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Offseason In Review: Atlanta Braves

By | at March 20, 2025 6:38pm CDT

The Braves scaled back spending this offseason, but still brought in an All-Star outfielder and a lot of depth options to bolster the roster.

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $13.5MM
Total spending: $43.5MM

Option Decisions

Trades & Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

Notable Losses

President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos traditionally makes several moves early in the offseason, and he got a particularly quick jump on things this winter by trading Jorge Soler to the Angels less than 24 hours after the World Series ended.  Since exercising Marcell Ozuna's club option was a no-brainer, Soler became redundant in Atlanta's lineup, and an obvious trade candidate.  Because return piece Griffin Canning was eventually non-tendered, the deal became a pure salary dump, as the Halos took the remaining $26MM of Soler's contract off the Braves' hands.

The Braves also moved quickly in signing Reynaldo Lopez and Aaron Bummer to contract extensions, though since the players were already controlled (Lopez via a previous extension and Bummer via club options), the new deals were more about reshuffling some money and creating some space under the luxury tax.  More payroll space was freed up when the Braves declined club options on Travis d'Arnaud and Luke Jackson, and when arbitration-eligibles Ramon Laureano, Cavan Biggio, and Huascar Ynoa were all let go.

All of these moves indicated that Anthopoulos was preparing for another transaction that would cost his team a significant chunk of money.  It took a couple of months for that next step to happen, but Atlanta finally struck in signing Jurickson Profar to a three-year, $42MM deal.  Profar will now line up as the Braves' everyday left fielder, bringing some stability to an outfield that will still be without Ronald Acuna Jr. until likely sometime in May, as Acuna recovers from his torn ACL.

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Poll: The Red Sox Second Base Battle

By | at March 20, 2025 3:21pm CDT

Entering Spring Training, there was plenty of buzz around the future of the second base position in Boston. However, that buzz mostly surrounded the wild card that was the club’s recent addition of Alex Bregman, a third baseman by trade but one who had expressed a willingness to move to second base. That led to plenty of belief that Bregman could slide over to the keystone in deference to incumbent third baseman Rafael Devers, but all indications point towards the club shifting Devers to DH with Opening Day just over a week away.

That leaves a relatively wide-open battle for the second base job this spring. For most of camp, that’s appeared to be a battle between incumbent David Hamilton, top prospect Kristian Campbell, and Vaughn Grissom. While Grissom was the prize of the Chris Sale trade and intended to be the club’s starting second baseman last year, he struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness throughout the year as he got into just 31 big league games and hit a paltry .190/.246/.219 in that time. After Grissom struggled once again in Spring Training this year, hitting just .176/.300/.235 across 13 games, it was hardly a surprise when his bid for the starting second base job came to a close when the Red Sox optioned him to Triple-A yesterday.

Grissom’s exit from the race to start at the keystone in Boston this year didn’t fully narrow the field, however, as another candidate has entered the fray: top infield prospect Marcelo Mayer. While Mayer entered camp seemingly unlikely to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster given the fact that he has yet to play at the Triple-A level and missed much of last year with an injury, the 22-year-old is a consensus top-20 prospect in the sport for a reason and has turned heads this spring with a phenomenal .357/.438/.536 slash line in 15 spring games. That strong work, in conjunction with Mayer’s .307/.370/.480 slash line in 77 Double-A games last year, paint a clear picture of a player who’s ready for a new challenge.

It’s become easier to imagine that challenge being in the majors, though it would certainly be defensible for the club to instead simply promote him to Triple-A and wait for him to prove himself at the position as well. After all, Mayer has spent his entire career at shortstop aside from single-game cameos at third base in each of the past two seasons. He’d not played second base before until this spring and still has only a handful of innings at the position as things stand. While it’s not unheard of for talented players to make the jump from Double-A to the majors and hold their own or even excel offensively, doing that while also learning a new position would be a big ask for any player.

That could make one of the club’s other options more attractive. If the club wants to give Mayer more time to develop while still injecting its Opening Day lineup with some youthful upside, Campbell would be a viable alternative. The 22-year-old is a consensus top-ten prospect in the sport, even more highly rated than Mayer by most services, after a phenomenal year where he catapulted himself from High-A all the way to Triple-A across just 115 games and crushed the ball at every level along the way. After a 19-game stint at Worcester last year where he hit an impressive .286/.412/.486, Campbell entered camp with a clear path to making the club’s Opening Day roster. That path has been complicated, however, by a lackluster spring where he’s hit just .158/.289/.211 in 16 games.

Those offensive struggles, in conjunction with defense at second base that grades out as more decent than spectacular, have created questions as to whether the Red Sox would be better served with more time at Triple-A, serving as depth for the club both at second base but also in the outfield, where he spent 25 games last year in an effort to create more positional versatility. On the other hand, however, Campbell is clearly a strong talent who has proven he can hit at the Triple-A level. He’s also the only right-handed bat in the mix for the everyday second base job with Romy Gonzalez ticketed for a bench role. That’s a factor worth considering given the heavily left-handed makeup for a Red Sox lineup that figures to rely on Devers, Jarren Duran, Triston Casas, Masataka Yoshida, and Wilyer Abreu in significant roles throughout the year, to say nothing of top prospect Roman Anthony. Campbell joining Bregman and Trevor Story as a right-handed hitter who can offer some pop and keep opposing southpaws honest could help balance the lineup in a way that neither Mayer nor Hamilton can offer.

Speaking of Hamilton, he would be a viable alternative to running with a youngster at second base in the event that the club prefers more stable production to begin the season. The 27-year-old doesn’t offer much upside with the bat, having posted a .248/.303/.395 slash line in 98 games last year that probably isn’t too far from his realistic ceiling, but his defense and baserunning are both top-notch and allowed him to put up 2.6 bWAR/1.7 fWAR in just 317 trips to the plate across 98 games last year. Hamilton would also be much easier to justify platooning with Gonzalez than Mayer, who will likely need regular playing time to maximize his development. That could help to alleviate concerns about carrying another left-handed hitting regular for Red Sox brass this year.

As is the case with all top prospects nearing their big league debuts, service time is another consideration. It’s possible that the Red Sox could capture a seventh year of team control over either Campbell or Mayer by holding them down in the minors for at least the first few weeks of the season. And with stars this valuable. that’s surely a tempting possibility. With that being said, the current CBA’s prospect promotion incentive makes the decision to leave a player in the minors to try and get an extra year of service a more complicated one than it was in the days of Kris Bryant and George Springer. If either Campbell or Mayer were to finish within the top two of AL Rookie of the Year voting this year, they would be awarded a full season of service time regardless of how many days they actually spent in the majors.

What’s more, if either player earned a full year of MLB service naturally and either won Rookie of the Year this year or was a finalist in AL MVP voting during his pre-arbitration years, the Red Sox would earn an additional draft pick in the following year’s draft. Given that, if the Red Sox believe there’s a clear path for either youngster to succeed enough that they finish within the top two for Rookie of the Year this season, they might be incentivized to simply put that player on the roster to begin the year in hopes of recouping a draft pick.

Who would you start at second base on Opening Day if you were in Boston’s position? Does Campbell’s Triple-A experience or Mayer’s strong camp hold more weight in your mind? Or perhaps Hamilton is the safest bet that offers the club an opportunity to keep both Mayer and Campbell in the fold for longer? Have your say in the poll below:

Who should the Red Sox start at second base to open the year?

  • David Hamilton 35% (1,702)
  • Marcelo Mayer 34% (1,639)
  • Kristian Campbell 31% (1,482)

Total votes: 4,823

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36 Veteran Players With Looming Opt-Out Dates

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

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

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

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

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

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

Astros: LHP Jalen Beeks

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

Blue Jays: RHP Jacob Barnes, LHP Ryan Yarbrough

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

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

Braves: RHP Buck Farmer, RHP Hector Neris

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

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

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

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

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

Cubs: RHP Chris Flexen

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

Diamondbacks: INF/OF Garrett Hampson, RHP Scott McGough

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

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

Giants: C Max Stassi, RHP Lou Trivino

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

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

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

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

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

Mets: RHP Jose Ureña

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

Padres: 1B Yuli Gurriel, INF Jose Iglesias

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

Pirates: LHP Ryan Borucki

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

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

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

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

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

Rays: DH/OF Eloy Jimenez

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

Red Sox: LHP Matt Moore, RHP Adam Ottavino

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

Reds: LHP Wade Miley

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

Rockies: RHP Jake Woodford

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

Royals: C Luke Maile, RHP Ross Stripling

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

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

Tigers: LHP Andrew Chafin

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

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

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

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

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

Yankees: RHP Carlos Carrasco

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

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Offseason In Review: Chicago White Sox

By | at March 19, 2025 11:59pm CDT

The White Sox hired a new manager and cashed in Garrett Crochet for prospects, otherwise making affordable, low-ceiling additions.

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $15.2MM
Total spending: $15.2MM

Option Decisions

Trades and Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

  • None

Notable Losses

Chris Getz was hired as White Sox executive vice president/GM in August 2023, inheriting manager Pedro Grifol from previous longtime GM Rick Hahn.  After about a year in the GM chair with his team sporting a historically bad 28-89 record on the 2024 season, Getz fired Grifol and installed Grady Sizemore as interim manager for the remainder of the campaign.  Managers can occasionally ride out rebuilding years, proving themselves on soft factors and retaining the job when the team gets good.  The Orioles' Brandon Hyde did this.  Grifol, however, did not warrant that level of faith.

Given a clean offseason slate to choose his own manager, Getz ran an extensive search that included Will Venable, Daniel Descalso, Phil Nevin, George Lombard, A.J. Ellis, Donnie Ecker, Danny Lehmann, Clayton McCullough, Craig Albernaz, and many others whose names did not reach the media.  Getz had competition from the Marlins on several of these candidates.  He ultimately chose Venable on October 29th.  McCullough landed the Marlins gig not long after, while Nevin still landed with Chicago but as a special assistant in their player development department.

The Princeton-educated Venable became the 44th manager in White Sox history, and he takes over a team that has nowhere to go but up.  Getz himself was the beneficiary of Jerry Reinsdorf's "I didn’t have to interview these people, because I knew them all" hiring approach, which also netted Tony La Russa as manager in October 2020.  So it's always a relief to see the White Sox conduct an extensive search as they did with Venable.

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Poll: The Rockies’ Outfield Mix

By | at March 19, 2025 3:41pm CDT

Headed into 2025, there isn’t a ton for Rockies fans to look forward to this year. The club has just a 0.1% chance of making the postseason this year according to Fangraphs, which is tied with the White Sox for the lowest in baseball. Projected for a 65-97 record this season, the Rockies’ path back to relevance appears long and arduous given the stronger clubs ahead of them in the NL West.

Bleak as things may seem in Colorado, however, the Rockies do have some interesting young players worth dreaming on. Michael Toglia crushed 25 homers in his first full season as a big leaguer last year and figures to serve as the club’s everyday first baseman this year. Ezequiel Tovar won a Gold Glove award last year, led the NL in doubles, and is in town long-term after signing an extension that keeps him under team control for the next seven seasons. Brenton Doyle is among the most talented center field defenders in the sport and enjoyed an above-average offensive season last year, even after adjusting for the offensive environment at Coors Field.

That collection of interesting young hitters could receive a new addition this year, as the retirement of Charlie Blackmon has opened up regular playing time at DH for Kris Bryant. Things are looking rather unsettled for the club in the outfield this year, with no certainty in the corners even as Doyle is locked in as the club’s regular center fielder and Sam Hilliard appears poised to retain his role as the club’s fourth outfielder after performing well in that role last year. Despite that lack of certainty, there’s a number of interesting options available to handle regular playing time.

26-year-old Nolan Jones is the overwhelming favorite to serve as the club’s regular left fielder, even after an injury-marred 2024 campaign where he was limited to just 79 games and hit a lackluster .227/.321/.320 in the games where he was healthy enough to take the field. That’s because Jones is just one season removed from a stellar 2023 campaign where he posted a .297/.389/.542 slash line in a year where he put together a 20/20 season. That proven upside should be enough to get him the first crack at everyday reps in left field, leaving the main roster battle to be held in right.

2022 first-rounder Jordan Beck entered Spring Training as the favorite for the right field job. Beck, 24 next month, struggled mightily in 55 games for the Rockies last year with a paltry .188/.245/.276 slash line. A broken bone in his left hand sidelined him for much of the summer, and the lingering effects of that injury may have impacted his return to action over the season’s final six weeks, when he struck out in 34% of his trips to the plate and hit just .187/.282/.242. He’s also got plenty of pedigree as a former top-100 prospect who raked at every stop on his way through the minor leagues, suggesting the underlying talent for a quality regular is there. However, he’s looked out of sorts this spring with strikeouts in more than 30% of his plate appearances, and his numbers prior to last year’s injury were actually even weaker than his performance down the stretch.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if those deep struggles opened the door for another player to squeeze their way into the right field job, and two players in particular have made the most of the opportunity. One is Sean Bouchard, who at 28 years old is the oldest of the corner outfield options mentioned here. Bouchard made his debut for Colorado back in 2022 and has appeared in each of the past three seasons, but has never received regular playing time in the majors to this point in his career. He didn’t hit much last year, but his overall body of work at the big league level is fairly impressive with a .251/.368/.443 (115 wRC+) slash line in 248 trips to the plate across the past three years. Those solid numbers come with a slightly inflated .339 BABIP, however, and his 29% strikeout rate in the majors offers some cause for concern. On the other hand, Bouchard has done nothing but rake at both the Triple-A level throughout his career (with a career 1.012 OPS at the level) and in Spring Training this year, where he’s slashed .378/.395/.757 in 15 games.

Perhaps the most intriguing option available to the Rockies is calling up former top prospect Zac Veen. Veen, 23, is the youngest of the club’s options and was considered a top-30 prospect in the sport as recently as last year. However, he’s suffered through back-to-back injury marred campaigns with 111 games played across all levels of the minors since the start of the 2023 season. He hit a solid .258/.346/.459 across all levels of the minors when healthy last year and ultimately reached Triple-A, but his struggles in 21 games at the level last year could suggest he’s not quite ready for the big leagues. On the other hand, Veen has joined Bouchard in putting on an offensive clinic this spring, with a .317/.304/.610 slash line in 20 spring games.

As presently constructed, the Rockies appear to have enough roster spots available to carry only three of these four corner bats. Jones is essentially guaranteed a roster spot given that he’s out of options, but each of Bouchard, Veen, and Beck all have options remaining. Given the prospect pedigree and high ceilings both Beck and Veen seemingly have to offer, it wouldn’t make much sense to keep either player on the roster in a pure bench role. The right-handed Beck and left-handed Veen could certainly work out some sort of timeshare that gets both the at-bats they need to develop, though it’s also possible the club could opt to give either player regular reps in the minor leagues while rostering Bouchard. Bouchard’s right-handed bat could also provide additional value off the bench if the lefty-swinging Jones, who hit just .205/.283/.265 against southpaws last year, needs a platoon partner to maximize his own development.

Who would you send to the minors to open the season if you were in Colorado’s shoes? Would you give Veen more time to develop in the minors despite his strong spring and exciting upside? Would Beck’s struggles last year bleeding over into Spring Training be enough to turn you away from including him on the roster to open the season? Or perhaps you’d include both youngsters and send Bouchard to the minors as depth despite his relative success in the majors? Have your say in the poll below:

Who should the Rockies leave off the Opening Day roster?

  • Zac Veen 39% (810)
  • Sean Bouchard 31% (654)
  • Jordan Beck 30% (635)

Total votes: 2,099

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Poll: Padres’ Rotation Battle

By | at March 18, 2025 10:04pm CDT

Shortly after the 2024 regular season concluded, the Padres were hit with a brutal blow when Joe Musgrove underwent Tommy John surgery, wiping out his 2025 campaign before the offseason even began. That left the Padres with major question marks at the back of their rotation behind Dylan Cease, Michael King, and Yu Darvish. While the late-winter addition of Nick Pivetta into the fold helped stabilize things, that still left one spot open in the club’s rotation headed into Spring Training. Darvish is now battling elbow inflammation himself, though the Padres haven’t ruled him out for the beginning of the season.

Knuckleballer Matt Waldron appeared to be the favorite for the final rotation job after he made 26 solid starts for the Padres last year, but he’s out of commission due to an oblique injury and expected to begin the season on the injured list. With Waldron out of the mix for the Opening Day rotation, that leaves left-hander Kyle Hart as well as righties Randy Vasquez and Stephen Kolek in the mix for the club’s fifth starter spot. Hart, 32, was brought into the organization last month on a one-year deal worth $1.5MM guaranteed. The southpaw has just 11 MLB innings under his belt, where he got blown up to the tune of a 15.55 ERA with the Red Sox during the 2020 season. After toiling in the minor leagues for years in an attempt to get back to the majors, Hart tried his hand in the Korea Baseball Organization last year.

The results were extremely impressive. Hart’s first and only year overseas saw him pitch to a sterling 2.69 ERA in 157 innings of work across 26 starts. He struck out an excellent 28.8% of his opponents while maintaining a strong 6.0% walk rate. That dominant work in Korea was somewhat reminiscent of the success right-hander Erick Fedde found in KBO play during the 2023 season, when he pitched to a 2.00 ERA in 180 1/3 innings and struck out 29.5% of his opponents. Hart’s numbers don’t quite match up with those of Fedde, but given Fedde’s excellent 2024 season where he posted a 3.30 ERA in 31 starts for the White Sox and Cardinals, even a significant step back from Fedde’s major league production would still make Hart a solid starting option in the majors.

It might seem reasonable, then, to assume that Hart is the favorite for the job. Things may not be that simple, however, as Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune wrote over the weekend that Hart may be falling out of the race for the fifth starter job due to an illness that has limited him to just two appearances this spring. Acee noted that the Padres have been impressed by what they’ve seen from him so far, but much like Waldron, it’s possible that he simply won’t have time to build up enough to be the club’s fifth starter out of the gate this year. That could open the door for Vasquez or Kolek to jump in and take the job despite résumés that pale in comparison to Hart’s platform campaign.

Vasquez, 26, made 20 starts for the Padres last year. The results left something to be desired, as his 4.87 ERA and 4.70 FIP were both well below league average. With that being said, Vasquez improved throughout the 2024 campaign. After surrendering ten homers in his first nine starts last year, he settled into a rhythm in late June and posted a respectable 4.23 ERA with an even better 3.94 FIP in 55 1/3 innings of work over his final 11 starts. While Vasquez’s ceiling isn’t especially high, it’s not hard to imagine him being a perfectly viable fifth starter this year, particularly if his improved ability to keep the ball in the park throughout the second half last year proves to be sustainable.

Kolek, meanwhile, is something of a wild card in the mix. Drafted in the 11th round by the Dodgers back in 2018, the right-hander was traded to the Mariners in 2021 but did not make his big league debut until last year as a Rule 5 pick of the Padres. San Diego used him out of the bullpen, where he posted lackluster numbers despite strong peripherals. Kolek’s fantastic 55.9% ground ball rate and impressive 5.7% walk rate were overshadowed by a strikeout rate of just 18.5%, a massive .359 BABIP, and a lackluster 64.3% strand rate that left him with a 5.21 ERA despite a 3.57 FIP and a 3.41 SIERA.

Still, the right-hander showed enough that he not only stuck with the Padres all season, but club brass also decided to convert him back to a starting job despite him not pitching out of the rotation since 2022 at the Double-A level. His spring results have been impressive to this point, with a 1.00 ERA in 9 innings of work and five strikeouts against just one walk, but Kolek’s pedestrian results last year and lack of a track record as a starter in the majors or even at Triple-A could give San Diego pause about committing to him as a starter to open the season.

If Darvish avoids the injured list, who would you assign to the fifth spot in the Padres rotation to open the season? Would you give the nod to Hart despite his minimal work during Spring Training? Would you stick with the reliable Vasquez despite his relatively low ceiling? Or would you take a chance on a reliever conversion in Kolek? Have your say in the poll below:

Who should the Padres put in their rotation to start the season?

  • Kyle Hart 44% (1,057)
  • Stephen Kolek 28% (660)
  • Randy Vasquez 28% (659)

Total votes: 2,376

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Offseason In Review: Los Angeles Angels

By | at March 18, 2025 4:50pm CDT

The Angels were the most active team in the first few weeks of the offseason. They added a mid-rotation starter and a new designated hitter to upgrade the middle third of the lineup. They went oddly quiet after that, leaving them to enter the season with a roster that again seems too thin to hang in the race all year.

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $47.25MM
Total spending: $95.25MM

Option Decisions

  • None

Trades and Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

  • None

Notable Losses

The Angels finished 63-99 under first-year manager Ron Washington, narrowly avoiding what would have been their first 100-loss campaign. Only the White Sox, Rockies and Marlins had a worse run differential. They have the longest active playoff drought in MLB at 10 years.

Shortly after the season ended, owner Arte Moreno told Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register that he expected to compete for a playoff spot in 2025. "(General manager Perry Minasian's) marching orders are we need to build a team that can compete for a playoff spot. When you get to playoffs, anything can happen," Moreno said. The owner indicated he was prepared to raise payroll to make that happen. The Angels had cut spending by more than $40MM over the 2023-24 offseason.

Expecting to add 20+ wins within one offseason, even with a payroll spike, is unrealistic. Still, the Angels began the winter with a sense of urgency that reflected a real desire to improve in the short term. They pulled off the first major trade of the offseason within hours of the World Series concluding. The Angels took the remaining two years and $26MM on Jorge Soler's contract off the Braves' hands. Los Angeles sent Griffin Canning, whom they were presumably planning to non-tender, the other way. Atlanta subsequently cut Canning themselves, confirming that was purely a salary dump on their part.

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Offseason In Review: Baltimore Orioles

By | at March 18, 2025 10:00am CDT

There was some hope that the Orioles would become big offseason players in the first winter under new owner David Rubenstein. That didn't exactly come to pass, though the O's still showed a bit more aggression than they have in a while.

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $67.975MM
Total spending: $100.975MM

Option Decisions

Trades and Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

Notable Losses

The Orioles hired Mike Elias as general manager in November of 2018. The initial years of his tenure saw the club act very conservatively, but for understandable reasons. They lost 115 games in that 2018 season and were looking at a long rebuilding period. They finally emerged with a winning record in 2022 and then made the playoffs in 2023, but the ownership situation was uncertain. The Angelos family had been squabbling over control of the club and there were whispers that the O's were for sale.

In the 2023-24 offseason, reports emerged that a group led by David Rubenstein was going to purchase the club. That sale didn't get approved by Major League Baseball until around Opening Day of the 2024 season. At that time, Elias had still never given a free agent a multi-year deal. Craig Kimbrel and his $13MM guarantee was the only signing to go beyond $10MM.

Many Oriole fans hoped that the regime change would lead to a huge shift in operating policy, similar to the way Steve Cohen turned the Mets into a powerhouse club. There were some positive signs during the 2024 season that such a path was possible. The O's acquired Zach Eflin at the deadline. His deal with the Rays was backloaded, with an $18MM salary in 2025 that the Orioles took on. They also acquired Seranthony Domínguez, whose deal contained an $8MM club option for 2025 that was eventually exercised.

Reading the tea leaves, it seemed like the club would be operating with some more spending capacity for 2025. In early October, just after the O's were eliminated from the playoffs, Elias fanned the flames a bit. He told members of the media that he was "pretty confident" the club's payroll would be going up. He later said that the O's were looking at "the whole spectrum" of available pitchers, adding: “If you’re running the team optimally….you’re certainly wanting to keep the whole menu of player acquisition open. That involves high-end free agent deals over many years. We’ve been engaged in those conversations already.”

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Offseason In Review: Philadelphia Phillies

By | at March 17, 2025 2:18pm CDT

After winning the NL East for the first time in 13 years, the Phillies had their quietest offseason since Dave Dombrowski took over as president of baseball operations. Some will say the Phillies didn’t need to make any major moves, considering that almost all of their key contributors are returning for another year. Others will argue they are playing a dangerous game by largely running it back, allowing the Mets and Braves to gain precious ground. Is this team moving in the right direction heading into 2025?

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $22.5MM
Total spending: $22.5MM

Trades & Claims

Option Decisions

  • None

Notable Minor League Signings

Notable Losses

The Phillies have enjoyed continued success under manager Rob Thomson, so it came as no shock when they began their offseason by extending the skipper through 2026. The team was also quick to confirm that Thomson’s full coaching staff would return in 2025, although they later lost assistant pitching coach/director of pitching Brian Kaplan to the Diamondbacks. Philadelphia’s pitching staff was arguably the best in baseball during Kaplan’s tenure working under Caleb Cotham (2022-24). The Phillies will hope that Cotham’s new second-in-command, Mark Lowy, has just as much success. In an additional personnel move, the Phillies promoted assistant GM Preston Mattingly to vice president and general manager. Those roles were previously held by Sam Fuld, who will remain with the organization in a new role on the business side of operations. 

At the same press conference in which Dombrowski announced Thomson’s extension, the POBO spoke the words that became the defining refrain of the Phillies’ offseason: “We just have to be open-minded to exploring what’s out there for us, talk to some clubs and see what ends up happening. That process hasn’t started. Sometimes you trade good players for good players” (per MLB.com's Todd Zolecki). 

Needless to say, that quotation led to much speculation about the Phillies making a major trade to shake things up. In particular, Alec Bohm was the subject of several trade rumors. The Royals, Mariners, Angels, and Athletics were all reported to have some degree of interest in the third baseman at one time or another. Coming off an All-Star campaign, Bohm’s value hasn’t been higher since he finished runner-up for the 2020 NL Rookie of the Year. However, there seemed to be a disconnect between how highly the Phillies valued Bohm and how badly any potential suitors were hankering after his services. For instance, the Phillies reportedly asked for Mason Miller from the A’s in exchange for Bohm, which quickly shut down any negotiations between the two teams (per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal). 

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Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates

By | at March 15, 2025 7:36pm CDT

It was another modest offseason for the Pirates, who are banking on their young arms to carry them into contention.

Major League Signings

2025 spending: $19.95MM
Total spending: $19.95MM

Option Decisions

Trades and Claims

Extensions

  • None

Notable Minor League Signings

Notable Losses

It's been a rough few decades for the Pirates. They didn't make the playoffs between 1993 and 2012. They then got three straight Wild Card berths, but advanced to the NLDS just once. They started a new playoff drought in 2016 that continues to this day.

There have been some signs of potential lately. In 2023, they were 20-9 at the end of April, but they went 8-18 in May and finished at 76-86. They hovered near contention last year, sitting at 48-48 at the All-Star break, but again finished at 76-86.

Despite those losing seasons, there are exciting elements on the roster. Their collection of rotation talent is one of the best in the league, fronted by Paul Skenes but also including Jared Jones, Mitch Keller, Braxton Ashcraft, Bubba Chandler, Mike Burrows and Thomas Harrington. They also have position players Bryan Reynolds, Ke'Bryan Hayes and Oneil Cruz in place for years to come.

Ideally, the club would have invested around this young core, but that didn't come to pass this winter. The offseason included one notable trade, which is essentially a risky bet on a late bloomer, and several modest free agent signings. They gave out seven one-year deals, none of them worth more than $5.25MM, spending less than $20MM in total. Some of those moves are fine in isolation but the total package is underwhelming.

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