The Opener: Free Agent Power Rankings, Griffin, Fitzgerald
Here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye out for headed into the weekend:
1. MLBTR’s Free Agent Power Rankings:
The 2026 season is only just getting underway, but we at MLB Trade Rumors are always preparing for the next offseason. Much of the talk surrounding this coming winter is focused on the impending lockout, but just like any other year there will be a class of talented players reaching the open market. With the season still in its early stages, we’re taking the opportunity to take a temperature check of this year’s class with the first edition of our Free Agent Power Rankings. Some of those choices were obvious — spoiler: Tarik Skubal made the cut! — but there’s plenty of room for change in the pecking order as the season progresses, especially on the hitting side of things. MLBTR readers can look forward to the March/April installment of our Free Agent Power Rankings going live later today.
2. Griffin to make his debut:
While the sides are still deep in extension talks, the Pirates are calling up No. 1 overall prospect Konnor Griffin to the majors today. Griffin, 19, is now poised to debut three weeks shy of his 20th birthday after posting a .749 OPS in Spring Training and following that up with a 7-for-16 showing at Triple-A with three doubles and three steals. It remains to be seen if Griffin will hit the ground running in the majors or if he’ll need some time to adjust to the highest level, but fans in Pittsburgh are ecstatic to get to watch a potential cornerstone player on a daily basis either way. Griffin’s first assignment will come against the Orioles and right-hander Kyle Bradish at 4:12pm local time in Pittsburgh.
3. Fitzgerald on the move?
Giants utilityman Tyler Fitzgerald remains in DFA limbo after being designated for assignment earlier this week. He’s coming off a tough year in 2025 where he struggled to hit at the big league level, but his speed, versatility and strong 2024 season could still make him an interesting pickup for a club with a less crowded bench mix than the Giants. San Francisco will try to find a trade before placing Fitzgerald on waivers, and if a swap is to come together it’ll need to happen in the near future. Fitzgerald was designated on Monday, and at the five-day mark he’ll need to be placed on waivers so that 48-hour process could conclude within the maximum one-week window for DFA resolution. It’s unlikely the Giants would find a huge return for a player who’s been designated for assignment, but a swap for a low-level prospect or even just a cash deal is entirely feasible. Will the club find a deal to its liking, or will Fitzgerald simply hit waivers?
The Opener: Winn, Griffin, White Sox
Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball throughout the day:
1. Winn OK after car accident:
Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn hit the first walk-off of his career against the Mets in the 11th inning yesterday, but not long after doing so the shortstop was involved in a single-car accident on the interstate near Busch Stadium. As noted by Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals thankfully announced that Winn is OK after he was examined at a local hospital.
The Cardinals are off today as they travel to Detroit for their first road series of the year. Whether the star shortstop will play remains to be seen, and Goold notes that the team plans to re-evaluate him prior to tomorrow’s game. Thomas Saggese, José Fermín, and Ramon Urías all have infield experience and could sub in for Winn on the infield if needed. Fermín and Saggese both have shortstop experience, while Urías could plug in at second base if JJ Wetherholt covers short for Winn.
2. Griffin, Pirates working towards extension:
The Pirates have been working to extend the sport’s top prospect, shortstop Konnor Griffin, ahead of his impending MLB debut later this year. ESPN’s Buster Olney characterized the sides as “deep” into extension talks yesterday. The Pirates are seemingly willing to offer Griffin the largest contract in franchise history (surpassing Bryan Reynolds‘ $100MM deal). That would also top Mariners prospect Colt Emerson‘s newly secured $95MM deal for the largest ever to a pre-debut player. Will Griffin join Emerson, Cooper Pratt, and Pete Crow-Armstrong in signing early-career extensions this spring?
3. White Sox home opener postponed:
The White Sox announced that today’s scheduled game against the Blue Jays has been postponed until tomorrow. Today was meant to be Chicago’s home opener, but those festivities will now be moved back a day due to an inclement weather forecast for this afternoon. Perla Paredes of MLB.com writes that the pitching matchup for the game remains unchanged, with righty Sean Burke set to take on former White Sox ace Dylan Cease as he returns to town with the Blue Jays. Gates for tomorrow’s home opener will open at 11:10am local time, with first pitch scheduled for 1:10pm. Paredes goes on to note that all tickets for today’s postponed game will be valid for tomorrow’s home opener without any exchanges being necessary.
Poll: What Can The Dodgers Expect From Roki Sasaki This Year?
Entering 2025, no addition to the Dodgers was more hyped than young right-hander Roki Sasaki, who signed with the club in international free agency after a protracted recruitment process that involved nearly every team in baseball making an effort to land the talented righty after he was posted by the Chiba Lotte Marines.
If you had told baseball fans ahead of the 2025 campaign that the Dodgers would win the World Series, nearly all of them would’ve thought Sasaki would play a much bigger role in that success than he ended up with in reality. That’s not to say Sasaki didn’t contribute, of course. He was a key piece of the Dodgers bullpen during the postseason and pitched to a lights-out 0.84 ERA while collecting three saves in nine appearances during October. Before that, though, he had spent most of the season on the injured list after struggling badly early in the year with a 4.72 ERA and a 6.19 FIP across eight starts where he walked (22) nearly as many batters as he struck out (24).
Given Sasaki’s deep struggles in the rotation last year and his success when pitching out of the bullpen, it would’ve been understandable for fans to expect Sasaki to stay in the bullpen for 2026 while leaving the work in the rotation to more proven starters. That’s not the route the Dodgers ended up going, however, and Sasaki has been installed in the L.A. rotation even after a brutal Spring Training where he was tagged for 15 runs in four starts while walking 28.8% of his opponents and striking out just 23.1%. Spring Training results must be taken with a grain of salt, of course, but results that disastrous brought on by severe control issues can’t be ignored entirely.
It would’ve been easy to expect Sasaki’s rough stint in the rotation last year and his struggles during Spring Training to leave him floundering at the start of the season, but he only added to the enigma surrounding himself when he turned in a strong outing against the Guardians. Sasaki’s first MLB start this year saw him throw four innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts against two walks. An 11.1% walk rate and just four innings of work isn’t exactly what one would hope for from an arm as talented as Sasaki, but it’s undoubtedly a big step in the right direction. If he can keep the walks to a minimum and pitch a bit deeper into games, it’s not hard to imagine the right-hander proving to be a valuable asset to the Dodgers’ rotation mix this year.
Of course, this has all been under the assumption that he’ll stay healthy. That’s never been a safe bet for Sasaki. Prior to spending most of his rookie season in the majors on the injured list, he threw more than 100 innings just twice and topped out at just 129 1/3 frames during his time in Japan. That lack of durability raises some questions about Sasaki’s ability to make 25 to 30 starts at the big league level, even with lower pitch counts than is typically expected for MLB starters. On the other hand, one need look no further than Red Sox lefty Garrett Crochet for an example of a pitcher who struggled to stay on the field in his early years but now is coming off a season where he led the AL in innings pitched.
Even if he can stay healthy, a crowded Dodgers rotation could force him out of the starting group if he doesn’t perform. Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Blake Snell are all locked into rotation spots when healthy. That leaves just two spots in a six-man rotation for a group of young starting-capable arms that includes Emmet Sheehan, Landon Knack, Gavin Stone, Ben Casparius, Justin Wrobleski, River Ryan, and Kyle Hurt in addition to Sasaki. Not all of these players are healthy now and there figure to be injuries on the Dodgers’ pitching staff all throughout the year, but if Sasaki’s results wind up in a similar range as 2025, it might be hard for the front office to view him as one of their six best starters without a significant rash of injuries.
What are MLBTR readers expecting the Dodgers will get out of Roki Sasaki this year? Will he be able to provide 100 innings or more to the pitching staff? And how effective will the innings he does provide wind up being? Have your say in the polls below:
How many innings will Roki Sasaki throw in MLB's regular season this year?
How effective will Roki Sasaki be for the Dodgers in 2026?
The Opener: Orioles, DeLauter, Skenes
Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world today:
1. Eflin injury spurs Orioles roster moves:
Orioles right-hander Zach Eflin is expected to land on the injured list as he undergoes imaging to determine the cause of his elbow discomfort, which has prompted the team to select the contract of veteran righty Albert Suarez. Baltimore will need to make a 40-man roster move, as Suarez is currently in Triple-A on a minor league deal. He’s been effective for the O’s when called upon over the past two years, with a 3.59 ERA and 4.07 FIP across 145 1/3 innings of work. While Eflin’s rotation spot eventually figures to go to Dean Kremer, Suarez can provide length out of the bullpen for a few days until Eflin’s spot in the rotation comes up, at which point Kremer can take over. Details on both Eflin’s MRI and the corresponding move for Suarez could be available as soon as today.
2. DeLauter nursing foot injury:
Guardians outfielder Chase DeLauter has kicked off his rookie season in a big way, slashing .273/.304/.818 with an MLB-best four home runs. Unfortunately, last night’s game against the Dodgers put a bit of a damper on his torrid start. DeLauter fouled a pitch from Shohei Ohtani off his foot in the first inning, forcing him to leave the game. Jacob Gurvis of MLB.com notes that x-rays came back negative. DeLauter was already scheduled to have today’s game off according to manager Stephen Vogt. With the Guardians off Thursday, the first big test for DeLauter’s injury will be whether he’s in the starting lineup against the Cubs on Friday. C.J. Kayfus replaced DeLauter in the outfield yesterday and would likely continue filling in until he’s ready to return to the field.
3. Skenes looks to move past rough first start:
Reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes kicked off the 2026 season with a rare clunker when he allowed five runs in the first inning while recording just two outs before being pulled. It was just the second start of Skenes’ career where he’s surrendered five earned runs, and the first one saw the righty go six innings despite those struggles. Skenes had no help from his defense during last week’s start, of course, and far fewer than five runs would have scored if not for defensive lapses from center fielder Oneil Cruz. Even so, Skenes wasn’t at his best; he faced a total of nine hitters, walking two of them and plunking another. He’ll look to rebound today against lefty Andrew Abbott and the division-rival Reds in a game scheduled for 12:40pm local time in Cincinnati.
Mariners Sign Colt Emerson To Eight-Year Extension
The Mariners announced the signing of top shortstop prospect Colt Emerson to an eight-year extension that includes a club option for the 2034 campaign. Emerson, an ACES client, is reportedly guaranteed $95MM — a record for a player who has yet to make his MLB debut.
The signing comes with a full no-trade clause and includes another $35MM+ in escalators. There’s reportedly an $8MM signing bonus. Emerson will make $1MM and $2MM respective salaries over the next two seasons. That’ll climb to $9MM in 2028 and between $12-18MM per season from 2029-32. The club option is valued at $25MM.
Emerson will remain in Triple-A, where he has nine games of experience. Seattle needed to select him onto the 40-man roster to finalize his major league contract but immediately optioned him back to the Triple-A level. The 20-year-old’s deal tops the previous record guarantee for a player without any MLB service time (previously held by Jackson Chourio) by $13MM.
It’s not hard to see why the Mariners are giving him a guarantee that nearly reaches nine-figures before even seeing him take a single MLB at-bat, however. The youngster is a consensus top-15 prospect in the sport and rocketed through the minors last year. After starting 2025 at the High-A level, he walked at an excellent 13.1% clip and swatted 32 extra-base hits in just 90 games. That forced the issue enough to earn him a promotion to the upper minors and, across 40 games between Double-A Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma, Emerson slashed .293/.383/.470 in 188 plate appearances. That would be an impressive slash line for any player, but even more so for a 19-year-old who plays quality defense all over the infield.
The Mariners made the decision to let Eugenio Suarez and Jorge Polanco depart in free agency over the offseason, and Emerson’s emergence was surely part of that calculus. For now, the club has an infield mix that appears full on paper, with J.P. Crawford at shortstop, Cole Young at second base, and the recently-acquired Brendan Donovan at third base.
Crawford is currently on the injured list with a bout of shoulder inflammation, but he’s expected to return relatively quickly from that injury. The Mariners preferred to use utilityman Leo Rivas as a fill-in rather than call Emerson up for a week or two only to option him back to Tacoma. With Crawford on track to hit free agency after the 2026 season, the position will probably belong to Emerson in the long term.
That’s not to say he’ll need to wait until 2027 to make his MLB debut. Young is a former top prospect himself and is well-regarded by the Mariners, but he’s ultimately unproven at the big league level and could open up playing time at the keystone if he struggles or sits against tough lefties. Donovan was acquired in no small part thanks to his elite versatility. The super-utility man is primarily an infielder but has plenty of experience on the outfield grass as well. Emerson could assume the regular third base job at some point this season. That would bump Donovan to right field, thereby displacing either Dominic Canzone or Luke Raley from the starting lineup.
While a spot could be made for Emerson in the majors, it’s understandable that the club is holding off on promoting him for now. This extension is a big bet on his ability and removes the consideration of service time from the equation, but Emerson’s development must still be considered. While MLB Pipeline notes that his defensive metrics last year suggested he was an above-average defender at short, he has just 111 1/3 innings of work at third base for his career and just 75 at the keystone, so it would be understandable if the team wanted to get him additional looks at those positions before giving him a full-time role in the majors.
As for his offense, Emerson has just 43 total games in the upper minors. That’s not a lot of time afforded for his development, and while some top prospects are able to jump right in at the big league level with minimal minor league experience, the Mariners should remember all too well the struggles that outfielder Jarred Kelenic faced when he was promoted to the majors after just 51 games in the upper minors (including 30 at Triple-A). The front office surely has no interest in risking Emerson’s development on calling him up before he’s ready, particularly given the fact that Emerson is now slated to receive the fourth-largest guarantee on Seattle’s entire roster behind Julio Rodriguez, Luis Castillo, and Cal Raleigh.
Regardless of when Emerson ultimately reaches the majors, this deal locks up a key piece of Seattle’s core for the future. With Emerson now under club control through the end of the 2034 season, he joins Raleigh, Rodriguez, Josh Naylor, and Young as key players under control through at least 2030. That positional core is complemented by impact pieces like Donovan, star closer Andres Munoz, and of course the club’s vaunted starting rotation of Castillo, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, and Bryce Miller. All five of those starters are set to hit free agency between the 2027-28 offseason and the 2029-30 offseason, so perhaps the club’s long-term planning can now focus on the future of the rotation now that key positional assets like Raleigh and Emerson are locked up for the long haul.
Robert Murray of FanSided first reported that Emerson and the Mariners had agreed to an eight-year, $95MM contract with a club option, more than $35MM in escalators, and a no-trade clause. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that Emerson would be optioned back to Triple-A. Adam Jude of The Seattle Times had the signing bonus and salary range. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reported the $25MM option value and more salary specifics.
Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images.
Padres Notes: Arraez, Adam, Song
Luis Arraez made his return to San Diego yesterday for the first time since signing with the division rival Giants in free agency. Speaking to reporters (including Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune), Arraez revealed that he “talked a lot” with the Padres during free agency before ultimately signing in San Francisco.
It’s a decision that Arraez chalks up to his desire to play second base, which wasn’t on the table in San Diego due to the presence of Jake Cronenworth. The Giants afforded him that opportunity, and Sanders notes that the $12MM salary he received from his new club was more than the Padres could offer. Considering that Michael King is San Diego’s only offseason addition making even $3MM in 2026, that certainly seems like a fair assessment.
Even if the team’s financial situation made a reunion all but impossible, Arraez’s strong desire to play second base this year does shed some light on his free agency. The soon-to-be 29-year-old posted the worst season of his career last year, hitting just .292 with a 104 wRC+. It seemed as though that left Arraez to sit through a very quiet offseason where his name rarely appeared in the rumor mill, if ever. Perhaps, however, Arraez’s desire to play second limited his market more than it otherwise would have. Teams like the Mariners, Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Diamondbacks, and the Padres themselves were all looking for help at first base this offseason, while teams on the hunt for second base help were far more limited. The Red Sox, Giants, and A’s were three of the only clubs looking to add at the keystone this winter, and Boston was known to be prioritizing defense.
That surely left Arraez with a very limited market in terms of teams willing to hand him the second base job, but that list could expand if he turns in a strong season this year. Of course, a tough season or even one where he doesn’t prove himself capable of handling the keystone could leave him looking at an even softer market next year. As Arraez himself pointed out to Sanders, his contract with San Francisco is for just one year.
“I don’t know what (will happen) later,” Arraez said of his future after the 2026 campaign (as relayed by Sanders).
In other Padres news, Sanders writes that right-hander Jason Adam threw 1 1/3 scoreless frames on a rehab assignment over the weekend and is making good progress as he looks to return from quadriceps surgery. The righty is poised to throw in a simulated game today before making back-to-back rehab appearances on Friday and Saturday. If those outings all go well, that could set him up for a return not long after his minimum IL stint date of April 8. When he does return, Adam will be a huge boon to the Padres’ bullpen. The veteran righty has been one of the best relief arms in baseball over the past few years, with a 2.07 ERA and 3.20 FIP since the start of the 2022 campaign. He’ll join a crowded high leverage mix alongside Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon, and Jeremiah Estrada once he’s back in action.
Speaking of rehab assignments, infielder Sung Mun Song is rehabbing after opening the year on the shelf due to oblique tightness. MLB.com notes that he began a rehab assignment last week, and he’s appeared in three games since. That includes appearances at second base and shortstop, suggesting that he might not be too far from being healthy enough to return. The 29-year-old is waiting to make his big league debut after signing out of the KBO with the Padres on a four-year, $15MM pact over the offseason. He figures to factor heavily into the club’s bench mix once healthy, seeing time all over the infield and perhaps even in the outfield corners this year.
The Opener: McClanahan, Painter, Pratt
Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. McClanahan makes long-awaited return:
Rays southpaw Shane McClanahan hasn’t thrown a pitch in the majors since 2023 due to Tommy John surgery and nerve issues. After missing more than two full seasons, the lefty is finally ready to return to the major league mound. His first assignment will be a start against the Brewers and their own oft-injured ace, Brandon Woodruff (3.20 ERA in 12 starts last year). It’s easy to forget after such a long layoff, but McClanahan was among the most talented young starters in the sport when he first broke onto the scene in 2021. In 74 career starts to this point, the lefty sports a 3.02 ERA and 28.0% strikeout rate. Now just a month from his 29th birthday, McClanahan will have the opportunity to prove he can still be a high-end starter when healthy this year. His first game is scheduled for 6:40pm local time in Milwaukee.
2. Painter to make MLB debut:
Phillies right-hander Andrew Painter has been a highly-discussed name for years now, ever since he was on the cusp of making the majors with Philadelphia back in 2023. He wound up undergoing surgery on his UCL instead, and after missing two full seasons he return to the mound last year. Unfortunately his 22 starts at the Triple-A level came with lackluster results, including a 5.40 ERA. Despite that middling performance last year, Painter remains a consensus top-40 prospect in the sport and looked good during Spring Training with a 2.31 ERA in four starts. He didn’t strike out many of his opponents, but that was still enough to earn him a rotation job. He’ll finally make his big league debut today against the Nationals in Philadelphia. The game is scheduled for 6:40pm local time and will see him face off against D.C. lefty PJ Poulin.
3. Pratt extension incoming?
The Brewers and top shortstop prospect Cooper Pratt are reportedly working on an extension, though no deal appears to be finalized at this point. It’s a surprising move given that the 21-year-old is just three games into his Triple-A career, but with Caleb Durbin having been removed from the infield in Milwaukee over the offseason the Brewers might have interest in fast-tracking the youngster to the majors this year. The pact would guarantee him $50.75MM over eight years if finalized, and would have a pair of club options at the end as well. Assuming the deal gets done, Pratt will become the Brewer under team control for the longest period of time, beating out outfielder Jackson Chourio‘s own pre-debut extension. We’ll sure hear more about both the necessary corresponding move to add Pratt to the 40-man roster and the timeline for his arrival in the majors in fairly short order after the deal is completed.
Poll: Which Recent Cubs Extension Will Age Better?
The Cubs have made a huge splash on the extension front over the past week by locking up a pair of their core position players long-term. Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and second baseman Nico Hoerner have signed extensions that will keep them in Chicago through the end of the 2032 season. It’s an exciting development for fans on the North Side. With the team’s recent addition of Alex Bregman plus players like Michael Busch and Dansby Swanson already under long-term control, the Cubs now have a core of position players to build around for the next several years.
That came at a price. Crow-Armstrong’s deal guarantees him $115MM and could climb another $18MM based on his MVP finishes. Hoerner’s deal is even more substantial, guaranteeing him $141MM (although deferred money lowers the net present value slightly to $137.5MM). Those are significant investments and big bets on the pair to continue performing after they turned in career years in 2025. Which one is more likely to live up to those expectations?
The case for Crow-Armstrong is one rooted in his youth and massive upside. His season-long stats in 2025 (including a 109 wRC+, 31 homers, 35 steals, and 6.0 bWAR/5.4 fWAR) could be argued to actually register as a bit of a disappointment based on what he did in the first half, when he was a legitimate early contender for the NL MVP award. 25 of those home runs and 27 of those steals came before the All-Star break, at which point he was slashing a sensational .265/.302/.544. A deep slump throughout August and September raised some concerns, however, as he hit just .188/.237/.295 over the season’s final two months. Crow-Armstrong’s speed and defense are enough to make him a viable major league player even when he’s flirting with the Mendoza line, but he’ll need to do a lot better than that to justify a nine-figure deal.
Can he find the consistency necessary to make the deal a good one? There’s certainly reasons to think so. While Crow-Armstrong struggled in terms of results down the stretch last year, he actually improved his plate discipline somewhat. His 35.6% out-of-zone swing rate and 86.2% in-zone contact rate since August 1 were both better than his season-long figures of 41.9% and 84.0%, respectively. Crow-Armstrong’s struggles late in the 2026 campaign were more about a power outage than an increase in poor swing decisions. If he can carry those improved swing decisions into the future while tapping into his first-half power, he’ll be a superstar. If his first-half power surge proves to be more of a flash in the pan than something sustainable, it’s possible the Cubs could wind up regretting the deal.
By contrast, Hoerner is a much more consistent player with a well-established track record. Since becoming an everyday player in 2022, Hoerner has hit .284/.339/.389 (105 wRC+) overall. He’s been remarkably consistent year-to-year, as well. His wRC+ has always fallen between 102 and 109, and he’s stolen at least 20 bases every season. After injury woes early in his career, he’s become a reliable presence on the field with at least 640 plate appearances in each of the past three years. He pairs that consistency and availability with superb defense that’s won him two Gold Gloves at the keystone and allowed him to post between 3.8 and 4.8 fWAR (3.7 and 6.2 bWAR) in each of his seasons as a regular.
That profile also comes with limited offensive upside, however. If there’s another gear to Hoerner’s game, it could be proving that his career-best 7.6% strikeout rate from 2025 is repeatable. Hoerner has a career strikeout rate of just 11.0%, so he’s a good bet to make contact at an elite rate in any year, but last season saw him punch out just 49 times total. Luis Arraez, Andrelton Simmons, and Kevin Newman are the only other players to strike out fewer than 50 times in a season where they recorded at least 550 plate appearances since 2015. Outside of that, however, Hoerner seems unlikely to take a step into MVP-candidate territory.
$141MM is a lot to spend on a player who doesn’t make much of a power impact. The fact that Hoerner will finish his contract at the end of his age-35 season while Crow-Armstrong will be wrapping up his age-30 campaign offers additional reasons for skepticism that Hoerner will be able to outproduce Crow-Armstrong. Another question is about health. Crow-Armstrong has not suffered a major injury since arriving in the majors, while Hoerner (despite his iron man status in the past few seasons) dealt with forearm, hamstring, oblique, ankle, and knee issues early in his career that stand as warning signs as he enters his 30s.
What do MLBTR readers think of Chicago’s recent pair of extensions? Which deal will be looked back on as the better investment when all is said and done? Will Crow-Armstrong’s youth and upside lead to a big win for the Cubs, or will he be unable to match the stability and consistency that Hoerner figures to provide? Will Hoerner stay healthy and stave off age-related decline for long enough to provide that stability throughout the deal? Have your say in the poll below:
Which Cubs player will be more productive through the end of the 2032 season?
The Opener: deGrom, Murakami, Debuts
Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world today:
1. deGrom still waiting for season debut:
Rangers veteran Jacob deGrom was slated to make his season debut over the weekend, but was scratched from his scheduled start due to a neck issue. Via Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News, manager Skip Schumaker indicated that deGrom could still make his first start of the year during the club’s current series in Baltimore. Righty Jack Leiter has already been announced as today’s starter, but deGrom could start tomorrow’s game against Orioles righty Zach Eflin or pitch Wednesday versus lefty Trevor Rogers. The 37-year-old deGrom enjoyed his first full season of the decade in 2025, making 30 starts for the first time since winning the NL Cy Young Award in 2019. The righty’s 2.97 ERA and 3.64 FIP weren’t quite the same level as his peak, but that’s still clearly front-of-the-rotation production the Rangers are counting on as they look to return to the playoffs this year.
2. Murakami kicks off MLB career with homer streak:
Longtime NPB slugger and current White Sox rookie Munetaka Murakami exploded onto the stateside scene over the weekend, hitting home runs in three consecutive games against the Brewers to kick off his MLB career. The corner infielder took a deal well below expectations with Chicago due to concerns about his contact rate and defensive ability. Those concerns will take a lot more than one series to fade, but there was never any doubt about his prodigious power. That’s absolutely played so far, and when the White Sox head to Miami to face Chris Paddack (5.35 ERA in 2025) Murakami will look to extend his career-opening homer streak to four games. That game is scheduled to take place at 6:40pm local time in Miami this evening, with Davis Martin (4.10 ERA in 2025) set to take the mound opposite Paddack.
3. Key starters making team debuts:
As the first turn through the rotation of the 2026 season continues, a number of impact starters will make their first starts with new teams today. Cubs right-hander Edward Cabrera (3.53 ERA in 2025) will take on the Angels at 6:40pm local time in Chicago, while the Red Sox will send southpaw Ranger Suarez (3.20 ERA in 2025) to the mound against the Astros at 7:10pm local time in Houston. Ryan Weathers (3.99 ERA in eight starts last year) will make his Yankees debut against the Mariners at 6:40pm Seattle time, while Paddack (Marlins), Walker Buehler (Padres), Nick Martinez (Rays), and Kyle Harrison (Brewers) are among the other starters making team debuts. It’s not quite a team debut, but Justin Verlander (3.85 ERA in 2025) is slated to make his first start for the Tigers since 2017 at 7:10pm local time in Phoenix against Diamondbacks righty Michael Soroka (who is making his own debut for the Snakes).
Twins Sign John Brebbia To Minor League Deal
The Twins have signed right-hander John Brebbia to a minor league deal, according to a report from Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic.
Brebbia, 36 next month, is coming off back-to-back down seasons. The righty made his big league debut with the Cardinals back in 2017 and was a solid reliever for the club immediately, with a 3.14 ERA and 3.39 FIP across his first three seasons in the majors. He struck out 27.4% of his opponents in 175 innings of work while walking just 7.5%. Brebbia went under the knife for Tommy John surgery in 2020, and that caused him to not only miss the 2020 campaign but also be non-tendered by St. Louis, bringing his time with the Cardinals to an abrupt end despite his success on the mound.
The right-hander caught on with the Giants on a big league deal during the 2020-21 offseason. His 2021 season was lackluster as he worked his way back from surgery, and in his 18 appearances that year he struggled to a 5.89 ERA. He remained with the Giants despite that poor performance, however, and San Francisco was rewarded for its faith by a pair of much more successful relief seasons. Brebbia posted a 3.47 ERA and 3.54 FIP across 106 1/3 innings of work from 2022 to ’23, though his strikeout rate dipped to 22.5%.
Following his three-year stint with the Giants, Brebbia returned to free agency and eventually caught on with the White Sox. Chicago offered him a one-year, $5.5MM deal during the 2023-24 offseason, and Brebbia jumped at the healthy payday. Unfortunately, the deal didn’t work out well for either side. Brebbia struggled badly as the club’s top veteran reliever and was torched to the tune of a 6.29 ERA in 54 appearances for the White Sox. That’s in spite of a perfectly strong 26.9% strikeout rate and an acceptable 7.7% walk rate. Brebbia’s issues with the White Sox came down to the long ball, as he allowed a whopping nine homers in 48 2/3 innings of work. That’s nearly one home run per five innings pitched, and so it was hardly a shock when the White Sox opted to cut ties with the veteran.
Brebbia caught on with Atlanta to finish the 2024 season and pitched quite well for the down the stretch, but upon returning to free agency found a smaller one-year deal with the Tigers in February of last year. Unfortunately, Brebbia wound up appearing in just 18 games for the Tigers after being sidelined by a triceps strain and struggling to a 7.71 ERA when he did return to the mound. He once again was scooped up by Atlanta after being released, but this time his struggles continued and he finished the year with an identical 7.71 ERA to the one he had in Detroit.
That left Brebbia to settle for a minor league deal this winter, and he initially signed with the Rockies in free agency before failing to make their roster out of camp. His 7.00 ERA in nine innings of work during camp wasn’t exactly something to write home about, but the Twins are in need of bullpen depth after dealing away Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax, and Louis Varland last summer. Brebbia figures to head to Triple-A and attempt to break into a bullpen that currently relies on Taylor Rogers and Cole Sands in the late innings.