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Giants Sign Will Brennan To Major League Deal

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The Giants announced this morning that they’ve signed outfielder Will Brennan to a one-year, major league contract. Brennan was non-tendered by the Guardians back in November. Right-hander Rowan Wick was placed on the 60-day injured list to open up a spot on the 40-man roster for Brennan.

Brennan, 28, was sidelined throughout 2026 by surgeries on his left UCL and groin, but Justice de los Santos of Mercury News reports that Brennan is full-go entering camp with no restrictions. An eighth-round pick by Cleveland back in 2019 who made his big league debut in 2022, he’s slashed .267/.307/.373 (90 wRC+) in parts of four seasons in the majors but has just 269 games in the majors thanks to an injury-plagued start to his young career.

Looking at Brennan’s last mostly healthy season in 2024, he slashed .264/.309/.388 (98 wRC+) in 114 games for the Guardians that year. That’s roughly replacement level production, but a closer look reveals that he was actually considerably more effective when healthy. Brennan slashed .256/.314/.415 (107 wRC+) prior to a bout of rib cage inflammation that sent him to the injured list, and when he came back in July he didn’t look quite right and struggled badly with a nine-game hitless streak. After being optioned to Triple-A for a couple of weeks, he returned in early August and slashed .330/.349/.408 (117 wRC+) the rest of the way.

All of that is to say Brennan has flashed impressive potential at times but struggled to stay healthy for long enough to put it all together. That makes him a worthwhile roll of the dice for a Giants team that already has a full outfield (featuring Heliot Ramos, Harrison Bader, and Jung Hoo Lee) on paper but could certainly make room for another big bat if Brennan manages to hit his way into the lineup. His contact-oriented, low-strikeout profile is a familiar one to a club that already employs Lee and Luis Arraez, and it’s easy to look at Lee’s 2025 season (107 wRC+, 2.4 fWAR) as the sort of campaign Brennan might be hoping to put together in 2026.

Brennan has options remaining and could be sent to the minors in the event that he struggles or is otherwise squeezed off the roster, making the deal a fairly low-risk one for the Giants. For now, he’ll look to prove he’s healthy and compete for a bench job with the Giants alongside fellow outfielders Drew Gilbert, Luis Matos, and Grant McCray.

As for Wick, the righty was signed by the Giants last week to a big league deal following an impressive run in Nippon Professional Baseball with the Yokohama DeNA Bay Stars. The former Cubs reliever underwent Tommy John surgery during his time with the Bay Stars and is not expected to pitch in 2026, so his placement on the 60-day IL is hardly a shock.

Astros Sign Cavan Biggio To Minor League Deal

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The Astros have signed utility man Cavan Biggio to a minor league deal with an invite to big league Spring Training, per a team announcement.

Biggio, 31 in April, would be entering his eighth season as a big leaguer if he makes the Astros’ roster. A fifth-round pick by the Blue Jays in 2016, he turned in impressive performances for Toronto in his first two years with the club, slashing .240/.368/.430 with a wRC+ of 118 and 4.0 fWAR in 159 games between the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Entering the 2021 season, Biggio looked like a building block of the Blue Jays’ next core. He was the team’s everyday second baseman on paper, slotting in alongside fellow up-and-coming hitters Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (on the infield corners) and Bo Bichette (at shortstop).

Unfortunately, that hot start to Biggio’s career has since proved to be unsustainable. While Guerrero and Bichette both went on to find stardom with the Jays, Biggio fell into a utility role with the team. He hit just .219/.327/.351 (93 wRC+) throughout the remainder of his Jays career before being cut loose by the team in June of 2024. That left Biggio to spend the rest of the year bouncing between teams. He appeared in the majors with the Dodgers and Braves through the second half of the season before catching on with the Royals on a minor league deal last offseason. He’s hit just .184/.298/.286 (70 wRC+) with a 29.0% strikeout rate since leaving Toronto, including a lackluster 59 wRC+ in 37 games with Kansas City last year. He was designated for assignment shortly before the trade deadline and finished the 2025 campaign in the Angels’ minor league system, where he hit just .242/.375/.303 even in the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League.

Difficult as the past two seasons have been for Biggio, there’s still some reason to believe that he can rebound to be a valuable player in a part-time role. Biggio has a career 13.5% walk rate, and it’s never fallen below 10% for a single season. That offers a solid floor of on-base ability that can be difficult to find in bench players; after all, Biggio managed a .296 OBP with the Royals last year despite hitting well below the Mendoza line. He also offers impressive versatility, with lots of experience in all four corners as well as second base. That upside was clearly enough for the Astros to decide to roll the dice on Biggio as a potential bench contributor this year, bringing him into camp and offering him the opportunity to earn a spot on the roster.

Biggio’s odds of actually making the roster are hard to figure out. On the one hand, the Astros haven’t made their desire to get more left-handed a secret, and their recent trade of Jesus Sanchez to the Blue Jays removed one of their few experienced lefty bats from the lineup. On the other hand, Biggio has primarily played the infield throughout his career, and the Astros’ infield mix is already very crowded. Carlos Correa, Jeremy Pena, Jose Altuve, and Christian Walker all figure to play more or less every day around the diamond, which leaves Isaac Paredes (who is also an everyday-caliber player on merit) left to fight for at-bats as it is. Combine that surplus of infield talent with plenty of uncertainty at the infield corners, and Biggio’s best shot at making the roster could be as a part-time corner outfielder, competing with Joey Loperfido and Zach Cole in that role.

Of course, that could change in a hurry if the team’s reported trade talks involving Paredes come to fruition. If more room is created on the bench, Biggio could slot in nicely as a more offensively-oriented complemented to Nick Allen on the club’s bench. Brice Matthews and Shay Whitcomb could also compete for bench spots on the infield, in the event that Paredes (or, perhaps, Walker) finds himself traded prior to Opening Day.

Diamondbacks Sign Zac Gallen

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The Diamondbacks have re-signed Zac Gallen on a one-year deal. The Boras Corporation client technically receives a $22.025MM guarantee that matches the value of the qualifying offer which he declined in November. However, a reported $14MM will be deferred via five $2.8MM installments paid between 2031-35. That means the D-Backs will only pay a little over $8MM, one-third of the contract, this year. Gallen’s luxury tax number is $18.7MM when factoring in the deferred money. Corbin Burnes was placed on the 60-day injured list as he rehabs from Tommy John surgery in order to make room for Gallen on the 40-man roster.

Gallen is coming off a down year that clearly sapped a lot of his appeal on the open market. He entered the season as a strong candidate to command upwards of $100MM once he hit free agency. Gallen stayed healthy and took all 33 turns through the rotation, but he had the worst rate stats of his career. He turned in a personal-high 4.83 earned run average with a career-worst 21.5% strikeout rate.

The season started especially poorly, as Gallen allowed at least five earned runs per nine innings in each of the first four months. He took a 5.40 ERA into the All-Star Break and had a 5.60 mark across 127 innings at the trade deadline. The D-Backs were aggressive sellers, moving Josh Naylor, Eugenio Suárez, Merrill Kelly and Shelby Miller. They didn’t find an offer they liked on Gallen more than the draft pick they’d collect if he signed elsewhere after rejecting the qualifying offer.

Arizona reportedly was concerned about overworking young pitchers down the stretch, so they got some benefit out of holding Gallen for the innings alone. He performed better after the deadline, tossing quality starts in eight of his last 11 outings. The 30-year-old turned in a 3.32 ERA over his final 65 innings. The Diamondbacks went 7-4 in those games, part of the reason they were able to hang in the Wild Card picture until the final weekend despite the July selloff.

While it was an encouraging last couple months, it wasn’t exactly a return to peak form. Gallen only struck out 20% of opponents during that stretch. He was helped a lot by a .232 average on balls in play. Gallen had struck out between 25-29% of opponents in each of his first five-plus MLB seasons. The swing-and-miss drop wasn’t quite so extreme on a per-pitch basis, but last year’s 9.5% swinging strike rate was the second-lowest mark of his career.

There weren’t any dramatic changes to Gallen’s raw stuff. His fastball averaged 93.5 mph, right in line with his career mark. That’s essentially league average for a right-handed starting pitcher. Opponents have had increasing success against Gallen’s heater over the past couple seasons. He managed decent results on his knuckle-curve and changeup, his top two secondary offerings. He sporadically mixed a cutter, slider and sinker — all of which were hit hard.

It remains to be seen if they’ll make any changes to his arsenal going into 2026. Gallen began to scale back his four-seam fastball usage in the final few months last season, largely in favor of more changeups. In any case, the team probably feels he deserved a little better than a near-5.00 ERA would suggest. Statcast’s “expected” ERA, which is based on his strikeout/walk profile and the batted balls he allows, landed at 4.28. His 4.24 SIERA was in a similar range. A positive regression toward those metrics would make him a league average starter.

This is an ideal outcome for the Diamondbacks. They were willing to pay an upfront $22.025MM salary to retain Gallen in November. His decision to decline the QO may very well have opened the payroll room to bring Kelly back on a two-year, $40MM free agent deal. Team personnel maintained throughout the offseason that they’d like to retain Gallen if they could make it work financially.

Owner Ken Kendrick raved about Gallen as far back as September. “He’s a special young man who spent nearly seven years as a D-Back. He definitely had an up-and-down season — performed better in the later part of the year, certainly, than earlier in the year. … He’s loved being a Diamondback,” Kendrick said at the time. “I don’t want to say it’s out of the touch of reality that we’d work out an arrangement to bring him back. He’s been a great D-Back. Last I recall, he was the guy who pitched seven or eight innings of no-hit ball in a World Series game for the Arizona Diamondbacks. … He’s the guy you want to root for.”

Just this week, manager Torey Lovullo said the clubhouse would “would welcome him with open arms, certainly” if they could get a deal done. Now that it has come to pass, he’ll slot alongside Kelly, Ryne Nelson, Eduardo Rodriguez and Brandon Pfaadt in the projected rotation. That could push free agent pickup Michael Soroka into a long relief role unless they decide to run a six-man rotation. They’re without a true ace until Corbin Burnes makes it back from Tommy John surgery; he’s aiming for some time around the All-Star Break. There’s far more stability than they had at the beginning of the winter, allowing them to take their time in deciding when to bring up prospects like Mitch Bratt and Kohl Drake, both of whom they acquired from Texas in the Kelly trade.

Penciling in a $22.025MM salary for Gallen would bring Arizona’s payroll projection to roughly $194MM, as calculated by RosterResource. That’d technically be right in line with last year’s $195MM season-opening mark, which Kendrick said at the beginning of the winter that the team wouldn’t match. However, they’re reportedly only on the hook for around $8MM in salary payments this year, so the D-Backs didn’t need to dramatically stretch the budget after waiting out the offseason.

The Diamondbacks don’t forfeit any of their existing draft choices to re-sign their own qualified free agent. Any other team would have punted at least one draft choice and potentially international signing bonus pool space to sign him. They are indirectly losing a pick by forfeiting the right to compensation.

That selection would have come after the first round in 2026 if Gallen had signed elsewhere for at least $50MM. That seemed a distinct possibility early in the offseason but almost certainly wasn’t happening in the middle of February. It’s more likely that they’re passing on a compensation pick that would have landed 73rd or 74th overall, which they receive if he’d walked for less than $50MM. That’s not a huge cost compared to bringing back a potential mid-rotation starter on a favorable deal.

Although the team must be happy with the outcome, it’s undoubtedly not what Gallen envisioned for his first trip to free agency. Jon Heyman of The New York Post suggests he declined multi-year offers from other teams because he preferred to remain with the Diamondbacks. That doesn’t mean that the market didn’t materialize as hoped. MLBTR predicted a four-year, $80MM deal at the beginning of the offseason. It seems clear in retrospect that teams weren’t willing to go to those lengths given Gallen’s disappointing platform year.

Even if staying in Arizona was his first choice all along, he’s coming out quite a bit worse than if he’d accepted the qualifying offer. He’ll receive the same amount of money in the long run, but the true value of the deferred money is worth less than if he’d collected it all in 2026, as evidenced by the lower luxury tax number. That probably doesn’t mean much for the team — they would’ve been more than $20MM away from the CBT threshold in either case — but illustrates that there’s a significant gap between the QO and this contract.

Gallen did at least agree to terms within a couple days of camps opening. He’ll report to the team by the beginning of full squad workouts and should have plenty of time to be ready for Opening Day. One can imagine he didn’t want to wait until close to the regular season, as former teammate Jordan Montgomery did in 2024. Montgomery was very critical of how Boras had managed negotiations and switched agencies within two weeks of signing with the D-Backs. The lefty pitched poorly in ’24, then underwent Tommy John surgery last spring. He signed a $1.25MM deal with Texas this week and wound up making $48.75MM over three seasons from 2024-26.

There’s certainly a world where things work out well for Gallen in the long run. He’ll return to the open market at age 31 without being weighed down by draft compensation. A player can only receive the qualifying offer once in his career. A four- or five-year deal could be on the table if he rebounds to the form he showed in 2022-24: a 3.20 ERA and 26% strikeout rate over 93 starts. Blake Snell, Cody Bellinger, Pete Alonso and Matt Chapman are all Boras clients who found disappointing markets in one offseason and went on to much more lucrative contracts after bounce back performances.

Time will tell if Gallen can follow the same path. His immediate focus will be on trying to get Arizona to a playoff berth in an annually difficult NL West. Gallen was the last unsigned qualified free agent and arguably the last potential impact player available. Lucas Giolito, Max Scherzer, Zack Littell and Griffin Canning headline a dwindling free agent class.

Steve Gilbert of MLB.com first reported the D-Backs were nearing a deal with Gallen. Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reported it was a one-year contract. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported it was a $22.025MM guarantee with roughly $14MM in deferrals. John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports added details on the deferral payouts. Rosenthal reported Gallen’s luxury tax number.

Image courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images.

Rangers Sign Mark Canha To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers announced this morning that they’ve signed first baseman/outfielder Mark Canha to a minor league deal with an invite to big league Spring Training.

It’s something of a birthday present for Canha, who turns 37 today. The veteran had a rough season in Kansas City last year, slashing just .212/.272/.265 in 46 games with the Royals. He suffered an adductor strain and an elbow injury that sent him to the injured list for two separate stints, and after a trade deadline that saw Kansas City add Mike Yastrzemski, Adam Frazier, and Randal Grichuk to the roster the team had little room to squeeze him back onto the roster when he was healthy enough to return. That left him to be released in mid-August of last year, and he did not catch on with a new club before the end of the year.

Coming off such a difficult 2025 campaign, it’s hardly a shock that Canha had to settle for a minor league deal. Whether last year’s lackluster performance was simply an injury-marred blip for the veteran or a larger signal of age-related decline remains to be seen, but the Rangers are interested enough in finding out to at least bring Canha into camp and see what he has left. That could prove to be a savvy move for the Rangers, given Canha’s long history of success in the majors. The veteran has posted a wRC+ of 101 or better in every season of his career where he’s taken at least 200 plate appearances. From 2018 to 2024, Canha slashed .253/.361/.415 with a wRC+ of 120, a 19.7% strikeout rate and an 11.0% walk rate. While he’s hit 20 homers just once in his career (during the juiced ball era back in 2019), he’s consistently posted high on-base percentages thanks to elite plate discipline.

Canha need not play up to his career numbers in order to be a contributor for the Rangers this year, of course. If he can simply deliver a slash line similar to that which he posted for the Tigers and Giants in 2024, when he hit .242/.344/.346 (101 wRC+), that would be enough to make him a worthy addition to the Rangers’ roster. The team relied heavily on Jake Burger at first base in 2026. He brings considerable power potential but posted a wRC+ of just 89 last season. At DH, Joc Pederson returns for his age-34 campaign after a disastrous 2026 where he hit just .181/.285/.328 with a wRC+ of 76. Even at his best, Pederson carries a substantial platoon split. That could make someone like Canha, who had a 123 wRC+ against lefties in 2024, a useful contributor even if both Pederson and Burger return to form this year.

As good of a fit as Canha would be if he finds his swing again, he’ll have competition for a bench job in Texas. Ezequiel Duran, Cody Freeman, Sam Haggerty, and Michael Helman all offer more positional versatility than Canha can at this point, as he’s entirely restricted to first base, DH, and the corner outfield spots. Justin Foscue is a right-handed hitter already on the 40-man who can handle second base in addition to first, and fellow non-roster invitees like Nick Pratto and Jonah Bride could also be in the mix for a spot with a strong performance in Spring Training.

Jurickson Profar Underwent Sports Hernia Surgery In November

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Braves outfielder Jurickson Profar told reporters (including Mark Bowman of MLB.com) this morning that he underwent surgery for a sports hernia back in November. The procedure required six weeks of recovery time and he enters camp without any restrictions. Per Bowman, Profar indicated he first felt discomfort due to the issue back in September and it flared up again during offseason workouts.

Profar, 33 later this week, is in an uncertain place as he heads into his second season with Atlanta. The switch-hitter’s 2024 campaign with the Padres was nothing short of phenomenal and saw him live up to his pedigree as the sport’s former #1 overall prospect. He earned his first career All-Star appearance and Silver Slugger award that year, slashing .280/.380/.459 with a 139 wRC+. He swatted 24 homers and stole ten bases in 158 games and paired a 15.1% strikeout rate with an 11.4% walk rate. That brilliant season earned Profar a three-year, $42MM contract in Atlanta, but his time with the Braves was derailed almost immediately by a PED suspension. That left him to serve an 80-game suspension that wiped out the first half of his 2025 season.

Once Profar returned to Atlanta, he managed to pick up more or less right where he left off. In 355 plate appearances from his reinstatement in July to the end of the season, Profar slashed .248/.358/.446 with 14 homers and nine steals. He struck out 15.8% of the time while walking at a phenomenal 13.2% clip, giving him an overall wRC+ of 126. Profar’s use of a performance-enhancing substance will surely cast doubt on his numbers for some, and as the veteran gets deeper into his 30s he’ll surely suffer age-related decline. For now, though, it’s easy to pencil the switch-hitter in as a likely above-average contributor to the Braves lineup.

Those contributions figure to come primarily at DH, at least to start the year. Profar doesn’t seem especially enthused about the change. Bowman notes that when asked about primarily playing DH this year, he “gritted his teeth, smirked, and made it clear he’s not excited about the role.” Even so, Profar did say (as noted by Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that he’s willing to help the team however he can.

To that end, it’s hard to argue that the best version of this Braves roster doesn’t have Profar at DH. He’s long been among the weakest defenders in the sport according to defensive metrics, and with DH Marcell Ozuna having been replaced in the lineup by the defensively solid Mike Yastrzemski it makes plenty of sense to get him off the grass Perhaps that could change at some point in the season, depending on the performance and health of the club’s other outfielders. Another potential x-factor could be Sean Murphy, who is slated to begin the year on the injured list but could factor into the DH mix (alongside fellow catcher Drake Baldwin) upon his return to action.

For now, though, the Braves will need to take every advantage they can get as they look to make up ground against the Phillies and Mets in the NL East. The club is coming off its worst season since Alex Anthopoulos took over baseball operations in 2018, and getting a full season out of a healthy and effective Profar figures to be one way Atlanta will try to get back on track. Of course, they’ll also need better health and productivity from the rest of a lineup that saw key players like Austin Riley, Michael Harris II, and Ozzie Albies take steps backwards at the dish last year, and better health from pitchers like Chris Sale and Reynaldo Lopez will be crucial as well.

Padres, Nick Castellanos Agree To Contract

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The Padres and outfielder Nick Castellanos have agreed to a Major League deal, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post (multiple links).  Castellanos will earn $780K on the contract, which is the MLB minimum salary for the 2026 season.  The Padres have an open spot on their 40-man roster, so no corresponding move will be required once the deal is finalized by Castellanos passing a physical.  Castellanos is represented by Mato Sports Management.

After signing Miguel Andujar to a one-year, $4MM guarantee a few days ago, San Diego has now added another veteran right-handed bat to its list of DH or bench candidates.  Castellanos will also be in the first base mix, as per The Athletic’s Dennis Lin, which is noteworthy since Castellanos has never played the position during his pro career.  Given how Castellanos has struggled badly in the field as a third baseman and corner outfielder over his career, a move to first base is seemingly long overdue, though Castellanos has been blocked at the position throughout pretty much the entirety of his 13-year MLB tenure.

The left-handed hitting Gavin Sheets is lined up as the Padres’ top choice at first base, so Castellanos makes sense as a platoon partner.  Ramon Laureano figures to get most of the time in left field, so Andujar will be used primarily as a DH, providing competition for Castellanos at another spot.  Castellanos’ old position of right field is filled by Fernando Tatis Jr., so Castellanos probably won’t be getting much or any time in right unless Tatis is hurt or is getting a DH day.

Given the Padres’ stated need for hitting depth, they were seen as a potential candidate to acquire Castellanos during the Phillies’ winter-long attempts to find a trade partner, and Lin reports that the two teams did indeed have some trade talks before Castellanos was released two days ago.  It would seem like the Padres (and other teams) were willing to just wait the Phillies out on a Castellanos release rather than give up anything in value, as the Phils didn’t exactly have much leverage given how open the front office has been for months about their desire to move on from Castellanos.

The Padres’ $780K commitment will be subtracted from the $20MM owed to Castellanos in 2026, leaving the Phillies on the hook for $19.22MM in the final season of the five-year, $100MM deal the slugger signed during the 2021-22 offseason.  That nine-figure investment translated to 0.8 fWAR and a perfectly average 100 wRC+ over four seasons and 2477 plate appearances, with Castellanos hitting .260/.306/.426 and 82 home runs in a Philadelphia uniform.

This so-so offense was paired with very subpar right field defense, as Castellanos was locked into an outfield position due to Kyle Schwarber’s presence at DH, and Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper acting as the starting first basemen.  Castellanos’ lack of production on the field led to some tension off the field, as detailed by The Athletic’s Matt Gelb two days ago.  Castellanos bristled at suggestions that he should alter his swing or be removed from games for defensive purposes, and he clashed with manager Rob Thomson and hitting coach Kevin Long.

The low point came last June 16, when Castellanos was removed for a late-game sub and Castellanos had to be prevented by teammates from drinking a beer in the dugout as a public protest of Thomson’s decision.  Castellanos addressed this incident and apologized in a post on his Instagram page, but he’ll surely face plenty of questions about his controversial Phillies stint when he arrives at the Padres’ spring camp.

It remains to be seen if Castellanos can play first base at a passable level, or if he’ll be able to adjust to more of a part-time role after taking such pride in being an everyday regular throughout his career.  The simple fact is that Castellanos has no choice but to adjust, as he is now entering his age-34 season and is looking to revive his career following his disappointing run in Philadelphia.

A bounce-back performance would go a long way towards reviving Castellanos’ value for future contracts following the 2026 campaign.  He’ll get that chance on another NL contender in San Diego, and there is some irony in the fact Castellanos is joining a Padres team that has seen more than its share of clubhouse tumult over the last few years.  A revolving door in the manager’s office has contributed to the Padres’ issues behind the scenes, and new hire Craig Stammen will be San Diego’s fourth different skipper since Opening Day 2020.

Brewers Sign Gary Sánchez

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Feb. 14: Milwaukee has officially announced the Sánchez deal. The Brewers had room on the 40-man roster, so no corresponding move was needed.

Feb. 11: The Brewers have agreed to terms on a deal with veteran catcher Gary Sánchez, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The MDR Sports client will be guaranteed $1.75MM on the deal.

Sánchez, 33, spent the 2025 season with the Orioles organization but was limited to just 30 games and 101 plate appearances due to wrist inflammation and, more seriously, a sprain of the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was reasonably productive when healthy, popping five homers and turning in a .231/.297/.418 batting line (100 wRC+).

This will be Sánchez’s second stint with the Brewers in the past three seasons. He spent the 2024 campaign in Milwaukee as well, hitting .220/.307/.392 with 11 homers in 280 plate appearances. He served as a backup to William Contreras and a part-time (40 games) designated hitter that season and figures to reprise that role in 2026.

A former top prospect and an All-Star earlier with the Yankees early in his career, Sánchez has settled into a backup/part-time role in recent seasons. He appeared in 128 games and totaled 471 plate appearances with the Twins in 2022 after being traded from the Bronx to Minnesota, but he’s taken only 648 plate appearances combined in the three subsequent seasons (albeit, in part due to last year’s injuries).

Sánchez developed a reputation as a defensive liability earlier in his career but progressed to the point that he turned in solid defensive marks behind the dish in both 2022 and 2023. He was closer to average in ’24 and slipped back below average in 2025, per both Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast, though that was obviously a small sample (175 innings). He’ll return to a Milwaukee club where he’s familiar with some members of the staff (e.g. Brandon Woodruff, Abner Uribe, Trevor Megill, Aaron Ashby, Jared Koenig), but the Brewers’ staff has turned over a fair bit even in the roughly 18 months since Sánchez’s initial departure.

The Brewers recently signed veteran catcher Reese McGuire to a minor league deal and invited him to spring training. He’d been in line to serve as the backup to Contreras but now seems likely to be ticketed for Triple-A Nashville — if he doesn’t have an out clause in his contract that allows him to explore other opportunities late in camp.

The addition of those two veterans gives the Brewers the ability to be more patient with top prospect Jeferson Quero, who is widely regarded as the heir to Contreras behind the plate but still has just 59 games and 251 plate appearances of Triple-A ball under his belt. He could push his way into the mix with a big enough season in Nashville, and it’s feasible that he’ll be ready for a full-time look in 2027, when Contreras will be entering his final season of club control (and likely be an offseason trade candidate, as is often the case with top Brewers players who are a year from reaching free agency).

Ha-Seong Kim Could Return In Early May

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Just over a month after signing a one-year, $20MM deal to come back to the club, Braves shortstop Ha-Seong Kim went down with a torn tendon in his finger. The team announced the initial recovery timeline to be four to five months. Kim is trending toward an earlier return. General manager Alex Anthopoulos told reporters, including Mark Bowman of MLB.com, that there’s hope Kim could come back in early May.

Kim popped up as an option on MLBTR’s list of 60-day IL candidates, though he was more of a long shot. Atlanta will likely do what it can to avoid making that move if there’s any chance Kim can be back on the early end of the timeline. The recent update from Anthopoulos makes a 60-day IL placement all the more unlikely.

The Braves scooped up Kim off waivers from Tampa Bay late last season, with the Rays looking to duck the shortstop’s $16MM player option. Atlanta wasn’t able to get Kim back on the player option, but did convince him to sign for an extra $4MM as a free agent. He was set to return as the club’s starting shortstop.

Kim delivered solid production in his final three seasons in San Diego, including a 17-homer, 38-steal season in 2023. He also netted a Gold Glove award that year. Kim then landed in Tampa Bay as a free agent. The Rays gave him a two-year, $29MM deal with an opt-out, despite the fact that Kim was recovering from right shoulder surgery. He played just 24 games with the team.

Atlanta will likely patch together the shortstop position until Kim is healthy. The team acted quickly after the news broke, signing utilityman Jorge Mateo the very next day. Mateo has bounced around defensively in his six-year career, but he’s spent the most time at shortstop (294 appearances). The Braves acquired Mauricio Dubón in a trade with the Astros. Nick Allen, Atlanta’s primary shortstop last season, went the other way in the deal. Dubón is a candidate to mix in at the position. The Braves also re-acquired Brett Wisely as additional infield depth.

Led by the defensive-minded Allen, the Braves finished dead last in OPS at shortstop in 2025. Allen put up a .530 mark in 408 plate appearances. Orlando Arcia, Vidal Bruján, and Luke Williams were even worse. Kim slashed a middling .253/.316/.368 in two dozen games with Atlanta.

Photo courtesy of Jordan Godfree, Imagn Images

NL West Injury Notes: Gurriel, Graterol, Stewart

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The initial recovery timeline following Lourdes Gurriel Jr.’s torn ACL in September was nine to 10 months. The 32-year-old outfielder is determined to beat that estimate. “He said Opening Day to me yesterday when I saw him,” manager Torey Lovullo said, relayed by Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports. “That’s how good he’s feeling.”

Lovullo acknowledged that Gurriel getting back for the start of the regular season isn’t happening. He didn’t give a firm timeline, but the veteran does appear to be progressing ahead of the initial timeline. Ronald Acuna Jr. was back from his ACL tear by May last season, but his injury occurred in May 2024. He’s also a few years younger than Gurriel.

Gurriel could’ve opted out of his three-year, $42MM contract this offseason, but unsurprisingly exercised his $13MM player option in November. He was unlikely to garner a better deal on the open market given the injury. Arizona has a $14MM option with a $5MM buyout on Gurriel for 2027.

The Diamondbacks acquired Gurriel and Gabriel Moreno from the Blue Jays for Daulton Varsho in December 2022. Gurriel had a strong season after coming over, socking a career-best 24 home runs and earning his lone All-Star selection. He re-upped with the club the following year. Gurriel’s wRC+ slipped below league average for the first time last season, though he still managed 19 home runs and 10 steals.

Gurriel has been Arizona’s primary left fielder the past two years, though that could change in 2026. John Gambadoro of 98.7FM Arizona Sports suggests Gurriel could split his time between DH and the outfield once he comes back. More DH time would allow the veteran to ease back in following major knee surgery. Arizona is currently looking at Jordan Lawlar and Jorge Barrosa as left field candidates, with Pavin Smith and Carlos Santana handling first base and DH.

Elsewhere around the division, the Dodgers offered updates on a pair of injured relievers. Right-hander Brusdar Graterol had shoulder surgery in November 2024 and missed the entire 2025 campaign. The plan is to “slow play” his build-up this spring, manager Dave Roberts told reporters, including Jack Harris of The California Post. Graterol’s availability for Opening Day is unclear.

The 27-year-old Graterol has long been an intriguing member of L.A.’s bullpen. Injuries have hindered him for the majority of his tenure with the club. Graterol has been on the IL three separate times over the past four seasons with shoulder inflammation. The most recent trip ended with surgery. Graterol also missed time with elbow inflammation along the way.

The results have been excellent when Graterol is available. His 98 mph sinker has racked up ground balls at an impressive rate. Graterol’s strikeout numbers have been pedestrian, especially for a pitcher with top-tier velocity and a filthy slider, but he’s posted a 2.78 ERA across 188 career appearances.

Fellow righty Brock Stewart is recovering from shoulder problems of his own. The 34-year-old had offseason surgery that included shaving a bone spur, removing part of his collarbone, and taking out his bursa, relayed Harris. Stewart isn’t expecting to be ready for Opening Day, but plans to be available “for the majority of the season.”

Stewart debuted with the Dodgers in 2016 as a starter. He flopped in the role, ultimately reviving his career as a reliever. L.A. acquired him from the Twins straight up for outfielder James Outman at the 2025 trade deadline. He pitched in four games with the club before going down with the shoulder issue.

After three seasons away from the big leagues, Stewart put together a dominant comeback year in 2023. He posted a 0.65 ERA with a massive 35.8% strikeout rate over 28 appearances with the Twins. A solid first half this past season helped Stewart get dealt during Minnesota’s flurry of reliever trades at the deadline.

The Dodgers landed Edwin Diaz this offseason, but haven’t done much else to add to the bullpen. Evan Phillips is also back with the club as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. His procedure was in June, so he’s probably behind both Stewart and Graterol in terms of a return timeline.

Photo courtesy of Rob Schumacher, Imagn Images

Nationals, Cionel Perez Agree To Minor-League Deal

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The Nationals have agreed to a minor-league deal with left-hander Cionel Perez, according to Francys Romero of Beisbol FR. Perez earns an invite to major-league Spring Training. He will earn $1.9MM if he makes the roster, with $700k in incentives, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Perez is represented by Octagon.

Perez is an eight-year big-league veteran. After stints with the Astros and Reds from 2018-21, he was claimed off waivers by the Orioles in November 2021 and subsequently earned a larger role. His first season in Baltimore was his best. Perez posted a shiny 1.40 ERA in 57 2/3 innings across 66 appearances in 2022. His expected stats weren’t quite as high on him, though his 3.63 xERA and 2.80 FIP still painted the picture of an above-average reliever. Perez excelled that year by keeping the ball in the park and getting plenty of groundballs. His 51.3% groundball rate was tied for 33rd among 152 qualified relievers that year. His 0.31 HR/9 rate was 11th-best.

Perez’s 2023-24 numbers were more serviceable than great. His strikeout and walk numbers both trended in the wrong direction from 2022, leaving him with a 7.2% K-BB rate. He still excelled at inducing grounders, with a 58.3% groundball rate across those two seasons (including a career-best 60.7% mark in 2023). Altogether, he posted a 4.04 ERA in 107 innings from 2023-24.

Batters teed off on Perez in 2025. In 19 appearances in the season’s first two months, he posted an ERA of 8.31 with an elevated 16.4% walk rate, his highest since 2021 with the Reds. More surprisingly, after allowing just four home runs in total from 2022-24, Perez allowed three in only 21 2/3 innings in 2025. A .379 BABIP and 3.93 xERA suggest he was the victim of bad luck, but his 5.77 FIP implied he was doing poorly independently of his defense. By the end of May, the Orioles had seen enough. Perez was designated off the 40-man roster and spent the rest of the year at Triple-A, pitching to a 6.85 ERA in 22 1/3 innings.

Despite the disappointing end to his Orioles tenure, a look at Perez’s Statcast page gives some reason for optimism. His fastball velocity, expected batting average, barrel rate, and groundball rate all would have ranked in the 71st percentile or better had he pitched enough to qualify. As recently as 2024, Perez’s slurve and sinker were above average pitches by run value. Opponents slugged just .282 and .314 against those pitches, respectively.

For the rebuilding Nats, there is no risk in bringing Perez into the fold of what is otherwise a young, inexperienced bullpen. Julian Fernandez and waiver claim Richard Lovelady are the only projected members with even two years of service time, per RosterResource. At the least, Perez is an experienced lefty with a high groundball rate who could turn into a trade candidate by the deadline if he rebuilds his value. Assuming he makes the roster, his $1.9MM salary would bring the Nationals’ payroll to $95.38MM and their luxury tax payroll to $118.18MM.

Photo by Daniel Cusin Jr., Imagn Images

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