Poll: Should The Cubs Extend Pete Crow-Armstrong?
The Cubs’ teardown of their last core that saw them part ways with Kyle Schwarber, Yu Darvish, Jon Lester, Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, and Craig Kimbrel over the course of nine months. That slate of moves, to this point, has offered little in terms of major league production. There are some promising prospects from trades in that teardown, such as Owen Caissie (Darvish) and Kevin Alcantara (Rizzo) knocking on the door of the big leagues, but some of the pieces acquired in the trades of Darvish, Rizzo, Bryant, and Kimbrel have already departed the organization (e.g. Nick Madrigal, Alexander Canario).
So far, the primary exception is the trade that sent Baez (and right-hander Trevor Williams) to the Mets for center field prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong. The former first-round pick’s premium defense and speed gave him a high floor, and he continued to elevate his stock en route to billing as a consensus top-50 prospect in the sport.
In a league that’s seen an increasing number of young talents locked up long-term before reaching arbitration, Crow-Armstrong’s pedigree has long led Cubs fans to wonder if Chicago could follow in the footsteps of Arizona, Atlanta, and their brethren on the south side and lock up their young center fielder early in his career. It seems as though both the club’s front office and Crow-Armstrong himself could consider such an arrangement. The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma wrote last week that the front office “would be open” to bringing an offer to Crow-Armstrong. For his part, the youngster told Sharma he’s “always open to that conversation” as well.
Both the highs and the lows of Crow-Armstrong’s profile were on full display in 2024. He hit just .237/.286/.384 (87 wRC+) in 410 trips to the plate across 123 games… and his 2.7 fWAR in center field was still tied with Jacob Young of the Nationals for the eighth-highest figure of any player at the position last year thanks to his top-flight defensive and baserunning abilities. Crow-Armstrong went an excellent 27-for-30 on the basepaths, including 22 straight steals without being caught. In the field, his +14 Outs Above Average and +11 Defensive Runs Saved were the fifth- and seventh-best figures among outfielders, while his +16 Fielding Run Value was surpassed among fielders at all positions by only Giants catcher Patrick Bailey. Those defensive accolades become even more impressive when considering that Crow-Armstrong played just 112 games in center field.
Impressive as his rookie season was in many ways, it’s undeniable that Crow-Armstrong’s bat left something to be desired. Among 31 center fielders to get at least 400 plate appearances last year, his aforementioned 87 wRC+ ranks just 20th and puts him well behind the production of similarly gifted center fielders like Daulton Varsho, Michael Harris II, and Brenton Doyle. If the Cubs believe Crow-Armstrong will remain a below-average hitter, it’d be difficult to justify extending him when he’s already under team control through his age-28 season.
There were some signs of positive growth throughout the year, however. From July onward, Crow-Armstrong slashed .260/.309/.442 with a wRC+ of 108. His strikeout (21.6%) and walk (5.6%) rates were both slightly improved in that time, but most of that offensive boost came from a power outburst. Crow-Armstrong entered July with just one home run but crushed nine more over his final 72 games. While Crow-Armstrong’s .085 ISO through the end of June would put him in line with Andres Gimenez and Luis Arraez, his .185 ISO from July onward was more in line with hitters like Jackson Chourio, William Contreras, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. The increased power is reflected in more advanced metrics, as well. Crow-Armstrong’s barrel rate (4.3%) and hard-hit rate (29.8%) were both lackluster early in the season but from July onward increased to 8.9% and 40.3%, respectively.
Perhaps Harris, who signed an eight-year, $72MM extension with the Braves back in 2022, could be the most useful comp for Crow-Armstrong given his strong work in center field and up-and-down offensive production throughout his career to this point. Harris was in the midst of a dominant rookie season where he slashed .297/.339/.514 (137 wRC+) at the time of his deal with Atlanta and was also a year younger than Crow-Armstrong is now, but lacked his pedigree as a former first-round pick and top-20 prospect while also providing far less defensive value than Crow-Armstrong does.
Lawrence Butler just signed a seven-year, $65.5MM extension but did so with more than a year of service. Glove-first position players with some offensive ceiling who signed long-term deals in recent years include Ke’Bryan Hayes (eight years, $70MM) and Ezequiel Tovar (seven years, $63.5MM). Most of those deals were signed when the player had five remaining years of club control, however. Crow-Armstrong has six.
If you were in the Cubs’ shoes, would you try to lock up Crow-Armstrong long-term despite his lack of consistent offensive track record? Or would you wait to see how he develops in 2025 and beyond, even at the risk that he substantially boosts his earning power with a breakout campaign? Have your say in the poll below:
Should the Cubs extend Pete Crow-Armstrong?
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No, wait to see how he develops and risk a breakout raising his asking price. 52% (2,634)
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Yes, offer him an extension despite questions about his bat. 48% (2,445)
Total votes: 5,079
The Opener: Scherzer, Giolito, Tigers
As the start of the regular season gets closer, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Scherzer dealing with thumb soreness:
Veteran right-hander Max Scherzer is dealing with a bout of soreness in his right thumb, according to Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet. Manager John Schneider called the Blue Jays’ decision to scratch Scherzer from his upcoming start tomorrow is the club “just being extra careful.” Scherzer missed time in 2024 with a litany of injuries, one of which was a nerve issue in his right arm that spanned his thumb to his triceps. If this latest thumb/nerve issue proves to be more serious, Toronto could call upon right-hander Yariel Rodriguez to step into the rotation from the bullpen or carry Jake Bloss, who is currently ticketed for Triple-A, on the big league roster to open the season.
2. Red Sox, Giolito await MRI results:
The Red Sox rotation has been tried by injuries this spring, with Kutter Crawford and Brayan Bello both already poised to start the season on the injured list. It’s possible another starting pitching option will join them, as right-hander Lucas Giolito is scheduled for an MRI after leaving yesterday’s game due to hamstring tightness. If the issue is severe enough to keep Giolito off the Opening Day roster, the Red Sox have a number of viable depth options to help cover for the absence. Quinn Priester might already be lined up to take Bello’s spot already, but other options on the 40-man roster incclude Richard Fitts, Cooper Criswell, and Josh Winckowski.
3. How will the Tigers fill out their outfield?
The Tigers were expected to welcome outfielder Wenceel Perez back into the lineup today after he was sidelined by a back issue last week, but Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports that Perez is absent from today’s Grapefruit League lineup and is not expected to play. With Matt Vierling and potentially Parker Meadows both slated to start the season on the injured list, Perez has stood out as a center field option for the Tigers to open the season. If he’s also ticketed for a late start to the 2025 campaign, however, the Tigers may need to get creative in filling out their outfield mix.
Riley Greene was ticketed for everyday duties in left field but could slide over to center if needed. Kerry Carpenter could spend more time in right field rather than serving as a regular DH. Zach McKinstry and Andy Ibanez both have at least some outfield experience, but it seems likely the club could benefit from another outfielder joining the roster like Justyn-Henry Malloy or perhaps even non-roster invitee Jahmai Jones. If Carpenter plays more in the outfield instead of filling the DH slot in the lineup, that could also create an avenue for Spencer Torkelson to get back into the lineup after losing the first base job to Colt Keith.
Poll: The Yankees’ Priorities
It’s been a tough spring for the Yankees on the injury front. The club has faced a number of noteworthy injuries, with the latest blow being the loss of veteran ace Gerrit Cole to Tommy John surgery. He’ll miss the entire 2025 season, while rotation-mate Luis Gil is set to miss a couple of months after suffering a lat strain. The lineup has been impacted as well, with slugger Giancarlo Stanton poised to miss significant time due to elbow issues while likely starting third baseman DJ LeMahieu has been sidelined by a calf strain.
Each of those injuries have prompted varying levels of speculations that the club could look to bring in some help, but the Yankees are seemingly facing fairly strict budget limits. RosterResource projects them for a $285MM payroll. The Yanks have shown little interest in adding payroll, and their projected $305MM competitive balance tax number is already above the $301MM top tax threshold. It would be fairly difficult to make lineup and rotation additions with limited budget space and a limited supply available to them. General manager Brian Cashman downplayed the possibility of the Yankees making a notable addition, citing the current tax situation as an obstacle.
Perhaps the most obvious choice for an upgrade would be the starting rotation. The Yankees are already down at least one starter for the entire 2025 season, and while Marcus Stroman can step into the rotation as a #5 starter relatively seamlessly, the depth beyond him gets shakier. Non-roster invitee Carlos Carrasco has an ugly 6.18 ERA over his past two seasons, while prospect Will Warren struggled to a 10.32 ERA in his big league debut last year with an ERA near 6.00 at Triple-A. A steadier depth arm like Lance Lynn or Kyle Gibson would make plenty of sense for a rotation that has multiple pitchers with notable injury histories.
The Yankees do have plenty of high-end talent in the rotation that could help to make up for the lack of depth. Max Fried is a legitimate No. 1 starter in his own right. Carlos Rodon is just two seasons removed from earning Cy Young votes. Clarke Schmidt posted a sterling 2.85 ERA in 16 starts last year. With the reigning AL Rookie of the Year set to join the rotation at some point this year, perhaps the Yankees’ needs are more acute in the lineup.
The idea of filling Stanton’s spot in the lineup is made more intriguing by the presence of a comparable veteran lingering in free agenct. J.D. Martinez remains on the market, and the two sluggers have produced nearly identical offensive value over the past five years: Stanton has slashed .231/.313/.473 with a 117 wRC+, while Martinez has hit .263/.330/.477 with a wRC+ of 118. Even with Martinez coming off a relative down season and a particularly tough second half with the Mets last year, it’s easy to see why having Martinez fill in for Stanton could be very appealing. The Yankees have had at least “some contact” with Martinez since Stanton was sidelined.
Then again, it’s fair to argue that Stanton is the easiest of the injured Yankees to replace in-house. Ben Rice has impressed during Spring Training and was already in the conversation for the backup catcher job. He could be tabbed as a potential DH option against right-handed hitters. Another solution would be giving regulars more rest by playing them at DH on occasion. If the club places Trent Grisham in center field for a day rather than Cody Bellinger, Stanton’s injury could let them give Bellinger a partial rest day at DH or have him back up any of Jasson Dominguez, Aaron Judge, or even Paul Goldschmidt so they could get a rest day of their own.
Third base has also been a question throughout camp. LeMahieu seems like he’ll have a shorter absence than Stanton, but even coming off a down season, his injury thins out the infield options. A mix of LeMahieu, Oswald Peraza, and Oswaldo Cabrera always looked fairly uninspiring. An MLBTR poll late last month suggested that a plurality of respondents believed the club’s primary third baseman would be someone not yet in the organization.
The third base market — and second base market, if Jazz Chisholm Jr. plays third instead — has largely been picked over, however. The Yankees were connected to infield options like Jose Iglesias and Jorge Polanco at points throughout the offseason and into Spring Training, but both veterans have since landed elsewhere. Nolan Arenado is known to be willing to waive his no-trade clause to join the Yankees, but it’s unlikely New York would be willing to take on his contract. Veteran Whit Merrifield remains available in free agency but isn’t a clear upgrade coming off a downturn in production at the plate. Perhaps upcoming opt-out opportunities for non-roster veterans and players made available on waivers due to roster crunches when Opening Day draws near will present a more viable solution.
How do MLBTR readers think the Yankees should address their injury-created holes? Will the club sign/acquire a starter to deepen its oft-injured rotation mix? Or could the Yankees instead turn to the lineup and either replace Stanton at DH or look for an upgrade to the infield? Have your say in the poll below:
Where Should The Yankees Prioritize Upgrading?
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Starting Rotation 53% (2,843)
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Third Base/Second Base 39% (2,082)
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Designated Hitter 8% (400)
Total votes: 5,325
The Opener: Tokyo Series, Garver, MLBTR Chat
As Spring Training continues, here are three things to watch for today:
1. Tokyo Series roster decisions:
The Cubs and Dodgers are hitting pause on Spring Training and boarding planes to Japan as they prepare for next week’s Tokyo Series. The exhibition games and other festivities associated with the coming event won’t get underway for a few more days, but the clubs will need to make decisions regarding their 31-man travel roster today. A few notable decisions remain, with Patrick Mooney of The Athletic writing that either outfield prospect Kevin Alcantara or infield prospect Matt Shaw will be heading to Japan with the Cubs, but not both players. Meanwhile, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic notes that the Dodgers have a decision to make on infielder Hyeseong Kim.
Shaw, 23, figures to be the club’s starting third baseman in 2025 but may not begin his time with the club immediately after being slowed in camp by an oblique injury. Alcantara, meanwhile, is the club’s primary backup to Pete Crow-Armstrong in center field after the Cubs parted ways with Cody Bellinger, Mike Tauchman, and Alexander Canario throughout the offseason. As for Kim, Ardaya notes that the 26-year-old could start the 2025 regular season in the minors as he works to implement changes to his swing the Dodgers have worked with him on throughout the spring.
2. Garver, Mariners await x-ray results:
Mariners catcher and DH Mitch Garver exited yesterday’s game against the Brewers after being hit by a pitch. The Mariners sent Garver for x-rays on his “hand and wrist area,” and Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times notes that the club is still awaiting those results. Garver, 34, is entering the second year of a two-year, $24MM contract with Seattle and is likely to serve as the club’s primary backup to Cal Raleigh behind the plate. If Garver were to miss significant time with injury, Blake Hunt is on the Mariners’ 40-man roster and would likely be tapped to fill in as Raleigh’s backup.
3. MLBTR Chat Today:
The first regular season games of the year are just a week away, though a handful of of MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents remain unsigned and some clubs are scrambling to patch holes created by spring injuries. Whether you have a late spring trade proposal in the back of your mind or questions about your favorite club’s final roster decisions, MLBTR’s Steve Adams will be here to answer your questions during a live chat scheduled for 1pm CT. You can click here to ask a question in advance, join in live once the chat begins, or read the transcript once the chat is complete.
Poll: Should The Phillies Extend Kyle Schwarber?
Just over a week ago, reporting indicated that the Phillies and slugger Kyle Schwarber have engaged in “broad” conversations about an extension. That came not long after Schwarber expressed a desire to stick in Philadelphia beyond the life of his current contract, which expires at the end of the coming season. While no updates about the status of talks between the sides have been made public since then, it was just over a year ago that the Phillies agreed to an extension with pending free agent Zack Wheeler after reports of mutual interest between the sides gave way to radio silence as the sides hammered out a deal. Things have been similarly quiet regarding Schwarber’s teammate and fellow possible extension candidate J.T. Realmuto, as the sides reportedly have mutual interest in an extension as of last month with few details having emerged since then.
Getting back to Schwarber, it’s understandable why the 32-year-old would have interest in sticking in Philadelphia long-term. Aside from the team’s on-field success, which has seen them capture the NL pennant in 2022 and follow that up with 90- and 95-win campaigns the past two years, Schwarber himself has found an impressive level of consistency in Philadelphia. Across three seasons in a Phillies uniform, he’s slashed .221/.344/.488 with a wRC+ of 128 while never posting a figure below 120. That’s not only a substantial improvement over his career 119 wRC+ prior to arriving in Philly, but the results are also far more consistent on a year-to-year basis: his wRC+ figures prior to joining the Phillies ranged from as low as 91 in 2020 to as high as 146 in 2021.
Aside from the success both Schwarber and the team have enjoyed over the past three seasons, Schwarber may be hoping that avoiding the open market could afford him longer-term stability. The veteran has always been a lackluster defender, and in 2024 he spent virtually the entire campaign at DH. There’s been talk of Schwarber getting more reps in the outfield (or perhaps even at first base) this year, but the market has proved harsh in recent years for players like Schwarber regardless of whether he’s viewed as a bat-first corner option or a pure DH. Veteran DH J.D. Martinez resorted to taking one-year deals with the Dodgers and Mets during both the 2022-23 and ’23-24 offseasons, and he remains unsigned in March for the second consecutive year. Other defensively limited players like Pete Alonso and Anthony Santander ended up with contracts that fell below expectations this winter, while Schwarber’s longtime teammate Anthony Rizzo has seemingly struggled to get any sort of tempting offer this winter.
That’s not to say Schwarber is necessarily doomed to the same fate of underwhelming offers on the open market, of course. Teams are almost always willing to pay for truly elite talent in free agency, and Schwarber’s 131 wRC+ over the past four seasons is good for 25th in baseball over that timeframe. Those numbers are only slightly ahead of Alonso, who ranks 29th with a 129 wRC+, but it’s worth noting that Alonso faced questions about his future production after back-to-back down seasons. Meanwhile, Schwarber’s 2024 was nothing short of excellent as he slashed .248/.366/.485 with 38 homers and a career-high 3.4 fWAR. Another strong season from Schwarber in 2025 would surely line him up for a healthy contract in free agency, even if his age and defensive profile would likely inhibit his ability to land a lengthier contract.
There’s both pros and cons to the idea re-upping with Schwarber from the Phillies’ perspective as well. Schwarber offers rare left-handed power and exceptional consistency for a player with his skillset, but it’s not hard to see why an aging Phillies club might prefer to go with a younger alternative with strong defensive skills rather than continue to trot out a team that relies on both Schwarber and Nick Castellanos as regular fixtures of the lineup in 2026. Schwarber’s strikeout-heavy approach could be cause for concern in theory, but the club is more than capable of balancing that out with more contact-oriented hitters like Bryson Stott, Alec Bohm, and Trea Turner.
Perhaps the strongest argument for keeping Schwarber in the fold is the lack of clear upgrades available in free agency next winter. Unless the Phillies opt to splurge on an aggressive pursuit of either Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Kyle Tucker, they’ll be hard pressed to find a better hitter on the market next winter than the one they already have. Josh Naylor, Eugenio Suarez, and Cody Bellinger (if he opts out) are among the best hitters in the next tier of free agency next year, and while all three are solid players, none of them come close to offering the reliable offensive impact that Schwarber has given the Phillies over the past three years.
Is that impact enough to live with the high strikeout rates and lack of defensive value on what would likely be a two- or three-year extension? Have your say in the poll below:
Should the Phillies extend Kyle Schwarber?
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No, play out the season and re-evaluate this winter. 53% (3,266)
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Yes, lock him up before he reaches free agency. 47% (2,934)
Total votes: 6,200
The Opener: Cole, Mets, Non-Roster Veterans
As Spring Training continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Cole, Yankees await second opinion.
News broke yesterday that veteran Yankees ace Gerrit Cole has been recommended for Tommy John surgery after undergoing tests on his elbow over the weekend. It’s a potentially brutal blow to the Yankees’ hopes of returning to the World Series in 2025, but nothing is set in stone just yet as Cole and the club are seeking a second opinion before making a final decision on the right-hander’s path forward. Specifically, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that Cole is set to consult with noted surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache about the issue. ElAttrache is one of the country’s preeminent sports medicine figures and, notably, met with Cole about his elbow just last year during Spring Training when a bout of elbow inflammation sidelined the righty for most of the first half.
2. Mets in need of catching help:
With youngster Francisco Alvarez set to miss the next six to eight weeks due to hamate surgery, the Mets are now facing a scramble for catching help with Opening Day just over two weeks away. Backup catcher Luis Torrens figures to step into the starting role for the Mets while Alvarez is out, but the club has no other catchers on the 40-man roster with Jakson Reetz and his eight games of MLB experience standing out as the most experienced non-roster catcher in camp. The club’s lackluster internal solutions make an addition appear likely before Opening Day, with veterans Yasmani Grandal and James McCann still on the market.
3. Non-roster veterans await opportunities:
With Spring Training beginning to wind down and teams beginning to plan out their Opening Day rosters in earnest, there are a number of veterans in camp on minor league deals who will be on the outside looking in when it comes to the big league roster of their current organization. It’s likely that the majority of those veterans will opt out and return to free agency in hopes of finding a major league opportunity elsewhere, as infielder Nicky Lopez seems poised to do after being re-assigned to minor league camp yesterday. As injuries (such as the aforementioned issues faced by the Yankees and Mets) begin to pile up around the league, that could create opportunities for some non-roster veterans in camp with other clubs to get snapped up relatively quickly once they get the chance to opt out closer to Opening Day.
Rays Owner Stu Sternberg Facing Pressure To Sell From Fellow Owners, Commissioner’s Office
Rays owner Stu Sternberg is facing pressure to sell the club from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and “several” fellow owners, according to a report from Evan Drellich of The Athletic. On Thursday, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that while no deal was close, a group of businesspeople local to the Tampa Bay area have started to put together ownership groups with their sights set on purchasing the team. Drellich’s report expands on that report, confirming that no sale is close but that “several groups” with ties to Florida have expressed interest in purchasing the club.
Drellich reports that those involved in one group include the family of San Francisco 49ners owner Edward DeBartolo Jr. and former Yankees minority owner Joe Molloy, with Tampa-area business man Dan Doyle Jr. involved in another group. Molloy subsequently confirmed to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that he’s leading a group with interest in purchasing the Rays, adding that his group would have interest in pursuing the stadium deal the Rays currently have in place with Pinellas County and the city of St. Petersburg. Notably, Molloy led the Yankees while George Steinbrenner was suspended during the 1990s, while Doyle previously expressed interest in purchasing the Rays back in 2023.
That deal, of course, has been publicly thrown into doubt by clashes between the Rays and the Pinellas County Board of Commissioners. The county delayed a vote in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton that the Rays claim held up the construction process and increased costs, and the club argues that it should not cover those costs on its own despite the deal stating that the Rays will handle any cost overruns. That deal is just weeks away from a key deadline on March 31, just after Opening Day, that requires Sternberg to meet certain obligations if the stadium deal is to proceed.
Given the hostile relationship between Sternberg and local officials, Drellich suggests that it could be difficult to revive the deal if Sternberg allows that March 31 deadline to pass without acting. It’s possible the deal could be revived in some form under new ownership, however, and that appears to be the impetus behind Manfred’s push for Sternberg to either work out the stadium issue or sell the club. Drellich emphasizes the MLB believes strongly in Florida as a viable market despite the lackluster financial showings of the Rays and Marlins since the franchises came into being during the 1990s, and the league seems unlikely to approve relocation out of Florida for Sternberg—or a hypothetical future Rays owner. If the stadium deal in St. Pete falls through, Drellich reports that MLB believes the Ybor City neighborhood in Tampa or perhaps even Orlando could be viable alternatives for the Rays.
As the commissioner’s office looks to pressure Sternberg, Drellich writes that the league could look to take away at least some of the Rays’ revenue sharing dollars, which he notes add up to around $60MM annually. That would be a major blow to the club’s finances, but it’s one that could not be exercised unilaterally by Manfred. Instead, alterations to revenue sharing would need to be collectively bargained during the next CBA negotiations. The current agreement runs through 2026, and when it expires Drellich suggests that Manfred and the league could seek a carve out in the CBA that applies specifically to the Rays that would cut the club off from its revenue sharing dollars if they failed to get a stadium deal done before a certain date. As Drellich points out, the league utilized a similar tactic to pressure A’s owner John Fisher into getting a binding stadium agreement into place by January 15, 2024.
Of course, any pressure tactic that needs to be collectively bargained wouldn’t necessarily have much of an immediate effect given that the end of the current CBA is nearly two years away. With that being said, Drellich does note that Manfred has some ways to financially pressure the Rays and Sternberg at his disposal in the more immediate future: the commissioner’s discretionary fund and supplemental discretionary fund. The distribution of those funds is not publicized, but Drellich notes that the Rays have been a beneficiary and that the payments from those funds are typically in the neighborhood of “several” million dollars, though not quite reaching tens of millions.
It’s unclear to what extent any losses in funding from the league, be they from the commissioner’s discretionary fund or eventual revenue sharing losses at some point in the future, would impact the Rays from a baseball perspective. The club already runs one of the league’s lowest payrolls with their $90MM projected payroll for 2025 ranking in the bottom five in the league per RosterResource. That’s exactly in line with last year’s payroll numbers, but slightly higher than where the club has lived in the past. It wouldn’t be a shock, then, if the losses in funding were passed on in at least some capacity to the baseball operations department.
Infielder Ha-Seong Kim‘s $16MM player option is the only guaranteed contract on the Rays’ books beyond this season apart from the Wander Franco contract that is currently going unpaid, but the club does have a number of pricey club options on veterans like Yandy Diaz, Brandon Lowe, and Pete Fairbanks next season. If the club’s baseball operations budget tightens in response to financial pressure from the league, it’s possible the front office could look to move some of those players in the offseason or even at the trade deadline this year depending on the club’s position in the standings.
As Drellich notes, there’s little incentive for Sternberg to lower his asking price for the Rays in order to facilitate a sale. The Rays were estimated to be worth $1.25 billion according to franchise valuations by Forbes last year, and that value figures to have only gone up since then. Even if Manfred and the commissioner’s office begin putting financial pressure on Sternberg to sell, those financial losses would surely pale in comparison to the potential loss in value that would come with selling low on a franchise estimated to be worth more than a billion dollars.
Gerrit Cole Recommended For Tommy John Surgery, Yankees Awaiting Second Opinion
Yankees fans have been nervously awaiting news regarding ace Gerrit Cole ever since he was sent for “diagnostic tests” on his elbow on Friday. Today, Jim Bowden of The Athletic reports that Cole has been recommended for Tommy John surgery, though the Yankees are currently waiting to receive a second opinion to confirm that diagnosis. The news is in line with reporting yesterday that indicated Cole was “concerned” about his elbow and that the righty was seeking a second opinion on the issue.
If the diagnosis is confirmed, the Yankees would lose Cole for not only the 2025 season but likely at least some of the 2026 campaign as well. Even if a second opinion suggests that Cole could rehab the issue rather than go under the knife, even a relatively minor elbow issue could wipe out much of Cole’s 2025 campaign. It was just last year that the veteran right-hander was sidelined by elbow inflammation for nearly three months at the start of the season and ultimately did not make his season debut until June 19. While it’s impossible to establish a timetable for Cole’s return until the second opinion comes in and the Yankees announce more information about their veteran’s status, even the most optimistic of estimates would likely leave Cole out of commission for around that long.
Last season, the Yankees were able to lean on the surprise contributions of eventual AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil to round out their rotation while Cole was absent. They’ll enjoy no such luxury this time around, as Gil is ticketed to miss multiple months himself due to a lat strain. With Cole and Gil both seemingly ticketed for significant absences to open the 2025 campaign, a starting staff that was so overflowing with talent that the Yankees opted to trade Nestor Cortes to the Brewers and aggressively shopped Marcus Stroman throughout the winter will now be searching for answers as they attempt to patch together the back of their rotation.
The good news for the Yankees is that their rotation is still reasonably well-stocked. Max Fried is a viable ace-in-waiting to pick up the slack from the loss of Cole, while Clarke Schmidt and Carlos Rodon maintain their spots in the middle of the club’s projected rotation. With Stroman sliding into the back of the rotation after entering camp projected for a possible long relief role, that leaves just one spot in the club’s starting five that will need to be filled for the first few months of the season.
The club has a handful of internal options at its disposal, even with well-regarded prospect Chase Hampton having undergone Tommy John surgery himself last month. The top option on the club’s 40-man roster as things stand is right-hander Will Warren, who made his big league debut last year. That cup of coffee at the big league level did not go over very well, as Warren was shelled to the tune of a 10.32 ERA in 22 2/3 innings of work. That was just a glimpse into Warren’s struggles last year, as he also floundered at the Triple-A level with a 5.91 ERA across 23 starts at the highest level of the minors. With that being said, the 25-year-old has impressed so far this spring with a 1.13 ERA in three appearances. If the Yankees believe the issues that plagued Warren in 2024 are behind him, it’s easy to imagine him being chosen as the fifth starter despite the question marks much like Gil last year.
Warren isn’t the only option the Yankees have at their disposal, however, as a handful of non-roster invitees are in camp with the club at present. Veteran right-hander Carlos Carrasco is just days away from his 38th birthday and has struggled badly the past two years with a 6.18 ERA in 193 2/3 innings of work for the Mets and Guardians, but his 15 years of MLB experience could offer the club some veteran stability at the back of the rotation even if Carrasco’s overall results are very likely to be well below average. Right-hander Allan Winans and southpaw Brandon Leibrandt are among the club’s other non-roster invitees who could theoretically be called upon.
Another option, of course, would be to look outside the organization for rotation help. That’s surely not the Yankees’ preferred course of action; after all, budget concerns kept them from adding a surefire infielder at second or third base to pair with Jazz Chisholm Jr. this winter, leaving the club to sort through lackluster options like Oswaldo Cabrera, Oswald Peraza, and the now-injured DJ LeMahieu at the hot corner. With that being said, former Yankee Jordan Montgomery could surely be acquired from the Diamondbacks for virtually no cost other than eating a portion of the lefty’s salary after his difficult 2024 campaign, while interesting options like Kyle Gibson and Spencer Turnbull remain available in free agency. That’s hardly an exhaustive list of potential external candidates, though many clubs may prefer to hold their potential trade chips until the trade deadline at this stage in the calendar unless overwhelmed by an offer.
Rangers Notes: Outfield, Garcia, Duran
The Rangers have faced plenty of questions about their outfield mix throughout the spring, as both Wyatt Langford and Adolis Garcia have been slowed by oblique issues. While both avoided a serious injury, Langford has only recently returned to game action and Garcia is further behind. Fortunately, Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News reported earlier today that Garcia resumed swinging a bat today, putting both players in position to be ready for Opening Day on March 27.
That leaves the outfield corners more or less settled, with Langford and Garcia expected to patrol left and right field on a regular basis respectively. Center field remains something of a question mark, however. The club has both Evan Carter and Leody Taveras on the roster as solid options, and given his prospect pedigree it seems likely that Carter would have a leg up when it comes to regular playing time. With that being said, the club’s plans for center field remain very much up in the air due primarily to both Carter and Taveras struggling against left-handed pitching. Carter has hit just .081/.150/.081 against southpaws to this point in his young MLB career, and the switch-hitting Taveras’s .189/.270/.244 line last season wasn’t much more inspiring.
Without a clear option in center field against lefties, it seems increasingly likely the club could look to find a way to get either Kevin Pillar or Sam Haggerty onto the roster. Both Pillar and Haggerty are in camp as non-roster invitees but have solid track records against left-handed pitching and an ability to handle center. Pillar has plenty of experience as a glove-first outfield option over his 12 year MLB career, and even entering his age-36 season he retains the ability to mash opposite-handed pitching with a .310/.352/.500 line against lefties last year. Meanwhile, Haggerty has never had a regular role in the majors but is a career .263/.355/.452 hitter against southpaws, even better than Pillar’s career numbers. With that said, Haggerty has primarily played the outfield corners throughout his career to this point while Pillar is much more experienced in center.
Regardless of whether Pillar or Haggerty ultimately makes the roster, adding either to the mix would squeeze the club’s roster. One possible route could be optioning Carter to the minor leagues, where he has just eight games at the Triple-A level under his belt. That would cleanly allow the club to maximize its versatility while using a platoon of Taveras and either Pillar or Haggerty in center field but it would also mean further delaying the potential impact of Carter, who was a consensus top-5 prospect in the sport entering last season. If the Rangers want Carter on the roster for Opening Day, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News suggests that utility man Ezequiel Duran could be headed to Triple-A to start the season.
Duran, 25, had a brilliant season for the Rangers in 2023 but struggled badly last year with a 74 wRC+ last year. While a right-handed hitting utility player like Duran could seem like an obvious platoon partner for Carter or Taveras in center, he hit just .209/.250/.244 in 46 games against lefties last year. That work totaled just 92 plate appearances, so perhaps it should be taken with a grain of salt, but more pressing that Duran’s vanishing bat against southpaws last year is his lack of experience in center. He’s made just 16 professional appearances in center field throughout his career, and only one inning of that work came at the big league level. That could make Duran the odd man out on the club’s current roster, with fellow utility man Josh Smith potentially in line to take on additional duties in his stead.
Garrett Crochet Sets Opening Day Deadline For Extension Talks
Ever since they swung a deal with the White Sox to land prized southpaw Garrett Crochet back in December, extending the southpaw’s stay in Boston beyond his final two years of team control has appeared to be a top priority for the Red Sox. The club reportedly approached Crochet about the possibility in early January, and at that point Crochet expressed interest in getting a deal done. With that being said, however, Crochet has seemed to be more interested in betting on himself of late. The latest news regarding the state of talks comes from a recent interview Crochet sat down for with Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, where he revealed he was not interested in continuing extension discussions into the regular season when it begins on March 27.
“For me personally, once the season starts, I would like for whatever conversations are currently being had to be placed on the back burner until the following offseason,” said Crochet, as relayed by Speier. Crochet went on to note that he doesn’t want the possibility of an extension to serve as a distraction for either himself or his teammates once the regular season gets underway.
Between the newly imposed deadline and comments Crochet made to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo last month where he expressed interest in playing out the 2025 season before signing a long-term deal, it’s perhaps not a shock that more than 65% of respondents to a recent MLBTR Poll suggested that they expect Crochet to enter the 2025 season without an extension in place. With that being said, it’s possible that Crochet’s disinterest in negotiating beyond Opening Day convinces the sides to work more aggressively towards a deal in the final weeks of Spring Training. For his part, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow expressed to Speier both his interest in getting Crochet locked up long-term and confidence that the front office would have the financial support of ownership when it comes to getting a deal done.
“When there is an opportunity that makes sense for the Red Sox, we have the support of ownership,” Breslow said, as relayed by Speier. “…I think if there are opportunities to keep players that we identify as cornerstones of a run of success in a Red Sox uniform, that will be greeted with the same enthusiasm.”
That Crochet is the sort of player Red Sox brass—and ownership—might be willing to extend themselves in order to add is hardly a surprise. After all, the club gave up a massive prospect package headlined by top-100 talents Kyle Teel and Braden Montgomery in order to acquire Crochet during this offseason’s Winter Meetings, and Crochet’s talent speaks for itself after he posted a 3.58 ERA and 2.69 FIP in 32 starts for the White Sox last year in his first season as a big league starting pitcher.
The raw ability Crochet flashed during the 2024 campaign combined with the 25-year-old’s youth should be enough to earn the southpaw a hefty contract in free agency, so long as he stays healthy and effective over the next two seasons. That qualifier is necessary for virtually any pitcher in an age where season-ending surgeries with rehab timelines of a year or longer becoming increasingly commonplace, but it’s especially true for Crochet. After all, the lefty’s 146 innings of work last year were nearly triple what he’d ever done in the majors prior to this year, and well above the 65 innings Crochet maxed out at even during his college days.
Injuries cost Crochet almost the entirety of the first stage of his career, and it would hardly be surprising if the Red Sox had some trepidation about offering the lefty a massive extension given his injury history. With that being said, it’s difficult to argue that the Red Sox couldn’t afford to pay Crochet a hefty sum. After all, the club’s projected payroll for 2025 according to RosterResource is just $210MM even after signing Alex Bregman to a massive three-year guarantee last month. While that’s a bump up from recent years, it’s lower than even the club’s 2022 payroll, to say nothing of the $242MM the club spent in 2019.
Perhaps, then, the best thing for both sides could be waiting until after the 2025 campaign to get a deal done. If Crochet puts up a strong season this year, that could give the lefty a more credible claim to the sort of huge extension he’s surely hoping to land while also affording the Red Sox an up-close look at him over the course of the 2025 season, which could give them more confidence in locking up the southpaw on a deal that could reasonably stretch into his mid-to-late 30s.