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Tigers Still Pursuing Bregman After Flaherty Agreement

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The Tigers made their biggest strike of the offseason last night, agreeing to terms with right-hander Jack Flaherty on a two-year deal that allows him to opt back into free agency at season’s end. He’ll be paid $25MM in 2025 and has a $10MM player option for the 2026 season (that increases to $20MM if he makes 15 starts). Even with that fairly pricey pact in place, the Tigers aren’t closing the door on the other marquee free agent they’ve been chasing. ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that Detroit still in pursuit of third baseman Alex Bregman even after signing Flaherty. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press hears the same, writing that the Tigers have “conducted their offseason moves around their interest in signing Bregman,” ultimately passing on several right-handed bats in whom they also had interest (Christian Walker, switch-hitter Anthony Santander, and Ha-Seong Kim).

With Flaherty on the books, the Tigers’ 2025 payroll projects out to about $142MM, per RosterResource’s estimates. They’re up to $156MM in luxury obligations. That leaves them more than $50MM shy of the franchise-record $200MM player payroll and $85MM shy of the $241MM tax threshold. There’s room to accommodate Bregman, be it on a higher-annual value short-term deal with opt-outs or on the type of long-term, six- or seven-year pact he’s been seeking throughout free agency. The only Tigers guaranteed any salary beyond the 2025 season are Flaherty and infielders Colt Keith and Javier Baez. It’s possible — if not likely — that Flaherty will turn down that player option and head back to the market. Baez owed $25MM in 2025 and $24MM in both 2026-27. Keith is owed just over $24MM total through the 2029 season.

Suffice it to say, there’s ample long-term payroll space available if the Tigers decide that a late agreement with Bregman is the optimal finishing piece to an active winter. Adding Bregman would likely mean optioning top prospect Jace Jung to Triple-A Toledo to begin the season, but he’d be a depth option at either third or second in the event of an injury to Bregman or fellow free agent signee Gleyber Torres. Matt Vierling would presumably spend the bulk of his time in right field, though he could spell Bregman at the hot corner when he needs a breather or perhaps gets a rest day at designated hitter.

Any deal between the Tigers and Bregman would surely be the largest pact ever issued under president of baseball operations Scott Harris. In two-plus years on the job — a portion of it still at least partially in rebuild mode — Harris hasn’t gone beyond a two-year guarantee for a free agent. Flaherty and Kenta Maeda are the only two free agents Detroit has signed for two years under Harris, and no free agent has received more than Flaherty’s $35MM guarantee. The Tigers went six years on their extension with Keith, but he’d yet to even make his MLB debut and received a $28.6425MM guarantee.

Bregman reportedly has multiple six-year offers — one from the Astros (valued at at least $156MM) and one from another interested party that is said to contain an opt-out after year one. The Blue Jays have been suggested as the other team, though it’s not expressly clear that they’ve done so (nor is the value of the other six-year offer known). Beyond the Astros, Tigers and Jays, both the Cubs and Red Sox have been involved in Bregman’s market. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score in Chicago reports that as of yesterday afternoon, the Cubs are still in active talks with Bregman’s camp as well. That’s not really a new development, of course, but it’s further indication that none of the five clubs reported to be in pursuit of Bregman has fully backed down as of yet.

The Giants Shouldn’t Call It An Offseason Yet

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The Giants' offseason got out to a roaring start and has quieted to something of a murmur. Even before the winter truly began and they formally announced a changing of the guard in baseball operations, then-advisor and now-president of baseball ops Buster Posey at least had a hand in (if he wasn't firmly driving the bus) extending Matt Chapman for six years and $151MM. At his introductory press conference, Posey offered up the following quote:

"I think back on some of my earliest memories walking into a spring training clubhouse -- walking in and seeing Willie Mays sitting at a table with Willie McCovey and Gaylord Perry, Juan Marichal. The next week it's Will Clark, Jeff Kent, Barry Bonds. I always appreciated -- and I don't think I appreciated it as much when I was a younger player -- but as time went on, I appreciated what that meant not only to the community but to us as players. There's a standard and expectation for being a San Francisco Giant. It's a privilege to try to go out on the field and hold ourselves accountable to that standard. You can go more toward my era, with [Matt] Cain and [Tim] Lincecum, [Madison] Bumgarner and [Brandon] Crawford and [Brandon] Belt. What I came to realize is sure, all those guys were great players and part of great teams, but what those guys ultimately meant to the San Francisco Giants fanbase and the community was memories. And all of us that are lucky enough to get to be involved in baseball in whatever capacity, understand that not only is it the greatest game in the world, but we're in the memory-making business. It's ultimately entertainment. It's an opportunity for grandparents and parents to share memories. It's an opportunity for strangers sitting out in the bleachers to share a great memory that happens at the ballpark and that can be talked about from that time on for the rest of their life, potentially."

Just over a month into the offseason, that mentality appeared to be on full display. Willy Adames put pen to paper on the largest contract the franchise had ever handed out: a seven-year, $182MM contract. The team was tied to marquee free agents like Corbin Burnes and looked into trades for star players like Kyle Tucker and Garrett Crochet, ultimately balking at the notion of including top prospect Bryce Eldridge in a package for either. Still, it was a promising start to a winter after years of the Giants eschewing bids for high-end free agents and generally showing an aversion to long-term commitments.

The vibe surrounding the Giants seems much different just six to seven weeks later. The Giants' most recent move was a cost-saving trade. Posey is now expressing that he's comfortable with the roster as currently constructed.

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Orioles Acquire Luis Vazquez, Designate Emmanuel Rivera

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The Cubs have traded infielder Luis Vazquez, whom they designated for assignment earlier in the week, to the Orioles in exchange for cash, the teams announced. Baltimore has designated fellow infielder Emmanuel Rivera for assignment to create space on the 40-man roster.

The 25-year-old Vazquez made his big league debut with the Cubs in 2024, though he only appeared in 11 games and went 1-for-12 in a small sample of 14 plate appearances. He hit .263/.347/.432 in Triple-A, about four percent better than average, by measure of wRC+. That marked his second season with the Cubs’ top affiliate in Iowa. He’s posted slightly better-than-average offense in both seasons there while walking at an 11.6% clip against a 22.5% strikeout rate. In 543 plate appearances in Des Moines, he’s popped 17 homers and gone 7-for-12 in stolen base attempts.

Primarily a shortstop, Vazquez ranked 16th among Cubs farmhands at Baseball America just one year ago. BA touted him as the best defensive infielder in the Cubs’ minor league ranks while praising some offensive strides he began to display after years of light hitting in the lower minors. Vazquez has multiple minor league option years remaining and gives the O’s a utility option who can back up at multiple positions or simply be stashed in Norfolk as a depth piece.

Rivera, 28, joined the O’s as an August waiver claim from the Marlins. He logged 73 plate appearances down the stretch with Baltimore and torched opponents with a .313/.370/.578 batting line and four homers. That type of production was largely out of line with Rivera’s career .244/.306/.369 output, however. He’s long been viewed as a glove-first third baseman with modest power and plodding speed. Defensive metrics soured on his glovework at the hot corner in 2024’s 611 innings, but he has above-average marks in overall in 2005 career innings.

Even with that torrid hot streak following his waiver claim, Rivera looked like a non-tender candidate entering the winter. The O’s instead opted to tender him a contract and sign him to a $1MM salary. That salary could now help him pass through waivers if the O’s don’t find a trade partner in the next five days. Rivera is out of options, so any team that acquires or claims him would need to be willing to carry him on the Opening Day roster or else try to pass him through waivers themselves. If Rivera goes unclaimed, he’d have the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, but doing so would mean forfeiting any guaranteed salary; he’d likely accept the assignment and stick with the O’s while hoping for a call to the majors at some point early in the season.

Diamondbacks Sign Garrett Hampson To Minor League Deal

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Utilityman Garrett Hampson has signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks, per an announcement from the team’s Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces. Hampson will be a non-roster invitee in spring training with the Snakes next month.

It could be a homecoming for Hampson, a Nevada native who starred at Reno High School before playing college ball at Long Beach State and going to the Rockies in the third round of the 2016 draft. He’s a veteran of seven big league seasons who spent the 2024 campaign in a utility role with Kansas City.

The Royals signed Hampson to a one-year, $2MM contract last winter and plugged him into a bench role. He appeared in 113 games and tallied 231 plate appearances as a Royal, hitting just .230/.275/.300 along the way. That was a notable drop from a solid 2023 showing in Miami, where Hampson hit .276/.349/.380 in a similar sample of playing time with the Marlins.

Hampson is one of the game’s fastest players, ranking in Statcast’s 99th percentile for sprint speed last year as he covered 29.8 feet per second at top speed. He can play second base, shortstop, third base or any of the three outfield spots. He’s drawn average or better marks at all six spots in his career.

However, Hampson has rarely provided much value in the batter’s box; he’s is a lifetime .240/.301/.362 hitter in 1762 plate appearances despite playing a huge portion of his home games at the hitter-friendly Coors Field. By measure of wRC+, his bat has been 38% worse than average in the majors. He’s been better against lefties (.254/.321/.398, 85 wRC+ in his career), and Hampson touts a lifetime .312/.371/.448 slash in 121 Triple-A games.

Right-handed hitters Blaze Alexander, Grae Kessinger and Tim Tawa are the top utility candidates on the D-backs’ 40-man roster at the moment. Alexander didn’t hit all that well in his rookie season (.247/.321/.343), and Tawa has yet to make his MLB debut. Kessinger was acquired from the Astros after being designated for assignment and has a .141/.243/.213 slash in 70 big league plate appearances. Hampson will provide some non-roster competition for manager Torey Lovullo’s bench mix over the course of spring training.

Padres, Michael King Avoid Arbitration

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The Padres announced Friday that they’ve avoided arbitration with right-hander Michael King, coming to terms on a one-year deal with a mutual option for the 2026 season. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that King will be guaranteed $7.75MM, taking the form of a $3MM signing bonus, just a $1MM salary, and a $3.75MM buyout on a $15MM mutual option. King can boost his guarantee to $8MM, as the contract includes a $50K bonus for reaching 20 starts and bonuses of $100K for reaching 25 and 28 starts. The structure of the deal will perhaps free up a bit of 2025 budget for a payroll-crunched Padres club. King and his reps at Excel Sports Management had filed for an $8.8MM salary. The Padres countered at $7.325MM.

While the arrangement nominally extends the window of control over King, mutual options are at best a technicality; they’re almost never picked up by both sides. The player either outperforms the option value and declines in favor of a trip to free agency, or he underperforms and/or sustains an injury that prompts the team to decline and move on. It’s been more than 10 years since two parties agreed to exercise their end of a mutual option (Matt Belisle, Rockies in Nov. 2013).

Still, by including a mutual option on the contract, the Padres technically stick to the near-leaguewide file-and-trial mantra, wherein teams cut off negotiation on one-year deals once salary figures are exchanged. King’s deal is, of course, a one-year contract — but the presence of the option renders it moot for future arbitration negotiations. Even though there’s virtually no chance of the option being exercised, its mere presence means that King’s agreement cannot be used as a comp (for the Padres or for other clubs) when negotiating contracts with players who are comparable in terms of statistics or service time.

King, 29 (30 in May), was acquired from the Yankees as one of five players in last season’s Juan Soto blockbuster with the Yankees. He’d been primarily a reliever prior to his inclusion in that swap, though a terrific nine-start stretch late in the 2023 season had thrust him into the Yankees’ rotation plans. Instead, he had his first full season as a starter in San Diego rather than the Bronx, and the results were outstanding. In a career-high 173 2/3 frames, King turned in a 2.95 ERA with a 27.7% strikeout rate, an 8.7% walk rate and a 40.4% ground-ball rate. He now sports a 2.91 ERA in his past 392 2/3 innings, spanning the 2021-24 seasons.

As a free agent following the season, King’s name has floated around the rumor circuit for a Padres club that has had payroll questions all offseason. San Diego hopes to contend in 2025, so the only way they’d move King (or rotationmate and fellow pending free agent Dylan Cease) would be if the return included an immediate rotation replacement and additional big league-ready talent. Teams in search of rotation help will continue to inquire, as it seems inevitable that the Padres will eventually make some kind trade to free up payroll space and simultaneously plug some roster holes.

Mickey Moniak Wins Arbitration Hearing Versus Angels

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Outfielder Mickey Moniak won his arbitration hearing against the Angels, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. He’ll be paid the $2MM sum at which he and his reps from Wasserman filed rather than the team’s $1.5MM submission.

It’s the first trip through arbitration for Moniak, the No. 1 pick from the 2016 draft. He’s coming off a down showing in 2024 that saw him slash just .219/.266/.380 across a career-high 418 plate appearances. He played all three outfield spots (albeit only seven innings in left field), hit 14 homers (plus 17 doubles and a pair of triples) and swiped eight bags in a dozen attempts.

Moniak had a big year in 2023 — his first full season with the Angels after coming to Anaheim in the Aug. 2022 trade that shipped Noah Syndergaard to the Phillies. He hit .280/.307/.495 (114 wRC+) with 14 long balls in 323 plate appearances for the ’23 Halos, although those results looked dubious and unsustainable at the time. Moniak’s production came in spite of a sky-high 35% strikeout rate and was aided by a similarly bloated .397 average on balls in play. He walked in only 2.8% of his plate appearances and posted the highest swing percentage of any player in MLB (min. 300 plate appearances) but the fifth-worst contact rate. Sure enough, his output at the plate came crashing down in 2024.

Even if that 2023 season was largely smoke and mirrors, the results are in the books, and they surely benefited Moniak in his arbitration case. As such, any future arbitration raises will be based on a larger starting point ($2MM) than would’ve been the case had he lost his hearing ($1.5MM). He’ll be arbitration-eligible twice more and is under club control with the Angels through the 2027 season. He’s ticketed for a bench role in 2025, backing up the outfield trio of Taylor Ward, Mike Trout and Jo Adell.

Moniak was one of three Angels players to exchange arbitration figures with the team earlier this month — and one of 17 total players to do so throughout MLB. The Halos have since avoided arbitration with southpaw Jose Quijada, agreeing to a one-year deal with a 2026 club option. Infielder Luis Rengifo, who filed at $5.95MM to the team’s $5.8MM counter, is the final Angels player whose arbitration case remains unresolved.

Cubs Agree To Minor League Deal With Brad Keller, Finalizing Deal With Brandon Hughes

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The Cubs have agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Brad Keller, as first reported by Cubs Insider’s Jacob Zanolla. He’ll be in big league camp as a non-roster invitee next month. They’re also finalizing a minor league pact to bring left-handed reliever Brandon Hughes back to the organization, per Patrick Mooney of The Athletic.

Keller, 29, quickly emerged as one of the better Rule 5 picks in recent memory when the Royals plucked him out of the D-backs’ system back in 2017. From 2018-20, he was a productive fixture on Kansas City’s staff, eventually sliding in as a set member of the rotation. In those three seasons, he logged 360 1/3 innings of 3.50 ERA ball with a 16.8% strikeout rate and 9.1% walk rate. Both those marks were worse than league-average, but Keller posted a strong 52.1% grounder rate and proved adept at dodging hard contact and keeping the ball in the park.

In 2021, Keller’s results deteriorated in a hurry. He still made 26 starts and ate up 133 1/3 innings, but his walk and ground-ball rates checked in at career-worst levels as his ERA spiked to 5.39. His ERA in 2022 was again north of 5.00 in a similar sample of innings. By 2023, Keller’s command issues had elevated to calamitous levels. He issued 45 free passes in 45 1/3 innings, doling out a base on balls to 21.3% of his opponents. He was eventually diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome and underwent season-ending surgery.

In 2024, Keller split the year between the White Sox and Red Sox. He spent the bulk of his season in Triple-A, where he logged a combined 3.28 earned run average, 21.1% strikeout rate, 8.1% walk rate and 54.5% grounder rate between the two organizations. His big league work was much rougher. In 41 1/3 frames, Keller was tagged for a 5.44 ERA with a 16.7% strikeout rate. His walk and ground-ball rates were strong, however, respectively landing at 7.6% and 50%.

Hughes, 29, looked on the cusp of breaking out with the 2022 Cubs. He pitched 16 2/3 shutout innings between Double-A and Triple-A before being called to the majors for 57 2/3 innings of 3.12 ERA ball as a rookie. He was too homer-prone, averaging 1.72 round-trippers per nine frames, but by season’s end he was closing down games for the Cubs, tallying eight saves. He fanned a strong 28.5% of opponents against a solid 8.8% walk rate.

Knee troubles tanked Hughes’ 2023 season, as he pitched only 13 2/3 innings with an ERA north of 7.00. His minor league work was no better, as opponents tagged him for 11 runs in just 11 innings. He underwent a debridement procedure in his left knee that June and was on the injured list until September. The Cubs non-tendered him in November, and he signed a minor league deal in Arizona. Hughes made it back to the majors with the Diamondbacks but clearly wasn’t right. He posted an 8.15 ERA in 17 2/3 big league frames, though his 2.03 earned run average in 48 Triple-A innings creates some more reason for optimism.

Both Keller and Hughes will be in the mix as bullpen depth this spring, though Keller could also serve as depth for the starting staff. The Cubs have added Ryan Pressly and Eli Morgan to the ’pen by way of the trade market this winter and also inked free agent southpaw Caleb Thielbar to a big league deal. That trio will join Porter Hodge, Tyson Miller, Nate Pearson, Julian Merryweather and Keegan Thompson as relief candidates. Each of Miller, Merryweather and Thompson is out of minor league options, so they’ll need to make the Opening Day roster or else be traded or designated for assignment (ultimately passing through waivers if they’re to have any chance of being sent to Triple-A). Trevor Richards, Phil Bickford, Ben Heller and Brooks Kriske are among the other veteran arms who’ll be in camp on non-roster deals.

Lance Lynn Has Drawn Interest As Reliever

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Veteran right-hander Lance Lynn has pitched in 364 big league games — 340 of them starts. He hasn’t come out of the bullpen since the 2018 season, when he made all of four relief outings. Since 2019, he ranks 15th among all big league pitchers in games started. Be that as it may, Lynn himself tells Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that multiple teams have reached out to his representatives at Headline Sports to inquire about his willingness to pitch in relief — possibly as a closer.

For much of his career, Lynn was as bankable a source of 30-plus starts as the game had to offer. He did miss the 2016 season due to Tommy John surgery, but in every other 162-game season from 2012-21, he averaged 31 starts. His 13 starts in the shortened 2020 season led Major League Baseball. Outside of that one major arm injury, Lynn was the consummate workhorse.

Knee injuries began to dog the right-hander in 2021, however. He hit the injured list at the end of August that year and wound up making “only” 28 starts with 157 innings pitched as a result. The following April, he underwent surgery to repair a torn tendon in his knee. He was limited to 21 starts in 2022 but still notched a solid 3.99 ERA in 121 2/3 frames after returning in mid-June. Lynn again made 32 starts and topped 180 innings in 2023 — albeit with poor results (5.73 ERA). His 2024 campaign, however, saw him hit the injured list on two different occasions owing to inflammation in that surgically repaired right knee.

Over the past three seasons, Lynn has pitched 422 1/3 innings. He’s averaged 25.333 starts per season. Lynn posted sub-4.00 ERAs in 2022 and 2024, but his rocky 2023 campaign balloons his earned run average in that three-year span to a much rougher 4.71. His strikeout rate and velocity have declined incrementally in that three-year period, although even his 2024 levels (21.3 K%, 92.3 mph average four-seamer) are still passable.

A move to the bullpen for Lynn could be intriguing for a number of reasons. He’s long been an extreme fastball pitcher — the rare arm who can succeed with minimal secondary offerings. Since 2017, Lynn has thrown a curveball for 7% of his offerings and his changeup at a 4.3% clip with an even less-used slider (1.4%). The rest of his pitches have been four-seamers (45.3%), sinkers (22.5%) and cutters (19.5%) — all ranging from 88.5 mph (cutter) to 93.4 mph (four-seamer).

A move to the ’pen would presumably bump Lynn’s heater back upward. He’s never been a true flamethrower but did average a career-high 94.6 mph on his four-seamer back in 2019. Relievers generally have an easier time getting by with a two-pitch arsenal; Lynn could feasibly rely on a four-seamer/cutter combo working out of the bullpen. They’ve been his two most effective pitches, on a rate basis, throughout his career.

There’s no guarantee Lynn signs as a pure reliever, of course. His 2024 season yielded solid results even when pitching as a starter. The volume wasn’t there, but he logged a 3.84 ERA in his 23 starts. The Cardinals generally limited him to five frames per outing, though; he only recorded an out in the sixth inning or later in seven of his 23 trips to the mound. A team looking for an effective five-and-dive starter at the back of the rotation could still bring Lynn into the fold, but at a time when reliever-to-starter conversions are en vogue, he’s an interesting candidate to try the opposite approach.

It’s not known which clubs have looked into Lynn as a possible closer, though speculatively speaking, a budget-crunched club like the Rangers — who already know Lynn well — would be an intriguing fit. The D-backs are still seeking a closer but are already running a club-record payroll after their shock signing of Corbin Burnes.

Rosenthal adds that there are clubs interested in Lynn in his more traditional rotation role. He’d be a relatively low-cost option for teams hoping to pile up some affordable innings. The Padres, Brewers and A’s all speculatively fit that billing. But at the very least, Lynn sounds open to the idea of pitching in a late-game role. He described his reaction to his agent’s initial presentation of the concept: “I went, ‘Oooooh. Is the second act, the final act of my career, closing games?’ It sounds fun.”

Reds Sign Austin Hays

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The Reds announced the signing of outfielder Austin Hays to a one-year deal. The MAS+ client is reportedly guaranteed $5MM. That takes the form of a $4MM salary for the upcoming season and a $1MM buyout on a $12MM mutual option for 2026. Hays can earn an additional $1MM via incentives. Right-hander Casey Legumina was designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

Hays, 29, gives the Reds the right-handed-hitting complement they’ve been seeking for the lefty-swinging outfield group of TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley and Will Benson. He’s a career .277/.331/.469 hitter against left-handed pitching and has experience playing all three outfield spots — though he’s generally better suited for corner work than center field.

As recently as 2023, Hays was an All-Star in Baltimore. He had a down showing in the second half after a monster .314/.355/.498 first half of that season but still finished out the year with a hearty .275/.325/.444 batting line in 566 plate appearances.

The 2024 season, however, was an abject nightmare for Hays. He struggled immensely on the field, due to a pair of leg injuries (hamstring strain, calf strain) and, far more concerning, a kidney infection. As Rosenthal detailed earlier in the offseason, Hays described that kidney infection as “the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through.” Upon discovering it, doctors told him he’d likely been suffering from the ill effects of that infection for weeks prior.

Hays told Rosenthal that his symptoms included nausea, lightheadedness, lower back pain, sluggish legs and even a “brain fog” that would at times cause him to lose focus and forget what he was talking about mid-conversation. Hays initially chalked some of the exhaustion, leg fatigue and back pain up to the rigors of a full season and the prior hamstring/calf strains still impacting him. As time wore on and his symptoms increased, it became clear something else was at play.

A healthy Hays could well be a boon to the Cincinnati outfield, particularly if he’s in line to face a large slate of left-handed pitching. The move from Baltimore to Cincinnati should favor him considerably, too. Camden Yards has become a wasteland for right-handed power hitters in recent years, following the team’s decision to alter the dimensions in left field. Since 2022, when the O’s initially altered their park and installed a towering wall in left field (often referred to as “Mount Wall-timore”), their stadium has been the third-worst in MLB for right-handed home runs, per Statcast, leading only Cleveland’s Progressive Field and Pittsburgh’s PNC Park. Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park, meanwhile, ranks as the third most-favorable park in MLB for right-handed home runs, by those same park factors.

Hays’ presence in Cincinnati could open up some more infield and/or DH at-bats for fellow righty Spencer Steer, who played primarily in the outfield last year. Steer is an infielder by trade, but his versatility was leveraged when the Reds’ infield became increasingly crowded.

The trade of Jonathan India and overwhelming struggles of Noelvi Marte last year have perhaps lent some extra clarity to the infield, however. There’s still some playing time to sort out this spring, but Steer could see time at the corners and DH alongside Jeimer Candelario, who also struggled in an injury-marred 2024 season, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who missed most of the year due to wrist surgery. Matt McLain (who missed most of the season due to shoulder surgery) and Elly De La Cruz are in line to serve as the primary second baseman and shortstop, respectively. Trade acquisition Gavin Lux could also see time at second base and in left field. Broadly speaking, the Reds’ lineup will feature quite a few moving parts for new skipper Terry Francona to juggle based on matchups, health and workload management.

Hays’ $5MM guarantee will push the Reds’ payroll just north of $110MM, marking an increase of about $10MM over their 2024 budget. Even an increase of that level looked questionable just weeks ago, but the team’s surprise agreement with Main Street Sports/FanDuel Sports Network (the rebranded Diamond Sports/Bally RSN provider) afforded president of baseball operations Nick Krall some additional resources to further build out the 2025 club. The Reds have also been tied to relief upgrades, Carlos Estevez most notably, but it’s not clear whether ownership’s budgetary preferences can accommodate both Hays and another bullpen arm — particularly one of Estevez’s caliber and likely asking price.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported that Hays and the Reds had agreed to a one-year, $5MM deal with $1MM in incentives. Jon Heyman of The New York Post had the salary breakdown and the mutual option.

Mets Re-Sign Ryne Stanek

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January 30: The Mets now have made it official. Right-hander Dylan Covey has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

January 29: The Mets are bringing back right-handed reliever Ryne Stanek. New York is reportedly in agreement with the MVP Sports Group client on a one-year, $4.5MM guarantee with an additional $500K available in incentives. The Mets will pay a 95% luxury tax on the contract, pushing their investment to $8.775MM. The team has yet to announce the signing, which is still pending a physical.

Stanek, 33, played the 2024 season on a one-year, $4MM deal originally signed with the Mariners. Seattle flipped him to the Mets over the summer in a deal netting them minor league outfielder Rhylan Thomas. Stanek had a pair of very rough outings early in his Mets tenure but finished out the regular season on a hot streak (2.92 ERA, 18-to-4 K/BB ratio in 12 1/3 innings) before playing a key role in the Mets’ postseason run. The big 6’4″ righty held opponents to three runs on five hits and three walks with eight strikeouts in eight frames during the playoffs. He got the final out in three Mets victories during the postseason (all of them non-save situations): Game 1 of the Wild Card Series and Games 1 and 3 of the NLDS.

Since establishing himself as a big leaguer back in 2018, Stanek has been consistently successful in short stints. He’s pitched 382 1/3 innings and logged a 3.53 ERA, fanning a very strong 27.6% of opponents against a less palatable 11.6% walk rate (about three percentage points north of average). Stanek has technically “started” 56 games in his career, though those were all working as an opener in Tampa Bay.

Stanek is typically good for one to two innings of high-octane relief, averaging 97.8 mph on his four-seamer in his career — including 98.1 mph over the past three seasons. His strikeout rate is strong, and his bat-missing ability is elite, evidenced by a hefty 15.1% swinging-strike rate in his career (and a mark of 15% or better in five of his seven seasons). Since Stanek debuted in 2017, only nine of the 214 pitchers with at least 400 innings pitched have a better swinging-strike rate — and that list is a veritable who’s-who of star pitchers (Josh Hader, Edwin Diaz, Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, Raisel Iglesias, Ryan Pressly, Craig Kimbrel, Shane McClanahan). Poor command undercuts Stanek’s raw ability to generate whiffs at times, but that ability and his potent raw stuff continue to intrigue clubs.

Stanek joins A.J. Minter — who inked a two-year, $22MM deal — as a late-inning addition for president of baseball operations David Stearns this offseason. That pair will help set up for Edwin Diaz. The Mets have a deep collection of other arms to consider for the bullpen. Free agent pickup Griffin Canning seems ticketed for a long relief/swingman role, while short-relief candidates include Reed Garrett, Jose Butto, Danny Young, Sean Reid-Foley, Dedniel Nunez, Huascar Brazoban, Austin Warren, Max Kranick, Kevin Herget and Tyler Zuber. Each of Butto, Young, Reid-Foley and Dylan Covey are on the 40-man roster but out of minor league options; there’ll be some movement among this collection of depth arms between now and Opening Day.

Stanek is the third free agent addition for the Mets in the past couple weeks. They’ve also added Minter and Jesse Winker in that span — all at a time when they’re reportedly expecting longtime cornerstone Pete Alonso to sign elsewhere after he rejected a three-year offer from the team. The potential for a reunion there will continue to linger, owner Steve Cohen’s recent public comments notwithstanding, but the Mets have now added $23-24MM in 2025 salary and another $25-26MM worth of luxury taxes since Alonso turned down that offer.

Anthony DiComo of MLB.com first reported that the Mets and Stanek were in agreement on a one-year deal. SNY’s Andy Martino indicated the salary would land between $4MM and $5MM. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported the $4.5MM guarantee and the $500K in bonuses.

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