Astros, Peter Lambert Agree To Minor League Deal
The Astros are bringing back Peter Lambert on a minor league contract, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction tracker. The righty will head to Triple-A Sugar Land.
Lambert was in camp with Houston. He triggered an out in his minor league deal after being informed he wouldn’t begin the season on the MLB roster. Lambert apparently didn’t find a big league opportunity in his brief free agent stay. He’ll therefore return as non-roster rotation depth.
The 28-year-old (29 next month) is back after one season in Japan, where he allowed a 4.26 earned run average across 116 1/3 innings. That’s not an especially impressive number in a pitcher-friendly league. Lambert had the fifth-highest ERA among the 47 NPB pitchers to toss at least 100 frames. He fanned 20.5% of opponents — a solid mark in a league where hitters are more focused on putting the ball in play than they are in MLB — but issued walks at a 10.2% clip. That’s the highest rate among the aforementioned group of 47 pitchers.
A former second-round pick of the Rockies, Lambert pitched 12 1/3 innings this spring. He allowed four runs, recording eight strikeouts while issuing five walks. Lambert mixed five offerings with a 95 mph fastball leading the arsenal. He’ll join Spencer Arrighetti, Jason Alexander, Colton Gordon, Miguel Ullola and J.P. France among the depth starters at Sugar Land. All of them aside from France and Lambert occupy 40-man roster spots.
Dodgers Hire Clayton Kershaw As Special Assistant
Clayton Kershaw is back with the Dodgers in a non-playing role. The club hired the future Hall of Famer as a special assistant in their front office, reports Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. Kershaw retired at the end of the 2025 season, though he was included on the Team USA roster for this spring’s World Baseball Classic. That was largely symbolic, as he didn’t make an appearance and was subbed off the roster before the semifinals.
Kershaw tells Sonja Chen of MLB.com he’ll “be involved” with the organization. Special assistant roles around the league vary. Some of these hirings are ceremonial or public relations moves, while others involve working with MLB players and/or prospects during Spring Training and throughout the season.
In either case, it’s fitting that Kershaw remains a Dodger in some capacity. He spent all of his legendary career in Dodger blue, posting a 2.53 ERA in a little under 3000 innings. Kershaw won the NL MVP in 2014 and is still the most recent pitcher to do so. He won five ERA titles, three Cy Young awards, and three championships.
Kershaw is in L.A. this weekend for the season-opening series against the Diamondbacks. He was part of NBC’s broadcast team for last night’s opener. He’s back at Dodger Stadium tonight as part of the World Series ring ceremony.
White Sox Re-Sign LaMonte Wade Jr. To Minor League Deal
The White Sox re-signed first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. to a minor league contract. He reported to Triple-A Charlotte and is playing tonight’s season opener for the Knights. Wade was in camp with Chicago but released at the end of Spring Training.
Wade is a veteran of parts of seven MLB seasons. He has spent most of the past few seasons as the Giants’ primary first baseman, at least against right-handed pitching. Wade was an above-average hitter as recently as 2024, when he put up a .260/.380/.381 slash line across 401 plate appearances. It was his second consecutive season with excellent on-base marks in a platoon role. Wade combined to hit .258/.376/.401 between 2023-24. Among hitters with 800+ trips to the plate, he ranked 11th in on-base percentage.
Everything went off the rails last year. Wade hit .167 with a .275 OBP over 50 games for San Francisco. They traded for Rafael Devers at designated hitter and eventually signed Dominic Smith to play first base. Wade was designated for assignment as the corresponding move for the Smith acquisition.
The Angels rolled the dice on a change of scenery, acquiring Wade out of DFA limbo in a small trade. They got him into 30 games over two months, but he hit .169/.260/.215 and was released in August. That ended his season with a .167/.271/.254 slash over 242 plate appearances.
Wade had a fantastic Spring Training. He hit three home runs and took nine walks while striking out 10 times over 49 trips to the plate. The White Sox are taking a look at Munetaka Murakami as their primary first baseman. They didn’t have a lot of roster flexibility on the bench. Wade had a few days to see if he could leverage that camp into a big league opportunity before circling back to begin the year in Triple-A with the Sox.
Reds, Andrew Chafin Agree To Minor League Deal
The Reds are in agreement with veteran reliever Andrew Chafin on a minor league contract, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction log. He has been assigned to Triple-A Louisville. Dusty Baker of Louisville’s NBC affiliate reports that Chafin has already reported to the team and will be active for the Bats’ season opener tonight.
Chafin was granted his release from a minor league deal with the Twins last week. The 35-year-old southpaw had spent Spring Training with Minnesota. He tossed six innings of two-run ball, striking out five while issuing three walks. Chafin’s four-seam fastball and sinker each averaged 85.7 mph this spring.
Power has never really been Chafin’s game. His fastball was once in the 93-94 mph range but has hovered in the low-90s over the past few seasons. He averaged a career-low 89.7 mph a year ago. Dropping four ticks from that already modest level is an obvious concern. The Reds will hope that Chafin regains some zip as he builds into regular season game shape.
Chafin has pitched parts of 12 seasons in the big leagues. Despite lacking huge velocity, he has never had issues missing bats with his slider. Chafin struck out a quarter of opponents while turning in a 2.41 earned run average over 33 2/3 MLB innings between the Angels and Nationals last year. Chafin’s 13.3% walk rate was alarming, though, and he was unable to win a spot in a wide open Minnesota bullpen out of camp.
The Reds have two left-handers in their Opening Day bullpen. Trade pickup Brock Burke, a teammate of Chafin’s last year with the Angels, is their top southpaw. Sam Moll is out of options and struggled last season, but he threw well this spring and is in middle relief. Caleb Ferguson will be there once healthy but began the year on the injured list with an oblique strain.
Angels Re-Sign Hunter Strickland, Chris Taylor To Minor League Deals
The Angels are re-signing reliever Hunter Strickland and utilityman Chris Taylor on minor league contracts, the team told reporters (including Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register). Both players will report to Triple-A Salt Lake after opting out of their previous contracts at the end of Spring Training.
Strickland, 37, has spent the past two seasons with the Halos. He has managed a low-3.00s ERA in both years, though he was limited to 19 appearances by a shoulder injury last summer. Strickland worked five innings of one-run ball in camp, striking out just two of 19 opponents. His fastball averaged 91.8 mph, a couple ticks down from last year’s 93.6 mph regular season mark.
Taylor hit .231 this spring. He walked 10 times in 49 plate appearances to get on base at a .388 clip. The Angels nevertheless opted for a pair of different non-roster infielders, Adam Frazier and Jeimer Candelario, to break camp. Taylor circles back to the organization with which he ended the 2025 season. The Angels signed him last May after he was released by the Dodgers. He missed a few months with a broken arm and batted .179/.278/.321 with 29 strikeouts over 90 trips to the plate.
Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript
Anthony Franco
- Good afternoon, hope you've all had a good week!
- We've got regular season baseball again, exciting times! Let's get rolling
Mad Max
- Thoughts on Cubs and extensions? Comp to Anthony and Red Sox,what percentage can be applied of regret to Armstrong,Anthony,Merrill in 3 years? Which tema takes a step forward due to locking up young talent versus using up a position and payroll?
Anthony Franco
- I'd order them Anthony, Merrill, PCA on value but I'd happily have done any of them if I were the team. The track record on those extensions for high-end position player prospects who find immediate MLB success is pretty good
- If that guy becomes Ronald Acuña or Corbin Carroll, it's one of the three to five most valuable contracts in the game. Even if they go the Michael Harris II or (worse) Ke'Bryan Hayes path, it's not the end of the world. Risk-reward in these cases almost always points to the team being aggressive if the player is willing to sign early
- Cubs ones are a little weird because they follow a different path than the usual early-career extension. Typically a little shorter commitment that buys out one or two free agent years without attaching club options at the back end.
They did something similar with Happ and the first Hoerner deal. It reduces the long-term upside a little bit but they seem to prefer keeping the guarantee comparatively low (PCA would've beaten Merrill money if they went longer)
NL MVP candidates
- Did the MLBTR staff have a chuckle that nobody picked anyone other than Ohtani to win his fourth consecutive NL MVP? Granted the NL might be somewhat light on superstars compared to the AL (Judge, Bobby Witt Jr, Cal Raleigh, Julio, etc)... but nobody thought Juan Soto deserved a nod? He's a 40-40 guy now after all
Anthony Franco
- Ha, we did them all individually. I put mine in last before sending them out but deliberately avoiding looking at anyone else's picks when I wrote them all up. After four or five Ohtani picks, I wondered if it'd be unanimous
- He's so clearly the best player in MLB that I think any of us felt like picking someone else would come off as too contrarian, but I would still take the field. Not like it'd be a huge surprise if Soto, Acuña, Carroll, even Tatis jumped in there
Randy, the destroyer
- Who do you think gets squeezed off the Yankees roster when Volpe returns (assuming everyone stays healthy until then)? Their bench is Goldy, Grichuk, backup C Escarra and Rosario. Do they just drop Grichuk at that point?
Anthony Franco
- They're probably assuming someone's hurt in between (Stanton most likely), but if they avoid any injuries, I'd guess Rosario's the odd man out. Feels a little redundant if you're also carrying Caballero on the bench
- Could also option Volpe if Caballero and all the bench guys are performing. Doubt that's the plan right now but it would preserve all the roster depth and if Volpe looks shaky on the rehab assignment, wouldn't be that hard to justify
To ATL
- I'm a big fan of Ozzie Albies the person, but is he on a short leash if his bat doesn't come to life? .548 OPS in Spring Training, yikes.
Anthony Franco
- Eh I just don't think the Braves believe in Nacho Alvarez at all and I have tough time seeing the argument that even a diminished version of Albies is worse than Jorge Mateo or Kyle Farmer
- The first $7M option was a no-brainer because he played well in the second half and there was the relatively big buyout ($4M). That's not the case for the upcoming option, so I wouldn't be surprised if they move on at the end of the year. Could curtail his playing time once HSK comes back by using Dubón at second, but I don't think Ozzie's getting pushed off the roster in-season
Joe Ryan
- I'm guessing I'm gone shortly after the break. Or are ownership and the FO too directionless to move anyone at the deadline, just like they fumbled the winter?
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8 Young Players Auditioning At New Positions
The 2026 season has gotten underway for all but six teams. The A's, Blue Jays, Braves, Royals, Rockies and Marlins will kick off their seasons today. The return of meaningful games has revealed or confirmed some usage plans.
There are a few veteran players who are known to be changing their primary positions this season -- in some cases sliding back to spots they've previously played. Brendan Donovan is moving over to third base to begin his Mariners tenure. The Marlins will play Christopher Morel at first base, while the Giants are giving Luis Arraez another chance to play second base. The Blue Jays are moving Andrés Giménez to shortstop after letting Bo Bichette walk. Mike Trout was back in center field for the Angels last night.
Positional movement is even more common for young players breaking in at the MLB level. Some well-regarded prospects are blocked at their natural positions and need to debut elsewhere. Others are moving down the defensive spectrum after struggling at their previous spots.
We'll run through some first- or second-year players taking on new defensive assignments to begin the year. They'll be worth monitoring to see how they take to unfamiliar spots on the diamond. For those who play fantasy baseball, this may also be an opportunity to get an early jump on players whose positional eligibility should expand within the first couple weeks of the season.
Jordan Lawlar, Diamondbacks, LF/CF
Lawlar was a full-time outfielder this spring, playing 14 games in center field and three in left. He made his regular season outfield debut as a left fielder last night. The D-Backs kept incumbent Alek Thomas in center, though they'll probably get Lawlar work up the middle as well. The 23-year-old made a nice play at the wall in his debut, taking a double away from Freddie Freeman in the process.
Throwing accuracy issues pushed Lawlar off third base at the end of the 2025 season. Arizona acquired Nolan Arenado to play alongside Geraldo Perdomo in what should be an excellent left side of the infield defensively. They need more offensive production out of the two outfield spots to the left of Corbin Carroll. Lawlar, a former No. 6 overall pick and .328/.414/.576 hitter in his Triple-A career, is going to get plenty of run out there.
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A’s Gunnar Hoglund Diagnosed With Lumbar Spine Strain
The Athletics officially announced their Opening Day roster on Thursday morning. They enter the season as one of the healthiest teams in the league. Their only player beginning the year on the injured list is right-hander Gunnar Hoglund, whom the A’s announced is dealing with a lumbar spine strain.
Hoglund was a lock to open the season on the shelf, as he didn’t pitch at all this spring. He was hampered by a right knee injury early in camp. Martín Gallegos of MLB.com reported a couple weeks ago that a back injury had also arisen, though there wasn’t a specific diagnosis until today. The spine injury is apparently the bigger concern than the knee.
The A’s haven’t announced a return timeline. Hoglund’s IL placement is backdated to March 22, so he could theoretically return after 12 games. Given his lack of Spring Training work, he’ll certainly need more time than that. The A’s 40-man roster is at capacity, and Hoglund would be their only candidate for a 60-day IL move if they want to make any waiver claims or select the contract of anyone from within the farm system.
Hoglund is a former first-round pick of the Blue Jays whom the A’s acquired in the 2022 Matt Chapman trade. Injuries have kept him from establishing himself by his age-26 season. Hoglund was already midway through rehab from Tommy John surgery when he was traded. He battled a few setbacks and only threw 69 combined innings over his first two and a half minor league seasons. Hoglund’s stuff was down when he finally logged a full season in 2024.
Things seemed to be trending up early last year. Hoglund had an early-season velocity rebound and pitched well over six Triple-A starts. The A’s called him up and gave him six turns through the rotation last May. Hoglund struggled in his first crack at big league hitters, allowing a 6.40 ERA across 32 1/3 innings. He went down with a left hip injury. That was initially termed an impingement but later revealed to be a more serious labrum injury that required season-ending surgery.
Mike Tauchman Expected To Miss Six Weeks After Meniscus Surgery
Mets non-roster outfielder Mike Tauchman is expected to be out for six weeks after undergoing meniscus surgery on his left knee, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The team announced the operation last week but had not provided a timetable for his return.
The injury probably cost Tauchman a spot on the Opening Day roster. The 35-year-old was in camp on a minor league deal but had a solid path to breaking with the MLB club. The Mets were likely to call up top prospect Carson Benge as the everyday right fielder either way, but there was a depth spot for the taking. Tauchman’s left-handed bat would have fit well on a bench that leans to the right side. Jared Young made the team in that role instead.
Tauchman has been an above-average hitter in three consecutive years. He’s coming off a .263/.356/.400 showing across 385 plate appearances for the White Sox. Tauchman is a platoon player whose game is built around a patient approach that keeps his on-base percentage high. His spring numbers were similar, as he walked four times and was hit twice more in 35 trips to the plate.
It seems Tauchman will be back on the field sometime in the middle of May. He’ll presumably spend some time in Triple-A before the Mets reconsider whether to call him up. Young and MJ Melendez are the two left-handed hitting depth outfielders on New York’s 40-man roster.
Orioles Outright Jackson Kowar, Bryan Ramos
The Orioles announced this evening that reliever Jackson Kowar and infielder Bryan Ramos were outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk. Both players cleared waivers and will remain in the organization without holding a spot on the 40-man roster.
Kowar and Ramos were designated for assignment yesterday when Baltimore set their Opening Day roster. Waivers are a 48-hour process, so the O’s evidently began that before officially announcing the DFA. Both players are out of minor league options. They needed to hold an MLB spot or be dropped from the 40-man.
The Orioles added Ramos and Kowar late in the offseason. They acquired the former from the White Sox for cash, briefly lost him on waivers to the Cardinals, then claimed him back. The latter came over from the Twins in a cash trade at the beginning of Spring Training.
Ramos had a solid camp, batting .316 with a home run in 15 games. The righty-hitting corner infielder hasn’t hit much over 36 regular season contests, nor is he coming off a good year in the minors. Ramos batted .216/.309/.396 across 431 plate appearances with the White Sox’s top affiliate last year. The O’s opted for a more versatile defender, Jeremiah Jackson, as their final bench player to open the season.
Kowar, 29, has draft pedigree as a former supplemental first-round pick. He throws hard but hasn’t found much success at the big league level. The University of Florida product has allowed more than eight earned runs per nine with worse than average strikeout (20.3%) and walk (13.1%) rates over 91 MLB innings. Kowar had four walks and strikeouts apiece over six innings this spring. Yaramil Hiraldo and rookie Anthony Nunez secured Opening Day middle relief jobs, pushing Kowar off the roster.