Mets, Tommy Pham Agree To Minor League Deal
The Mets and veteran outfielder Tommy Pham are in agreement on a minor league contract, reports ESPN’s Jorge Castillo. It’ll be the Vayner Sports client’s second stint with the organization. He’d earn a prorated $2.25MM upon being selected to the majors and has an April 25 opt-out date in the deal, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. He can tack on another $850K worth of incentives, Castillo adds.
Pham, 38, spent the 2025 season with the Pirates and turned in a slightly below-average .245/.330/.370 batting line (95 wRC+), though last year’s production was skewed by an awful start to his season. The well-traveled outfielder caught fire in mid-June and slashed .278/.363/.468 with 10 homers, 13 doubles, a triple, an 11.7% walk rate and a 17.2% strikeout rate over his final 273 turns at the plate.
Pham’s first stint with the Mets came back in 2023, when he signed a one-year deal in free agency and enjoyed a productive stretch before being traded to the Diamondbacks. He logged 264 plate appearances with the Amazins, hit .268/.348/.472, and was flipped to Arizona in a deadline deal netting teenage infield prospect Jeremy Rodriguez.
Now back with the Mets, he’ll ramp up in Triple-A in hopes of hitting his way onto the big league roster. The Mets broke camp with top prospect Carson Benge as their starting right fielder, and the hope is that he’ll hit the ground running, but one of New York’s top fallback plans, Mike Tauchman, is out for the foreseeable future after suffering a meniscus tear that will require surgery at the very end of spring training.
Pham gives the Mets another veteran option to consider in the event that Benge, who’ll make his big league debut with only 116 professional games under his belt, is overmatched against big league pitching early in the year. He also provides a potential righty-hitting complement to the left-handed Benge; Pham is a career .261/.368/.434 against lefties.
Back in November, Pham told The Athletic that he’s still hoping to play several more seasons. His past few years haven’t been especially productive, though he revealed in that November interview that he played through plantar fasciitis the past couple seasons. He’s since undergone a stem cell treatment that he feels can alleviate the issue and help him regain some value on the basepaths. Pham hit .256/.326/.448 with 16 homers and 22 steals (in 25 attempts) between the Mets and D-backs in 2023. He posted a .246/.317/.369 line and gone 12-for-18 in stolen base attempts in the two subsequent seasons.
Brewers Place Jackson Chourio On IL Due To Fractured Hand
Opening Day arrives on a sour note for the Brewers, who announced this morning that star outfielder Jackson Chourio has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a fracture in his left hand. Outfielder Blake Perkins is up from Triple-A Nashville to take his spot on the active roster. The early estimate for his return to game action is two to four weeks, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, who adds that a recent MRI detected a hairline fracture at the base of his third metacarpal. It’s believed that the injury dates back to a March 4 exhibition ahead of the World Baseball Classic.
Chourio went for imaging at the time he was plunked by that pitch, but initial testing resulted in a diagnosis of a contusion. He played, presumably through a good bit of discomfort, for Venezuela during the WBC and for Milwaukee following the tournament and wound up delivering a solid spring line during Cactus League play (.267/.333/.400).
Milwaukee has five off-days in the next month, so it’s possible Chourio only winds up sidelined for around 10% of the team’s 162 games. Even a short-term absence from one of the roster’s most talented players stings, however, particularly in what most expect to be a tightly contested division.
Though Chourio is only 22 years old, he’s already entering his third big league season. He’s a .272/.317/.463 hitter (115 wRC+) through his first 279 major league games and has coupled that above-average production with plus baserunning and quality outfield defense. Chourio is better suited for corner work than center field, but he’s capable in all three spots and played primarily center last season. A healthy Garrett Mitchell could push him to the corners with more regularly this season, but for now his focus will shift to rehabbing his ailing hand.
With Chourio out, the Brewers’ outfield mix now includes Perkins, Mitchell, Sal Frelick, Christian Yelich, Jake Bauers and Brandon Lockridge. Frelick, one of the game’s top defensive players, will be locked into right field on a daily basis. Mitchell should handle center against right-handed pitching at the very least, and the switch-hitting Perkins is much better from the right side of the dish, making him a natural platoon pairing in center. The left-handed Bauers and righty-swinging Lockridge create a viable platoon in left field. Yelich can mix in some left field work but has been primarily a designated hitter in recent seasons.
That’s a tenable enough setup for the short term, but the Chourio injury already puts a strain on Milwaukee’s outfield depth. All of the outfielders on the Brewers’ 40-man roster are now in the majors. Milwaukee has begun getting former top prospect Tyler Black, a corner infielder, some reps in the outfield corners and could turn to him in the event of another injury. Current top prospect Jett Williams has plenty of outfield experience should the need arise, though he’s not yet on the 40-man.
The Opener: Opening Day Part 2, O’Neill, Mets
Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world as the 2026 season fully gets underway:
1. Opening Day Part 2:
While the 2026 season officially kicked off last night with the Yankees’ 7-0 romp over the Giants, most of the league will be starting its season today. Thursday’s games kick off at 1:15pm ET, when the Pirates take on the Mets in New York. Games will continue throughout the day before wrapping up with the Guardians facing the Mariners at 7:10pm PT in Seattle, nearly nine hours after the first game of the day. Just one matchup between division rivals is scheduled, as the Diamondbacks head to L.A. for a series against the reigning World Series Champion Dodgers.
2. Will O’Neill continue his streak?
Opening Day brings about many things each year: the start of a new baseball season, room for optimism for almost every fan base in the majors… and an opportunity for Tyler O’Neill to continue one of the wildest streaks in baseball. O’Neill has hit home runs on Opening Day for six consecutive years now, having started his streak as a member of the Cardinals in 2020 and carried through his trip through Boston and into his arrival with Baltimore. Today, he’ll look to continue that streak with the Orioles in their game against the Twins, which is scheduled for 3:05pm ET at Camden Yards. Twins ace Joe Ryan (3.42 ERA in 2025) will be on the mound for Minnesota and looking to build on his first All-Star campaign. Ryan surrendered homers on 12.1% of his fly balls both in 2025 and for his career so far, and gave up 26 total bombs last season. O’Neill is looking to rebound from an injury-wrecked season that saw him bat just .199/.292/.392 with nine home runs in 209 plate appearances.
3. Peralta to make first official Mets start:
Many fans already got a glimpse of right-hander Freddy Peralta in a Mets uniform during Spring Training, when he posted an impressive 2.70 ERA across ten frames. However, today’s matchup between the Mets and Pirates will be the first time Peralta starts a game that actually counts for his new club. His first assignment is a tough draw, as he’ll be battling reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes (1.97 ERA in 2025) while trying to suppress a new-look Pittsburgh lineup. Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds return, but this time they’re surrounded by a supporting cast of offseason additions like Marcell Ozuna, Brandon Lowe, and Ryan O’Hearn. It’s a big test for the Pirates’ offense out the gate, as Peralta finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting last year after firing 176 2/3 innings with a 2.70 ERA and a 28.2% strikeout rate.
MLB Mailbag: Braves Extensions, Injury Concerns, Rangers, Pirates
Happy Opening Night! Logan Webb and the Giants will host Max Fried and the Yankees at 7:05pm central tonight on Netflix. Until then, we've got a subscriber mailbag that gets into the Braves' series of core player extensions, which teams have the most concerning injury issues, outlooks for the Rangers and Pirates, and much more.
Matthew asks:
As a Mets fan, several years ago all I heard was how the Braves had built the foundation of their next dynasty by convincing multiple players to sign seemingly below-market deals. Acuña, Albies, Murphy, Riley, Olson, Harris, and probably several others I'm forgetting.
Obviously the team was besieged by injuries when they missed the playoffs last year, but looking back now, how are those contracts holding up? Albies and Riley have regressed, Harris was a tale of two halves last year, Acuña is coming off two serious knee injuries, and Murphy's banner year looks like an outlier.
Giving Acuña a pass because injuries are unpredictable (and he's still an MVP candidate when healthy), are there any of these contracts that you think AA would like a do-over on? Or, since they were seen as being below-market rates, are they still showing positive value?
Alex Anthopoulos has sat atop the Braves' front office for more than eight years now. He's done a whopping 21 extensions in that time.
The biggest extension went to Austin Riley, who signed for $212MM over ten years. Had the Braves not done this deal, Riley would've been a free agent this past offseason, theoretically coming off a couple of injury-related down years. But he'd still be a 29-year-old with a three-year, 16.1 WAR run on his resume, so he probably would've signed a high-AAV opt-out deal. As it stands, the Braves probably paid a bit above market value for Riley's arbitration years. That's not a big issue, but from this point forward it's as if they signed him to a seven-year, $154MM free agent deal with an eighth-year club option. That's not really the type of deal Riley would've signed this past offseason, but the $22MM AAV is low enough where there's room for profit if he bounces back in the next couple years.
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Nick Anderson Has Upward Mobility Clause In Athletics Deal
Right-hander Nick Anderson has an upward mobility clause in his minor league deal with the Athletics and plans to trigger it tomorrow, reports Ari Alexander. The reliever signed with the club in early November.
The Athletics have not released their Opening Day roster, but based on this development, it would seem Anderson has failed to make the team. By triggering the clause, the veteran will be offered to every other team in the league. If any club is willing to give him a roster spot, the A’s will have to do the same, or work out a trade. If all 29 teams pass on Anderson, he can be sent to the minors.
The 35-year-old Anderson posted an unremarkable 4.35 ERA across 10 spring outings, but did punch out more than a batter per inning. He was competing for a bullpen spot with fellow non-roster invitees Wander Suero, Brooks Kriske, and Joel Kuhnel, among others. The Athletics added veterans Mark Leiter Jr. and Scott Barlow to a young bullpen this offseason.
Anderson scuffled to a 6.14 ERA in a dozen games with the Rockies last season. He also spent time in the minors with the Mariners and Cardinals. Anderson has pitched for five MLB squads since he debuted with the Marlins in 2019.
Just four months into his big-league career, the Rays acquired Anderson at the trade deadline for outfielder Jesus Sanchez and right-hander Ryne Stanek. Trevor Richards also came to Tampa Bay in the deal. Anderson emerged as a weapon on a Rays club that won 96 games. He posted a ridiculous 52.6% strikeout rate in 21 1/3 innings down the stretch. Anderson was just as good in the shortened 2020 season, delivering a microscopic 0.55 ERA with a 44.8% strikeout rate.
Injuries took a toll on Anderson beginning in the 2020 campaign. He missed time with forearm inflammation, a lower back strain, a torn UCL, and plantar fasciitis over the next three years. Anderson bounced between seven different organizations after leaving Tampa Bay in free agency following the 2022 season.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Jairaj, Imagn Images
Roberto Perez Announces Retirement
Catcher Roberto Perez is calling it quits. The 10-year MLB veteran announced his retirement in an Instagram post with a caption in both English and Spanish. The 37-year-old last suited up for the Giants in 2023.
Perez spent the majority of his decade-long tenure in the pros with the Guardians. He was selected by the organization in the 33rd round of the 2008 draft. The backstop made his MLB debut as a 25-year-old in 2014. Perez slugged a home run in his first game, taking Jim Miller deep in the 8th inning of a tight contest against the Yankees.
Cleveland leaned on Perez as a reliable backup option from 2014 through 2021. He first began tag-teaming the position with Yan Gomes. Perez would later share the role with Austin Hedges. The veteran topped 250 plate appearances just once in his career.
Between the seasons with Gomes and Hedges as the primary starters, there was a two-year stretch where Perez earned the majority of the playing time. He posted a career-high 449 plate appearances across 119 games in 2021. Perez popped 24 home runs and finished with a solid .239/.321/.452 slash line.
Perez maintained the lead role in the shortened 2020 season, but the results fell off a cliff. He hit just .165 with a single home run in 32 games. Led by Perez and Sandy Leon, Cleveland finished dead last with a .448 OPS at the position. Perez struggled to a .572 OPS in 2021 and departed via free agency at the end of the year.
While the offensive production was up and down, Perez’s glove work was phenomenal in Cleveland. He piled up 73 Defensive Runs Saved across nearly 4,000 innings behind the plate. Perez put together a masterpiece defensive performance in 2019. He posted 31 DRS and a 20 Fielding Run Value en route to his first career Gold Glove award. Perez went back-to-back in 2020, earning Gold Glove honors again in the abbreviated campaign.
The Pirates grabbed Perez to handle backstop duties in 2022. He bounced back at the plate, notching a 100 wRC+ with a couple of home runs through six weeks, but a hamstring injury ended his season in early May.
Perez landed with the Giants on a minor league deal the following year. He broke camp with the team, then the injury bug struck again. Perez went down with a rotator cuff strain in April and missed the rest of the season. He signed a minor league deal with Boston in December 2023 and appeared in a handful of Spring Training games with the organization.
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Perez on his career and wish him the best in his future endeavours.
Photos courtesy of Wendell Cruz, Darren Yamashita, Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
Red Sox Release Brendan Rodgers
The Red Sox have released infielder Brendan Rodgers, according to his MLB transactions page. The veteran is facing shoulder surgery after a hard fall in late February. The injury ended his bid to earn a roster spot with Boston.
As Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com notes, Rodgers could be headed toward a renegotiated deal with the Red Sox as he recovers from the shoulder issue. The former Rockie signed a minor league agreement in early February. If Rodgers is going to miss the entire season, Boston could look to ink him to a two-year contract, similar to a free agent pitcher rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.
Rodgers was competing for second base reps with Marcelo Mayer, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and David Hamilton. The Caleb Durbin trade clarified some of the questions in the Boston infield, but it also sent Hamilton to Milwaukee. Andruw Monasterio came back in the swap and entered the second base conversation. Mayer ultimately secured the gig.
The 29-year-old Rodgers spent last season with the Astros. He broke camp with the team, but struggled mightily at the plate. The veteran posted a 55 wRC+ across 128 plate appearances. Rodgers’ strikeout rate ballooned to a career-worst 35.9%. An oblique strain in June effectively ended his season. Rodgers managed a couple of rehab appearances at Triple-A before electing free agency at the conclusion of the campaign.
Rodgers was among the most promising hitters in Colorado’s minor league system heading into the decade. He entered 2020 ranked No. 1 among Rockies’ prospects by FanGraphs and MLB Pipeline. A shoulder injury limited Rodgers in the shortened season, but he got his first extended look in 2021. The infielder slashed a respectable .284/.328/.470 in 415 plate appearances. He delivered similarly league-average numbers the following year. After 135 games of an 87 wRC+ in 2024, Rodgers hit free agency. He’s signed minor league deals the past two offseasons.
Photo courtesy of Troy Taormina, Imagn Images
Mets Release Austin Barnes
The Mets have released catcher Austin Barnes, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. The veteran backstop signed a minor league deal in late January. It’s the second catcher-related move of the day for New York, as the club also designated Ben Rortvedt for assignment this morning.
Barnes was set to make $1.5MM if he made the big-league club, reported Jon Heyman of The New York Post. He could’ve earned another $500K in incentives. The longtime Dodger will now look to latch on elsewhere.
New York was largely set behind the plate with Francisco Alvarez and Luis Torrens locked into the top two spots on the depth chart. The former has an extensive injury history, so it was prudent of the Mets to keep a handful of backup candidates in camp. Alvarez was pulled from a spring game last week with back tightness, but returned to the lineup over the weekend.
The 36-year-old Barnes did all he could to position himself for a roster spot if Alvarez or Torrens went down. He slashed .313/.389/.500 in limited spring action. The veteran has spent the past 11 seasons with the Dodgers. He’s been a backup for the duration of that stretch, maxing out at 262 plate appearances in a single season (2017).
Barnes has an 85 wRC+ in his big-league career. His main value has come on defense. The veteran has accrued 35 Defensive Runs Saved in more than 3,500 innings behind the plate. Barnes has even made the occasional appearance in the infield. He’s only done it a handful of times the past few years, but he had a run from 2017 to 2018 that saw him appear in 40 games at second base.
As DiComo points out, Hayden Senger and Kevin Parada are now the primary catching depth pieces behind Alvarez and Torrens. Senger made his debut last season after a lengthy minor league career. He hit just .181 with a 28.2% strikeout rate, though he racked up 5 DRS in 31 games. Parada was a first-round pick in 2022. He’s put up some solid minor league campaigns at the plate, but there are questions about his glove in the majors.
Photo courtesy of Reinhold Matay, Imagn Images
Marlins Sign Austin Slater To Major League Deal
March 25th: The Marlins announced today that Mazur has been placed on the 60-day injured list. In a separate announcement, the club made the Slater deal official. He’ll join Heriberto Hernandez as a righty outfielder off the bench behind Marsee, Caissie, and Conine.
March 24th: The Marlins are in agreement with outfielder Austin Slater on a major league deal, reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid. He just opted out of a minor league deal with the Tigers a few days ago. He’ll make $1MM plus bonuses, per Kevin Barral of Fish on First. The Marlins will need to open a 40-man roster spot but that should be as easy as transferring right-hander Adam Mazur to the 60-day injured list. Mazur underwent Tommy John surgery a few weeks ago and will miss the entire season.
Slater, 33, just had a strong camp with the Tigers. He stepped to the plate 36 times in 15 games and slashed .267/.389/.467. Detroit’s roster is fairly crowded, however. They are going to carry prospect Kevin McGonigle on the Opening Day roster and have bumped outfielder Wenceel Pérez to the minors.
The Marlins will take advantage of that roster crunch by scooping up Slater. In his career, he has generally combined solid defense in all three outfield slots with strong offense against left-handed pitching. His overall batting line is .248/.336/.384. That’s almost exactly league average, translating to a 101 wRC+. That includes a .267/.357/.430 line and 119 wRC+ against southpaws, compared to a .227/.311/.329 slash and 80 wRC+ otherwise.
That profile should fit well in the Miami outfield. The Marlins are slated to begin the season with Kyle Stowers on the injured list, which will leave Jakob Marsee, Owen Caissie and Griffin Conine in the outfield. All four of those guys are lefties, so Slater should have plenty of chances to slot in against southpaw opponents.
Photo courtesy of Brad Penner, Imagn Images
Padres Place Yu Darvish On Restricted List
The Padres finally announced their Opening Day roster on Wednesday evening. It more or less finalized a number of already known moves, though the biggest development is that starter Yu Darvish has been placed on the restricted list. Alden González of ESPN first reported that was the plan.
Darvish underwent elbow surgery last November. He won’t pitch at all in 2026. The expectation had been that he’d spend the season on the 60-day injured list. The Padres instead place him on the restricted list, which is for players who are under contract but are unavailable to play for various reasons. The restricted list is best known for its use when a player is suspended, though it’s more commonly briefly used when a player is away from the team for personal matters.
Players on the restricted list do not count against their clubs’ 40-man rosters, though that’s also true for those on the 60-day injured list. The more notable distinction is that teams are not required to pay players while they’re on the restricted list. It isn’t publicly known whether the team will continue paying Darvish any or all of his $15MM salary.
Of course, a team cannot place a player on the restricted list and avoid paying his contract merely because he suffered an injury. There’s surely more to this situation going on behind the scenes. There have been reports dating back to the end of last season about the sides negotiating some way to void the remaining three years on his deal. Darvish provided a statement in January, saying that he has not decided on retirement but confirming that the team, his camp, and the MLB Players Association have had conversations about terminating his contract. There hadn’t been any further updates on his situation until today.
His deal runs through 2028 and contains $43MM in remaining guarantees for his age 39-41 campaigns. The Padres would no doubt love to negotiate some kind of buyout or deferral plan that frees up short-term payroll space and lowers their luxury tax number. González points out that the still unsigned Lucas Giolito would be a sensible target for a team with questions in the back half of the rotation.
In 2024, Darvish agreed to a restricted list placement to attend to a family matter. He had previously been on the injured list at the time. The Padres offered to allow him to remain on the IL but Darvish opted to spend more than a month on the restricted list instead, voluntarily bypassing nearly $4MM in salary (link via Dennis Lin of The Athletic). The pitcher’s agent, Joel Wolfe, praised the team’s handling of the situation while noting that Darvish “just didn’t feel it was right to collect the money if he wasn’t fully committed to the rehab and coming back.”
There’ll presumably be an update from the team and/or Darvish’s representatives before long. The most immediate effect is that he’s off the 40-man roster. That’s a formality but was needed to officially select the contracts of Walker Buehler and Ty France, both of whom made the team last week.
San Diego placed seven more players on the injured list. Infielders Sung-Mun Song and Will Wagner went on the 10-day injured list, as both players are dealing with right oblique strains. Pitchers Jason Adam (recovery from left quad surgery), Griffin Canning (recovery from left Achilles surgery), Bryan Hoeing (flexor surgery), Joe Musgrove (elbow inflammation), Matt Waldron (which the team announced only as “surgery” after being a little more specific in February), and Yuki Matsui (left groin strain) all land on the 15-day injured list.
Adam was the only one of those players who held out hope of making the Opening Day roster. Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reported on Monday that he’d open on the injured list. It’s mostly to buy time for Adam to continue building up, as he made just two appearances at the end of Spring Training. He should be back sometime in April. In the meantime, this allows the Padres to carry both hard-throwing rookie Bradgley Rodríguez and the out-of-options Ron Marinaccio on the Opening Day roster.