasons. After foregoing the first opportunity, he returned to the market on the heels of a .272/.334/.480 season in the Bronx. He’s unattached to a qualifying offer this time around and already seems assured of a much more lucrative guarantee than he commanded on his previous free agent deal.

Phillies, Genesis Cabrera Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies agreed to a minor league deal with lefty reliever Génesis Cabrera. The agreement was first reported last month by Mike Rodriguez but didn’t appear on the MiLB.com transaction log until this week. The log also indicates that the Phils have also added righty relievers Trevor Richards and Jonathan Hernández, infielder Christian Cairo, and catcher René Pinto in recent weeks.

Cabrera is the likeliest of the group to factor into the early-season plans. The southpaw has pitched in the big leagues in seven straight seasons. He suited up for four different teams last year but struggled to a 6.54 ERA across 40 combined appearances. Cabrera had a mediocre strikeout rate for a second straight season and allowed far too many home runs, which has become an increasing problem.

The 29-year-old Cabrera sits in the 95-96 MPH range with both his sinker and four-seam fastball. The velocity is down from when he was working 97-98 and pitched his way into high-leverage spots with the Cardinals earlier in his career. It’s still above-average for a lefty, though, and Cabrera’s cutter and curveball have each been successful pitches in the past. He backfills their lefty relief depth after the Matt Strahm trade but remains no higher than third on the organizational depth chart behind José Alvarado and Tanner Banks. Philadelphia also has Kyle Backhus, a soft-tossing grounder specialist, on the 40-man roster.

Richards, 33 in May, made five combined appearances last year between the Royals and Diamondbacks. The changeup specialist has pitched parts of eight seasons and topped 60 innings each year from 2021-24. Richards is coming off a 5.19 ERA despite solid strikeout and walk numbers between three Triple-A clubs. He’ll compete for a swing role in Spring Training.

Hernández was a high-leverage arm with the Rangers early in his career who struggled between 2023-24. The 29-year-old sinkerballer signed a minor league deal with Tampa Bay last winter. He was injured for most of the season and limited to 12 Triple-A appearances, in which he tossed 12 innings of three-run ball. He averaged 95.3 MPH on his fastball, down almost three ticks relative to his first few seasons in Texas.

Pinto is a veteran depth catcher who hit .231/.263/.404 over 83 games with the Rays from 2022-24. He spent last season in the minors, striking out at a 31% rate while batting .259/.309/.498 in 64 contests with Arizona and Toronto affiliates. Cairo, a slick-fielding utility player, was a Rule 5 pick by the Braves last offseason. He didn’t make the team and was offered back to the Guardians in Spring Training. He hit .237/.338/.331 across 416 Triple-A plate appearances and qualified for minor league free agency. He’s still looking to make his MLB debut.

A’s Hire Barry Enright As Pitching Coordinator

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The Athletics are hiring Barry Enright as pitching coordinator and director of pitching in their player development department, reports Sam Blum of The Athletic. Enright has spent the past couple seasons as pitching coach of the Angels.

A former reliever who pitched parts of four seasons in the big leagues, Enright moved into coaching in 2019. He began as a minor league coach in the Arizona system before getting an MLB job as assistant pitching coach going into 2022. Enright held that role for two seasons before joining Ron Washington’s staff as lead pitching coach.

Enright worked in that capacity for two years. The Angels had one of the worst pitching staffs in MLB over that stretch, finishing 28th with a cumulative 4.73 earned run average. Their 20.4% strikeout rate was better only than Colorado’s 17.4% mark. The pitching staff wasn’t much better the season before Enright’s arrival, and the team’s performance over the past couple seasons is of course mostly a reflection on the roster itself.

The Angels made a managerial change, tabbing former A’s catcher Kurt Suzuki to lead the dugout. Suzuki overhauled the coaching staff and brought in veteran pitching coach Mike Maddux from the Rangers. Enright doesn’t jump directly back onto an MLB staff but will get to work with a farm system that’ll need steps forward from its talented arms in a challenging environment.

The A’s have an excellent offensive core but are light on established pitching. Four of their top five prospects at Baseball America are pitchers. They’ll need continued development from that group if they’re to compete for a playoff spot over the next two seasons at the hitter-friendly Sutter Health Park.

Tigers To Re-Sign Bryan Sammons To Minor League Deal

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The Tigers are signing left-hander Bryan Sammons to a minor league contract, reports Jon Morosi of The MLB Network. The 6’4″ southpaw will be in camp as a non-roster invitee.

Sammons returns to the organization with which he spent the 2023-24 seasons. A former Twins draftee, Sammons signed with the Tigers out of the independent ranks. Sammons earned a big league look in July ’24 and made six MLB appearances as a long reliever. He posted a 3.62 ERA through 27 1/3 innings.

That earned the Western Carolina product a guaranteed contract from the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan last winter. Sammons had a decent year in NPB, working to a 3.78 ERA across 85 2/3 frames. That came with middling strikeout (19.6%) and walk (10.7%) rates, and the 30-year-old heads back to the affiliated ranks with a familiar team.

Sammons will likely head to Triple-A Toledo, where he posted a 4.15 ERA through 102 innings two seasons ago. He fanned 23.1% of batters faced against a 10% walk rate. Sammons uses a five-pitch mix to compensate for fringe velocity, as he sits around 91 MPH with the fastball.

Cubs, Corbin Martin Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Cubs are in agreement with right-hander Corbin Martin on a minor league contract, reports Marquee’s Lance Brozdowski. The 30-year-old will presumably get a non-roster invite to MLB camp.

Martin was on and off Baltimore’s big league roster throughout the 2025 season. He wound up throwing 18 innings, allowing 15 runs (12 earned). That actually lowered his career earned run average to 6.54 across 75 2/3 frames over parts of four seasons. Martin had similarly rough numbers with Triple-A Norfolk, allowing a 5.82 ERA in 34 appearances. He recorded an average 22.5% strikeout percentage while issuing walks at a huge 13.6% clip.

A former second-round pick of the Astros, Martin was a highly-regarded prospect whom the Diamondbacks acquired in the Zack Greinke trade. Injuries threw him off track. The 6’2″ righty underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019 and missed the entire ’23 season on account of a torn lat tendon. His control, which was solid enough early in his minor league career, has held him back at the upper levels. Martin has walked more than 12% of opponents in the big leagues and Triple-A alike.

The Cubs are intrigued enough by the raw stuff to give him a look on a non-roster deal. Martin’s heater sits in the 95-96 MPH range and he has a slider and curveball. It’s a good enough arsenal to miss bats but he’ll need to be around the strike zone more consistently to secure a spot in Craig Counsell’s relief group. Martin has exhausted his minor league option years, meaning the Cubs would need to keep him in the majors or expose him to waivers if they call him up.

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