Mariners Sign Will Wilson, Jakson Reetz To Minor League Deals
The Mariners announced a slate of 34 non-roster invitees to spring training Friday. Most of the names were internal invitees or previously reported free agent signings, but infielder Will Wilson and catcher Jakson Reetz are new additions to the group.
Wilson, 27, was a first-round pick by the Angels back in 2019, coming off the board 15th overall. The NC State product was traded to the Giants just six months later, with the Angels effectively using him as a mechanism to dump the remainder of Zack Cozart‘s contract on San Francisco.
Wilson spent several years in the Giants’ system but never advanced beyond Triple-A. He reached minor league free agency last winter, signed with the Guardians, and eventually made his MLB debut with Cleveland. Wilson posted a respectable .246/.325/.435 slash in Triple-A (102 wRC+) but struggled in the majors with a .192/.267/.244 slash and 37% strikeout rate in 91 trips to the plate.
The righty-swinging Wilson had even splits in 2025 but has typically been more productive against fellow righties than against lefties. With the glove, he has plenty of experience at shortstop (2360 innings), third base (1029 inning) and second base (992 innings). He’s more briefly appeared in the outfield throughout his pro career, logging a small sample of 138 innings (total) between all three slots.
Reetz, 30, has appeared in parts of two big league seasons but has only 17 plate appearances to his credit. He spent the 2025 campaign with the Triple-A clubs for the Mets and Orioles, combining for a .192/.307/.399 slash. That came in a relatively small sample of 228 plate appearances. Prior to 2025, Reetz had a much stronger track record in the upper minors. He’s a career .230/.331/.451 hitter in 983 Triple-A plate appearances and slashed .254/.368/.431 there as recently as 2024.
Reetz has strong framing marks and solid grades for his ability to block balls in the dirt, per Baseball Prospectus. He struggled to throw runners out on the bases in 2025, but even after posting a mere 15% caught-stealing rate this past season, his career mark is a robust 29%.
Both Wilson and Reetz will be long shots to win jobs with the Mariners, but both provide some experienced depth to stash in Triple-A Tacoma. Wilson will be behind bench options Leo Rivas, Ryan Bliss and Miles Mastrobuoni, to say nothing of young infielders Ben Williamson, Colt Emerson and Cole Young. All six are on the 40-man roster, and Emerson and Young are particularly touted prospects. As for Reetz, he’s at best fourth on the team’s catching depth chart. American League MVP runner-up Cal Raleigh leads the way, with veteran Andrew Knizner backing him up and recent waiver claim Jhonny Pereda also holding a 40-man roster spot.
Giants Sign Harrison Bader
The Giants made a notable upgrade to their outfield defense, signing Harrison Bader to a two-year contract. It’s reportedly a $20.5MM contract for the Vayner Sports client, who can earn an additional $500K in incentives. Bader will collect a $6MM signing bonus and $4.5MM salary this year, followed by a $10MM salary in 2027. San Francisco opened a 40-man spot by trading Kai-Wei Teng to the Astros.
Bader, 31, has been a free agent for three consecutive offseasons but now lands the multi-year deal that’s previously eluded him. He signed one-year deals with the Mets and Twins, respectively, over the past two winters. Bader turned in a career-best performance in Minnesota and was red hot for the Phillies down the stretch after joining them in a deadline swap, and the market has rewarded that strong 2025 performance.
In 501 plate appearances between Minnesota and Philadelphia last year, Bader slashed .277/.347/.449 with 17 homers, 24 doubles, a triple and 11 steals (albeit in 18 attempts). His 7.8% walk rate was the second-best he’s posted in a 162-game season, though 2025’s bloated 27.1% strikeout rate was also his worst full-season mark since 2019. Much of Bader’s success can be attributed to an increase in playing time and a hefty .359 average on balls in play, but it bears mentioning that his 10.2% barrel rate and 40.3% hard-hit rate were personal bests in a full big league season.
Strong as last year’s performance was — 22% better than league-average, by measure of wRC+ — offense has never been Bader’s calling card. He’s been clearly above average in four of his nine MLB campaigns, but on the whole, Bader is a .247/.313/.401 hitter in a bit more than 3000 career plate appearances, which just barely shy of average. His glovework, however, is among the best in all of baseball, regardless of position.
Bader has played 5925 innings of center field defense in his career and been credited with a gaudy 51 Defensive Runs Saved and 67 Outs Above Average. He played more left field than center field in Minnesota, largely in deference to Byron Buxton, and notched positive marks in both DRS (7) and OAA (3) through 496 frames.
Overall, Bader has played 6799 innings of outfield defense in the majors, dating back to his 2017 MLB debut. In that time, only four outfielders — Mookie Betts, Kevin Kiermaier, Daulton Varsho, Michael A. Taylor — have bested his 67 DRS. No outfielder in that time has topped Bader’s 77 OAA. Francisco Lindor, Nick Ahmed, Nolan Arenado and Ke’Bryan Hayes are the only four majors leaguers at any position with a better OAA total in that time.
With Bader turning 32 in June, it’s fair to at least wonder whether he’ll begin to slow down over the next two seasons. However, there’s no reason to think that’ll be the case — at least based on recent history. This past season’s average sprint speed of 28.8 feet per second was actually an improvement over Bader’s 2024 mark of 28.2 ft/sec and right in line with his 2023 mark. He’s no longer covering the flat-out elite 30 ft/sec he did earlier in his career, but Bader’s 2025 sprint speed still landed in the 85th percentile of all big league position players. He’s a clear plus runner.
It’s a near certainty that Bader will take that plus speed and range to Oracle Park as the Giants’ new center fielder. Jung Hoo Lee handled the bulk of center field work in San Francisco this past offseason but ranked as one of the worst defenders in the game along the way (-18 DRS, -5 OAA). Lee’s arm strength sat in the 91st percentile of big league outfielders, per Statcast, but his range was near the bottom of the scale. Lee should have the arm to move to right field, where his lack of range would be better suited. Even if Bader’s bat regresses and checks in a bit shy of average, the defensive upgrade alone will be enormous for the Giants.
Assuming even distribution of that $20.5MM, Bader’s contract bumps San Francisco’s actual cash payroll to a projected $195MM, per RosterResource. Their luxury tax payroll is quite a bit higher, clocking in at about $221.5MM, but that still leaves more than $20MM between their current standing and the $244MM threshold at which luxury penalties begin. San Francisco has paid the tax in the past, but only rarely. They were over the line in 2024, which stands as their only time exceeding the threshold in recent memory.
For the time being, it doesn’t seem likely that the Giants will climb back to that level of spending. San Francisco is in the market for a second baseman but has been looking at the trade market — specifically, affordable targets like CJ Abrams and Brendan Donovan (“affordable” in terms of salary — not necessarily prospect capital). They’ve added Adrian Houser and Tyler Mahle to the rotation and could continue to poke around the rotation and bullpen markets, but ownership has publicly expressed an aversion to signing any free agent pitcher to a long-term deal, making a run at a top free agent like Framber Valdez feel unlikely.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the two-year agreement. Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the financial terms. Jon Becker of FanGraphs had the signing bonus and salary breakdown.
White Sox Sign Lucas Sims To Minor League Deal
The White Sox have signed right-hander Lucas Sims to a minor league contract, per James Fegan of Sox Machine. The TWC client presumably be in camp as a non-roster invitee when pitchers and catchers report next month.
Sims, 31, opened the 2025 season with the Nationals but was cut loose after just 19 appearances. The right-hander’s command evaporated entirely while pitching in D.C. He tossed 12 1/3 innings and was tagged for 18 runs in that time, thanks largely to a bloated 19.4% walk rate and a staggering seven hit batters. He also tossed three wild pitches. Sims went on to sign a minor league deal with the Phillies, but his command in Triple-A wasn’t any better; he issued walks at an 18.6% clip and plunked nine more batters in 34 innings.
Though 2025 was clearly a lost season, Sims had a decent track record prior. From 2020-24, he pitched 189 2/3 innings between the Reds and Red Sox, combining for a 3.89 ERA with a 29.4% strikeout rate. Command was an issue for Sims even during that more solid run (13% walk rate), but certainly not to the extent he showed between the Nats and Phillies last season.
Even as he struggled in 2025, Sims appears to have been healthy. He didn’t make a trip to the major league or minor league injured list, and he wound up tossing a combined 46 1/3 innings despite a two-week layoff between those two clubs. His 94.9 mph average four-seamer in the majors was right in line (slightly higher, actually) than the 94.4 mph he’d averaged across the past three seasons. He dipped to 93.8 mph in Triple-A, but that wasn’t a particularly notable drop from the prior season’s 94.2 mph average.
The White Sox recently signed veteran reliever Seranthony Dominguez to a two-year, $20MM contract. He’ll enter the season as the favorite for closing opportunities, barring another addition, while righties Jordan Leasure and Grant Taylor will give manager Will Venable a pair of setup options who each punched out more than 30% of their opponents in 2025 (34.4%, in Taylor’s case). Righty Mike Vasil and lefty Tyler Gilbert are likely ticketed for swing roles after pitching well in ’25. That’s especially true for Gilbert, who’s out of minor league options.
The rest of the bullpen spots are largely up for grabs. Chicago currently has two Rule 5 picks (Alexander Alberto and Jedixson Paez) on the 40-man roster. Other bullpen candidates include Brandon Eisert, Jairo Iriarte, Wikelman Gonzalez and out-of-options lefty Bryan Hudson. Sims joins lefty Ryan Borucki and righty Tyson Miller as one of the more experienced non-roster invitees in camp who’ll be vying for one of those final spots.
Brewers, Jacob Waguespack Agree To Minor League Deal
The Brewers and right-hander Jacob Waguespack are in agreement on a minor league contract, reports Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The Wasserman client receives a non-roster invitation to major league spring training.
Waguespack has pitched in parts of three major league seasons and a pair of NPB campaigns over in Japan. The 32-year-old righty has a 5.11 earned run average in 105 2/3 big league frames. He’s fanned 18.9% of opponents against a 10.1% walk rate and kept 41.4% of the batted balls against him on the ground. Waguespack has split the past two seasons between the Rays and Phillies organizations but didn’t reach the majors in 2025. He totaled 33 Triple-A frames between Tampa Bay and Philly, recording a combined 2.45 ERA, 24.4% strikeout rate and 8.7% walk rate. He spent about half the season on the injured list.
In two seasons over in Japan, Waguespack notched a 4.02 ERA in 116 1/3 innings with strong strikeout numbers and shakier command. He’s had similar results in parts of five Triple-A campaigns, combining for a 4.24 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate and 8% walk rate in 269 2/3 innings.
Waguespack has experience as both a starter and a reliever but worked exclusively out of the bullpen when he was healthy in 2025. He’s a four-pitch righty with a four-seamer sitting 93 mph, a cutter averaging about 86 mph, a changeup in the low 80s and a seldom-used curveball that typically clocks in around 76 mph.
Milwaukee’s rotation took a hit with the trade of Freddy Peralta to the Mets, though they picked up a potential option to backfill that spot by landing top prospect Brandon Sproat as part of the return (alongside top infield/outfield prospect Jett Williams). With Peralta out the door, the rotation currently includes Brandon Woodruff, Quinn Priester, Jacob Misiorowski and Chad Patrick. Candidates for the fifth spot include Sproat, fellow top prospect Logan Henderson, and southpaws Robert Gasser, Aaron Ashby and DL Hall (the latter two of whom have been used more in relief in recent seasons).
In the bullpen, the Brewers have Abner Uribe, Trevor Megill, Jared Koenig, Angel Zerpa, Grant Anderson, Ashby and Hall more or less locked into spots. It’s a lefty-heavy group, particularly when counting journeyman Rob Zastryzny, who pitched well in 22 1/3 innings for the Crew last year. Righty Craig Yoho and his dominant minor league track record will also be in the mix for a spot.
Waguespack gives the Brewers some depth in both areas or a possible candidate to work in a swingman role. He’s out of minor league options, so if the Brewers do select him to the 40-man roster at any point, he’ll have to stick or else be exposed to waivers before he can be sent back to the minors. Even at that point, he’d have the right to reject an outright assignment upon clearing waivers.
D-backs To Sign Derek Law
The Diamondbacks and righty Derek Law are in agreement on a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training, as first reported by MLB Transactions Daily (on Instagram). Robert Murray of Fansided reports that the CAA client would earn $1.5MM if he makes the roster and has another $500K available to him via incentives. He can earn $50K for reaching each of 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 appearances. He’d then earn $100K bonuses at 50 and 55 games pitched.
Law posted strong results for the Reds and Nationals in 2023-24 but didn’t pitch in the majors this past season due to arm troubles. He opened the season on the injured list, and by mid-July the Nats had announced that he’d require season-ending flexor surgery. That procedure came with a projected recovery period of nine to ten months, which would put Law on track for a return in April or May.
During that ’23-’24 run between Cincinnati and D.C., Law piled up 145 innings of relief work and notched a tidy 2.98 earned run average. His 20% strikeout rate was below average, but Law also kept his walks down nicely (8.3%), induced grounders at a sound 45% clip and deftly avoided hard contact: 87.7 mph average exit velocity, 34.2% hard-hit rate, 4.2% barrel rate, 0.81 HR/9. He tallied three saves and 20 holds across those two seasons.
When healthy in recent years, Law has sat 95 mph with both his four-seamer and sinker, but both of those pitches have taken a backseat to his 91 mph cutter and a slider sitting at 87 mph. He’s posted particularly impressive swinging-strike rates on that slider, especially in 2024, when the pitch flummoxed opponents to the point that they hit just .157 with a .220 slugging percentage against it.
Unless Law is quietly ahead of schedule, it doesn’t seem like he’ll be in the mix for an Opening Day bullpen spot. He’ll acclimate to his new organization and coaching staff while rehabbing with the big league staff this spring, however, and (again, based on that original timetable) it seems possible he could join the ‘pen at some point in the first few months of the year.
Bullpen depth remains an area of focus for the Diamondbacks, who’ll be without their two top relievers (A.J. Puk, Justin Martinez) for the first several months of the 2026 season after they underwent season-ending elbow procedures in 2025. Left-hander Andrew Saalfrank and righties Kevin Ginkel, Ryan Thompson, Taylor Clarke and Drey Jameson are all in the running for key relief roles. Longtime Yankees reliever Jonathan Loaisiga signed on a non-roster deal as well and will look to win a spot this spring. Arizona remains in the market for more bullpen arms, with recent reports indicating that GM Mike Hazen and his staff have been more active on the trade market as of late.
Angels Acquire Jayvien Sandridge, Designate Osvaldo Bido
The Angels have acquired left-hander Jayvien Sandridge from the Yankees in exchange for cash, per announcements from both clubs. The Halos added that righty Osvaldo Bido has been designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster. New York had designated Sandridge for assignment a couple days ago.
The 26-year-old Sandridge made a brief MLB debut this past season, allowing a pair of runs in two-thirds of an innings with the Yanks. He spent the bulk of the 2025 season in Triple-A, where he pitched to a 4.55 ERA with a huge 33.1% strikeout rate but a 12% walk rate in 31 2/3 frames. Sandridge averaged about 95 mph on his four-seamer and logged an outstanding 15.3% swinging-strike rate during his time in Triple-A. He still has a pair of minor league option years remaining.
A former 32nd-round pick by the Orioles, Sandridge has bounced to five organizations since the 2018 draft, primarily doing so via minor league free agency. Baltimore released him in 2020, when most clubs throughout the game were making sweeping cuts to their minor league personnel during the early stages of the pandemic, and he’s since signed minor league deals with the Reds, Padres and Yankees.
Sandridge has pitched in parts of seven minor league seasons but totaled only 241 2/3 total minor league frames. He’s logged a solid 3.99 earned run average in that time and punched out nearly one-third of his opponents — but he’s also issued walks at a 17% clip and plunked another 22 of the 1099 batters he’s faced (2%). Coupled with a whopping 44 wild pitches, it’s more than fair to say that command is a major hindrance for the hard-throwing southpaw.
As for Bido, today’s move is the continuation of an all-too-familiar refrain. He’s already been on waivers four times this winter and now appears poised to head back to the wire for a fifth time. Bido began the winter on the Athletics’ 40-man roster but has since bounced to the Braves, Rays, Marlins and Angels via waivers.
Bido turned 30 this past October. He spent seven seasons in the minors with the Pirates prior to making his debut as a 27-year-old rookie in 2023, and he’s spent the past two seasons pitching with the A’s, who signed him to a big league deal in the 2023-24 winter after Pittsburgh cut him loose. The wiry 6’3″, 175-pound righty has had an up-and-down run in the majors across the past three seasons, posting ugly numbers in 2023 and 2025 but logging 63 1/3 innings of 3.41 ERA ball with solid rate stats in 2024.
Overall, Bido has pitched 193 2/3 innings as a big leaguer. In that time, he carries a collective 5.07 earned run average. Metrics like SIERA (4.60) and FIP (4.67) are a bit kinder. Broadly, he’s pitched like a serviceable swingman/sixth starter for much of his time in the majors.
Bido averages 94.7 mph with both his four-seamer and sinker. His strikeout rate (20.9%) and walk rate (9.6%) are both worse than league average, but not by much. He’s an extreme fly-ball pitcher but hadn’t been especially prone to home runs until the 2025 season — though that was surely due to the Athletics’ temporary home at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento playing like an absolute launching pad; Bido surrendered 13 home runs in 44 1/3 home innings but just six in 35 1/3 frames on the road.
The Angels can trade Bido or place him on waivers at any point within the next five days. Waivers are a 48-hour process. His DFA will be resolved within one week’s time.
Rockies Open To Further First Base Additions
The Rockies swung a pair of deals to add a couple options at first base yesterday, picking up Edouard Julien (and reliever Pierson Ohl) from the Twins in exchange for minor league pitcher Jace Kaminska and sending righty Angel Chivilli to the Yankees in exchange for first base prospect T.J. Rumfield. Both Julien and Rumfield could factor into the Rockies’ big league plans at first base, but new president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta indicated following that pair of trades that he’s still open to bringing in a first baseman (link via Manny Randhawa of MLB.com).
“I think really what we’re trying to do is to create really healthy competition on our roster,” said DePodesta. “Most of the players we have acquired do have a good amount of versatility.”
The 26-year-old Julien’s glovework at second base has been generally panned, and he hasn’t handled himself all that well at first base from a defensive standpoint, either. Still, DePodesta listed him as an option at both positions, noting that the Rockies are intrigued by Julien’s minor league track record and terrific rookie season.
Back in 2023, Julien indeed looked like a potential fixture in the Twins’ lineup. A top-100 prospect prior to his big league debut, he burst onto the MLB scene with a .263/.381/.459 slash (134 wRC+) and ripped 16 home runs in 408 plate appearances as a rookie. His 31.4% strikeout rate was clearly too high, but Julien also walked in nearly 16% of his plate appearances. Throughout his minor league tenure, he was hailed as something of an all-bat prospect who’d post huge OBP numbers with above-average power but lacked a clear defensive home.
The lack of a defensive home has proven true, but Julien’s bat has wilted over the past two seasons. He’s taken 509 MLB plate appearances since Opening Day 2024 and managed only a .208/.299/.324 batting line (79 wRC+). His walk rate has dipped to a still-strong 10.8%, while his strikeout rate has nominally climbed to 32%.
Julien, who’ll turn 27 in April, will be on the roster one way or another, given the fact that he’s out of minor league options. That could be at first base, second base or designated hitter. It’ll surely depend on who the opposing starter is, too, given that the lefty-swinging Canadian has hit just .209/.278/.313 in the 126 plate appearances he’s been afforded versus southpaws at the big league level.
Rumfield, too, could factor in at first base but isn’t a lock to do so from the jump — particularly not with Julien now in the fold. Rumfield is a 25-year-old who slashed .285/.378/.447 in Triple-A this past season and .292/.365/.461 there a season prior. He doesn’t have much left to prove in the minors, but the Rockies aren’t going to simply hand him the first base job, either. He’ll likely need to earn a spot with a solid showing this spring.
Even if Rumfield plays his way onto the roster, bringing in a veteran first baseman makes some sense. If the Rockies were truly confident that he’s ready for an immediate MLB look, they coudl’ve selected him in last month’s Rule 5 Draft. Rumfield was eligible for selection but not taken. Acquiring him via trade rather than the Rule 5 creates a path to give Rumfield some further minor league time.
There ought to be plenty of first base and designated hitter at-bats available in Colorado. Someone like Luis Arraez, Nathaniel Lowe or Rhys Hoskins would add some competition and a potential deadline chip, depending on how said veteran performs over the season’s first few months. A veteran signing would probably cut into playing time for players like Troy Johnston and Blaine Crim, but they’re both 28-year-olds with less than a year of big league service and fairly marginal Triple-A track records. There shouldn’t be any financial worries standing in the way of a more veteran addition; the Rockies’ projected $110MM Opening Day payroll (via RosterResource) would be their lowest since 2021 and second-lowest since 2015.
Astros Interested In Christian Vázquez
The Astros’ focus this offseason has been on bolstering the pitching staff, and they’ve done that in a meaningful way with acquisitions of Tatsuya Imai, Mike Burrows and KBO standout Ryan Weiss. They’re not entirely done tweaking the roster yet, however. Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports that Houston has interest in a reunion with veteran catcher Christian Vázquez following Victor Caratini‘s free agent departure. A deal between the two parties isn’t seen as close, Rome adds, but the interest is nonetheless notable in that it signifies interest in adding a veteran backup to 27-year-old Yainer Diaz.
At the moment, the out-of-options César Salazar is the only other catcher on Houston’s 40-man roster. Salazar will turn 30 in March and has 67 major league plate appearances under his belt. He’s a .232/.318/.268 hitter in that minuscule sample and hasn’t fared too much better in the upper minors. He slashed .213/.353/.353 in 186 Triple-A plate appearances last year and is a lifetime .226/.361/.348 hitter in 799 trips to the plate at that level.
Salazar is a fine defender who draws enough walks in Triple-A to post solid on-base numbers. However, the bit of power he showed earlier in his career — 27 home runs in 639 minor league plate appearances from 2021-22 — has completely dried up in recent seasons. Salazar has come to the plate 796 times between the majors and minors across the past three seasons and connected on 15 home runs. His 2025 season in the majors consisted of only 11 games and 16 plate appearances, but Statcast measured his average sprint speed at 22.4 feet per second — the second-slowest mark in Major League Baseball.
Vázquez, 35, isn’t much fleeter of foot (24.7 ft/sec) and has a long track record of sub-par to poor offense. He hit .189/.271/.274 in 214 plate appearances with Minnesota last season and slashed only .215/.267/.311 in 884 turns at the plate over his three years as a Twin. Vázquez is an elite defender, however, and he draws plenty of praise for his game-calling and ability to manage a pitching staff.
While Vázquez wouldn’t move the needle much in terms of Houston’s overall chances at contending, there’s something to be said for bringing in a veteran who can at least handle a bigger workload while providing plus glovework in the event of a Diaz injury. Presently, if Houston were to lose Diaz to an injury, they’d be looking at Salazar and either 2022 sixth-rounder Collin Price or non-roster invitee Carlos Pérez as their catching tandem. Price has split his time between catching, first base and the outfield. He draws decent framing marks but poor grades for his throwing and ability to block balls in the dirt. Pérez is a 35-year-old journeyman who hasn’t played in the majors since 2023 and carries a career .218/.267/.327 line in 859 plate appearances.
Vázquez spent the second half of the 2022 season with the ‘Stros and still has some familiarity with several members of the staff. He caught Cristian Javier, Bryan Abreu and Lance McCullers Jr. that season, and current ace Hunter Brown made his MLB debut late in the ’22 campaign as well. Vázquez also knows Astros lefty Steven Okert from the pair’s time together in Minnesota during the 2024 season.
If not Vázquez, some kind of low-cost catching acquisition feels prudent. Alternate options in free agency include Jonah Heim, Gary Sánchez, Elias Díaz, Luke Maile, Mitch Garver and Matt Thaiss. It’s also likely that there will be some catchers passed around the waiver carousel over the course of spring training, and Houston could jump on any of those names as they become available as well.
The Astros want to remain under the luxury tax threshold in 2026. RosterResource pegs their current CBT obligations at about $238.5MM — $5.5MM shy of the $244MM threshold. Bringing in another catcher should be doable while still leaving some modest breathing room for in-season additions.
Nationals Claim Tsung-Che Cheng, Designate Konnor Pilkington
The Nationals announced Wednesday that they’ve claimed infielder Tsung-Che Cheng off waivers from the Mets. Left-hander Konnor Pilkington has been designated for assignment to create space on the 40-man roster.
In 2025, Cheng made his big league debut with the Pirates, albeit in the smallest of samples (seven hitless plate appearances). The 24-year-old batted just .207/.305/.267 through 410 Triple-A plate appearances, connecting on just one homer with a dozen doubles and trio of triples.
Obviously, that’s poor production at the plate, but Cheng is a plus runner who swiped 20 bags and can play solid defense at three infield spots (shortstop, third base, second base). He’s walked in 12.5% of his minor league plate appearances as well and has a career .350 on-base percentage in the minors.
Cheng still has a minor league option year remaining. He’ll head to spring training with the Nats in hopes of securing a utility infield job, and he can provide some defensive-minded depth behind third baseman Brady House, shortstop CJ Abrams and second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. Abrams has seen his name pop up in trade chatter recently and could still be moved. Cheng certainly wouldn’t be thrust into the starter’s role in that scenario, but it’d create further opportunities for him in the majors, depending on how the Nats would go about replacing Abrams in that hypothetical scenario.
Pilkington, 28, pitched 28 1/3 innings for Washington last season. He worked to a 4.45 ERA, fanned 27.6% of his opponents and logged an ugly 13.8% walk rate. That marked the left-hander’s third season with at least some big league time. He’s totaled 88 1/3 frames in the majors and turned in a solid 3.97 ERA, albeit with a pedestrian 22% strikeout rate and a beefy 12.9% walk rate.
A former third-round pick (White Sox, 2018), Pilkington has spent parts of four seasons in Triple-A, where he’s pitched to a 6.10 earned run average with comparable strikeout rates to his major league level but an even more alarming 14.1% walk rate. Moving from a starting role to a pure relief role bumped Pilkington’s average fastball to a career-best 94.5 mph this past season but didn’t help him rein in his command at all.
Pilkington still has one minor league option year remaining, and while his overall track record in Triple-A isn’t good, he notched a 2.59 ERA in 42 1/3 innings with Washington’s top affiliate in Rochester this past season. Even amid that seemingly strong showing, however, Pilkington walked 15% of his opponents. It’s possible another club is intrigued by his uptick in velocity and the strikeout numbers following a move to the bullpen, but unless he can dramatically cut back on his walk rate, it’s hard to imagine Pilkington carving out a lasting role in the big leagues.
The Nationals can trade Pilkington or place him on waivers at any point within the next five days. Waivers are a 48-hour process. His DFA will be resolved within a week’s time.
Brewers, Reese McGuire Agree To Minor League Deal
The Brewers have signed catcher Reese McGuire to a minor league contract and invited him to major league spring training, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reported last week that the two sides had been talking. McGuire is represented by Apex Baseball.
McGuire, 31 in March, is a former first-round pick and top prospect who’s played in parts of eight major league seasons with four teams — most recently the 2025 Cubs. He hit .226/.245/.444 (86 wRC+) in 140 turns at the plate with Chicago last year and is a career .248/.293/.374 hitter in 400 games and 1178 plate appearances as a big leaguer.
Though he never developed into much of a threat in the batter’s box, McGuire has been a frequently used backup in recent years, due primarily to his defensive acumen. He receives above-average grades for his framing, ability to block balls in the dirt and his throwing. He nabbed eight of 31 thieves on the bases this past season (25.9%) and has a career caught-stealing rate just over 27%.
McGuire has more than five years of major league service time, so if he makes the roster in Milwaukee, the Brewers won’t be able to option him to the minor leagues. As things stand, there would appear to be a good chance that McGuire can indeed break camp with the club. William Contreras is, of course, in line to handle the bulk of the Brewers’ catching work.
Prior to their deal with McGuire, there was no clear backup option. Top prospect Jeferson Quero is the only other catcher on the 40-man roster, but the Brewers aren’t going to have a 23-year-old top-100 prospect sit on the bench as a backup at the major league level. Bringing McGuire into the mix allows Milwaukee to send Quero to Triple-A Nashville where he can play regularly and continue his development. Quero notched 250 plate appearances in Triple-A last season, but that was his first exposure to the top minor league level and he posted only league-average offensive marks in that time. He’s the heir apparent to Contreras behind the dish but isn’t yet ready for a full-time major league look.
The Brewers could always bring in some more veteran catchers to create some competition in camp, but for now, McGuire jumps to the front of the pack as the likeliest in-house option to serve as Contreras’ backup in 2026.