Steve Adams
- The offseason and postseason are here! Well, kind of. Not really. No playoff games until tomorrow and no formal offseason transactions until after the postseason, but you get the point. Let's talk offseason, playoffs, weird collapses and whatever else is on your mind! I'll get rolling at 3pm or so, but as always, feel free to submit questions ahead of time.
- Good afternoon!
- Let's get underway
Lefty
- Eldridge and Schmitt from SF to MIA for X.Edwards. Who says no?
Steve Adams
- Highly doubt the Giants would give up Eldridge alone for Edwards
Trout Phishin'
- What does the contract look like for Kyle Schwarber to stay in Philadelphia?
Steve Adams
- To me, looks like $120MM+ wherever he goes
Dan S.
- What's more likely for Dylan Cease, 2/70 with an opt-out or 6/180?
Steve Adams
- The AAV on that two-year deal is too steep, but in general, two years and an opt-out feels more likely to me than him just getting $30MM per year over six seasons.
- Something like 2/50 with an out feels more feasible than 2/70
Guarded Indian
- I know there will be several Alonso questions today, but I'll throw mine in. I just don't see a huge market for the guy and think he should opt in. I think is best option besides the Mets is the Nationals as far as a position fit, possibly Texas. Most teams do not need a 1B or a DH and those that do likely can't afford him, especially when there is a much more affordable option available in a very good Josh Naylor. Am I wrong and where else could he possibly fit?
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Carlos Mendoza To Return As Mets’ Manager In 2026
The Mets’ astonishing collapse and postseason miss has led to plenty of speculation among fans about what changes might be coming to the organization, but president of baseball operations made clear today in meeting with the media that a managerial switch isn’t happening (via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo). Carlos Mendoza will return to manage the team in 2026, per Stearns. The remainder of the coaching staff will continue to be evaluated over the coming week.
Mendoza, 45, has spent the past two seasons as the Mets’ manager. Next season, his third year on the job, is the final guaranteed year of his contract. The Mets hold a club option on him for the 2027 season. Mendoza’s Mets went 89-73 in 2024 and made it all the way to Game 6 of the NLCS before falling to the Dodgers. This year’s club finished 83-79, missing the playoffs by the narrowest of margins.
On the surface, that wouldn’t appear to be a colossal failure — but there are, of course, other elements to consider. The Mets added Juan Soto on a record-breaking free agent deal and pushed payroll up to $340MM this past offseason. As of June 1, they were tied with the Cubs for the best record in the National League, at 37-22. From that point forth, however, the Mets played at a 46-57 pace — just a .447 winning percentage that’s akin to the season-long output from a 72-90 Angels club that finished last place in the American League West.
August and September were particularly brutal months in Queens. The Mets won just 21 of their final 53 games (.396) despite an offense that ranked as arguably the best in the sport over that stretch. Mets hitters led the majors in runs scored from Aug. 1 through season’s end and ranked second in homers, third in batting average, second in on-base percentage and second in slugging percentage. Their collective 126 wRC+ suggested that the teamwide offensive output was 26% better than that of an average offensive performer in MLB.
The Mets, however, simply ran out of pitching — both in the bullpen and especially in the rotation. Kodai Senga never regained his form after returning from a hamstring strain that derailed what was shaping up to be a strong rebound season. He struggled enough that he consented to being optioned in September. Veterans Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea struggled greatly. Both opened the season on the injured list — Montas due to a lat strain, Manaea an oblique strain — and Montas lasted only a handful of ugly starts before requiring UCL surgery upon his return. Tylor Megill underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month. Griffin Canning was looking like a terrific bargain grab — until a ruptured Achilles tendon wiped out his season in June.
Rather than make a substantial upgrade at the trade deadline, the Mets instead tapped into their farm system. Top prospect Nolan McLean hit the ground running and pitched like an ace following his promotion in August. Late call-ups for Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat yielded more mixed results. Mendoza’s rotation posted a 5.65 ERA following the trade deadline — fourth-worst in the majors. The front office’s attempt to bolster the bullpen on the summer trade market came up well short of expectations. Tyler Rogers was outstanding, but Ryan Helsley melted down in Queens and Gregory Soto was merely serviceable.
In a results-driven business, it wouldn’t necessarily be a surprise to see the manager take the fall for a pitching collapse of this magnitude, even though he’s not the one who put together the staff. Mendoza will get another shot for at least the 2026 season, though, but it seems likely there’ll be some new faces on his staff. SNY’s Andy Martino reported last last night that “widespread” changes could be coming to the coaching staff despite the fact that the organization had no plans to fire Mendoza.
Lucas Giolito Dealing With Elbow Issue, Will Not Be On Red Sox’ Wild Card Roster
Red Sox righty Lucas Giolito is dealing with an elbow issue and won’t be included on Boston’s roster for their Wild Card Series showdown with the archrival Yankees, manager Alex Cora told reporters at today’s media session (link via Christopher Smith of MassLive.com). Cora did not provide a specific diagnosis or tip his hand as to whether Giolito would be available in subsequent rounds, should the Red Sox advance. Giolito would’ve been Boston’s starter for a potential Game 3 of the series. He’ll see a specialist today, MassLive’s Sean McAdam adds.
Giolito, 31, missed the entire 2024 season due to UCL surgery but returned with a flourish in 2025, firing 145 frames of 3.41 ERA ball. That number is inflated a bit by a poor start to the season; from June 10 onward, he made 19 starts with a 2.51 ERA. Giolito’s 19.7% strikeout rate and 9.1% walk rate contributed to more tepid evaluations from metrics like FIP (4.17) and SIERA (4.66), but his bottom-line results were unequivocally strong, even if their sustainability merited some skepticism.
Upon reaching 140 innings pitched this season, Giolito triggered a vesting clause in his $14MM club option that converted it into a $19MM mutual option. When he reached that threshold, it appeared all but certain that the right-hander would turn down his end of the mutual option and reenter the market. Suddenly, the health of his elbow clouds that decision. If the issue is serious, the Red Sox will surely decline their end and send Giolito into free agency anyhow, but he’ll return to the open market under very different circumstances than seemed likely even one week ago.
Giolito did experience a velocity drop of some note in September. After averaging 93.4 mph on his heater through the season’s first five months, he averaged 92.5 mph on his four-seamer over his final five appearances — including a season-low 92.1 mph in his final appearance. He still posted a 3.16 ERA over 25 2/3 innings in those outings, but he also issued 18 walks. At first glance, that could’ve been chalked up to fatigue for a pitcher who didn’t throw a single inning in ’24 but was pushing up toward 150 frames in the stretch run — but word of a possible elbow injury now makes that late slide all the more concerning.
The Red Sox figure to have more information on Giolito’s status later in the week, once he’s met with that specialist and discussed any findings with team brass. That’ll determine his availability — or lack thereof — for potential appearances in the ALDS, ALCS or World Series, depending how far Boston progresses in the postseason. For the series at hand, the elbow trouble for Giolito likely thrusts one of the team’s promising young lefties, like Connelly Early or Kyle Harrison, into that Game 3 start. Top prospect Payton Tolle was moved to the bullpen in early September and hasn’t pitched more than three innings in an outing since Sept. 29 as a result, so he’s not likely to get the nod.
Giants Fire Bob Melvin
1:40pm: Bench coach Ryan Christenson and third base coach Matt Williams tell Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that they will not be returning to the team in 2026, either. Both were with the Giants in those roles from 2024-25.
11:35am: The Giants announced Monday that they’ve fired manager Bob Melvin. They’ll spend the early portion of the offseason looking for a new skipper.
“After meeting with ownership, I met with Bob today to inform him of my decision,” president of baseball operations Buster Posey said in a press release. “On behalf of the organization, I want to express my appreciation to Bob and for his dedication, professionalism, and class. I wish him all the best.
After a careful evaluation, we determined that making a change in leadership was in the best interest of the team. The last couple of months have been both disappointing and frustrating for all of us, and we did not perform up to our standards. We now turn our focus to identifying a new leader to guide us forward.”
As recently as July 1, things looked quite different. The Giants announced at the time that they were exercising their 2026 club option on Melvin, who’d spent the first three months of the season with no guarantees beyond the current campaign. At the time, Melvin’s Giants were 45-40, firmly in the mix a National League Wild Card berth. They played at a disappointing 36-41 pace down the stretch, finishing the year with a .500 record that landed them 12 games behind the NL West-champion Dodgers and two games behind the Reds for the final postseason spot. Despite Melvin being under contract on a guaranteed salary, the Giants will cut ties and look for a new dugout boss.
Melvin is one of the most decorated managers in the game today — and in MLB history. He’s currently 20th all-time in managerial wins. A three-time Manager of the Year who’s won that honor in both the American League and National League, the 63-year-old Melvin has 22 years of managerial experience and a winning 1678-1588 record. That includes an 853-764 record in 11 seasons as manager in Oakland, despite perennially operating clubs that had one of the game’s lowest payrolls (if not the lowest in a given season). He was 161-163 in his two seasons at the helm on the other side of the Bay.
As the Giants slipped down the stretch, Melvin’s job status became a source of increased speculation. Just yesterday, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale suggested that, in the wake of a playoff miss, Posey might look to move on from Melvin and try to bring his own former manager, Bruce Bochy, back to San Francisco. Bochy’s contract in Texas is up and, as with Melvin, there’s been plenty of speculation regarding his future following a second straight disappointing season in Arlington.
Anyone with a résumé as prolific as that of Melvin will figure to get looks at other managerial vacancies as they arise around the sport. The Orioles, Nationals and Rockies already have interim managers after midseason dismissals of Brandon Hyde, Davey Martinez and Bud Black. Braves manager Brian Snitker has said he’s yet to decide whether he’ll retire or continue managing. Bochy’s contract in Texas is up. A handful of other managerial vacancies could very well emerge, too, and there are surely no shortage of clubs who’d be interested in bringing someone with Melvin’s acumen board in an advisory capacity, if he doesn’t want to jump right back into the rigors of helming a club for 162 games.
As for the Giants, Melvin’s ouster all but guarantees substantial turnover on the coaching staff. It’s commonplace when a manager is let go for his coaching staff to be given the green light to explore opportunities with other clubs. Incoming managers typically want to have say in the coaching staff at their disposal, after all. Melvin’s dismissal should be the first of several shakeups to the dugout staff at Oracle Park.
Pirates Sign Manager Don Kelly To Extension
The Pirates announced Monday morning that manager Don Kelly has been signed to a contract extension. He was named manager back in May, after the team fired Derek Shelton, but there was never any commitment beyond the current season (despite Kelly not having an “interim” label included in his title). Today’s announcement makes it official that he’ll continue managing the team beyond the current season. Pittsburgh did not specify the length of Kelly’s new contract.
“Donnie has earned the respect of the players, front office, and our fans –- and he has certainly earned mine,” chairman/majority owner Bob Nutting said in this morning’s press release. “Donnie took over the team at a true low point. Since then, we’ve seen meaningful progress, not just in the clubhouse culture, but on the field. His connection to the community and passion for the franchise make him more than just a manager. He is a Pittsburgher; he is part of our community. He’s the right fit, at the right time, and is the right person to lead us forward.”
“I’m proud to continue leading the Pirates,” said Kelly himself in the press release. “Our clubhouse is full of players who care deeply about each other, about winning, and about representing Pittsburgh the right way. I was a Pirates fan first. I know our fans deserve a team that delivers on the field, and it’s on me to make sure we reach that standard.”
“Donnie is an elite communicator. He is deeply trusted by our players because he’s credible, consistent, and unafraid of tough conversations,” said general manager Ben Cherington in the press release. “His background as both a scout and a coach gives him a rare perspective: patience when it’s needed, and an unwavering belief in players’ ability to improve. Above all, he values people and winning. His ability to adjust, lead, and do the hard work makes him the right leader.”
The Pirates have been mired in mediocrity for a long time now. They last made the postseason in 2015. They have only finished above .500 once since then, which was back in 2018. They lost at least 100 games in 2021 and 2022. They showed a bit of promise in 2023 and 2024, flirting with contention at times, but finished both of those seasons with 76 wins.
Ideally, they would have taken another step forward in 2025, but they got out to an awful start. They were 12-26 when Shelton was fired in May. Kelly took over from there and the club fared better the rest of the way, though their 59-65 record under the new skipper was still subpar.
Going into 2026, there will be pressure for the club to finally get to another level. The Bucs have graduated a large number of pitching prospects to the majors. That’s obviously a good thing but it’s also a bit of a ticking clock. They have four remaining years with Paul Skenes. The Mitch Keller contract runs another three seasons.
In the past, the Bucs have traded some of their most prominent pitchers before they have reached free agency, a consequence of their consistently low payrolls. Pitchers like Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon are a few of the notable examples. As such, it’s common for people in the baseball world to speculate about Skenes being traded before those four years are up. Keller was in plenty of trade rumors this past summer but ultimately stayed put.
On the offensive side, the club has had far less success. They didn’t have a qualified hitter post an above-average season in 2025, by measure of wRC+. Spencer Horwitz did finish the season with a 119 wRC+, though his offseason wrist surgery limited him to just 411 plate appearances. Joey Bart got just over the line with a 101 wRC+ but in just 332 trips to the plate. The team-wide wRC+ came in at 82, behind all MLB teams apart from the Rockies. Improvement will obviously be required there for the club to be a real threat.
As the skipper, Kelly can only work with the players he is given. While the club still lost more games than they won with him at the helm, the organization seems to feel he did a good job regardless. A lot of a manager’s duties occur in the clubhouse, communicating with players on things like preparation, usage, strategy and the like. The Bucs are presumably pleased enough with Kelly’s work in those areas to keep him around as they try to find a new gear in 2026 and beyond.
Photo courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
Jake Burger To Undergo Wrist Surgery
Rangers first baseman Jake Burger will undergo surgery to repair a tendon sheath in his left wrist later this week, he tells Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. The injury originally occurred in mid-August. There’s no firm timetable on the recovery process, though Grant likens the forthcoming procedure to the surgery Josh Jung had following the 2024 season, and Jung was ready for spring training.
Burger, 29, joined the Rangers via trade after president of baseball Chris Young brought him over from the Marlins during last offseason’s winter meetings — a swap that sent infielder Maximo Acosta, infielder Echedry Vargas and left-hander Brayan Mendoza back to Miami. The acquisition of Burger, much like the signing of Joc Pederson, was intended to improve the Rangers’ teamwide production against fastballs after a down year in that regard in 2024. That didn’t pan out, however, despite the slugger’s prior excellence against four-seamers.
Though Burger had a terrific track record against velocity, headlined by hitting .302 and slugging .651 against four-seam fastballs with Miami in 2024, he hit just .195 and slugged only .416 against four-seam fastballs in his first season with Texas. Overall, Burger’s .236/.269/.419 batting line was the worst of his career and about 11% worse than that of a league-average offensive player, per wRC+. His 90.4 mph average exit velocity was a career-low, as was his 13.6% homer-to-flyball ratio.
That August wrist injury surely played some role in his offensive downturn, but it’s not the lone culprit. Burger tells Grant that he received a cortisone injection at the time of the injury, which helped for a few weeks before he began feeling his tendon “popping” in his wrist for the season’s final few weeks. Unsurprisingly, Burger finished the year in a pronounced slump. He also dealt with injuries prior to that wrist issue, however. Burger missed time with a strained left oblique back in June and was sidelined by a quadriceps strain the following month.
Even before his injuries, Burger’s struggles were glaring enough that Texas optioned him to Triple-A at the beginning of May. He’d opened the season in a .190/.231/.330 swoon and fanned in nearly 30% of his plate appearances. A .254/.284/.453 slash and 22.4% strikeout rate in 268 plate appearances following his recall was an obvious improvement but still not up to Burger’s prior standards. He’s never been a disciplined hitter, but Burger’s walk rate cratered to 3.2% in 2025. That was the third-lowest mark among the 277 players who reached 300 plate appearances. Burger also had the ninth-highest chase rate on pitches off the plate and the 16th-highest overall swing rate in that set of hitters, per Statcast.
Ideally, better health and a fresh slate in 2026 will bring about better results. The Rangers will certainly be hoping as much. Burger is controlled for three more seasons and is slated to reach arbitration for the first time this winter after falling five days shy of Super Two status last offseason. For now, he projects to be back atop the team’s depth chart at first base in 2026 as well, though a further shakeup of the team’s offense is possible after another playoff miss.
Brewers Outright Bruce Zimmermann
Sept. 27: Zimmermann went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A, per the transaction log at MLB.com. He can become a minor league free agent once the season is over.
Sept. 24: The Brewers have designated left-hander Bruce Zimmermann for assignment, per a team announcement. Righty Carlos Rodriguez has been recalled from Triple-A Nashville to take his spot on the active roster. Milwaukee’s 40-man roster is now at 39 players.
Zimmermann pitched in just one game for Milwaukee, giving the club six innings in a spot start against the Padres yesterday. The former Orioles southpaw was tagged for five earned runs on seven hits and a pair of walks with only one punchout, but he gave the Milwaukee bullpen a breather after a day in which they’d burned through six relievers in an 11-inning game against San Diego. Despite the rocky results, Zimmermann drew praise from manager Pat Murphy for pitching relatively deep into the game on a day when the team’s relief corps was a bit depleted (via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel).
It was always likely to be a one-off appearance for Zimmermann. The lefty is out of minor league options and wouldn’t be available to pitch until the season finale at the earliest. The Brewers will shuffle him off the roster and bring up Rodriguez to provide some extra length in the ’pen. It may sound cold or callous on the surface, but teams are generally upfront with this type of plan when bringing a journeyman pitcher like Zimmermann to the majors for a short period of time. He’ll get a few days of big league service time and salary for the effort. (Players receive MLB service time and pay even while they’re on outright waivers and/or in DFA limbo.)
This was Zimmermann’s first big league appearance since 2023. He’s pitched in parts of four other seasons, all with Baltimore from 2020-23. Zimmermann carries a career 5.64 ERA in 164 1/3 MLB frames, but he’s been far better in Triple-A — including this season. In 138 frames with the Brewers’ Nashville affiliate, the 30-year-old Zimmermann has pitched to a 4.11 ERA with an 18.8% strikeout rate and 5.2% walk rate.
Zimmermann will be available to all 29 other clubs on outright waivers. Assuming he clears, he’ll have the right to reject an outright assignment to the minor leagues in favor of free agency. Either way, he’ll be a minor league free agent at season’s end.
Mets To Select Dylan Ross
10:21pm: New York is indeed calling Ross up, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. They already have three open spots on the 40-man but will need to make an active roster move. Huascar Brazobán and Kevin Herget are the two pitchers in the MLB bullpen who have options remaining. They each pitched an inning of mop-up work in tonight’s 6-2 loss in Miami, so one of them will probably be sent out.
11:43am: The Mets are mulling a promotion for pitching prospect Dylan Ross and could bring him up for his big league debut as soon as tomorrow, Mika Puma of the New York Post reports. SNY’s Andy Martino reported last week that Ross was in consideration for a big league look before season’s end.
The 25-year-old Ross was New York’s 13th-round pick in 2022. He’s elevated his prospect status considerably in 2025 with a dominant showing out of the bullpen across three minor league levels. The former Georgia Bulldog has tossed a combined 54 innings with a 2.17 ERA — including a 1.69 mark in 32 frames at the Triple-A level. Ross has fanned just under 36% of his opponents this season and kept nearly 55% of the batted balls against him on the ground. Command, or lack thereof, is his most notable flaw. He’s walked an ugly 14.7% of his opponents (17.3% in Triple-A).
Listed at 6’5″ and 251 pounds, Ross is a prototypical flamethrowing reliever. He’s averaged 96.8 mph on his four-seamer this season and can run the pitch up into triple digits. He complements that fiery heater with a splitter and cutter that both sit just under 90 mph, a slider that sits 87.5 mph and a seldom-used curveball in the low-80s. MLB.com ranks Ross 20th among Mets farmhands.
Ross underwent Tommy John surgery during his draft season at Georgia and needed a revision of that procedure in 2023. He only pitched one inning in the minors in 2024 and has all of 55 professional innings under his belt to date. However, due to his status as a college draftee who’s now been in professional ball for three full seasons, he’d be eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft this winter. Given his outstanding season in the minors and the power nature of his repertoire, it’s likely the Mets would add him to the 40-man roster in November to protect him from being selected anyhow — which only strengthens his case for a call to the majors late in the season.
New York’s bullpen has slipped over the past couple months. Mets relievers have a combined 4.18 ERA since the trade deadline, ranking 18th in the majors. Edwin Diaz, Tyler Rogers and Brooks Raley have all been excellent, but the acquisition of Ryan Helsley (7.58 ERA as a Met) has backfired and Ryne Stanek (7.50 ERA since Aug. 1) has struggled considerably. The Mets lost lefties A.J. Minter and Danny Young to lat surgery and Tommy John surgery, respectively, back in May. Setup man Reed Garrett was recommended for Tommy John surgery earlier this month.
That string of struggles and injuries has created plenty of uncertainty in the bullpen. There’d obviously be risk in carrying a 25-year-old rookie with subpar command on the team’s postseason roster — should they qualify — but the many of the more veteran options currently in the mix don’t exactly ooze confidence at the moment themselves.
Cubs Activate Kyle Tucker, Option Carlos Santana
11:49am: The Cubs have officially activated Tucker from the injured list. He’s hitting cleanup and serving as the designated hitter today. In a corresponding move, veteran first baseman Carlos Santana has consented to be optioned. He’ll be on the team’s taxi squad for the playoffs next week, per Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. Santana is a free agent at season’s end.
10:16am: After spending more than three weeks on the injured list due to a calf strain, Kyle Tucker is back for the final regular season series of the year. The Cubs outfielder himself tells ESPN’s Jesse Rogers that he’s in the lineup today — his first game since Sept. 2. The team hasn’t formally announced the move or a corresponding transaction yet.
The Cubs have already clinched a postseason berth, but these final three games will give Tucker a tune-up for their return to October baseball. The impending free agent has had a terrific season overall but will end up playing in, at most, 136 of the team’s 162 games due primarily to this calf strain. He’s hitting .270/.381/.472 (139 wRC+) with 22 home runs, 25 doubles, four triples, 25 steals and a matching 14.7% walk rate and 14.7% strikeout rate.
Tucker’s offensive numbers would likely be even more impressive had he not suffered a hairline fracture in his hand back in June. He gutted it out and played through the injury, which only came to light nearly three months later, after it had healed. Tucker hit well in June but saw his numbers drop precipitously in July. There’s no definitive way to know how much the small fracture impacted him, but he surely wasn’t playing at 100% throughout the entirety of the summer.
While Tucker was on the shelf, the Cubs went with a regular outfield of Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Seiya Suzuki, the latter of whom had most frequently served as the team’s designated hitter. That alignment opened the door for top catching prospect Moisés Ballesteros to step into the designated hitter spot on a regular basis, and he’s stepped up as one of the team’s most productive hitters this month. The 21-year-old slugger has taken 42 plate appearances since Tucker went down and turned in a stout .314/.429/.571 batting line. Ballesteros has been so productive, in fact, that he may have hit his way onto Chicago’s postseason roster.
“Moisés is playing at a really high level,” manager Craig Counsell tells Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic. “Where he’s hitting in the lineup should tell you a lot. He’s contributing offensively significantly. That’s real. That matters. Absolutely, we’re taking note of it.”
Ballesteros has batted fourth or fifth in each of his past ten games and hasn’t hit lower than sixth since being recalled from the minors prior to the team’s game on Sept. 12. The Cubs have shielded him from left-handed pitching, giving him only three plate appearances versus fellow southpaws. Presumably, if he were indeed to secure a spot on the playoff roster, he’d be utilized in a platoon capacity. With a full complement of Happ, Crow-Armstrong, Tucker and Suzuki ticketed for outfield/designated hitter work and Carson Kelly standing as the everyday catcher, Ballesteros probably wouldn’t be in the starting lineup much, but he could provide a potent left-handed bat off the bench.
Nationals, Orelvis Martinez Agree To Minor League Deal
The Nationals and former top prospect Orelvis Martinez have agreed to a minor league deal that’ll carry into the 2026 season, reports Andrew Golden of the Washington Post. Martinez was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays and subsequently released earlier in the month.
Still just 23 years old (24 in November), Martinez ranked among the sport’s top-100 prospects at Baseball America for four years from 2021-24. The slugging infielder posted huge numbers, belting a combined 86 home runs in 1481 plate appearances from 2021-23. His defensive home was always something of a question mark — he’s spent time at shortstop, third base and second base — but Martinez’s plus power and consistent production seemed to be setting the stage for a possible long-term role in the Toronto infield.
Things changed dramatically early in 2024, however, when Martinez received an 80-game ban for PED usage. He hit well down the stretch in a small sample after returning late last season in Triple-A (.304/.360/.522 in 50 plate appearances), but the 2025 season has been a disaster.
Martinez spent the entire season in Triple-A this year and looked like a shell of his former self. In 99 games, he took 394 plate appearances and mustered only a .176/.288/.348 batting line (73 wRC+). His 28.4% strikeout rate tied the highest mark of his career, and he averaged just 86.8 mph off the bat with a tepid 36.8% hard-hit rate. Though the Jays had given him plenty of run at shortstop and third base earlier in his career, he slid further down the defensive spectrum in ’25 and spent the vast majority of his time at second base (79 games) and designated hitter (14) with only a handful of appearances at the hot corner.
The Nats will provide Martinez with a fresh start next season. He’s a lottery ticket for Washington, but there’s no harm in bringing him aboard on a non-guaranteed deal to see what he looks like next spring. The Nats have Luis Garcia Jr. at second base, but he’s a non-tender candidate this offseason. Former first-rounder Brady House made his big league debut at the hot corner in 2025 but has yet to establish himself as a firm option there. Martinez’s shortstop days are seemingly behind him, but the Nats have CJ Abrams entrenched there anyhow. Martinez will compete for an opportunity next spring, and if he doesn’t break camp with the club he’ll head to Triple-A Rochester and give Washington some additional infield depth.
