Orioles Place Dylan Beavers On Injured List
The Orioles placed outfielder Dylan Beavers on the 10-day IL before today’s game against the Yankees with an oblique strain. In a corresponding move, the Orioles recalled catcher Maverick Handley from Double-A Chesapeake. The concern for Beavers’ oblique strain is low, with manager Craig Albernaz calling it a low-grade strain (via Jake Rill of MLB.com).
The left-handed Beavers was looking to build off a strong 2025 showcase. His .227/.375/.400 line in 137 plate appearances was good for a 125 wRC+ (100 is average), indicating he was 25% better than the average major league batter. His 2026 follow-up has not shown quite as much promise, with a .243/.331/.369 line in 119 PAs, which equates to roughly league-average performance. He’s cut the strikeout rate by nearly 3%, but dropped the walk rate by over 7%. Of course, Beavers won’t turn 25 until early August, so there’s not much long-term divination from the small sample sizes of an up-and-coming major leaguer.
In his stead, Handley will get his second taste of MLB action. The then-27-year-old was far below replacement in 47 PAs last year with Baltimore, but to his credit, has performed well in an even tinier sample size this season, primarily at Triple-A Norfolk (.333/.458/.444 for a 139 wRC+). Zooming out to the greater roster picture, Baltimore is suffering from a rash of injuries. Beavers joins Ryan Mountcastle, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg, and Heston Kjerstad on the IL (alongside eight pitchers). The bench is entirely right-handed, except for outfielders Leody Taveras/Colton Cowser, the latter of whom is struggling mightily to the tune of a .171/.264/.197 line (38 wRC+) in 88 PAs this season.
Taveras has already been elevated to the near-everyday centerfielder, given the aforementioned struggles of Cowser (to Taveras’ credit, his .258/.363/.392 line has made it an easy decision). In Beavers’ absence, Tyler O’Neill could pick up the lion’s share of starts in right field. Despite a tepid start to 2026 with a .183/.310/.250 (70 wRC+) line, O’Neill has drawn three straight starts in right field for the O’s.
Dodgers Hire Jason Heyward As Special Assistant
Jason Heyward will be rejoining the Dodgers as a special assistant in the front office, as first reported by Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times. Jesse Rogers of ESPN reported that Heyward also spoke with the White Sox and Cubs about a position before accepting the L.A. job.
Heyward, long renowned for his clubhouse presence, did not have to wait long for a new role after hanging up the spikes. Signed out of Henry County High School by the “hometown” Braves in 2007, Heyward rocketed up prospect lists before settling as the near-unanimous top prospect in all of baseball before the 2010 season. The 20-year-old Heyward caught fire almost immediately, and rode an above-average left-handed bat, a superlative glove, and tremendous speed to MLB stardom. Given his then-young age (26) and all-rounder performance, Heyward was poised for a handsome reward in free agency after five years with Atlanta and one with St. Louis.
The Cubs signed Heyward to an eight-year, $184MM deal following the 2015 season. Unfortunately, Heyward’s bat regressed almost instantly: outside of 2019-2020, the offense was average at best (and often significantly worse). He remained a strong defender and Heyward famously had a rousing clubhouse speech that’s been credited with helping to end the Cubs’ 108-year championship drought. Following two sub-standard offensive seasons in 2021-2022, the Cubs had decided they’d seen enough and elected to release him in the final year of his deal.
With only the minimum salary obligation due, the Dodgers elected to extend Heyward a 2023 Spring Training invite. He rewarded their faith with a .269/.340/.473 line in 377 regular-season plate appearances, good for a 119 wRC+ (100 is average) that harkened back to his best seasons. Unfortunately, Heyward wasn’t able to recapture the magic in a 2024 reunion with the Dodgers. He would finish out a below-average, yet respectable season between LA and Houston before logging a forgettable 95 PAs with San Diego in 2025 during the last stop of his playing career.
His retirement announcement toward the end of March officially closed the book on one of the greatest defensive careers in modern baseball history. For now, Heyward will look to transition to a supporting role for the next wave of major-league talent. The Dodgers also hired Clayton Kershaw in a special assistant position around Opening Day.
Tanner Murray Suffers Shoulder Fracture
White Sox manager Will Venable announced (as reported by Scott Merkin of MLB.com) that Tanner Murray suffered a dislocation (h/t James Fegan of Sox Machine) and a shoulder fracture that will require surgery, with an expected 4-6-month recovery timetable. Murray injured himself laying out for a CJ Abrams flyball during the top of the tenth inning of yesterday’s 2-1 Nationals win. The White Sox have placed Murray on the 10-day IL
The 26-year-old Murray made his MLB debut this season with the White Sox after a half-decade working up the ranks in Tampa Bay’s organization. Drafted in the fourth round out of UC Davis in 2020, Murray looked quite good at Single-A Charleston in 2021 before struggling somewhat at High-A Bowling Green the following year.
His 2023 season, spread across three levels, was successful, but Murray’s performance at the upper levels of the minors left something to be desired. He had arguably his strongest showing in 2024: a .290/.328/.424 line in 470 plate appearances at Double-A Montgomery, good for a park and league adjusted 121 wRC+ (100 is average), but a below-average 2025 at Triple-A Durham (.241/.299/.400 in 572 PAs for an 81 wRC+) curtailed his ascent to the majors.
Last offseason, Murray became one-half of the White Sox return (alongside Everson Pereira) for righties Yoendrys Gómez and Steven Wilson. This time, Murray’s Triple-A showcase with Charlotte (in an admittedly small 30 PAs) was stupendous: a .304/.467/.609 line, good for a 177 wRC+. That was enough to convince Chicago to give the 26-year-old rookie his first taste of MLB action.
In terms of tools, Murray profiles more as a jack-of-all trades. He likely lacks the offensive upside to be an everyday starter. He hit only .214/.281/.321 (58 wRC+) in his first 33 MLB PAs, but his defensive versatility offers flexibility at the end of the bench. Roughly half of his appearances have come in left field for the White Sox, but he has also been able to effectively cover third base and short (his primary defensive homes in the minors) at the big league level in a small sample.
Mets Claim Eric Wagaman
The Mets announced that they have claimed infielder Eric Wagaman off waivers from the Twins and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse. Minnesota had designated him for assignment last week. The Mets had a 40-man vacancy and don’t need to make a corresponding move. The Mets also announced that they have signed outfielder Austin Slater and designated outfielder Tommy Pham for assignment, moves that were reported yesterday.
Wagaman, to his credit, didn’t have a whole lot left to prove in the upper levels of the minors at one time. Drafted by the Yankees in 2017 out of Orange Coast CC, Wagaman had a slow and steady climb up the affiliate ranks, but he started to show some big league promise between 2022-2024. His worst “full season” line was a .258/.346/.468 line, good for a league-and-park-adjusted 123 wRC+ (100 is average) in 266 plate appearances spread between High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset in 2022. His work was even better the following year with Somerset: a .320/.355/.500 showing for a 146 wRC+ in 136 PAs. Perhaps due to his then-age (25), defensive limitations, or limited offensive upside, the Yankees passed on adding Wagaman to their 40-man roster to protect him during the Rule 5 Draft.
The Angels, however, saw enough to warrant a potential return to Orange County for the Mission Viejo native, adding him in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft. While his numbers at Triple-A Salt Lake were less promising, the Angels granted him a cup of coffee in September 2024. His big league results, in 74 PAs, were uninspiring: a .250/.270/.403 line for a 87 wRC+ with little defensive or baserunning upside. Wagaman’s strong plate discipline also backslid, and without average power at a bat-first position, the Angels found little incentive to keep rostering him and elected to non-tender Wagaman, sending him to free agency.
The Marlins pounced with a major-league contract for 2025. In 514 PAs, Wagaman was able to somewhat rediscover his plate discipline at the major league level, but the power and contact quality further waned. Ultimately, his .250/.296/.378 line and 85 wRC+ didn’t look much different than his 2024 sample, but a below-average bat at an offense-first position was untenable. Miami cut bait with Wagaman following the 2025 campaign. The Twins were next in line for Wagaman’s services after an offseason swap, but after a poor showing (48 wRC+ with a 33.8 strikeout rate) in 74 PAs at Triple-A St. Paul, he was designated for assignment.
For now, Wagaman will look to regain his footing at Triple-A Syracuse while he awaits his next chance at the bigs. The Mets would certainly take any offensive boost they can at this point: they’ve scored the fewest runs in all of MLB. While Wagaman profiles best defensively as a first baseman, he’s shown some versatility covering the outfield corners and third base. Left field and third base are spoken for by Juan Soto and Bo Bichette, respectively, but Wagaman could be insurance for offseason signing Jorge Polanco (currently on the shelf with a wrist contusion) alongside Mark Vientos or in the right field mix with Tyrone Taylor, utilityman Brett Baty, and the newly acquired Slater.
There’s upside here for the Mets if the bat can come around: Wagaman’s controllable until 2031 and, perhaps more importantly, has all three option-years remaining. For a major league club that is currently starved for offense and seems open to shaking up the roster at the periphery among a league worst start, Wagaman represents a low-risk move that could potentially pay dividends.
Blue Jays Remove Jeff Hoffman From Closer Role
The defending 2025 AL Champions, mired in a 10-15 start, are shaking up their bullpen. After three blown saves and an early yank against the Angels on April 21st, the Blue Jays (as covered by Keegan Matheson of MLB.com) announced that Jeff Hoffman is out as closer while the team transitions to a closer-by-committee approach. Righties Louis Varland, Tyler Rogers, and Braydon Fisher should be in play for save opportunities. However, Matheson mentions that Varland’s fireman role in the bullpen may preclude him from the ninth in some games.
It’s perhaps an unsurprising development given his early-season performance: an unsightly 7.59 ERA in 10 2/3 innings is hard to stomach from a high-leverage reliever, even for a small sample size. His 6 unintentional walks, 2 HBPs, and a wild pitch underscore his challenge to command the zone and prevent baserunners. However, Hoffman’s stuff remains filthy. His 41.2% strikeout rate is elite. Due to the nature of small sample sizes, relievers’ performances can be extremely volatile, and ERA models like xFIP (1.68) and SIERA (1.93) both think he’s been downright snakebit. Regardless of misfortune, Hoffman’s results have been lacking.
Hoffman put up an excellent run with the Phillies between 2023-2024. Among qualified relievers in that time frame, his 2.28 ERA in 118 2/3 innings was sixth-best in the league. This performance wasn’t a mirage: his 26.0 K-BB% (implying high strikeouts and low walks) and 2.65 SIERA were the fourth and third best marks during that period, respectively. Impressed with the recent body of work, the Blue Jays staked Hoffman to a three-year, $33M deal during the 2024-2025 offseason.
His 2025 was less successful. Hoffman coughed up the most homers he’s ever allowed while pitching exclusively out of the bullpen. His postseason run looked like a return to form, and was quite good on the whole, but Hoffman’s Fall Classic run will likely be most (in)famously remembered for the game-tying home run given up to Miguel Rojas with 1 out in the ninth of Game Seven.
The Blue Jays have some other fantastic options to finish games while their erstwhile closer attempts to figure it out in a lower-leverage setting. Varland has been excellent thus far, boosting his strikeout rate in 2026 by nearly 50% of his career percentage. He seldom walks batters and has yet to have a ball leave the yard this season. He looks very much like last year’s version turned to 11, and should be first-in-line for saves (when available). Varland, in a small sample, has gone 1 for 3 in save opportunities.
Submariner righty Rogers should also be in the mix. While his strikeout numbers are pedestrian, he typically commands the zone well (career 4.5 BB% rate) and is a groundball specialist with a career 57.1 GB% rate. Rogers has had mixed success in the closer role thus far, going 19 for 42 in opportunities. Lesser heralded but still highly effective Fisher could also climb the bullpen pecking order, though he has less experience in higher-leverage situations than Varland and Rogers.
Cubs Select Nicky Lopez, Vince Velasquez
7:32 PM: Taylor McGregor further reports some additional moves for the Cubs: right-hander Vince Velasquez has been selected, and Caleb Thielbar was placed on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring strain. Additionally, Scott Kingery was designated for assignment to open an additional spot on the 40-man roster.
6:28 PM: The Chicago Cubs have made a 40-man roster move in advance of tonight’s clash against the Dodgers, adding infielder Nicky Lopez and transferring Porter Hodge to the 60-day IL, per Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network. Per the official player page, Scott Kingery has also been optioned to Triple-A Iowa.
Lopez, acquired yesterday from the Rockies, did not have to wait long for his reunion with the Cubs. Lopez made 14 appearances with the Northsiders last season (interesting enough, his first appearance came almost a year ago to the day). Now entering his seventh MLB season, Lopez has made a name for himself with solid glovework at multiple infield positions. The bulk of his work has come at 2B (2561 1/3 innings) and SS (2351 1/3 innings), though defensive metrics like DRS (-9) and FRV (-1) have soured on his glove at short to varying degrees in his last three seasons of work. Both metrics, however, look favorably on his work at the keystone (3 DRS/6 FRV) and the hot corner (5 DRS/4 FRV) since 2023.
The versatility will help manager Craig Counsell give the starters a day off and a lefty bat to play with in the lineup or off the bench. To be certain, Lopez doesn’t break the mold of a traditional, light-hitting utilityman. His career 73 wRC+ (100 is average) indicates he’s below-average at the plate, but to his credit, Lopez controls the zone relatively well with a low strikeout rate (14.3%). He hits for little power, and the speed he showcased in his Royals heyday (35/39 SB from 2021-2022) now clocks in closer to league average. Still, Lopez clearly made a good enough impression on the clubhouse and management last season to warrant a second bite of the apple.
Lopez will functionally be replacing Kingery on Counsell’s bench. Kingery has bounced around the league since his five-year run with the Phillies ended in 2022. Like Lopez, Kingery doesn’t offer much with the bat: the latter’s 72 wRC+ is nearly identical to that of his successor. But while Lopez offers some defensive upside, Kingery’s versatility is less notable. His glovework at second and third is more pedestrian (Kingery, to his credit, has graded better on the defensive metrics at short in a very small sample size).
Since Kingery has more than three years of service time and has been previously placed on outright waivers, he will have the option to decline the placement and opt for free agency if he goes unclaimed. However, doing so would forfeit his MLB salary ($1.25 MM), and given his recent MLB performance, he’s unlikely to match that by re-signing with another club. For the Cubs, there is a possible risk that another team claims Kingery, but given his salary commitment and performance, this largely amounts to a non-issue. Most likely, he’ll continue to ply his trade at Triple-A while awaiting another opportunity with the big league club.
Velasquez will be making a return to the MLB mound for the first time since a short (yet effective) stint with Pittsburgh in 2023. More recently, he pitched with the KBO Lotte Giants to poor results, with an 8.23 ERA in 35 innings. While there’s an element of misfortune there (ERA predictor xFIP gauged him closer to a 5-ERA performance), it probably wasn’t the results Velasquez was hoping for on his foray into Korea.
Regardless, the Cubs saw enough to sign him to a minor league deal before Spring Training. Most likely, Velasquez’s role will be to soak up some innings as the long reliever in the bullpen when the score goes sideways. It remains to be seen how effective he’ll be in his role, given his MLB layoff, but at the very least, he’s a once-proven MLB arm with ample experience.
Thielbar’s IL placement could strain the Chicago bullpen, given his excellent work last year. At the tender age of 38, Thielbar turned in arguably the best season of his career: a 2.64 ERA in 58 IP with 25 holds. While SIERA found him a little lucky based on his peripherals and batted balls, his 3.24 mark would still be a fine number for a back-end bullpen arm. The Cubs’ bullpen has done relatively well in the early going, with a top-10 ERA (SIERA sees them as more middle-of-the-pack), but losing a quality, high-leverage lefty alongside closer Daniel Palencia will be tough to navigate.
In the interim, the Cubs will have a few options at their disposal to close out games. Righty Ben Brown, operating exclusively in relief, has been excellent in 19 innings. He only has one hold and a blown save in high-leverage innings this year, but his performance makes him a clear standout for the later innings. Lefty Hoby Milner could also be an option: while he lacks the velocity of Brown, he has a longer track record of success, helping to bridge to the closer with 18 holds in 2025.
To make room on the 40-man, Hodge was moved to the 60-day IL following UCL surgery. Given that Hodge won’t make any further appearances in 2026, this move is largely a formality.
Padres Sign Lucas Giolito
Lucas Giolito‘s protracted 2025-2026 free agency stint has finally ended. The Padres announced that they have signed him to a one-year deal with a mutual option. He’ll receive a $3MM guarantee, with half of that total via buyout on a 2027 mutual option worth $8MM. Giolito can increase the buyout by $3MM based on starts in 2026. There is an additional $2MM in unlockable bonuses tied to awards voting. To make room on the 40-man, the Padres announced that righty Bryan Hoeing has been transferred to the 60-day IL as he recovers from flexor surgery. Giolito will start with Single-A Lake Elsinore and must be on the major league roster within the next 25 days. Giolito is represented by CAA Sports.
For Giolito, his second foray into free agency was not nearly as successful as his first. His 2019 to 2021 run with the White Sox had him positioned as a top-of-the-rotation arm. Among 46 starters who threw at least 350 innings in that time frame, Giolito was sixth with a 30.7% strikeout rate on the back of a fantastic fastball-changeup pairing. His propensity for fly balls (41.7 FB%) and homers (13.7 HR/FB%) possibly prevented “ace” designation, yet Giolito was easily one of baseball’s best pitchers in this time frame.
However, more middling results followed in 2022 and 2023, with the homers especially ticking up in 2023. His 41 big flies were second only to Lance Lynn. Despite a poor platform year by his standards, Giolito and his representatives were able to parlay the showing into a $38.5MM guarantee with the Red Sox over the ’24-’25 seasons, with some additional incentives and player option structure.
Unfortunately, a torn UCL brought his 2024 season to an abrupt halt. An internal brace procedure (which carries a shorter rehab timeline than a traditional Tommy John ligament graft) had him back on the mound at the end of the following April, where he threw 145 innings. ERA evaluators/predictors like xFIP (4.59) and SIERA (4.65) were more bearish on his work than his actual results (3.41). Notably, Giolito’s strikeouts were down from his heyday with the White Sox. He profiled more as a back-of-the-rotation starter than the tremendous upside he flashed from 2019-2021 with Chicago.
Despite a solid return to the rotation, Giolito suffered from flexor irritation and a bone issue at the conclusion of the 2025 season. Although he was set to return to the club after resting, the Red Sox’s early postseason exit meant Giolito had no chance to pitch again before free agency. Under the hood, Giolito looked like a muted version of his best days, but he was a perfectly adequate starter in 2025.
His fastball velocity checked in about a one mile per hour (93.3) lower than his best seasons with the White Sox (94.2), but this was a continuation of a trend started in 2022. Among 82 pitchers who tossed at least 140 innings last season, Giolito was 69th in K-BB%, indicating both below-average ability to miss bats and control the zone. However, he was able to limit homers more effectively than ever before: his 9.3 HR/FB% was below league average, and the first time he recorded a single-percentage mark in a season of 25 or more starts.
Giolito declined his end of a $19MM mutual option (essentially a formality) with the Red Sox for 2026, and it perhaps came as no surprise that the Red Sox passed on extending Giolito a qualifying offer after the 2025 season due to some lingering injury trepidation. He is the last of the MLBTR 2025-2026 Top 50 MLB Free Agents to sign, and comes in far below expectations in years and total guarantee. Even without draft pick compensation attached, Giolito sat on the free agent market well into April, despite some notable playoff aspirants like the Braves, Cubs, and Padres losing multiple starters during Spring Training and the early season.
Speaking of the Padres, the news couldn’t come at a better time. Injuries and slowed recoveries have decimated the top of the rotation over the past few months. Yu Darvish had his second UCL surgery after the playoffs concluded in early November. Darvish is currently rehabbing on the restricted list away from the team and has reportedly considered retirement. Joe Musgrove, recovering from his own Tommy John surgery back in October 2024 and expected to open the season in the rotation, has had his rehab interrupted and was placed on the IL to open the season. 2025 workhorse Nick Pivetta hit the IL after four starts with a flexor strain. Surgery is not currently on the table, but given the recurrence of the strain (Pivetta also hit the IL for a short period in 2024 with the same issue), the Padres will give Pivetta ample time to rest his ailing arm in the hopes of having him available for a postseason run.
These injuries have thinned the depth of the rotation considerably in San Diego. Juan Soto trade returns Michael King and Randy Vasquez are providing quality innings, but the back of the rotation has shown mixed results to this point. Walker Buehler, though a far cry from his Dodgers’ peak, is looking like he still might have something left in the tank. Former Rockies All-Star German Marquez has a 3.86 ERA but less exciting numbers under the hood. Knuckleballer Matt Waldron was hit hard in his 2026 debut.
All three back-end starters have struggled to give the Padres consistent innings at the back of the rotation. Seven of the Padres’ first 23 games have had a starter fail to record an out in the fifth inning. Though Griffin Canning is on the horizon while working through a Triple-A El Paso rehab, the Padres decided that it was worth fortifying the rotation depth for the summer ahead.
Giolito’s contract stipulation for a Major League recall within the next 25 days would put him in line for a mid-May debut. This should give him four turns through the rotation to build up his arm after missing all of Spring Training. Should the rotation remain healthy after Canning joins, the Padres will have some decisions to make. As MLB veterans with ample service time, Buehler and Marquez can’t be optioned without their consent. Someone may end up in the bullpen or pushed off the roster entirely, depending on future health.
For now, San Diego will be happy to kick the roster-crunch can down the road. It’s an affordable, low-risk signing of an MLB-quality arm that could help the team weather the injury storm. The deal is much in the vein of recent similar signings by PBO/GM A.J. Preller. Operating under some payroll constraints after the death of former owner Peter Seidler and the imminent sale of the club, Preller has prioritized creative, low-dollar guarantees to Pivetta, Marquez, Buehler, and now Giolito to minimize the CBT hit (the Padres are currently in the first luxury payor tier). For his part, Giolito gets the opportunity to pitch for a potential contender with a recent record of rehabilitating starting pitchers’ value as he looks to surpass his 2025 platform year for a better offer next offseason.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post was the first to report the $3MM guarantee and the $2MM in awards bonuses. Ari Alexander of 7News Boston WHDH had the $1.5MM salary and buyout on the $8MM mutual option plus the $3MM in escalators. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune had the details on the initial minor league assignment and recall stipulation.
Dodgers Notes: Snell, Sasaki, Bullpen
The Dodgers are cruising along with an MLB-best 16-7 record (tied with the Padres) and a share of first in a competitive NL West. Still, more pitching help should be on the way soon. Lefty Blake Snell is slated to start for Single-A Ontario Tower Buzzers tonight as he builds up for his season debut, according to Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
Shoulder fatigue in his throwing arm dates back to last year. While Snell was able to toss an excellent 95 1/3 innings between the regular season and postseason last year, the Dodgers erred on the side of caution and placed the left-hander on the IL to open the season. Snell is tabbed for three innings tonight and will need four starts to build up to the five-inning/75-pitch MLB level, placing his earliest big league return timeline as late May.
Even in Snell’s absence, the Dodgers rotation hasn’t missed a beat. Their 14 quality starts lead all of MLB entering play today. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani have been typically excellent, but Justin Wrobleski has offered some surprising stability at the back of the rotation (despite a lack of strikeouts). Between Wrobleski, Emmet Sheehan, and Roki Sasaki, the Dodgers will have a rotation decision to make in the coming weeks upon Snell’s return.
Sasaki has recorded outs in the fifth inning in only two of his four starts this season. Given his excellence operating out of the bullpen in last year’s championship run, it’s natural to wonder if Sasaki could be ticketed for relief. At least for now, Sasaki’s role appears to be safe. In response to a hypothetical Sasaki in relief, Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes gave Fabian Ardaya and Katie Woo of The Athletic a flat “No.” Reading between the lines, it appears the final rotation spot will fall to Wrobleski or Sheehan, with Wrobleski currently occupying the inside track. Performance in the coming weeks could shift this assessment (and injuries to the rest of the rotation could upend it entirely).
It’s an interesting position by Gomes and the organization, given Sasaki’s struggles, but it reflects the Dodgers’ long-term belief in his potential. Sasaki surrendered only a single run in 10 2/3 innings last postseason, but wasn’t dominant by any means. His 2.3 K-BB% was lackluster, and ERA models like xFIP (5.72) and SIERA (5.35) didn’t love his work in an admittedly small sample. However, Sasaki was able to corral the long ball issues (again, small sample size) that have plagued his MLB work up to this point. In all likelihood, Sasaki’s gutsy October performance had little bearing on the organization’s long-term vision for him.
Sasaki’s 2026 starting work looks largely similar to 2025, with a marginal improvement in strikeouts and more fly balls leaving the yard on a rate basis. But if the Dodgers remain committed to locking him into rotation, one of Wrobleski or Sheehan will be squeezed off the roster or the bullpen. Fortunately, both Wrobleski and Sheehan have options remaining, meaning either of them can be freely moved between the major league club and its minor league affiliates them being exposed to waivers. Sasaki also has options remaining, meaning the Dodgers could theoretically allow him to continue working as a starter in the minors if they want to keep him stretched out as a starter, though this route seems unlikely.
LA’s bullpen pecking order is also currently under evaluation after closer Edwin Diaz went under the knife to remove loose bodies in his throwing elbow. While manager Dave Roberts acknowledged top lefty Tanner Scott could receive the majority of the save opportunities, he stopped short of anointing him interim closer, plainly stating (via Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register) the approach as “…the closer-by-committee way of doing it.” High-leverage righty Brock Stewart, currently rehabbing with Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers, is also nearing a return. Between lefties (Scott and Alex Vesia) and righties (Blake Treinen and Stewart), Roberts should have a multitude of options at his disposal to attack hitters in the late innings until Diaz’s reinstatement.
Brewers Sign Reiss Knehr to Minor League Deal
The Brewers signed right-handed pitcher Reiss Knehr to a minor league deal yesterday, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to the Arizona Complex League (ACL) Brewers squad, likely in an effort to build up following an injury-shortened (yet still effective) showing at Triple-A El Paso in 2025. He would presumably fill out the upper minors of Milwaukee’s system as an emergency starter or long-relief depth option. Knehr is represented by ACES.
Knehr, a former 20th-round pick by the San Diego Padres, has seen only limited major league action. Across three seasons (2021-2023) for the big league club, Knehr appeared in 21 games and tossed 48 1/3-innings, primarily out of the bullpen. However, he did make seven starts; he could serve in a similar spot starter/opener role for the Brewers in the event of injuries to the Major League staff.
His 5.96 ERA is unsightly. MLB batters facing Knehr struck out at only a 15.5% clip, walked at an elevated 13.2% rate, and put the ball on the ground only 32.0% of the time (all well below-average metrics for an MLB pitcher). Knehr’s career 5.75 SIERA, a backwards-looking ERA estimator, is only slightly below his career ERA, suggesting his results are not due to misfortune or the flukiness of a small sample size.
Unfortunately, Tommy John surgery ended Knehr’s 2023 season prematurely and wiped out his 2024. He returned on a minor league deal with San Diego during the 2024 offseason and generated velocity improvements to his fastball (+1.2 MPH), cutter (+1.4 MPH), and sinker (+2.0 MPH), resulting in a career-high 36.9% K% in 16.2 Triple-A innings, but did not receive a call-up to the big league club. He spent the latter parts of the season on the minor league injured list, not making an appearance after May 21st.
After electing free agency at the end of the 2025 season, Knehr will continue his MLB comeback with an organization that has a knack for pitching development. And while Knehr is far from a sure thing for the Brewers, he represents a risk-free minor league signing. If he makes the team, he is out of options but can be retained for five years should he make an impact on the major league roster.
Marlins Notes: Stowers, Conine, De Los Santos
Marlins’ outfielder Kyle Stowers is nearing a return, according to MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola. Stowers will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp this Friday. The 28-year-old enjoyed a breakout 2025 after cracking 25 homers, and his 149 wRC+ (a ballpark-adjusted measure of total offensive production that indicates he was 49% better than a league-average hitter) ranked 8th among all batters with a minimum of 450 PAs.
Stowers, who primarily split time between the corner outfield spots last year, has begun taking first base drills in addition to his usual outfield work. While manager Clayton McCullough didn’t commit to using Stowers there, he called it “a possibility” that the Fish could occasionally get him first base work in games. Coming off a Grade-1 hamstring injury, the Marlins will be keen to protect their star hitter’s health and address the void at 1B in the wake of Christopher Morel’s oblique injury.
In Morel’s absence, the Marlins have Frankensteined a first baseman, primarily out of Connor Norby and contributions from Liam Hicks, Graham Pauley, and prospect Deyvison De Los Santos. Although the early returns have been positive, there are some roster advantages to having Stowers at first. While Stowers has not donned a first base mitt professionally at any level, the Marlins have a glut of outfield options with Jakob Marsee, Owen Caissie, Heriberto Hernandez, Griffin Conine, and Austin Slater on the active roster. Playing Stowers at first base also gives them the option to insert an extra left-hander into the lineup alongside Griffin, Marsee, and Caissie, and despite being a finalist for the 2025 left field Gold Glove, advanced defensive metrics like DRS (1) and FRV (0) value Stowers’ contributions as neutral/average (in Stowers’ defense, none of the other Marlins’ outfielders are pushing him out of left with their defensive production to this point).
However, not all the health news coming out of Miami is positive: Conine exited Thursday’s game against the Reds with left hamstring discomfort, McCullough told reporters (including Kevin Barral of Fish on First). Conine has been hot in the early going with a .300/.390/.650 triple-slash with a pair of homers and steals, good for a 188 wRC+ (88% better offensive production than league average), but he may have an IL trip ahead of him. Barral also notes that De Los Santos was pulled from the Jacksonville lineup mid-game as a possible precursor to a corresponding move (should Conine’s injury warrant an IL trip). De Los Santos, who profiles as an aggressive, power-over-hit batter, should be in the mix for first base starts alongside fellow righty hitter Connor Norby while the Marlins continue to weigh their options at first and in the outfield.