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Offseason In Review: Minnesota Twins

By Steve Adams | March 21, 2025 at 11:57pm CDT

The Twins' front office was constricted by payroll limitations for a second straight offseason -- this time in the wake of announcement that the Pohlad family was looking to sell the team. After a quiet winter, they'll hope for better health and improvement from within.

Major League Signings

  • Harrison Bader, OF: One year, $6.25MM
  • Danny Coulombe, LHP: One year, $3MM
  • Ty France, 1B: One year, $1MM

2025 spending: $10.25MM
Total spending: $10.25MM

Option Decisions

  • Declined $12MM mutual option on OF Manuel Margot
  • Declined $6.25MM mutual option on INF Kyle Farmer
  • Exercised $1.5MM club option on RHP Jorge Alcala

Trades and Waiver Claims

  • Acquired C/INF Mickey Gasper from Red Sox in exchange for LHP Jovani Moran
  • Acquired C Diego Cartaya from Dodgers in exchange for RHP Jose Vasquez
  • Traded INF Michael Helman to Cardinals in exchange for cash
  • Selected RHP Eiberson Castellano from the Phillies in the Rule 5 Draft

Extensions

  • None

Minor League Signings

  • Mike Ford, Anthony Misiewicz, Erasmo Ramirez, Huascar Ynoa, Darren McCaughan, Alex Speas, Armando Alvarez, Yunior Severino (re-signed), Scott Blewett (re-signed), Daniel Duarte (re-signed)

Losses

  • Carlos Santana, Max Kepler, Alex Kirilloff (retired), Caleb Thielbar, Kyle Farmer, Manuel Margot, Michael Helman, Anthony DeSclafani, Caleb Boushley, Diego Castillo, Brent Headrick (lost to Yankees via waivers), Ronny Henriquez (lost to Marlins via waivers)

On Oct. 10, executive chair Joe Pohlad announced that his family would explore a sale of the team after 40 years of ownership. The 42-year-old had been elevated to oversee day-to-day ownership duties for the family just two years prior and quickly signed off on a club-record deal to re-sign Carlos Correa and an extension for Pablo Lopez just weeks after acquiring him via trade. The Twins entered 2023 with a club-record $154MM payroll, but as their television revenues were upended by the bankruptcy proceedings for Diamond Sports Group/Bally Sports, ownership mandated a payroll reduction of some $30MM in 2024 and placed strict financial limitations on the front office again this offseason.

The composition of that front office, it should be noted, changed dramatically this winter.

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2024-25 Offseason In Review Front Office Originals MLBTR Originals Membership Minnesota Twins

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Dominic Smith Opts Out Of Yankees Deal

By Steve Adams | March 21, 2025 at 1:00pm CDT

1:00pm: Smith is opting out, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. He was scratched from today’s lineup, so it doesn’t seem as though the Yankees plan on selecting his contract.

10:33am: First baseman Dominic Smith will have the ability to opt out of his minor league deal with the Yankees if he’s not added to the 40-man roster (or, presumably, informed that he will be added prior to Opening Day) by the end of the day, reports SNY’s Andy Martino.

Smith joins a few dozen other veterans who’ll have the potential to opt out of their non-roster deals this weekend. Unlike the bulk of that group, Smith is not an Article XX(b) free agent who had uniform opt-out dates in his contract by default; while he has the requisite six-plus years of MLB service, he did not finish the 2024 season on a major league roster or injured list.

The 29-year-old Smith has had a productive camp with the Yankees. He’s tallied 38 plate appearances and gone 11-for-37 (.297) with three home runs and a double. He’s also yet to draw a walk but has been credited with a sacrifice fly, leading to an oddball small-sample batting line with an OBP that’s lower than his batting average: .297/.289/.568.

Smith is in the running to serve as a left-handed bat off the bench or perhaps even a more prominent role in the DH spot, with Giancarlo Stanton ticketed for the injured list. Both Smith and fellow lefty hitter Ben Rice have turned in strong performances this spring. Rice is hitting .260/.339/.560 with five homers in 57 plate appearances. There’s room for both on the roster, given injuries to Stanton and DJ LeMahieu, but the club would face some decisions on its DH and/or bench mix if they can get everyone healthy.

Smith spent the bulk of the 2024 season with the Red Sox and played regularly while Triston Casas was injured. He made a late cameo with the Reds, taking 29 plate appearances for Cincinnati. Between those two clubs, he slashed a respectable, if unspectacular .233/.313/.378 with six homers and 22 doubles in 307 plate appearances.

A former first-round pick and top prospect with the crosstown Mets, Smith looked to be breaking out back in 2019-20 when he slashed .299/.366/.571 in 139 games between those two seasons. He struggled in 2021, ultimately revealing that he spent much of the season playing through a small tear in the labrum of his right shoulder. His bat has never fully recovered, however, as evidenced by a cumulative .241/.311/.360 batting line in the four years since that eye-opening stretch in 2019-20.

Smith isn’t the only non-roster veteran who could force the Yankees to make a 40-man roster move this weekend. Right-hander Carlos Carrasco, who is widely expected to make the team as a member of the rotation, also has an opt-out tomorrow.

New York’s 40-man roster is currently full, but they have several candidates for the 60-day injured list. Gerrit Cole is a lock to be transferred there, as he’ll miss the season due to Tommy John surgery. Jonathan Loaisiga, recovering from an internal brace operation last April, is targeting a May or June return and is another candidate. Reigning Rookie of the Year Luis Gil suffered a lat strain in early March and is projected to miss a total of roughly three months, making him another obvious candidate. Placing two of that trio on the 60-day IL would open roster space for Carrasco and Smith, should the Yankees ultimately opt to carry both on the Opening Day roster.

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New York Yankees Dominic Smith

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Braves Select Drake Baldwin, Hector Neris, Enyel De Los Santos

By Steve Adams | March 21, 2025 at 11:47am CDT

The Braves announced Friday that they have selected the contracts of top catching prospect Drake Baldwin and veteran relievers Hector Neris and Enyel De Los Santos. All three have made the Opening Day club and are now on the 40-man roster. Atlanta doesn’t need to make any corresponding moves, as the recent returns of their two Rule 5 picks, this week’s trade of Angel Perdomo and yesterday’s outright of utilityman Luke Williams cleared several spots.

None of the three decisions registers as a surprise. Baldwin, 23, hit .313/.436/.375 in 39 spring plate appearances and was thrust to the top of the catching depth chart when Sean Murphy suffered fractured ribs early in camp. The 2022 third-rounder is widely regarded as one of the sport’s top catching prospects and one of the top 100 farmhands in the entire league. Baldwin will get his first opportunity and should see the lion’s share of playing time ahead of backup Chadwick Tromp while Murphy mends. Atlanta also recently signed James McCann to a minor league deal, but he’ll likely ramp up in Triple-A before he’s truly considered an option.

Neris was a late sign, agreeing to terms on March 3, and has only pitched two official innings so far. He’s gotten work on the back fields and in side sessions, however, and figures to get another inning or two between now and Opening Day. He hasn’t allowed a run in either of his two official appearances thus far.

The 35-year-old righty has a long track record in the majors, primarily with the division-rival Phillies and the Astros. He posted a 1.71 ERA and 31 holds as recently as 2023 in Houston, but he had an uneven showing as the Cubs’ closer in 2024 before being released. Neris saved 17 games with a 3.89 ERA for the Cubs but walked 13.3% of his opponents and also blew five save opportunities. He had something of the opposite play out in a late-season return to Houston; his 28.1% strikeout rate and 3.1% walk rate in 15 1/3 frames were brilliant … but his 4.70 ERA was lackluster. Overall, the veteran righty has a 3.27 ERA in 267 1/3 frames over the past four seasons.

De Los Santos, 25, has had a terrific camp, holding opponents to a pair of runs on just two hits and a walk with seven punchouts in 6 2/3 frames. He posted a 5.20 ERA in 64 innings spread across three teams last year, but he’s a six-year veteran who turned in a combined 3.18 earned run average in 119 innings for the Guardians from 2022-23. De Los Santos only has 4.015 years of major league service, so if he bounces back this year in Atlanta, he’ll be controllable through the 2026 season via arbitration.

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Atlanta Braves Newsstand Transactions Drake Baldwin Enyel De Los Santos Hector Neris

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Cubs’ Nicky Lopez Granted Release

By Steve Adams | March 21, 2025 at 11:21am CDT

Infielder Nicky Lopez, who’d been in camp with the Cubs as a non-roster invitee, triggered an opt-out in his minor league deal and has been granted his release, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports. He’s once again a free agent and can field interest from teams seeking infield depth.

Lopez, 30, is a light-hitting, premium defensive infielder who can provide strong glovework at any infield spot to the left of first base. He’s had a strong spring showing with the Cubs, too, hitting .450/.542/.550 in a tiny sample of 30 plate appearances. The Cubs’ late signing of Jon Berti and promotion of top prospect Matt Shaw — plus the presence of Rule 5 pick Gage Workman and out-of-options utilityman Vidal Brujan — narrowed any realistic pathways for Lopez to crack Chicago’s major league roster, however.

Lopez spent the 2024 season with Chicago’s other club and posted a .241/.312/.294 batting line in 445 plate appearances for the White Sox. That output is right in line with his career marks of .248/.312/.314, which come in a notable sample of 2346 plate appearances. Lack of punch notwithstanding, Lopez is generally good for a league-average walk rate and possesses plus contact skills, evidenced by a career 14.3% strikeout rate.

Metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average both feel Lopez is a superlative defender at second base and third base alike. There’s more of a gap with regard to his shortstop defense, though his middling DRS rating is due primarily to a brutal -9 grade in just 344 innings there last year. Outside of his 2024 performance, DRS has continually felt he’s been at least average at short. Statcast’s OAA has consistently touted his defensive acumen there, highlighted by a +25 mark back in 2021.

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Chicago Cubs Transactions Nicky Lopez

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Blue Jays’ Shapiro On Guerrero Jr.: “I Think We’re Going To Extend Him”

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 11:59pm CDT

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s self-imposed deadline for an extension — the first full day of spring training — came and went more than a month ago, with no deal coming to fruition. Guerrero has left the door slightly cracked, indicating that while he doesn’t plan to negotiate any further, he’d be amenable to hearing the Jays out if they presented a new offer. That mindset is all the more notable now, given that Jays CEO Mark Shapiro flatly stated this morning that he expects to eventually agree to an extension with the team’s star first baseman (via Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi). Said Shapiro:

“…I guess my overarching feeling is one of optimism. I think we’re going to sign him. I think we’re going to extend him. The reason I feel that way is because we have such a clear alignment on the desired outcome. Vlad wants to play his whole career as a Toronto Blue Jay. We want him to end his career in a Blue Jays uniform to be a true legacy player for the Toronto Blue Jays. … Could be before free agency, could be during free agency, but I’m optimistic we will sign him.”

Guerrero himself reacted to Shapiro’s comments, per Hazel Mae and Shi Davidi of Sportsnet: “I’ve always felt good about the whole thing. I’m good with that. Just going to keep working very hard and be optimistic, too. Not going to shut the door on them… I’ll be open. But I’m going to leave that to my agents to work with that. If there’s something there, they’re going to continue to work with that. I’m just going to be on the field, focusing on my teammates, on my team, on my game.”

Details surrounding both Guerrero’s asking price and the Blue Jays’ most recent offer have trickled out in the weeks since his deadline passed. Guerrero himself made clear he wasn’t seeking anything close to Juan Soto’s $765MM guarantee with the Mets; he sought under $600MM in guaranteed money over a 14- or 15-year deal. Subsequent reporting from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of the New York Post, and Davidi shed further light on negotiations. Guerrero reportedly sought a net-present value of $500MM, and while the Jays are said to have offered a figure close to $500MM, deferred money pushed the present-day value down closer to $450MM.

Though that paints a broad picture of where things stand, Shapiro cautioned today (without citing specifically reported numbers) that the gap isn’t quite as straightforward as the ostensible $50MM separating the reported offer and asking price. “That’s an oversimplification based upon only part of the information,” Shapiro said (via MLB.com’s Keegan Mattheson).

Shapiro’s candor and optimistic tone on eventually hammering out a long-term deal come not long after Hector Gomez of the Dominican Republic’s Z101 Sports reported that the Jays are preparing a new offer for Guerrero. While it’s still not clear whether a new offer will be made prior to Opening Day, Shapiro’s comments do lend some credence to the idea that a new proposal could be forthcoming before long.

Despite the fact that he just turned 26 this past Sunday, Guerrero is entering his final season of club control. He’ll earn $28.5MM in 2025 after avoiding arbitration this winter. He’ll be a year older than Soto was when Soto hit the market, but Guerrero is nevertheless poised to reach free agency with a rare blend of youth and premium offensive track record.

Although the first two seasons of Guerrero’s career — his age-20 and age-21 efforts — were “only” a bit above average, he broke out with an MVP-caliber performance in 2021. His 2022-23 production was very strong but not quite up to that 2021 standard. He bounced back to elite levels in 2024. Overall, since that 2021 breakout, Guerrero has turned in a monstrous .293/.370/.517 batting line with 136 home runs in 2783 plate appearances — about 45% better than league average, by measure of wRC+.

Guerrero delivered nearly unrivaled batted-ball and bat speed grades last year while turning in a career-low 13.8% strikeout rate against a 10.3% walk rate that sits as the second-highest mark of his big league tenure. Per Statcast, he ranked in at least the 91st percentile of MLB hitters in barrel rate (91st percentile), bat speed (95th), hard-hit rate (97th), average exit velocity (98th), expected slugging percentage (98th) and expected wOBA (98th). No hitter in MLB had a higher maximum exit velocity or expected batting average.

Guerrero has also been extremely durable, trailing only Marcus Semien in total plate appearances since 2021. In that same span, he’s tied with Yordan Alvarez for the sixth-most homers in MLB and also sits sixth with 405 runs driven in. Guerrero ranks 10th in batting average, 11th in on-base percentage and 13th in slugging percentage over the past four years. Defense and baserunning are obvious strikes against him, but Guerrero has been one of MLB’s ten best hitters in the aggregate since Opening Day 2021 — including two seasons where he’s been flat-out elite.

Based on Guerrero’s premium bat-to-ball skills, bat speed and batted-ball metrics, there’s little reason to expect him to markedly decline in the near future. As with any mega-deal, the latter half of the contract is likely to be painful, but that’s generally accepted as the cost of doing business when signing star-caliber players of this nature in the heart of their prime.

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Newsstand Toronto Blue Jays Mark Shapiro Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

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Braves Sign Alex Verdugo

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 11:58pm CDT

The Braves announced Thursday that they’ve signed veteran outfielder Alex Verdugo to a one-year, $1.5MM contract. With Opening Day just a week away, he consented to be optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett to ramp up. (Players gain the right to refuse an optional assignment once they accrue five years of MLB service.) Verdugo is represented by MVP Sports Group.

Just days ago, The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty reported that Verdugo had yet to receive a formal big league offer in free agency. That turned quickly. He’ll head straight to minor league camp and spend a bit of time in Gwinnett while he makes up for missing most of spring training, but he’ll be an option for Atlanta at some point in April.

The 28-year-old Verdugo (29 in May) is coming off the worst season of his big league career but was a steady regular with the Dodgers and Red Sox from 2019-23. Over that five-year period, he slashed a combined .283/.338/.432 with quality corner outfield defense. He may not have developed into the star some had hoped when the former second-round pick was widely regarded as a top-100 prospect, but Verdugo was a clear contributor on generally competitive clubs.

The 2024 season started out with more of the same. Traded to the Yankees last offseason, Verdugo came out of the gate hot, batting .275/.362/.450 in his first 141 plate appearances. He fell into a deep slump from that point forth and never recovered, however. From mid-May through season’s end, Verdugo’s .221/.270/.330 line was one of the least-productive in all of baseball among qualified hitters.

Last year’s prolonged struggles surely hindered Verdugo’s market. He was connected to teams like the Pirates, Angels and Astros throughout the winter, but all of those clubs either went another direction in the outfield or didn’t end up making an outfield addition at all. The Pirates instead decided it better to spread out their limited remaining resources across multiple players; they signed Tommy Pham ($4.05MM) and Andrew Heaney ($5.25MM) to one-year deals not long after being linked to Verdugo.

Verdugo heads to Atlanta on a lighter deal than most would’ve predicted back at the onset of free agency, providing some outfield depth at a time when Ronald Acuña Jr. is still rehabbing last year’s ACL tear while Jarred Kelenic continues to struggle. Offseason signee Jurickson Profar has also been banged up in camp, as it’s now been nearly two weeks since he was in an official game. Profar injured his wrist on a diving attempt in left field; he was diagnosed with a bone bruise, not a fracture, and is expected to be ready for Opening Day. Bone bruises are tricky injuries, the effects of which can sometimes linger longer than expected.

If the Braves can get everyone healthy, they’ll have some decisions to make. At full strength, the outfield would clearly be Profar in left, Michael Harris II in center and Acuña in right. Kelenic would fill a fourth outfield role in that setup, while Bryan De La Cruz — also on the 40-man roster — would likely reside in Triple-A as a depth piece.

Verdugo’s addition to the mix most directly threatens Kelenic’s role. Both are left-handed hitters who can handle center field but are probably better suited for corner work. (Verdugo certainly is.) Kelenic is a former top-10 pick and once ranked as one of the game’s 10 best prospects, but he’s never hit his stride in the majors after decimating minor league pitching.

The Braves acquired Kelenic from the Mariners in the 2023-24 offseason via a series of convoluted salary-dump trades that wound up seeing Atlanta take on around $25MM in dead money (plus nearly $7MM in luxury taxes) to purchase the former top prospect. They said from the jump that he’d receive regular playing time and would not be platooned, but by the end of camp he’d struggled enough against lefties that the Braves re-signed Adam Duvall to platoon with him. Kelenic’s first season with Atlanta resulted in a disappointing .231/.286/.393 slash. He’s followed that  up with a .200/.282/.457 slash in 39 spring plate appearances.

Kelenic has a minor league option remaining. If he struggles, it’s feasible that Atlanta will try to get him on track in Gwinnett and switch him out for Verdugo, using the veteran Verdugo in that aforementioned fourth outfield role. It’s a low-cost depth gamble made possible by Verdugo’s lack of market to this point. There’s little harm in opportunistically adding to the depth at this price point; the Braves are now up to about $231MM of luxury obligations, per RosterResource, leaving them $10MM shy of the tax threshold.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported that Verdugo and the Braves had agreed to a deal worth $1.5MM. Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reported that it was a one-year, major league contract.

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Atlanta Braves Newsstand Transactions Alex Verdugo

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36 Veteran Players With Looming Opt-Out Dates

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 2:23pm CDT

The 2022-26 collective bargaining agreement implemented a new series of uniform opt-out dates for players who qualified as free agents under Article XX(b) of said agreement and sign a minor league deal in free agency. More specifically, that designation falls on players with six-plus years of MLB service time who finished the preceding season on a major league roster or injured list. Some contracts for players coming over from a foreign professional league like Nippon Professional Baseball or the Korea Baseball Organization will also have language written into their contracts allowing them to qualify as an XX(b) free agent despite a lack of six years of service.

The three uniform opt-out dates on those contracts land five days before Opening Day, on May 1 and on June 1. With the regular season set to kick off next week, any Article XX(b) free agents who are in camp on minor league contracts will have the opportunity to opt out on Saturday, March 22. A player triggering one of these out clauses gives his current club 48 hours to either add him to the 40-man roster or let him become a free agent.

There are other ways to secure opt-outs in contracts, of course. Many players who don’t qualify for XX(b) designation will still have opt-out opportunities negotiated into their minor league deals in free agency.

The following is a list of 36 players who are in camp as non-roster invitees and will be able to opt out this weekend. Most were XX(b) free agents, but there are a handful of names who didn’t meet that requirement but had outs negotiated into their respective deals nonetheless. This is not a comprehensive list of all players with opt-out opportunities this weekend.

All spring stats referenced are accurate through the completion of games played Wednesday, March 19.

Astros: LHP Jalen Beeks

Beeks, 31, was a relatively late sign (March 7) who’s since tossed three spring frames — including two scoreless innings just yesterday. He logged a 4.50 ERA in 70 innings between the Rockies and Pirates last season. He struggled to miss bats last year but typically runs strong strikeout rates. Dating back to 2020, Beeks carries a 4.16 ERA in 192 2/3 innings. In Josh Hader, Bryan King and Bennett Sousa, the Astros already have three lefty relievers on the 40-man. Another veteran non-roster invitee, Steven Okert, has rattled off 8 2/3 shutout spring innings with a 14-to-2 K/BB ratio. Beeks might have long odds of cracking the roster.

Blue Jays: RHP Jacob Barnes, LHP Ryan Yarbrough

The 34-year-old Barnes logged a 4.36 ERA in a career-high 66 big league innings last season. He posted an ERA north of 5.00 in each of the five preceding seasons (a total of 115 1/3 frames). He’s been tagged for four runs in 5 1/3 innings this spring.

Yarbrough, 33, had a terrific run with the Jays to close out the 2024 season. Joining Toronto in a deadline swap sending Kevin Kiermaier to the Dodgers, the veteran southpaw posted a 2.01 ERA in 31 1/3 innings. He’s a soft-tosser, sitting just 86.5 mph with his heater, but Yarbrough can pitch multiple innings in relief and has a decent track record even beyond last year’s overall 3.19 earned run average (4.21 ERA in 768 MLB innings). He’s allowed three runs with and 8-to-1 K/BB ratio in 6 2/3 innings in camp.

Braves: RHP Buck Farmer, RHP Hector Neris

Farmer was already reassigned to minor league camp on Sunday, so there’d seem to be a good chance of him taking his out. The 34-year-old turned in a terrific 3.04 ERA in 71 innings for the Reds last year but was probably hampered by his age, pedestrian velocity and subpar command in free agency. With a 3.68 ERA in 193 innings over the past three seasons in Cincinnati, he should find an opportunity somewhere — even if it’s not in Atlanta.

Neris is still in Braves camp. He signed well into camp and thus has only pitched one official inning so far, which was scoreless. (Neris is pitching today as well.) He’s looking to bounce back from a 4.10 ERA and a particularly poor performance in save opportunities last year. Prior to his nondescript 2024, Neris rattled off a 3.03 ERA in 208 innings from 2021-23 between Philly and Houston, saving 17 games and collecting 67 holds along the way.

Brewers: 1B/OF Mark Canha, OF Manuel Margot

He’s had a brutal spring, but the 36-year-old Canha has been an above-average hitter every year since 2018, by measure of wRC+. He’s just 2-for-23 in Brewers camp, but he’s slugged a homer and walked as often as he’s fanned (four times apiece). Milwaukee has Rhys Hoskins at first base, but Canha could chip in at DH and offer a right-handed complement to lefty outfielders Sal Frelick and Garrett Mitchell.

Margot hasn’t hit well in a tiny sample of 35 spring plate appearances, but he’s outproduced Canha with a .250/.314/.375 slash. He’s coming off a dismal .238/.289/.337 showing in Minnesota, however, and hasn’t been the plus defender he was prior to a major 2022 knee injury. Like Canha, he could complement Frelick and Mitchell as a righty-swinging outfielder, but Canha has been the far more productive bat in recent seasons.

Cubs: RHP Chris Flexen

The Cubs reassigned Flexen to minor league camp after just 3 2/3 innings this spring. He was hit hard on the other side of town with the White Sox in 2024, though Flexen quietly righted the ship after an awful start. He posted a 5.69 ERA through nine starts but logged a 4.62 mark over his final 21 trips to the mound, including a tidy 3.52 earned run average across 46 innings in his last eight starts. Flexen may not bounce back to his 2021-22 numbers in Seattle, but he’s a durable fifth starter if nothing else.

Diamondbacks: INF/OF Garrett Hampson, RHP Scott McGough

The D-backs don’t really have a backup shortstop while Blaze Alexander is sidelined with an oblique strain, which seems to bode well for Hampson. He’s hitting .235/.333/.324 in camp and can play three infield spots and three outfield positions. He had a bleak .230/.275/.300 performance in Kansas City last year but was a league-average hitter for the Marlins as recently as 2023.

McGough was reassigned to minor league camp yesterday after serving up six runs in 4 2/3 innings of spring work. That wasn’t the follow-up to last year’s gruesome 7.44 ERA for which the 35-year-old righty or the team had hoped.

Giants: C Max Stassi, RHP Lou Trivino

Stassi is battling Sam Huff, who’s on the 40-man, for the backup catcher’s role while Tom Murphy is injured. The 34-year-old Stassi is hitting .300/.364/.700 with a pair of homers in 22 spring plate appearances. He’s a plus defender with a scattershot track record at the plate.

Trivino hasn’t pitched since 2022 due to Tommy John surgery and a separate shoulder issue. He also hasn’t allowed a run in 8 1/3 spring innings. (9-to-4 K/BB ratio). Trivino’s scoreless Cactus League showing, his pre-injury track record and his familiarity with skipper Bob Melvin — his manager in Oakland — all seem to give him a real chance to win a spot.

Mariners: RHP Shintaro Fujinami, RHP Trevor Gott, 1B Rowdy Tellez

Fujinami’s command has never been good, and he’s walked more batters (seven) than he’s struck out (four) through 5 2/3 spring innings. He’s also plunked a pair of batters. He’s looking to bounce back from an injury-ruined 2024 season but might have to take his first steps toward doing so in Triple-A.

Tellez has had a big camp and looks like he could have a real chance to make the club in a part-time DH/first base role, as explored more yesterday. Gott is on the mend from Tommy John surgery performed last March and won’t pitch until midseason. He’s unlikely to opt out.

Mets: RHP Jose Ureña

Ureña was torched for seven runs in his first 1 1/3 spring innings after signing with the Mets on Feb. 27. He bounced back by striking out all three opponents he faced in an inning this past weekend, but he hasn’t helped himself otherwise. Ureña’s 3.80 ERA in 109 innings with Texas last year was his first sub-5.00 ERA since 2017-18 in Miami.

Padres: 1B Yuli Gurriel, INF Jose Iglesias

Both veterans have a legitimate chance to make the club. Gurriel has had a productive spring (.296/.321/.519) at nearly 41 years of age, while Iglesias is out to a 5-for-18 start since signing in mid-March. Gurriel could split time at first and DH, lessening the need to use Luis Arraez in the field. Iglesias could see frequent work at second base, shifting Jake Cronenworth to first base and pushing Arraez to DH. The Padres probably wouldn’t have put a hefty (relative to most minor league deals) $3MM base salary on Iglesias’ deal if they didn’t see a real path to him making the roster.

Pirates: LHP Ryan Borucki

Borucki was great for the Pirates in 2023 and struggled through 11 innings during an injury-marred 2024 season. The 30-year-old southpaw has allowed one run in eight spring innings. His five walks are a bit much, but he’s also fanned 11 of his 33 opponents.

Rangers: SS Nick Ahmed, RHP David Buchanan, RHP Jesse Chavez, OF Kevin Pillar, RHP Hunter Strickland

Ahmed has more homers in 28 spring plate appearances than he had in 228 plate appearances in 2024 or 210 plate appearances in 2023. He’s popped three round-trippers already and slashed .286/.310/.607. With a crowded infield and versatile backups like Josh Smith and Ezequiel Duran, Ahmed might still have a hard time cracking the roster.

None of the three pitchers listed here has performed well in limited work. Buchanan had a nice run as a starter in the KBO in the four preceding seasons, while Chavez has been a mainstay in the Atlanta bullpen for much of the past few years. Strickland had a nice 2024 in Anaheim but signed very late and retired only one of the five batters he faced during his long spring outing.

Pillar may have the best chance of the bunch to make the team. He’s hitting .273/.333/.394 in 39 plate appearances. Outfielders Wyatt Langford and Adolis Garcia have been banged up this spring, so some extra outfield depth could make sense.

Rays: DH/OF Eloy Jimenez

Jimenez homered for the second time yesterday, boosting his Grapefruit line to .263/.300/.447. He’s coming off a dreadful season in 2024, but from 2019-23 the former top prospect raked at a .275/.324/.487 pace, including a 31-homer rookie campaign (admittedly, in the juiced-ball 2019 season). Durability has been a bigger factor than productivity. If the Rays can get Jimenez to elevate the ball more, he could be a bargain; he’s still only 28.

Red Sox: LHP Matt Moore, RHP Adam Ottavino

Moore signed on Feb. 20 and has only gotten into two spring games so far, totaling two innings. Ottavino has pitched four innings but allowed five runs. He’s walked five and tossed a pair of wild pitches in that time. Both pitchers have long MLB track records, but they’re both coming off lackluster seasons.

Reds: LHP Wade Miley

Miley underwent Tommy John surgery early last season and contemplated retirement upon learning his prognosis. He wanted to return to one of his former NL Central clubs in free agency, and the Reds clearly offered a more compelling minor league deal than the Brewers. He’s not going to be a realistic option until late May, and it seems unlikely he’d opt out while his rehab is still ongoing.

Rockies: RHP Jake Woodford

Woodford isn’t an Article XX(b) free agent, but MLBTR has learned that he still has a March 22 opt-out. He made his fourth appearance of Rockies camp yesterday, tossing 2 2/3 innings with an earned run. Woodford has allowed seven runs on 11 hits and three walks with five punchouts and a nice 47.2% grounder rate in 10 2/3 frames this spring. He has experience as a starter and reliever. The righty doesn’t miss many bats but keeps the ball on the ground and has good command. He’s a fifth starter/swingman who’s out of minor league options.

Royals: C Luke Maile, RHP Ross Stripling

Maile is a glove-first backup who’s had a nice spring at the plate but has done so on a team with a healthy Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin. His path to a roster spot doesn’t look great. Speculatively, his former Reds club, which just lost Tyler Stephenson to begin the year, would make sense if they plan to add an outside catcher. Maile’s .214/.294/.329 performance over the past three seasons is light, but he’s already familiar with the bulk of Cincinnati’s staff. He’s a fine backup or No. 3 catcher for any club, Kansas City included.

Stripling notched a 3.01 ERA in 124 innings for the 2022 Blue Jays, but it’s been rough waters since. He was rocked for a 5.68 ERA across the past two seasons, spending time with both Bay Area clubs, and has been tagged for 11 runs on 14 hits — four of them homers — with just two strikeouts in six spring frames. He’ll likely need a strong Triple-A showing, be it with the Royals or another club, to pitch his way back to the majors.

Tigers: LHP Andrew Chafin

Chafin surprisingly commanded only a minor league deal this offseason and has struggled to begin his third stint with the Tigers. He’s been tagged for eight runs in four spring innings, walking six batters along the way. It’s a rough look, but the affable southpaw notched a 3.51 ERA in 56 1/3 MLB frames last year and touts a 3.12 mark across the past four seasons combined.

White Sox: RHP Mike Clevinger, INF Brandon Drury, OF Travis Jankowski

The ChiSox signed Clevinger for a third time late this spring and are trying him in the bullpen. He’s responded with four shutout innings, allowing only one hit and no walks while fanning six hitters. His 2025 White Sox reunion is out to a much better start than his 2024 reunion, wherein he was limited to only 16 innings with a 6.75 ERA thanks to elbow and neck troubles.

Drury could hardly be doing more to secure a spot with the Pale Hose. He’s decimated Cactus League pitching at a .410/.439/.821 pace, slugging three homers and seven doubles in only 41 plate appearances. He’s coming off a terrible 2024 showing with the Angels but hit .263/.313/.493 from 2021-23. It’d be a surprise if the Sox didn’t keep him.

Jankowski started the spring with the Cubs, was granted his release and signed with the Sox. The hits haven’t been dropping, but he has six walks in 25 plate appearances. The White Sox already have Michael A. Taylor in a fourth outfield role. Andrew Benintendi, who missed three-plus weeks with a fractured hand, was back in the lineup yesterday, making Jankowski something of a long shot.

Yankees: RHP Carlos Carrasco

With a nice spring showing and several injuries in the Yankees’ rotation, Carrasco looks to have a good chance at making the roster. Jack Curry of the YES Network already reported it’s “likely” Carrasco will be added this weekend. Carrasco has a 1.69 ERA with 15 strikeouts and seven walks (plus four hit batters) in 16 spring innings. He tossed five shutout frames yesterday.

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Ryan Weathers Out At Least Four To Six Weeks With Forearm Strain

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 12:52pm CDT

The Marlins announced Thursday that left-hander Ryan Weathers will begin the season on the injured list due to a left forearm strain. He’s expected to be sidelined for at least the next four to six weeks, per Isaac Azout of Fish on First.

Weathers, 25, came to Miami in the 2023 Garrett Cooper trade with the Padres and quickly looked to be an outstanding low-cost pickup. The former first-rounder had run out of chances with the Friars and struggled in three appearances with the Fish in the second half of the 2023 season. However, he came roaring out of the gate in 2024, relying less on his four-seamer and leaning more heavily on his sinker, slider and changeup.

The results were excellent. Through his first 13 starts, Weathers notched a 3.55 ERA with an average 22.5% strikeout rate, a strong 6.5% walk rate and a terrific 51.5% ground-ball rate in 71 innings. Unfortunately, a strain in his pitching hand wound up sending him to the injured list for the next three months. Weathers was hit hard by the Dodgers in his return outing but wrapped up the season with a pair of one-run performances against the Twins and Blue Jays. Overall, he finished the year with a 3.63 earned run average, 21.8% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate and 46.6% grounder rate.

That strong performance locked Weathers in as a set member of the Marlins’ rotation. He’d likely have taken the ball in the season’s second or third game, but his debut will be pushed until at least late April, if not mid-to-late May — depending on how his rehab progresses. For the time being, it seems there’s no expectation of a truly long-term absence, though forearm injuries come with a broad range of outcomes.

With Weathers joining fellow starters Braxton Garrett (internal brace surgery), Eury Perez (April 2024 Tommy John surgery) and Edward Cabrera (blisters) on the injured list to begin the season, Miami’s rotation is far from full strength. Sandy Alcantara, Cal Quantrill and Max Meyer are assured spots. Connor Gillispie seemed to have a leg up on what was the fifth spot (now the fourth). Weathers’ injury now likely pushes Valente Bellozo or Adam Mazur back into the mix for a spot on the big league staff.

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Miami Marlins Ryan Weathers

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Phillies Option Garrett Stubbs; Rafael Marchan Will Be Backup Catcher

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 12:15pm CDT

The Phillies announced Thursday that they’ve optioned catcher Garrett Stubbs to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. In doing so, they all but confirmed that switch-hitting Rafael Marchan will be their backup catcher.

Stubbs, 31, is the far more experienced of the two and performed better in limited spring action, but Marchan is out of minor league options. Going with Stubbs, who’s in his final option year, would’ve required removing Marchan from the 40-man roster. A 26-year-old switch-hitting catcher with sound defensive skills would hardly have been a lock to pass through waivers. The Phils opted to preserve their catching depth by giving Marchan the opening day roster nod.

Sending Stubbs to Triple-A is possible right now, but if he’s called to the big league roster for a couple months — say, in the result of an injury to Marchan or J.T. Realmuto — the situation could become more complicated. Stubbs has 4.120 years of MLB service. He’s 52 days shy of reaching five years. If he were to accrue those 52 days in 2025, he’d reach the point where he cannot be optioned unless he consents to the move. Having a pair of backups who can’t be optioned could prove problematic and result in a situation where the Phillies likely have to part with one of their backups. We’re a ways from reaching that point, but it’s a possibility at some point in 2025.

For now, the Phils will hope Marchan can continue at the pace he’s displayed in his fleeting MLB looks across the past three seasons. He’s tallied 121 plate appearances in that time and slashed .279/.333/.477. That’s plus production for any hitter but massive output for a catcher, though Marchan’s Triple-A work doesn’t necessarily support the notion that he can maintain that. He hit quite well in Lehigh Valley in 2023 but struggled at a .229/.340/.297 pace with the IronPigs in 2024.

Overall, Marchan is a lifetime .238/.328/.328 hitter in 216 Triple-A games. Despite the lackluster Triple-A performance, with Realmuto entering the final season of his contract, the Phillies understandably don’t want to risk losing a controllable, switch-hitting catcher whose defensive skills they appreciate and who has hit well in limited MLB work. Keeping him on the roster always seemed the likeliest outcome.

Stubbs has been the Phillies’ primary alternative to Realmuto in recent seasons, though he hasn’t garnered more than 187 plate appearances in any season. He’s a .222/.305/.324 hitter in 433 plate appearances with the Phillies but draws above-average grades for his throwing and solid marks for blocking balls in the dirt. Stubbs is a .272/.369/.404 hitter in a near-identical sample of Triple-A plate appearances to Marchan.

The Athletic’s Matt Gelb chatted with Stubbs and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski about the decision. Dombrowski acknowledged that it was a difficult conversation to have with Stubbs, who is beloved in the clubhouse, draws praise from the staff for his game-planning and receiving, and is being sent down for factors largely out of his control.

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Philadelphia Phillies Garrett Stubbs Rafael Marchan

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Astros’ Luis Garcia Shut Down Following Renewed Elbow Discomfort

By Steve Adams | March 20, 2025 at 9:32am CDT

Astros righty Luis Garcia hasn’t pitched since May 1, 2023 due to an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery later that month. He’s been building back up in camp this year, pitching 9 2/3 innings, but manager Joe Espada revealed this morning that Garcia has been shut down entirely after renewed elbow discomfort (via Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle). He’d been slated to pitch a bullpen session today but will instead be evaluated by team doctors.

It’s not the first setback for Garcia, but it’s perhaps more ominous than the last. The right-hander pitched 2 1/3 rehab innings last summer before being slowed down and turning his focus to 2025. The Astros did not provide specifics on the nature of last summer’s setback at the time (as is typical; the Astros are notoriously vague regarding health updates for their players). It’s not clear when they’ll provide more information on Garcia.

Chandler Rome of The Athletic notes that Garcia resumed throwing to hitters last October and was throwing without issue throughout the offseason. The team considered him to be ahead of fellow long-injured righty Lance McCullers Jr. in their respective rehabs, but today’s setback marks an abrupt and significant departure from that thinking.

Houston wasn’t counting on Garcia to step right into the Opening Day rotation, but the belief was that he’d emerge as a critical depth option in the early stages of the season. That won’t be the case. The Astros still have a solid if top-heavy staff, with Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and sophomore Spencer Arrighetti (who had an outstanding finish to the 2024 season after a rough few months as a rookie) leading the pack. Hayden Wesneski, acquired from the Cubs in the Kyle Tucker trade, is favored to be the fifth starter.

A healthy Garcia would’ve been a welcome boon to the staff, whatever his role. The right-hander was never considered a premium pitching prospect but hit the ground running in his 2020 debut and has never faced any kind of prolonged struggles in the big leagues. (Garcia has just one month of his career with an ERA north of 5.00.) He’s pitched a total of 352 innings for the Astros and logged a 3.61 ERA with a strong 25.3% strikeout rate against a sharp 7.8% walk rate. He started 28 games for Houston in both 2021 and 2022, logging mid-3.00s ERAs with more than 155 innings in each of those two seasons.

There’s now no telling when or whether Garcia will be an option to return to Houston’s rotation. His setback marks a notable blow to their pitching depth. The aforementioned McCullers, who’s been out of action even longer — since the 2022 World Series — made his spring debut earlier this week. That marked McCullers’ first official game action of any kind since ’22; he didn’t pitch in spring training or embark on any minor league rehab assignments in 2023 or 2024. He’s been beset by multiple flexor injuries along the way, which led to a June 2023 surgery.

The Astros currently have Garcia, McCullers, J.P. France (shoulder) and Cristian Javier (UCL) recovering from major surgeries. Javier had Tommy John surgery last June. France underwent surgery to repair a capsule tear in his shoulder last July. Depth starter Shawn Dubin has been sidelined all spring due to shoulder troubles.

Because of that wide swath of injuries, the Astros don’t have another rotation candidate on the 40-man roster who’s made even one big league start. Lefty Colton Gordon and righty Ryan Gusto are on the 40-man and could both get looks this season, but both are completely untested against MLB opposition.

The non-roster options behind the 40-man group aren’t experienced, either. Right-hander Glenn Otto (5.62 ERA in 169 2/3 MLB innings) has the most big league work of any NRI in Astros camp. Righties Miguel Ullola, 22, and A.J. Blubaugh, 24, are the team’s top-ranked pitching prospects. Ullola has just three innings in Triple-A. Blubaugh pitched well in 124 Triple-A frames last season and figures to be a key depth piece in 2025. Broadly speaking, the Astros are precariously thin beyond the top group of arms, which only exacerbates the problematic nature of Garcia’s latest setback.

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Houston Astros Lance McCullers Jr. Luis Garcia (Astros RHP)

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