Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Astros, Pirates Have Discussed Joey Bart

By | at

Earlier this month, the Pirates were reported to have interest in trading for Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes. That no longer seems to be on the table now that Pittsburgh has agreed to a one-year, $12MM contract with DH Marcell Ozuna. Indeed, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette confirmed that those trade talks have “since gone quiet.” However, Mackey also added a notable tidbit about those talks: The two sides discussed catcher Joey Bart as part of the package the Pirates would send to the Astros in exchange for the two-time All-Star Paredes. Mackey went on to speculate that it wouldn’t be surprising to see Bart come up in future trade talks as well.

After years of struggling to live up to his top-prospect billing in San Francisco, Bart blossomed into a productive part-time player with Pittsburgh. Over the past two seasons, he owns a .745 OPS and a 110 wRC+ in 173 games. His defensive metrics have been poor but passable, considering his above-average offense. All in all, he has produced 1.3 FanGraphs WAR in back-to-back campaigns; his 2.6 total fWAR puts him among the game’s top 25 catchers since 2024.

As valuable as Bart has been for the Pirates the last two years, they can afford to part with him. General manager Ben Cherington told reporters (including Mackey) that he believes former top prospects Henry Davis and Endy Rodríguez are capable of handling a “primary” catcher’s workload. He expressed the same faith in rookie Rafael Flores Jr. While Cherington went on to say that he will “hold onto that depth” for as long as he can, eventually, he’ll have to make a decision. The Pirates can’t carry four catchers on their Opening Day roster. The club certainly could decide to stick with Bart, the most proven choice, and option two of Davis, Rodríguez, and Flores to the minors. Yet, trading Bart also seems to be on the table.

The Astros still make sense as a suitor. After losing Victor Caratini in free agency to the Twins, Houston only has two catchers on its 40-man roster: starter Yainer Diaz and projected backup César Salazar. Non-roster invitee Carlos Pérez is the only other backstop in camp with big league experience. Salazar is entering his age-30 season with a .586 OPS, 0.3 fWAR, and 36 MLB games to his name. Pérez hasn’t played in the majors since 2023. And while Diaz ranked seventh among catchers in defensive innings last year, he still only started 111 games. There’s no question he could use a more proven backup.

The Rays are another potential suitor to consider; they were reportedly hoping to trade for a catcher back in January after missing out on free agent J.T. Realmuto. The Red Sox are another team that was, at least at one point, looking to improve behind the dish. Bart is set to make $2.53MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility. He will remain under team control through 2027.

Nationals Sign Miles Mikolas

By | at

5:53 PM: Mikolas will earn a base salary of $2.25MM, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Incentives can increase the value of the deal.

5:17 PM: The Nationals have formally announced the contract. DJ Herz has been placed on the 60-day injured list to open a spot for Mikolas on the 40-man roster. Herz underwent Tommy John surgery last April.

2:46 PM: The Nationals are signing veteran right-hander Miles Mikolas, reports Jake Mintz of Yahoo Sports. This comes after TalkNats reported that the two sides were talking on Tuesday morning. Mark Zuckerman of Nats Journal confirmed Mintz’s report, noting that it is a one-year deal. The Nationals will need to make room for Mikolas on their 40-man roster, but they can do so easily by moving DJ Herz to the 60-day IL.

Mikolas, 37, became a workhorse in his mid-thirties. He began his career with the Padres and Rangers before spending three years with the Yomiuri Giants in NPB. During the 2017-18 offseason, he signed with the Cardinals and made 32 starts in each of the next two years, but forearm issues kept him off the field for most of 2020-21. Since 2022, he has started at least 31 games each year, including a league-leading 35 in 2023. Only one pitcher, Logan Webb, has made more starts than Mikolas over the last four seasons, and only four have thrown more innings.

Unfortunately for Mikolas, the quality of those innings has declined as he has aged and his stuff has diminished. In 2025, he pitched to a 4.84 ERA and a 4.83 SIERA. While the righty has never been one to rack up strikeouts, his strikeout rate and strikeout-to-walk ratio dropped to 14.9% and 2.70, respectively, the lowest either has ever been since before he left for Japan. The only pitcher to throw at least 150 innings last year with a worse strikeout rate was Mikolas’s new Nationals teammate Mitchell Parker. Meanwhile, no pitcher (min. 150 IP) gave up barrels at a higher rate than Mikolas; according to Statcast’s xERA, he ranked among the bottom 9% of pitchers in MLB. Pitch models that evaluate raw stuff, such as Stuff+ and PitchingBot, also suggest that the veteran took a big step back in 2025. Overwhelming batters with nasty stuff was never how he succeeded, but his stuff metrics went from poor to some of the worst in the game this past season.

As negative as all that sounds, it’s important to keep in mind that Mikolas still took the mound 31 times in 2025, tossing 156 1/3 frames. He made eight quality starts and finished five innings in all but seven of his outings. The Nationals badly needed an innings eater for a woefully inexperienced rotation set to include names like Josiah Gray, Cade Cavalli, Foster Griffin, Jake Irvin, Brad Lord, and Parker. Of those arms, only Irvin and Parker have pitched so much as one qualifying major league season, while Gray is the only other to have a 30-start campaign under his belt. It’s a group replete with injury concerns, consistency issues, and limited track records. The dependable Mikolas will boost the floor of what projects to be one of the worst starting rotations in the league.

Eric Lauer Loses Arbitration Case Against Blue Jays

By | at

Eric Lauer lost his arbitration case against the Blue Jays, according to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi and Ben Nicholson-Smith. He will make $4.4MM this season instead of the $5.75MM he was seeking.

Lauer’s case was particularly interesting. He earned $2.425MM from the Brewers in 2022, his first year of arbitration eligibility. Following a strong season (158 2/3 IP, 3.69 ERA, 4.07 SIERA), he more than doubled his salary, collecting $5.075MM in year two. Then, however, he struggled so badly in an injury-shortened 2023 (46 2/3 IP, 6.56 ERA, 5.31 SIERA) that the Brewers removed him from their roster at the end of the season, and the southpaw elected free agency.

Lauer did not pitch in the majors in 2024; he signed unfruitful minor league contracts with the Pirates and Astros before landing a deal with the KBO’s Kia Tigers. His late-season work in Korea earned him a minor league deal from the Blue Jays last offseason. On April 30, 2025, Lauer returned to the majors. Over the rest of the season, he was a key role-player for the eventual AL champions, pitching to a 3.18 ERA and a 3.88 SIERA in 104 2/3 innings as a hybrid starter/reliever. Unlike many players who return from pitching overseas, Lauer was still eligible for arbitration after 2025, and given his success, it was not surprising when Toronto tendered him a contract.

According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, the rules of the CBA stipulate that, “In tendering a contract to a player (or renewing the contract of a player not yet arbitration-eligible), a club’s salary offer may not be less than 80% of the player’s salary and performance bonuses the previous year or less than 70% of his salary and performance bonuses from two years earlier. The 80% requirement does not apply if a player won an arbitration award the previous year increasing his salary 50% or more.”

Technically, Lauer’s salary in 2025 was only $2.2MM (which was prorated to just under $1.8MM). However, his salary in his previous year of arbitration eligibility was $5.075MM. Of course, that $5.075MM figure represented more than a 50% increase over his year-one arbitration salary. So, either way, there wasn’t anything wrong with the Blue Jays’ $4.4 million offer – they won the case after all.

However, Lauer was presumably banking on the fact that it’s extremely rare for a player’s salary in his third year of arbitration eligibility to be lower than his salary in his second year of arbitration eligibility. What’s more, as Nicholson-Smith and The Athletic’s Mitch Bannon both recently pointed out, players who exit the arbitration system still typically earn raises when they return. Precedents are important in arbitration hearings, and, evidently, Lauer and his agents thought history would be on their side. In the end, the panel disagreed. The Blue Jays, who filed at $4.4MM – the exact figure predicted by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s model – won the case. This will save the team $1.35MM in payroll and another $1.215MM in luxury tax penalties.

Lauer is expected to fill a swingman role for Toronto once again in 2026. While he currently projects to open the season in the bullpen, Nicholson-Smith notes that he will be stretched out as a starter during spring training.

Mets Have Checked In On Kyle Tucker

By | at

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Mets have “checked in” on free agent outfielder Kyle Tucker. The four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner is MLBTR’s top free agent.

Much speculation has linked Tucker to the Mets this offseason, and it isn’t difficult to see why. According to RosterResource, Steve Cohen’s club ran payrolls of $346MM, $336MM, and $340MM in 2023, ’24, and ’25, respectively. Currently, their projected payroll for 2026 sits at just $294MM. That means president of baseball operations David Stearns should have at least $40 million left to spend. He’s already made some additions, namely, signing Jorge Polanco, Devin Williams, and Luke Weaver, and trading for Marcus Semien. However, considering all the players the Mets have lost or dealt away, including Pete Alonso, Edwin Díaz, Brandon Nimmo, and Jeff McNeil, and considering how they missed the playoffs in such heartbreaking fashion last September, Stearns has more work to do. Surely, he didn’t sign Juan Soto to a record-smashing contract last season just to sit on his hands a year later.

If Stearns wants to make a big splash, there’s no better way to do so than by signing the top free agent on the market. The Mets are reportedly hesitant to sign a starting pitcher to a long-term contract this winter. What’s more, Heyman notes that Tucker’s presumably high asking price is why Cody Bellinger remains their preferred outfield target. That said, it would be foolish to count the Mets of all teams out of the Tucker sweepstakes for financial reasons. They could give him the 11-year, $400MM contract MLBTR predicted at the beginning of the offseason ($36.4MM AAV), and their payroll would still be lower than it’s been in any of the past three seasons.

What’s more, the Mets have a clear opening for Tucker in their lineup after parting with Nimmo. Right now, RosterResource has Carson Benge penciled in as New York’s starting left fielder. Benge is a consensus top-100 prospect, and it’s apparent how highly the Mets value him. He is thought to be all but untouchable in trade talks this winter, and Stearns has previously suggested he’ll have an opportunity to make the big league roster out of spring training. Yet, Benge is only 22 and completely unproven at the MLB level. It’s hard to think that a team with World Series aspirations would let him get in the way of its signing a proven star like Tucker – especially since the Mets have already been connected to Bellinger. To that point, the Mets are thought to prefer to add a right-handed bat to their lineup, but their interest in the lefty-batting Bellinger suggests handedness won’t be a dealbreaker. Benge, for what it’s worth, also bats from the left-hand side. Besides, Tucker’s career numbers against southpaw pitching (133 wRC+, .842 OPS) are almost as impressive as his numbers with the platoon advantage (141 wRC+, .877 OPS). There’s no good reason why his left-handedness should get in the way of a deal.

Back in November, MLBTR’s Steve Adams listed the Mets as a “likely suitor” for Tucker’s services. Two weeks ago, nearly 20,000 MLBTR readers voted on where they thought Tucker would sign, and the Mets received the third-most support (15.23%), just ahead of the Yankees (10.09%) and trailing only the Blue Jays (40.22%) and Dodgers (15.55%). So, it didn’t come as any surprise on Thursday afternoon when Heyman confirmed that the Mets have indeed expressed at least some degree of interest. They join the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Orioles as teams with reported interest in the star outfielder, although Baltimore was linked to him before signing Alonso. Other teams that could be good fits include the Dodgers and Giants; Heyman notes that “all big-market teams” have checked in on Tucker, although the Yankees and Mets are the only ones he mentions by name.

Twins Acquire Eric Wagaman, DFA Ryan Fitzgerald

By | at

The Twins have acquired first baseman Eric Wagaman from the Marlins in exchange for minor league pitcher Kade Bragg, as confirmed by both teams this afternoon. Wagaman was designated for assignment earlier this week. To make room for Wagaman on their 40-man roster, the Twins DFA’d infielder Ryan Fitzgerald.

Wagaman, 28, spent several years in the Yankees’ minor league system before he was taken by the Angels in the minor league portion of the 2023 Rule 5 draft. He debuted for L.A. the following September, but he didn’t hit well enough to stave off a DFA at the end of the season. After electing free agency, he signed with the Marlins, and in 2025, he played his first full campaign in the bigs. Over 140 games, he slashed .250/.296/.378 for a .674 OPS and an 85 wRC+. He hit nine home runs, stole four bases on five attempts, and grounded into 11 double plays. On defense, Wagaman mostly played first base, though he also appeared in a handful of games in the corner outfield spots and stepped in at third base on a few occasions. Considering his well-below-average offense at a position where teams typically look for well-above-average offense, it was hardly surprising to see Wagaman DFA’d when the Marlins needed to make room on the roster for trade acquisition Esteury Ruiz. Evidently, the Twins must see a little more to like in his bat.

Bragg, 24, signed with the Twins in 2023 after they selected him in the 17th round of the draft. He made his professional debut in 2024 but landed on the injured list in late April and missed the rest of the season. Healthy again in 2025, the left-hander impressed in his first full season, rising from Single-A to High-A to Double-A. All told, he pitched to a 2.94 ERA and 3.73 FIP in 67 1/3 innings of relief, striking out 82 and giving up just six home runs. Walks were an issue, and clearly, the Twins don’t value Bragg all that highly. Neither do the prospect evaluators at sources like Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, or FanGraphs; he wasn’t ranked on any of their most recent Twins prospect lists. Still, based on his successful performance in his first full season, the Marlins’ development team has an interesting new project to work on.

Fitzgerald, 31, finally earned his call to the show in 2025. He started his career in independent ball, where he impressed the Red Sox enough to earn a minor league contract in 2018. Five years later, the Royals selected him in the minor league phase of the 2023 Rule 5 draft – the same draft that saw Wagaman join the Angels. However, Fitzgerald wasn’t able to make the majors with his new team, and he elected free agency after the 2024 campaign. He then latched on with Minnesota on a minor league contract, and finally, a month before his 31st birthday, he made his MLB debut. While his first stint with the Twins lasted less than a week, he earned another call-up in August following the team’s trade deadline sell-off and stuck around for the rest of the season. Altogether, he hit for an .837 OPS and a 119 wRC+ in 59 games at Triple-A and a .758 OPS and 110 wRC+ in 24 games in the majors. Unfortunately for Fitzgerald, his plus hitting and defensive versatility (he played all four infield positions) weren’t enough to keep him in Minnesota’s plans for 2026. At some point over the next five days, the Twins will either trade him or place him on waivers. If he were to clear waivers, the Twins could send him outright to the minor leagues and keep him in their organization.

Andy Kosco Passes Away

By | at

Ten-year MLB veteran Andy Kosco passed away earlier this month. He was 84 years old. Kosco played in 658 games for the Twins, Yankees, Dodgers, Brewers, Angels, Red Sox, and Reds from 1965-74. Primarily a corner outfielder, he appeared at all three outfield positions, as well as first and third base.

Born October 5, 1941 in Ohio, Kosco grew up a multi-sport star but ultimately chose baseball, signing his first professional contract with the Tigers in 1959. However, he did not make the majors until he joined the Twins, with whom he debuted at 23 years old in 1965.

Kosco’s best tool was his power. He hit double-digit home runs in three seasons, with a personal best of 19 for the Dodgers in 1969. All told, he racked up 73 home runs and 156 extra-base hits in his career, good for a .394 slugging percentage and .158 isolated power. His isolated power was 29% better than the league average during the years in which he played. In the field, Kosco was a fine defender, finishing with a .980 fielding percentage and a +6 total zone rating as an outfielder. He recorded 29 outfield assists in his career, including 10 with the Yankees in 1968, which tied him for eighth-most in the American League.

Kosco played his last professional season for the Toledo Mud Hens, then the Triple-A affiliate of the Phillies, in 1975. He retired after the 1975 season. We at MLB Trade Rumors extend our sincerest condolences to Kosco’s family, friends, and fans.

Mitch White, Guillermo Heredia Re-Sign With KBO’s SSG Landers

By | at

The SSG Landers have re-signed a pair of former MLB players for the 2026 KBO season: right-hander Mitch White and outfielder Guillermo Heredia. White joined the Landers last year, while Heredia has been on the team since the 2023 campaign. Dan Kurtz of MyKBO relayed the news in English earlier today. White is represented by Apex Baseball, while Heredia is represented by PRIME.

White, 31, appeared in 71 games over five MLB seasons, pitching for the Dodgers, Blue Jays, Giants, and Brewers. While he bounced between the bullpen and the rotation in MLB and Triple-A, he took on a full-time starting role in his first KBO season. Averaging 5 2/3 innings per start, he pitched to a 2.87 ERA and 3.44 FIP, striking out 24.4% of batters he faced and walking just 7.8%. For context, the league-average ERA in the KBO this past season was 4.31, while the league-average strikeout and walk rates were 19.7% and 9.1%, respectively. White also induced groundballs on 54% of balls in plays and limited his opponents to only nine home runs on the season.

Heredia, soon to be 35, has been one of the KBO’s premier contact hitters over the past three years. He led the league in batting average in 2024 and ’25 (min. 400 PA) and ranked fifth in ’23. While he isn’t known for his power, he’s a safe bet for double-digit home runs, and his overall offensive output (per wRC+) has been at least 34% better than league average in all three of his seasons with the Landers. Prior to his KBO career, the veteran outfielder played in seven MLB seasons, bouncing between the Mariners, Rays, Pirates, Mets, and Braves.

White and Heredia join new signings Drew VerHagen and Shota Takeda as the four foreign players on the Landers’ 2026 roster. VerHagen, a veteran of both MLB and NPB, signed with the team earlier this month, essentially replacing fellow right-hander Drew Anderson. Himself a former MLB and NPB pitcher, Anderson parlayed an excellent 2025 campaign with the Landers into a one-year, $7MM guarantee from the Detroit Tigers. Takeda, another right-handed pitcher, spent the first 14 years of his professional career with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks organization, though Tommy John surgery kept him from pitching for the NPB club in 2024 or ’25.

The Opener: Red Sox, Pending Free Agent Contracts, Mets

By | at

Here are three things MLBTR will be watching for around the sport today:

1. What’s next for the Red Sox?

The Red Sox have already made some of the biggest moves of the offseason, acquiring starting pitcher Sonny Gray and first baseman Willson Contreras in two separate trades with the Cardinals. However, they are the only AL team that has yet to sign a free agent to a major league contract, and there is no reason to think chief baseball officer Craig Breslow is done making moves. According to Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox are still in the market for many of the top available infielders, namely free agents Bo Bichette and Alex Bregman and trade candidates Ketel Marte, Isaac Paredes, and Brendan Donovan. Speier previously linked the Red Sox to Eugenio Suárez as well. Boston has also been connected to some notable free agent relievers, including Seranthony Domínguez, Evan Phillips, and Chris Martin (before he re-signed with the Rangers).

On top of that, it remains more than possible that Breslow could trade from his major league roster. This team has a surplus of young, controllable outfielders, with Jarren Duran’s name the one that has come up the most in trade rumors. What’s more, Triston Casas and Masataka Yoshida have less of a path to playing time now that Contreras is in the fold. Breslow recently told reporters (including Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com) that roster logjams like this “tend to work out,” but one such way these things can work themselves out is through a trade or two.

2. Free agent contracts to be finalized:

Ryan O’Hearn and the Pirates came to terms on the largest free agent contract for a position player in the franchise’s history last week: a two-year, $29MM guarantee. However, the team has not formalized the signing, which means O’Hearn isn’t technically a Pirate just yet. Now that Christmas has passed, fans can expect an announcement from the Pirates any day, although the club will have to free up a space on its 40-man roster before making things official with O’Hearn.

In addition to O’Hearn, Paul Blackburn and Amed Rosario are also waiting for their new contracts to be announced. Both players agreed to re-up with the Yankees this winter on one-year deals; Rosario will make $2.5MM in 2026, while Blackburn’s deal is a $2MM guarantee. Unlike the Pirates, the Yankees have several open spaces on their 40-man roster. They should also be quite familiar with Blackburn and Rosario’s medicals, considering both players finished the 2025 season in the Bronx, so it’s not entirely clear what’s holding up the formal announcement of either signing.

3. Mets trade coming?

Francys Romero of Beisbol FR recently wrote about top international prospect Wandy Asigen, who originally had a deal in place with the Yankees but will now sign a contract worth approximately $3.8MM with the Mets instead. Romero suggests that the Mets could try to trade for more international bonus pool space before the next signing period opens, to facilitate their inking of the 16-year-old shortstop. International bonus pool money can be traded in increments of $250,000, and the Mets’ initial pool for the upcoming signing period was set at $5.44MM as of this past April (per Baseball America). The 2026 international signing period will begin on January 15. So, if the Mets are planning to make a trade to increase their bonus pool, it’s likely going to come together at some point in the next two weeks.

Harold Castro Signs With KBO’s Kia Tigers

By | at

The Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization have confirmed the four foreign players who will join their team for the 2026 season (h/t to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO). The foursome includes right-hander James Naile, who is entering his third year with the Tigers and whose signing was announced last month; right-hander Adam Oller, who re-signed for a second year with the club; infielder Jarryd Dale, a former Padres prospect and Australian Baseball League player who spent 2025 with NPB’s Orix Buffaloes; and utility player Harold Castro, a six-year MLB veteran who is heading overseas for the first time in his career.

Castro, a client of the MAS+ Agency, spent more than a decade in the Detroit Tigers organization. He signed in 2010 as an international free agent out of Venezuela, and eight years later, he made his big league debut at Comerica Park. Over parts of five seasons with MLB’s Tigers, he played in 351 games, appearing at every position except catcher. His .286 batting average was impressive, and his defensive versatility was valuable, but that was about all he contributed. He didn’t hit for power, he rarely walked, and his defense graded out poorly (albeit in small samples) wherever he played. 

Detroit non-tendered Castro after the 2022 season, and he signed a minor league deal with the Rockies. The utility man cracked Colorado’s roster out of camp and stuck around all season, though he struggled to hit even at Coors Field. Finishing with a .589 OPS and 45 wRC+, Castro produced a -1.5 FanGraphs WAR, third-last among all MLB players in 2023.

The Rockies cut Castro soon after the season ended, and he would eventually sign with the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League. He hit well with the Toros in 2024 and even better for Leones del Caracas of the Venezuelan Winter League the following offseason, enough so that he landed a minor league offer from the Royals for the 2025 campaign. Despite Castro’s best efforts at Triple-A  – 21 home runs, a .307 batting average, and a 129 wRC+ in 99 contests – he never got the call to the majors. Yet, he clearly impressed the Kia Tigers, who signed the 32-year-old to a contract worth $1MM USD for 2026. He replaces Patrick Wisdom on their roster, who was no slouch in his first KBO season, hitting 35 home runs with a 126 wRC+.

Yankees, Royals Interested In Austin Hays

By | at

The New York Post’s Jon Heyman reports this morning that the Royals “remain interested” in signing Austin Hays, despite having recently acquired outfielders Isaac Collins and Lane Thomas. This lines up with previous reporting suggesting that president of baseball operations J.J. Picollo is still searching for upgrades after his outfielders finished last in MLB in runs scored, RBI, on-base percentage, OPS, wRC+, and FanGraphs WAR in 2025. Heyman first connected Hays and the Royals earlier this month.

Heyman also notes that the Yankees have “checked in” on Hays, although they might only be interested in adding him if they can’t re-sign Cody Bellinger, whom the New York Post reporter describes as their top target. In contrast to the Royals, the Yankees led the majors in most offensive categories from the outfield this past year, including runs scored, home runs, RBI, all three triple-slash metrics, wRC+, and fWAR. Bellinger was a key contributor to that effort, and it’s no surprise the Bronx Bombers would love to team him up with Aaron Judge and Trent Grisham once again. Their interest in retaining Bellinger is hardly breaking news.

This is, however, the first time the Yankees have been linked to Hays. Heyman reported a month ago that Kyle Tucker could be their “backup plan” if they missed out on Bellinger, and needless to say, Hays would not be the same kind of outfield upgrade. In fact, it’s less clear if Hays would be an upgrade at all. The young switch-hitter Jasson Domínguez certainly has a higher ceiling, while Amed Rosario, though limited in his outfield experience, is already on the roster to fill a righty-batting utility role. Whether the Yankees’ reported interest in Hays suggests a lack of faith in Domínguez to become an everyday player, a lack of faith in Rosario to play the outfield, or simply GM Brian Cashman doing his due diligence remains to be seen.

Yesterday, Heyman reported that the Mets’ front office had engaged in conversations about signing Hays. Considering the Mets lost several outfielders to free agency this winter and traded away two more, they could certainly find playing time for the veteran in 2026. Of course, he might be more of a plan B in Queens as well, with the Mets having also expressed interest in signing Bellinger and trading for White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr.

Hays, 30, is coming off a solid season for Cincinnati. In 103 games and 416 PA, he slashed .266/.315/.453 with 15 home runs and a 105 wRC+. He also went 7-for-7 on the bases while playing capably in left field. As usual, he was particularly effective against left-handed pitching (.949 OPS, 155 wRC+). While Hays is unlikely to be an everyday player, at least not on a contending team, he has proven he can be a valuable role player over his eight MLB seasons with the Orioles, Phillies, and Reds.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top