Mark Polishuk | MLB Trade Rumors

Twins Promote Taj Bradley, Designate Erasmo Ramirez

By Mark Polishuk | August 24, 2025 at 8:36am CDT

The Twins announced that right-hander Taj Bradley has been called up from Triple-A St. Paul, and will start today’s game against the White Sox. In the corresponding roster move, Minnesota designated right-hander Erasmo Ramirez for assignment.

Though many of the Twins’ trade deadline moves were about cutting salary or moving impending free agents, the one-for-one deal that sent Griffin Jax to the Rays for Bradley was more of a pure baseball move. Tampa Bay wanted to upgrade its bullpen with a controllable reliever, and Bradley (once a highly-touted pitching prospect) has yet to much deliver on that promise over three Major League seasons. This made Bradley expendable in the Rays’ eyes, and the Twins jumped in to land a 24-year-old starter that may well benefit from a change of scenery.

Bradley has a 4.70 ERA over 354 career innings in the Show, along with an 8.6% walk rate and a 25% strikeout rate. That latter number is a concern since Bradley’s K% this season is only 20.2% over 111 1/3 innings, which contributed to his 4.61 ERA. Home runs have been an issue for Bradley during his brief career, and while he has improved on that front overall in 2025, the Rays’ temporary move to Steinbrenner Field didn’t help — Bradley had a 5.43 ERA and nine homers allowed in 56 1/3 innings at the Stein, as opposed a much more palatable 3.76 ERA and four homers allowed in 55 away innings.

Minnesota’s plan with both Bradley and fellow deadline acquisition Mick Abel was to start both pitchers in Triple-A for tune-up purposes, rather than immediately insert them into the big league rotation. In Abel’s case, he looked really sharp in St. Paul but then struggled in his Twins debut yesterday, allowing six runs in a three-inning start against Chicago. Bradley has a 7.53 ERA in 14 1/3 innings for St. Paul, as he pitched really well in his first two outings before being hit hard in his latter two starts. With the Twins out of the playoff race, Bradley and Abel figure to get regular starts the rest of the way as the team evaluates them as rotation pieces for 2026 and beyond.

Ramirez signed a minor league deal with Minnesota last winter, but shoulder problems kept him from any game action until June 20, as part of a rehab assignment with the Twins’ rookie ball affiliate. He went on to post a 6.55 ERA in 11 Triple-A innings before his contract was selected to the Twins’ active roster on August 1, as Minnesota had tons of roster spots to fill in the wake of its deadline fire sale.

This return to the Show made it seven different teams over 14 Major League seasons for Ramirez, who posted an impressive 2.45 ERA in 11 innings and nine appearances with the Twins. Within the small sample size, Ramirez delivered his usual strong walk rate, though an 11.9% strikeout rate was low even by the righty’s standards of not missing many bats, and a .242 BABIP helped Ramirez limit the damage.

Bottom-line ERA notwithstanding, it always seemed like Ramirez was a spare part on the Twins’ pitching staff, and he’ll now return to DFA limbo. Another team might consider claiming Ramirez if they need to cover some innings in the bullpen, but assuming he clears waivers, Ramirez can elect free agency rather than accept an outright assignment to Triple-A. The 35-year-old might well choose to move on in search of another late-season deal elsewhere, or play out the string in the Twins organization.

Zack Wheeler Recommended For Thoracic Outlet Syndrome Surgery

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 10:59pm CDT

Phillies ace Zack Wheeler underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from his near his throwing shoulder earlier this week, but the right-hander is now facing another serious health setback. As per a team media release today, Wheeler has been “diagnosed with venous thoracic outlet syndrome and the recommendation is to undergo thoracic outlet decompression surgery in the coming weeks.” This naturally ends Wheeler’s 2025 season, and he’ll need roughly 6-8 months to recover from the surgery, according to the Phillies’ projected timeline.

The brutal news adds to a tumultuous week for Wheeler, as it was just seven days ago that he was placed on the 15-day IL due to the blood clot. The successful surgery on Monday at least alleviated the most serious health concerns and put the focus back on when Wheeler might be able to return to pitching, even if getting back to the mound in 2025 seemed unlikely. Details were kept relatively scarce about Wheeler’s status, yet speculation about thoracic outlet syndrome was raised just due to the co-relation between blood clots and the venous version of TOS.

Merrill Kelly is the best-known example of a pitcher who underwent a venous TOS procedure, and Kelly is also the best-case scenario for what Wheeler can hope to achieve in the aftermath of his upcoming surgery. Kelly underwent his surgery in September 2020, was ready to go for the start of the 2021 season, and essentially didn’t miss a beat in the aftermath as the right-hander continued to post solid numbers for the Diamondbacks and Rangers from 2021-25.

This return to form was helped by the fact that a venous or vascular TOS surgery (related to blood clots) is the slightly less serious version of thoracic outlet syndrome, at least in regards to pitching. Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post wrote a piece a little over two years ago detailing some differences between venous TOS and neurogenic TOS — the latter is the nerve-related version that essentially ended Stephen Strasburg’s career.

“If you had to pick, you’re not really sure which one you’d rather have [between venous and neurogenic TOS],” Kelly told Dougherty. “The blood clot was not fun. They are life-threatening. But for pitchers, TOS surgery to address a blood clot is much more straightforward than nerve issues. The diagnosis is more straightforward. The recovery is more straightforward. I was lucky in that way.”

This provides a bit of a silver lining to Wheeler’s situation, though naturally every person’s body responds to surgery in different ways. Only time will tell if Wheeler’s recovery can be as thorough as Kelly’s, or if Wheeler’s rehab period will extend into the 2026 season.

Losing Wheeler for 2025, of course, is bad enough for a Phillies team that has designs on winning the World Series. Wheeler was in the midst of another excellent season, posting a 2.71 ERA and elite secondary metrics across the board over 24 starts and 149 2/3 innings. Even in his age-35 season, the righty was continuing to add to a resume that will garner some attention from Cooperstown voters when he eventually retires. Since the start of the 2018 season, Wheeler leads all pitchers in fWAR (37.5) and has a 3.11 ERA over 1356 2/3 innings with the Mets and Phillies.

Wheeler has been the anchor of Philadelphia’s rotation since signing a five-year, $118MM free agent deal prior to the 2020 season, and then a three-year, $126MM extension for 2025-27 that was inked in March 2024. While losing Wheeler is a major blow, the Phils at least have a deeper rotation than most, and can still roll out Cristopher Sanchez, Ranger Suarez, Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola, and Taijuan Walker as the starting five. There’s extra pressure on the staff now that Wheeler is unavailable, and his sterling 2.18 career postseason ERA will be missed as the Phils try to capture that elusive championship ring.

Looking ahead to 2026, Suarez is a free agent this winter but the other four pitchers will return, plus top prospect Andrew Painter is expected to be ready for his first full Major League season. This gives the Phillies some cover if Wheeler’s recovery does stretch beyond Opening Day, yet adding a depth arm might now be part of Philadelphia’s offseason plans based on Wheeler’s progress.

Astros Designate Shawn Dubin For Assignment

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 2:44pm CDT

The Astros have designated right-hander Shawn Dubin for assignment, according to Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. Righty AJ Blubaugh has been called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move (KPRC 2’s Ari Alexander reported earlier today that Blubaugh was on his way to the Astros’ active roster).

Dubin is out of minor league options, so Houston had to go the DFA route in order to remove him from its active roster. Dubin doesn’t have the service time or the past outright necessary to reject an outright assignment to Triple-A, so chances are he’ll just remain in the Astros’ farm system if he clears waivers. A pitching-needy team might consider claiming Dubin off the waiver wire, though is out-of-options status will probably scare off a few clubs, plus his case for sticking on a big league roster isn’t helped by his brutal month of August.

Dubin had a 1.33 ERA over his first 20 1/3 innings of 2025, even if that standout ERA wasn’t quite supported by his secondary metrics. A forearm strain sent him to the 15-day injured list near the end of June, however, and since returning on August 12, Dubin simply hasn’t looked the same. He has been torched for 13 earned runs over five appearances and 5 1/3 innings since being activated from the IL, inflating his ERA up to 5.61 over 25 2/3 total frames.

A bout of shoulder inflammation during Spring Training already put Dubin on the IL to begin the season, and he then didn’t make his 2025 debut until May 11 since an ankle injury set back his recovery. Things seemed fine once he finally got onto the Astros’ mound, yet whether Dubin is just rusty or is still feeling some after-effects from his forearm issue, his recent performance has been too rough for Houston to ignore.

Selected in the 13th round of the 2018 draft, Dubin has spent his entire career in Houston’s organization, debuting in the Show with seven innings during the 2023 season. He then had a 4.17 ERA over 45 1/3 innings in 2024, getting a couple of spot starts but primarily working out of the bullpen. Dubin battled control problems last year but while his walk rate is vastly improved in 2025, his strikeout rate has dropped (from 23.7% to 18.9%).

The Astros’ bullpen has been strong for most of 2025, but the relief corps has hit some major roadblocks beyond just Dubin’s struggles. Star closer Josh Hader will miss at least the rest of the regular season due to a capsule sprain, and southpaw Bennett Sousa (already on the 15-day IL) is now also a question mark, as he’ll be shut down for the next two weeks while dealing with a flexor/pronator strain. Blubaugh is a rookie who has only nine MLB innings on his resume, but he’ll at least be a short-term fresh arm to act as a long man in the pen.

Jon Gray Non-Committal About Playing Beyond 2025

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 12:49pm CDT

Jon Gray’s season was all but officially ended last week by a diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome, and a subsequent placement on the Rangers’ 15-day injured list. TOS surgery would keep Gray sidelined for a big chunk of the 2026 season and perhaps the entirety of next year, and Gray would be 35 on Opening Day 2027. The idea of hanging up his glove entirely has apparently at least crossed Gray’s mind, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes that Gray “responded mostly with a shrug” when asked by reporters Friday if he was going to keep playing beyond this season.

When asked about pitching again in 2025, Gray said “I don’t have any idea about the future. I guess there is always hope. But it’s hard to have hope with everything that’s happened. It’s just become a really frustrating pattern.” That said, Gray noted that he had some interest in looking to “go out with a good feeling” rather than be somewhat forced out of baseball due to injury.

Given that a TOS surgery hasn’t even been officially planned yet, it is probably too soon to be reading too much into Gray’s immediate reaction, as his emotions are (understandably) raw about this latest major setback to his career. There is no rush for him to make any big decision about his playing career, and naturally Gray might want to take his time in considering whether or not to walk away from the game entirely.

This major injury adds another layer, however, to what was already looking like a crossroads of an offseason for the right-hander. Gray is in the final season of his four-year, $56MM contract, and he has pitched only 14 innings this season due to a broken wrist suffered during Spring Training, and then this most recent IL placement. The Rangers have used Gray out of the bullpen rather than as a starter, and he has struggled to a 7.71 ERA over his six appearances.

The sample size is small enough that it’s hard to make any clear observations from Gray’s 2025 performance, and five homers allowed over his 14 innings obviously skewed his numbers to some extent. It still clearly wasn’t the type of platform year Gray was hoping for heading into free agency, and if healthy, he would’ve likely been looking at a one-year guarantee from a team hoping he could bounce back. The TOS surgery could make a two-year deal a possibility, with a minimal salary in the first year and a larger commitment for 2027 when Gray is presumably healthy, yet the overall size of that contract doesn’t figure to be too pricey considering the shaky track record of pitchers returning in good form after thoracic outlet syndrome.

Injuries have been a frequent concern for Gray, as a variety of issues (foot problems, an MCL strain, an oblique strain, blisters, shoulder inflammation, a forearm strain, multiple groin strains in 2024, and his fractured wrist) have led to IL stints over the course of his 11 Major League seasons. Despite these health woes and the fact that he spent his first seven seasons pitching in the thin air with the Rockies, Gray has a respectable 4.49 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate, and 7.8% walk rate over 1230 2/3 career innings.

Chosen third overall by Colorado in the 2013 draft, Gray didn’t quite reach the star level associated with such lofty draft status, but he has been a solid rotation member over his career with some flashes of being a frontline starter. If this is indeed it for Gray, he can look back with pride on a long career that included a World Series ring with Texas in 2023. (Gray contributed to that title with a 1.59 ERA over 5 2/3 relief innings during the Rangers’ postseason run.)

Grant suggested two other factors that might impact any of Gray’s retirement plans. Gray has over 10 years of MLB service time — officially crossing that threshold earlier this season — and therefore is already qualified for a full pension. There is also the widespread expectation that MLB will be facing a work stoppage when the collective bargaining agreement expires after the 2026 season, so if Gray does indeed miss next year while rehabbing, a return to the field could be even further delayed by a lockout.

Twins Designate Jose Urena For Assignment

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 10:51am CDT

10:51AM: Urena’s DFA and Abel’s call-up were both officially announced by the Twins.

7:09AM: The Twins designated right-hander Jose Urena for assignment yesterday, according to The Athletic’s Dan Hayes. Right-hander Mick Abel will be called up today in the corresponding move, and Abel will get the start in today’s game against the White Sox.

Urena was Thursday’s starter, and he was tagged for six earned runs over five innings in the Twins’ 8-3 loss to the Athletics. This boosted Urena’s ERA to 4.58 over 17 2/3 innings since Minnesota selected his contract on August 1, as one of many roster moves the Twins made the day after their major selloff at the trade deadline. Urena started three of his four appearances in a Twins uniform, and took a 2.13 ERA into Friday’s action, though neither his 12.8% strikeout rate or his 10.3% walk rate were anything impressive.

It was almost exactly two months ago that Urena signed a minor league contract with Minnesota, continuing a nomadic season that has seen the veteran log big league innings for four different teams. Urena has a 5.00 ERA over 36 combined innings with the Mets, Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Twins, with a 12.5% strikeout rate and 8.1BB%.

In all three of his previous stops, Urena was designated for assignment, outrighted off the 40-man roster, and he then elected free agency rather than accept that outright assignment to Triple-A. With more than eight full years of MLB service time, Urena has more than enough experience to allow him to turn down outright assignments in favor of return trips to the open market.

It seems probable that he’ll elect free agency again here in the likely event that he clears waivers, though Urena might prefer some stability after bouncing around the league in 2025, and his options are more limited given the lack of time remaining in the regular season. Another team in search of innings could also potentially just claim Urena off the waiver wire and insert him into their bullpen as a swingman, or into the rotation.

Abel made his Major League debut earlier this season in the form of six starts and 25 innings with the Phillies, posting a 5.04 ERA in his first taste of action against big league hitters. In perhaps the largest of Minnesota’s many deadline moves, Abel and Eduardo Tait were acquired from Philadelphia in exchange for Jhoan Duran, as the Twins opted to part ways with the closer in exchange for a top catching prospect in Tait and a big league-ready starter in Abel who is himself a former top-100 prospect.

Now in line to make his official Twins debut today, Abel has already shone in the minors, with a 1.76 ERA over three starts and 15 1/3 innings for Triple-A St. Paul. Minnesota president of baseball operations Derek Falvey told Hayes and other reporters earlier this month that the Twins wanted to deploy both Abel and fellow deadline pickup Taj Bradley at Triple-A to begin their tenure with the team, since “sometimes you need to get your legs under you in a new organization before you take that next step.” Bradley also figures to be called up relatively soon, with Hayes speculating that Bradley might also be promoted to start Sunday’s game in Chicago.

AL Central Notes: Tigers, Ragans, Lee

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 10:33am CDT

Some of baseball’s top prospects have made their MLB debuts within the last week, but don’t expect any of the Tigers’ top minor leaguers to be appearing in 2025. In an interview with MLB Network this past week (hat tip to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press), Tigers GM Jon Greenberg said a call-up of shortstop prospect Kevin McGonigle is likely not “on the radar right now,” and Greenberg also downplayed the possibility of Max Clark or Josue Briceno arriving in the majors.

“They’ve only been in Double-A for a month. It’s been fewer than 30 games,” the GM said. “Really excited with what Kevin has done, really excited with what Max has done, and some of the other guys in our system. But right now, the focus is on their development and getting the reps to continue to take those steps forward.”

MLB Pipeline and Baseball America each rank McGonigle as the second-best prospect in baseball, Clark ninth, and Briceno also in a prominent top-100 spot (Pipeline has him 32nd, BA 54th). As Greenberg noted, none of the group has much experience even at the Double-A level, though McGonigle and Clark have both been on fire at the plate since their call-up. While it seems like a further promotion to Triple-A could be possible before the 2025 season is through, any of these top prospects would very likely have to further excel in Toledo, and then the Tigers would have to feel confident enough to install any of these rookies right into the extra pressure of a postseason push. There isn’t much urgency for Detroit to make such an aggressive prospect promotion, as the Tigers have a 10.5-game division lead and look to be cruising towards the AL Central crown.

Mariners Sign Luke Jackson To Minors Contract

By Mark Polishuk | August 23, 2025 at 8:29am CDT

The Mariners signed Luke Jackson to a minor league deal on Thursday, as per the right-hander’s MLB.com profile page. Jackson (who turns 34 tomorrow) made his debut with Triple-A Tacoma last night, allowing two runs in an inning of relief work.

The Rangers signed Jackson to a one-year, $1.5MM free agent deal back in February, plus he added another $450K to his salary by reaching innings-based incentives thresholds. Jackson was designated for assignment and then released in late July, then quickly joined the Tigers on another guaranteed deal. This tenure in Motown lasted just three appearances and 4 1/3 innings before Jackson was DFA’ed again, and he elected to become a free agent rather than accept an outright assignment to the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate.

Should the Mariners call Jackson up to the active roster, Seattle will owe him just a prorated minimum salary, which will be subtracted from what remains of his original salary. With Texas still responsible for the bulk of Jackson’s owed money, there’s no risk for the M’s in adding a veteran depth arm to the ranks.

As one might expect from the three-team tour, it hasn’t been a terribly productive year for Jackson on the mound. Jackson has a 4.54 ERA over 39 2/3 combined innings with Texas and Detroit, with almost as many walks (24) as strikeouts (28). The lack of results have come despite Jackson’s usual success at keeping the ball on the ground, as he has a 52.5% grounder rate and a favorable .267 BABIP.

It has now been more two years since Jackson’ last productive MLB season, as he also had a 5.09 ERA across 53 innings with the Giants and Braves in 2024. While walks have always been an issue for Jackson, he posted very strong numbers in both the 2021 and 2023 seasons, with the 2022 campaign a writeoff due to a Tommy John surgery. If he can recapture any of his old form, Jackson could bring some postseason experience to a Mariners team that has hopes of making some noise in October.

Angels Outright Connor Brogdon

By Mark Polishuk | August 19, 2025 at 7:16pm CDT

August 19: Brogdon cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake, according to the MLB.com transaction log. It’s not clear if he’ll accept the assignment or test free agency.

August 17: The Angels announced this afternoon that they’ve designated right-hander Connor Brogdon for assignment. Righty Jose Fermin was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding roster move.

Los Angeles signed Brogdon to an offseason minors deal that was selected to the active roster in early May, and the reliever has posted a 5.30 ERA, 10.1% walk rate, and 20.9% strikeout rate across 37 1/3 bullpen innings. That low strikeout rate came despite some solid chase and whiff rates, and Brogdon recaptured his past fastball velocity by averaging 95.5mph on his heater. Unfortunately, opposing batters made lots of hard and heavy contact against Brogdon, as he allowed seven home runs during his 37 1/3 frames.

Since Brogdon is out of minor league options, the Angels had to designate him for assignment to remove him from the active roster. It is possible another team in need of bullpen help could make a claim given how reinforcements are harder to find post-trade deadline, but Brogdon’s lack of production might not entice many teams. Since he has been outrighted before in his career, Brogdon can choose free agency if he clears waivers and is outrighted off the Angels’ 40-man roster.

Considering how Brogdon was plagued by plantar fasciitis in 2024, getting back to good health at least represents one silver lining to his 2025 season. The right-hander posted good numbers in Philadelphia’s bullpen in 2021-22 before running into some struggles in 2023, and he pitched in only four Major League games last year (three with the Phillies, one with the Dodgers).

Marlins Promote Max Acosta, Place Graham Pauley On Injured List

By Mark Polishuk | August 18, 2025 at 1:45pm CDT

Aug. 18: The Marlins announced that Acosta has indeed been recalled for his MLB debut. Pauley will head to the 10-day injured list, as the side discomfort that kept him out of yesterday’s game was due to what’s now been diagnosed as a strained oblique.

Aug. 17: The Marlins are calling up middle infield prospect Max Acosta from Triple-A Jacksonville, El Extra Base’s Daniel Alvarez-Montes reports. Only a 26-man roster will need to be made prior to tomorrow’s game between the Cardinals and Marlins, since the 22-year-old Acosta is already on Miami’s 40-man roster.

Acosta will be making his MLB debut whenever he makes his first appearance with the Fish. Playing almost exclusively as the everyday shortstop in Jacksonville, Acosta has hit .232/.319/.376 over 430 plate appearances in his first taste of Triple-A ball, while stealing 28 bases in 35 attempts. It took him some time to adjust to the higher level, as Acosta’s season is split between a .215/.316/.269 slash line over his first 215 plate appearances, and a much improved .247/.321/479 slash line in his last 215 PA.

This power boost over the last two and a half months provides some answer to evaluators’ doubts about his ability to hit at the big league level, though it runs counter to MLB Pipeline’s scouting report, which felt Acosta’s ability to hit for average could be his offensive calling card rather than his modest power. His speed is fairly average but he is an effective base stealer, and Acosta provides at least average defense at shortstop and second base (the other position he has played during his pro career). Pipeline ranks Acosta as the 25th-best prospect in Miami’s farm system, while Baseball America has the infielder 28th.

An international signing for the Rangers in 2019, Acosta was added to Texas’ 40-man roster for the first time last November in advance of the Rule 5 draft. The Rangers then dealt Acosta and two other prospects to the Marlins in December in the trade that brought Jake Burger to Arlington.

Otto Lopez has been struggling badly at the plate since the start of July, and while Lopez remains an excellent defensive shortstop, the Marlins might want to give him a bit more time in the outfield or at third base while seeing what they have in Acosta. MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola reports that Graham Pauley didn’t play today due to side tightness, so if Pauley needs to go on the injured list, that opens up third base for Lopez to share time with Eric Wagaman.

Red Sox Finalizing Deal With Nathaniel Lowe

By Mark Polishuk | August 17, 2025 at 11:44pm CDT

The Red Sox and first baseman Nathaniel Lowe are in the final stages of a contract, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported earlier that Lowe and the Sox were in discussions and were “working on getting it done.” Lowe is represented by SportsMeter.

The signing comes at little surprise, as reports linking the Sox to Lowe have been swirling since May, soon after Triston Casas was lost to what is likely to be a season-ending knee surgery. Boston continued to show interest in Lowe prior to the trade deadline but no deal was reached with the Nationals. After the Nats designated Lowe for assignment and placed him on waivers yesterday, Cotillo reported that the Sox were likely to make a play for the former Gold Glover, so it would appear that Lowe is now officially a free agent after clearing waivers.

Casas’ injury sparked quite a chain reaction in Boston’s season, as Rafael Devers’ subsequent refusal to play first base was one of the factors that led to Devers being traded to the Giants in June. While the Sox looked around the market at Lowe and other trade options, the fill-in platoon of Abraham Toro and Romy Gonzalez performed respectably well, with Gonzalez in particular crushing left-handed pitching. Since Lowe is a left-handed hitter, it stands to reason that Gonzalez will still get his share of at-bats when a southpaw is on the mound, and Toro could be the odd man out of the playing time equation.

The question now facing the Sox is what version of Lowe are they getting — the solid veteran who was a fixture as the Rangers’ first baseman from 2021-24, or the much-less productive Lowe who hit only .216/.292/.373 over 490 plate appearances with Washington. These underwhelming numbers included a decent but uninspiring .235/.312/.421 slash line in 337 PA against right-handed pitching.

Even those splits represent an upgrade over Toro, plus there is more potential upside if the change of scenery returns Lowe to his past Rangers form. The Red Sox are one of baseball’s better-hitting teams overall, though the club is more productive against left-handed pitching. Boston’s collective 102 wRC+ against right-handers is tied for 15th among the 30 teams.

There is no financial risk for the Red Sox in adding Lowe since they’ll only be owing him the prorated portion of the MLB minimum salary. That total will be subtracted from the roughly $2.33MM remaining on Lowe’s $10.3MM salary for the 2025 season, with the Nationals covering the remainder. Lowe also has one final year of arbitration control remaining, but unless he goes on an absolute tear in Boston over the remainder of the season, the Sox are likely to non-tender him this winter rather than give him a raise on that $10.3MM figure.

It is safe to assume that the Red Sox probably just view Lowe as a stopgap for 2025, with Casas on the horizon for a return in 2026 and perhaps more of Boston’s up-and-coming prospects (i.e. Kristian Campbell, Jhostynxon Garcia) perhaps being viewed as first base candidates down the road. Signing Lowe addresses one of the few weak links on a roster that shares the top AL wild card slot with the Mariners, and sits five games back of the Blue Jays for first place in the AL East.

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