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MLBTR Chat Transcript

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Mark P

  • Welcome to the Weekend Chat! We’ll start up once a few questions start piling into the queue…

Pirates 2026 World Series Champions

  • Pirates are 3-0 in spring training. Are they the greatest team of all time??

Mark P

  • Yes. The next CBA will be built around how to level competitive balance so powerhouse teams like Pittsburgh can be held in check.

Jason

  • What do you see with #4 and #5 starter for Braves.

Mark P

  • It’ll be Holmes and I guess Elder as the fifth for now?  Holmes I think can deliver a decent season but there’s a lot less confidence in Elder.  Martin Perez isn’t a bad placeholder for the fifth spot, or maybe the Braves can use multiple pitchers to patch things up until (or if?) the injured guys are back.

    Or, maybe the easiest solution is that Atlanta just signs a starter

Royals Fan

  • Local sports radio saying anything short of the playoffs for the Royals would be a disappointment.  I am not seeing it based on the lack of offseason movement.  Thoughts?

Mark P

  • The Tigers are the favorites in the ALC but I wouldn’t be shocked if the Royals won the division.  That might be an easier path to the playoffs than a wild card, since there are lots of good teams battling for those extra AL slots.

    The Royals have a good roster on paper, but I wish they’d gone bigger with their outfield upgrades.

Guards Fan

  • How much does Rhys Hoskins move the needle for the Guardians offense?

Mark P

  • Speaking of teams that should’ve done more to help their lineup…..

    Hoskins has been decent over the last two years, with the caveats of injury rust and his thumb sprain perhaps preventing him from achieving greater heights.  Cleveland’s not really asking him to be anything more than a platoon bat provided that Manzardo and Kayfus hit as expected, though even as a platoon specialist, Hoskins isn’t exactly a lefty-masher.

    In short, don’t expect the Phillies version of Hoskins to suddenly re-emerge in 2026.  He’s a logical signing for the Guardians but probably not a difference-maker for a lineup that really needs it

Is a 102 ops+

  • Really that much better than a 98 ops +

Mark P

  • /Nigel Tufnel voice

    Yeah, it’s four better.

Lloyd Dobbins

  • Suppose the Braves flop and miss the playoffs again in 2026. Does Alex Anthopoulus’s seat start to get warm?

Mark P

  • Not likely.  AA is under contract through 2031, and his track record with the team is strong enough to withstand even two rough seasons.

Read more

Brewers Not Yet Settled On Late-Game Bullpen Roles

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The bullpen was again a strength for the Brewers in 2025, and closer Trevor Megill led the way with 30 saves, a 2.49 ERA over 49 innings, and an All-Star nod.  As well as Megill has pitched in the ninth-inning role over the last two seasons, however, manager Pat Murphy was non-committal on the topic of who his closer will be in 2026.

“I feel like we’ll look at the matchups and see what’s best. We’ll look at the health of the pitcher.  You might see other guys in that mix too,” Murphy told Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.  While noting that it is still early in Spring Training for such decisions, Murphy hinted at more of a committee approach by saying “I mean, that’s kind of like the message to the whole Milwaukee Brewers team, right?  You have to be uncommon.  That’s an uncommon mindset for us to thread the needle the way we want to.”

Megill’s status might’ve been more secure if it hadn’t been for a right flexor strain that sent him to the injured list late last August.  Megill missed a little over a month of action and was able to return for one regular-season game before the postseason got underway, as well as five playoff appearances.  Megill had a 2.25 ERA over his four postseason innings, but as Rosiak notes, the Brewers used him in non-closing leverage roles.  This even included a perfect inning for Megill as the opener in the winner-take-all Game 5 of the NLDS. which ended up being a 3-1 Brewers victory over the Cubs.

While Megill was on the IL, fellow hard-throwing righty Abner Uribe stepped in to record five saves as the fill-in closer, adding to Uribe’s resume over a dominant season.  Uribe posted a 1.67 ERA, 53.2% grounder rate, 30.2% strikeout rate, and 9.1% strikeout rate over 75 1/3 innings and 75 appearances.  By comparison, Megill had a 2.49 ERA, 39.3% grounder rate, 31.3K%, and 8.9BB% across his 47 frames, and SIERA had the two pitchers as virtually equal — Uribe with a 2.89 and Megill with a 2.93.

Uribe’s 75 appearances tied him for the seventh-most games of any pitcher in 2025.  This durability could mean that Megill ultimately ends up closing more games, if Milwaukee returns to Uribe as a heavily-used reliever for all sorts of leverage or set-up situations.  The Brewers’ projected bullpen is unusually heavy on left-handed pitchers, so the right-handed Uribe and Megill could conceivably be used in more situational high-leverage scenarios, with a southpaw like Jared Koenig or Angel Zerpa deployed to lock down the ninth.

As of last week, Megill said he hadn’t heard anything about his role for the coming season.  While he felt “I think we can probably roll the same way we rolled last year,” Megill stressed that he is happy in whatever job the Brewers see fit, and praised his partnership with his friend Uribe as “a great dynamic.”  On the health front, Megill added that he had a PRP injection during the offseason to help address his right flexor.

The bigger-picture element of bullpen lineup is that Uribe may now be viewed as Milwaukee’s long-term closer of the future, if not the immediate present.  Uribe doesn’t turn 26 until June and he is under team control through the 2030 season.  Megill is entering his age-32 season and has one more year of arbitration eligibility before he hits free agency following the 2027 campaign.

Megill and the Brewers avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $4.7MM salary for the 2026 season.  It’s a healthy raise over the $1.94MM Megill earned in 2024, and reflective of how save totals can quickly boost a pitcher’s earning potential.  Arbitration panels favor traditional counting stats like wins, strikeouts, or (in a reliever’s case) saves ahead of advanced metrics, so consistent ninth-inning work usually leads to bigger paydays through a closer’s arb years.

The Brewers could be looking to curb Megill’s 2027 salary potential by limiting his save totals in 2026, though there is probably a better possibility that Megill’s future salaries will be another team’s problem.  The Brewers tend to trade higher-salaried players as they approach free agency, including past closers as Josh Hader and Devin Williams.  Megill’s first extended taste of closing work came in 2024 when Williams was sidelined with stress fractures in his back, and while Milwaukee was likely always going to be trading Williams during the 2024-25 offseason, Megill’s success as the stopper certainly made the front office’s decision easier.

Megill was involved in some trade rumors of his own this winter, as such teams as the Yankees and Mets were reportedly interested in acquiring the right-hander.  It’s not entirely out of the question that Megill is still dealt, which could be why the Brewers have been hesitant about naming a full-time closer.  While Opening Day is still over a month away, however, the fact that camp has already started probably lowers the chance of a Megill trade.  Moving your closer in Spring Training is far different than moving your closer at the trade deadline a la the Hader deal in 2022, but since trading Hader infamously disrupted the Brewers’ chemistry, the team is certainly more sensitive about how such transactions can shake up a clubhouse.

For Megill, he took the trade speculation in stride, saying “There’s always people calling and seeing what’s what.  I’m sure they’re still doing it.  But just knowing how the team is and the cycle of the closer here, you just see it more as business and it might happen at any time.  Just have to be OK with that and be a good teammate until it happens.”

Torres, Flaherty Discuss Decision To Remain With Tigers

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Both Gleyber Torres and Jack Flaherty could’ve tested the free agent market this winter, but the two veterans instead chose to stay with the Tigers, so Detroit had two major pieces of their roster finalized by mid-November.  Torres was slated for free agency but instead chose to accept the Tigers’ one-year, $22.025MM qualifying offer, while Flaherty passed on an opt-out clause and instead exercised his $20MM player option for the 2026 season.

Torres first came to Detroit on a one-year, $15MM contract during the 2024-25 offseason, as the second baseman was only looking for one-year offers that winter.  Coming off a pretty average 2024 season with the Yankees, Torres was intent on re-establishing his value with a bounce-back season and then seeking out a longer-term pact this winter.  New York opted against issuing Torres a qualifying offer following the 2024 campaign, so getting a QO from the Tigers itself represented a symbolic win for the infielder.

“I’m really, really proud the organization gave me the opportunity with the qualifying offer,” Torres told MLB.com’s Jason Beck.  “I mean, it’s not an easy offer, that type of money for one year. It’s another year to prove myself, to get better and help the team.”

Torres and his reps at Octagon “looked [around] the free-agent market, we touched base with a couple teams, we just tried to see how everything is.”  After that initial due diligence, it was ultimately “an easy choice to come back here,” particularly given how Torres enjoyed playing for Detroit in 2025.

“Last year was a really good year for me.  I felt at home from the first day,” Torres said.  “I felt really good.  I know the group.  I know as an organization, they really want to compete.  What happened last year showed us what we want in the future.  They have a lot of opportunity to do a little bit better.  Personally, I don’t feel good with my second half from the injury.  I was in pain and everything.”

The injury in question was a sports hernia that required surgery at the end of October.  Torres said he’d been playing through the pain for most of the season’s second half, which explains his rather stark splits.  After hitting .281/.387/.425 in 359 plate appearances prior to the All-Star break, Torres slumped to a .223/.320/.339 slash line in his final 269 regular-season plate appearances, plus he hit only .235/.316/.382 over 38 postseason PA.

The end result was an overall set of numbers (.258/.358/.387 with 16 homers in 628 PA) that weren’t far off Torres’ numbers in his last Yankees season.  Since the sports hernia provided a pretty clear reason for Torres’ downturn, the Tigers still felt comfortable making Torres the $22.025MM qualifying offer, and the club is confident that a healthy Torres will look a lot more like the first-half version from 2025.  From Torres’ perspective, he still gets a healthy raise over his 2025 salary and returns to a familiar and welcome environment.

For Flaherty, he ended up choosing the Tigers for the third straight offseason.  Flaherty inked a one-year, $14MM free agent pact with Detroit in December 2023, and he ended up winning a World Series ring with the Dodgers after the righty was dealt to Los Angeles at the trade deadline.  Flaherty then returned to Motown on a two-year, $35MM guarantee, which broke down as a $5MM signing bonus, a $20MM salary in 2025, and then $10MM in 2026.  However, Flaherty added an extra $10MM to his 2026 salary in the form of a bonus clause triggered when he made his 15th start of the 2025 season.

Since Flaherty’s previous forays into free agency came after in-season trades, he had never been eligible for a qualifying offer until last fall.  Detroit therefore could’ve issued Flaherty a QO if he had opted out, and having draft compensation attached to his services may well have adversely impacted Flaherty’s market.  Opting out and seeing if the Tigers floated a QO might’ve landed Flaherty an extra $2.025MM, but the safer move was just to stay in his present contract.

As with Torres’ camp, Flaherty said his reps at Wasserman checked out the market before he had to make his option decision, but ultimately, “not everything is about money.  Especially when you are in a place you feel you have a chance to win,” the right-hander told Chris McCosky of the Detroit News.

“This is an unbelievable team in here,” Flaherty said.  “It’s an unbelievable group of guys.  It’s a group you want to be a part of….I’ve gotten a lot better the last two years being here.  Another year working with [the coaching staff] and building those relationships through another offseason, to go back and forth with them, it pays dividends.”

Since Flaherty was only able to land that two-year, $35MM guarantee following a solid 2024 season, he might have found a less welcome market in the wake of a 2025 campaign that saw his numbers go backwards in most major statistical categories.  Flaherty posted a 4.64 ERA over 161 innings last year, with an above-average 27.6% strikeout rate but a subpar walk rate (8.7%), hard-hit ball rate (43.8%), and barrel rate (10.3%).  Flaherty’s 3.67 SIERA was almost a run superior to his real-world ERA, yet it was far from the kind of ideal platform year that would’ve guaranteed the 30-year-old a significant multi-year contract.

Retaining Torres and Flaherty, re-signing Kyle Finnegan, and signing Kenley Jansen and Drew Anderson stood as the Tigers’ most significant moves for much of the offseason.  This relatively quiet winter suddenly sparked earlier this month, when Detroit made a pair of major rotation signings in Framber Valdez and team legend Justin Verlander.  These additions bolstered the pitching staff to the point that Flaherty may now be the fifth starter, depending on how the team chooses to line up Flaherty, Verlander, and Casey Mize behind the top two of Tarik Skubal and Valdez.

As for the everyday mix, Torres and Spencer Torkelson are the most prominent right-handed bats within a lineup that still tilts heavily to the left side.  Despite multiple rumors linking the Tigers to Alex Bregman and a few other position players, Detroit basically stood pat with its lineup, putting more pressure on Torres and the rest of the hitters to deliver a more consistent performance in 2026.

Red Sox Interested In Left-Handed Bullpen Depth

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The Red Sox may not yet be completely done with their offseason, as Sean McAdam of MassLive reports that the club remains interested in improving their left-handed bullpen depth before the season begins. McAdam adds that Boston intends to have scouts monitoring players in other organizations during camp as they conduct their search.

That the Red Sox might want addition left-handed bullpen help isn’t exactly a shock. The team is incredibly deep in right-handed bullpen options, with Garrett Whitlock, Justin Slaten, Greg Weissert, and Zack Kelly all more or less already assured of roles and a plethora of non-roster invitees including Vinny Nittoli, Kyle Keller, Osvaldo Bido, and Hobie Harris. From the left side, however, Boston has just three credible options: Aroldis Chapman, Jovani Moran, and Tyler Samaniego. Chapman, of course, is locked into the closer role. That leaves only Moran and Samaniego as an option to serve as a matchup lefty prior to the ninth inning. Moran has just four innings of work at the big league level over the past two years, and Samaniego has yet to make his big league debut.

Sensible as it would be for the team to look to add more lefty bullpen help, the Red Sox seem committed to doing so only on their terms. McAdam notes that the club has made clear neither of the team’s top left-handed pitching prospects, Payton Tolle and Connelly Early, will be considered for moves into the big league bullpen. Both Tolle and Early are currently squeezed out of Boston’s deep rotation on paper, but it’s not hard to see why the team might prefer to have them stay stretched out at Triple-A, where they won’t need to adapt to a new role and won’t garner big league service time.

Likewise, McAdam indicates that the team doesn’t have much interest in adding free agent on a major league contract at this point. Experienced, big league caliber southpaws including veteran Danny Coulombe and Jalen Beeks remain available in free agency, but McAdam suggests that those free agency are currently holding out for big league deals. Perhaps that stance could change in the coming weeks as Spring Training drags on, but for now that seems to leave the Red Sox scouting for waiver claims and trade additions.

Few clubs are going to willingly surrender relief depth at this point in the calendar given the possibility of injuries in their own bullpen before Opening Day. With that being said, there are some options who could plausibly be available. Ryan Borucki (White Sox), Cionel Perez (Nationals), Tayler Saucedo (Angels), Cam Booser (Rays), and Genesis Cabrera (Phillies) are among the notable non-roster invitees in other camps this spring who might be unable to secure a spot with their current club. Meanwhile, Tyler Gilbert (White Sox) and Ryan Rolison (Cubs) are among the 40-man lefties who are either out of options or could otherwise be squeezed out of their team’s roster at some point this spring.

One other possibility worth giving a particular mention to is Cardinals lefty JoJo Romero. Romero has been a known trade candidate all throughout the offseason, and while at this point he appears to be the favorite to serve as St. Louis’s closer in 2026, the rebuilding Cardinals have traded every other pending free agent from their 2025 roster this winter except for the southpaw. It certainly stands to reason that president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom would part ways with Romero in the right deal, and successful trades of both Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras from St. Louis to Boston earlier this winter show that Bloom and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow are certainly comfortable working with each other.

AL East Notes: Westburg, Yankees, Rays

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Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg has been no stranger to injuries over the first few years of his time in the majors, and his latest ailments are a partially-torn UCL and oblique soreness. The oblique issue appears to be fairly minor, but he’s received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his elbow in hopes of rehabbing his UCL and will be out until at least May due to the issue. Setbacks of this sort have become all too common for Westburg in recent years. Since making his big league debut in 2023, he’s missed time due to a broken hand, a sprained ankle, a strained hamstring, and an index finger sprain.

When on the field, there’s no question that Westburg has proven to be one of the Orioles’ most talented young players. An All-Star in 2024, Westburg is a career .264/.312/.456 hitter in just over 1,000 career plate appearances and can play capable defense at both second and third base. The .269/.317/.497 slash line Westburg posted in 101 games prior to the aforementioned broken hand during the 2024 season is even more impressive and shows that the 27-year-old has the potential to be a star for Baltimore when he’s healthy enough to take the field at full strength.

Those times have been increasingly uncommon over the past few years, however, and when asked about it by Orioles reporters Westburg seemed frustrated. He told MASN’s Roch Kubatko that he doesn’t know when he’ll be able to play again after his latest PRP injection, and Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun relays that Westburg admitted the constant injuries have taken a mental toll on him.

“I’d like to sit here and say, ‘extremely confident,’ but some of this wears on you mentally,” Westburg said (as relayed by Weyrich) when asked about his ability to stay healthy and be an everyday player for the Orioles. “So, there are doubts, but like I said, I’m going to do my best to kind of see what avenues that I can go down to maybe help bulletproof my body a little bit more. I don’t know if there’s a way to do that, but I’m going to try.”

While Westburg looks to push through the obstacles currently standing between him and a return to the field, the Orioles will be looking to open the season without either him or second baseman Jackson Holliday. That could open the door for Coby Mayo to return to third base and recent trade acquisition Blaze Alexander to see time at they keystone. Utility man Jeremiah Jackson and third baseman Bryan Ramos are among the other players currently on the 40-man roster who could compete for additional time on the infield while Westburg and Holliday are unavailable.

More from around the AL East…

  • The Yankees are bolstering their international scouting department with the addition of longtime Cubs front office member Nao Masamoto, according to a report from Patrick Mooney and Brendan Kuty of The Athletic. The pair note that Masamoto has been instrumental to the Cubs’ recruitment efforts with players coming over from Nippon Professional Baseball and their ability to provide a smooth transition for the players (like Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga) who do wind up signing with them. Chicago has emerged as a destination for Japanese talent during Masamoto’s tenure with the club, while the Yankees have struggled to court players like Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki in recent years. While they were once a top choice for NPB talent themselves, they haven’t rostered a Japanese player since Masahiro Tanaka departed MLB following the 2020 season.
  • A pair of Rays players are facing some restrictions as Spring Training games get underway. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported recently that right-hander Steven Wilson, who Tampa acquired from the White Sox in a trade during the offseason, has been slowed by a back injury entering camp. Wilson enjoyed a solid season with Chicago last year where he pitched to a 3.42 ERA across 59 appearances despite middling peripherals. Also sidelined at the moment is shortstop Taylor Walls, who Topkin notes was scratched from the Rays’ lineup due to oblique tightness. That sounds worrisome for Tampa, but the club has fortunately described Walls’ removal from today’s lineup as purely precautionary. Carson Williams would likely be the next man up to handle shortstop if Walls were sidelined during the regular season.

Guardians To Sign Rhys Hoskins To Minor League Deal

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First baseman Rhys Hoskins and the Guardians are finalizing a minor league deal, according to Zack Meisel of The Athletic. Meisel goes on to report that the Boras Corporation client will receive a $1.5MM salary if he makes Cleveland’s MLB roster. The news of Hoskins’s deal with the Guardians comes after reports (including one from Meisel) earlier in the day indicated the veteran’s presence in the team’s Arizona clubhouse.

Hoskins, 33 next month, spent six seasons in Philadelphia as one of the more reliably above-average corner bats in the game. He managed to make up for low batting averages by consistently flashing 30-homer pop and keeping his walk rate above 10%. After a 2022 campaign where he slashed .246/.332/.462 with 30 homers in 156 games, Hoskins figured to be a key figure in the Phillies’ lineup headed into 2023 when those plans were abruptly scuttled by an ACL tear that wiped out his entire season.

That lost season led Hoskins to reach free agency as something of an unknown quantity, but he ultimately found a two-year deal with the Brewers that afforded him the opportunity to opt out after the 2024 season. The veteran appeared in 131 games for Milwaukee during that first season but didn’t hit at his typical levels, with a slash line of just .214/.303/.419 and a wRC+ of 101. While he was still good for 26 home runs, a career-high 28.8% strikeout rate sapped much of the value Hoskins had offered during his days in Philadelphia.

That down season was enough to convince Hoskins to remain in Milwaukee for 2025, but he was limited to just 90 games this past season due to a sprained thumb. The good news is that when he was on the field, his production ticked back up to be more substantially above league average. In 328 trips to the plate last year, Hoskins slashed .237/.332/.416 with a wRC+ of 109. While Hoskins’s power numbers were the weakest of his career, his strikeout rate ticked down to 27.7% while his walk rate crept up to 11.6%, his highest level since 2020.

A second injury-plagued season in the past three years was bad news for Hoskins’s market value, however, and he’s scarcely been discussed in the rumor mill since returning to free agency back in November. With Spring Training now underway, Hoskins opted to catch on with the Guardians on a minor league pact. The veteran is a strong fit for Cleveland’s needs, and signing with them should give him every opportunity to crack the club’s Opening Day roster.

Both first baseman Kyle Manzardo and expected designated hitter C.J. Kayfus are left-handed hitters, so a right-handed first base/DH option like Hoskins is a strong on-paper fit. While Hoskins actually had reverse splits last year, he’s a career 137 wRC+ hitter against southpaws, and even last year’s 102 wRC+ would be a substantial improvement over the numbers Mazardo (83) and Kayfus (67) posted against lefties last year.

While Hoskins currently looks likely to be ticketed for a platoon role on paper, it’s not at all difficult to imagine him working his way into earning everyday reps. Kayfus is a rookie who posted a wRC+ of just 96 in 44 games last year, after all, and Hoskins is a capable hitter against righties looking at both last season (111 wRC+) and his career (115). With Cleveland, the veteran should have a strong opportunity to put together a rebound season after his struggles to stay on the field and produce consistently over a full season that have cropped up over the past few years. If he can rediscover some of the form that made him a middle-of-the-order bat for the Phillies a few years ago, it’s not too difficult to imagine Hoskins becoming an instrumental part of the Guardians’ lineup alongside stars Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan.

MRI Reveals Lower Back Inflammation For Joe Ryan

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Right-hander Joe Ryan was scratched from his scheduled Spring Training start yesterday due to lower back tightness and underwent an MRI yesterday to determine the severity of the issue. Those results came back today, and The Athletic’s Dan Hayes reports that the MRI revealed only inflammation in Ryan’s lower back.

That’s a “best case scenario” for Ryan, in the words of Hayes. It should allow the right-hander to avoid a lengthy layoff and, while the Twins’ exact plans for Ryan as he nurses that inflammation aren’t yet clear, it seems reasonable to expect the right-hander’s ability to be available for Opening Day to be unaffected by this injury. That’s great news for the Twins, who have already lost right-hander Pablo Lopez to the injured list for the year as he prepares to undergo Tommy John surgery. Losing Lopez from the front of the team’s rotation was already a tough blow, but the loss of Ryan as well would’ve been devastating for Minnesota. Ryan figures to be joined in the rotation by Bailey Ober, with the final three spots left to some combination of youngsters Simeon Woods Richardson, Zebby Matthews, Taj Bradley, Mick Abel, and David Festa.

Ryan figures to be especially important to the Twins this year given that he’s coming off the best season of his career. An All-Star for the first time in 2025, the right-hander posted a 3.42 ERA in 171 innings of work. He made 30 starts (31 total appearances) and struck out an impressive 28.2% of his opponents while walking just 5.7%. Ryan was held back from true ace-level production by his lackluster 11.5% barrel rate; only five qualified pitchers allowed more home runs than the righty’s 26 last year. Even with that flaw, however, Ryan was a quality front-of-the-rotation starter who garnered plenty of interest at last summer’s trade deadline. While the Twins conducted a fire sale that saw them part ways with Carlos Correa, Harrison Bader, and nearly their entire bullpen, Ryan was one of the most notable pieces to remain in place.

The Twins once again entertained offers on him (plus other stars like Pablo Lopez and Byron Buxton) early in the offseason but eventually took those players off the market in December following Tom Pohlad’s ascension to the role of control person for the franchise. Pohlad, who mutually parted ways with team president Derek Falvey last month, is pushing for the club to contend in 2026 despite a roster that doesn’t look substantially different than the one that was among the worst teams in baseball after the trade deadline. There’s enough talent youngsters on the roster (including Luke Keaschall, Royce Lewis, and Brooks Lee) that it’s not impossible to imagine the team taking a step forward this year, but if the team fails to do so Ryan could once again find himself in trade conversations this summer should he remain healthy.

In the shorter term, it remains to be seen what Ryan’s inflammation will mean for his anticipated participation in the World Baseball Classic. Ryan was announced as part of the Team USA roster for the WBC, but it’s possible he’ll be forced to sit out the tournament due to the injury even in spite of its mild nature. Players around the league have been denied insurance ahead of the WBC, causing issues for all sorts of teams as they prepare for the event. That’s led to additional caution around rostering players who would otherwise seem like safe bets to roster for the tournament, and it’s unclear what impact (if any) that could have on Ryan’s participation at this point. The good news for Team USA is that their group of rotation options remains stacked even if Ryan is unable to participate; Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal headline a group of starters that also includes Logan Webb, top Mets prospect Nolan McLean, and veteran southpaw Matthew Boyd.

Bill Mazeroski Passes Away

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The Pirates announced this morning that Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski passed away yesterday at age 89.  The team’s statement included a tribute from chairman Bob Nutting, who described Mazeroski as “one of a kind — a true Pirates legend, a National Baseball Hall of Famer and one of the finest defensive second basemen the game has ever seen.”

“His name will always be tied to the biggest home run in baseball history and the 1960 World Series championship, but I will remember him most for the person he was: humble, gracious and proud to be a Pirate.”

A career Pirate who played 17 seasons in the big leagues from 1956-72, Mazeroski is best-known for his legendary walk-off home run in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series. The Pirates had won their first National League pennant since 1927 on the strength of eight All-Star players, including Mazeroski. Still, they faced a challenge in overcoming a powerful Yankees roster featuring Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Whitey Ford, and others.

With the Series tied at three games apiece, it was Mazeroski who delivered the winning blow in the bottom of the 9th of a wild Game 7. On a 1-0 count against Yankees pitcher Ralph Terry, Mazeroski drilled a high fastball over the left-center field wall to clinch the Pirates’ 10-9 victory and the championship.  It was their first World Series title since 1925 and the first time a World Series ended on a walk-off home run. To this day, Mazeroski’s blast stands as one of the most iconic home runs in the history of the sport.

Mazeroski joined the Pirates organization out of high school in 1954, and made his MLB debut in July 1956 at the age of 19.  He played his first full season in 1957 and established himself as a contact-oriented second baseman, batting .283 with 149 hits and 59 runs scored. His 1958 season was arguably his best, as Maz batted .275/.308/.439 in 607 plate appearances with 156 hits and 19 home runs, the latter being a career high. He was an All-Star for the first time and also earned his first Gold Glove while finishing eighth in NL MVP voting.

In addition to being a contact hitter, Mazeroski’s career came to be defined by his defense. He won a total of eight Gold Gloves, including five straight from 1963-67. His defense alone was valued at 24.0 bWAR, which ties him for 23rd all-time. Mazeroski holds the record for most double plays turned (1709) as a second baseman, and his 6685 assists from the keystone ranks fifth all-time. No discussion of the game’s best defensive players is complete without mention of Mazeroski’s accomplishments.

In an 11-year stretch from 1958-68, Mazeroski tallied 1,608 of his 2,016 career hits while batting .263/.300/.374 and accumulating 32.1 bWAR. He was remarkably durable, playing at least 130 games with 527 PA or more every year from 1957-68. He earned a total of seven All-Star nods, the last of those coming in 1967 when he led the NL in games played and tallied a career-high 167 hits. He became more of a part-time player at the end of his career and won a second World Series in 1971 against the Orioles. He retired in 1972 at the age of 35.

Overall, Mazeroski batted .260/.299/.367 with 2,016 hits, 138 home runs, and 853 runs batted in. He became eligible for Hall of Fame admission in 1978 but did not meet the required threshold before falling off the ballot in 1992. Most pointed to his lower-than-usual offensive output as a reason for exclusion, but the Veterans Committee disagreed in 2001, admitting Mazeroski to the Hall in recognition of his defensive excellence.

We at MLBTR extend our condolences to Mazeroski’s family, friends, loved ones, former teammates, and baseball fans around the world.

Rangers Notes: Foscue, Helman, Santos, Nimmo

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Spring Training is the time for players to experiment at new positions, particularly when said players are fighting for spots on a 26-man roster.  The Rangers’ camp is no exception, as manager Skip Schumaker told reporters (including Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News) that career infielder Justin Foscue will get some work as an outfielder.

Foscue has mostly been a designated hitter over his 19 career big league games, with a couple of appearances at first and second base.  The bulk of his time over five seasons in Texas’ farm system has come at second base, with a good chunk of time at both corner infield slots, and exactly zero appearances as an outfielder.

As outlined by Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, Foscue isn’t being viewed as a full-time candidate for a position change, but the Rangers want to be able to use Foscue in a corner outfield slot if necessary.  The starting outfield alignment of Brandon Nimmo, Evan Carter, and Wyatt Langford is set, but the right-handed hitting Foscue could spell the lefty-swinging Nimmo in right field, or other lefty bats like Josh Smith at second base or Joc Pederson at DH.

“If I do what I’m supposed to do offensively, it should take care of itself, regardless [of position],” Foscue told Grant.  “But having the ability to play outfield gives me some versatility with whatever matchups they want to throw out there, and it makes my game better.  So I’m obviously open to that.”

The 14th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Foscue has posted impressive numbers (.266/.379/.471 with 46 home runs) over 1235 Triple-A plate appearances, but he hasn’t yet shown anything during his brief time in the majors.  Foscue has only three hits over 53 PA in the Show, translating to a pitcher-like .059/.094/.098 slash line.  More consistent playing time could help Foscue find a groove, but by the same token, it is hard for the Rangers to justify giving chances to a player who has thus far looked totally overmatched against Major League pitching.

Foscue, Michael Helman, Ezequiel Duran, Sam Haggerty, and minor league signings such as Mark Canha, Tyler Wade, Nick Pratto, and Jonah Bride are among the candidates competing for jobs on the Rangers’ bench.  Cody Freeman was part of this mix before being sidelined for 4-6 weeks by a lower back fracture.  Helman is also dealing with an injury of an apparently much less serious nature, as Schumaker told McFarland and company that Helman was scratched from today’s game due to soreness in his hip and groin area.

In other injury news from the Texas camp, right-handed pitching prospect Winston Santos will miss roughly four weeks after sustaining a fracture in his left hand.  MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry was among those to report the news that Santos suffered the injury during a live batting practice session, when Santos’ non-throwing hand was struck by a Kyle Higashioka comebacker.

Santos (who turns 24 in April) is no stranger to injuries, as back problems limited him to 17 1/3 total innings at the Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2025.  His 6.75 ERA in this small sample can probably be attributed to his bad back and an incredibly unlucky .528 BABIP, as Santos still had impressive secondary metrics like a 33.3% strikeout rate and a nine percent walk rate.

MLB Pipeline ranks Santos as the third-best prospect in the Rangers’ farm system, with Baseball America ranking him seventh (behind infielder Sebastian Walcott and five other right-handed pitchers).  The two outlets are split as to whether Santos’ changeup or slider is his second-best offering, but his 97mph fastball with a ton of break is seen as a plus pitch.  There’s a decent chance Santos will make his Major League debut at some point in 2026 as at least a bullpen arm, though missing a big chunk of Spring Training is an unfortunate setback for the young righty.

On the flip side of the injury coin, Nimmo’s first spring in a Rangers uniform has allowed the team to get its first look at Nimmo’s purposely limited Spring Training regimen.  Evan Grant details how Nimmo played in only 37 total spring games with the Mets from 2022-25, as the outfielder has focused more on workouts and live at-bats in controlled situations (like live BP sessions) rather than in-game action.

The change may have contributed to Nimmo’s increased durability.  Plagued by injuries in the early portion of his Mets career, Nimmo went from player who had trouble staying on the field to a veritable workhorse, as he has played in 609 of a possible 648 regular-season games over the last four seasons.  While Nimmo hasn’t been entirely healthy during this time, the results speak for themselves, as Nimmo has hit .259/.346/.434 with 88 homers over 2670 PA since Opening Day 2022.  He’ll look to continue that production in his first season in Texas after being dealt for Marcus Semien in a one-for-one swap back in November.

Blue Jays Notes: Schneider, Varsho, Jimenez

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John Schneider has “had some discussions about” a long-term extension with the Blue Jays, the manager told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi.  Schneider is entering the final year of his current contract, and “if there’s a way to do [an extension] for both sides that makes sense, that’d be great….We’ll continue to talk and there’s no place I’d rather be than with this group.”

Promoted from bench coach to interim manager after Charlie Montoyo was fired midway through the 2022 season, Schneider led that year’s Jays team to a wild card berth, which earned him a three-year deal to remain as the team’s full-time skipper.  That contract included a club option for the 2026 season, which the Jays naturally exercised last November in the wake of Toronto’s run to Game 7 of the World Series.

The Jays have a 303-257 record under Schneider, and the team has reached the postseason three times in his four seasons.  The one non-playoff year came in 2024 when the Blue Jays struggled to a 74-88 record, and there was plenty of speculation heading into the 2025 campaign about whether or not Toronto needed a change in the dugout and/or in the front office.  Winning the AL pennant naturally changed that conversation in a hurry, leaving Schneider and GM Ross Atkins looking like extension candidates.

It wouldn’t at all be a surprise if Schneider and Atkins both had new deals signed before Opening Day, though it would be a real eye-opener if Daulton Varsho was extended as he heads into his final season before free agency.  This isn’t a reflection on how the Jays feel about Varsho, but rather the fact that Varsho is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients almost always test the open market rather than opt for extensions.

Atkins has said in the past that the Jays have interest in extending Varsho, though the outfielder didn’t even confirm that any talks had taken place when speaking with the Toronto Star’s Gregor Chisholm and other reporters earlier this week.

“I stay out of those [extension] conversations, I don’t want to be in them,” Varsho said, noting that he leaves such business to his representation.  Varsho did express an interest in remaining with the Jays, saying “I love being here.  They treat families really well and they do everything to kind of keep players here…I’ve enjoyed my time. I’m going to keep enjoying it.”

Another obstacle between Varsho and an extension could be the fact that signing a deal now might result in a lot of money left on the table.  As Chisholm notes, a healthy and consistent 2026 campaign could put Varsho in line for a major free agent payday next winter, so it could be in his interest to use 2026 as a platform year.

Varsho is arguably the best defensive center fielder in baseball, and he has hit 85 homers over the last four seasons.  However, his .225/.292/.432 slash line since the start of the 2022 season translates to an exact 100 wRC+, as Varsho’s lack of walks and penchant for strikeouts have offset his power potential.  He was also limited to 71 games in 2025 — Varsho missed time due to recovery from a September 2024 rotator cuff surgery, and then a hamstring strain that cost him two months of regular-season action.

In other news around the Blue Jays’ spring camp, MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson writes that minor league signing Eloy Jimenez “has been spending a lot of time at first base.”  Jimenez never played first base during his first big league seasons with the White Sox and Orioles from 2019-24, but he logged seven games at the position in 2025 when playing in the Blue Jays’ and Rays’ farm system, and he also saw some first base action in Winter League ball.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is obviously locked into the starting first base job in Toronto and the Jays added some more depth at the position by signing Juan Yepez to a minors deal last week.  However, the Jays don’t have a set backup in place behind Guerrero, as Kazuma Okamoto is expected to primarily play third base.  Becoming a regular first baseman could help Jimenez’s slim chances of cracking the Blue Jays’ roster, and a move to first base is a logical career path anyway given how Jimenez’s defensive struggles in the outfield led to an increased amount of DH at-bats during his time in Chicago.

Jimenez hit .270/.321/.469 with 94 home runs over 2026 PA with the White Sox from 2019-24, as this solid production nevertheless didn’t live up to the high expectations placed on Jimenez as a top prospect and a ballyhooed international signing.  Injuries and a lack of consistency caught up to Jimenez, and he is now looking to reignite his MLB career as he enters his age-29 season.

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