Paul DeJong Opts Out Of Yankees Deal
Veteran infielder Paul DeJong has opted out of his minor league contract with the Yankees and is now a free agent, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
DeJong is only hitting .203 in Triple-A, but he’s clobbered six homers in and walked at a 19% clip in 83 plate appearances, leaving him with an overall .203/.361/.516 batting line (127 wRC+). New York brought him in as a depth option in the offseason, knowing Anthony Volpe would miss the beginning of the year recovering from shoulder surgery. However, the Yanks also have Jose Caballero and Oswaldo Cabrera as infield options, and after signing DeJong they also acquired infielder Max Schuemann from the A’s. Volpe is set to return in the near future, and all of Caballero, Schuemann and Cabrera are still on the 40-man roster, leaving DeJong little path to a big league promotion.
A veteran of nine big league seasons, DeJong is a slick fielding, right-handed hitting shortstop who’s capable of playing anywhere on the infield. He strikes out too often (career 27.9%) and doesn’t walk enough to completely offset that (7.1%). DeJong has plenty of power though, evidenced by 146 round-trippers and a .187 ISO (slugging percentage minus batting average) in the majors. He’s a career .229/.294/.416 hitter in exactly 3500 big league plate appearances.
DeJong has played in each of the past nine major league seasons and logged at least 208 plate appearances in every 162-game season in that time (plus 174 plate appearances in the shortened 2020 campaign). He spent the 2025 season with the Nats and hit .228/.269/.373 in 208 trips to the plate. He’d have logged more playing time were it not for a fractured nose — suffered when an errant fastball hit him in the face — that sidelined him for two months.
There are plenty of teams with starting infielders on the shelf at the moment, which could lead to a new opportunity for DeJong. The Astros (Jeremy Peña), Athletics (Max Muncy), Orioles (Jordan Westburg, Jackson Holliday) and Mets (Francisco Lindor) are among the clubs dealing with prominent infield injuries. There are surely several other teams that might have interest in adding a quality defender with some pop to help out the big league bench or to stash in the upper minors (with a clearer path to the majors for DeJong).
Cardinals Designate Luis Peralta For Assignment
The Cardinals designated lefty Luis Peralta for assignment Friday, the team announced. His 40-man roster spot goes to fellow southpaw Jared Shuster, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Memphis. The Cards opened an active roster spot by optioning righty Hunter Dobbins to Triple-A following yesterday’s season debut.
St. Louis only claimed Peralta off waivers out of the Rockies organization three days ago. He’s yet to even pitch in a game in their system and will now be in limbo for up to a week as he awaits the outcome of this morning’s DFA. The Cardinals will have five days to either trade Peralta or place him back on outright waivers. Since outright waivers are a 48-hour process, it could take up to seven days for a resolution.
The 25-year-old Peralta has pitched in parts of two big league seasons, both with the Rockies. He’s logged 31 1/3 MLB frames and been charged with 21 earned runs (6.03 ERA) on 33 hits, 23 walks and four hit batters. He’s fanned 30 of his 150 opponents. Peralta is effectively a two-pitch reliever, working off a four-seamer that averages 94.7 mph and a curveball that sits 81.7 mph. He mixes in an extremely occasional mid-80s changeup; only two percent of his MLB pitches have been changeups.
Peralta had a huge 2024 season in the minors, logging a pristine 0.94 ERA with a 40.1% strikeout rate and 11.2% walk rate in 47 2/3 innings across three minor league levels. He’s been hit hard and missed time with a hip injury over the two subsequent seasons. If the Cardinals can succeed in passing him through waivers, he’ll have to head back to Triple-A Memphis, as he lacks the prior outright or three years of MLB service time needed to reject an outright assignment to the minors. He’s already been claimed once and has a pair of minor league options remaining, however, so it’s possible another club will scoop him up.
Shuster has already had one stint with the Cards this season. The 27-year-old pitched 3 2/3 innings and allowed two runs before being designated for assignment, clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment to Memphis.
A former first-round pick by the Braves, Shuster has pitched in parts of four major league seasons without much success. He owns a lifetime 5.26 ERA in 145 1/3 innings and has posted strikeout and walk rates that are both worse than league average. He’s been tagged for nine earned runs in 9 2/3 Triple-A frames this season.
It could very well be another short stay on the roster for Shuster. The Cardinals needed a fresh arm in the bullpen after Dobbins was chased in the fifth inning yesterday. They needed five relievers to get through the rest of the game. All five threw at least 15 pitches. Ryne Stanek and JoJo Romero have both pitched on consecutive days and combined for 37 and 38 pitches, respectively. The Cards would probably prefer to stay away from either, if possible.
Nationals To Sign Max Kranick
The Nationals and right-hander Max Kranick have agreed to terms on a deal, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. The former Pirates and Mets righty underwent flexor tendon surgery last July and was non-tendered by the Mets in November. The Covenant Sports Group client’s contract is still pending a physical.
Kranick, 28, has pitched in parts of three seasons but never been able to carve out any staying power, thanks largely to injuries. He underwent Tommy John surgery in June of 2022 and missed the vast majority of the 2023 season as a result. The Mets claimed him off waivers in the 2023-24 offseason but didn’t call him to the majors in ’24 — despite solid results in the minors.
In 2025, the Mets gave Kranick a real look. He got out to a nice start and was sitting on a 3.65 ERA through 37 frames at the time of his flexor injury. Kranick’s 16.9% strikeout rate was well south of the 22.3% league average, but his 3.4% walk rate was outstanding. Those trends have been fairly typical for Kranick. He’s never missed many bats but has generally run a better-than-average walk rate (granted, not quite to his 2025 extent) when healthy.
Washington’s pitching staff has been one of the worst in the game this year. The Nats’ 5.11 team earned run average sits 29th in the majors. That’s due largely to struggles in the rotation (Miles Mikolas and Zack Littell, in particular), but Washington’s collective 4.90 ERA from the bullpen ranks 23rd in the game as well.
Given those poor results, it’s hardly a surprise to see the Nats bring in some outside arms. Kranick isn’t going to be ready to jump right into the mix, however. He threw for teams back in January and was said at the time to be targeting a second-half return from the injured list. Once the deal is finalized, he’ll presumably need to work through a throwing progression and then go through a lengthy minor league rehab stint.
Kranick has 3.011 years of big league service time, so if he makes it back to the majors with the Nats and pitches well, he can be controlled for another three seasons beyond the current campaign. he’s out of minor league options, so once he’s added to the active big league roster, Washington won’t be able to send him to the minors unless he clears outright waivers.
Braves Designate José Suarez, Joel Payamps For Assignment
The Braves have designated relievers José Suarez and Joel Payamps for assignment, per a club announcement. Right-hander Hunter Stratton has been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett, and fellow righty Anthony Molina has had his contract selected from Gwinnett as well.
Suarez has been with Atlanta in each of the past two seasons and has totaled 35 2/3 innings of 4.04 ERA ball. The 28-year-old has been tagged for a 6.61 ERA in this season’s 16 1/3 frames, however, and is out of minor league options. Suarez has piled up strikeouts at career-high levels in 2026 (26.6% strikeout rate, backed by a sharp 12.8% swinging-strike rate), but his already wobbly command has deteriorated even further; he’s walked 15.2% of his opponents this season.
Back in 2021-22, Suarez looked to be emerging as a quality fourth starter in Anaheim. He gave the Halos 207 1/3 innings with a 3.86 ERA with a slightly below-average strikeout rate but a walk rate that was a bit better than average. The wheels came off in 2023, due in no small part to a shoulder strain that sent him to the injured list for several months. He posted an 8.29 ERA in 33 2/3 innings that season and was only marginally better in 52 1/3 frames the following season (6.02 ERA).
Suarez has experience working both as a reliever and a starter. He’s making just $900K this season, so a team in need of some left-handed depth or a swingman to provide long relief could have some interest — if said club can look past this year’s ugly walk rate. Metrics like SIERA (4.12) and xERA (3.97) feel Suarez has been a good bit better than his more rudimentary earned run average would indicate. If he clears waivers, he’d have the right to reject an outright assignment, though doing so would require forfeiting the remainder of that $900K guarantee, so he’d probably accept an assignment to Gwinnett.
The 32-year-old Payamps has had a tougher season. He’s pitched 7 2/3 innings with Atlanta, who plucked him off waivers from the Brewers last September, and been tagged for seven earned runs on nine hits and four walks. Two of those nine hits left the yard.
Payamps was a solid middle reliever for the A’s in 2021-22 and a revelation with the Brewers in 2023-24 after Milwaukee picked him up alongside William Contreras in a three-team trade that turned out to be a heist on their end of things. (Sean Murphy went to the Braves; Esteury Ruiz, Kyle Muller, Freddy Tarnok, Royber Salinas and Manny Piña went to Oakland.) Payamps was dominant with the Brew Crew in ’23-’24, logging a 2.78 ERA, 48 holds and nine saves with a 26.1% strikeout rate against a 6.7% walk rate.
The 2025 season saw Payamps falter, however. He was roughed up for a 7.23 ERA in 23 2/3 innings before eventually being designated for assignment late in the year. Atlanta clearly still believed in the right-hander’s stuff, as the Braves not only claimed him in September but tendered him a $2.25MM contract over the winter. Any team that claims or acquires Payamps would be responsible for the remainder of that $2.25MM sum.
As is the case with Suarez, Payamps has enough service time to reject an outright assignment if he clears waivers, but not enough to do so while retaining the remainder of his salary. Given that salary and the fact that his struggles date back to 2025, it seems likely that Payamps will indeed pass through waivers. If that happens, he’ll surely head to Gwinnett to retain that salary and hope to pitch his way back into the major league mix.
Stratton pitched well in 16 1/3 innings with Atlanta last year and is out to a decent start in Gwinnett this season. Molina was a December waiver claim out of the Rockies organization. He’s a four-pitch reliever (four-seamer, slider, curveball, changeup) with good command but well below-average strikeout numbers in the majors. He was tagged for a 6.96 ERA in 94 1/3 innings with the Rox from 2024-25, but he’s worked to a 4.50 ERA with the Stripers while enjoying a nearly two mile-per-hour spike in velocity and a big 51.1% ground-ball rate.
In addition to the shaky performance from Suarez and Payamps this season, both were out of minor league options. That left Atlanta with minimal flexibility in the bullpen. For a chunk of the current season, the Braves’ only optionable reliever was lefty Dylan Lee, who is deservingly entrenched in the setup ranks and was never going to be sent down. Today’s pair of DFAs and Raisel Iglesias‘ trip to the 15-day IL have created some extra wiggle room. Lee, Stratton, Molina and prospect Didier Fuentes (a starter in the minors but currently in the Braves ‘pen) all have options left, which should give the club more flexibility when they need to bring up a fresh arm.
Tommy Kahnle Has Upward Mobility Clause In Red Sox Deal
Veteran right-hander Tommy Kahnle, currently pitching with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate, has an upward mobility clause in his deal that he can trigger tomorrow, writes Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. The clause was reported at the time of Kahnle’s signing in Boston, but it still bears mentioning with the seasoned setup man pitching well in the upper minors at present.
If triggered, an upward mobility clause would push the Sox to make Kahnle available to all 29 other clubs. If any other club would put him on its major league roster, the Red Sox would either have to select Kahnle to their own 40-man roster or, if they’re not willing to do so, allow him to depart to an organization that would put him in the major league bullpen. Such clauses are common in minor league deals for veteran players.
Through the season’s first month, Kahnle has done a nice job trying to force Boston’s hand. The 36-year-old has pitched 8 1/3 innings out of the Worcester bullpen, allowing three earned runs (3.24 ERA) on eight hits and three walks. He’s fanned eight of the 36 batters he’s faced (22.2%), hasn’t allowed a home run and has done a decent job avoiding too much hard contact (88.3 mph average exit velocity, no barrels, 41.7% hard-hit rate).
Kahnle’s 92.7 mph average fastball would be the lowest of his career, although through the first month of the 2025 season in Detroit, he wasn’t much higher (93.1 mph). He sat 93.6 mph the rest of the way. It seems reasonable to expect Kahnle’s heater to gain a bit of life as he continues to build up this season, but the four-seamer is a secondary pitch for him anyhow; Kahnle is perhaps the foremost changeup specialist in the game. This season’s 59.5% usage rate on his changeup is actually a stark decrease relative to recent seasons. From 2022-25, Kahnle threw 79% changeups against just 18.7% fastballs with a very, very occasional slider (2.4%) mixed in to throw some hitters off balance.
Although he’s coming off a lackluster season with the Tigers — hence the minor league deal — Kahnle has a lengthy track record of success in the majors. He’s been hurt more frequently than he or the teams for which he’s pitched would prefer, but from 2016-24, the right-hander logged a combined 3.11 ERA, 31.1% strikeout rate and 10.1% walk rate in 271 2/3 innings between the White Sox, Yankees and Dodgers.
It’s not clear whether the Red Sox would be amenable to adding Kahnle to the big league bullpen. Relief pitching has been a strength in an otherwise disappointing season for Boston. Sox relievers have combined for a 3.67 ERA that ranks eighth-best in the majors. The only Red Sox relievers who can be optioned are Greg Weissert, Zack Kelly and Tyler Samaniego. Plugging Kahnle into the ‘pen would give the Red Sox a sixth reliever who cannot be sent down without being exposed to waivers.
The decision will belong to chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, but interim skipper Chad Tracy — who managed Kahnle for several weeks to begin the season — sounded amenable to the idea. Asked by Smith just yesterday whether Kahnle could help the big league club, Tracy replied:
“For a veteran of his caliber that’s been around, yes, he can help out. He’s been around the big leagues for a really long time. He knows how to pitch. He’s been here, he’s pitched in the playoffs. So absolutely can help out.”
If not the Red Sox, there seems to be a decent chance Kahnle could draw the interest of another club. Each of the Nationals, Cardinals, Twins, Royals, Angels and Astros have received a combined ERA of 5.00 or worse from their bullpen so far in 2026. The Phillies, Astros, Cubs and Marlins all have their closers on the injured list. Chicago’s Daniel Palencia is expected to return soon, but he’s one of six Cubs relievers on the shelf.
Guardians Option George Valera
The Guardians announced Thursday that outfielder George Valera has been optioned to Triple-A Columbus. They’re off today, so a corresponding move won’t be announced until tomorrow.
A longtime top prospect, the 25-year-old Valera hasn’t been the boost to the lineup for which the team hoped. Injuries have repeatedly set Valera back, to the point where he was at one point designated for assignment and non-tendered. He returned on a minor league deal and rebuilt his stock in 2025 with a .318/.388/.550 slash in the minors. Cleveland called him up for his big league debut late last year, and Valera hit .220/.333/.415 with a pair of homers in 48 plate appearances. He tacked on another homer during postseason play.
Valera opened the season on the injured list due to a calf strain and hasn’t hit since returning. He’s taken 38 plate appearances and floundered with a .216/.237/.297 slash. Valera has chased off the plate at a huge 40.4% clip, nearly doubling his chase rate from last year’s small-sample debut (21.7%). He’s beaten 52% of his batted balls into the ground and already popped up to the infield four times.
The Guardians quite literally did nothing to improve their lineup over the offseason. They’re running a payroll under $70MM and hanging their 2026 hopes on big steps forward from young players like Valera, Chase DeLauter, CJ Kayfus, Travis Bazzana and others. It’s worked out in some respects. DeLauter has been great, and both Brayan Rocchio and Angel Martínez are hitting at career-best levels. Utilityman Daniel Schneemann has improbably been one of the best hitters in the American League, though he’s striking out at a 30% clip and isn’t going to sustain his current .438 average on balls in play or 21% homer-to-flyball ratio.
On the other end of the spectrum, José Ramirez has been good but hasn’t hit at his typically elite levels. Meanwhile, the Guardians have seen Steven Kwan and Kyle Manzardo take substantial steps back with the bat. Kayfus struggled before being optioned earlier in the year, and already light-hitting catcher Bo Naylor is mired in the toughest slump of his career.
The end result is a lineup that’s slashed .228/.314/.371. That comes out to a 93 wRC+ that ranks 23rd in the majors. Cleveland is tied with Boston for 23rd in runs scored. The Guardians are 17th in home runs, 26th in batting average, 22nd in on-base percentage and 25th in slugging percentage.
With Valera sent down, Cleveland’s outfield options include Kwan, DeLauter, Martínez and Schneemann. They’ll make a move to add another position player tomorrow. Candidates already on the 40-man roster include Kayfus and outfielders Petey Halpin and Kahlil Watson. Juan Brito is also down in Columbus, but he was optioned just a couple days ago, so he can only be recalled if he’s replacing an injured player. Non-roster outfielders Nolan Jones and Stuart Fairchild are both hitting well in Columbus. Top catching prospect Cooper Ingle opened the season on a ridiculous tear (.394/.630/.788 in 54 plate appearances) but is currently on the minor league injured list due to a hip injury.
This is Valera’s final option year, so if he spends 20 days in the minors on this assignment, he’ll be out of options heading into the 2027 season. Valera is controllable for at least five more years beyond the current season — possibly six depending on how long he spends down in Columbus. He entered the season needing 144 days of service to reach a full year, and he’s already accrued 36 of those days. If he’s down until June 12 or later, he’ll fall shy of a year of service and be controllable all the way through 2032.
Mets Place Luis Robert Jr. On Injured List
11:30am: Robert is receiving an epidural injection and will be reevaluated in a week to 10 days, per Tim Britton of The Athletic. The Mets don’t currently expect him to miss too much more than the minimum.
9:20am: The Mets have formally placed Robert on the 10-day injured list due to a lumbar disc herniation. Corner infielder Eric Wagaman is up from Triple-A to take his spot on the roster.
9:12am: The Mets are expected to place center fielder Luis Robert Jr. on the 10-day injured list today, reports SNY’s Chelsea Janes. Robert has been battling back discomfort for several days and underwent an MRI yesterday, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo noted.
Trips to the injured list are nothing new for Robert, a star-caliber outfielder whose health hasn’t allowed him to regularly reach his sky-high ceiling. The 28-year-old raked at a .264/.314/.542 clip and belted 38 homers to go along with 20 steals and plus-plus defense with the White Sox back in 2023. He’s only played in 234 of 354 possible games since that time (66.1%). That 2023 season is the only time Robert has reached even 450 plate appearances or exceeded 110 games played in a single season. (He did play in 56 of 60 possible games as a rookie in the shortened 2020 season.)
Along with that decline in health came a downturn in performance. Robert suffered an MCL sprain at the end of September in 2023 and a hip flexor strain early in 2024, the latter costing him about two months of action. When he was on the field in ’24, he stumbled through the least-productive season of his career, slashing just .224/.278/.364 with a career-worst 33.2% strikeout rate.
It was more of the same to begin the 2025 season, though Robert caught fire in early June after the Sox sat him for a few days to refocus his mechanics in the batter’s box. Robert took a few games to find his stroke even after that little breather, but he went on a tear thereafter, slashing .282/.344/.471 (125 wRC+) in nearly 200 plate appearances … before again returning to the injured list — this time due to his second hamstring strain of the ’25 campaign.
Along the way, the White Sox fielded trade interest in Robert, but they opted to hang onto him after not finding offers to their liking. They exercised the first of two $20MM club options on Robert to begin the offseason, and several months later the Mets landed him in a trade sending infielder/outfielder Luisangel Acuña and minor league righty Truman Pauley back to Chicago.
Robert is currently mired in a 2-for-19 slump, dropping what was a solid .258/.372/.379 batting line to a .224/.327/.329 output that checks in about 7% worse than league-average overall, by measure of wRC+. The dip in production coincides with the Mets beginning to sit Robert on occasion about a week and a half ago. Manager Carlos Mendoza eventually revealed that Robert has been dealing with back discomfort. Last night’s MRI, it seems, did not produce favorable results.
A formal diagnosis isn’t clear. The Mets have not yet announced an IL placement and thus have not revealed the nature of Robert’s ailment. Robert last appeared in a game on April 26, so his IL stint can be backdated to April 27 — the maximum three days allowed. That technically makes him eligible to return in just a week’s time, though his actual timetable will naturally hinge on the specific injury that’s been plaguing him.
Robert joins Francisco Lindor and Jorge Polanco on the shelf. That’s a third of the Mets’ starting lineup sidelined. With Robert out of the equation for the time being, the Mets’ options in center field include veteran Tyrone Taylor and rookie Carson Benge (who’s been their primary right fielder but has four games in center this year). Recently signed veteran Austin Slater has a fair bit of center field experience but hasn’t played there this season and has only logged 63 frames at the position since Opening Day 2024.
Down in Triple-A, the Mets have 2022 No. 75 overall pick Nick Morabito, who’s already on the 40-man roster (but has yet to debut) and is slashing .262/.382/.452 with four homers, four doubles and six steals. Morabito entered the season ranked 11th among Mets farmhands at Baseball America. He’s the Mets’ No. 12 prospect at MLB.com and No. 19 over at FanGraphs. Scouting reports peg him as a plus runner and center field defender with well below-average power.
Mets Designate Carl Edwards Jr. For Assignment
The Mets announced Thursday that reliever Carl Edwards Jr. has been designated for assignment. They also confirmed the previously reported IL placement for center fielder Luis Robert Jr., who’s been diagnosed with a lumbar disc herniation. Righty Austin Warren and recently claimed corner infielder Eric Wagaman are up from Triple-A Syracuse in a pair of corresponding moves.
Edwards, 34, signed a minor league deal back in December. The longtime reliever opened the season as a starter in the Mets’ Syracuse rotation but was added to the big league bullpen earlier this month. He’s pitched well, holding opponents to one run in six innings. Edwards has punched out a whopping 44% of his opponents (11 of 25) but has also dished out four free passes already (16%).
A key member of the Cubs’ bullpen from 2016-18, Edwards has bounced around the league in the eight years since. The Mets are Edwards’ ninth club in the majors, and this year’s six innings already tie his highest single-season workload since 2023.
Edwards also had a productive two-year stint with the Nats in 2022-23, but his stops with the other seven clubs for which he’s pitched have typically been fleeting. In addition to the Cubs and Nationals, he’s suited up for the Padres, Mariners, Braves, Blue Jays, Angels and Rangers. However, Edwards hasn’t pitched more than six innings for any of those teams. Overall, he carries a career 3.51 ERA in the majors, though most of his production came during that initial run with the Cubs, when he had about three extra miles per hour on his fastball over his current 92.5 mph average velocity.
The Mets will have five days to place Edwards on waivers, release him, or trade him. He has enough service time to reject an outright assignment to the minors even if he clears waivers, so barring a minor trade for cash, he’s likely to end up a free agent. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so his DFA will be resolved in no more than seven days.
Tigers Hire Kyle Hendricks As Special Assistant
The Tigers have hired recently retired right-hander Kyle Hendricks as a special assistant to the baseball operations department, reports Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. While Hendricks never pitched for Detroit during his excellent 12-year major league career, he knows both Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris and general manager Jeff Greenberg dating back to the pair’s days in the Cubs’ front office. Stavenhagen adds that Hendricks is expected to focus his efforts on pitching development.
Hendricks, 36, spent 11 seasons (2014-24) pitching with the Cubs and finished up his career with the Angels in 2025. He retired with a career 3.79 ERA, 105 wins and 1373 strikeouts through 1745 innings in the major leagues. All of that success came despite Hendricks lacking the prototypical power arsenal associated with modern pitchers. He never averaged even 91 mph on his four-seamer in a given season, finishing with an overall average velocity of 87.2 mph on his “fastball” in his career.
A throwback to generations past, Hendricks thrived thanks to excellent command, a good feel for pitching and a knack for avoiding hard contact. “The Professor” and his thoughtful approach to attacking hitters with less-than-premium stuff could well prove to be an asset in developing young arms in the Detroit pipeline.
There’s been a growing number of former big leaguers climbing to prominent positions in major league front offices in recent seasons. Former players who are currently running baseball operations for their clubs include Jerry Dipoto (Mariners), Chris Getz (White Sox), Craig Breslow (Red Sox), Buster Posey (Giants) and Chris Young (Rangers). Brandon Gomes isn’t the top decision-maker for the Dodgers but holds the general manager title and sits No. 2 on their baseball operations hierarchy behind president of baseball ops Andrew Friedman. The same is true of Marlins GM Gabe Kapler, who’s the No. 2 executive behind Peter Bendix over in Miami. Sam Fuld recently held a GM position with the Phillies but is in the process of moving over to become their new president of business operations.
Hendricks’ eventual aspirations on the executive side of things aren’t yet clear, but there are certainly some parallels between the path he’s charting and the ones taken by Young and Breslow in particular. Both Young (Princeton) and Breslow (Yale) are former Ivy League standouts who enjoyed successful big league careers while operating with middling velocity. Young got his start in baseball operations working in the league’s central offices, while Breslow jumped right into the Cubs’ baseball ops department with an emphasis on strategic initiatives and pitching development. Hendricks, a Dartmouth product, could pursue a similar trajectory, though given his lengthy career and reputation within the game, he’d also surely have opportunities on the coaching side of things if he preferred to throw his hat into that ring at some point down the line.
Tigers Place Casey Mize, Javier Báez On Injured List
The Tigers have placed righty-hander Casey Mize and utilityman Javier Báez on the injured list, per a club announcement. Mize heads to the 15-day IL due to a right adductor strain. Báez is going on the 10-day IL due to a sprained right ankle. Lefty Enmanuel De Jesus and infielder Jace Jung were recalled from Triple-A Toledo in a pair of corresponding moves.
The loss of Mize is a tough blow for the rotation. He’s out to the best start of his career, having pitched to a 2.90 earned run average with a 27.3% strikeout rate that would easily register as a career-high in a full season. He’s walked 8.6% of his opponents and kept 38.8% of batted balls against him on the ground. Mize’s prior career-highs in opponents’ chase rate and swinging-strike rate were 28.3% and 10.8%, respectively; he’s at 30.8% and 12.1% so far in 2026.
Mize exited his most recent start in the third inning. He pulled up with an apparent injury while attempting to field a bunt up the first base line. He wound up being charged with two earned runs that game — just the second time in six starts this season that he’s been charged with multiple earned runs in a start.
With Mize sidelined for at least two weeks and Justin Verlander also on the injured list, the Tigers’ rotation depth is being tested. Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez remain a formidable one-two punch atop the staff. Keider Montero is also out to a career-best start. Veteran Jack Flaherty, conversely, is having one of the worst starts to a season in his career. Swingman Drew Anderson, who’s stretched out and has gone as long as 3 1/3 innings this season, is a candidate to step into the vacant spot in the rotation. Detroit could also turn to Triple-A, where righties Sawyer Gipson-Long and Ty Madden are possibilities.
Báez, meanwhile, had to be carted off the field in yesterday’s game after injuring himself on a slide. He underwent an MRI that revealed the sprain. A timetable for his return isn’t yet clear. He’s been getting frequent run in the infield and in center field, following the Parker Meadows injury, and is hitting .256/.280/.397 with a pair of homers in 82 plate appearances this year.
With Báez out of the equation for the short term at least, Detroit’s options in center field include Matt Vierling and Wenceel Perez. Young outfielder Max Clark, a former top-five pick and one of the ten top prospects in all of baseball at the moment, looms as an option in Triple-A. He’s slashing .303/.377/.444 with a homer, eight steals, an 11.4% walk rate and just a 13.2% strikeout rate in 116 trips to the plate. Clark isn’t on the 40-man roster but seems quite likely to make his big league debut at some point this season. It’s possible that Báez’s injury accelerates that timetable, although for now, center field will seemingly be entrusted to more experienced options.