Dodgers Re-Sign Enrique Hernandez
The Dodgers have officially welcomed Enrique Hernandez back on a one-year, $6.5MM free agent deal. Los Angeles placed Gavin Stone on the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot. Stone underwent shoulder surgery last year and will miss the entire season, so that’s a procedural move. Hernandez is represented by Wasserman.
Hernandez, 33, returns to Los Angeles for a ninth season in Dodger blue. The veteran utility man got his start as a sixth-round pick by the Astros back in 2009 and debuted with the club in 2014, but was traded to the Marlins midseason before being flipped to L.A. prior to the 2015 season. Hernandez quickly became an instrumental part of the Dodgers’ roster. His versatility has allowed him to appear at every position on the diamond except for catcher in a Dodgers uniform, and his first six-season stint with the club saw him hit a respectable .240/.312/.425 (98 wRC+) from 2015 to 2020. That includes an excellent 122 wRC+ against southpaws, and Hernandez was a regular fixture in the club’s lineup against left-handed pitching throughout his first stint in California.
Hernandez’s first foray into free agency following the Dodgers’ 2020 World Series championship led him to sign with the Red Sox on a two-year, $14MM deal before he was extended for an additional year and $10MM. Hernandez actually had the best season of his career in Boston during the 2021 campaign, when he slashed .250/.337/.449 (109 wRC+) while splitting time between center field and second base for the Red Sox en route to a campaign worth 3.7 fWAR and 5.0 bWAR. Hernandez struggled badly for the club after that first brilliant year, however, and hit just .222/.286/.330 (68 wRC+) over his final year and a half in a Red Sox uniform.
That led to a trade back to the Dodgers, with whom he’s started to look once again like a more viable bench bat. His overall slash line of .240/.289/.389 (87 wRC+) since rejoining the Dodgers at the 2023 trade deadline is still below average, and since returning to Los Angeles he’s actually played as a more or less split-neutral hitter after for years hitting much better against southpaws. With that being said, he remains as versatile as ever in the field. He’s also had a history of being a quality postseason contributor, with a .278/.353/.522 career slash line in the playoffs. Those postseason heroics haven’t disappeared even as the rest of his game has taken a step backwards in recent years, and Hernandez slashed .294/.357/.451 in 14 postseason games for the Dodgers during their World Series championship run last year.
Hernandez’s combination of versatility, postseason track record, and status as a fan favorite and beloved clubhouse presence were enough to convince the Dodgers to bring him back into the fold for a ninth season in spite of an already very crowded mix of position players. As things stand, Hernandez appears to fit best as a right-handed complement to lefty-swinging infielders Hyeseong Kim and Max Muncy, though that same role also applies to veteran infielder Miguel Rojas, who is generally regarded as a superior defender to Hernandez on the dirt. Perhaps Hernandez could back up Tommy Edman in center field and serve as a right-handed complement to Michael Conforto in the outfield, though fellow utility veteran Chris Taylor and outfield youngster Andy Pages both figure to compete for a similar role this spring as well. However Hernandez ultimately ends up fitting into the club’s day-to-day plans, his return could leave Pages and James Outman on the outside looking for the Dodgers’ roster, set to at least start the 2025 season in Triple-A barring a surprise decision to part ways with Taylor, Rojas, or another more established player.
Hernandez first announced the deal on social media. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported that it was a one-year contract, while Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic was first on the $6.5MM salary. Image courtesy of Imagn.
The Opener: Dodgers, DFA Resolutions, MLBTR Chat
As Spring Training starts to get underway, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Dodger pitchers and catchers report:
Today is the report date for Dodgers pitchers and catchers, making them the second team to officially kick off spring training after the Cubs did so on Sunday. A number of notable new faces will be in Dodgers camp after a busy offseason, including Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell, Tanner Scott, and Kirby Yates. Aside from the Dodgers’ preseason activities officially getting underway, the start of camp also means that the 60-day IL will open for the Dodgers today. That opens the door for the club to finalize Enrique Hernandez‘s one-year deal and hammer something out with veteran southpaw Clayton Kershaw. The Dodgers started to suffer from a major 40-man roster crunch late in the offseason, but they have a whopping five 60-day IL candidates with each of Gavin Stone, River Ryan, Emmet Sheehan, Kyle Hurt and Brusdar Graterol on the mend from elbow surgery (Ryan, Sheehan, Hurt) or shoulder surgery (Stone, Graterol).
2. DFA resolutions expected today:
Cubs southpaw Rob Zastryzny and Blue Jays right-hander Michael Petersen were both designated for assignment last week as their clubs made room on the 40-man roster for the additions of Ryan Brasier and Max Scherzer, respectively. Both players’ seven-day DFA windows expire this afternoon, so we should find out today what’s next for both players.
Zastryzny, 33 in March, has a 4.30 ERA in 67 MLB innings across parts of six seasons since he debuted with Chicago in 2016. Petersen, meanwhile, made his big league debut for the Dodgers back in June and pitched to a 5.95 ERA in 16 appearances between L.A. and Miami. If Zastryzny clears waivers, he’ll have the opportunity to elect free agency rather than be outrighted to the minors by Chicago. The same cannot be said for Petersen, who has never cleared outright waivers before in his career and would be available to Toronto as non-roster depth should he go unclaimed.
3. MLBTR Chat Today:
Spring training is now officially underway, though seven of MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents remain unsigned and plenty of clubs still have more work to do before the start of the season. Whether you have a trade proposal in the back of your mind or questions about an upcoming camp battle this spring, 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: Who’s Winning The Offseason In The AL East?
The calendar has flipped to February and the start of spring is just a matter of days away. While some notable free agents (including seven of MLBTR’s Top 50) remain unsigned, most clubs have already done the heavy lifting in terms of preparing their roster for the 2025 season. For the past week, we’ve been taking a look around the league at which clubs have had the strongest offseason to this point. The Mets, Cubs, Dodgers, and Tigers have decisively won the polls covering the National League’s three divisions and the AL Central, but things were much closer in the AL West where the Athletics narrowly beat out the Rangers. Today, we’ll turn our attention to the league’s final division: the AL East.
While the Yankees managed to make it all the way to the World Series before losing to Los Angeles in five games, 2024 was a less than stellar year for the rest of the division. The Blue Jays and Rays sold off pieces at the deadline after underperforming badly in the first half, while the Red Sox struggled down the stretch and ultimately missed the playoffs despite adding at the deadline. The Orioles, meanwhile, managed to make the postseason for the second year in a row but have still yet to win a playoff game between those two appearances after getting bounced by Detroit in two games during the AL Wild Card series. All five teams in this division are ostensibly attempting to compete again in 2025, however, and there’s been noteworthy moves all throughout the division this offseason.
Which team has done the most to set themselves up for success this winter? Teams are listed in order of their 2024 record.
New York Yankees
A discussion of what the reigning AL champions have added this winter can’t begin without addressing what they’ve lost. Juan Soto signed a record-shattering contract to move across town to the Mets, and in doing so removed a vital piece from the heart of New York’s lineup. Down one perennial MVP candidate, the Yankees focused this winter on fixing up their roster around the one that still remains in Aaron Judge. The club kicked off the offseason by calling the bluff of veteran ace Gerrit Cole when he opted out of his deal with the club only to agree to return on his current deal rather than test free agency when the Yankees declined to tack on an extra year and $36MM to his contract to force him to stay. They then paired another veteran ace with Cole at the top of the rotation by signing southpaw Max Fried away from Atlanta, which freed them up to trade Nestor Cortes to the Brewers as part of a package that landed them star closer Devin Williams. Trading for Fernando Cruz and reuniting with both Tim Hill and Jonathan Loaisiga in free agency further bolstered the club’s strong bullpen mix.
While the club’s pitching moves have been quite impressive, the same can’t necessarily be said for the lineup. The club swapped Cody Poteet to the Cubs to acquire Cody Bellinger in what amounted to a salary-dump move for Chicago, and the addition of Bellinger allowed the club to move Judge back to his natural position of right field. With that being said, however, their only other move of note on offense has been to sign Paul Goldschmidt coming off a career-worst season. Those additions are likely upgrades over Alex Verdugo and Anthony Rizzo, but losses of Soto and Gleyber Torres on offense have not been addressed. The Yankees have tried to trade Marcus Stroman to free up funds for further lineup additions, but that goal has not yet borne fruit.
Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles haven’t made the splashy addition many expected this winter after a difficult season that saw them get swept out of the playoffs for the second year in a row. Right-hander Corbin Burnes departed for Arizona and was replaced by veteran arms Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano rather than a true ace. Aside from those rotation additions, the club has also added Andrew Kittredge to its bullpen mix as a set-up man for returning closer Felix Bautista. Most of the focus has been on the lineup this winter, however, as they’ve added Tyler O’Neill to replace Anthony Santander, Gary Sanchez to replace James McCann, and then further bolstered the club’s outfield depth with deals for Ramon Laureano and Dylan Carlson. That leaves the club set to enter 2025 with a position player mix that might be even deeper than last year’s, but a pitching staff that carries even more question marks.
Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox set out to improve their rotation this winter and accomplished just that. They swung a trade for White Sox southpaw Garrett Crochet at the Winter Meetings, shipping out top prospects Kyle Teel and Braden Montgomery in a four-player package that brought back a lefty ace with two years of control remaining before free agency. They followed that addition up by replacing outgoing veteran right-hander Nick Pivetta with a high-upside roll of the dice on Walker Buehler, who struggled in 2024 coming off a return from Tommy John surgery but was among the best pitchers in the sport before going under the knife.
Outside of those moves, however, the Red Sox have been surprisingly quiet. They were involved in the sweepstakes for top free agents like Juan Soto and Max Fried but ultimately did not sign any of those impact players, or even players in the next tier down like Nathan Eovaldi and Teoscar Hernandez. The additions of Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson should help to improve the bullpen, but the team’s long-acknowledged need for a right-handed bat who can help balance their lineup has gone unaddressed. That could change as they appear to be involved in the markets for both Alex Bregman and Nolan Arenado, but for now the offense has gone largely unaddressed.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays’ offseason moves have largely been overshadowed by the situation regarding Tropicana Field, which was badly damaged by Hurricane Milton and will not be usable for the 2025 season. That’s forced the Rays to temporarily relocate to Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, but the new location hasn’t stopped the club from being fairly active this winter. The club was long expected to deal from their starting pitching surplus this winter, and did so when they shipped Jeffrey Springs to the A’s alongside Jacob Lopez in a return highlighted by flamethrowing right-hander Joe Boyle. The club also traded Jose Siri to the Mets shortly before the non-tender deadline, leaving them with plenty of question marks in the outfield, but did manage to address other key areas of the roster in free agency.
After entering the winter with catcher as their biggest question mark, the club added the winter’s top free agent at the position in Danny Jansen. More recently, the Rays addressed their lackluster mix of players at shortstop by bringing Ha-Seong Kim into the fold on a sh0rt-term deal. The club’s lack of solid outfield options, which will likely force infielders like Christopher Morel, Richie Palacios and Jose Caballero onto the grass in 2025, leave a major question mark on the club’s roster, but the additions of Jansen and Kim along with the impending return for ace Shane McClanahan from injury leave the club into a relatively good place headed into 2025.
Toronto Blue Jays
Long considered to be the bridesmaid but never the bride when it comes to landing top talent in free agency, the Jays once again came up short in their pursuit of top free agents like Soto, Burnes, and Roki Sasaki. That didn’t stop them from upgrading the roster this winter, however, as they’ve been one of the more active teams around the league. Jeff Hoffman, Josh Walker, Nick Sandlin and Yimi Garcia were both brought in to shore up the club’s lackluster bullpen mix after the club non-tendered closer Jordan Romano, while future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer will be tasked with replacing Yusei Kikuchi in the club’s rotation as he enter his age-40 campaign.
In addition to those pitching moves, the Jays made two major additions to their lineup: they traded Spencer Horwitz to land Guardians second baseman Andres Gimenez alongside Sandlin during the Winter Meetings, providing them with a quality defensive option at the keystone and a viable long-term alternative to Bo Bichette at shortstop. That move was followed up by signing slugger Anthony Santander to a five-year deal, with Santander set to offer power in the lineup as well as some protection for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in his final season before free agency. Guerrero’s future has been a key topic of Toronto’s offseason to this point, and while the sides have discussed an extension there’s been no signs of a conclusion in sight even with Guerrero’s self-imposed deadline just a week away.
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The AL East stands out among the other divisions around the league in part because all five teams have at least a couple of notable additions to their roster in a winter where a surprising number of clubs mostly stood pat. With that being said, however, most of those additions either left a hole in the roster unaddressed or fell short of what outside observers felt was needed to push the team to contention in 2025. All five teams made worthwhile moves this winter, but will it be enough for the Yankees to overcome the losses of Soto and Torres, or the Orioles to overcome the loss of Burnes? Will the Red Sox be able to to get by without adding to the lineup, and will the Rays be able to compete with questions all over the outfield? Are the Blue Jays’ aggressive additions enough to put them back into the playoffs for Guerrero’s walk year? With all five teams trying to win in 2025 despite holes and question marks, the AL East figures to be perhaps the most interesting of the league’s divisions this year, top-to-bottom.
Of the five AL East clubs, which one has had the strongest offseason so far? Have your say in the poll below:
Which AL East team has had the best offseason so far?
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New York Yankees 50% (6,132)
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Boston Red Sox 21% (2,585)
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Toronto Blue Jays 17% (2,072)
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Baltimore Orioles 9% (1,084)
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Tampa Bay Rays 4% (461)
Total votes: 12,334
The Opener: Spring Training, Extensions, 60-Day IL
Baseball is back! Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world headed into spring training:
1. Pitchers and catchers begin reporting:
The Cubs kicked off spring training officially yesterday when their pitchers and catchers reported to camp. With yesterday’s report date came a number of interesting comments from club officials, including president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and manager Craig Counsell, about the state of the roster headed into the season and whether or not there may be more left to do as spring training begins. As the rest of the league begins to filter into camp throughout the week, starting with the Dodgers tomorrow, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see more illuminating comments from other teams’ officials that help set the tone for the coming spring.
2. Extension season begins?
With the start of spring training also begins the start of extension season around baseball. While extensions can and do happen at any point in the calendar, spring training is generally regarded as the most natural time for those negotiations to occur and is frequently utilized as a window to hammer out those deals where club budgets are mostly set and players have not yet turned their attention fully to the day-to-day grind of the regular season. Blue Jays superstar Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will get the most attention over the coming days after he set a deadline for contract talks with Toronto that is now just over a week away. The Rockies are reportedly weighing the possibility of extending center fielder Brenton Doyle, and the Phillies and J.T. Realmuto could discuss an extension sometime this spring as well. There will be dozens of negotiations around the league, and at least a few extensions are completed every spring. Last February/March brought long-term deals for Bobby Witt Jr., Jose Altuve, Mitch Keller, Zack Wheeler, Brayan Bello, Ezequiel Tovar, Will Smith and Ceddanne Rafaela, as shown in MLBTR’s Contract Tracker.
3. 60-Day injured list opens:
When each team’s pitchers and catchers first report to spring training, their club will also unlock access to the 60-day injured list. That “60-day” term is relative to Opening Day, not the point at which the player is placed on the IL (though teams can backdate the initial placement up the to maximum three days allowed by league rules). Players on the 60-day injured list do not count toward a 40-man roster. That’s a hugely valuable roster construction tool for teams with full 40-man rosters. In the days/weeks ahead, several teams will move a player to the 60-day IL to finalize agreed-upon deals that have not yet become official (e.g. the Dodgers’ reunion with Enrique Hernandez). The presence of some 60-day IL candidates on a team’s roster can also allow that club to get more aggressive with waiver claims or signing remaining free agents. MLBTR’s Darragh McDonald recently laid out a comprehensive list of likely 60-day IL candidates for each team, though of course it’s always possible more long-term injuries could pop up as players filter back into camp for the start of spring training.
Tanner Scott To Open Season As Dodgers’ Primary Closer
The Dodgers signed arguably the two best closers available this winter when they landed both Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates in free agency last month. The pair of moves, along with their move to re-sign Blake Treinen earlier in the winter, bolstered an already excellent late-inning mix that included Michael Kopech, Evan Phillips, and Alex Vesia. The moves raised the question, however, of who Los Angeles planned to lean on for the ninth inning. Manager Dave Roberts mostly put that question to bed when talking with Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio this morning, however. In that conversation, Roberts said that Scott will receive the “brunt” of the club’s save opportunities to start the season.
That Scott would get the nod over Yates isn’t a complete surprise given the southpaw’s $72MM contract and his utterly dominant work over the past two seasons. The lefty has pitched to a 2.04 ERA in 150 innings of work with a 2.53 FIP over the past two seasons, picking up 34 saves in 40 chances along the way. He’s struck out 31.3% of his opponents in that time while walking 10%. Those dominant numbers should be good enough to close for just about any team, and that two-season track record can be argued to give Scott a leg up over Yates in terms of consistency, given that the right-hander pitched to a solid but unspectacular 3.28 ERA with a lackluster 4.63 FIP in 61 appearances for the Braves in 2023.
With that being said, however, it’s fair to note that Yates has more experience in the closer role that Scott does. The soon to be 38-year-old veteran racked up nearly as many saves last year (33) as Scott did over the past two seasons, and led the majors in saves with the Padres back in 2019. While both pitchers have been used outside of the closer role throughout their careers, Yates is more entrenched in the ninth inning than Scott is. After all, Scott was moved out of the closer role in deference to San Diego’s hard-throwing righty Robert Suarez down the stretch just last summer, and was only used in the ninth inning or later for about a third of his total appearances with the Marlins in 2023. Yates also arguably had an even more dominant 2024 campaign than Scott did, as he pitched to an eye-popping 1.17 ERA with a 2.50 FIP and 35.9% strikeout rate for the Rangers last year.
Of course, that’s not to say Yates couldn’t get into some save situations at some point this year. Roberts stopped short of fully anointing Scott as the club’s closer, leaving room for Yates or other experienced late-inning arms like Treinen, Phillips, and Kopech to come in for a save opportunity should a situation call for it. The Dodgers have rarely stayed closely wedded to a full-time closer in the years since Kenley Jansen departed the club during the 2021-22 offseason, with ten or more players recording at least one save for the club in each of the last three seasons. Given that willingness to play matchups late in games rather than rely on a set bullpen hierarchy, it would hardly be a surprise to see the Dodgers continue with that approach to some degree even after investing significant dollars into Scott as their top closing option.
Austin Voth Signs With NPB’s Chiba Lotte Marines
The Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball announced today that they’ve signed right-hander Austin Voth (h/t Yakyu Cosmopolitan). Voth is expected to pitch out of the rotation for the Marines.
Voth, 33 in June, was a fifth-round pick by the Nationals back in 2013. He started his career with the Nats in 2018 but struggled with the club throughout his time in Washington. Despite a solid 2019 season where he pitched in 43 2/3 innings of 3.30 ERA (137 ERA+) ball backed up by a solid 3.79 FIP, he was never so much as league average for the rest of his time in D.C. before being shipped out to Baltimore partway through the 2022 campaign. Overall, Voth finished his Nationals career with a 5.70 ERA (75 ERA+) and a 5.12 FIP despite a fairly solid 22.1% strikeout rate.
Upon joining the Orioles, Voth managed to turn things around somewhat. He was quickly installed in the Baltimore rotation for the second half of 2022, making 17 starts and five relief appearances that totaled 83 innings. It was a strong performance as he struck out 20.7% of opponents while walking 7.2% en route to a 3.04 ERA (129 ERA+) and 3.96 FIP. That quality production at the back of the rotation helped to lift the Orioles to their first winning record since 2016 and all but guaranteed the righty a roster spot in Baltimore the following year. Unfortunately, Voth’s numbers took a nosedive in 2023 when he moved back to the bullpen, with a brutal 5.19 ERA (79 ERA+) in 34 2/3 innings of work. Voth’s peripherals largely matched that performance as well; his 21.3% strikeout rate was mostly stagnant as compared to the year prior, but Voth’s walk rate jumped to 9.3% and he gave up a whopping six homers in 25 relief outings.
The right-hander was outrighted off the club’s roster in September of 2023 and elected free agency following the season. He signed with the Mariners on a one-year, big league deal that guaranteed him $1.25MM and was a key part of the club’s bullpen mix throughout the 2024 season. After previously working as a starter and long reliever throughout his career, Voth was used almost exclusively in short relief by the Mariners to decent results. He posted a league average 3.69 ERA in 61 innings of work as his strikeout rate ticked up to 24.6% against a 7.3% walk rate, though home runs continued to be an issue for the righty.
Now that he’s headed to Japan, Voth figures to slot into the Marines’ rotation after the club parted ways with Roki Sasaki via the posting system last month. The Marines surely aren’t relying on Voth to replicate the production of their departing 23-year-old phenom, but his addition should offer them quality back-of-the-rotation innings nonetheless. Should the 32-year-old find success in NPB as a rotation piece this year, it’s certainly within the realm of possibility he could return to stateside ball in hopes of establishing himself as a starter in the majors as well.
Jed Hoyer, Craig Counsell Discuss Cubs’ Third Base Plans
Pitchers and catchers reported to camp for the Cubs today, and as part of the start of camp president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and manager Craig Counsell both spoke with the media about a number of topics. Third base was a particular focus of the media session after Chicago dealt incumbent third baseman Isaac Paredes to the Astros as part of the Kyle Tucker trade back in December. Notably, the Cubs have reportedly remained on the periphery of the market for longtime Astros third baseman Alex Bregman this winter as he’s lingered in free agency. While it does seem as though Chicago has interest in Bregman’s services, Hoyer made clear the club is currently focused on the players they already have internally in comments relayed by USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.
“Unclear,” Hoyer said when asked if another major move was coming before Opening Day. “I think you always look for opportunity, but right now we’re going to focus on the guys we have in camp. That’s the plan.”
Nightengale reports that the Red Sox, Tigers, and Astros have all made offers of at least four years to Bregman at this point, and that’s largely consistent with previous reporting that has suggested Bregman has been presented with five- and six-year offers throughout the winter. As for the Cubs, Nightengale writes that there’s been “no indication” that the Cubs would be willing to offer more than a three-year deal, but added that they could be willing to offer Bregman the highest average annual value of any of his suitors should he settle for a short-term deal.
It’s a model that the club followed to re-sign Cody Bellinger last winter when they landed him on a three-year, $80MM pact in late February, and other high-profile free agents like Pete Alonso and Jack Flaherty have had to settle for similarly short-term offers previously this winter. Whether Bregman’s market will make it necessary for him to follow that same path remains to be seen, however, and it’s easy to imagine the Cubs simply going with their internal options at the position rather than committing to a lengthy contract with Bregman.
Of those internal options, the most exciting one for Cubs fans is surely top prospect Matt Shaw. The club’s 2023 first-round pick has done nothing but hit as a professional, with a .303/.384/.522 slash line across four levels of the minors to this point in his young career. That includes a fabulous 35-game stint at Triple-A late last year, where he hit .298/.395/.534 with a strikeout rate of just 19.7% in 152 trips to the plate. Shaw’s ascent has put him firmly on the big league radar headed into the 2025 season, and it seems as though (barring a surprise acquisition like Bregman) the 23-year-old will get every opportunity to open camp with the club this spring.
With that being said, Hoyer made clear (as relayed by ESPN’s Jesse Rogers) that Shaw will have to earn the position this spring and won’t just be handed the position. While Hoyer emphasized that they don’t plan to “anoint” the rookie, it’s worth pointing out that there isn’t a clear veteran option for the hot corner should they decide to pivot away from Shaw at this point. Vidal Brujan was acquired from the Marlins earlier this winter but has less than 100 innings of third base experience in the majors and is a career .189/.261/.270 hitter. Rule 5 pick Gage Workman is viewed as a plus defender at third base and hit well for the Tigers’ Double-A affiliate in Erie last year, but he hasn’t even played at the Triple-A level before making him arguably less experienced than Shaw himself.
Perhaps veteran utility man Jon Berti is the best internal third base candidate besides Shaw, though the 35-year-old is coming off a season where he was limited to just 25 games due to injuries and would be risky to rely on in an everyday role. He’s also reportedly under consideration to back up Michael Busch at first base, suggesting his best role may be one where his versatility is leveraged to allow him to fill in at multiple positions off the bench. Further complicating the Cubs’ infield mix is the uncertain timeline of second baseman Nico Hoerner. The Cubs revealed in late October that Hoerner had undergone flexor tendon surgery without providing a timeline for his return, and the latest update on his recovery process was that he had yet to begin throwing or hitting post-surgery and that his availability for the start of the season was in question.
Given all of that uncertainty around the infield, another infielder would certainly make sense for Chicago even if they aren’t willing to extend themselves to land Bregman. Free agent infield help is scarce at this point in the offseason, however. Aside from Bregman, the best third base options available are bench pieces like Paul DeJong and Luis Urias. It’s possible a trade could be had, with Brett Baty of the Mets, Oswaldo Cabrera of the Yankees, and Willi Castro of the Twins among speculative trade candidates who could still be available at this point in the winter, but the Cubs haven’t been tied to any of those names to this point.
Until and unless the Cubs add another infielder to give Shaw more robust competition for the Opening Day third base job, it seems very likely he’ll be at the hot corner for the club when the season begins. That figures to be true even if Hoerner isn’t ready for Opening Day, as Counsell told reporters (including Jordan Bastian of MLB.com) that Shaw’s focus is on third base this spring when asked if Shaw could spend some time at second base this spring to make him an option at the keystone should Hoerner begin the season on the IL.
Rangers Have Had “Internal Discussions” About Jon Gray As Closer
The Rangers are poised to enter Spring Training this year with a dilemma that they haven’t had in recent years: no experienced closers on their roster. Kirby Yates, David Robertson, and Jose Leclerc had a combined 313 saves under their belts when they departed Texas for free agency back in November after serving as the Rangers’ late-inning relief corps in 2024, and the year prior to that lefty Will Smith closed games for the Rangers despite a shaky 4.40 ERA thanks in part to the two 30+ save seasons he had under his belt before he arrived in Texas. This year, however, the club has no such experienced closer to lean on in the ninth inning.
Veteran reliever Chris Martin has the dominant relief numbers often associated with the closer role, but has just 14 career saves and has not recorded more than four in a single season before. Those 14 saves are still enough to make him the most experienced ninth-inning arm in the Rangers’ new-look bullpen, which added interesting pieces like Robert Garcia, Hoby Milner, and Jacob Webb who have pitched well in the past but never been used as a closer. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News noted that it’s possible the club won’t have clearly defined roles in the bullpen entering the season due to the lack of a clear top closing option, though he added that there have been at least “internal discussions” about the possibility of using veteran starter Jon Gray in the ninth inning.
Grant emphasizes that as things currently stand, Gray appears to be more valuable to the club as a starter given the innings he can provide. 2024 was the first 162-game season of Gray’s career where he posted less than 20 starts and 110 innings of work since his nine-start cup of coffee with the Rockies as a rookie back in 2013, and with 1216 2/3 innings of work (including 387 1/3 in a Rangers uniform) under his belt Gray is valuable source of steadiness in a Texas rotation mix filled with aging, oft-injured, or young and unproven arms. Given that, it would hardly be a surprise to see the club simply stick with Gray in the rotation and use Martin for the lion’s share of save chances, or perhaps simply play matchups in the ninth inning without anointing a closer at all.
Even so, the idea of Gray as a reliever is a somewhat intriguing one. Gray was used out of the bullpen four times in 2024, the most he’s ever pitched in relief in his career to this point. While Gray’s seven innings of work out of the bullpen are much too small of a sample size to draw any major conclusions from, his brief work in the role was nothing short of dominant: Gray pitched to a 1.29 ERA in those four appearances with a phenomenal 37% strikeout rate against a 7.4% walk rate. Those are the kind of numbers that could be truly game-changing for a Rangers club that has struggled to find production in the bullpen in recent years, making a potential role change for Gray at least worth considering.
While it seems unlikely that the Rangers would move Gray to the bullpen to start the season, perhaps it could become a more feasible option as the season develops. The Rangers have very little certainty in their rotation, but huge amounts of upside. Top draft picks Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter figure to try and force their way into the rotation with the club this year, and healthy seasons from Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle would be able to turn the club’s starting five from a question mark to a major strength quite suddenly. If things are looking up for the club in the rotation this summer, perhaps Gray’s 4.70 ERA in 19 starts last year becomes less attractive as a steady, back-end option and the club decides to see what the 33-year-old can do as a full-time reliever.
Reds Notes: McLain, Lux, Candelario, Ashcraft
Matt McLain looked like a budding star following a 2023 campaign where he debuted for the Reds and slashed an incredible .290/.357/.507 in 89 games en route to a fifth place finish in NL Rookie of the Year voting that year. Impressive as McLain was, however, his rising star came crashing down when he suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery last March. He missed the entire 2024 campaign rehabbing but seemed poised to re-enter the club’s middle infield mix as the starting second baseman next to star shortstop Elly De La Cruz for 2025.
That was before the Reds landed Gavin Lux in a trade with the Dodgers, however. Lux has played second base for the overwhelming majority of his big league career outside of the rare cameo in the outfield and a few ill-fated attempts to try him at shortstop. As noted by Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer, club president Nick Krall has indicated that he expects Lux to play second base, left field, and DH for the Reds this year while also getting looks during Spring Training at third base and even shortstop as they look to sort out their mix of position players.
It’s a complicated puzzle the Reds will need to sort out this spring. De La Cruz is surely entrenched at shortstop, while Wittenmyer notes that Krall left the door open for veteran Jeimer Candelario to get the first crack at third base this year even after he struggled defensively at the position during an injury-marred 2024 campaign. If Candelario is at third base, that would open up first base for either Spencer Steer or Christian Encarnacion-Strand. Should Lux end up at second base, that would leave McLain without a spot on the infield, but it’s worth noting that the youngster took reps in center field during the Arizona Fall League this year and that C. Trent Rosencrans of The Athletic recently suggested that McLain could get a look in the outfield himself during Spring Training.
That complex infield picture seems likely to have a domino effect on the club’s outfield this year. Jake Fraley, Austin Hays, and TJ Friedl appear to be the three full-time outfielders locked into the Reds’ roster, but Fraley has long been a platoon player for Cincinnati while both Hays and Friedl are coming off difficult and injury-marred 2024 campaigns. That could open the door for the club’s excess infielders to take reps on the grass, with McLain standing out as an option in center field alongside Friedl while Steer and Lux could both be candidates to patrol the outfield corners.
Turning to the pitching staff, the club has an excess of potential starting pitching options that rivals its excess of potential infield options. Even before veteran Wade Miley returns from Tommy John surgery in May, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com notes that Hunter Greene, Brady Singer, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbott, Nick Martinez, Rhett Lowder, Graham Ashcraft, Carson Spiers, and perhaps even non-roster invitee Chase Petty could be candidates for a rotation job with the club. The most likely starting five in that group, however, figures to be Greene, Singer, Lodolo, Abbott, and Martinez.
Notably, that leaves Ashcraft on the outside looking in. The right-hander has spent his entire big league career in the rotation so far, making 60 starts across the past three seasons. The results have left something to be desired, however, as he’s posted a lackluster 4.91 ERA (92 ERA+) in that time. That includes a 5.24 ERA (84 ERA+) in 77 1/3 innings of work across 15 starts last year. As noted by Rosencrans in a recent mailbag, Ashcraft appears unlikely to make the club’s rotation and may have even fallen behind Lowder to the seventh spot on the club’s rotational depth chart at this point.
That makes Ashcraft a prime candidate to move into a bullpen role, and Rosencrans notes that there’s an “internal belief” that Ashcraft could find success at the back of the bullpen for the Reds if he doesn’t make the cut for the club’s starting rotation. Alexis Diaz had a rollercoaster season in the closer role in 2024, and if he or veteran set-up men Taylor Rogers and Emilio Pagan struggle in 2025 it wouldn’t be difficult to imagine Ashcraft getting an opportunity to prove himself as a high leverage reliever.
Tyler Beede Holds Showcase For Interested Teams
Right-hander Tyler Beede threw for teams held a pro day for interested teams on Friday, per a report from Ari Alexander of KPRC2. Alexander adds that Beede’s fastball was in the range of 93-95mph and that the Astros and Royals both were represented at the righty’s showcase.
Beede, 32 in May, was selected in the first round of the MLB draft twice: first out of High School by the Blue Jays in 2011, then by the Giants out of Vanderbilt. He made his big league debut with San Francisco back in 2018 with a two-game cup of coffee before getting his first significant look with the club in 2019. Things did not go especially well for Beede that year, as he struggled to a 5.08 ERA (82 ERA+) with a nearly identical 5.03 FIP in 117 innings of work split between 22 starts and a pair of bullpen outings.
Tommy John surgery wiped out Beede’s 2020 season and the majority of his 2021 campaign as well, leaving him to record just one inning of work in the majors that year. Once he properly returned to the big leagues in 2022, Beede made just six appearances with the Giants before he was designated for assignment by the club. The right-hander eventually landed in Pittsburgh as a long reliever and swingman, though he struggled to a 5.23 ERA and 4.89 FIP in 51 2/3 innings of work for the club. That performance wasn’t enough to earn him a spot on the 2023 Pirates, but he did receive some overseas interest and wound up signing with the Yomiuri Giants in Nippon Professional Baseball for the 2023 season.
Beede looked solid in Japan with a 3.99 ERA in 49 2/3 innings of work, albeit while striking out just 16.4% of opponents. That solid performance overseas was enough to earn him another shot stateside, and he signed on with the Guardians on a minor league deal in January of last year. Beede was impressive enough to make the club’s Opening Day roster last year, but he struggled out of the gate and posted an ugly 8.36 ERA in 14 innings of work. While his 26.5% strikeout rate in that time was a strong one, lackluster control held him back as he walked 13.2% of his opponents.
It seems unlikely that a club would offer Beede more than a minor league deal given his previous struggles at the big league level, but the former first-round pick’s previous success in Japan and solid strikeout rate with the Guardians last year are both potentially interesting data points for clubs to consider. Given the constant need for pitching depth in the modern game, it would hardly be a surprise if a club took a chance on a player like Beede who’s comfortable pitching both in the rotation and in multi-inning relief as needed. Given that the Astros figure to start the season with four starting pitchers on the injured list, a depth addition like Beede who could help hold down the fort while the club’s other arms get healthy could make some sense in Houston, while Beede would likely join a number of potential starting and long relief options fighting for a roster spot in Kansas City this spring.