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The Opener: Rotation Market, Relief Market, Mets

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With one free agent move already in the books this morning, here are three more things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world:

1. Will the rotation market heat up?

After weeks of a relatively frozen rotation market, things finally started to pick up this weekend when the Cardinals signed Dustin May to a one-year deal while the Diamondbacks reunited with Kelly on a pact worth $40MM over two years. The top of the market is still largely untouched (aside from Dylan Cease), leaving plenty of viable options for interested teams like Framber Valdez, Tatsuya Imai, and Ranger Suarez. The middle tier of this year’s market could be moving more quickly, by contrast, with Kelly having now signed and plenty of buzz surrounding other mid-market players like Zac Gallen and Michael King. Who could be the next domino to fall?

2. Relief market dwindling fast:

The market for relief pitching has been by far the fastest moving of the winter so far, and that didn’t change this weekend. Kenley Jansen and Tyler Rogers both came off the board as the former inked a one-year pact with the Tigers while the latter landed with Toronto on a three-year deal. Precious few high-end relief arms remain available at this point, with Brad Keller and Pete Fairbanks standing out as the best of the rest. There are still some very interesting candidates who could be had on one-year deals due to age. That’s a group that includes right-hander Chris Martin, who reportedly plans to pitch in 2026 in his age-40 season.

3. Mets fill first base in unorthodox fashion; what’s next?

Mets fans are still reeling from the loss of Pete Alonso to the Orioles at this year’s Winter Meetings, but president of baseball operations David Stearns wasted no time in getting a deal done with another veteran bat who’ll effectively take his spot in the lineup. Switch-hitter Jorge Polanco inked a two-year deal to come to Queens over the weekend, and despite spending most of his big league career as a second baseman, he’ll reportedly be used primarily at first base and DH with the Mets. Polanco’s a quality addition to the lineup, to be sure, but he lacks the power potential that Alonso brought to the table on such a consistent basis. Will the Mets look to supplement that lost power with a big bat in the outfield or at third base? Is there a big move in store on the pitching side of things?

Diamondbacks To Sign Merrill Kelly

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The Diamondbacks are in the final stages of completing a two-year, $40MM contract with right-hander Merrill Kelly, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.  The deal will be official once Kelly passes a physical (as per Jon Heyman of The New York Post). Arizona will need to clear a space on its currently full 40-man roster.  Kelly is represented by Apex Baseball.

The 37-year-old Kelly returns to the team with which he has spent nearly his entire major league career. Though initially drafted by the Rays in the eighth-round of the 2010 draft, Kelly made his big league debut with the Diamondbacks back in 2019 after a four-season stay in Korea as a member of the KBO’s SK Wyverns (now known as the SSG Landers). After a pedestrian rookie campaign in the majors where he pitched to a league-average ERA in 32 starts, Kelly managed to fashion a role for himself as one of the better mid-rotation arms in the majors.

Since the start of the 2022 campaign, Kelly has pitched to a 3.47 ERA in 108 starts. He’s struck out 23.1% of his opponents while walking 7.7% in that time, leaving him with a 3.81 FIP. Although a 4.03 SIERA and other so-so peripherals cast him as a step down from your prototypical front-end starter, the veteran has managed to remain a durable and productive rotation piece. Kelly particularly endeared himself to Arizona fans when he delivered a brilliant 2.25 ERA over 24 postseason innings during the club’s run to the World Series in 2023.

Amid a disappointing 2025 season where the Diamondbacks were ravaged by injuries to everyone from star closers Justin Martinez and A.J. Puk to newly-signed ace Corbin Burnes, the team engaged in a sell-off at trade deadline and shipped Kelly to the Rangers in exchange for a trio of pitching prospects. Kelly put up fairly pedestrian numbers across ten starts with the Rangers: a 4.23 ERA and near-matching 4.18 FIP across 55 1/3 innings of work.

Even while the veteran was in Texas, an offseason reunion with the Diamondbacks was already being speculated upon. Kelly spoke fondly of Arizona and expressed an openness to re-signing when asked about the possibility while the Rangers were visiting Chase Field in the season’s final few weeks. “Definite” interest in a reunion with Kelly was reported on Arizona’s side shortly before last week’s Winter Meetings, and now the sides have come together on a deal.

Turning to the deal itself, Kelly’s $40MM guarantee clocks in just ahead of the two years and $36MM MLBTR predicted for the right-hander when ranking him as the #25 free agent in this offseason’s Top 50 MLB Free Agents list. The Snakes were aggressive both in their offer and the timing of the deal; while the free agent market for position players and especially relievers has kicked into gear already, Kelly is just the third starting pitcher from MLBTR’s Top 50 to sign a contract this offseason. He joins Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce, both of whom received guarantees that slightly eclipsed MLBTR’s predictions.

Now that he’s set to return to Arizona, Kelly stands as the favorite to start for the Diamondbacks on Opening Day this year. He’ll join a rotation that already added Michael Soroka and will reunite with former teammates Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt, and Ryne Nelson. Burnes could be a factor later in the season but is not expected to pitch until sometime in the second half after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June. While the team’s rotation certainly looks much more complete with Kelly back in the fold, bringing the right-hander back shouldn’t stop the team from pursuing other rotation additions after the club’s pitching staff finished 19th in the majors with a 4.29 ERA last year.

Of course, adding beyond this could prove to be easier said than done. The Diamondbacks are projected for a payroll just north of $171MM in 2026, according to RosterResource. That rises to north of $205MM for luxury tax purposes. GM Mike Hazen has suggested that, while Arizona’s payroll would likely be moving downward from its 2025 level, that would still leave the team with room to spend. The club spent $188MM on its payroll last season, however, meaning they currently sit less than $17MM from that mark.

Perhaps that leaves enough wiggle room to reunite with Paul Goldschmidt on an affordable one-year deal, a move the Diamondbacks have been said to be contemplating, but Kelly will surely go down as the team’s biggest expenditure unless an increase in payroll is approved or the team makes a trade that clears salary. To that latter point, the hot stove has been burning with Ketel Marte trade buzz in recent weeks. Moving Marte would certainly clear payroll off the books (and simultaneously add some young rotation options as part of the return), though Hazen has consistently downplayed the likelihood of a deal surrounding Marte actually coming together.

Tyler Glasnow Does Not Expect To Be Traded

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Dodgers right-hander Tyler Glasnow’s name reportedly “came up” in trade talks with other teams in recent days, but Glasnow made an appearance on MLB Network Radio’s Sunday Sliders program with Dani Wexelman of SiriusXM and made clear that he does not expect to be traded. Per Wexelman, Glasnow went on to note that president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman had spoken to him directly and told him that he isn’t being traded.

That more or less puts to bed trade speculation regarding Glasnow this offseason. A California native, Glasnow was dealt from the Dodgers to the Rays two seasons ago and promptly signed an extension with his new team that runs through the 2028 season. Glasnow is owed $30MM annually for each of the next two seasons, and in 2028 the Dodgers hold a $30MM club option on his services that converts into a $21,562,500 player option if declined. For a player headed into his age-32 campaign who has delivered a 3.37 ERA, 3.24 FIP, and a 30.9% strikeout rate across 40 starts as a Dodger (not to mention a 1.69 ERA and 2.95 FIP in six playoff outings), that contract is something of a bargain.

Given the relatively short-term commitment to Glasnow, the Dodgers’ surplus of elite pitching talent, and a market for free agent arms that some teams seem less than enthused to spend in, it’s easy to see why some clubs may have asked after Glasnow in trade talks. At the same time, however, the Dodgers’ deep group of rotation options comes with an equally lengthy injury history. The quantity of arms Los Angeles has in its stable is more important for them than the average team given the number of oft-injured players the team has in the fold. Considering that reality, it’s not exactly a surprise that the Dodgers seem to have no intention of trading Glasnow this winter.

Glasnow isn’t the only Dodgers player whose name has entered the rumor mill this winter. Outfielder Teoscar Hernandez similarly had his floated in trade conversations, and while Dodgers brass suggested that a deal involving Hernandez was unlikely that hasn’t stopped the Royals from expressing interest in him. Of course, that interest was before yesterday’s trade with the Brewers that sent Angel Zerpa to Milwaukee while bringing outfielder Isaac Collins and right-hander Nick Mears back to Kansas City. With Collins and Lane Thomas in the fold, it’s possible that the Royals are done with external additions on the grass and will rely on players like Kyle Isbel and Jac Caglianone to fill out the rest of the outfield mix.

While deals involving Glasnow and Hernandez don’t seem likely at this point, the fact that multiple veteran pieces of the Dodgers’ roster have come up in trade talks could suggest an openness to creativity on the part of the World Series champs this offseason. Friedman previously suggested that the club’s aging core of talent and finding ways to get younger players opportunities to contribute is something that the club has begun weighing this winter, and it’s not hard to see how a deal involving a veteran or two could allow MLB’s oldest team to get younger and clear the deck for the next wave of young talent in L.A.’s lauded farm system.

Latest On Michael King’s Free Agency

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1:35pm: The Boston Globe’s initial report has been clarified to note that, while the Red Sox, Yankees, and Orioles are among the teams King is considering, there are no finalists for his services at this point.

1:11pm: Right-hander Michael King has narrowed his search for a new team to three options, according to a report from Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Those teams are the Red Sox, Yankees, and Orioles. Additionally, Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports that the Rhode Island native and Boston College alum has “strong interest” in playing for Boston. Abraham notes that King would like to make a decision on his destination soon.

King, 30 has been among the league’s most widely sought-after starters this winter. He’s been connected to the Mets, Cubs, Tigers, Marlins, Angels, and Blue Jays in addition to the three apparent finalists for his services, and it’s not hard to see why the right-hander would garner such widespread interest. The 30-year-old flashed significant upside during his 2024 season with the Padres, when he pitched to a 2.95 ERA in 173 2/3 innings of work with a 3.33 FIP and a 27.7% strikeout rate. That was a strong enough performance to earn him a seventh-place finish in NL Cy Young award voting that year, which was his first as a full-time starter.

The right-hander seemingly appeared to be lined up for a massive payday heading into his platform season of 2025, but injuries complicated things this past year. King was limited to just 15 starts by a nerve issue in his shoulder (as well as a less significant knee injury late in the year), and while he dominated to the tune of a 2.59 ERA, 3.26 FIP, and a 28.4% strikeout rate in ten appearances prior to the shoulder injury, he didn’t look quite the same after returning with a 6.11 ERA and a 14.5% strikeout rate a 10.8% walk rate across his final five appearances in the regular season.

King moved to the bullpen for San Diego’s Wild Card series against the Cubs and looked more like himself as he struck out the side on 19 pitches in a scoreless inning of work, but headed into the offseason his second half struggles and significant injury woes left cause for concern as he entered free agency. He received a qualifying offer from the Padres, a positive sign that the club didn’t see King’s injuries as too concerning for the 2026 campaign, and declined it in order to pursue a multi-year pact in free agency.

Looking at the three teams still in the running for King’s services, the Orioles stand out as the team with the biggest need in their rotation. The club is coming off a deeply disappointing 2025 campaign where their decision to eschew high-end arms in free agency came back to bite them, as rolls of the dice on Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano failed to bear fruit while Zach Eflin took a big step back from his previous work with the Rays. While Kyle Bradish and Trevor Rogers could plausibly form an exciting front-of-the-rotation duo for the Orioles next year, adding at least one proven, playoff-caliber starter to the mix has been the team’s clear priority this winter.

King would certainly fit that mold if healthy, and likely could do so without breaking the bank and requiring Baltimore to commit to a second nine-figure contract this winter after they signed Pete Alonso last week. MLBTR predicted King to land a four-year, $80MM contract as the #14 ranked free agent in this offseason. Of course, with top-of-the-rotation upside and an expected contract price tag and length that falls below that of your typical front-end starter, there’s plenty of room for a more opportunistic team to get involved.

That’s likely where the Red Sox come in, given that Boston is incredibly deep in pitching talent as it is. Garrett Crochet leads a rotation that figures to also include Sonny Gray and Brayan Bello at the front end, with players like Johan Oviedo, Patrick Sandoval, and Connelly Early in the mix for the final spots as things stand. Kutter Crawford, Payton Tolle, Kyle Harrison, and Hunter Dobbins are among the pitchers who figure to serve as depth for the Red Sox this year, an embarrassment of riches that make adding a starter in free agency more of a luxury than a necessity.

Even so, landing King on a deal that the Red Sox perceive as good value would still make sense, as it could free them up to more fully explore trades involving some of their young pitching talent. Boston has already been connected to Ketel Marte, Willson Contreras, and Isaac Paredes on the free agent market as they search for help on offense this winter, and perhaps signing King and trading from their pitching depth to land one of those big names could be more attractive as an option than taking a swing on one of the big bats still available in free agency.

As for the Yankees, a reunion with the team King spent the first five years of his MLB career with splits the difference between the extremes Baltimore and Boston represent. New York isn’t in desperate need of a front-of-the-rotation ace with Max Fried already in place and Gerrit Cole expected back from Tommy John surgery at some point next year, but their rotation could certainly use additional depth. Cole and Carlos Rodon are both not expected to be ready for the start of the 2026 campaign, while Clarke Schmidt figures to miss most if not all of next year.

That leaves the Yankees with an Opening Day rotation of Fried, Cam Schlittler, Luis Gil, Will Warren, and Allan Winans. Given Winans’s lack of MLB experience and Gil’s significant injury history, there’s certainly room for another quality starter in the Yankees’ rotation mix even if they don’t necessarily need one with the same level of upside that King offers. Even so, King was a popular player during his time with the Bronx and well-liked within the organization. Between the potential value to be had on King’s contract and his past connection to the club, it’s hardly a surprise that New York would get involved in his market as they survey the offseason landscape for rotation help.

Orioles Outright Ryan Noda

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The Orioles announced earlier this week that first baseman Ryan Noda has cleared outright waivers. Noda was designated for assignment by the Orioles last week.

Noda, 30 in March, was plucked from the Dodgers’ system by the Athletics in the 2022 Rule 5 draft. His rookie campaign in 2023 was a strong one, as he slashed .229/.364/.406 (122 wRC+) with a 15.6% walk rate and 39 extra-base hits in 128 games. With that being said, a 34.3% strikeout rate did not exactly bode well for Noda’s long-term ability to stick in the majors, especially given his relative lack of power. While his production was far above league average, it’s worth remembering that he required a massive .347 BABIP to garner those results.

All of those red flags have proved to be accurate in the years since. Noda had appeared in just 59 MLB games over the past two seasons with the A’s, Orioles, and White Sox. In that time, he’s hit a paltry .127/.262/.197. While his 14.7% walk rate in those games remains excellent, his 36.5% strikeout rate borders on completely unplayable and crosses over that line thanks to the complete lack of power Noda has offered. While Noda’s .205 BABIP in that time would surely tick up if given a full season of playing time, he’s unlikely to reach those unsustainable peaks he flashed in 2023 any time soon. His barrel rate dropped from 13.0% in his rookie season to just 6.1% the past two years, and his Hard-Hit rate also dropped more than ten points.

Overall, it’s a profile that’s become difficult to see succeeding in the majors. That’s becoming increasingly apparent as Noda has even struggled to hit at the Triple-A level in recent years, with a .188/.409/.361 slash line in 74 games between the Orioles, White Sox, Red Sox, and Angels organizations. Given his fall from grace even at the Triple-A level, it’s not necessarily a shock that Noda cleared waivers. Even so, his knack for drawing walks could make him a potentially valuable depth piece for the Orioles headed into next season. If the journeyman can manage to make a little more contact or get a little more power out of his swing, that disciplined approach at the plate provides a floor that could be built upon in a big way, as 2023 showed.

Now that he’s been outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk, he’ll spend the 2026 season with the Orioles as a non-roster depth piece. After signing Pete Alonso last week to join players like Coby Mayo, Ryan Mountcastle, and even Samuel Basallo in the first base mix, Noda’s path to playing time at the big league level seems slim. With that said, injuries are always a risk, and it’s entirely possible one or both of Mayo and Mountcastle find themselves playing elsewhere by Opening Day in order to mroe fully clear the deck for Alonso’s arrival.

Mariners, Giants “Front-Runners” For Brendan Donovan

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The Mariners and Giants have emerged as front-runners in the sweepstakes for super-utility man Brendan Donovan, according to a report from Katie Woo of The Athletic. Woo added that both clubs are also engaged with the Diamondbacks on Ketel Marte.

Both Seattle and San Francisco have previously been reported to have interest in Donovan’s services, which Woo notes the Cardinals are seeking multiple top prospects in exchange for. With that being said, they were often mentioned as just two of many teams interested in the versatile infielder; Donovan’s market has been said to encompass more than half the league, with the Pirates, Royals, Guardians, and Astros standing among the other teams that have been connected to him this winter.

That makes the Mariners’ and Giants’ “front-runner” status a notable shift in the status quo, and Woo goes as far as to mention specific prospect names being discussed with both clubs. In talks with Seattle, Woo reports that the Cardinals have discussed top pitching prospect Jurrangelo Cijntje and outfielder Lazaro Montes. The pair are Seattle’s #7 and #3 prospects, respectively, according to MLB Pipeline. In talks with the Giants, Woo writes that the names of infielder Gavin Kilen and southpaw Carson Whisenhunt have come up. Kilen is San Francisco’s #2 prospect per Pipeline, while Whisenhunt ranks #7.

Cijntje has garnered some buzz around the baseball industry due to his status as a switch pitcher who throws from both the right and left sides. He’s a more well-regarded pitcher from the right-hand side, touching the upper 90s with his right arm but being relegated to the low 90s with his left. In his pro debut in 2025, Cijntje pitched to a 3.99 ERA overall across the High-A and Double-A levels but actually got better after his promotion. In seven starts at Double-A, Cijntje turned in a 2.67 ERA across 33 2/3 innings of work with a 25.5% strikeout rate and an 11.0% walk rate.

Montes entered the 2025 season as a consensus top-100 prospect in the sport but scuffled a bit after being promoted to the Double-A level. He hit a solid but unspectacular .213/.319/.433 in 64 games at the level with a 30.5% strikeout rate. That’s hardly exciting production, but some of those struggles can be forgiven considering he was one of just four hitters under the age of 21 to reach 200 plate appearances in the Texas League last year, joined by Sebastian Walcott, Walker Jenkins, and teammate Michael Arroyo.

Kilen was San Francisco’s first-round pick in the 2025 draft. As a result, he has just ten professional games under his belt where he hit a lackluster .205/.279/.282. With that said, the University of Tennessee product hit an incredible .357/.441/.671 in his final collegiate season and was roundly viewed as a plus contact hitter despite questions about his power potential and ability to handle shortstop at the big league level.

As for Whisenhunt, the 25-year-old already made his big league debut earlier this year with a 5.01 ERA across five starts. While it was hardly an exciting pro debut, Whisenhunt did manage to post a 4.41 ERA in 21 starts in Triple-A’s Pacific Coast League despite the extremely unfriendly environment for pitchers at that level. He profiles as a possible mid-rotation arm with a profile carried by a plus-plus changeup.

Of course, it’s possible that these are only a handful of prospects St. Louis is discussing with the two suitors. It should also be noted that Donovan is far from the only avenue either club is pursuing for their vacancy at second base. The Mariners had been in rather public pursuit of a reunion with Jorge Polanco until he signed with the Mets yesterday, but they’ve still be connected to Marte in addition to Donovan. Woo suggests that Polanco’s departure could leave the Mariners more motivated to make a deal in the coming days, and perhaps that could indicate that Seattle is the more aggressive suitor of the two.

Woo describes the Giants, by contrast, as “exploring all options” as they look to upgrade over Casey Schmitt and Tyler Fitzgerald at second base. In addition to Marte, Brandon Lowe is also known to be available on the trade market while teams have also inquired after Cubs infielder Nico Hoerner. The infield market in free agency is tilted more towards the left side, but Alex Bregman has expressed a willingness to play second base in the past, shortstop Ha-Seong Kim has experience at the position, and Bo Bichette has long been viewed as a potential candidate to move off shortstop at some point. San Francisco hasn’t been directly tied to any of those players, of course, but all stand out as at least plausible acquisitions to be made by a team searching for second base help.

Poll: Would You Rather Have Kyle Schwarber Or Pete Alonso?

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This year’s Winter Meetings were highlighted by two of the game’s premier sluggers signing two of the offseason’s biggest contracts so far: Kyle Schwarber re-upped with the Phillies for five years and $150MM, while Pete Alonso signed on with the Orioles for five years and $155MM. With such remarkably similar contracts and roles to play in the lineup, it’s fair to wonder which player would be better to roster in a vacuum.

Schwarber’s case is obvious, given that he’s coming off a career year where he bashed 56 home runs and finished second in NL MVP voting. Schwarber turned in a brilliant .240/.365/.563 (152 wRC+) slash line for the Phillies this year while playing in all 162 games. In addition to his massive home run total, the slugger added 23 doubles, 2 triples, and even managed to chip in ten stolen bases. That was good enough for 4.9 fWAR and 4.7 bWAR, an incredibly impressive total for a DH who fielded just 66 innings this year.

Alonso’s offensive numbers, while certainly strong, weren’t quite as impressive. The slugger hit .272/.347/.524 with a wRC+ of 141 while also playing 162 games for the Mets. While he hit “just” 38 home runs to Schwarber’s 56, he did manage to swat 41 doubles as well. His contributions on the bases were minimal, but he did play the field in 160 of his 162 games as the Mets’ everyday first baseman. Alonso’s 3.6 fWAR and 3.4 bWAR don’t quite measure up to Schwarber’s gaudy total, but his ability to play a defensive position on a regular basis did free up the DH slot in the lineup to allow the Mets the opportunity to rest their regulars and roster valuable pieces with defensive limitations like Starling Marte.

Digging in a little deeper, the comparison gets even more interesting. Advanced metrics indicate an even smaller gap between Schwarber and Alonso in terms of offense than the raw production does, as Schwarber’s .402 xwOBA eclipses Alonso’s .385 by just 17 points. On the other hand, Alonso benefited from a career-high .305 BABIP in 2025, while Schwarber’s own .253 figure was actually below his career norms. Schwarber’s time in Philadelphia has seen him produce a 133 wRC+ that’s almost a perfect match for Alonso’s own 131 wRC+ over the past four years, and while Alonso is two years younger than Schwarber, he also lacks some of the elite power projection that Schwarber offers. Schwarber’s incredible 54.2% hard-hit rate over the past five years trails only Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, while Alonso’s 46.7% figure falls more in line with players a cut below that tier like Ryan McMahon and Max Muncy.

A look at how both players performed in the market would suggest that teams certainly value them similarly. The pair got the same number of years. Alonso signed for an additional $5MM in terms of total guarantee but Schwarber appeared to have a more robust market in terms of total suitors. The Pirates, Reds, and Orioles themselves were all known to have made offers of $120MM or more to Schwarber, with plenty of other teams such as the Mets, Giants and Red Sox rumored to be interested as well. Alonso, by contrast, saw his known suitors mostly limited to the Mets, Red Sox, and perhaps the Cubs in addition to the Orioles. Perhaps more teams simply had an opening at DH than at first base, but it’s also fair to wonder if more teams simply saw Schwarber as a game-changing talent.

Even if that’s true, however, Alonso’s ability to field a position at a competent (if below average) level on a regular basis and his relative youth would certainly be strong arguments in his favor. Schwarber will play the final year of his contract at the age of 37 and few players project well that late into their careers. Perhaps Schwarber’s elite and unique power capacity could make him an exception in the same vein as other great slugging DH-only bats like David Ortiz and Nelson Cruz, but that’s a much bolder gamble to make than expecting Alonso to remain productive through his 35th birthday.

How do MLBTR readers value the two sluggers? If your team had openings at both first base and DH, which one would you rather have installed in your lineup for the next five seasons? Have your say in the poll below:

The Opener: Alonso, Signings, Relief Market

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Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world headed into the weekend:

1. Alonso’s introductory press conference:

The Orioles are holding an introductory press conference for newly-minted first baseman Pete Alonso today at 4pm local time in Baltimore. Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias, principal owner David Rubenstein, and agent Scott Boras will be on hand to give statements and take questions alongside Alonso. The presser should offer some insight into  Alonso’s free agency and departure from the Mets, as well as the Orioles’ future plans — both this offseason and in the longer term.

2. Signings to be made official:

With this year’s Winter Meetings now in the rearview mirror, there’s a number of reported signings that have yet to be made official. Agreements between outfielder Lane Thomas and the Royals, reliever Mark Leiter Jr. and the Athletics, left-hander Hoby Milner and the Cubs, lefty Steven Matz and the Rays, right-hander Michael Soroka and the D-backs, closer Kyle Finnegan and the Tigers, and southpaw Gregory Soto and the Pirates have yet to be finalized and formally announced. Most notably, the Dodgers have yet to announce their signing of Edwin Diaz.

Most of those teams have spots available on their 40-man roster, so making the signing official is little more than a formality. For the Diamondbacks, Rays, and Tigers, however, their full rosters mean a corresponding move will be necessary in order for each club to finalize their respective additions. That will likely come by designating a player for assignment, though it’s also possible that those clubs could look to work out a minor trade to clear 40-man space.

3. Top relief options dwindling:

Right-hander Robert Suarez came off the board yesterday when he signed in Atlanta, and in doing so he joined Diaz, Devin Williams, Raisel Iglesias, Ryan Helsley and Kyle Finnegan as established closers who have already found a home this winter. That leaves the pickings as relatively slim for clubs interested in adding to the back of their bullpen at this point. Right-hander Brad Keller, who emerged as an outstanding setup man and part-time closer for the Cubs this past year, longtime Rays closer Pete Fairbanks, veteran submariner Tyler Rogers, and former Yankees righty Luke Weaver are among the top remaining arms on the market. Who will be next to sign?

Athletics To Sign Mark Leiter Jr.

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The Athletics have reportedly reached an agreement with right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. on a one-year, $2.85MM contract. The signing is still pending a physical. Leiter is a client of VC Sports Group.

Leiter, 35 in March, made his big league debut back in 2017 but didn’t fully establish himself at the big league level until joining the Cubs in 2022. He served as a swing man and long reliever for Chicago that year, with a 3.99 in 67 2/3 innings of work in that role, but moved to a short relief role full-time in 2023. In 100 2/3 innings of work for the Cubs over the next two seasons, Leiter pitched to a 3.75 ERA with a 3.12 FIP while striking out 30.9% of his opponents and walking 8.8%.

Those exciting peripherals were enough to convince the Yankees to swing a trade for the right-hander at the 2024 trade deadline, but he struggled in New York even as his peripheral numbers remained strong. In 70 innings of work for the Yankees over parts of two seasons with the club, Leiter posted a 4.89 ERA despite a 4.07 FIP. In 2025, Leiter struck out 24.7% against a 7.8% walk rate while generating grounders on 45.5% of his batted balls allowed. Unfortunately for the righty, the results weren’t there enough for the Yankees to tender him a contract last month, and he wound up reaching free agency a year earlier than anticipated.

Headed into 2026, the A’s can expect Leiter to be a solid middle relief arm at least. His 4.15 ERA over the past four seasons is exactly league average (100) by ERA+, and the right-hander’s impressive splitter actually makes him particularly effective against left-handed batters. In 104 2/3 innings of work against lefties the last three years, Leiter has posted a 2.49 ERA and 2.57 FIP with a 32.1% strikeout rate. With league average results overall and elite numbers against lefties, Leiter has a much higher floor than a typical non-tendered middle relief arm, which is surely why he was able to command a solid guarantee even coming off a tough year in New York.

Leiter hasn’t managed to play up to his peripherals throughout his career, but if he can do so he could wind up a valuable setup man for the A’s this year. The righty’s 3.13 SIERA over the past three seasons ranks 13th among relievers with at least 150 innings of work since the start of the 2023 season, and that puts him on a similar level to well-regarded late-inning arms like Luke Weaver. Leiter’s .359 BABIP and 66.5% strand rate over the past two years indicate extremely poor fortune when it comes to batted balls and sequencing; if those numbers experience enough positive regression to get within spitting distance of league average, Leiter’s a good bet to be impactful at the back of the A’s bullpen next year.

It’s been a quiet offseason for the A’s so far, though there’s certain reasons for optimism regarding the club’s future. Nick Kurtz emerged as a potential superstar this year, and he’s backed by a core of exciting positional talent like Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Jacob Wilson, and Lawrence Butler. The club’s pitching staff needs plenty of work if the team is going to contend in 2026, but adding Leiter to a bullpen that already houses respectable arms like Hogan Harris and Michael Kelly should be a small step towards accomplishing that goal. Jeffrey Springs and Luis Severino remain in the fold as solid back-of-the-rotation veterans, though it remains to be seen how much A’s ownership is willing to spend in order to augment that group. Whether the A’s are facing significant budget constraints or not, however, bringing Leiter into the fold as a reliever with possible late-inning upside on a relative bargain can only be a good thing for the club.

Robbie Hyde of Foul Territory first reported the agreement. Janie McCauley of The Associated Press reported the $2.85MM guarantee, after ESPN’s Jesse Rogers first noted it would close to $3MM.

Forst: “We’ve Made Offers” In Extension Talks With Young Core

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It’s been a relatively quiet offseason for the A’s so far, today’s one-year deal with non-tendered right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. notwithstanding. While there hasn’t been much hot stove buzz about the team yet this winter, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com relayed comments from GM David Forst where he made clear that the club has opened extension talks with a number of the club’s players. “Without naming anyone, we’ve made offers,” Forst said. “We’re having conversations here. I’m hopeful we’ll make progress.”

While Forst declined to get into specific extension targets, Gallegos notes that AL Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz and runner-up Jacob Wilson as well as catcher Shea Langeliers and slugger Tyler Soderstrom all make up the young core that the team is hoping to work out extensions with. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the A’s have made offers to all four of those players, or even plan to do so, but it does seem reasonable to expect that the team is having conversations with at least some of these names.

Trying to lock up young talent is a sensible approach for the A’s at this point. 2025 was a disappointing year for the A’s in some ways, as they finished with a meager 76-86 record. On the other hand, however, Wilson and especially Kurtz emerged as impact talents while the team played to an impressive 35-29 record after the All-Star break. That’s a nearly 89-win pace if maintained over a full season, which provides some hope that the team will be able to put together a stronger season in 2026 and get themselves into the playoff conversation despite a highly competitive AL West division.

Whether the club can break through to that next level and become true contenders or not, however, the A’s need to be building something. With a ballpark in Las Vegas under construction and an anticipated move-in date of the 2028 season, the team is clearly hoping to put itself in the best position possible to entice would-be fans into following the team once they arrive in their new home. Solidifying long-term deals with established players has been a big part of the team’s strategy so far, with contracts for Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler already on the books.

All four of the players mentioned above are already under team control through the start of the A’s anticipated time in Las Vegas. Assuming the A’s do move into their new ballpark for the 2028 campaign, Langeliers would spend one season in Nevada before reaching free agency while Soderstrom would spend two. Both Wilson and Kurtz would spend three years there before reaching free agency during the 2030-31 offseason. With so many of the team’s core pieces set to come off the books within their first few seasons in Las Vegas, it might be easier to convince fans in Las Vegas to adopt the A’s as their new favorite team if at least one or two of those big names were to sign extensions that would reliably keep them in town for a half-decade or longer.

While signing these young players to extensions might sound like an obvious call to make on paper, it wouldn’t be a shock if those deals proved too costly. The A’s have typically been among the lowest-spending teams in MLB under John Fisher’s ownership and the biggest deal in franchise history is Luis Severino’s $67MM guarantee. While they started to spend more last winter with some suggestions of increasing payroll as they get closer to their move to Las Vegas, it’s anyone’s guess whether the club would actually offer what it would take to get some of these impact players locked up for the long term.

The last first baseman to sign an extension (according to MLBTR’s Contract Tracker) with between one and two years of service time was Anthony Rizzo back in 2013. With over a decade of inflation, Kurtz should easily clear that $40.5MM guarantee. The mega deals signed by players like Roman Anthony ($130MM), Jackson Merrill ($135MM), Corbin Carroll ($111MM), and Julio Rodriguez ($210MM) are in an entirely different stratosphere, as all of those players provide additional defensive value as outfielders capable of handling center. Yordan Alvarez’s $115MM deal is perhaps somewhat applicable. He wasn’t a first baseman but was a designated hitter/left fielder with big offensive potential. He was closer to free agency than Kurtz is now but still hadn’t qualified for arbitration.

The other three extension candidates surely would not be as expensive as Kurtz to extend, though a deal for Langeliers that rivals the $73MM extension Sean Murphy signed in Atlanta (not to mention Cal Raleigh’s nine-figure pact in Seattle) would still constitute unprecedented spending under Fisher. The $63.5MM extension shortstop Ezequiel Tovar signed with the Rockies could be a viable benchmark for a deal with Wilson that would fall more realistically in the A’s price range, though, and it’s fair to suggest that Soderstrom might be the most affordable of the quartet given his lack of a certain defensive position and less impactful track record on offense as compared to Kurtz. That should leave the A’s with some viable extension candidates even if the club isn’t willing to break new ground in terms of spending, though for a star-caliber player to extend with the team, they could be looking for assurances that the organization would continue to build around them once they arrive in Las Vegas in order to field a consistent competitor.

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