Astros Notes: Hader, Alvarez, Arrighetti
Astros general manager Dana Brown shared some injury updates earlier this week at the GM Meetings, including the rather troubling news that Isaac Paredes is no guarantee to be ready for Opening Day. Brown provided some more positive news with Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle (multiple links) on some of the many other Astros players who missed significant time during the club’s injury-plagued 2025 campaign, as all of Josh Hader, Yordan Alvarez, and Spencer Arrighetti are expected to be ready for Spring Training.
Hader’s season was ended in early August by a right capsule sprain in his right shoulder. There was some initial hope that Hader could potentially return during the playoffs, but he still hadn’t started throwing by season’s end, so it seemed unlikely that the closer would’ve been available even if Houston had reached the postseason.
Brown didn’t yet have a timetable on Hader’s recovery at his end-of-season press conference, but said this week that Hader has now thrown off a mound three times. The plan is for Hader to have his regular winter throwing program and “hopefully, we’ll get him ramped up sometime early to mid-February…he’s on course to come back and be there for Opening Day,” Brown said.
As Rome noted, losing Hader ended up devastating Houston’s relief corps. Hader had been the anchor of the bullpen, posting a 2.05 ERA, 36.9% strikeout rate, and 7.8% walk rate across 52 2/3 innings while closing down 28 of 29 save opportunities. While Bryan Abreu performed respectably well in Hader’s place, losing a star closer further thinned out a bullpen that was already missing other arms due to injury, and it added to Houston’s mountain of health woes.
Having Alvarez for only 48 games was perhaps the most impactful of all the Astros’ injuries. The three-time All-Star was sidelined mostly by a hand sprain that was eventually revealed as a finger fracture, and persistent hand discomfort kept Alvarez out of action from early May to late August. While he posted great numbers upon his returning, Alvarez was shut down again by a left ankle sprain in mid-September that left him unable to even resume basic running or hitting drills by the end of the season.
The good news is that Brown said Alvarez should have “a normal offseason,” and is back to running at around “65-70 percent” of his usual capability. Speed is not exactly a huge aspect of Alvarez’s game and he should continue to be Houston’s primary DH in 2026, but keeping an elite bat healthy is naturally a huge factor in the Astros’ hopes of future success.
Arrighetti was limited to seven starts and 35 1/3 innings in 2025, as he missed four months of action after his right thumb was fractured by a batted ball during batting practice. That fluky injury was followed up by a bout of elbow inflammation that shut Arrighetti down for good in early September. There was some concern raised when Arrighetti was set to go for a second opinion on his elbow, but it would appear as though he has gotten a clean bill of health for regular offseason prep.
For now, Arrighetti is penciled into a spot in Houston’s Opening Day rotation, though Brown has been open about the Astros’ desire to add to their pitching staff. With Framber Valdez potentially leaving in free agency and several other Astros pitchers besides Arrighetti also on the mend, acquiring another starter would help clear up some of the uncertainty surrounding the pitching staff.
Mariners Notes: Ford, Right Field, Hancock
With Mitch Garver headed into the open market, the Mariners have a hole to fill on their roster without a clear backup for Cal Raleigh behind the plate. As noted by Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, GM Justin Hollander indicated at the GM Meetings this past week that, as the roster is currently constructed, that backup catching job would go to longtime top prospect Harry Ford.
“As of today, Harry would definitely be the backup,” Hollander said, as relayed by Divish. “I think that Harry’s in a great spot. He has checked all the boxes along the way that you would want from a high school catcher coming through the draft. He’s performed at every level.”
It’s not hard to see why Hollander feels positively about Ford, who has been a consensus top-100 prospect for years and got a brief taste of the majors late in the season with eight games down the stretch this year. Ford hit .283/.408/.460 in 97 games at the Triple-A level this year, an impressive slash line that was good for a 125 wRC+ even in the Pacific Coast League’s inflated offensive environment. He struck out just 19.2% of the time while sporting a massive 16.2% walk rate, and while he didn’t run as often as he had in the lower minors (just seven steals on the year) he did slug a career-high 16 home runs. Overall, it was a strong showing for the 22-year-old and clearly sets him up to be ready for more exposure to major league pitching in 2026.
Whether that comes in Seattle or elsewhere has not entirely been decided yet, however. Divish notes that while the Mariners do seem comfortable having Ford join the roster as the backup to Raleigh, they remain open to trade offers that involve Ford. That’s a sensible position to take, given that Raleigh has cemented himself as baseball’s best catcher after posting perhaps the best season at the position in MLB history this past year. With the Mariners surely intent on continuing to play Raleigh (who has started at least 114 games behind the dish in each of the past three seasons) as much as possible, the role of backup catcher isn’t quite as important for Seattle as it is for other teams.
While there are no obvious alternatives in the organization to Ford at the moment, Divish points out that a number of viable backup options figure to be available on minor league or low-cost big league deals. Many of those options could surely offer similar production to Garver in the spot. Given the scarcity of quality catching options around the league, if another team views Ford as a plug-and-play starter behind the dish they might value him enough to make the return for his services worth the downgrade from Seattle’s perspective. A weak catching market in free agency that is highlighted by J.T. Realmuto and Victor Caratini should only further bolster Ford’s value if the Mariners were to decide to shop him this offseason.
Turning away from Ford, Hollander also expressed confidence in the group of players they already have in the organization when it comes to filling out the outfield next season. Randy Arozarena is locked in as the club’s everyday left fielder (barring a move that sees him traded, at least), while Julio Rodriguez has cemented himself as a franchise cornerstone in center. Right field was handled by a hodgepodge of different players throughout 2025, and in 2026 Hollander points to three names who could factor into the mix: Luke Raley, Dominic Canzone, and Victor Robles.
Even though none of them were impact players in 2025, it’s not hard to see why the Mariners would want to give that trio a run at the position rather than pursuing an external addition. Raley is just one year removed from back-to-back seasons where he slashed .246/.326/.476 while totaling 41 homers and 42 doubles across 255 games. While Raley has never been successful against left-handed pitching, it’s not at all difficult to imagine that he could rebound enough to be worth affording regular playing time to when a right-handed starter is on the mound for the opposing team. Robles, meanwhile, missed all but 32 games this past year due to injury and was someone the Mariners believed in enough that they afforded him an extension just two months into his tenure with the organization.
Canzone has the weakest overall track record of the three, but actually delivered by far the best results this year. In 82 games as a part-time player for the Mariners, Canzone raked to the tune of a .300/.358/.481 slash line with 11 homer and 11 doubles while he struck out at a reasonable 21.9% clip. A tough postseason where he went just 3-for-28 with a walk and ten strikeouts saw him leave 2025 on a sour note, but the 28-year-old clearly had a 2025 worth building on next season. Perhaps adding a second right-handed hitter to the mix alongside Robles could allow the Mariners to maximize matchups and create depth in the event of injury, but an everyday starter in the outfield does seem unnecessary given the far more significant holes around in the infield.
Another place where it seems the Mariners could look to go internal is with starting pitching depth. Divish reports that right-hander Emerson Hancock is expected to prepare this winter and enter Spring Training as a starting pitcher. Hancock has served as a swingman with below average results (4.81 ERA, 5.23 FIP) across his three seasons and 162 2/3 innings of work in the majors, but looked quite good in short relief down the stretch for Seattle this year. That made some wonder if he would stick in the bullpen full-time going forward, but it seems as though the Mariners value Hancock’s versatility given their lack of upper-level starting pitching depth. Beyond their starting five pitchers, only Logan Evans has spent significant time starting at the big league level aside from Hancock.
Yankees Notes: Chisholm, Lombard, Rice
Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. is one year away from free agency. He has expressed his desire to stay with the club via an extension. However, general manager Brian Cashman told Brendan Kuty of The Athletic at the general managers meetings this week that he has yet to approach Chisholm’s reps about extension talks.
“Not sure how that would play out,” Cashman said. “But we have not had any conversations outside of he’s looking forward to playing next year, he loves playing here, and, if we’re open (to), if you want to have a legitimate conversation about value, (he’s) open to a longer-term conversation as well.”
The Yankees don’t do many extensions in general. According to MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, which has data going back to the start of 2006, the Yankees have done six extensions in that almost-20-year time frame. There have been none since 2019, when they did three deals for Luis Severino, Aaron Hicks and Aroldis Chapman. None of those three deals worked out especially well for the club, so it’s perhaps not surprising that they haven’t gone back to that well.
Chisholm is coming off a good season. His 27.9% strikeout rate was on the high side but he increased his walk rate to 10.9%, the best of his career. He also hit 31 home runs and stole 31 bases. His .242/.332/.481 batting line translated to a 126 wRC+. His third base defense wasn’t strong but the Yankees acquired Ryan McMahon and moved Chisholm to second, where he graded out better. Put it all together and FanGraphs credited him with 4.4 wins above replacement.
It’s possible the Yankees are content to let Chisholm play his final arbitration season, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting a $10.2MM salary, and then let him walk. Assuming he has another season like he did in 2025, he would easily turn down a qualifying offer in search of a strong multi-year pact beginning with his age-29 season.
By that time, it’s possible that prospect George Lombard Jr. has arrived and pushed his way into the middle infield conversation. Lombard, 21 in June, was the club’s first-round pick in 2023. He has been climbing the minor league ladder and reached Double-A in May. He got into 108 games at that level this year and should reach Triple-A in 2026, maybe even right out of camp. He only hit eight home runs and had just a .215 batting average at that level, but he drew walks at a strong 13.6% clip. His .215/.337/.358 line translated to a 111 wRC+.
Though that offense isn’t overwhelming, Lombard was young for the level. He’s still regarded by most outlets as one of the top 50 prospects in the league. His defense is considered strong enough for him to stick at shortstop. Per Kuty, Cashman said this week that Lombard could reach the majors in 2026 but 2027 is more likely. “Defensively, he’s ready to go,” the GM said. “And offensively, it looks like he needs more time, and we’re looking to drive that time and those reps. So I wouldn’t think ’26 is on the horizon, but I wouldn’t (rule out) ’26 at the same time.”
The Yankees can control Anthony Volpe via arbitration through 2028 and José Caballero through 2029. Perhaps they feel that Chisholm’s departure and Lombard’s arrival can sync up fairly nicely so that the middle infield can be addressed internally, allowing them to commit their resources towards pitching or the outfield. Then again, it’s also possible they could circle back to Chisholm later, especially with the uncertainty surrounding Volpe’s shoulder injury and poor performance in 2025. The most common time for extension talks is in the spring, after a club has spent the offseason focusing on external additions.
As for Ben Rice, his fit isn’t locked down but he’ll be in there one way or another. As relayed by Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News, Cashman didn’t firmly declare whether Rice would be catching or at first base, but he said first base was more likely. One way or another, Cashman confirmed he would be be an everyday player.
That’s not surprising, as Rice hit 26 home runs this year, helping him produce a .255/.337/.499 slash line and 133 wRC+. He did a bit of catching but spent more time at first. With Paul Goldschmidt now a free agent, it’s possible Rice could just take up that spot on an everyday basis. Like most lefty hitters, he was better against righties in 2025, but his work against southpaws was passable. His batting average wasn’t great in the split but he hit seven homers in 119 plate appearances without the platoon advantage, leading to a .208/.271/.481 slash and 104 wRC+.
Phillips also notes that Cashman spoke of a desire to add a catcher who swings from the right side, since each of Austin Wells, Rice and J.C. Escarra are lefty bats. Cashman described the market as “very thin” but there are righty bats out there. J.T. Realmuto is too good for a short-side platoon job and the same is likely true of Victor Caratini, but guys like Danny Jansen, James McCann, Luke Maile, Mitch Garver and old friend Gary Sánchez are available.
Photo courtesy of Albert Cesare, Imagn Images
Padres Notes: Rotation, Arraez, Adam
The Padres’ top priority in the offseason was plain for anyone to see. Even before the announcement that Yu Darvish would miss the 2026 season following UCL surgery, San Diego was already faced with the potential losses of Dylan Cease and Michael King to free agency. Nick Pivetta, meanwhile, has an opt-out opportunity next offseason. President of baseball operations A.J. Preller removed any modicum of doubt about his to-do list at this week’s GM Meetings, telling Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune that “especially with King and Cease in free agency and Darvish’s injury, [starting pitching] is probably our top need going into the offseason.”
More notably, Acee reports that San Diego seems unlikely to play at the top of the market in its quest for rotation help. The Padres have already been exploring the trade market for potential options, per the report. King and Cease both received qualifying offers and seem likely to reject in search of more lucrative multi-year deals. Acee suggests that the Padres will “almost certainly” be moving on from both pitchers. Assuming that’s the case, San Diego will get a pair of draft picks as compensation — though their status as a luxury tax payor means those picks will come after the fourth round rather than after the first round.
At present, the Padres’ rotation includes Pivetta, Joe Musgrove (returning from 2024 Tommy John surgery) and a slew of question marks. JP Sears struggled after coming over from the A’s in the Mason Miller blockbuster. Randy Vasquez posted a solid-looking 3.84 ERA but did so with one of MLB’s worst strikeout rates. Metrics like FIP (4.85) and SIERA (5.43) feel he’s due for major regression. Matt Waldron couldn’t replicate his 2024 form. The rest of the depth was thinned out when Preller traded Ryan Bergert, Stephen Kolek, Braden Nett and Henry Baez in deadline trades to acquire catcher Freddy Fermin (Bergert, Kolek) and the aforementioned Miller (Nett, Baez).
Preller acknowledged to both Acee and Dennis Lin of The Athletic that the Padres could again consider moving a reliever to the rotation, as they’ve successfully done in the past with King, Kolek and Seth Lugo. It’s something the club will explore, but Preller noted that in past instances of the Padres making such a move, he only did so when the reliever in question was enthusiastic about the move. Acee notes that moving a reliever to the rotation seems unlikely at present. He lists Miller and Adrian Morejon as possible candidates, as does Lin, who adds righty David Morgan as a possibility for the switch. However, Preller cautioned against depleting the strength of his bullpen, which is already losing Robert Suarez, and noted that it’s important to make sure his club doesn’t end up with “two mediocre units” (referring to his rotation and bullpen).
Though the focus is on the rotation, it’s not the Padres’ only need. Preller tells Robert Murray of FanSided that his club has interest in retaining first baseman Luis Arraez, who’s a free agent for the first time this winter.
The 28-year-old Arraez (29 in April) spent most of the 2024 season and all of 2025 in San Diego after being traded over from Miami. This past season was arguably Arraez’s worst in seven major league seasons. He yet again posted a quality batting average, but not to his usual extent, and he did so with even lesser on-base and slugging marks than usual. Arraez’s .292/.327/.392 is well shy of the career .323/.372/.418 line he carried into the 2025 season.
Arraez feels more like a luxury than a need for the Padres, who could plug in Gavin Sheets at first base as an affordable option or utilize Jake Cronenworth at first and give Sheets more of a DH role. That’d allow the club to pursue middle infielders, with Xander Bogaerts capable of handling either shortstop (as he did in 2025) or second base (as he did in 2024). Arraez doesn’t seem likely to break the bank given the lack of punch and on-base heft behind his perennially strong batting average, but if the Padres plan to focus primarily on rotation help, even a relatively modest two- or three-year deal for Arraez might not be in the cards.
One other question facing San Diego this winter is the health of setup man Jason Adam. The right-hander suffered a season-ending tendon rupture in his quadriceps in early September but is on the road to recovery. Adam tells Jeff Sanders of the Union-Tribune that there’s a chance he’ll be ready for Opening Day, though he could be cutting it close. Adam says he expects to pitch at some point in spring training but may not be “right on time.” He and the team aren’t ruling out Opening Day, which is a clear goal, but he cautions that he “won’t be stupid about” his recovery and risk a setback.
The 34-year-old Adam has risen from relative obscurity to staking a legitimate claim as one of MLB’s top setup arms. Dating back to 2022, he’s pitched to a combined 2.07 ERA, including three seasons with a sub-2.00 mark (and a 2.98 ERA in his “down” year in 2023). Along the way, Adam has fanned 29.2% of his opponents against an 8.4% walk rate. Since 2022, only three relievers — Tyler Rogers, Bryan Abreu, Griffin Jax — have more holds than Adam’s 92.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a $6.8MM salary for Adam next season. That’s his final year of club control, so if he were expected to miss a notable portion of the season, Adam would’ve been a natural non-tender candidate, despite his excellence. The fact that he’s now citing Opening Day as a realistic target makes it far likelier that he’s back, though if the Padres are particularly crunched for payroll space — a 2026 budget remains unclear — then they could feasibly look to move Adam for a modest return and reallocate those dollars toward the rotation.
Even with Suarez opting out and Adam in limbo health-wise, the Padres still boast a deep late-inning group with Miller, Morejon (2.08 ERA), Morgan (2.66 ERA as a rookie) and Jeremiah Estrada (3.45 ERA, 35.5 K%) all still in the fold. A healthy Adam would give San Diego one of the best bullpens in MLB, if not the best.
Coaching Notes: Mets, Padres, Leiper, Rays
Many teams are still setting up their coaching staffs for the 2026 season, and some news broke about some departures on the Rangers staff earlier tonight. Let’s check in with some more coaching-related rumblings from around the league…
- The Mets have interviewed Padres third base/infield coach Tim Leiper for an unspecified role on New York’s coaching staff, according to The Athletic’s Tim Britton. SNY’s Andy Martino reported yesterday that the Mets were nearing a hire for their third base coach vacancy, so it would seem logical that Leiper might be the one being tapped as Mike Sarbaugh’s replacement. Leiper has been San Diego’s third base coach for the last two seasons, and since the Padres are looking for a new manager, it makes sense that Leiper would be exploring other options if the Padres’ staff is about to get shaken up. Leiper has close to 30 years as a coach and manager in the minors and in international baseball, plus he was also the Blue Jays’ first base coach for five seasons (2014-18).
- The Rays are looking for a new assistant hitting coach, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Brady North previously filled the role, but the team announced last month that North would be moving on to a possible new role in the organization after four years on the coaching staff. Topkin notes that Ozzie Timmons is one of the internal candidates for the assistant hitting coach role, which would mark Timmons’ return to Tampa’s staff after a four-year absence. Timmons was the Rays’ first base coach from 2018-21 before moving onto a three-year stint as a hitting coach with the Brewers. Tampa Bay brought Timmons back into the fold as a special assistant and roving coach role within the organization prior to the 2025 season.
Staff Notes: Rockies, Baker, Kiekhefer, Tigers
The Rockies’ search for a front office leader will drag into the offseason. Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports that the Rox don’t intend to announce their baseball operations hire until next week. The World Series will end on Saturday at the latest, but the Rockies are apparently content to go at least a few days into their offseason activity without a GM in place.
Colorado doesn’t have any free agents who’d receive consideration for a qualifying offer. Their option decisions are easy calls to buy out Kyle Farmer and Thairo Estrada. It’s not a big deal not to have a GM for either of those moves. However, the first five days of the offseason see plenty of waiver activity as teams are required to get their rosters down to 40 without the injured list. Colorado has top waiver priority as the worst team in the league. It would be ideal to have a permanent baseball operations leader for those opportunities, but it doesn’t appear they’ll be in place for that rush. The GM will also need to oversee a managerial search process that could take weeks. Guardians assistant general manager Matt Forman and Diamondbacks AGM Amiel Sawdaye are among the finalists to replace Bill Schmidt in the GM chair.
While we await Colorado’s decision, let’s turn to a few teams that have made minor front office or coaching moves.
- The Pirates parted ways with vice president of player performance John Baker, reports Jason Mackey of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. A former big league catcher, Baker had been with the Bucs for the past five seasons. He spent his first four years as the organization’s farm director before moving to the more nebulous player performance role last winter. Michael Chernow replaced Baker as the player development director in January.
- There are a couple changes coming to Oli Marmol’s coaching group with the Cardinals. Katie Woo of The Athletic reports that assistant pitching coach Dean Kiekhefer and game-planning coach Packy Elkins will be reassigned to strategist roles. Woo notes that the Cards intend to hire an assistant pitching coach and an assistant hitting coach later in the offseason. She also writes that the club will add new hires in international scouting and player development. Cardinals fans will want to read the full column, which includes quotes from new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom on building their front office infrastructure without replacing most of the key staffers from the John Mozeliak era.
- The Tigers are hiring Alex Smith away from the Cubs to work as their vice president of baseball strategy, report Sahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. Smith had been on Craig Counsell’s staff with the somewhat vague title of strategy coach. Smith had spent three seasons on Chicago’s MLB staff — one under David Ross and two with Counsell. Sharma and Mooney write that he was largely tasked with helping the coaches integrate data into their preparation. The Cornell product returns to a front office after working in the Cubs’ analytics department between 2015-22, overlapping with Detroit president of baseball operations Scott Harris for two years. Harris had worked as Chicago’s assistant general manager in 2018-19.
AL East Notes: Story, Flaherty, Lowe, Fairbanks
MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam touched on an assortment of Red Sox topics in the latest edition of their Fenway Rundown podcast, including a brief mention of Trevor Story‘s status as the shortstop considers an opt-out clause in his contract. Cotillo believes “the Red Sox are pretty cautiously very optimistic that” Story will be staying with the team, and while’s plenty of grey area within that statement, it does offer some indication that Story is leaning towards declining his opt-out.
Story is owed $25MM in each of the next two seasons, plus there’s a $5MM buyout on his $25MM club option for the 2028 campaign. The Red Sox can override Story’s opt-out by guaranteeing that 2028 club option right now, but that doesn’t appear to be on the team’s radar, so the ball looks to be entirely in Story’s court. While Story’s .263/.308/.433 slash line and 25 homers over 654 plate appearances only translates to a 101 wRC+, his numbers were weighed down by a cold start to the season, as Story posted an .825 OPS over his final 429 PA.
Between this strong finish and a thin free agent shortstop market, there’s a case for Story to leave his $55MM guaranteed on the table and look for a bigger contract this winter. On the flip side, Story turns 33 next month, his defensive metrics were subpar, and the injury problems that plagued him in 2022-24 will be on the minds of front offices even though Story stayed pretty healthy in 2025. If Story wants to avoid the risks of another prolonged stint in free agency, staying in Boston with a contending Red Sox team certainly seems like a viable choice.
More from around the AL East…
- Earlier this month, Jon Heyman of the New York Post floated Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty as a logical candidate to be part of the Orioles‘ managerial search. MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports that Flaherty did indeed interview with the O’s about the position before the club opted to hire Guardians associate manager Craig Albernaz. Any number of other names might’ve been considered by the Orioles, but Flaherty joins Albert Pujols, Luis Rojas, and Scott Servais as the candidates directly linked to Baltimore’s search whether in formal interviews or (in Servais’ case) just some interest on the club’s part. Flaherty’s six seasons as an Orioles player likely held some extra appeal for Baltimore’s front office, but his well-regarded work as a bench coach in Chicago and San Diego has put him in the running for multiple managerial vacancies. Flaherty is reportedly one of the finalists for the Twins’ job, and he is a candidate for both the Padres and Braves in their ongoing searches.
- The Rays hold a pair of club options on Brandon Lowe ($11.5MM) and Pete Fairbanks ($11MM) for the 2026 season, and both players have expressed a desire to remain in Tampa. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times explores the option decisions, noting that between the team’s offensive needs and how “the Rays typically view the bullpen as more changeable and volatile on a year-to-year basis,” Lowe seems more likely than Fairbanks to be part of the 2026 roster. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Fairbanks’ option will be declined, however, as the Rays would then lose the closer for nothing in free agency. Perhaps the most probable scenario is that Tampa Bay will pick up both options and then explore trade possibilities for either player — in Fairbanks’ case, his $11MM salary might not seem that onerous to some rival clubs in need of high-leverage bullpen help.
Mariners Notes: Naylor, Polanco, Suarez
The Mariners have not exactly been shy about their desire to re-sign first baseman Josh Naylor as he heads into free agency this winter. For a club that seemingly does not have much financial flexibility this offseason, that could take up the majority of Seattle’s budget space, and would seemingly make reunions with second baseman Jorge Polanco and third baseman Eugenio Suarez unlikely. Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times offered some additional perspective on the club’s trio of pending free agent infielders yesterday that suggests things may not be that simple, however.
While Naylor has been emphasized as the club’s priority, Divish suggests that it’s possible Polanco actually winds up being the one most likely to sign. That’s in part due to Naylor’s age, with Divish noting that he’s likely to seek a deal longer than three years in free agency. That’s the sort of contract that has typically fallen outside of Seattle’s comfort zone under Dipoto in free agency, although it’s not hard to imagine that the Mariners might view Naylor as an exception to that. After all, the club has been willing to go far beyond the two years and $24MM Mitch Garver deal that remains Dipoto’s largest expenditure in free agency when it comes to extensions. Luis Castillo extended on a five-year deal in his age-29 season, while Cal Raleigh‘s six-year extension came in his age-28 campaign.
Naylor won’t turn 29 until next June, so committing to a player who has already spent time in the organization on a deal that takes him to his age-32 or -33 season is hardly unthinkable in a vacuum. Even so, it’s undeniable that Polanco’s contract is far more likely to fall into the Mariners’ typical comfort zone when it comes to free agents. Divish writes that Polanco is likely to command a contract “similar” to the aforementioned Garver deal and that he’s unlikely to receive a third guaranteed year on his next contract. There’s some logic to that assumption given the tough market Polanco found in free agency last winter, although he’s coming off a much stronger season in 2025 even has he heads into his age-32 campaign.
With that said, if the Mariners will attempt to wait out the market on their three infielders in order to try and bring one back at a relative bargain, Polanco standing as the most likely one to fall through the cracks due to his age, injury history, and previous struggles on the open market would make some sense. At the very least, that sort of scenario seems to be the kind of situation where Divish sees a reunion between the Mariners and Suarez as a possibility. Divish writes that, as Suarez heads into his age-34 season with his 35th birthday coming next July, a contract that keeps him in Seattle beyond one additional year seems “unlikely.” Coming off a season where he clubbed 49 home runs and made his second career All-Star appearance, it’s hard to imagine that Suarez won’t be able to get at least a two-year deal in free agency this winter barring a surprisingly cold market.
Given Seattle’s apparent financial limitations, it’s hard to imagine more than one of their trio of free agent infielders returning in 2026 unless a trade opens up additional payroll space this winter. RosterResource projects them for a $132MM payroll in 2025 as things stand, roughly $31MM below their stated target. While it’s at least theoretically possible that two of the three could fit within that budget without shedding salary, it would leave them with virtually no room to maneuver beyond that.
That would be a problem when other areas of the roster could use attention besides the infield, as Divish floats the possibility of bringing in relief help to fortify a bullpen that will lose Caleb Ferguson this winter or perhaps making an addition in the outfield, where Victor Robles and Dominic Canzone currently appear poised to platoon in right, as other possible avenues for the Mariners to upgrade this winter. Even if Robles and Canzone remain in place as the likely duo in right field, finding a platoon partner for Luke Raley at DH or upgrading the bench could be worthwhile pursuits to explore as well.
AL Central Notes: Hunter, Willis, Melton
Torii Hunter spoke with Twins president Derek Falvey last week, but the longtime Minnesota outfielder specified to Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that it was just an informal chat, and not an interview in regards to the team’s open managerial position. However, Hunter said he already has a coaching staff mostly lined up if he ever gets a chance to become a manager, and he seems open to the possibility of a return to Minnesota.
“I guess they’re slow-rolling the process right now; I’m just sitting waiting. If the opportunity presents itself, then it would be something I would look into, think long and hard about…..Now it’s about a conversation to see where they’re headed, what their thoughts are, and then I’m pretty sure they’re going to see what I want to do with the team, who I’m going to bring aboard, my staff,” Hunter said.
Hunter already surfaced as a candidate in the Angels’ managerial search before the team hired Kurt Suzuki — like Hunter, a veteran ex-player with no formal managerial/coaching experience who had been working as a special assistant in the Halos’ front office. Despite Hunter’s interest, it isn’t clear if the Twins are still considering him or any other candidates, as the team has reportedly settled on at least four finalists (Ryan Flaherty, James Rowson, Scott Servais, and Derek Shelton) in their search.
More from around the AL Central….
- Carl Willis will be back as the Guardians‘ pitching coach next season, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. It will be Willis’ 16th overall season in the job, over two separate stints (2003-09, and 2018-present) in Cleveland. The widely-respected Willis is viewed as one of the key reasons the Guards have been so good at developing their pitchers into successful or even elite starters at the MLB level. There had been some speculation that Willis could be considering retirement as he approaches his 65th birthday in December, but he’ll instead continue a baseball career that has lasted for over four decades as a player and coach.
- Troy Melton was “a popular name in trade talks” for rival teams calling the Tigers prior to his big league debut in July, MLB.com’s Jason Beck writes. Rather than deal Melton for a more proven pitcher at the deadline, Detroit instead relied on Melton himself to deliver, and the rookie posted a 2.76 ERA over 45 2/3 innings in the regular season and then a 5.40 ERA in 8 1/3 playoff frames. Typical of Detroit’s “pitching chaos” strategy, Melton (a starter in the minors) worked out of the bullpen in 15 of his 20 overall games in the Show. Now lined up for a full-time starting role in 2026, Melton would seem to have a good shot at winning a spot in the Tigers’ rotation.
East Notes: Bichette, Rays, Scott
With Bo Bichette back on the roster as the Blue Jays challenge the Dodgers in the World Series, it didn’t take long for him to be asked about his impending free agency. As noted by Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet, Bichette generally dismissed the question as something he doesn’t have the time to think about amid a World Series run, though he did acknowledge that his “goal” is to remain with the Blue Jays for the rest of his career.
That’s not exactly new information, as Bichette has long indicated a desire to spend his whole career in a Blue Jays uniform. Bichette has previously spoken of his desire to only play for one team throughout his whole career, and the ability to do so alongside longtime teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr. after Guerrero landed his own extension earlier this year surely makes the idea of sticking around in Toronto all the more appealing. With that said, there had been no extension talks between Bichette and club brass as recently as April.
Perhaps some discussions have taken place in the intervening months, of course, but with free agency just days away it seems all but certain that Bichette will hit the open market without signing an extension. That doesn’t mean he can’t be re-signed, of course, but the Blue Jays won’t be the only suitor for his services once he’s available to all 30 clubs and it’s unclear if Toronto is willing to add another major contract to the books after signing Guerrero to an extension worth half a billion dollars.
More from MLB’s East divisions…
- The Rays may now be operating under new ownership, but they’re still facing plenty of stadium uncertainty in the wake of the club’s recent failed stadium deal and the damage done to Tropicana Field by Hurricane Milton last year. While it would be impossible to expect a meaningful update on a long-term stadium solution just one month into Patrick Zalupski’s tenure as control person, commissioner Rob Manfred did tell reporters (as relayed by Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) prior to Game 2 of the World Series yesterday that the league is “hopeful” that the Trop will be ready for Tampa’s opening homestand, scheduled to begin on April 6. While Manfred seemingly left the door open to the possibility that the stadium won’t be ready for those games, he said that “it certainly is going to be ready very early in the year.” That’s good news for the Rays, seeing as they were forced to play their home games in a minor league ballpark this year as a result of the damage to the Trop.
- Turning towards the National League, Will Sammon of The Athletic writes that Mets youngster Christian Scott is nearing the end of his rehab program as he works his way back from Tommy John surgery. Scott, 26, made his big league debut last year with a 4.56 ERA in nine starts but hasn’t pitched in an official game at any level since. He entered 2024 as a fringe top-100 prospect, however, and Sammon suggests that the right-hander could be another young arm in the mix for a rotation work with the Mets next year alongside players like Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat. With that said, a crowded group of rotation options that is likely to get at least one major addition this winter might make it hard for the righty to find consistent starts without a rash of injuries creating an opportunity.