Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Rays Sign Jamie Westbrook To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Rays announced Monday morning that they’ve signed infielder/outfielder Jamie Westbrook to a minor league contract. The ALIGND Sports client will head to big league camp and provide Tampa Bay with some additional depth at multiple positions. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times first reported the agreement.

Westbrook, 29, made his big league debut with the Red Sox in 2024. Originally a fifth-round pick by the 2013 D-backs, he’s begun to bounce around in journeyman fashion. The Sox were the fifth organization of his career and also Westbrook’s fifth in a span of six seasons. The Rays will make six organizations in seven years.

Though he struggled in a limited sample of 48 big league plate appearances, hitting .150/.234/.350, Westbrook posted a much sharper .277/.369/.450 output with Boston’s Triple-A affiliate in Worcester — about 15% better than league average offensive output. Westbrook has also had big Triple-A seasons with the Yankees, Brewers and D-backs over the years. He’s played in parts of six Triple-A campaigns and slashed a combined .281/.375/.458 with just a 15.8% strikeout rate against a terrific 11.3% walk rate.

Westbrook has primarily been a second baseman in the minors, logging a massive 5372 innings there. However, he’s also tallied an even 2500 innings in the outfield corners (about 90% of that time in left field) in addition to just shy of 900 innings at third base. He’s a right-handed bat who’s typically thrashed left-handed pitching and at least held his own in right-on-right matchups at the top minor league level.

The Rays have plenty of position depth at the spots Westbrook has played most frequently. Brandon Lowe is back as the primary second baseman, while ballyhooed youngster Junior Caminero will get everyday reps at third. Christopher Morel and Josh Lowe appear to be in line for frequent corner outfield work. Utility players Jose Caballero and Richie Palacios offer cover at multiple positions, and former top prospect Curtis Mead has seen plenty of time at both second and third base. Outfielders Kameron Misner and Jake Mangum are both on the 40-man roster and can both play all three outfield spots.

Westbrook will presumably see frequent time at second base and in the outfield in Triple-A, but he could be in the mix for a bench spot with a big enough spring showing and/or some spring injuries thinning out the depth on the major league side of things.

Madrigal Diagnosed With Shoulder Fracture; Manaea To Begin Season On IL With Oblique Strain

By | at

Mets infielder Nick Madrigal has been diagnosed with a fracture in his left shoulder after undergoing an MRI, manager Carlos Mendoza announced to the team’s beat this morning (via Anthony DiComo of MLB.com). He’ll be out “for a long time,” per Mendoza, though a formal timeline isn’t yet established. Madrigal is headed for a CT scan for further evaluation. Mendoza also revealed that left-hander Sean Manaea has a right oblique strain that will shut him down for the next couple weeks, likely ticketing him for the injured list to begin the season (via Newsday’s Tim Healey).

Madrigal’s injury occurred while playing shortstop during yesterday’s spring contest against the Nationals. The former top prospect charged a grounder that kicked off the mound, making a barehanded play and falling to the ground as he threw to first base (video link via MLB.com). Commentary noted that Madrigal headed straight for the dugout upon getting up, so it’s clear he knew something was amiss right away. He was originally diagnosed with a dislocated shoulder, but imaging revealed the fracture that will shelve him for a considerable period.

The Mets inked Madrigal to a split major league contract that paid him at a $1.35MM rate in the majors. The former No. 4 overall pick has a minor league option remaining and might’ve been bound for Triple-A to begin the year, but he’ll presumably head to the major league 60-day IL whenever the Mets next need a roster spot instead. He wasn’t expected to have a starting role, with Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil lined up in the middle infield and Mark Vientos at third base, but a strong camp would likely have put Madrigal in line for a bench role.

Instead, the Mets will presumably tap into their upper-minors depth. Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña have all drawn top-100 fanfare at various points in recent seasons. Baty isn’t an option to back up at shortstop, however, and Mauricio is still on the mend from the ACL tear that cost him the entire 2024 season. He’s not expected to play in spring games until mid-March. Acuña, who made his big league debut late last year, seems the likeliest in-house candidate to step into Madrigal’s spot.

It’s possible that the long-term nature of the injury could prompt the Mets to look outside the organization, where fan and clubhouse favorite Jose Iglesias remains unsigned. The Mets all but announced they were moving on from Iglesias a couple weeks back, with president of baseball operations David Stearns noting a lack of roster flexibility at the time.

Signing Iglesias would give the Mets a bench full of players who cannot be optioned to Triple-A. Catcher Luis Torrens and outfielder Tyrone Taylor have both exhausted their slate of minor league options, while Starling Marte can’t be optioned without his consent — as is his right as a player with five-plus years of major league service time. Iglesias would be in that same boat. In the event of an Iglesias signing, the only position player on the Mets’ roster who could be optioned would be Francisco Alvarez, who’s obviously not at risk of being sent down.

The loss of Manaea, meanwhile, further thins out a rotation that will see Frankie Montas shelved by a lat strain to begin the season. That takes two members out of the Opening Day rotation, which now likely includes a combination of Kodai Senga, David Peterson, Clay Holmes, Paul Blackburn, Griffin Canning and Tylor Megill. It’s not a formidable group, with health and workload questions permeating the entire staff.

That said, the Mets weren’t planning to add another starter after losing Montas to a longer-term injury than the one Manaea currently faces. Montas will likely be sidelined into mid-May at the earliest. Manaea could very plausibly return in April if he rehabs the oblique issue without any setbacks. The immediate outcry among many Mets fans on social media was to use the Manaea injury as the impetus to re-sign Jose Quintana, but Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that the Mets are still planning to stick with in-house options.

On the one hand, it’s sensible enough that a short-term Manaea absence won’t prompt what would surely be an eight-figure expenditure after factoring in luxury taxes. Signing Quintana, Kyle Gibson, Lance Lynn or another veteran hurler for the full season when Manaea could miss as few as three to four starts in April could be construed as an overreaction.

On the other, the Mets quite arguably didn’t do enough with their rotation this winter in the first place. Senga pitched in one game last year due to injuries. Montas’ 2023 was wiped out by shoulder surgery, and he posted a 4.84 ERA over 150 innings in last year’s return. Holmes is converting to the rotation after six years pitching exclusively as a reliever. Canning was non-tendered and has a 4.96 ERA over his past three seasons. Blackburn is a fourth/fifth starter who was limited to 75 innings by a spinal injury last year. The rotation lacks certainty even when it’s at full strength — and the Mets are a ways off from full strength as things stand.

The Best Remaining Free Agent Position Players

By | at

The market for free agents of any note is drying up by the day. In particular, we've seen a run on veteran pitchers. Nick Pivetta, Andrew Heaney, Cal Quantrill, Jakob Junis, John Means, Tyler Alexander, Kenley Jansen, Scott Barlow, John Brebbia, Kendall Graveman, Luke Jackson, Scott Alexander and Lucas Sims have all come off the board in the past ten days. A few bats have signed in that time as well, but typically on smaller-scale deals. Justin Turner's $6MM Cubs deal is the most notable. Each of Michael A. Taylor, Ty France, Paul DeJong and Luis Urias secured guarantees between $1-2MM.

At this stage, there simply aren't many potential big league deals left for free agent position players. That doesn't mean there aren't any, however. There are still four free agent hitters who posted better-than-average offense last year, plus another couple notable names who are looking to bounce back from their first truly poor offensive performance in the past six seasons.

Let's run through some of the remaining free agent position players on the market, with a brief look at their 2024 season, what they bring to the table, and some of the best landing spots left for each.

Unlock Subscriber-Exclusive Articles Like This One With a Trade Rumors Front Office Subscription

BENEFITS
  • Access weekly subscriber-only articles by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams, and Anthony Franco.
  • Join exclusive weekly live chats with Anthony.
  • Remove ads and support our writers.
  • Access GM-caliber tools like our MLB Contract Tracker

Brewers, Manuel Margot Agree To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Brewers and free agent outfielder Manuel Margot are in agreement on a minor league deal, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The Wasserman client will be in major league camp for the remainder of spring training. Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel first reported that Margot was in the Brewers’ clubhouse this morning.

Margot, 30, spent the 2024 season with the Twins after being twice traded in the 2023-24 offseason — first going from Tampa Bay to the Dodgers and then going from Los Angeles to Minnesota. The Twins deployed him as a platoon option for lefty-swinging corner outfielders Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner, and they also gave him a handful of appearances in center field when Byron Buxton was out of the lineup. He posted an ugly .238/.289/.337 slash on the season (21% worse than average, by measure of wRC+), but the righty-swinging Margot was productive against southpaws. In 171 plate appearances, he hit .269/.332/.391.

Earlier in his career, Margot was a premium defensive player — one of the top outfield gloves in all of baseball. From 2016-21, he logged nearly 4500 combined innings across all three outfield slots and logged gaudy numbers there: 41 Defensive Runs Saved, 21.6 Ultimate Zone Rating, 53 Outs Above Average.

Margot’s career took a turn in 2022 when he suffered a partial tear in the patellar tendon of his right knee. He missed nearly half the season as a result. Margot hit .302/.365/.423 through the time of that June injury but mustered only a .240/.276/.318 line upon returning late in the year. In 849 turns at the plate since returning from that injury, he’s a .249/.295/.349 hitter. His once-elite sprint speed — Margot debuted with 99th percentile speed in 2016, per Statcast — has plummeted to roughly league-average (53rd percentile last year). The loss in sprint speed, unsurprisingly, is in direct alignment with that knee injury.

While he can still play all three outfield positions, Margot graded out slightly below average with Minnesota in 2024. It’s possible that he’ll regain some quickness as he further distances himself from that 2022 injury, but a return to his 70- or 80-grade speed as he enters his 30s isn’t going to happen.

The Brewers have a full outfield, with Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick and Blake Perkins all vying for time. Christian Yelich will likely see at least some time in left field, but he’ll increasingly be deployed at designated hitter as his injury history continues to grow. (Yelich’s 2024 season ended in August due to back surgery.) Margot’s right-handed bat could complement lefties Mitchell and Frelick, but Chourio hits right-handed and the switch-hitting Perkins is a better hitter from the right side of the plate.

Margot will give the club some depth in the event of an injury, but he’s not a lock to make the club. He’s also an Article XX(b) free agent (i.e. six-plus years of service, ended the prior season on a major league roster/injured list), meaning he’ll have three uniform opt-out dates in his minor league contract: five days before Opening Day (March 22), May 1 and June 1. He can opt out and elect to become a free agent at any of those points if he’s not on Milwaukee’s 40-man roster.

Cubs, Greg Allen Agree To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Cubs have agreed to a minor league deal with outfielder Greg Allen, reports Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times. The CAA client has been invited to major league camp.

Allen, 31, has appeared in parts of seven big league seasons. The 2024 campaign was the first time since 2016 that he hasn’t appeared in the majors in a given season. He spent last year with the Yankees organization, hitting .225/.338/.360 with three homers and 13 steals (in 15 attempts) during 58 Triple-A games.

A plus runner with a light bat, Allen has never hit much in the majors. He carries just a .231/.300/.340 line in 828 plate appearances. However, he’s swiped 48 bags in 57 tries (84.2%) and has regularly provided good defense across all three outfield slots — particularly in left field.

The Cubs aren’t hurting for outfield depth by any means. They have Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker lined up to start, with Seiya Suzuki filling a DH role and likely spelling Happ and Tucker in the corners. Utilityman Vidal Brujan has primarily been an infielder but has gained experience across all three outfield slots over the past few seasons. Kevin Alcantara and Owen Caissie, both ranked among the game’s top-100 prospects, are on the cusp of MLB readiness. The Cubs are deep enough that they felt comfortable designating out-of-options slugger Alexander Canario for assignment earlier this week.

That said, the potential loss of Canario and a groin strain for Caissie that currently has him shut down from all baseball activity has at least thinned the group a bit. Allen can add some cover at all three outfield positions and bring an element of speed to the upper levels of the Cubs’ system. He’s unlikely to break camp with the club, but he’ll bring a career .276/.387/.413 line in parts of six Triple-A seasons to the Cubs’ top affiliate in Iowa if he begins the season in Triple-A.

Mets Not Planning To Add A Starter

By | at

The Mets’ rotation suffered a blow barely a week into camp when free agent acquisition Frankie Montas felt discomfort in his first bullpen session of camp. After a healthy offseason, Montas was diagnosed with a lat strain that has prompted the Mets to shut him down from throwing entirely. The team announced a no-throw period of six to eight weeks. Montas is taking a more optimistic tack, suggesting it’ll be four to six weeks. Regardless, he won’t throw at all for the majority of spring training, at which point he’ll need to build up from scratch. An absence extending into at least mid-May seems likely.

Even with that loss and a handful of notable starters still on the market, the Mets aren’t planning to add another arm to their rotation, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports. While further injuries could of course change that thinking, for now the Mets plan to rely on their in-house depth while weathering their first injury of note. Additionally, the previously planned six-man rotation will now likely drop to five, manager Carlos Mendoza tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

Locks for the Opening Day rotation, health permitting, include Kodai Senga, Sean Manaea, David Peterson and reliever-turned-starter Clay Holmes. Righties Tylor Megill, Griffin Canning and Paul Blackburn will vie for the fifth spot. Megill has a minor league option remaining. Canning and Blackburn do not, and both are earning more than $4MM this season, so it’s unlikely they’d be cut loose. (That’s especially true of Canning, who signed as a free agent over the winter.) Top prospect Brandon Sproat will be in the running at some point, but he still has only 116 1/3 professional innings under his belt, with only 28 2/3 of those coming in Triple-A.

Sammon’s report dovetails with recent suggestions that the Mets aren’t likely to pursue a reunion with Jose Quintana, despite the veteran left-hander’s openness to returning to Queens. Quintana declined an offer worth more than $5.25MM from the Pirates before Pittsburgh agreed to terms with fellow left-handed veteran Andrew Heaney. While it’s not clear that decision was made in hopes of the Mets coming through with an offer of their own, it does appear to shut the door on opportunities for Quintana with either club. Beyond Quintana, veterans like Kyle Gibson, Lance Lynn and Spencer Turnbull are all still seeking homes.

For the Mets, any additions to the major league roster will be doubly cost prohibitive. They’re again a CBT payor in the top penalty tier, meaning any subsequent additions come with a 110% luxury tax. Signing Quintana in the $5-6MM range, for instance, would cost the team $10.5MM to $12.6MM. The Mets are already running a $331MM cash payroll, per RosterResource, which comes with nearly $67MM worth of luxury taxes.

In essence, the Mets are already paying close to $400MM total for the current roster. On the one hand, fans could argue “what’s another $10-12MM at that point?” On the other, even the sport’s wealthiest owner, Steve Cohen, surely has his limits. Plus, if things go according to plan in 2025, the Mets will be deadline buyers, presumably adding even further to that massive financial outlay. Time will tell whether the rest of the rotation group holds up through the remainder of camp — injuries abound in spring training every year — but for now, Mets fans shouldn’t hold out hope for a Quintana reunion or any other guaranteed deal to deepen the starting staff.

The Opener: Yankees, Spring Training, Miller, Quintana

By and | at

As Spring Training continues, here are four things to keep an eye on heading into the weekend:

1. Yankees alter facial hair policy:

For more than half a century, the Yankees have adhered to a strict facial hair policy barring their players from sporting beards. The policy dates back to 1973, when late owner George Steinbrenner disapproved of the shaggy hair and facial hair of several players on Opening Day — Thurman Munson, Sparky Lyle and Bobby Murcer among them. Each offseason, there’s an air of almost novelty when a typically bearded player signs with the Yankees and fans wonder how he’ll look reporting to camp clean-shaven. (Or, alternatively, when a longtime Yankee departs and promptly grows a beard, as Gleyber Torres has done in his new Detroit environs.) Many Yankees have still donned mustaches over the years, with examples ranging from Don Mattingly to Jason Giambi to 2024 Yankees like Nestor Cortes and Austin Wells. Newly signed Max Fried arrived in camp with a prominent mustache on display last week.

As of this morning, managing partner Hal Steinbrenner has had a change of heart. He issued the following statement:

“In recent weeks I have spoken to a large number of former and current Yankees — spanning several eras — to elicit their perspectives on our longstanding facial hair and grooming policy, and I appreciate their earnest and varied feedback. These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years. Ultimately the final decision rests with me, and after great consideration, we will be amending our expectations to allow our players and uniformed personnel to have well-groomed beards moving forward. It is the appropriate time to move beyond the familiar comfort of our former policy.”

It doesn’t appear that the Yankees will embrace a full Brandon Marsh or peak “Captain Caveman” Johnny Damon look anytime soon, but for the first time in a generation, there’ll be some beards sprouting up in camp. Early returns on a quick poll from Yankees beat writer Bryan Hoch suggests that the move is overwhelmingly popular among fans, with roughly 80% of respondents approving of the change.

2. Spring Training games:

The first Spring Training game of the year was held yesterday between the Cubs and the Dodgers, and throughout the weekend the rest of the league will get in on the action as well. Notable starters who have been announced for this weekend’s slate of games include Yankees righty Marcus Stroman and Dodgers righty Tony Gonsolin, both of whom are fighting for a rotation spot this spring. Diamondbacks and Red Sox fans will get their first glimpse of offseason additions Corbin Burnes and Garrett Crochet pitching for their new organizations. Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara will be making his first pitching appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2023. Fans and clubs will also be getting their first taste of the automatic ball-strike system that MLB is testing this spring, which could be implemented in the majors as soon as next year.

3. Miller in concussion protocol:

Yesterday’s game between the Dodgers and the Cubs featured a scary moment where right-hander Bobby Miller was struck with a 106mph line drive off the bat of Michael Busch. The comebacker struck Miller in the head, though after briefly hitting the ground the 25-year-old managed to walk off the field under his own power. Miller later posted on social media to assure fans that he was doing well after the incident, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale relayed that the righty remains in MLB’s concussion protocol. Miller, Gonsolin and Dustin May are among the pitchers hoping to win the final rotation spot in Los Angeles this spring, though on-the-field considerations are a very, very distant second to the player’s general well-being in frightening situations such as this.

4. Will Quintana find the right deal?

After the Pirates signed southpaw Andrew Heaney to deepen their rotation mix yesterday, reporting indicated that Pittsburgh actually went to Jose Quintana first in hopes of working out a reunion. The veteran southpaw was reportedly offered a guarantee larger than the $5.25MM Heaney landed from the Pirates, but when Quintana declined the offer, the Bucs pivoted to bring Heaney into the fold. With Heaney off the market, Quintana is now the clear best left-handed starter still available and arguably the best overall starter left on the market. With the majority of teams seemingly satisfied with their starting depth as things stand, however, will he be able to find the deal he’s looking for?

Athletics Sign Dylan Floro To Minor League Deal

By | at

5:03pm: The A’s announced that they have signed Floro to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.

1:50pm: Veteran right-hander Dylan Floro has a locker set up in the Athletics’ clubhouse, reports Martin Gallegos of MLB.com. It’s not clear whether he’s come to terms on a major league or minor league contract, but some type of deal between the two sides is in place. Floro is represented by Pro Edge Sports Management. If the A’s need to add him to the 40-man roster, they can do so easily by sliding Ken Waldichuk to the 60-day injured list while he continues rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

Floro, 34, split the 2024 season between the Nationals and D-backs, combining for 68 innings of 3.80 ERA ball. Those solid end-of-year numbers don’t tell the full tale of his season, however. The nine-year MLB veteran excelled in D.C., logging a pristine 2.06 earned run average through 52 1/3 innings. Floro’s 19.6% strikeout rate was well below average, but his 6.4% walk rate was excellent and his 47.6% grounder rate was sharp. However, the big driver of his success was a 2.2% homer-to-flyball ratio (one homer in 52 1/3 innings).

The rate stats painted Floro as a regression candidate, and while the Snakes surely weren’t expecting him to continue on with a rough 2.00 ERA pace, the extent to which the pendulum swung in the opposite direction with Arizona was nonetheless shocking. Floro was shelled for 17 earned runs — five more than he allowed in his entire Nationals tenure —  in 16 1/3 innings. After surrendering just one homer through 204 batters faced as a National, Floro served up round-trippers to four of the 75 opponents he faced wearing a D-backs uniform. Arizona wound up designating Floro for assignment and releasing him in late September.

Though Floro’s home run suppression in Washington last year was clearly unsustainable, the veteran righty has demonstrated throughout his big league career that he’s better at keeping the ball in the yard than quite literally any pitcher in MLB. Outside of the 2017 season, when he logged only 9 2/3 MLB innings, Floro has never averaged even one homer per nine innings pitched. Opponents have mustered only 0.54 homers per nine frames against Floro throughout his 402 2/3 big league innings. Since his 2016 debut, 259 pitchers have tossed 400 or more innings. None has a lower HR/9 mark than Floro (making his Arizona struggles all the more surprising).

It should be noted that Floro’s struggles with the Diamondbacks weren’t simply a function of poor luck, however. The right-hander also worked with significantly diminished stuff in 2024. He’s never been a flamethrower, but Floro sat 92.9 mph with his heater from 2020-23 — including a 92.3 mark in ’23. Last year, that average velocity plummeted to 89.8 mph, per Statcast. His sinker (93.1 mph from 2020-23) followed suit, tumbling to 89.9 mph on average. Floro’s slider and changeup both sat 85-86 mph in 2020-23 but landed at 83.3 mph and 83.5 mph, respectively, in 2024.

If Floro can restore some of that lost velocity or simply pitch more effectively with reduced stuff, he has the track record to suggest he can be a valuable piece in manager Mark Kotsay’s bullpen. Since solidifying himself as a big league reliever with the Reds and Dodgers in 2018, Floro boasts a 3.38 ERA, 32 saves and 53 holds. His 21.1% strikeout rate in that time is a couple percentage points worse than average, but his 7.2% walk rate is more than a percentage point better than par and his 50.4% ground-ball mark is quite strong.

The Athletics’ bullpen is anchored by star closer Mason Miller and free agent signee Jose Leclerc. Miller, Leclerc and lefty T.J. McFarland are the only three members of the A’s bullpen with even one full year of service. Floro would add a fourth experienced veteran who could help with setup duties and take pressure off minor league free agent pickups Tyler Ferguson and Michel Otañez, both of whom found their way into late-inning roles last season despite debuting as 31-year-old and 27-year-old rookies, respectively.

Red Sox, Matt Moore Agree To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Red Sox have agreed to a minor league contract with left-hander Matt Moore, reports Rob Bradford of WEEI. He’ll presumably head to big league camp for the remainder of spring training.

Moore, 36, has spent the bulk of the past two seasons with the Angels. He made a couple of quick pit stops in Cleveland and Miami following the Angels’ Aug. 2023 mass waiver purge, but more than 90% of his appearances since 2023 have come in a Halos uniform.

Once ranked among the game’s top three prospects alongside Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, Moore had a nice start to his career but never got fully back on track following 2014 Tommy John surgery. He got back up 198 innings of 4.08 ERA ball in 2016 but wasn’t the borderline ace-caliber pitcher he looked to be when first breaking into the majors.

Moore struggled with the Giants and Rangers in 2017-18 and then missed nearly all of the 2019 season with the Tigers after suffering a knee injury in just his second start of the season. A nice 2020 run in Japan led to a 2021 deal with the Phillies, but Moore again struggled as a starter and was moved to a swing role.

Returning to the Rangers on a minor league deal in 2022, Moore found new life and a second act in his career upon a full-time shift to short relief. He pitched 74 innings of 1.95 ERA ball that season, parlaying that rebound effort into successive one-year deals in Anaheim.

The first of those two seasons was better than the second. Moore’s 2024 results (5.03 ERA in 48 1/3 innings) are skewed by a pair of disastrous outings; he combined to yield nine runs (one-third of his season-long total) in just one inning of work during those two appearances. Moore also saw a dip in average fastball velocity in 2024, falling from 94 mph to 92.7 mph. That lost velocity and his late struggles with command could be attributable to the forearm strain that ended his season in August, however.

Generally speaking, Moore has been a quality arm for the bulk of the past three seasons. During that time, he’s tossed 175 innings of 2.98 ERA ball and fanned one quarter of his opponents while issuing walks at a 10.8% clip. Moore has worked primarily in high-leverage settings, coming away with 46 holds and six saves. He’s been placed in position to pick up a hold or save 57 times over the past three seasons and succeeded doing so in 52 of those opportunities.

As it stands, the Red Sox project to have two lefties in Alex Cora’s bullpen: Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson. Both signed guaranteed one-year deals in free agency earlier this winter. Lefties Zach Penrod and Brennan Bernardino are both on the 40-man roster as well, but there’s an injury scare with regard to the former at the moment. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reports that Penrod has been dealing with elbow soreness and is headed for an MRI. There’s some concern, and Cora suggested when talking about Penrod’s outlook that the team was looking at bringing another lefty into the mix. That’ll be Moore.

Moore joins a list of experienced non-roster relievers trying to win a spot in the ’pen. He’s the second notable name to sign such a pact this week. The Sox inked righty Adam Ottavino on Tuesday. Righties Michael Fulmer, Austin Adams, Isaiah Campbell and Wyatt Mills are all non-roster invitees in camp with Boston, as are lefties Sean Newcomb and Jovani Moran.

By definition, Moore is an Article XX(b) free agent — which is to say he has six-plus years of major league service time and finished out the prior season on a major league roster or 60-day injured list. Under the 2022-26 collective bargaining agreement, Article XX(b) free agents who sign minor league deals are granted uniform opt-out dates. Those opt-out opportunities will come five days before Opening Day (March 22, in this case) and then on May 1 and June 1. Moore will have the ability to elect free agency on each of those dates if he has not been added to the Red Sox’ 40-man roster.

Cubs Designate Alexander Canario For Assignment

By | at

The Cubs are designating outfielder Alexander Canario for assignment in order to open a roster spot for Justin Turner, reports ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. Canario is out of minor league options and would’ve either needed to break camp with the team or else be designated for assignment (and subsequently waived or traded) at the end of spring training.

Canario, 25 in May, came to the Cubs alongside righty Caleb Kilian in the 2021 deadline swap that sent Kris Bryant to San Francisco. At the time, Canario was considered among the Giants’ ten or so top prospects due in large part to his plus raw power. Just 21 years old and in Low-A at the time of the trade, he’d undergone shoulder surgery to repair a labrum tear the year prior. His 2021 season produced sub-par results, but that’s not a surprise for a player trying to get back into the swing of things following a canceled 2020 campaign and a notable surgery.

Subsequent seasons have yielded better results at the plate but ongoing questions about Canario’s hit tool, approach at the plate and ability to stay on the field. He crushed 37 home runs while batting .252/.343/.556 across three minor league levels in 2022. He was limited to 59 games in 2023 — including a brief six-game MLB debut — when an ankle injury and further shoulder troubles slowed him. Canario popped 18 homers in 64 Triple-A games in 2024 and logged a .280/.357/.443 line in 28 big league plate appearances.

Even beyond the durability concerns, Canario’s performance in the upper minors gives reason for pause. His surface-level stats, particularly his power output, look quite appealing. He hit .248/.329/.552 with 24 homers in just 350 Double-A plate appearances and .252/.345/.521 with 32 homers in only 528 Triple-A plate appearances. However, Canario fanned at a 26% clip in Double-A and a 28.9% clip in Triple-A.

Canario’s strikeout troubles have actually risen even as his time in Triple-A has progressed. He fanned at a 25% rate in his first 20 games there back in 2022 but saw that number rise to 28% in 36 games in 2023 and a huge 30.4% in 64 games last year. He’s only taken 45 MLB plate appearances but has punched out in 42.2% of them (19 times). The 63.5% contact rate Canario posted in Triple-A last year would’ve ranked dead-last among qualified big league hitters by a margin of more than two percentage points. In his 45 MLB plate appearances, he’s made contact on only 59.8% of his swings.

Defensively, Canario is limited to a corner and is not regarded as a plus defender — despite having a plus arm. He’s a slightly below-average runner who lacks the range for center field. That profile, paired with his plus raw power and notable platoon splits, has prompted scouting reports at Baseball America, FanGraphs and other outlets to project him on the short side of a right field platoon in the majors.

At this point, Canario had presumably fallen to no better than sixth or seventh on the Cubs’ outfield depth chart. Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker form the starting trio, with Seiya Suzuki slotted for regular DH work and occasional corner duties. Kevin Alcantara is on the cusp of MLB readiness and is younger with better defense, multiple minor league options remaining and a vastly higher ceiling overall. Fellow top prospect Owen Caissie is also on the 40-man roster and had surely leapfrogged Canario as well.

Given his huge raw power, Canario could very well end up with another club by way of a small trade or waiver claim. But Canario’s prodigious swing-and-miss rates, broad-reaching susceptibility to breaking pitches and minimal defensive upside all combine to make him less appealing to big league clubs than some might expect when looking at his surface-level numbers. Former Cardinals outfield prospect Moises Gomez found himself in a similar spot last spring and went unclaimed on waivers.

Canario’s DFA window will last for one week, but if the Cubs are to trade him, they’ll need to do so within five days. Outright waivers are a 48-hour process, so if Canario isn’t traded within five days’ time, he’ll head to the waiver wire.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top