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Red Sox Notes: Bregman, Outfield, Injuries

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Fenway Fest is in full swing. The fan event has yielded plenty of interesting tidbits through interviews with various players and executives. Here’s a rundown of some of the highlights, including a show of support for Alex Bregman from a former teammate and impressive candor from an infielder with an uncertain future.

A Bregman update, of course

President of baseball operations Craig Breslow can’t seem to go a day without answering questions about the free agent third baseman. “We’re going to do everything we possibly can to add more offense,” Breslow told reporters, including Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald. “We saw the impact Alex (Bregman) had last year, on the field, in the clubhouse, in the community, someone that fits our team really well. He’s still out there, which means we have a chance.”

ESPN’s Buster Olney reported last weekend that the club has made an “aggressive” offer to Bregman. The Diamondbacks, Cubs, and Tigers have also been connected to the 31-year-old free agent. Bregman opted out of the three-year, $120MM deal he signed with the Red Sox last offseason in pursuit of a more lucrative deal.

It’s not just the front office looking to reunite with Bregman. Outfielder Roman Anthony expressed support, highlighting the work Bregman did with the young players. “I would love to have him back,” Anthony told reporters, including Starr. “He was … a huge part of my success. And a lot of the young guys, and not only the young guys, but many of the guys in the clubhouse … we’re all on the same page as to where we stand with him and what we hope happens.” Anthony specifically cited Bregman’s insights into preparation and offensive approach as beneficial to him in his rookie season.

Injuries limited Bregman to 114 games in his lone season in Boston, but he was quite productive when available. He slashed .273/.360/.462 with 18 home runs across 495 plate appearances. Bregman delivered his typical strong work with the glove at the hot corner. He earned his third All-Star selection.

Outfield trade sounds doubtful

Boston seemingly has four outfielders for three spots heading into the season. Anthony, Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, and Ceddanne Rafaela have all shown enough to earn everyday roles. One of them could slot in at DH, but that would limit the playing time for Masataka Yoshida and Triston Casas. Despite the apparent glut at the position, along with rumors that Duran was drawing interest, Breslow shot down the notion that a trade was on the table.

“It was never likely in my mind,” Breslow told reporters, including Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “We’ve got really talented outfielders. When teams call, that’s what other executives point to. They’re young, they’re controllable, they’re dynamic, they’re talented, and can impact games in multiple ways. It’s really nice to be able to say they’re also members of the Boston Red Sox.”

Manager Alex Cora also provided additional context on the outfield plan, telling reporters he preferred Rafaela in center field and Abreu in right field, even against left-handed pitching. Breslow has previously expressed a desire to keep Rafaela in center field. He’s spent time at second base and shortstop over the past two seasons. Rafaela is a tremendous outfielder, earning Gold Glove honors for his efforts in center field this past season. Abreu also secured a Gold Glove in 2025, his second time receiving the award. He’ll likely be in the field when he plays. It’s the same-handed pitching remark that is interesting. The lefty-swinging Abreu had just 68 plate appearances against southpaws last season. He’s hit just .205 vs. lefties in his career.

If Cora gets his wish, with both Rafaela and Abreu regularly manning the outfield, Anthony and Duran would handle left field and DH. It’s hard to imagine former top prospect Anthony losing much playing time outside of the occasional rest day. Duran is coming off a modest 2025, but he was one of the top offensive forces in the league in 2024. It’ll be a lot for Cora to juggle next season without a roster move.

Injury updates

Casas is coming back from a ruptured patellar tendon in his right knee. He told reporters, including Christopher Smith of MassLive, that he’s uncertain if he’ll be ready for the start of the 2026 campaign. “As of right now, not too sure. Not trying to get ahead of myself, but I do see myself progressing well enough to maybe get into some spring training games. We’ll see how that goes because that’s a benchmark as well.”

Boston traded for Willson Contreras to handle first base, which leaves Casas’ role in question once he gets healthy. The aforementioned logjam in the outfield doesn’t help matters. Casas seems to be taking the Contreras addition in stride, though. “He’s a better player than me and has been for his entire career. To upgrade at a position that has been deficient for the last two years is exactly what the team needed.” (relayed by Cotillo)

A few more quick-hitters in the health department…

  • Marcelo Mayer expects to be fully ready for Spring Training. His 2025 season was cut short by a wrist injury in August. “I’m pretty much doing full baseball activity, like a normal ramp-up, as I would for a regular season going into spring training,” Mayer said.
  • Anthony is also expected to be good to go for the spring. An oblique injury cost him most of September and all of the postseason. The team believed he might have been able to return for the ALCS, but they were knocked out in the ALDS.
  • Kutter Crawford is on track to return to action for the first time since 2024. He missed all of last season with knee and wrist issues. “At this point, it’s just normal progression,” Crawford said. “I got off the slope yesterday, and it felt good. And now we just build up the mound progression.”
  • Carlos Narvaez had knee surgery at the start of the offseason, but told reporters (including Smith) he would be a full go come springtime.

Photo courtesy of  John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images

Cardinals To Sign Ryne Stanek

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January 10: Stanek will earn $3.5MM in 2026, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The deal also includes a $6MM club option for 2027.

January 9: The Cardinals are in agreement with free agent reliever Ryne Stanek, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. Chris Cotillo of MassLive first reported that St. Louis was pursuing the hard-throwing righty. The Cardinals will need to open a 40-man roster spot once the MVP Sports Group client completes a physical.

Stanek gets a change of scenery after an inconsistent year and a half with the Mets. New York acquired him from the Mariners at the 2024 trade deadline. While he allowed 11 runs in 16 1/3 regular season innings down the stretch, Stanek’s plus strikeout rate and strong postseason work led the Mets to bring him back on a $4.5MM free agent deal.

That didn’t pan out, as the 34-year-old had an up-and-down season. Stanek had strong run prevention marks in May and July but was knocked around in the other four months. He finished with a 5.30 earned run average across 56 innings. ERA estimators were only slightly more bullish as Stanek’s strikeout and walk rates each went in the wrong direction.

A 22.7% strikeout rate was narrowly the lowest of his nine-year career. Stanek had fanned nearly 28% of opposing hitters one season earlier. It’s crucial that he miss bats because command has never been a strong suit. Stanek has walked at least 10% of batters faced in all but one year, including a 12.5% mark last season.

The Cardinals are taking what should be a low-cost bet that he’ll strike out more batters in 2026. Stanek still has the stuff to do that. He averaged 98.5 MPH on his heater, a top 15 mark in MLB. He backs that up with a plus slider and mixes in a splitter and sweeper as his third and fourth offerings. Stanek still missed bats at a slightly above-average rate on a per pitch basis.

St. Louis doesn’t have a ton of experienced arms in the late innings. Southpaw JoJo Romero had been their only reliever with even two years of MLB service. There’s a decent chance he’s traded before Opening Day. The Cardinals were looking for a veteran arm who can pitch in the back half of the bullpen. Stanek fits best in middle relief but could be in the high-leverage mix, perhaps even as a closer, on a rebuilding club. He’s a known commodity to president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, who was in the Rays front office when Tampa Bay drafted him in the first round in 2013.

There’s also a geographic tie. Stanek was born in St. Louis and went to high school not far outside Missouri in Stilwell, Kansas. There’s a decent chance he’ll be traded midseason if he’s pitching well, but he’ll get a chance to play for his hometown club for at least a few months.

Image courtesy of Gregory Fisher, Imagn Images.

Latest On Yankees’ Pitching Search

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The Yankees were known to be one of the teams talking with the Marlins about a possible Edward Cabrera trade, but with Cabrera now in a Cubs uniform, the New York Post’s Joel Sherman reports that the Bronx Bombers are looking elsewhere for rotation help.  The NY Post’s Jon Heyman reiterates that the Yankees continue to have trade interest in the Brewers’ Freddy Peralta and the Nationals’ MacKenzie Gore, and the chances of a Tarik Skubal trade with the Tigers seems remote due to Detroit’s huge asking price.

As per offseason norms, the Yankees have been routinely connected to several major players on the free agent and trade markets, though the club has yet to swing a big transaction.  New York did bolster its pitching depth by re-signing Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn, but those aren’t the types of arms that would provide the certainty or the upside of a true front-of-the-rotation arm.

Sherman outlines the situation facing the Yankees’ rotation, as technically the team has enough starters between Max Fried, Luis Gil, Cam Schlittler, Will Warren, and Yarbrough to cover innings until Carlos Rodon is back from elbow surgery (in late April or early May), and Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt are back from Tommy John surgery.  Of course, any injuries to the healthy pitchers or setbacks for the injured pitchers could throw this entire plan awry, and Schmidt’s availability for any of the 2026 season isn’t a sure thing since he underwent his TJ procedure last July.

Bringing in not just a depth starter, but a pitcher that could conceivably start a playoff game would naturally be a nice boost to the rotation picture.  Such an addition provides cover against not just injuries, but (as Sherman notes) the possibility that Schlittler might struggle in his first full Major League season, or that Fried might feel some wear after a career-high 195 1/3 innings pitched in 2025.

Interestingly, almost all of the starting pitchers linked to the Yankees on the hot stove this offseason have been trade targets, rather than free agents.  Given how Cody Bellinger seemingly remains New York’s top overall priority, it would seem like the Yankees are allocating their free agent dollars in that direction….or perhaps towards another top-tier option like Bo Bichette if a deal can’t be reached with Bellinger.

While the Yankees were reportedly interested in Tatsuya Imai earlier this winter, Heyman writes that the team was looking at Imai more as a reliever than as a starting pitcher.  As such, the Yankees didn’t make Imai an offer, since presumably the bidding got beyond New York’s comfort range for a relief pitcher.  Imai’s market ended up being narrower than initially thought, and the righty ended up signing with the Astros on a three-year, $54MM deal that includes opt-outs after each of the first two seasons.

Heyman also provides some details on the Cabrera negotiations, as such New York prospects as right-hander Ben Hess and outfielder Dillon Lewis were mentioned, along with “a third lower-level prospect.”  It isn’t specified if these three players were all included in one offer to Miami, but the Marlins instead opted for the Cubs’ three-prospect mix of Owen Caissie, Cristian Hernandez and Edgardo De Leon.  The highly-regarded Caissie is the highest-ranked prospect of the group and he has already made his MLB debut, so he could be in Miami’s outfield as soon as Opening Day.  It is easy to see why the hitting-needy Marlins might’ve preferred Chicago’s offer, especially since the Yankees weren’t willing to include their own top hitting prospect in George Lombard Jr.

In what might be an interesting tidbit to file away for any future Yankees/Marlins trade talks, Heyman writes that “Miami loves the super talented Lewis,” a 13th-round pick in the 2024 draft who finished his first full season of pro ball at high-A Hudson Valley.  Baseball America ranks Lewis as the eighth-best prospect in New York’s farm system, with Hess clocking in fifth place.

Braves Re-Sign Tyler Kinley

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The Braves are bringing back right-hander Tyler Kinley on a one-year contract worth $4.25MM in guaranteed money, according to The Athletic’s Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal. The deal breaks down as a $3MM salary for the 2026 season, and there is a $1.25MM buyout on a $5.5MM club option for the 2027 season. Kinley is represented by Paragon Sports International.

Atlanta declined its $5.5MM option on Kinley shortly after the season ended, opting to hand him a $750K buyout. The move was a bit of an eyebrow raiser at the time, considering the righty’s strong work once he joined the team, but it makes more sense now. The Braves get Kinley at a cheaper number while adding the ability to retain him in 2027.

The deal is indicative of Kinley’s impressive turnaround last season. The 34-year-old had an ugly 5.66 ERA in the first half with Colorado. It continued a troubling trend, as Kinley was coming off back-to-back seasons with an ERA over 6.00. Atlanta scooped him up at the trade deadline for a Double-A reliever. The Braves weren’t in contention, so acquiring Kinley was more about giving him an audition for 2026. The gambit paid off, as the veteran allowed just two earned runs in 24 appearances with the team.

Kinley often worked in high-leverage spots during his Rockies tenure. The role was given to him more out of necessity, not performance. Despite a 6.19 ERA in 2024, Kinley led the team with a dozen saves. He wrapped up his five-plus seasons in Colorado with a 5.05 ERA. Pitching half your games at Coors Field is no easy task, and Kinley’s underlying metrics were routinely better than his standard run prevention numbers. He had a SIERA close to or below 4.00 in each of his five full campaigns with the team. Kinley’s xERA was more than a run lower than his actual ERA on three occasions.

The Braves have already made several additions in the bullpen this offseason. The club re-signed Raisel Iglesias in mid-November, then doubled down by grabbing Robert Suarez in early December. Atlanta also brought back Joel Payamps and picked up veterans Ian Hamilton and Danny Young. Iglesias and Suarez are the clear 1-2 punch in the late innings, which likely leaves Kinley to pick up opportunities in the middle frames.

Orioles Notes: Henderson, Valdez, Astros

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Gunnar Henderson’s third full Major League season was another success, as the infielder hit .274/.349/.438 with 17 home runs over 651 plate appearances.  It was more or less a match for the 2023 season that earned Henderson AL Rookie of the Year honors — Henderson posted a 122 wRC+ and 4.7 fWAR that year, and a 120 wRC+ and 4.8 fWAR in 2025.

Last season’s numbers were, however, a step back from the 154 wRC+ and 7.9 fWAR Henderson delivered in 2024.  Henderson missed most of Spring Training and the first week of regular-season action recovering from an intercostal strain, but the shortstop revealed Thursday that he also spent about “three-quarters of the year” dealing with a heretofore unknown shoulder impingement.

In an interview on WBAL’s Orioles Hot Stove Show (hat tip to MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko), Henderson said “I just wasn’t able to hold the plane and my body was adjusting to it, not feeling great, so that didn’t really set up me in the right spot to leverage the ball like I normally do.”  Despite his solid production, Henderson “could never get to the spot that I wanted to get to with my swing, but no excuse.  Just had to play through it and felt like I still with all those circumstances put up a decent year.  Looking forward to being healthy this year and getting back to my normal self.”

The injury wasn’t serious enough to merit a trip to the injured list, or even any missed time, as Henderson played in 154 of 155 games after being activated from the IL on April 4.  Since the Orioles faded from contention pretty early in the season, the team certainly should’ve shut down Henderson or at least reduced his playing time if there was any real concern over his shoulder.

With Henderson now predicting good health for 2026, the shoulder impingement can probably just be written off as a yet another footnote within an injury-riddled season for the Orioles roster.  Getting the 2024 version of Henderson back would go a long way towards helping the O’s return to playoff contention after their disappointing 75-win campaign.

Having Framber Valdez in the rotation would also be a huge boost, and the possibility of a big rotation add remains alive since the Orioles have been linked to the free agent southpaw’s market.  This isn’t the first time Baltimore has looked to acquire Valdez, however, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon report that the left-hander was part of a four-player trade package the Astros were prepared to send to the O’s for Zack Britton at the 2017 trade deadline.

It was known at the time that a Britton trade fell apart at the last minute between the two sides, with the Orioles reportedly pulling out due to medical concerns over two of the players involved.  Houston’s side of the deal wasn’t known until now, as Rosenthal/Sammon report that the Astros were offering Valdez (then a somewhat unheralded Double-A prospect), J.D. Davis, Jason Martin, and Rogelio Armenteros for Britton, who was in the midst of an injury-shortened season but was arguably baseball’s best closer when healthy.

While initial reports said the Orioles took issue with the medical of both pitchers (Armenteros and Valdez) in the trade offer, Rosenthal/Sammon write that Baltimore’s issue was just with Armenteros.  Former Orioles owner Peter Angelos was somewhat notorious for his caution over pitcher health, leading to several trades or free agent signings that were renegotiated at the eleventh hour, or abandoned altogether.

Armenteros’ MLB career ended up consisting of five appearances for the Astros in 2019 and he missed the entire 2020 season due to surgery to remove a bone spur from his throwing elbow.  In this context, it’s hard to say the Orioles were incorrect in their concern, though Arementeros ended up being the least-accomplished of the four players Houston offered.  Beyond just Valdez, Davis became a very productive infielder once the Astros traded him to the Mets during the 2018-19 offseason, and that breakout could’ve very well happened in Baltimore rather than in New York.  Martin’s MLB career consisted of 85 games with the Pirates and Rangers from 2019-21, but Martin was one of the four players the Astros sent to Pittsburgh for Gerrit Cole prior to the 2018 season.

The Astros went onto win the 2017 World Series anyway without Britton, and Valdez ended up being a cornerstone piece of the team’s success over the last decade.  While Houston’s front office (which included current Orioles president of baseball ops Mike Elias at the time) was surely irritated when the Orioles pulled the plug on the Britton trade, the team came out on top in the long run, and it’s another example of how you just never know which prospect might end up as the key figure of a trade package.

In fairness to the O’s, there wasn’t much indication at the time that Valdez would turn into a frontline starter, and it is possible Valdez wouldn’t have developed as well as he did in Baltimore’s organization rather than in Houston.  The 2017 season was the first of five straight losing seasons for the Orioles as they entered a rebuilding period under Elias, and it is interesting to wonder how having Valdez (and Davis) around might’ve changed the trajectory of that rebuild.

Rockies Acquire Jake McCarthy From Diamondbacks

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The Rockies have acquired outfielder Jake McCarthy from the Diamondbacks in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Josh Grosz.  Both teams have officially announced the trade.

Selected 39th overall by the D’Backs in the 2018 draft, McCarthy’s tenure in Arizona has been marked by trade rumors and flashes of potential.  McCarthy’s first full MLB season in 2022 saw him finish fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting, off a .283/.342/.427 slash line, eight homers, and 23 steals in 26 attempts over 354 trips to the plate.  This translated to a 116 wRC+, but McCarthy’s production then drastically tailed off to a 78 wRC+ during the 2023 season, and he wasn’t involved in any of Arizona’s playoff rosters during the team’s run to the NL pennant.

The pendulum swung again in 2024 when McCarthy played in a career-high 142 games, and hit .285/.349/.400 with eight homers and 25 stolen bases over 495 PA.  This past season, McCarthy had only a 60 wRC+ from a slash line of .204/.247/.345 over 222 PA, and he spent two months in Triple-A in a fruitless attempt to get his bat on track.

With a 431-game sample size to work with, McCarthy’s strengths and weaknesses are clear.  He can play all three outfield positions at least passably well, and he is one of the very fastest players in baseball, ranking in no lower than the 98th percentile of speed since his debut in the Show.  McCarthy makes a lot of contact, yet with very little hard contact or power, leaving him somewhat at the mercy of batted-ball luck.

Coming up as one of several left-handed hitting outfielders in the Diamondbacks farm system, McCarthy has been a trade candidate for years.  During the 2023-24 offseason, the White Sox were reportedly given the option of acquiring either McCarthy or Dominic Fletcher in exchange for Cristian Mena, and Chicago opted to go with Fletcher.  It is easy to second-guess the D’Backs by arguing that McCarthy could’ve garnered more of a return if they’d moved him much earlier than January 2026, though McCarthy’s up-and-down performance made him something of a difficult player for the Diamondbacks to gauge, let alone shop to trade suitors.

Even with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. set to miss most or all of the 2026 season recovering from a torn ACL, the Diamondbacks still felt comfortable moving McCarthy out of their outfield mix.  McCarthy is out of minor league options, so sending him back to Triple-A again would’ve first required a trip through the waiver wire.  Today’s trade allows the D’Backs to get something back in return for a player who simply no longer seemed to be in their plans.

Corbin Carroll is locked into right field and Alek Thomas will probably get the bulk of center field work.  Any of Blaze Alexander, Jorge Barrosa, or utilityman Tim Tawa could be utilized in left field, plus former top prospect Jordan Lawlar played some center field in winter ball action and might also eventually get some looks in left field.  The Diamondbacks could also explore adding another outfielder over the course of the offseason.

The 28-year-old McCarthy now heads to the Mile High City for a fresh start, though he’ll be joining another somewhat crowded outfield picture.  If anything, there had been an expectation that the Rockies might deal from their outfield rather than add, given that it is perhaps the only real position of depth within the organization.  That said, acquiring McCarthy could be the Rockies’ way of retaining their outfield depth in advance of another trade later this winter.  For now, McCarthy joins Mickey Moniak, Brenton Doyle, Zac Veen, and Jordan Beck in Colorado’s outfield mix, with McCarthy probably lined up as the fifth outfielder.

Since being hired as the Rockies’ president of baseball operations in November, Paul DePodesta has swung two other trades, but this is the first that brought a brought a big league player back to Colorado in return.  DePodesta has a long road ahead of him in trying to bring the Rox back to respectability, but adding a former well-regarded prospect like McCarthy is a way of both raising the talent floor, and seeing what McCarthy can perhaps do with a change of scenery.  McCarthy is arbitration-controlled through the 2028 season, and is earning $1.525MM in 2026.

Grosz is on the move for the second time in less than six months, as the righty was one of the two pitching prospects the Yankees sent to the Rockies for Ryan McMahon at the last trade deadline.  Grosz was an 11th-round pick for the Yankees in the 2023 draft, and he posted a 4.67 ERA, 25.2% strikeout rate, and 10.3% walk rate over 125 1/3 innings at the high-A level in 2025 (87 IP with the Yankees’ high-A affiliate, and the rest with the Rockies’ affiliate).

MLB Pipeline ranked Grosz as the 20th-best prospect in Colorado’s farm system, projecting him as a multi-inning reliever or perhaps a back-end starter.  Grosz’s fastball (which sits 93-95mph with a good spin rate) is his best pitch but also “his lone better-than-average offering,” as per Pipeline’s scouting report.  The 23-year-old is something of lottery ticket that the Diamondbacks can continue developing as a possible rotation piece.

Latest On Marlins’ Rotation Plans

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After months of rumors, the Marlins finally dealt Edward Cabrera in a pitching-for-hitting trade, as the right-hander was dealt to the Cubs for a notable three-prospect package headlined by Owen Caissie.  With Caissie ready to make an impact in Miami’s outfield as early as this season, the Marlins bolstered their lineup at the potential expense of their rotation, though the Fish are perhaps one of the few teams with enough rotation depth to withstand the loss of Cabrera.

Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, Ryan Weathers, Max Meyer, and Braxton Garrett are tentatively lined up as the starting five, with swingman Janson Junk likely the top depth option.  Adam Mazur and Ryan Gusto also have some big league experience, Dax Fulton looks to be ready for his MLB debut, and top prospects Thomas White and Robby Snelling could also both make their first appearance in the Show before 2026 is out.

Given how this group is long on injury history and mostly short on proven track records, however, a case can certainly be made that Miami could or should add to their starter mix.  Kevin Barral of Fish On First hears from a source that the Marlins could pursue an innings-eating veteran to add some more stability to the rotation.  In the other direction, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic write that “the Marlins remain open to further dealing from their rotation for the right return.”

The latter report doesn’t indicate that such a trade if necessarily likely, and it could just be another example of how president of baseball operations Peter Bendix is broadly open to discussing all offers out of due diligence.  Rosenthal and Sammon also note that it is still “unlikely” that Alcantara is traded, echoing multiple reports from throughout the offseason about the Marlins’ lack of appetite in moving the 2022 NL Cy Young Award winner.

Trading away one of the younger arms for another MLB-ready young hitter could be more plausible if the right offer emerges, plus Miami could need to create some rotation space anyway if the team did bring in a veteran hurler.  This hypothetical veteran arm wouldn’t come with a big price tag, as Barral uses the comp of the Marlins’ signing of Cal Quantrill to a one-year, $3.5MM deal last winter.  Naturally Miami would be looking for better results from its next investment, as Quantrill posted a 5.50 ERA over 109 2/3 innings before he was put on waivers in August and claimed away by the Braves.

As one might expect, Bendix didn’t share many hints about adding or subtracting any pitchers when speaking with reporters (including MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola and Jessica Camerato) earlier this week.  While acknowledging the “can never have too much pitching” mantra, Bendix feels his team has plenty of internal options already for a spirited rotation battle in Spring Training, with even White or Snelling being candidates to break camp.

“I definitely don’t have a feel of who the starting five are going to be to open up the season,” Bendix said.  “I think there’s opportunity there, there’s a competition there, there’s open space there, there’s a chance for a whole bunch of guys to step up and earn a spot, and there’s nothing that we’re writing off at this point.”

Tigers Showing Interest In Chris Bassitt, Lucas Giolito

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The Tigers entered the offseason with a focus on adding pitching help, and that goal has manifested itself in the form of two notable bullpen arms (Kenley Jansen and the re-signed Kyle Finnegan) and a rotation candidate coming off a successful stint in South Korea (Drew Anderson).  Other pitchers like Ranger Suarez, Zac Gallen, Michael King, Ryan Helsley, Pete Fairbanks, and Brad Keller have also been linked to Detroit at various times this winter, and the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon report that the club has also shown interest in Chris Bassitt and Lucas Giolito.

Somewhat surprisingly, Detroit is the first team known to have interest in either Bassitt or Giolito, even though the right-handers are coming off successful 2025 seasons.  This could reflect the relatively slow-moving nature of the free agent starting pitching market, as such top arms as Suarez, Gallen, and Framber Valdez are all still looking for their next contracts.  With those larger names still unsigned and some trade candidates (i.e. Freddy Peralta, MacKenzie Gore) still potentially available, teams may wish to fully explore their chances with these pitchers before turning to more second-tier options like Bassitt or Giolito.

Bassitt’s age also doesn’t help him, as he turns 37 in February.  Still, there isn’t much indication Bassitt is slowing down, as he has thrown 723 innings over the last four seasons with the Mets and Blue Jays with just two minimal stints on the injured list.  The second of those brief IL stints (a bout of lower back inflammation) occurred this past September, and might’ve cost Bassitt a spot in Toronto’s playoff rotation.  Bassitt wasn’t healthy enough to participate in the ALDS, but upon returning in a relief capacity for the ALCS and World Series, the righty had a sparkling 1.04 ERA over 8 2/3 postseason innings.

Over the last four seasons, Bassitt has a 3.77 ERA, 22.4% strikeout rate, and 7.5% walk rate.  The K% is a little below league average and the BB% is slightly above average, plus Bassitt has done a very good job of limiting hard contact.  He isn’t going to wow anyone with his velocity or swing-and-miss ability, but Bassitt has been able to keep hitters off-balance with what is technically an eight-pitch arsenal.

MLB Trade Rumors projected Bassitt for a two-year, $38MM contract this winter while ranking the veteran 24th on our list of the winter’s top 50 free agents.  Giolito wasn’t far behind in the #27 spot, projected for two years and $32MM.  That number might well have been higher if it wasn’t for a bout of right flexor irritation and a bone issue in his throwing elbow that arose right before the Red Sox began their playoff run.  Giolito has since described the “freak injury” as just a temporary problem that quickly subsided, and testing revealed no damage to his surgically-repaired UCL.

Giolito missed the entire 2024 season due to UCL surgery, and he had a Tommy John surgery right at the start of his pro career in 2012.  A hamstring strain also delayed the start of his 2025 season and his comeback from his most recent elbow procedure, but Giolito had a 3.41 ERA over 145 innings for the Sox.  This solid bottom-line performance was undermined, however, by a 4.65 SIERA and an array of subpar Statcast numbers.

Giolito doesn’t turn 32 until July and potentially offers more upside, even though he hasn’t looked like a true frontline pitcher since his heyday with the White Sox from 2019-21.  Bassitt is the older and more stable of the two, as while he probably isn’t suited to hold down a front-of-the-rotation spot, he is about as sturdy a choice possible for the back end of a pitching staff.

In theory, Detroit is only looking for back-end rotation help, as the team’s starting five is set on paper as Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, Casey Mize, Reese Olson, and Anderson.  Troy Melton, Keider Montero, and Sawyer Gipson-Long are among the depth candidates slated for either Triple-A starts, bullpen work, or perhaps just the fifth starter’s role if Anderson is instead deployed as a reliever.

Beyond 2026, however, Olson is under team control and the Tigers hold a $10MM club option on Anderson for 2027.  Skubal, Flaherty, and Mize are all slated to enter free agency next winter, so bringing in a starter on a multi-year contract would help the Tigers lengthen their rotation in 2026 and add some measure of stability going forward.

Skubal’s situation looms large over Detroit’s future plans, as it remains possible that the Tigers could still trade the superstar rather than risk letting him walk for nothing but a compensatory draft pick.  Skubal’s upcoming arbitration hearing provides a more immediate impact to the rotation, as Rosenthal and Sammon note that the Tigers’ ability to spend on Bassitt, Giolito, or other roster upgrades will surely be impacted by whether or not Skubal will cost $19MM or $32MM in 2026.

RosterResource estimates the Tigers’ 2026 payroll at roughly $171.2MM, which is up from their $154.7MM estimated payroll from the end of the 2025 campaign.  The $13MM gap in Skubal’s salary possibilities isn’t nothing, but Detroit fans eager to see the team make a bigger transactional splash won’t be pleased if the club is resisting even a relatively modest investment in the Bassitt/Giolito tier of players.  Broadcasting uncertainty is also a revenue factor, as the Tigers are one of nine teams who have ended their agreements with Main Street Sports.

Rangers Release Anthony Veneziano

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The Rangers announced that Anthony Veneziano has been released from his minor league contract so that the southpaw can pursue an opportunity with an Asian team.  Veneziano only just signed with Texas about four weeks ago, though as per the norm with non-roster players, the Rangers aren’t going to stand in the way if Veneziano is given a guaranteed offer from a foreign club.

A veteran of three MLB seasons, Veneziano started his big league career with a two-game cup of coffee with the Royals in 2023.  He followed those 2 1/3 innings with 13 1/3 IP with the Royals and Marlins in 2024, and then 25 frames with Miami and St. Louis last season.  The Cardinals claimed Veneziano off the Marlins’ waiver wire shortly after the trade deadline, and after outrighting him off the 40-man roster in November, Veneziano elected minor league free agency.

The 28-year-old had a 3.98 ERA over his 40 2/3 innings in the Show, including a 4.68 ERA over his 25 innings in 2025.  His 21.4% career strikeout rate is decent, though his 9.4% walk rate from 2025 was on the high side.  Control has been an increasing issue for Veneziano, and he had more walks (20) than strikeouts (18) over his 24 2/3 innings of Triple-A work last season, with a 5.11 ERA to show for his time with the Marlins’ and Cardinals’ top affiliates.

Veneziano has started only one of his 40 Major League games, and that came in an opener capacity during a Miami bullpen game last June.  He moved into a bullpen role in 2024 and worked almost exclusively as a reliever at all levels in 2025, so it could be that Veneziano is looking to resurrect his starting prospects overseas.  At the very least, Veneziano will get some extra financial security rather than earn only a minimum MLB salary for whatever time he spends in the majors in 2026.

Max Kepler Receives 80-Game PED Suspension

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Major League Baseball announced today that free agent outfielder Max Kepler has received an 80-game suspension after testing positive for Epitrenbolone, a performance-enhancing substance, in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

Kepler and MLB negotiated a settlement that allows him to serve the suspension even if he’s not on an MLB roster to begin the season, reports Alden González of ESPN. If he remains a free agent, last year’s playing time with Philadelphia would count as a credit towards the suspension. He remains ineligible for the 2026 playoffs.

Kepler, 33 in February, just wrapped up his first season away from the Twins. After years in Minnesota, Kepler became a free agent after the 2024 campaign and signed a one-year, $10MM deal with the Phillies.

His year in Philadelphia wasn’t especially pleasant. He hit 18 home runs but slashed .216/.300/.391 for a wRC+ of 90. Along the way, he expressed some frustration at being shielded from lefties, saying that he thought he had been signed to be an everyday player.

Returning to free agency this winter, he wasn’t going to have a huge amount of earning potential after that down year. On the other hand, the outfield market is fairly weak, apart from Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger being the top guys. Beyond those two, Kepler was one of the better options alongside Harrison Bader and Mike Yastrzemski, the latter of whom signed with Atlanta.

This development obviously changes that. Kepler is now not only a 33-year-old coming off a down year, but also one who won’t even be available for the first half of the season. Even if he latches on somewhere, serves his suspension and plays well in the second half, he wouldn’t be eligible for the 2026 postseason.

That’s obviously going to cut into Kepler’s earning power. For clubs looking for outfield help, especially those who won’t pay for guys like Tucker or Bellinger, it could perhaps increase their desire to push for someone like Bader, Miguel Andujar, Austin Hays, Mike Tauchman or other available outfielders.

Photos courtesy of Kyle Ross, Brad Rempel, Imagn Images

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