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Emmanuel Clase, Luis Ortiz Indicted On Gambling Charges

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November 11: Ken Rosenthal and Zack Meisel of The Athletic report that MLB is hopeful of imposing discipline by the beginning of Spring Training. The pitchers remain on paid administrative leave, though obviously they’re not collecting salary during the offseason. If there’s no change to their status by the time games resume, the Guardians would need to continue paying them until discipline is formally imposed.

That doesn’t matter much for the Guardians with Ortiz, who had yet to reach arbitration. Clase had been slated to earn $6MM next year, though, and the Guardians would prefer not to pay that if the pitcher is unavailable. A suspension would get them off the hook for that money. Players found to have bet on games in which their team has been involved are given a lifetime ban. Attorneys for Clase and Ortiz released statements denying their involvement in the wake of the criminal charges.

November 9: Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz have been indicted by prosecutors in Brooklyn on charges involving sports betting, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN, among others. Ortiz was arrested earlier today. Clase is not currently in custody.

Clase and Ortiz are charged with “wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy, for their alleged roles in a scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown” according to the Department of Justice, relayed by Zack Meisel of The Athletic. The indictment details an alleged scheme that involves the pitchers purposely throwing balls so gamblers could bet on pitches being balls or strikes.

The allegations from prosecutors in the indictment include a specific incident on June 15, when Ortiz was paid $5K for throwing an intentional ball, and Clase received $5K for facilitating it. Co-conspirators won at least $400K on fraudulent wagers relating to Clase and at least $60K on fraudulent wagers relating to Ortiz, prosecutors allege in the indictment. (Meisel explored some of the incidents detailed in the indictment in a longer piece for The Athletic.) Clase and Ortiz face up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

“MLB contacted federal law enforcement at the outset of its investigation and has fully cooperated throughout the process. We are aware of the indictment and today’s arrest, and our investigation is ongoing,” the league said in a statement to ESPN.

Ortiz was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave in early July, and Clase followed later in the month. The pitchers had their absences extended “until further notice” at the end of August as the league continued its gambling investigation.

Photo courtesy of David Richard, Imagn Images

Cherington: Paul Skenes “Is Going To Be A Pirate In 2026”

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Every offseason there are at least a handful of high-profile players other clubs and their fans dream upon as the trade market begins to ramp up. Pirates ace and likely NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes may be coveted by every other team and fan base in the league, but general manager Ben Cherington was quick to stomp out any trade chatter before it even picked up. Speaking with FanSided’s Robert Murray, Cherington plainly stated that he will not trade his ace this offseason. Skenes “is going to be a Pirate in 2026,” Cherington said.

There’s little reason to think the Pirates would move Skenes at this juncture anyhow, save for owner Bob Nutting’s typically frugal habits. Skenes, the No. 1 overall pick from the 2023 draft, burst onto the scene early in the 2024 season, started the All-Star Game just a couple months later, won ’24 NL Rookie of the Year honors and is now poised to win the first of what could very well be multiple Cy Young Awards in his career.

Since taking a major league mound for the first time, Skenes has started 55 games and posted a comical 1.96 earned run average (1.96 ERA in 2024, 1.97 in 2025). He’s punched out 31% of his opponents against just a 5.9% walk rate and has only allowed 21 home runs in 320 2/3 innings (0.59 HR/9). Forty-seven percent of his batted balls have been grounders, and opponents have averaged a paltry 87.7 mph off the bat against him. He’s already staked a defensible claim to being the best pitcher in the National League, and were it not for the fact that Tigers ace Tarik Skubal is poised to win his second straight Cy Young Award in the AL, Skenes might well be the consensus top pitcher in the sport.

Trading Skenes somewhere down the road feels almost inevitable. If he continues this trajectory, he’ll have the opportunity to shatter contract precedents for starting pitchers. He already has two full years of big league service and won’t turn 24 until next May. He’ll reach free agency heading into his age-28 season. The thrifty Pirates almost certainly aren’t going to put forth a record-breaking extension offer, which is presumably already what it’d take to extend Skenes.

That said, Skenes is still under club control for four more seasons, and he won’t even reach arbitration until after the 2026 season. At least the first of his arb years will be affordable even by Pirates standards, and for a pitcher of this caliber it wouldn’t be surprising to see them hold Skenes later than some of the prior pitchers they’ve traded away with two years of club control remaining (e.g. Gerrit Cole, Joe Musgrove).

There was never really any expectation that Skenes would be traded this offseason — we didn’t include him on our list of the offseason’s top 40 trade candidates — but it’s nevertheless notable to hear the team’s baseball operations leader so definitively say a trade won’t happen. Most front office leaders tend to avoid speaking in absolutes of this nature, after all.

Beyond that, Cherington’s comment comes at a time when the Pirates are widely expected to make a bit more of a push for a return to contention. The 2026 season will be year six of Cherington’s GM tenure, and the team hasn’t topped 76 wins during his time running the club. Pittsburgh already dismissed manager Derek Shelton back in May — he’s since been hired as the Twins’ new skipper — and the baseball ops leader tends to be next on the chopping block after a manager is shown the door.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal said earlier today in an appearance on Fair Territory that agents he’s spoken to have already received signals from the Pirates that they’re planning to be more active on the open market this winter (video link). That doesn’t mean the Bucs are going to play at the top of the market, of course, but the 2025-26 offseason could see them step out of the bottom tiers of free agency where they tend to reside. Cherington himself told Murray that he has “more flexibility than we’ve had in [any] other offseasons I’ve been in Pittsburgh.”

As MLBTR’s Contract Tracker shows, it’s been nearly a decade since the Pirates have signed a free agent to a multi-year contract. That’s not an indication that they haven’t made any multi-year offers, but the Pirates certainly haven’t been aggressive during Nutting’s ownership, whether under Cherington or predecessor Neal Huntington.

In an appearance on the MLB Trade Rumors podcast late in the season, Cherington acknowledged that he’s made multi-year offers to free agents — specifically free agent position players. Obviously, those offers have been rebuffed. Still, the sixth-year Pittsburgh GM made clear that he plans to continue those efforts, and there are now multiple indicators that he might have the financial latitude to be a bit more aggressive as he looks to line up on such a deal to add some offense to the lineup.

The Bucs could still trade some pitching to add a big league bat(s), but veteran Mitch Keller or 26-year-old Mike Burrows seem like more plausible candidates than Skenes, Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft or Jared Jones (on whom they’d be selling low as he finishes off his rehab from UCL surgery).

Pat Murphy, Stephen Vogt Win Manager Of The Year

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For the second consecutive season, Pat Murphy and Stephen Vogt have been named the Managers of the Year. Murphy received 27 of 30 first-place votes in the National League. The American League tally was closer, but Vogt picked up 17 first-place nods to keep his title.

Both skippers have won the award in their first two seasons on the job. They’ve each led a small-market franchise to a Central division title in consecutive seasons. Milwaukee won 97 games and played .500 or better ball in every month after starting the season 0-4 in the final few days of March. The Brewers coasted to another division title and held off the Phillies for the top seed in the Senior Circuit.

The Brewers seamlessly integrated a few quality rookies along the way. Caleb Durbin, Isaac Collins, Chad Patrick and Jacob Misiorowski all made strong contributions in their debut campaigns. Milwaukee also weathered a series of early-season rotation injuries behind Freddy Peralta. A mid-April trade for Quinn Priester paid massive dividends. The offense, meanwhile, trailed only the Yankees and Dodgers in scoring despite the free agent departure of Willy Adames.

Milwaukee knocked off the Cubs in a five-game Division Series. They were swept by the Dodgers in the NLCS and are still searching for their first trip to the Fall Classic since 1982. Awards voting takes place at the end of the regular season, so the postseason performance is irrelevant.

While the Brewers were well positioned to make the playoffs by the end of June, the Guardians got in via a late-season run that surely surprised even the Cleveland front office. The Guards were deadline sellers and seemed more or less finished once Emmanuel Clase was placed on administrative leave. A ten-game losing streak dropped them as low as eight games under .500 shortly before the All-Star Break, and they trailed Detroit by as much as 15.5 games in the division.

The Guards went 14-13 in August before reeling off a 20-7 record in September to steal a division title. They never led the AL Central by more than one game but had the edge when it mattered, finishing the season at 88-74. That included a 5-1 showing against the Tigers in the final two weeks of the regular season. Detroit wound up getting the last laugh in October, though, going into Cleveland and bouncing the Guards in the Wild Card Series.

Murphy appeared first or second on all but one ballot in the NL. Cincinnati’s Terry Francona and Philadelphia’s Rob Thomson also received at least one-first place vote. They finished second and third, respectively. Craig Counsell, Clayton McCullough, Torey Lovullo and Mike Shildt all received votes. Toronto’s John Schneider was a close-runner up in the Junior Circuit. He received 10 first-place votes. Seattle’s Dan Wilson (the other finalist) and Boston’s Alex Cora also had at least one first-place nod. A.J. Hinch and Joe Espada received votes.

Full vote tallies courtesy of the BBWAA. Images via Imagn Images.

Angels Add John Gibbons, Adam Eaton To Coaching Staff

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The Angels are hiring former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons as their bench coach under new manager Kurt Suzuki, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. They’re also hiring former big league outfielder Adam Eaton as their first base coach, per the report.

Gibbons, 63, has managed 11 seasons in the majors — all with the Blue Jays. That lengthy history of running a dugout and clubhouse will prove valuable for a Suzuki, who’s not only a rookie manager but has never even coached prior to his hiring as the Angels’ new skipper. In two separate stints as Toronto’s manager, Gibbons holds a 793-789 record. His Blue Jays reached the American League Championship Series in back-to-back seasons in 2015-16 but failed to advance to the World Series either year, falling to Kansas City and Cleveland in those respective seasons.

Over the past two seasons, Gibbons has served as the bench coach for the Mets under another rookie skipper: Carlos Mendoza. He’s also coached in the majors with the Blue Jays and Royals in addition to minor league managerial stints with the Mets and Padres organizations.

Eaton, 37 next month, was playing in the majors as recently as 2021. He spent a decade in the majors between the White Sox, Nationals, Diamondbacks and — briefly at the end of his career — the same Angels club for which he’ll now be coaching. That stint with the Halos in 2021 surely familiarized him with the organization and with general manager Perry Minasian. He and Suzuki were teammates for two years with the Nationals as well, including during the team’s 2019 World Series victory.

Fletcher notes that Eaton has spent the past two seasons as the director of player development at Michigan State University, but this will be his first coaching assignment in pro ball. In addition to his work as first base coach, Eaton will be an outfield instructor. He finished his career with strong defensive grades, due in no small part to some stellar early seasons in the field — particularly a 2016 campaign in which he likely should have won a Gold Glove after posting a stunning 28 Defensive Runs Saved and 18 Outs Above Average in right field for the White Sox.

Hazen: Trade Of Star Hitter “Mostly Unlikely”

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As the Diamondbacks enter an offseason that’ll be focused on addressing the pitching staff, there’s been some speculation about them trading away a star hitter. Bob Nightengale of USA Today wrote on Monday that the Diamondbacks could shop second baseman Ketel Marte before he gets to 10 years of service time and locks in full no-trade rights two weeks into next season. Under the CBA, any player with 10 years of service, the past five of which have come with one team, cannot be traded without their consent.

Arizona general manager Mike Hazen has addressed Marte’s status from this week’s GM Meetings. Hazen downplayed the idea that the Snakes were looking to move Marte, albeit with the caveat that he wouldn’t fully shut the door on conversations. “It’s what happens. Everyone checks in on your better players,” the GM told The Burns & Gambo Show on Arizona Sports. “They’re coming after your better players. … He’s one of our best players. We have some of the top position players in all of baseball on our roster and we need those players to be good next year.”

Hazen added that he “(has) to listen to what people say.” He noted that the team’s need for multiple arms in both the rotation and bullpen requires a general open-mindedness to trade conversations. However, it doesn’t seem they’re viewing a Marte deal as the best way to accomplish that. Hazen told The MLB Network’s Jon Morosi that while the club has gotten calls on Marte and their other star players, “it’s mostly unlikely” that a trade of that magnitude would happen.

The Diamondbacks have signed Marte to three separate extensions. The most recent of those came in April and has Marte signed through the 2031 season. There’d been trade speculation following midseason reports that some of the three-time All-Star’s teammates were frustrated with his work habits. Manager Torey Lovullo seemingly has a close relationship with Marte and defended him publicly. Hazen seemed similarly disinclined to trade the second baseman when asked about the possibility in August.

“Ketel is one of, if not our best player,” Hazen told Wolf & Luke of Arizona Sports at the time. “He’s a superstar in this league. You win with superstars in this league. Yes, I do know it’s a team game and putting a team together to win baseball games is also equally important. That’s on us to figure out what the right mix of players is.

Two years ago, we went to the World Series with this player on our team. … So this mindset of where he is on our team and his inability or ability to help us win is hard for me to just take that. … Where this lays down at his feet and where it’s coming from now is a little bizarre to me. I’m not ignoring the inconsistencies with some of the things that have happened. He’s addressed those things. We’ve addressed those things with him.

We’re not blind to having an imperfect clubhouse and an imperfect roster. … I’m also in a job and position to put players on the field that can win you baseball games, because ultimately that’s what this comes down to. We are going to put the best team on the field every single day we can.”

Latest On Dodgers, Kyle Tucker

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Kyle Tucker is the top free agent in this year’s class. That more or less guarantees that he’ll be linked to the two-time defending champions. Jon Heyman of The New York Post wrote last month that the Dodgers were likely to make a run at Tucker this offseason.

That may well be the case, but Jeff Passan of ESPN writes that the Dodgers don’t seem inclined to make a decade-long commitment to the star outfielder. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic wrote last night that while the Dodgers aren’t ruling out a Tucker pursuit, they’re also not opposed to making a short-term outfield move while awaiting the arrival of internal reinforcements.

In the short term, the Dodgers’ biggest weaknesses are the outfield and late-inning relief. Michael Conforto certainly won’t be back after his one-year free agent deal busted. Kiké Hernández, their primary left fielder in the postseason, is also a free agent. Andy Pages had a poor second half that carried into a dreadful playoffs. Tommy Edman battled an ankle injury late in the season that led the Dodgers to prefer him at second base. (He’s undergoing surgery and is expected to be full go for Spring Training.) Even Teoscar Hernández was a relative weak point in right field. He hit .247/.284/.454 while playing very poor defense.

Assuming the Dodgers intend to keep Mookie Betts at shortstop, the outfield isn’t currently in great shape. It’d probably line up with Pages, Edman and Hernández as the primary options. Alex Call and Ryan Ward — the latter of whom was just added to the 40-man roster to keep him out of minor league free agency — could platoon in left field if the Dodgers want Edman in the infield.

They’ll need to make some kind of external acquisition, but it’s understandable if they don’t want to make an extended free agent play. The long-term outfield picture is more promising than the current mix. In August, Baseball America included four Dodgers outfielders (Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Mike Sirota and Eduardo Quintero) among the sport’s top 60 overall prospects. That doesn’t include top catching prospect Dalton Rushing, whose path to playing time behind the plate is blocked by Will Smith. Rushing didn’t play any outfield during his rookie season but has logged a little less than 300 career innings as a left fielder in the minors.

Of the aforementioned prospects, only Rushing will be in the mix for an MLB roster spot early in 2026. Sirota and Quintero have yet to reach Double-A. De Paula and Hope have played a combined 10 games at that level. None of the four have any Triple-A experience. It’s unlikely all four will pan out given the attrition rate of prospects who are that far from the majors, but the Dodgers will want to have long-term opportunities available for each of them.

The balance could be to turn to the trade market. Steven Kwan, Lars Nootbaar (recovering from heel surgeries), Brendan Donovan and Wilyer Abreu are among the outfield-capable players who might be available. The Dodgers were tied  to Kwan and Donovan at last summer’s deadline. They certainly have the farm system to make a strong offer for a controllable outfielder. Rushing could be a trade chip if the Dodgers don’t feel he’d be an above-average regular in left field, for instance.

The Dodgers obviously have the spending capacity to make a run at any free agent as well. They’ve generally preferred making shorter-term commitments at huge annual rates to offering decade-long deals, though. They’ve broken that precedent for Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but both were special cases. Ohtani is the best player in the world and Yamamoto was a 25-year-old ace. Tucker is an excellent player but not that kind of unique free agent. The Dodgers would probably be more amenable to a five- or six-year deal at a premium AAV if Tucker winds up going that route, but it stands to reason his camp will try to pull a ten-plus year commitment in the early part of the offseason.

Tommy Edman To Undergo Ankle Surgery, Expected To Be Ready For Spring Training

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Dodgers infielder/outfielder Tommy Edman will undergo surgery on his right ankle next week. General manager Brandon Gomes provided the news to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. No details on the surgery were provided but Gomes says Edman is expected to be ready around the start of spring training.

The ankle issue seemed to hamper Edman throughout the 2025 season. Inflammation in that right ankle put him on the injured list at the end of April. He returned a few weeks later but landed back on the IL with a right ankle sprain in August. The second IL stint lasted a little longer than a month.

Though the missed time was fairly minimal, it’s possible the injury impacted Edman’s performance on the field. He hit .225/.274/.382 this year. That translated to an 81 wRC+, the lowest such mark of his career. He had a .252/.295/.523 line and 120 wRC+ through April, when he first landed on the IL. He slashed .213/.264/.315 for a 62 wRC+ the rest of the way. He only attempted four stolen bases, with three successful steals, far less than previous seasons.

It’s possible that we haven’t seen a fully healthy Edman for a while. Back in 2022, with the Cardinals, he slashed .265/.324/.400 for a 106 wRC+, stole 32 bases and received strong defensive grades. FanGraphs credited him with 5.4 wins above replacement that year. In 2023, right wrist issues popped up, dragging down his offense. He underwent surgery after that season. He was rehabbing from that wrist surgery in June of 2024 when a right ankle sprain set him back. The Dodgers acquired him at the 2024 deadline while he was still on the IL. He got into 37 games down the stretch.

Despite the nagging injury issues in 2024, the Dodgers felt comfortable enough with Edman to make a big bet on him. Edman and the Dodgers agreed to a five-year, $74MM extension for the 2025 to 2029 seasons. The first year didn’t really work out so well, but the hope will be that Edman can be healthy and back to his old self in 2026.

Edman is capable of playing multiple positions. In 2025, when on the field, he split his time between second base, third base and center field. As of right now, the easiest spot to slot him in for 2026 is second base. The Dodgers have Max Muncy at third and Andy Pages in center. Edman’s main competition at the keystone would be light-hitting Hyeseong Kim, with Alex Freeland also in the mix. Of course, the offseason is still in its early stages and it’s possible things look different a few months from now, depending on what moves the club makes.

Photo courtesy of Jason Parkhurst, Imagn Images

Guardians Hire Andy McKay As Field Coordinator

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The Guardians are adding Andy McKay to their coaching staff with the title of field coordinator, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. That job was previously held by Kai Correa, who departed last month to become bench coach for the Mets.

McKay has had an interesting career, oscillating between coaching and front office roles. He had been a coach in college ball for a number of years, before working for the Rockies in the minors as peak performance coordinator. Then he spent a long time working in the Mariners’ player development department, getting hired in October of 2015. That was not long after Jerry Dipoto had become Seattle’s general manager. Dipoto and McKay had worked together with the Rockies.

Going into the 2022 season, McKay was added to Seattle’s uniformed coaching staff with the title of major league coach and senior director of baseball development. However, as noted by Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, he had to pivot back to the front office during spring training when his replacement left. One year later, he was promoted to assistant general manager. A year ago, the Mariners added vice president to his title.

“It’s sad for me, but I’m thrilled for him,” Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said of today’s news, per Divish. It’s noted by Divish that McKay has held his desire to coach since his collegiate coaching days. He almost got the chance with Seattle a few years ago but it didn’t work out.

He’ll now get to join a big league coaching staff in Cleveland, working under manager Stephen Vogt. The Guardians also lost their bench coach/associate manager when Craig Albernaz became manager of the Orioles, so perhaps another hiring is still to come.

Photo courtesy of Ken Blaze, Imagn Images

Nationals Hire Simon Mathews As Pitching Coach

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The Nationals announced that they have hired Simon Mathews as their new pitching coach. He had previously been an assistant pitching coach with the Reds. Russell Dorsey and Jake Mintz of Yahoo Sports reported the news prior to the club announcement. Spencer Nusbaum and Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post report that the Nats are also hiring Bobby Wilson as their major league catching coordinator.

“Simon brings a tremendous amount of knowledge and a wide range of experience to our staff,” said manager Blake Butera in the team’s press release. “He is grounded, has great perspective on pitching and connects incredibly well with players at all levels. He is widely respected throughout the game and the type of coach that makes everyone around him better. Simon is a tireless worker and is uniquely equipped to help our pitchers reach their full potential.”

Mathews, 30, was a pitcher but stalled out in the minors. He pitched in the Angels’ system for three years in his early 20s but never made it to the show. He then worked for companies like Push Performance and Driveline Baseball before getting hired by Cincinnati in 2021. He worked various jobs throughout the minors for the Reds before getting bumped to the big league staff in January of 2025.

This hiring continues the trend of the Nationals going very young in overhauling their franchise. Their ongoing rebuild appeared to stall out, prompting big changes. In July, president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez were both fired. Rizzo was 64 years old at the time and Martinez 60. It was reported last month that pitching coach Jim Hickey, 64 years old, would probably not be returning to the club next year.

The Nats hired Paul Toboni to replace Rizzo, Butera to place Martinez and now Mathews to replace Hickey. Toboni is 35 years old. Butera is 33.  Matthews is 30. Younger doesn’t necessarily mean better but it is perhaps a symbol of the Nats feeling they fell behind the times and need to shake off the cobwebs. Mathews will be taking over a club with a lot of young pitchers who had some prospect hype but haven’t fully delivered yet, including Josiah Gray, Cade Cavalli and others.

Photo courtesy of Brad Mills, Imagn Images

Royals Evaluating Outfield Trade Market

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The General Managers Meetings are taking place in Las Vegas this week, a setting where teams often start conversations on possible transactions to be made later in the offseason. Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports that the Royals are evaluating the outfield trade market.

It’s a logical target for the club. The outfield in Kansas City has been a weak spot for years. 2025 was no exception. The team’s outfielders had a collective .225/.285/.348 batting line this year. That resulted in a 73 wRC+, indicating the club’s outfield group was 27% worse than league average. That was easily the worst mark in the majors, with the Guardians’ jardineros second-last with a wRC+ of 77.

The current group in Kansas City includes Jac Caglianone, Kyle Isbel, John Rave, Dairon Blanco, MJ Melendez, Kameron Misner, Drew Waters and others. Caglianone came into 2025 as a top prospect but struggled badly in his first major league call-up. No one else in the group has any real track record of big league success either.

Upgrading there is an obvious way to improve the club overall. The trade market also makes sense as a way to go about doing it, considering the club’s finances. About a month ago, owner John Sherman said that he expects the 2026 club to have a fairly similar payroll to 2025. RosterResource currently estimates the Royals for a payroll of about $140MM next year. That’s slightly higher than the $138MM RR pegged their spending at the end of 2025.

That doesn’t suggest the front office will have a huge amount of spending capacity. They could lower their commitments by non-tendering some of their arb-eligible players. Jonathan India has the highest projected salary in the Royals’ class at $7.4MM and he’s coming off a poor season. The club could also perhaps trade Kris Bubic and his projected $6MM salary since the rotation could still be in decent shape without him.

Even if the club does pinch a few pennies, they’re not going to suddenly become favorites for a big free agent like Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger. Re-signing Mike Yastrzemski is feasible but it’s understandable that president of baseball operations J.J. Picollo would check to see what’s available on the trade market.

Morosi mentions the Red Sox and Angels as possible trading partners. Those seem like speculative picks but they make sense. The Angels have a question in center field but have a crowded mix in the corners. Mike Trout, Taylor Ward, Jo Adell and Jorge Soler give them four options for three spots, between the two outfield corners and the designated hitter slot. Trout isn’t going anywhere and Soler has negative trade value at the moment, since he is owed $13MM next year and is coming off a down season.

Trading one of Adell or Ward seems like the move for the Angels, as that could clear up the logjam while potentially adding some much-needed pitching help. MLBTR put both of them on our recent list of the Top 40 Trade Candidates for this offseason. Last week, Morosi reported that the Halos would indeed listen on Ward and Adell.

Ward has the better track record. He has essentially been a 20-plus homer guy for four years now. He only got to 14 long balls in 2023 but was limited by injuries to just 97 games. He just hit 36 homers in 2025 with a strong 11.3% walk rate to boot. Reviews on his defense are mixed. He’s been credited with seven Outs Above Average in his career but minus-14 Defensive Runs Saved.

Adell got many chances with the Angels and didn’t take advantage of most of them but he has shown some promise lately. He did 20 homers in 2024 and 37 this year. His walk and strikeout rates are poor, limiting the overall value of his offense, but he was still a decent contributor in 2025. His .236/.293/.485 line translated to a 112 wRC+. His defensive grades were poor in center but more passable in right.

Though Ward has the longer résumé, the trade value might be comparable. Ward is just one year from free agency and is projected for a salary of $13.7MM next year. Adell, meanwhile, is projected for just $5.5MM and can be controlled through 2027.

The Red Sox have a well-known glut of outfield options which currently includes Ceddanne Rafaela, Roman Anthony, Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Masataka Yoshida and Jhostynxon García. Anthony signed a big extension with the club and isn’t going anywhere. That’s likely also the case for Rafaela, who also signed an extension and is an elite glove in center. García isn’t yet proven at the major league level but is optionable and swings from the right side, a potential asset in a lefty-heavy lineup.

Duran and Abreu are fairly redundant as lefty-swinging corner guys. Both cracked the aforementioned MLBTR list of Top 40 Trade Candidates for this winter. Duran has more big league experience and has shown a higher ceiling but he’s down to three years of club control and will make $7.7MM in 2026. Abreu, on the other hand, hasn’t yet qualified for arbitration and still has four seasons of club control remaining.

Both the Angels and Red Sox plan to compete in 2026. If either club were to trade an outfielder, they would likely be looking for a return that would help the big league club, as opposed to prospects. Both clubs could use pitching, which is something the Royals have. MLBTR’s Nick Deeds recently took a look at the club’s rotation depth and the possibility that the club could leverage that into an offensive upgrade.

The offseason is still young, so there are still many possible paths for the Royals to take. In addition to the Angels and Red Sox, clubs like the Cardinals, Twins, Diamondbacks and others could have outfielders available, while signing Yastrzemski or someone similar is possible as well.

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images

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