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Dodgers Have Shown Interest In Robert Suarez

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The Dodgers are among the teams with interest in free agent closer Robert Suarez, report Fabian Ardaya and Katie Woo of The Athletic. L.A.’s interest in adding a high-leverage reliever is well-known, but Ardaya and Woo write that they’d prefer that to be on a shorter-term commitment.

Suarez, who turns 35 in Spring Training, might be the ideal candidate. The length of his deal will be capped by his age and he’s among the best relievers available. Suarez has posted a sub-3.00 ERA in three of his four seasons since signing with the Padres during the 2021-22 offseason. That includes a 2.97 mark across a career-high 69 2/3 innings this past season. He led the National League with 40 saves in 45 tries and has an MLB-high 76 saves over the last two years.

One of the hardest throwers in the sport, Suarez averaged 98.6 MPH on his fastball. He has dominated hitters from both sides of the plate over the course of his career, as his changeup gives him a weapon against left-handed batters. He punched out 27.9% of opponents against a career-low 5.9% walk rate this year. Suarez doesn’t get quite as many whiffs as one might expect based on the velocity — he essentially hasn’t thrown a breaking ball in the last two years — but it’s difficult to argue the track record.

MLBTR predicted Suarez to receive a three-year, $48MM contract. A three-year deal should be the ceiling, and it’s not out of the question that he’s limited to two years at a premium annual value. As Front Office subscribers can find on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, there have only been two three-year deals for a 35-year-old reliever over the past decade. Those came at $7-8MM annually, well below what Suarez will command. Not since Mariano Rivera has a reliever this age pulled a three-year contract on eight figure salaries. Suarez will probably take aim at snapping that streak.

Edwin Díaz is the best free agent reliever, but he’s reportedly seeking a five-year contract that approaches or exceeds $100MM. Suarez is the next-best option. Pete Fairbanks, Luke Weaver, Brad Keller, Kyle Finnegan and old friend Kenley Jansen are also unsigned. While Fairbanks has been a Dodger target in past trade talks, Woo and Ardaya report that L.A. is not among the various teams in his market as a free agent.

The Dodgers have left-handers Alex Vesia and Tanner Scott as their top internal leverage arms. Blake Treinen, Brock Stewart and Brusdar Graterol come with performance and/or injury questions. They saw Michael Kopech and Kirby Yates hit free agency and non-tendered Evan Phillips last month.

Cutting Phillips was a formality, as he was headed into his final season of arbitration control. The former closer underwent Tommy John surgery in June and might miss the entire 2026 season. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told Jack Harris of The Los Angeles Times last month that the Dodgers were interested in re-signing the righty, presumably on a two-year contract. Friedman said that Phillips may prefer to wait to sign until after he resumes a throwing program, so it’s possible he’ll remain on the open market all winter.

Dodgers Have Discussed Teoscar Hernandez In Trade Talks

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Though the Dodgers are in the market for an outfielder, they’ve also discussed the possibility of dealing from their current group. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that Teoscar Hernandez’s name has popped up in some of the front office’s trade talks with other clubs, though the team doesn’t feel a deal is likely.

Hernandez, who turned 33 in October, is coming off a down season at the plate. His .247/.284/.454 batting line (102 wRC+) was his weakest since establishing himself as a major leaguer. He bounced back somewhat with a nice overall postseason showing, though, and Hernandez still ripped 25 home runs during 134 regular season games (546 plate appearances). This year’s 24.5% strikeout rate, while higher than league average, was the lowest of Hernandez’s career. Then again — that’s also true of his lowly 4.8% walk rate.

Hernandez’s batted-ball profile is still solid; his average exit velocity, hard-hit rate and barrel rate are all better than league average. However, he’s seen noticeable dips in each area over the past two seasons, which corresponds with a decline in his bat speed, as measured by Statcast. As someone who’s practically an all-bat player at this point in his career, the trend lines are fairly concerning.

That’s particularly true for a Dodgers club that can’t transition Hernandez to designated hitter, due to the presence of Shohei Ohtani. Hernandez drew roughly average marks for his right field glovework in the eyes of Defensive Runs Saved, but Statcast was far more bearish, dinging him for negative-9 Outs Above Average. Statcast pegged Hernandez’s range in just the third percentile of MLB outfielders. He’s never had a positive OAA mark dating back to his 2016 MLB debut, nor has he ever topped a +1 DRS mark in his ten big league seasons.

Hernandez is entering the second season of a three-year, $66MM contract signed in free agency last winter. He’s still owed $33MM over the next two seasons — $12MM in ’26, $14.5MM in ’27 and a $6.5MM buyout on a 2028 club option — though $16MM of that sum is deferred and will not begin to be paid out until 2031.

Home runs notwithstanding, Hernandez is a questionable corner-only defender whose OBP flatlined at a career-worst .284 in 2025. By measure of wRC+, he was only 2% better than the average big league hitter in 2025. It’s fair to wonder whether he could match that $33MM guarantee if he were a free agent at the moment. Hernandez is a prominent name, and the five dingers he smacked in the playoffs are fresh in everyone’s memory, but his stock isn’t exactly at a high point. In terms of WAR, both FanGraphs (0.6) and Baseball-Reference (1.5) felt this was his worst or second-worst performance in a full season.

Trading Hernandez would create a bevy of possibilities for Los Angeles as they look to improve their defense. With so many versatile players on the roster (e.g. Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Andy Pages, the recently re-signed Miguel Rojas), the Dodgers boast innumerable potential defensive alignment and could thus pursue a wide range of free agent and trade targets.

Notably, Rosenthal echoes previous reporting from colleague Fabian Ardaya, ESPN’s Jeff Passan and others in suggesting that Kyle Tucker will likely command more than the Dodgers prefer to spend; they’d reportedly be amenable to a shorter-than-expected deal, but Tucker still seems likely to command a significant long-term pact.

Even if a (still very hypothetical) Hernandez trade wouldn’t pave the way for an earnest pursuit of Tucker, shedding his salary and freeing up roster space would bring about ample room for creativity. Speculatively speaking, the Dodgers could rekindle their deadline interest in Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan, make a run at one of the Red Sox’ likely available outfielders (Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu) or once again jump into the fray for a versatile Cardinals utilityman (Brendan Donovan). If they’re open to shifting Betts back to the outfield, the possibilities expand even further.

Dodgers To Re-Sign Miguel Rojas

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Miguel Rojas will play his final season as a Dodger. The World Series hero is reportedly in agreement with Los Angeles on a one-year, $5.5MM contract. Rojas, a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council, announced in October that he would retire after the 2026 season. He’ll reportedly jump right into a player development position with the Dodgers once his playing career is finished. That’ll push the team’s 40-man roster count to 38 once it’s official.

It’ll be Rojas’ fourth consecutive season in L.A. and his fifth as a Dodger overall. He broke into the majors with the team in 2014 but was traded to the Marlins after his rookie year. Rojas spent eight seasons in Miami, much of it as an everyday shortstop, until the Fish traded him back to the Dodgers over the 2022-23 offseason. He has worked in a utility role for the past three seasons and has been a strong contributor off the bench for Dave Roberts in the most recent two years.

Rojas owns a .273/.328/.404 batting line across 654 plate appearances in the past two seasons. He remains one of the toughest players in the league to strike out. Rojas is no longer an everyday shortstop but can back up Mookie Betts while logging more time between second and third base. He remains a quality utility piece who has also been regarded as a clubhouse leader in Miami and Los Angeles. The Dodgers intend to keep him in the organization beyond his playing days, which reflects his clearly strong relationship with the coaching staff and front office.

That all made it likely that the Dodgers would bring Rojas back regardless of what happened in the postseason. He then cemented himself in franchise lore and baseball history with one of the most dramatic, improbable home runs of all time.

Roberts penciled Rojas into the starting lineup for Games 6 and 7 of the World Series. He came up with one out in the ninth inning of the decider against Jeff Hoffman. With the Dodgers trailing by one, Rojas (who has never hit more than 11 home runs in a season) took Hoffman deep to left field to tie the game. It was one of the most impactful single plays ever, and the Dodgers went on to win in extras when Will Smith homered off Shane Bieber.

That one swing probably doesn’t have much bearing on Rojas’ contract. His $5.5MM salary is narrowly above the $5MM that he made in both 2024 and ’25. The Dodgers were very likely to bring him back to continue playing a utility role regardless. He’ll offer a right-handed complement to lefty hitting Max Muncy and Hyeseong Kim around the infield. The Dodgers could look to re-sign Kiké Hernández for a similar job, though that again wouldn’t leave much playing time for well-regarded prospect Alex Freeland.

The Dodgers have a projected payroll of $337MM for next season, according to RosterResource. A good portion of that money is deferred, of course. Their competitive balance tax number — which adjusts for contracts’ post-deferral values — sits at an estimated $319MM. They’re already in the top tax bracket and pay the highest fees as three-time repeat payors, meaning they’re hit with a 110% tax on any additions. They’ll pay $6.05MM in taxes on this deal, bringing the overall investment to $11.55MM. That’s not much by Dodgers standards, and they’ll hope Rojas plays a role in becoming the first team to win three straight titles since the 1998-2000 Yankees.

Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase first reported the signing and terms. Image courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images.

Rockies Name Josh Byrnes General Manager

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3:04pm: The Rockies have formally announced the hiring of Byrnes.

“I’m incredibly excited to be able to bring Josh into our group,” DePodesta said within today’s press release. “Few executives in baseball share his combination of intellectual curiosity, breadth of experience, and on-field successes. We are extremely fortunate to add him, as he immediately strengthens our entire baseball operation.”

9:43am: The Rockies are set to hire Dodgers senior vice president of baseball operations Josh Byrnes away as their new general manager, per Ken Rosenthal and Dennis Lin of The Athletic. Though he’ll have the GM title, Byrnes will be second in command in the new-look Rox front office that’s headed up by recently hired president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta.

Byrnes, 55, is a seasoned front office veteran who has previously run baseball operations for both the Padres and D-backs, holding the title of general manager with each club. Byrnes is also a former assistant GM within the Rockies organization itself, having held that role in Denver from 1999 through 2002, so he’s something of a known commodity for owner Dick Monfort.

Byrnes was one of Andrew Friedman’s first hires after being named president of baseball operations in Los Angeles. He’s spent 11 years as one of Friedman’s top lieutenants, supervising both the scouting and player development departments for the Dodgers. Byrnes’ résumé is an impressive one. He’s spent more than a decade as a key figure in the front office for a Dodgers club that has won three World Series titles in that span. Prior to that, he headed up a pair of other front offices in the NL West and also served as an assistant GM with the 2003-04 Red Sox during their curse-breaking World Series victory.

That’s 26 straight seasons as either an assistant GM, a general manager or a senior vice president of baseball operations. Prior to that run, Byrnes cut his teeth as an advance scout and scouting director in Cleveland under legendary general manager John Hart. Byrnes also overlapped with another advance scout and rising star in player development during that time … his new boss, DePodesta.

All of those prominent roles give Byrnes ample insight into how to best reshape and build out a Rockies infrastructure that has lagged far behind the times. Colorado has the smallest analytics department and smallest front office, in general, of any team in baseball. Under the Monfort family’s ownership, they’ve been either loyal to a fault or downright insular, depending on how one prefers to frame it. Byrnes and DePodesta figure to make numerous hires to beef up the Rockies’ data practice, player development department and broader baseball operations setup.

CPBL’s Wei Chuan Dragons To Post Jo Hsi Hsu

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The Wei Chuan Dragons of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League are posting right-hander Jo Hsi Hsu for MLB clubs, as noted by CPBL Stats. Hsu is considering a jump to either MLB or Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan this offseason. Hsu himself told reporters that he’s already visited Japan and had dinner with NPB legend Sadaharu Oh, who now serves as the chief baseball officer for the SoftBank Hawks. According to Taiwanese outlet TSNA, Hsu has also garnered stateside interest from the Dodgers.

CPBL players can be posted for international free agency with the permission of their club after they’ve reached three years of service time. Hsu, 25, is in the midst of that process now and will market himself coming off a 2025 season where he pitched to a sterling 2.05 ERA with a 28.0% strikeout rate across 19 starts and 114 innings of work. That workload is fairly standard for the 119-game CPBL season, but it leaves questions about how well he’d be able to handle the rigors of a 162-game schedule as a starter in the big leagues.

Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan of Fangraphs took a look at Hsu’s profile last month and suggested that it’s “probable” most MLB clubs will view him as a reliever as he was unable to maintain his top velocity throughout even that 19-start campaign in the CPBL this year. Longehagen and Fegan both suggest that Hsu has the talent to be a late-inning set-up man in the majors, and a player headed into his age-25 season who could immediately slot into the back of any bullpen would surely be an attractive piece for teams to consider. With that being said, Longenhagen and Fegan both suggest that Hsu might prefer to first go to Japan to attempt to hone his skills as a starter before making the jump to MLB.

That’s a path that could be attractive for financial reasons. Hsu is young enough that even if he spent two or three years in Japan, he’d be able to come to MLB much younger than the average free agent pitcher. That could set him up for a more lucrative payday, particularly because then all posting fees owed to his the Dragons would be attached to his NPB contract. That would leave MLB teams able to offer Hsu the full amount they believe him to be worth rather than sending a portion of that money overseas to the Dragons. The CPBL posting fee is 20% of the first $25MM a player earns in their MLB contract, 17.5% of the next $25MM, and 15% of any dollars above $50MM. For minor league contracts, the posting fee is equivalent to 25% of the player’s signing bonus.

Beneficial as a stop in NPB might be financially, Hsu certainly wouldn’t be the first player to eschew a larger immediate payday for the opportunity to pitch in the majors sooner. Roki Sasaki opted to be posted last winter, when he wasn’t yet old enough to sign more than a minor league contract, and Shohei Ohtani famously did the same when he first came over to the United States. If Hsu does come stateside, it seems as though the Dodgers have at least some interest in his services. L.A. is hardly a club that’s been shy about making a splash in international markets, and while those efforts have been primarily focused on NPB (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Sasaki) and KBO (Hyeseong Kim) players in recent offseasons, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them expand their horizons to Taiwan.

It seems silly to call anything about a back-to-back World Series champion disappointing, but the Dodgers made a big investment in the back of their bullpen by picking up Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates last winter that ultimately did not pan out. Adding an arm like Hsu to the fold alongside Scott could give L.A. some additional firepower in the bullpen to help make up for the loss of Evan Phillips, who underwent Tommy John surgery in June and was non-tendered this past week.

Of course, the Dodgers are hardly the only team who could have interest in Hsu’s services. International relief signings have typically come in at a fairly affordable price tag that could make him an interesting target for virtually any club searching for bullpen help this winter. Woo-Suk Go (two years, $4.5MM), Yuki Matsui (five years, $28MM), and Shintaro Fujinami (one year, $3.5MM) are all players who signed from the international market as relievers in recent years, and none came with the typical price tag associated with late-inning relievers already established in MLB.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/21/25

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Every National League team has officially announced their non-tender decisions. It was a quiet evening in terms of subtractions, with only the Rangers parting with any marquee players. All players who were non-tendered are free agents without going on waivers. A few teams dropped pre-arbitration players from the back of the 40-man roster. It’s possible they preferred not to expose them to waivers and are hopeful of re-signing them to non-roster deals.

Here’s a full list of today’s activity in the NL, while the American League moves are available here. All projected salaries are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

  • The Braves announced that right-handers Alek Manoah and Carson Ragsdale were not tendered contracts. Both had been acquired earlier in the offseason via waivers, and both are now free agents. Manoah was projected to earn $2.2MM. Ragsdale was not arb-eligible.
  • The Brewers tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.
  • The Cardinals chose not to tender contracts to lefty John King, catcher Yohel Pozo and righty Sem Robberse, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Jorge Alcala, who was designated for assignment earlier this week, was also non-tendered, John Denton of MLB.com adds. King and Alcala were both projected for a $2.1MM salary. The others were not arb-eligible.
  • The Cubs non-tendered catcher Reese McGuire, per ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. He hit .226/.245/.444 through 140 plate appearances in a backup catcher role and was arb-eligible for the final time. He’d been projected to earn $1.9MM. Right-hander Eli Morgan, who was projected to earn $1.1MM, was also non-tendered, according to MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian.
  • The D-backs non-tendered left-hander Tommy Henry, who’d already been designated for assignment, and right-hander Taylor Rashi. Neither was eligible for arbitration. They tendered contracts to their entire arb class.
  • The Dodgers did not tender a contract to closer Evan Phillips, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. He was only under club control for one more season and projected for a $6.1MM salary but underwent Tommy John surgery in June. Dodgers righty Nick Frasso, who was not arb-eligible and finished the season on the 60-day IL, was also non-tendered, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.
  • The Giants non-tendered left-hander Joey Lucchesi, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Lucchesi pitched to a solid 3.76 ERA with a below-average 18.8% strikeout rate and strong 7.3% walk rate in 38 1/3 innings and had been projected for a $2MM salary. San Francisco also non-tendered catcher Andrew Knizner, who was designated for assignment this afternoon when the Giants acquired Joey Wiemer from Miami.
  • The Marlins tendered contracts to all of their eligible players, per Isaac Azout of Fish On First.
  • The Mets are non-tendering right-hander Max Kranick, according to Will Sammon of The Athletic. Kranick, 28, posted a 3.65 ERA in 37 innings with the Mets this year. It was his first big league opportunity since a five-inning cameo with the Pirates back in 2022. Kranick’s season came to an abrupt end back in July due to flexor tendon repair surgery. Southpaws Jose Castillo and Danny Young were also non-tendered, Sammon adds. Young had Tommy John surgery back in May. Castillo was a waiver claim who pitched for four different teams in 2025.
  • The Nationals tendered contracts to their entire roster, per a team announcement.
  • The Padres announced that lefty Omar Cruz and righty Sean Reynolds were non-tendered. Neither was arbitration-eligible. They tendered contracts to every member of their arbitration class.
  • The Phillies non-tendered righties Michael Mercado and Daniel Robert, neither of whom was arbitration-eligible. They’re both free agents. The Phils tendered contracts to all of their arb-eligible players otherwise.
  • The Pirates non-tendered outfielders Alexander Canario and Ronny Simon, as well as righties Colin Holderman and Dauri Moreta. All four were designated for assignment earlier in the week. Holderman was projected for a $1.7MM salary and Moreta for $800K. The others weren’t arb-eligible.
  • The Reds announced that catcher Will Banfield and right-handers Carson Spiers and Roddery Munoz were not tendered contracts. They’re all free agents. None of the three were arbitration-eligible, but by non-tendering them rather than designating them for assignment, Cincinnati bypasses the need to place them on waivers and can try to quickly re-sign any of the bunch to minor league deals, if the Reds are so inclined.
  • The Rockies non-tendered first baseman Michael Toglia, the team announced. He’d been designated for assignment earlier in the week, making today’s non-tender all but a formality.

Latest On Kyle Tucker’s Market

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We’re still in the nascent stages of the MLB offseason, with only a handful of notable free-agent signings and trades thus far. Still, with the GM Meetings now in the rearview mirror, teams have laid a fair bit of groundwork for the weeks and months ahead, both on the free agent and trade markets. Kyle Tucker stands as the offseason’s top free agent, and while there’s no indication he’s close to signing, there are also some hints falling into place about his potential market.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote this week that some rival teams feel the Blue Jays are the likeliest landing spot for the four-time All-Star. They’ve been a popular speculative pick early on after a deep World Series run and with only one other major long-term commitment (Vladimir Guerrero Jr.) on the books. Of course, Bo Bichette could be the priority, and it’s rare for any team to sign two free agents of that magnitude in a single offseason.

Tucker is a prominent enough star that some unexpected suitors figure to jump into the fray. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote this morning that while the Orioles are prioritizing pitching this winter, they haven’t ruled out a run at Tucker. Having already acquired Taylor Ward from the Angels, the addition of Tucker would free Baltimore to dangle young outfielders Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers on the trade market in hopes of securing some controllable arms. There are quite a few pitchers of note who could be on the block this winter, and both Cowser and Beavers would intrigue clubs looking to move arms. Both are former first-round picks. Cowser has four more seasons of club control, while Beavers only debuted late in 2025 and thus has a full slate of six years of club control remaining.

Baltimore stands as a fascinating fit. President of baseball operations Mike Elias was the Astros’ scouting director when Tucker was selected with the No. 5 overall pick. The O’s don’t have anything on the books long-term, other than Samuel Basallo’s eight-year, $67MM extension. That $8.375MM annual value isn’t going to be stand in the way of any other long-term deals. Beyond Basallo, Tyler O’Neill is the only other player signed to a guaranteed deal beyond the 2026 season. His three-year, $49.5MM contract runs through 2027.

The Orioles’ long-term financial outlook is so clean that there’s no true impediment to them signing Tucker and a notable a free agent starter. That’s not to say such a scenario is likely, of course, but Baltimore’s 2026 payroll currently projects for about $105MM, per RosterResource, and that’s before potential non-tenders or trades of Ryan Mountcastle ($7.8MM projected salary), Keegan Akin ($3MM projection), Yennier Cano ($1.8MM projection) and/or Alex Jackson ($1.8MM projection) prior to tomorrow’s 5pm ET non-tender deadline.

Depending on what happens with the Orioles’ arbitration class, they could realistically see next year’s projected payroll drop into the $93-100MM range by tomorrow evening. The opened the 2025 season with a payroll around $164.5MM. We’re certainly not accustomed to seeing Baltimore spend like this, but this is also only the second offseason under new owner David Rubenstein. Elias has already publicly stated that he is “fully prepared” to sacrifice draft picks by signing free agents who rejected qualifying offers, and for all the focus on pitching, it was reported more than a month ago that the O’s also covet an impact bat — likely in the outfield.

None of this is intended to frame the Orioles as any sort of favorite to sign Tucker, to be clear. Far from it. However, the fit and logic behind it are probably more sensible than one might think at first glance.

Other clubs will still loom in the market. Passan cites the Phillies as a possible landing spot, should Kyle Schwarber sign elsewhere. The Yankees have been linked to both Tucker and a Cody Bellinger reunion. GM Brian Cashman indicated this week that Trent Grisham’s decision to accept his qualifying offer will not impact the team’s pursuit of Bellinger. Presumably, then, that thinking extends to Tucker as well. The Dodgers have also been linked to Tucker, though Passan doubles down on his prior reporting that their interest would “likely” be on a shorter-term but high-AAV deal — the type we rarely see taken by the consensus top free agent in a given offseason.

Blue Jays, Dodgers Interested In Cody Bellinger

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The Yankees are known to have interest in reuniting with Cody Bellinger, even after Trent Grisham accepted the qualifying offer yesterday, but they will have competition. Bellinger has already been connected to the Mets and Jeff Passan of ESPN reports that the Blue Jays and Dodgers have interest in him as well.

Passan notes that the Jays want a left-handed complement to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. They have a few lefties projected to be in next year’s lineup. That includes Addison Barger, Daulton Varsho and Nathan Lukes, but there’s room for improvement there. Barger has shown signs he could be a middle-of-the-order bat but his track record in the majors isn’t especially long yet. Varsho has some home run pop but isn’t an elite hitter overall. Lukes is a pesky, contact-oriented type.

The Jays have already been connected to Kyle Tucker, a lefty swinger who happens to be the top free agent available. Bellinger hasn’t been quite at Tucker’s level for most of the recent past but he is coming off a better platform season. Passan writes that the Jays view Bellinger as an acceptable fallback to Tucker.

Bellinger just had a strong 2025 campaign with the Yankees. He hit 29 home runs while only striking out 13.7% of the time. His .272/.334/.480 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 125. He stole 13 bases and got strong defensive grades, playing all three outfield spots as well as first base.

There were some concerning elements under the hood. None of Bellinger’s 29 home runs went to the opposite field. He had a .302/.365/.544 slash and 152 wRC+ when playing at Yankee Stadium with its short porch in right field. He had a .241/.301/.414 line and 97 wRC+ on the road.

In the past, the market hasn’t always jumped on Bellinger, even when he has put up good numbers. It’s possible that is related to his unimpressive batted ball metrics, which are still present. In 2025, his average exit velocity, hard hit rate and barrel rate were all in the 36th percentile or worse.

Coming off a strong season in 2023, Bellinger reportedly went out looking for $200MM and didn’t find it. He had to settle for a three-year, $80MM deal with opt-outs. His 2024 season was mediocre enough that he didn’t even trigger the first opt-out chance. The Cubs sent him to the Yanks in what was effectively a salary dump deal, though he bounced back enough to trigger his second opt-out.

Observant Jays fans will know that the club has been connected to Bellinger throughout his ups and downs, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that they have him on the radar again. The question will be if they make him a priority with Tucker and Bo Bichette still out there. MLBTR predicted Bellinger to secure $140MM over five years, significantly less than the predictions for Tucker and Bichette but still a hefty commitment.

The Jays have a number of incumbent outfield options but there’s some flexibility in it. In addition to the aforementioned Varsho and Lukes, George Springer and Anthony Santander are likely to be sharing one corner and the designated hitter spot. There’s also guys like Barger and Davis Schneider, though those two are capable of playing the infield. Myles Straw is around as a glove-first bench guy. Signing another outfielder would likely push Lukes to a part-time position and Barger and Schneider to more full-time infield roles.

RosterResource projects the Jays for a payroll of about $233MM next year. That’s more than $20MM shy of their year-end figure in 2025. Getting back to that level would leave room for a notable addition but they would likely have to increase spending to make more than one marquee move. With needs on the pitching side of things as well, they may have to divert some of their recent extra revenue from their playoff run into next year’s team. Perhaps they will put more of a focus on Bichette but Bellinger is a possible fallback and getting both isn’t entirely impossible.

As for the Dodgers, the outfield does stand out as a place for them to add. The roster is obviously in a good place, as they just won the World Series and didn’t lose any major contributors to free agency. But if you’re looking for a place to find weak spots, the grass is a bit patchy. The Michael Conforto signing was a bust. Teoscar Hernández had an uneven season. Andy Pages had a decent year but his bat disappeared in the playoffs. Tommy Edman can play the outfield but is now recovering from ankle surgery and might be needed at second base.

Despite the need, it would be surprising if Bellinger was the solution. He was drafted by the Dodgers and spent the first six seasons of his career there but didn’t seem to part on good terms. Scott Boras, Bellinger’s agent, publicly blamed the Dodgers for Bellinger’s struggles in 2021 and 2022 after shoulder surgery. That prompted Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman to respond and defend the club. Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times was among those to relay the play-by-play of that saga back in 2023.

Given the tension there, perhaps a reunion isn’t especially likely. On the other hand, it’s not as though the situation has prevented the Dodgers and Boras from doing business. Since that spat, the Dodgers have signed Boras clients like Conforto, Blake Snell and James Paxton. If the Dodgers really want Bellinger and are willing to pay, that should win out over past squabbles.

On the other hand, it’s not clear if the Dodgers want to make a big splash in the outfield. They have also been connected to Tucker but with some reporting suggesting they might prefer to make a short-term addition as they wait for their outfield prospects to arrive. Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Mike Sirota and Eduardo Quintero are all outfielders in the system and all four have been on top 100 prospect lists. They aren’t immediate fixes since no one in the quartet has reached Triple-A yet, but the Dodgers might be inclined to wait, as opposed to signing an outfielder to a mega deal. Having just won a second straight title, perhaps there’s less pressure for them to win the offseason.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Sousa, Imagn Images

Marlins To Hire Craig Driver As First Base Coach

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The Marlins are hiring Dodgers catching coordinator Craig Driver away as their new first base coach, reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid. He’ll replace Tyler Smarslok, who held that role in 2025 but is leaving the organization to become the new field coordinator for the division-rival Nationals, per a report from Andrew Golden and Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.

Driver is plenty familiar with Marlins skipper Clayton McCullough, with whom he worked during on the Dodgers’ 2024 coaching staff. Driver spent the 2024-25 seasons as L.A.’s catching coordinator. McCullough was the Dodgers’ first base coach from 2021-24. Prior to his time with the Dodgers, Driver spent several seasons as the Cubs’ first base coach and catching coach. He was a bullpen catcher and “receiving coach” with the Phillies for a couple years before heading to Chicago.

A catcher during his NCAA days, Driver went undrafted and jumped into the college coaching ranks upon graduation. His final stint in college ball was in 2016-17, when he was the catching coach at Yale. He’s been working in pro ball since 2018.

Miami’s coaching staff isn’t turning over all that much in 2026. Driver is one of three known newcomers at present, joining newly hired assistant hitting coaches Chris Hess and Corbin Day, who came over from the Red Sox and Twins organizations, respectively, where they’d been minor league coaches/instructors. Last year’s assistant hitting coach, Derek Shomon, left the Fish to take the lead hitting coach job with the White Sox.

Dodgers Select Ronan Kopp

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The Dodgers selected the contract of left-handed pitcher Ronan Kopp. That’s their only move for Tuesday’s Rule 5 protection deadline. L.A. had two openings on the 40-man roster and didn’t need to make a corresponding move.

Kopp, 23, is a reliever who divided the 2025 season between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Oklahoma City. He turned in a combined 3.43 earned run average across 57 2/3 innings. Kopp fanned a massive 36% of opposing hitters but walked almost 17% of the opponents he faced. He has a mid-90s fastball and a cutter-slider that he used almost equally in Triple-A.

It’s plus stuff with obvious command woes from the left side. Neither left nor right-handed hitters could do much damage against Kopp, but they each reached base around a .350 clip by waiting out the free passes. While he’ll need to dial in the command, the Dodgers obviously feel he’s talented enough to factor in as bullpen depth in 2026. He joins Alex Vesia, Tanner Scott, Justin Wrobleski, Jack Dreyer and Anthony Banda as lefty relievers on the 40-man roster.

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