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Mariners Acquire Brendan Donovan

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The Mariners, Rays and Cardinals officially announced a three-team deal that sends infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan to Seattle. The full breakdown is as follows:

  • The Mariners send infielder Ben Williamson to the Rays, as well as prospects Jurrangelo Cijntje and Tai Peete and a competitive balance round B pick (#68 overall) to the Cardinals, receiving infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan from the Cardinals.
  • The Cardinals send infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan to the Mariners, getting prospects Jurrangelo Cijntje and Tai Peete plus a competitive balance round B pick (#68 overall) from the Mariners, as well as receiving outfield prospect Colton Ledbetter and a competitive balance round B pick (#72 overall) from the Rays.
  • The Rays send outfield prospect Colton Ledbetter and a competitive balance round B pick (#72 overall) to the Cardinals, receiving infielder Ben Williamson from the Mariners.

A Donovan trade has felt inevitable for quite a while. The Cardinals have been leaning harder into a rebuild this winter. They tried to kick off a reset last offseason but struggled to move their veteran players with no-trade clauses and ended up mostly standing pat. With president of baseball operations John Mozeliak ceding the reins to new president Chaim Bloom after the 2025 campaign, it became clear that the club would push harder to focus on the future.

Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras all had no-trade clauses in their contracts and seemed reluctant to approve deals in the 2024-25 offseason. As last year was winding down, they all publicly expressed a greater openness to playing for new teams in 2026. That has now come to fruition for all three. Gray and Contreras were both traded to the Red Sox, while Arenado landed with the Diamondbacks.

Donovan’s situation was slightly different. Those other three guys were all veterans making eight-figure salaries. Moving them out of St. Louis was partially about slashing the payroll and also about opening up opportunities for younger players as part of the rebuild. Donovan, on the other hand, is still in his arbitration seasons. He will make a relatively modest $5.8MM in 2026 and would be due a raise in 2027.

It wouldn’t be necessary to trade Donovan for financial reasons at that price. But with the Cards expecting their rebuild to last a few years, it made sense to make Donovan available since he’s just two years away from free agency. An extension was another possibility but Donovan is now 29, so he’ll be going into his age-31 season in his first free agent year, and it’s unclear if the Cards will be competitive by then.

Donovan was a case where the St. Louis front office wouldn’t have to worry about the contract and could focus on simply bringing back as much talent as possible. With his modest salary and inability to block trades, the Cards could scour the league to see what teams were willing to pay in terms of prospect capital. Since Donovan can play all over the diamond, with experience at all four infield positions and the outfield corners, almost any contender could fit him onto the roster.

It’s not just defensive versatility that Donovan brings to the table. In his four big league seasons, he has been remarkably consistent with a contact-based approach at the plate. His strikeout rate has been in the 12 to 15% range in each season of his career, during a time when the league average is usually around 22% or so. He has also drawn walks at a rate right around league par. He doesn’t have huge power but has hit at least 10 home runs in each of the past three seasons.

Put it all together and Donovan has a career .282/.361/.411 slash line. That translates to a 119 wRC+, indicating he has been 19% better than league average at the plate overall. Each of his four seasons has ended with a wRC+ between 115 and 127. A consistently above average hitter with an affordable salary who can capably play many different positions made Donovan a good fit for many teams and he reportedly received interest from about half the clubs in the league. He underwent sports hernia surgery in October but that doesn’t seem to have put a damper on his market and there has been no reporting to suggest he won’t be healthy for spring training.

The Mariners certainly stood out as one of the best fits, if not the very best. They went into the winter with some question marks in various positions but also potential internal solutions. They finished 2025 with Jorge Polanco as their regular second baseman and Eugenio Suárez at third. Both became free agents and have since agreed to deals with different clubs, Polanco with the Mets and Suárez the Reds.

Seattle had interest in bringing both back but it also would have been a bit awkward to sign either. Putting Polanco back at second would have blocked Cole Young. He debuted in 2025 and didn’t have immediate success, with a .211/.302/.305 line on the year. However, he may have been held back by a .247 batting average on balls in play, as his 10.9% walk rate and 18.3% strikeout rate were both quite good. The M’s presumably don’t want to give up on him just based on that initial exposure to the big leagues. Middle infield prospect Michael Arroyo is also not far off, having reached Double-A in 2025. Ryan Bliss showed some promise before he spent most of 2025 on the injured list.

At third base, the Mariners already gave some big league time to Williamson last year. He didn’t hit much but got really strong reviews for his glovework, getting credited with eight Defensive Runs Saved in 703 innings. That gave them a glove-first floor at the position.

Meanwhile, they have Colt Emerson lurking. A consensus top 20 prospect coming into 2026, he crushed High-A and Double-A in 2025, getting a late promotion to Triple-A for six games. He could be the long-term shortstop but his glovework is considered a bit behind his bat. With J.P. Crawford signed through 2026, Emerson could theoretically cover third in 2026 and then move over to short for 2027. However, he is only 20 years old and has barely reached Triple-A, so there’s no guarantee of that scenario playing out as scripted.

There’s also a bit of uncertainty in right field, where the Mariners have a cluster of guys including Víctor Robles, Dominic Canzone, Luke Raley and Rob Refsnyder. Robles was injured for most of 2025 and struggled when on the field. The other three guys have mostly found success in platoon roles, Canzone and Raley from the left side and Refsnyder the right.

Take all those situations into account and Donovan’s appeal becomes clear. His multi-positional abilities will allow the club to bounce him around depending on who else is healthy and producing. Perhaps he will start out projected at second base, since that is the position he has played most in his career. But if Young breaks out or Bliss bounces back, Donovan can be moved to third. With Williamson now leaving for Tampa, Donovan could cover the hot corner until Emerson charges forth and takes that spot. If second and third are both taken over by younger guys, then Donovan could see more time in the outfield. As injuries pop up throughout the year, the picture will change and Donovan can shift.

Donovan’s contact approach was likely also a part of the appeal. The Mariners had one of the highest strikeout rates in the majors in both 2023 and 2024, with a 25.9% rate in the former and a 26.8% clip in the latter. They made a concerted effort to get that down in 2025, dropping it to 23.3%, but that was still one of the seven highest rates out of the 30 clubs in the majors.

To get Donovan, the Mariners are dipping into their strong farm system but aren’t giving up any of their top guys. Cijntje, 23 in May, was Seattle’s first-round pick in 2024. The M’s took him 15th overall and signed him with a $4.8809MM bonus.

One of the most unique prospects, Cijntje primarily throws with his right arm but also throws with his left. He can get his fastball to the upper 90s with both arms but his lefty velocity is a tad lower. Basically, he has been working as a traditional righty starter but then occasionally switching to the left side when facing a lefty hitter. The potential outcomes with such a prospect are quite wide, as it’s never really been seen before. Pat Venditte pitched with both arms and was able to carve out a big league career from 2015 to 2020, but as a journeyman reliever.

Cijntje, on the other hand, seems capable of being a big league starter with his right arm. He posted a 3.99 ERA in 108 1/3 minor league innings last year. Baseball America recently ranked him the #7 prospect in a strong Seattle system.

Whether he would still mix in some lefty work in the long run is undetermined. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reported yesterday that Cijntje would be mostly focusing on his work as a righty in spring training. He was going to still throw as a lefty in some bullpen work but not in games.

The Cardinals will presumably shed some light on what they have in mind for Cijntje, though the team announced him as a right-handed pitcher in their press release. Whether it’s as a switch-pitcher or a traditional righty, he will give them some extra pitching depth, which has been their main target this winter. They also added Richard Fitts and Brandon Clarke in the Gray trade, Hunter Dobbins, Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita in the Contreras deal and then Jack Martinez in the Arenado swap.

Some of those pitchers are immediate candidates for big league work but that shouldn’t be the case with Cijntje. He hasn’t yet reached Triple-A and has only seven starts at the Double-A level. If the switch-pitching experiment were to continue, he should arguably require more development time than a standard prospect, since it would be such an unprecedented path that there’s no map. He won’t be Rule 5 eligible until December of 2027, so the Cards could be very patient if they wanted, especially with the major league club not being competitive in the short term.

Peete, 20, was selected 30th overall in the 2023 draft and signed via a $2.5MM bonus. He has huge tools but also big question marks. In 2025, he got into 125 High-A games. He hit 19 home runs and stole 25 bases but also struck out in 30.6% of his plate appearances. Initially a shortstop who also dabbled at second and third, the Mariners moved him to the outfield last year, mostly in center but also with a decent amount of time in left.

It’s a long-term play with wide error bars but BA recently gave Peete the #10 spot in the Seattle system. The fact that he’s already striking out at such a high rate is worrisome, as hitters generally strike out more as they climb the minor league ladder and face tougher pitching. But his outfield defense is considered strong even though he just moved there, and there’s power in the bat. The ingredients are potentially there but St. Louis will have to be patient since he’s not close to the majors and needs some refinement.

Ledbetter, 24, was a second-round pick of the Rays in 2023. He profiles as a guy who can do a lot of things well but without a standout tool. He played 123 Double-A games last year, hitting seven home runs and stealing 37 bases while playing all three outfield spots. His 9.5% walk rate and 23.9% strikeout rate were both close to normal.

For the Rays, they are giving up Ledbetter and a draft pick but presumably feel Williamson is a worthwhile near-term upgrade to the big league squad, whereas Ledbetter and the pick wouldn’t be helping the team for a few years.

As mentioned, Williamson profiles as a glove-first third baseman, but he also has minor league experience at the middle infield spots. The Rays have one of the best young third basemen in Junior Caminero, who just wrapped up a 45-homer season in his age-21 campaign. His defense wasn’t especially well regarded, so Williamson could perhaps sub in for him late in games for better glovework.

The Rays traded away Brandon Lowe but then replaced him at second base by acquiring Gavin Lux. Hitting from the left side, Lux needs a platoon partner, as he has a career .269/.344/.406 line against righties but .198/.277/.260 against lefties. Williamson is a righty and hit better against southpaws in his debut last year, so perhaps he can help the Rays shield Lux. Williamson also has options and could be sent to the minors if complementing Lux and Caminero doesn’t get him enough playing time.

Ultimately, this deal is about the Mariners making a big upgrade to their team. They just went to the ALCS in 2025 and almost made it to the World Series, before a heartbreaking loss in game seven. Donovan adds to the 2026 and 2027 teams while also giving the club the flexibility to find roles for some of their younger guys who could be long-term pieces. He doesn’t break the bank financially and didn’t require the club to part with any of its best prospects.

The Cardinals cash in a guy who wasn’t going to be much use to them during their rebuild. They’ve added some more young talent to the system and also cleared more playing time for players who could be part of the next competitive cycle, including JJ Wetherholt, Thomas Saggese, Nolan Gorman, Joshua Baez and others. They also picked up two reasonably high draft picks to add a couple more prospects in July. That’ll likely add around $2.5MM to their bonus pool as well.

Further trades are theoretically possible. Lefty reliever JoJo Romero is an impending free agent and a natural trade candidate. He has stayed with the Cardinals thus far, so perhaps they haven’t been bowled over by the offers, which could lead to him staying in St. Louis until the summer deadline. Lars Nootbaar is two years from free agency, like Donovan, but he may begin the season on the injured list due to heel surgery. He has been in some rumors but the Cards may hold him until he shows he’s healthy, then make him available in the summer as well.

Though a Donovan trade has been discussed all winter, it took most of the offseason to come together. Presumably, that’s due to the other participants in the game of musical chairs. The offseason began with free agency offering other infielders, including Suárez and Polanco but also Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman, Luis Arráez and more.

The chairs started filling up in recent weeks. The Cubs reached an agreement with Bregman in mid-January. Not long after, Bichette landed with the Mets. The Giants were reportedly making a strong push for guys like Donovan but also Nico Hoerner of the Cubs and CJ Abrams of the Nationals. Instead, they pivoted to a one-year deal with Arráez this weekend. Suárez lingered unsigned until reaching an agreement with the Reds in recent days.

After the Mariners, the Red Sox were one of the clubs most frequently connected to Donovan. They seem likely to let Marcelo Mayer replace Bregman at third but don’t have a great solution at second base. Reportedly, Donovan wasn’t considered a perfect fit because the lineup is already heavy on lefties, but they now have one less option available. Rumors have been swirling about Isaac Paredes but it’s unclear if the Astros have any willingness to deal him.

Katie Woo and Chad Jennings of The Athletic first reported that the Mariners were close to getting Donovan in what was likely a three-team trade. Jeff Passan of ESPN reported that the Rays were the third team. Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that Tampa was expected to get Williamson. Joel Sherman of The New York Post first reported on Cijntje going to the Cards. Adam Jude and Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times first reported Peete going to the Cards. Nightengale first had Tampa sending out a prospect and a comp B pick. Sherman first reported Ledbetter’s inclusion. Nightengale then specified the full breakdown. Passan reported that the agreement was in place and that Seattle was sending the #68 pick to St. Louis.

Photos courtesy of Eakin Howard, Jeff Curry, Kevin Jairaj, Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Guardians Re-Sign Kolby Allard To Minor League Deal

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The Guardians announced today that they have re-signed left-hander Kolby Allard to a minor league deal. The Excel Sports Management client also receives an invite to big league camp.

Allard, 28, is a soft-tossing swingman. He hasn’t always been effective, with a 5.34 earned run average in his career, but he’s coming off a good season in Cleveland. The Guards signed him to a minor league deal almost exactly one year ago today. He bounced on and off the roster a couple of times throughout the season. He gave the club 65 innings over 33 appearances with a 2.63 ERA while averaging just over 90 miles per hour with his four-seamer and sinker.

That ERA figure was surely at least slightly misleading. His 5.3% walk rate was really strong but he only struck out 15.8% of batters faced and his 38% ground ball rate was also a bit below par. He seemed to benefit from a high strand rate of 79.2%. His 3.54 FIP and 4.41 SIERA were notably less optimistic than his ERA.

The Guards seemingly agreed more with those advanced metrics. They could have retained Allard for 2026 via arbitration, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting a $1.9MM salary. Instead, the Guards outrighted him off the roster at season’s end and he elected free agency. He’s now been brought back but without taking up a roster spot.

Cleveland used Allard almost exclusively in relief a year ago. He made a pair of spot starts but didn’t go beyond four innings in either appearance. He’ll likely battle for another low-leverage bullpen job in camp. Cleveland has Rule 5 pick Peyton Pallette and out-of-options middle reliever Connor Brogdon competing for spots during Spring Training. They’d each need to make the team or be dropped from the 40-man roster — and in Pallette’s case, offered back to the White Sox if he clears waivers. Allard has over five years of MLB service and would be able to refuse future minor league assignments if the Guardians call him up at any point.

Photo courtesy of Steven Bisig, Imagn Images

MLB To Take Over Broadcasts For Six Additional Teams

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4:37pm: Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal reports that the Tigers, Angels and Braves are all moving on from Main Street Sports as well. Friend writes that it’s likely that the Detroit and Los Angeles clubs will also turn their broadcasts over to MLB, although they haven’t closed the door on working out some kind of independent streaming deal on a different platform than MLB.tv.

Friend’s reporting is most interesting regarding the Braves. He writes that the team could launch its own network rather than turning distribution to the league. The Rangers went that route when their deal with Diamond collapsed last offseason. The Texas franchise created its own network that negotiated directly with distributors to set up cable, satellite and streaming deals on different platforms.

The Braves haven’t made anything official, though they’ve more or less confirmed they won’t be returning to Main Street. “The Atlanta Braves are aware of the reports regarding Main Street Sports Group,” the team said in a statement. “While disappointed with this development, we have been actively preparing for this outcome and are well on our way towards launching a new era in Braves broadcasting. … We look forward to sharing our path forward in the coming weeks.”

1:10pm: Major League Baseball will take over the broadcasts of six new teams in 2026, reports John Ourand of Puck. The six clubs are the Brewers, Marlins, Rays, Royals, Cardinals and Reds. That represents six of the nine clubs who terminated deals with Main Street Sports last month. That leaves the Braves, Tigers and Angels as the three clubs from that group of nine who still need to formalize broadcast plans for this year.

The company has seemingly been hanging by a thread for a long time. Cord cutting and streaming have been eroding the regional sports network (RSN) model for years. Previously known as Diamond Sports Group and operating under the Bally Sports logo, the company was in bankruptcy for most of 2023 and 2024. When they emerged from bankruptcy late in 2024, they changed the company name and switched to the FanDuel Sports branding. More trouble emerged recently as they reportedly missed payments to several teams, which is what prompted the nine teams to walk away last month.

In recent years, MLB has handled the broadcasts of several other clubs who saw RSN deals collapse. The Padres, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Twins and Guardians were with the league in 2025. In those instances, the league largely kept TV broadcasts the same, retaining most of the personnel. For fans, this arrangement worked better as it did not involve local blackouts. Customers without cable packages could buy streaming packages directly from the league.

For teams, this expanded viewership but the financial situation wasn’t as good. Instead of a guaranteed fee from the RSN, they instead got a fungible amount of money based on streaming numbers. Clear numbers haven’t been made available but the industry consensus is that teams bring in less money via this model than they did via the previous RSN system. Travis Sawchik of MLB.com says the new model only brings in about 50% of the previous RSN set-up.

This often has on-field implications. Some of those teams, particularly the Padres and Twins, saw their player payrolls decrease in recent years. The lower spending capacity seemingly had an impact on Juan Soto being traded from the Padres to the Yankees a couple of years ago and Carlos Correa getting traded from the Twins to the Astros last summer, among other moves.

It was reported in September that ESPN would be acquiring the local rights for those five teams for the next three years. It’s unclear how that will impact local customers who have been paying the league directly to stream games. Also in September, it was reported that the Mariners would also be moving to the league. Last month, the Nationals announced that they would be moving to the MLB model.

Assuming the league will still be selling streaming packages for the five teams it was handling last year, then the league will have at least 13 teams in its portfolio in the coming season. With three clubs still outstanding, it’s possible MLB could get to more than half the league.

Commissioner Rob Manfred has previously spoken of his desire to market a streaming package like MLB.TV but without local blackouts. Controlling the rights for roughly half the league will make that more viable. Expanding the portfolio even further will be challenging. Most of the larger-market clubs still have pretty healthy RSN situations and would have less interest in jumping into a pooled system with these clubs.

That is part of a broader league strategy that will come into play in the next few years. A large number of the league’s broadcast deals expire after 2028. Manfred’s hope is to maintain as much flexibility as possible until then, at which point he could try to sell companies packages of combined rights. As an example of how this might play out, ESPN’s deal recently fell apart but then MLB pivoted to split it up and sell it to various companies. ESPN bought back some bits and acquired some new ones, while Netflix and NBC/Peacock acquired other components.

It will take a few years to see how that all plays out. In the shorter term, it could impact the upcoming collective bargaining agreement negotiations. The current CBA expires December 1st of this year. Presumably, MLB doesn’t want those talks to lead to canceled games in 2027. Ratings and attendance have been up lately, with the faster pace of the pitch clock a possible explanation. Missed games due to a lockout would hurt that momentum, which wouldn’t help the league in selling rights the following year.

For fans of the teams involved in today’s news, new information about broadcast options should be forthcoming. The Cardinals already announced their streaming prices, which are $19.99 monthly or $99.99 for the full season. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald outlined the situation for Marlins fans today, with some more details still to be determined.

This could also impact player payroll for some clubs. Though the streaming model is a less certain source of revenue, these teams now at least have some clarity on what kind of money should be coming in this year. As of less than two weeks ago, the Reds were reportedly interested in players like Eugenio Suárez but reluctant to make more moves until they figured out the broadcast puzzle. They reportedly reached an agreement with Suárez yesterday.

Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy, Imagn Images

Players Who Could Move To The 60-Day IL Once Spring Training Begins

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Most of the clubs in the league currently have a full 40-man roster, which means that just about every transaction requires a corresponding move. Some extra roster flexibility is on the way, however. The 60-day injured list goes away five days after the World Series but comes back when pitchers and catchers report to spring training.

Most clubs have a slightly earlier report date this year due to the World Baseball Classic. Last year, the Cubs and Dodgers had earlier report dates because they were had an earlier Opening Day than everyone else as part of the Tokyo Series. Gavin Stone was the first player to land on the 60-day IL in 2025, landing there on February 11th. According to MLB.com, every club has a report date from February 10th to 13th this year.

It’s worth pointing out that the 60 days don’t start being counted until Opening Day. Although a team can transfer a player to the 60-day IL quite soon, they will likely only do so if they aren’t expecting the player back until late May or beyond. A team also must have a full 40-man roster in order to move a player to the 60-day IL.

There are still plenty of free agents still out there, including big names like Framber Valdez, Zac Gallen, Justin Verlander, Chris Bassitt, Lucas Giolito, and more. Perhaps the extra roster flexibility will spur some deals to come together. It could also increase the ability of some clubs to make waiver claims or small trades for players who have been designated for assignment. If a team wants to pass a player through waivers, perhaps they will try to do so in the near future before the extra roster flexibility opens up.

Here are some players who are expected to miss some significant time or who have uncertain recovery timelines from 2025 injuries.

Angels: Anthony Rendon, Ben Joyce

Rendon’s situation is unique. He underwent hip surgery a year ago and missed the entire 2025 season. He is still on the roster and signed through 2026. He and the club have agreed to a salary-deferment plan and he is not expected to be in spring training with the club. His recovery timeline is unclear, but general manager Perry Minasian said earlier this month that Rendon would be “rehabbing at home,” per Alden González of ESPN. If they were going to release him, they likely would have done so by now, so he seems destined for the injured list.

Joyce underwent shoulder surgery in May and missed the remainder of the 2025 season. His current status is unclear. In August, he told Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register that he didn’t know if he would be ready for spring training. He would only land on the 60-day IL if the Halos don’t expect him back before the end of May.

Astros: Hayden Wesneski, Ronel Blanco, Brandon Walter

All three of these pitchers underwent Tommy John surgery in 2025. Wesneski was first, with his surgery taking place on May 23rd. Blanco followed shortly thereafter in early June. They will likely be targeting returns in the second half. Walter’s procedure was in September, meaning he will likely miss the entire season. All three should be on the 60-day IL as soon as Houston needs roster spots for other transactions.

Athletics: Zack Gelof

Gelof underwent surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder in September, with the expectation of him potentially being healthy for spring training. At the end of December, general manager David Forst told Martín Gallegos of MLB.com that Gelof would be “a little bit behind” in spring. He would only land on the 60-day IL if the A’s think he’ll be out through late May.

Blue Jays: Jake Bloss

Bloss underwent surgery on the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow in May. He was on optional assignment at the time and stayed in the minors for the rest of the season. Going into 2026, the Jays could keep him in the minors but they could also call him up and place him on the major league IL. Doing so would open up a roster spot but would also mean giving Bloss big league pay and service time.

Braves: Ha-Seong Kim, AJ Smith-Shawver, Danny Young, Joe Jiménez

Kim recently fell on some ice and injured his hand. He underwent surgery last week, and the expected recovery time is four to five months. The shorter end of that window only goes to mid-May, so perhaps Atlanta will hold off on making a decision until they watch his recovery, especially since they have other guys with clearer injury timelines.

Smith-Shawver underwent Tommy John surgery in June, so he shouldn’t be back until the second half and is therefore a lock for the 60-day IL once Atlanta needs a spot. Young underwent the same procedure in May, so he should also be bound for the IL.

Jimenez is more of a question mark. He missed the 2025 season due to left knee surgery. He required a “cleanup” procedure on that knee towards the end of the season. His timeline isn’t currently clear.

Brewers: None.

Cardinals: None.

Cubs: Justin Steele

Steele will probably be a bit of a borderline case. He underwent UCL surgery in April but it wasn’t a full Tommy John surgery. The Cubs described it as a “revision repair”. Steele had undergone Tommy John in 2017 as a minor leaguer.

Since Steele’s more recent procedure was a bit less serious than a full Tommy John, the club gave an estimated return timeline of about one year, putting him in line to potentially return fairly early in 2026. Given his importance to the Cubs, they would only put him on the 60-day IL if his timeline changes and he’s certain to be out through late May.

Diamondbacks: Corbin Burnes, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., A.J. Puk, Justin Martínez, Blake Walston, Tyler Locklear

The Snakes were hit hard by the injury bug in 2025. Burnes, Walston and Martínez all underwent Tommy John surgery. Burnes and Martínez had their procedures in June, so they should be targeting second-half returns and be easy calls for the 60-day IL. Walston would be a bit more borderline because his surgery was around Opening Day in late March last year. Puk had the slightly less significant internal brace procedure in June, so he could also be a borderline case.

Turning to the position players, Gurriel tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in September. He required surgery which came with a return timeline of nine to ten months, so he should be out until around the All-Star break.

Locklear should be back sooner. He underwent surgery in October to address a ligament tear in his elbow and a labrum injury in his shoulder. The hope at the time of that procedure was that he would be game ready to go on a rehab assignment around Opening Day and would therefore miss only about the first month. He would therefore only hit the 60-day IL if he doesn’t meet that timeline for some reason.

Dodgers: Brock Stewart

Stewart underwent shoulder debridement surgery in September. His timeline for 2026 isn’t especially clear. He will likely start the season on the IL but it’s unclear if he’ll be out long enough to warrant landing on the 60-day version.

Giants: Randy Rodríguez, Jason Foley

Rodríguez underwent Tommy John surgery in September, so he’s a lock for the 60-day IL and might even miss the entire 2026 campaign. Foley’s status is a bit more murky. He underwent shoulder surgery in May while with the Tigers. Detroit non-tendered him at season’s end, which allowed the Giants to sign him. He is expected back at some point mid-season. The Giants may want to get more clarity on his progress during camp before deciding on a move to the IL.

Guardians: Andrew Walters, David Fry

Neither of these guys is a lock for the 60-day IL. Walters had surgery to repair his right lat tendon in June with a recovery estimate of eight to ten months. Fry underwent surgery in October due to a deviated septum and a fractured nose suffered when a Tarik Skubal pitch hit him in the face. His timeline is unclear. It’s possible one or both could be healthy by Opening Day, so relevant updates may be forthcoming when camps open.

Mariners: Logan Evans

Evans required UCL surgery just last week and will miss the entire 2026 season. He was on optional assignment at the end of 2025, so the Mariners could keep him in the minors. Calling him up and putting him on the big league 60-day IL would open up a 40-man spot but would also involve Evans receiving big league pay and service time for the year.

Marlins: Ronny Henriquez

Henriquez underwent internal brace surgery in December and will miss the entire 2026 season, so he’s a lock for the 60-day IL.

Mets: Tylor Megill, Reed Garrett, Dedniel Núñez

All three of these pitchers underwent Tommy John surgery late in 2025 and are likely to miss the entire 2026 season, making them locks for the 60-day IL. Núñez went under the knife in July, followed by Megill in September and Garrett in October.

Nationals: Trevor Williams, DJ Herz

Williams underwent internal brace surgery in July. That’s a slightly less serious variation of Tommy John but still usually requires about a year of recovery. Herz underwent a full Tommy John procedure in April. Since that surgery usually requires 14 months or longer to come back, both pitchers are likely out until around the All-Star break and therefore bound for the 60-day IL once the Nats need some roster spots.

Orioles: Félix Bautista

Bautista underwent shoulder surgery in August, and the club announced his recovery timeline as 12 months. He’s a lock for the 60-day IL and may miss the entire season if his recovery doesn’t go smoothly.

Padres: Yu Darvish, Jhony Brito, Jason Adam

Darvish underwent UCL surgery in November and will miss the entire 2026 season. Instead of going on the IL, he may just retire, but it seems there are some contractual complications to be ironed out since he is signed through 2028.

Brito and Adam could be borderline cases. Brito underwent internal brace surgery in May of last year. Some pitchers can return from that procedure in about a year. Adam ruptured a tendon in his left quad in early September. In November, he seemed to acknowledge that he wouldn’t be ready for Opening Day. As of now, a trip to the 60-day IL seems unlikely unless he suffers a setback.

Pirates: Jared Jones

Jones required UCL surgery on May 21st of last year. The Bucs announced an expected return timeline of 10 to 12 months. The shorter end of that window would allow Jones to return fairly early in 2026. If it looks like he’ll be on the longer end of that time frame, he could wind up on the 60-day IL.

Phillies: Zack Wheeler

Wheeler underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome in September, with a timeline of six to eight months. As of now, it seems unlikely Wheeler would require a trip to the 60-day IL, but it depends on how his ramp-up goes. He’s also approaching his 36th birthday, and the Phils could slow-play his recovery.

Rangers: Cody Bradford

Bradford required internal brace surgery in late June of last year. He recently said he’s targeting a return in May. That’s a pretty aggressive timeline, but perhaps the Rangers will delay moving him to the 60-day IL until that plan is strictly ruled out.

Rays: Manuel Rodríguez

Rodriguez underwent flexor tendon surgery in July of last year and is targeting a return in June of this year, so he should be a lock for the 60-day IL.

Reds: Brandon Williamson, Julian Aguiar

Both of these pitchers required Tommy John surgeries late in 2024, Williamson in September and Aguiar in October. They each missed the entire 2025 season. Presumably, they are recovered by now and could be healthy going into 2026, but there haven’t been any recent public updates.

Red Sox: Tanner Houck, Triston Casas

Houck is the most clear-cut case for Boston. He had Tommy John surgery in August of 2025 and will miss most or perhaps all of the 2026 season. Casas is more borderline. He’s still recovering from a ruptured left patellar tendon suffered in May of last year. It doesn’t seem like he will be ready by Opening Day, but his timeline apart from that is murky.

Rockies: Jeff Criswell, Kris Bryant

Criswell required Tommy John surgery in early March of last year. With the normal 14-month recovery timeline, he could be back in May. Anything slightly longer than that would make him a candidate for the 60-day IL. Bryant’s timeline is very difficult to discern. He has hardly played in recent years due to various injuries and is now dealing with chronic symptoms related to lumbar degenerative disc disease. Updates will likely be provided once camp opens.

Royals: Alec Marsh

Marsh missed 2025 due to shoulder problems and is slated to miss 2026 as well after undergoing labrum surgery in November.

Tigers: Jackson Jobe

Jobe required Tommy John surgery in June of last year. He will miss most or perhaps even all of the 2026 season.

Twins: None.

White Sox: Ky Bush, Drew Thorpe, Prelander Berroa

These three hurlers all required Tommy John surgery about a year ago, Bush in February, followed by Berroa and Thorpe in March. Given the normal 14-month recovery period, any of them could return early in 2026, but they could also end up on the 60-day IL if the timeline pushes slightly beyond that.

Yankees: Clarke Schmidt, Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Anthony Volpe

Schmidt is the only lock of this group. He required UCL surgery in July of last year and should miss the first half of the 2026 season. Cole is recovering from Tommy John surgery performed in March of last year. His target is expected to be late May/early June, so he has a decent chance to hit the 60-day. However, given his importance to the club, the Yankees probably won’t put him there until it’s certain he won’t be back by the middle of May.

Rodón had surgery in October to remove loose bodies in his elbow. He’s expected to be back with the big league club in late April or early May, so he would only hit the 60-day IL if his timeline is pushed. Volpe required shoulder surgery in October. He’s not expected to be ready by Opening Day, but his timeline beyond that doesn’t seem concrete.

Photo courtesy of Allan Henry, Imagn Images

Yankees Interested In Paul Goldschmidt, Nick Martinez, Austin Slater

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TODAY: The Yankees’ interest in Slater extended to the point that New York offered Slater a big league deal earlier this offseason, The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty reports.  It isn’t known when the Yankees made the offer or if it’s still on the table, though Slater remains unsigned.

JANUARY 30: The Yankees have made some notable moves this month, re-signing Cody Bellinger and acquiring Ryan Weathers from the Marlins. They still have more work to do. Jon Heyman of The New York Post reports that they have shown some interest in various free agents, including right-hander Nick Martinez and Michael Kopech, as well as outfielders Austin Slater and Randal Grichuk. Heyman also mentions that first baseman Paul Goldschmidt seems willing to return to the Yankees even if that’s in a part-time role. Jack Curry of Yes Network mentioned the club’s interest in a Goldschmidt reunion on Yankees Hot Stove earlier this week.

Goldschmidt signed a one-year, $12.5MM deal to join the Yankees a year ago and was set to be their everyday first baseman. He should have less earning power now and would likely be looking at a lesser role as well. He finished the year with ten home runs and a .274/.328/.403 line. The resulting 103 wRC+ was just barely above league average, his second straight season of offense around league par. As the season wore on, Ben Rice took over some of his playing time at first base.

Though the season was only about average overall, Goldschmidt was excellent in a platoon capacity, hitting .336/.411/.570 against southpaws for a 169 wRC+. Perhaps there’s a path for him to return to the Yankees in a short-side platoon capacity. The Yanks have a pretty lefty-heavy lineup. In addition to Rice at first, they have Bellinger, Trent Grisham, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Ryan McMahon and Austin Wells slated for regular duty. There should be opportunities to play matchups with righty bats like Amed Rosario and someone like Goldschmidt.

Heyman writes that Goldschmidt is open to the reduced role but it would reduce the club’s flexibility a little bit. They have one bench spot going to backup catcher J.C. Escarra and another to Rosario. Putting Goldschmidt in there would only leave one spot for either Jasson Domínguez or Oswaldo Cabrera. Once Anthony Volpe is healthy, that could bump José Caballero to the bench and knock someone else out, though that’s all assuming the roster is completely healthy.

On the financial side, it’s unclear if the two sides would be able to meet up on a fair price for Goldy. The Yankees are going to be paying the competitive balance tax for at least a third consecutive year and are above the top tier. They face a 110% tax on anything they add at this point, so signing any player means they are paying out more than twice as much as the player will actually receive.

Goldschmidt has also been connected to another former club, with the Diamondbacks reportedly interested in a reunion as well. That would also likely be a platoon situation, with Arizona having Pavin Smith lined up to play first base against righties.

Martinez, 35, has arguably been baseball’s top swingman in recent years. Since the start of 2022, he has posted a 3.67 earned run average in 524 2/3 innings. He has been better out of the bullpen, with a 2.94 ERA as a reliever compared to a 4.10 mark as a starter, but the flexibility is valuable to teams as they navigate a long season.

For the Yankees, their short-term rotation picture is very different than the long-term outlook. They are slated to start the campaign with Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Luis Gil, Will Warren and Weathers in five spots. Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón are going to begin the year on the injured list but will eventually jump in there when they get healthy. Clarke Schmidt will miss at least the first half recovering from Tommy John surgery but could perhaps make a late-season appearance.

Even in the projected season-opening five, there are some question marks. Schlittler had a great debut but still has just 14 regular season starts on his résumé. Gil missed a lot of 2025 due to a lat strain and his results weren’t great when he returned. Weathers has had plenty of injury issues over the years and still hasn’t hit 90 innings in a season.

Presumably due to the uncertainty in that group, the Yankees have added a couple of swing options already, signing Paul Blackburn and Ryan Yarbrough. Blackburn got a $2MM guarantee and Yarbrough $2.5MM. Those two could step up and make starts if needed, depending on what happens with everyone else, or they could be in the bullpen.

Martinez should be a more expensive version of the same idea. Two years ago, he got a two-year, $26MM deal from the Reds. He pitched well enough in the first year to trigger an opt-out, then received a $21.05MM qualifying offer, which he accepted.

He will presumably have to settle for something lower than that now that he’s a bit older and posted a 4.45 ERA in 2025, but his 2.61 ERA as a reliever should be worth a few million alone, never mind the flexibility of being able to make competent starts. As mentioned with Goldschmidt, the Yankees would effectively be paying double whatever Martinez is able to earn. Martinez was connected to the Tigers in rumors last week.

Kopech, 30 in April, has some starting experience but will presumably be a straight bullpen add. He has been used strictly in relief for two years running now and was also hurt for most of 2025, so it’s unlikely any club would plan to stretch him out now. He showed his upside in 2024, split between the White Sox and Dodgers. He posted a 3.46 ERA over 67 appearances. His 12.2% walk rate was quite high but he punched out a huge 31.5% of batters faced.

He will be a buy-low opportunity for someone. Last year, he only made 11 appearances. He made trips to the injured list due to a shoulder impingement and a torn meniscus in his right knee. He was connected to the Giants last month but remains unsigned.

As for Slater and Grichuk, they are right-hitting outfielders. As mentioned earlier, the Yankees project to have a lefty-heavy lineup. That includes Grisham and Bellinger in the outfield. Domínguez is a switch-hitter who struggles against lefties.

The Yanks acquired Slater at last year’s deadline but he didn’t play much due to a left hamstring strain suffered shortly after the trade. But in his career, he has been a strong outfield defender who hits well with the platoon advantage. He has a .267/.357/.430 line and 119 wRC+ against lefties in his career. Grichuk is fairly comparable, with a .268/.318/.500 line and 118 wRC+ against southpaws in his career.

Photo courtesy of Tim Heitman, Imagn Images

Royals, Vinnie Pasquantino Avoid Arbitration

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The Royals and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino will avoid an arbitration hearing. Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports that he and the club have agreed to a two-year deal worth more than $11MM, with a chance for him to max out close to $16MM via incentives. Exact figures have not yet been publicly reported.

Pasquantino just qualified for arbitration for the first time going into 2026. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for a salary of $5.4MM. He was one of 18 players who did not have a deal in place through the arbitration filing deadline earlier this month. He and his camp filed at $4.5MM while the Royals filed at $4MM.

Most teams these days adopt a “file and trial” approach, which means they cut off negotiations of one-year deals after the filing deadline. This is to give them leverage in pre-deadline talks and also to prevent players from filing absurdly high numbers in an attempt to set out an aggressive bargaining stance. An arbiter can only pick the player’s or the team’s number, not a midpoint. Even if a team does have a “file and trial” policy, exceptions are made for deals that are longer than one year.

Arbitration hearings are generally viewed as a normal part of the business but occasional situations have occurred where the relationship between a player and a team have been damaged. Corbin Burnes said as much after his hearing with the Brewers three years ago. Pasquantino and the Royals have avoided that situation by agreeing to this multi-year pact, covering the first two of his three arbitration years. He will also be eligible for arbitration in 2028, before he’s slated to reach free agency.

There will now be no more than 14 hearings across the league this year. As mentioned, 18 players didn’t have a deal as of the deadline. Since then, Cade Cavalli, Bryce Miller, Joe Ryan and now Pasquantino have reached new deals to avoid hearings. The Royals still have one potential hearing on the docket, as they don’t yet have an agreement in place with left-hander Kris Bubic, who was projected for a $6MM salary. He filed at $6.15MM and the team at $5.15MM.

More to come.

Logan Evans Undergoes UCL Surgery

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The Mariners announced that right-hander Logan Evans has undergone surgery to reconstruct the ulnar collateral ligament in this throwing elbow with an internal brace. They announced his return timeline as 12 months, so he’ll miss the entire 2026 season.

It’s obviously rough news for both the club and Evans himself. The righty made his major league debut last year, tossing 81 1/3 innings for the Mariners, allowing 4.32 earned runs per nine. He struck out 16.9% of opponents faced, gave out walks at an 8.9% clip and induced grounders on 40% of balls in play. Instead of building on that in 2026, he’ll have to sit out the entire season while recovering. He’ll look to get back on track during the 2027 season. He’ll turn 26 in June of that year.

For the Mariners, they have now lost arguably their best optionable depth starter. Seattle has a strong core five in the rotation, including Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Luis Castillo and Bryce Miller, but things drop off after that. That’s especially true now that Evans is out for the year.

The Mariners acquired Cooper Criswell from the Mets a week ago. He is out of options and projects to be a long reliever to start the season if he’s still on the roster by Opening Day and everyone else is healthy. Without Evans, the optionable starters on the 40-man roster are Emerson Hancock and Blas Castano. Hancock was the sixth overall pick in 2020 but he hasn’t lived up that pedigree with a 4.81 ERA and 15.6% strikeout rate in his career so far. Castano is 27 years old, has just one major league appearance under his belt and had a 5.19 ERA in Triple-A last year.

In terms of non-roster depth, lefty Jhonathan Díaz was outrighted this week but his transactions tracker at MLB.com indicates he elected free agency yesterday. That leaves Randy Dobnak, Dane Dunning and Casey Lawrence as non-roster options with some big league experience. Switch-pitching prospect Jurrangelo Cijntje is on the way but isn’t a near-term option since he hasn’t yet reached Triple-A and only has seven starts at the Double-A level. Perhaps the Evans surgery will lead the Mariners to add some more depth in the coming weeks.

Evans finished the 2025 campaign on optional assignment, so the Mariners could keep him there throughout 2026. Calling him up and placing him on the major league 60-day injured list would allow them to open up an extra 40-man roster spot but that would involve giving Evans a full year of big league pay and service time.

Photo courtesy of Joe Nicholson, Imagn Images

Red Sox Have Had Trade Talks Involving Jordan Hicks

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The Red Sox seemingly have enough pitching depth to consider trading some. Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports that Patrick Sandoval, Brayan Bello and Jordan Hicks have been discussed in trade talks. Reporting back in December indicated that both Bello and Sandoval were garnering interest from other clubs.

It isn’t specified which party brought up Hicks in these trade talks but presumably the Sox have been trying to shop him, as opposed to other teams trying especially hard to acquire him. He has some good major league results on his track record but hasn’t been effective lately and his contract is not favorable.

Two years ago, the Giants signed him to a four-year, $44MM deal, hoping to convert him from the bullpen to the rotation. That experiment went well initially before Hicks seemingly ran out of gas. He posted a 1.59 earned run average through the end of April, but then had a 3.99 ERA in May, 5.24 in June and 8.40 in July.

He was moved back to the bullpen later in the year and also spent some time on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. He didn’t get things on track in 2025. He was eventually included in the Rafael Devers trade as financial ballast and finished the season with a 6.95 ERA between the two clubs.

Prior to signing that deal, Hicks had some decent results out of the St. Louis bullpen, riding his triple-digit velocity to a groundball-heavy approach. At the end of the 2023 season, he had a career ERA of 3.85. His 12.8% walk rate was high but he struck out 24.5% of batters faced and induced grounders on 60.4% of balls in play. Some teams probably have interest in him as a bounceback candidate but he is still owed $24MM over the next two years, so Boston would have to pay down most of that in order to line up a deal.

The commonality with Sandoval, Bello and Hicks as that they’re all making decent money, with Bello still owed $50.5MM through 2029, including the $1MM buyout on a 2030 club option. Sandoval will make $12.75MM in 2026.

RosterResource currently projects the Sox for a payroll of $197MM and a competitive balance tax figure of $266MM. They finished 2025 with a pure payroll of $209MM and a $247MM CBT calculation. If they are willing to spend to last year’s levels, the pure payroll has some wiggle room but perhaps the upcoming higher tax budget eats up some of that difference.

Trading one of these contracts could create some extra payroll room. The Sox could use a second base upgrade, though free agency doesn’t really have any amazing solutions remaining. Guys like Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ramón Urías are out there but arguably don’t provide a huge upgrade over Boston’s current group of Romy González, Nick Sogard and David Hamilton. The Sox are also looking for catching upgrades and presumably want to add another reliever or two while leaving some wiggle room for in-season maneuvering.

Photo courtesy of Eric Canha, Imagn Images

Nationals Claim George Soriano, Designate Tsung-Che Cheng For Assignment

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The Nationals announced that they have claimed right-hander George Soriano off waivers from the Braves. Atlanta designated him for assignment earlier this week when they claimed José Suarez off waivers from the Orioles. To open a spot for Soriano today, Washington has designated infielder Tsung-Che Cheng for assignment.

Both players involved here have been riding the DFA carousel this winter. Soriano finished the 2025 season with the Marlins but has since gone to Baltimore, Atlanta and now Washington via waivers. Cheng was on the Pirates as of a few months ago but has gone to the Rays, Mets and Nationals via the waiver wire. For each of these two and many others this winter, it seems that several teams are hoping to pass the player through waivers, therefore keeping him as non-roster depth.

Soriano, 27 in March, hasn’t found major league success yet. He logged 118 innings for the Marlins over the past three years, allowing 5.95 earned runs per nine with a 22% strikeout rate, 10.3% walk rate and 38.7% ground ball rate. He exhausted his three option years in that time.

But he did just wrap up a strong season in the minors. He tossed 42 2/3 Triple-A innings last year with a 2.32 ERA. He struck out 28.8% of batters faced, gave out walks at an 8.8% clip and induced grounders on 55.7% of balls in play. He averages about 96 miles per hour with both his four-seamer and sinker while also featuring a slider and a changeup.

Teams are clearly intrigued by Soriano but seemingly prefer to have him aboard in a non-roster capacity. If he is passed through waivers at some point, he would not have the right to elect free agency since he has less than three years of service time and does not have a previous career outright.

Perhaps the Nats will put him back on waivers later but they could certainly use the arms. The Washington bullpen had a 5.59 ERA last year, worst in the majors. They subtracted from the group when they traded Jose A. Ferrer to the Mariners for catcher Harry Ford. If Soriano can hang onto his roster spot, he can be controlled for five full seasons.

Cheng, 24, still has an option remaining but his appeal is nonetheless borderline enough for him to be barely clinging to a 40-man spot. He appears to have a decent floor as a speed-and-defense infielder. Throughout his minor league career, he has played a bunch of the three infield spots to the left of first base, generally getting good reviews for his glovework. He’s been good for 20-ish steals per year in the minors as well.

The bat is more of a question. He hit well through Single-A but has struggled at the upper levels. Over the past two years, he has a combined .217/.319/.312 batting line on the farm, which translates to an 81 wRC+. He was also sent to the plate seven times in the majors and struck out three times without getting a hit.

It appears he has some appeal as a glove-first depth infielder but not enough for any club to put him firmly in their plans. The Nats will likely put him back on waivers soon. DFA limbo can last as long as a week but the waiver process takes 48 hours, so he should be back on the wire at some point in the next five days.

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images

Braves, Martín Pérez Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Braves and left-hander Martín Pérez have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Aram Leighton of Just Baseball. The Octagon client will presumably be in major league camp in spring training.

Pérez, 35 in April, is coming off a mostly lost season due to injury. He signed a one-year, $5MM pact with the White Sox to serve as a veteran innings eater on the rebuilding club. That didn’t work out as the southpaw was on the injured list by mid-April for inflammation in his throwing elbow. Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosed with a flexor strain and it was questionable whether he would make it back from the IL.

The veteran did eventually come back in August but landed back on the IL in September due to a shoulder strain. Around the IL stints, he gave the White Sox 56 innings with a 3.54 earned run average, 19.3% strikeout rate, 9.6% walk rate and 39% ground ball rate.

For most of his career, Pérez has been a finesse lefty. His fastball has never averaged more than 94.2 miles per hour and has usually been a tick or two below that. He was in the 91-92 mph range in 2023 and 2024. He dropped down below 90 in 2025 but the injuries may have played a part in that. He has a six-pitch mix with a four-seamer, sinker, cutter, slider, curveball and changeup.

He has mostly been able to provide passable results. In his 1,631 2/3 career innings, he has a 4.41 ERA despite striking out just 16.3% of batters faced. His 8.3% walk rate is around average and his 48.4% ground ball rate is a few ticks better than par. He managed to get his ERA down to 2.89 with the Rangers in 2022, and parlayed that into a $19.65MM qualifying offer for 2023, which he accepted. But that campaign looks like a clear outlier, as he was back in the 4.50 ERA range for the next two seasons.

Atlanta has a good rotation on paper but with question marks all throughout the group. Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo López, Hurston Waldrep and Grant Holmes are likely the top six options right now. Sale won a Cy Young in 2024 but has generally been pretty injury prone in the seasons around that and will turn 37 soon. Schwellenbach missed the final three months of 2025 due to an elbow fracture. Strider missed most of 2024 due to ulnar collateral ligament surgery and posted a 4.45 ERA in his return last year. Shoulder surgery limited López to one start last year. Waldrep had a strong 2025 but still has fewer than 65 big league innings under his belt. Holmes has a partially torn UCL and is trying non-surgical rehab but will be a question mark until he ramps up in camp.

Given all that uncertainty, depth will be important. Bryce Elder is on the roster but posted an ERA north of 5.00 in each of the past two seasons. Prospect Didier Fuentes was rushed to the majors in 2025 and looked overmatched, allowing 20 earned runs in 13 innings.

Atlanta was connected to free agents Lucas Giolito and Chris Bassitt earlier this week, so perhaps a significant move will be forthcoming soon. For now, Pérez gives them a bit of extra depth without taking up a roster spot. He’ll look to pitch his way onto the roster. His chances of succeeding will naturally depend on his own performance but also on the team-wide health situation as things develop in the coming months.

Photo courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski, Imagn Images

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