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Diamondbacks Sign Paul Sewald

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TODAY: Arizona officially announced the Sewald signing, and Justin Martinez was placed on the 60-day injured list in the corresponding 40-man roster move.

FEBRUARY 12: The D-backs are bringing right-hander Paul Sewald back to Arizona on a one-year, $1.5MM contract, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. The agreement is pending a physical. Sewald is represented by ISE Baseball.

Sewald, who’ll be 36 in May, spent the second half of the 2023 season and all of the 2024 season in Arizona after coming over in a deadline trade that shipped outfielder Dominic Canzone, infielder Josh Rojas and infielder Ryan Bliss back to the Mariners. The veteran right-hander battled unusually shaky command but posted solid results down the stretch in ’23 before seeing his overall production take a step back in a 2024 season that was truncated by oblique and neck injuries.

After becoming a free agent following the 2024 campaign, Sewald signed a one-year, $7MM deal in Cleveland. He pitched only 15 1/3 innings for the Guardians, this time due to a shoulder strain. The Tigers picked him up in a small deadline deal despite the fact that he was on the injured list, and he pitched 4 1/3 innings for Detroit late in the year.

Sewald was a tenth-round pick by the Mets back in 2012 and had an unremarkable four-year stint in Queens, pitching to a 5.50 ERA in 147 1/3 innings. He was a minor league free agent gem for the Mariners, however, signing with Seattle ahead of the 2021 season and quickly emerging as a go-to reliever. In two-plus seasons as a Mariner, Sewald pitched 171 2/3 innings with a 2.88 ERA, 52 saves, 24 holds, an enormous 35% strikeout rate and a solid 8.1% walk rate.

We’re now a few years removed from that peak. Sewald’s average fastball sat at just 90.4 mph last season, down 2.1 mph from its peak, and he’s posted a 4.40 ERA over his past 59 1/3 MLB frames. That said, he’s still fanned more than one quarter of his opponents while posting a strong 6.5% walk rate in that time. His slider still grades out as at least an average pitch, if not slightly better, and it’s possible that improved health could add a bit more life back to his heater or bring some additional whiffs back on that breaking ball.

For an Arizona club in dire need of bullpen help, it’s hard to fault the addition of an experienced, generally successful reliever at less than two times the $780K league minimum. Sewald probably won’t return to peak levels, but he doesn’t need to in order to benefit this version of manager Torey Lovullo’s bullpen. The Snakes are without A.J. Puk, Justin Martinez and Andrew Saalfrank, all of whom will open the season on the injured list. Saalfrank won’t pitch at all this year. Puk is probably out until at least June. Martinez may not be back until late in the summer.

At the moment, the Diamondbacks’ bullpen includes Kevin Ginkel, Ryan Thompson, trade acquisition Kade Strowd and another bargain pickup in righty Taylor Clarke. There’s no shortage of candidates to compete for the final few spots. Brandyn Garcia, Drey Jameson, Philip Abner, Juan Morillo, Andrew Hoffmann and non-roster invitees Jonathan Loaisiga, John Curtiss and Shawn Dubin are among the candidates. Sewald will add some low-cost stability — a veteran reliever who even as his numbers have taken a step back in recent seasons has at least remained serviceable. If things don’t pan out, the Snakes can cut him and move on, but the Sewald reunion is a sensible one, given the team’s lack of bullpen certainty and minimal capacity to further add to the payroll.

Padres, Nick Castellanos Agree To Contract

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The Padres and outfielder Nick Castellanos have agreed to a Major League deal, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post (multiple links).  Castellanos will earn $780K on the contract, which is the MLB minimum salary for the 2026 season.  The Padres have an open spot on their 40-man roster, so no corresponding move will be required once the deal is finalized by Castellanos passing a physical.  Castellanos is represented by Mato Sports Management.

After signing Miguel Andujar to a one-year, $4MM guarantee a few days ago, San Diego has now added another veteran right-handed bat to its list of DH or bench candidates.  Castellanos will also be in the first base mix, as per The Athletic’s Dennis Lin, which is noteworthy since Castellanos has never played the position during his pro career.  Given how Castellanos has struggled badly in the field as a third baseman and corner outfielder over his career, a move to first base is seemingly long overdue, though Castellanos has been blocked at the position throughout pretty much the entirety of his 13-year MLB tenure.

The left-handed hitting Gavin Sheets is lined up as the Padres’ top choice at first base, so Castellanos makes sense as a platoon partner.  Ramon Laureano figures to get most of the time in left field, so Andujar will be used primarily as a DH, providing competition for Castellanos at another spot.  Castellanos’ old position of right field is filled by Fernando Tatis Jr., so Castellanos probably won’t be getting much or any time in right unless Tatis is hurt or is getting a DH day.

Given the Padres’ stated need for hitting depth, they were seen as a potential candidate to acquire Castellanos during the Phillies’ winter-long attempts to find a trade partner, and Lin reports that the two teams did indeed have some trade talks before Castellanos was released two days ago.  It would seem like the Padres (and other teams) were willing to just wait the Phillies out on a Castellanos release rather than give up anything in value, as the Phils didn’t exactly have much leverage given how open the front office has been for months about their desire to move on from Castellanos.

The Padres’ $780K commitment will be subtracted from the $20MM owed to Castellanos in 2026, leaving the Phillies on the hook for $19.22MM in the final season of the five-year, $100MM deal the slugger signed during the 2021-22 offseason.  That nine-figure investment translated to 0.8 fWAR and a perfectly average 100 wRC+ over four seasons and 2477 plate appearances, with Castellanos hitting .260/.306/.426 and 82 home runs in a Philadelphia uniform.

This so-so offense was paired with very subpar right field defense, as Castellanos was locked into an outfield position due to Kyle Schwarber’s presence at DH, and Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper acting as the starting first basemen.  Castellanos’ lack of production on the field led to some tension off the field, as detailed by The Athletic’s Matt Gelb two days ago.  Castellanos bristled at suggestions that he should alter his swing or be removed from games for defensive purposes, and he clashed with manager Rob Thomson and hitting coach Kevin Long.

The low point came last June 16, when Castellanos was removed for a late-game sub and Castellanos had to be prevented by teammates from drinking a beer in the dugout as a public protest of Thomson’s decision.  Castellanos addressed this incident and apologized in a post on his Instagram page, but he’ll surely face plenty of questions about his controversial Phillies stint when he arrives at the Padres’ spring camp.

It remains to be seen if Castellanos can play first base at a passable level, or if he’ll be able to adjust to more of a part-time role after taking such pride in being an everyday regular throughout his career.  The simple fact is that Castellanos has no choice but to adjust, as he is now entering his age-34 season and is looking to revive his career following his disappointing run in Philadelphia.

A bounce-back performance would go a long way towards reviving Castellanos’ value for future contracts following the 2026 campaign.  He’ll get that chance on another NL contender in San Diego, and there is some irony in the fact Castellanos is joining a Padres team that has seen more than its share of clubhouse tumult over the last few years.  A revolving door in the manager’s office has contributed to the Padres’ issues behind the scenes, and new hire Craig Stammen will be San Diego’s fourth different skipper since Opening Day 2020.

Blue Jays Sign Jesse Hahn To Minors Deal

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The Blue Jays announced that right-hander Jesse Hahn has been signed to a minor league contract.  The deal includes an invitation for Hahn to attend Toronto’s big league Spring Training camp.

While Hahn is a veteran of eight Major League seasons, 286 of his 316 1/3 career innings came during the 2014-17 seasons.  Since that four-year stretch with the Padres and Athletics, Hahn has a 4.75 ERA across 30 1/3 innings, and he didn’t see any MLB action at all in three seasons (2018, 2022, and 2023) due to arm injuries, plus he spent the 2024 campaign entirely in the minors.

Hahn finally made his return to the Show last year in the form of three games and five innings with the Mariners, and he was twice designated for assignment and then outrighted off Seattle’s 40-man roster.  Pitching primarily with Triple-A Tacoma, Hahn’s minor league numbers in 2025 included a 5.85 ERA, 22.4% strikeout rate, and 10.5% walk rate.  The righty also posted a big 61.8% grounder rate, though a .361 BABIP offset Hahn’s ability to keep the ball on the ground.

A grounder-heavy approach is Hahn’s biggest plus at this stage of his career, as the 36-year-old been beset by control problems (at times quite extreme) over the last several seasons at both the MLB and minor league levels.  Hahn’s return to the big leagues after a three-year absence saw him retain his 95mph sinker as his primary pitch, and his slider replaced his change as his secondary pitch.

Toronto’s bullpen is more or less set heading into Opening Day, so Hahn is likely just a depth arm the Jays are looking to stash at Triple-A.  The right-hander does bring experience and some innings-eating ability, which is a plus on a Blue Jays team that put a lot of extra miles on its relief corps during last season’s run to the World Series.

Mariners Infield Notes: Donovan, Emerson, Bliss

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Much of the focus in Mariners camp will be on the infield. Seattle’s biggest offseason moves — re-signing Josh Naylor and trading for Brendan Donovan — addressed two spots. They lost a couple infielders, Jorge Polanco and Eugenio Suárez, to free agency. It’s the biggest area of turnover on what might be the American League’s best roster.

Naylor and J.P. Crawford are locked into first base and shortstop, respectively. Donovan will be an everyday player. He’s a solid defender at second base and can handle the corner outfield as well, though his below-average speed means he fits better on the infield. Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times writes that Donovan’s early work with infield coach Perry Hill has come at third base.

That’s the simplest solution in the short term. Suárez and Ben Williamson, who was traded to Tampa Bay in the three-team Donovan deal, took the majority of the playing time last season. Of the five players who started games at third base in 2025, only Miles Mastrobuoni remains in the organization. Donovan didn’t get any work at the hot corner last year but logged 269 2/3 innings there between 2022-24. Although defensive grades aren’t especially meaningful in that small a sample, he has above-average marks from Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average.

Donovan’s primary role will largely be determined by the progress of younger players around him. Cole Young had a brutal finish to his rookie season, but he remains the favorite to start at second base. Young is a former first-round pick who hit .279/.388/.432 in the minors and is entering his age-22 season. He remains a very promising young player even though he’s not technically a prospect anymore.

20-year-old shortstop Colt Emerson is even more highly regarded. The 2023 first-round pick combined for a .285/.383/.458 batting line with 16 homers and 14 steals over 600 plate appearances across three minor league levels. Emerson walked at a near-12% clip while striking out less than 18% of the time. He spent the majority of the season in High-A but ripped through Double-A to earn a late-season cameo at Triple-A Tacoma. He played six games there in the final week of the regular season.

Emerson is a consensus top 10 overall prospect at Baseball America, The Athletic, ESPN and MLB Pipeline. The likeliest outcome is that he opens the season at Tacoma with an eye towards a midseason promotion. It’d be a surprise if Emerson breaks camp, but the Mariners aren’t completely closing the door on that as Spring Training opens. “It’s not out of the question that he earns a spot on the team,” president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto told reporters on Thursday (link via Daniel Kramer of MLB.com). Dipoto praised Emerson’s well-rounded skillset and maturity.

The probable Opening Day infield lines up as Naylor, Young, Crawford and Donovan from right to left. Emerson could get consistent reps against Triple-A pitching while building reps at third base, where he has 111 1/3 innings of professional experience. He’s the heir apparent at shortstop when Crawford hits free agency next winter but presumably wouldn’t push the veteran off the position this year. If Emerson has a monster Spring Training that forces the club’s hand, Donovan could kick back to second base and potentially move Young to Triple-A. That shouldn’t be an issue even if Donovan doesn’t play any second base during Spring Training given his ample work at the position.

Last year’s season-opening second baseman, Ryan Bliss, hasn’t gotten as much public attention. Bliss is older and not nearly as highly regarded as Young and Emerson, so that’s natural, but he’s a former second-round pick who hit .269/.377/.456 with 12 homers and 50 stolen bases in Triple-A in 2024. He unfortunately didn’t get much of an opportunity to solidify himself at the MLB level.

Bliss ruptured his left biceps on a swing two weeks into the regular season. He underwent surgery that came with a 4-5 month rehab timeline. Bliss returned to minor league game action in September and had an impressive week in Triple-A. He may well have reclaimed the second base job from Young to close the regular season had he not sustained a meniscus tear in his right knee that required season-ending surgery. Kramer writes that Bliss is back to full health this spring.

It’s a deep infield that’ll only become more crowded whenever Emerson earns the call. Bliss has a couple minor league options remaining. Leo Rivas also has an option but reached base at a .387 clip in 111 plate appearances last season and made the team’s playoff rosters. They flip-flopped Mastrobuoni and Luke Raley as the last hitter off the bench in October.

They’re both out of options, and it’s difficult to see Seattle carrying both players into the season if all their hitters get through camp healthy. They’ll need bench spots for backup catcher Andrew Knizner and righty platoon bat Rob Refsnyder. Keeping Mastrobuoni and Raley would require them to option both Bliss and Rivas before even considering an Emerson promotion. Dipoto acknowledged the likelihood that someone gets squeezed out at the end of Spring Training, conceding the front office may “have to make some uncomfortable short-term decisions.”

Twins, Cody Laweryson Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Twins brought back reliever Cody Laweryson after he was released by the Angels last week. Matthew Leach of MLB.com first noted that the right-hander had a locker in Minnesota’s Spring Training complex. Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star-Tribune confirms the sides have a minor league deal with an invite to big league camp.

Laweryson returns to the only organization he’d known until November. Minnesota selected him in the 14th round in 2019 out of the University of Maine. They called him up for the first time last September. The 6’4″ righty made five appearances, allowing two runs (one earned) across 7 2/3 innings. He struck out seven without issuing a walk. Laweryson also pitched well in Triple-A, turning in a 2.86 earned run average while striking out a quarter of opposing hitters.

The 27-year-old (28 in May) has a strong statistical track record. Laweryson owns a 3.39 ERA with a 27% strikeout percentage over 327 minor league innings. Teams evidently remain skeptical about how it’ll translate over a larger sample against big league hitters. Laweryson’s 93.2 mph average fastball isn’t especially imposing. He doesn’t have a power breaking ball either, sitting 85-86 mph with a cutter while mixing in a low-80s changeup.

Minnesota dropped him from the 40-man roster at the beginning of the offseason despite having one of the league’s weakest bullpens. The Halos claimed him but cut him loose to make room on the roster when they re-signed Yoán Moncada. The Twins also have former big leaguers Liam Hendriks, Julian Merryweather, Dan Altavilla, Matt Bowman and Grant Hartwig battling for spots in a wide open middle relief group.

White Sox, Austin Voth Agree To Minor League Deal

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The White Sox have a minor league agreement with right-hander Austin Voth, reports James Fegan of Sox Machine. The Wasserman client will be in camp as a non-roster invitee.

Voth is back in affiliated ball after one season with the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan. The 33-year-old tossed 125 innings of 3.96 ERA ball with a modest 17.4% strikeout rate. He attacked the strike zone but didn’t miss many bats or get a lot of ground-balls. That was Voth’s first season in Asia after a decade in the affiliated ranks. He has pitched parts of seven seasons in the big leagues, spending the majority of his career in the DMV area between the Nationals and Orioles.

A former fifth-round pick by Washington, Voth worked out of the rotation for his first couple seasons. He moved to the bullpen in 2021 but made a return to the rotation in Baltimore the following season. Voth was a full-time reliever between 2023-24. He spent the first of those seasons in Baltimore and the latter with his hometown Mariners. Voth managed 61 innings of 3.69 ERA ball for the M’s but had a rough September and was non-tendered at year’s end.

The White Sox have taken a handful of fliers on former big leaguers coming back from Asia under general manager Chris Getz. They hit on the Erick Fedde signing a couple years ago and added former Mets first-rounder Anthony Kay for two years and $12MM this winter. Unlike those pitchers, Voth isn’t guaranteed a major league roster spot. He’ll presumably battle for a long relief role but has the ability to build up as a starter if necessary.

Royals Sign John Means To Minor League Deal

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The Royals have an agreement in place with lefty John Means, the team announced. It’s a two-year minor league contract. Means tore his Achilles tendon in December and is likely to miss the 2026 season. The Wasserman client last pitched in the big leagues with the Orioles in 2024.

Injuries have derailed what began as a promising career for Means. He earned an All-Star selection as a rookie back in 2019. Means was a mainstay in Baltimore’s rotation through 2021. Health issues have capped the lefty at 10 big-league appearances over the past four years. Tommy John surgery cost him most of 2022 and 2023. Means made it through four starts in 2024 before needing another elbow procedure.

Kansas City adds Means with the hope he’ll contribute down the line. Cleveland attempted to do the same thing, but it didn’t pan out. The Guardians grabbed Means on a one-year, $1MM pact last offseason. The lefty was pushing to return to the majors by the end of the year following his second Tommy John procedure. He managed seven minor league starts with the club, failing to make the MLB roster. Cleveland declined its $6MM option on Means in November.

Means entered the league with a low-90s fastball supplemented by a strong changeup and a decent slider. He didn’t miss many bats as a rookie, but kept the ball in the yard and limited hard contact. Means ranked in the 89th percentile for hard-hit rate in his first full season.

The shortened 2020 campaign saw Means’ fastball jump by 2 mph. The improved velocity didn’t produce better results, but the lefty’s mid-4.00s ERA in a small sample could be explained away by a 21.8% home run to fly ball ratio.

The heater lost a tick in 2021, but Means still delivered a 3.62 ERA across 26 starts. He was off to an excellent start through May, but a shoulder strain cost him six weeks. Means closed the year with an ERA up near 5.00 once he returned. He allowed 17 home runs over his final 14 appearances.

The real shame of Means’ persistent injuries to close his time with Baltimore is that he never got to fully experience the adjusted stadium dimensions. The Orioles moved the fences back and introduced “Walltimore” in left field ahead of the 2022 season. The new-look Camden Yards would’ve fit Means’ approach perfectly, as a fly ball pitcher who generally limited hard contact. He was available for just five home starts after the changes were put in place.

Photos courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images

Orioles Sign Chris Bassitt

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Feb 13: Baltimore has officially announced the Bassitt signing. No corresponding move was needed, as the club had room on the 40-man for the veteran righty. The Orioles’ 40-man roster is now full.

Feb. 12: The Orioles are reportedly in agreement with starter Chris Bassitt on a one-year, $18.5MM contract, pending a physical. Bassitt, a client of Meister Sports Management, receives a $3MM signing bonus and would unlock another $500K if he reaches 27 starts. Baltimore has an opening on the 40-man roster after losing infielder Bryan Ramos on waivers to St. Louis.

President of baseball operations Mike Elias has made a habit of signing veteran starters to one-year deals over the past few years. They found some success with Kyle Gibson in 2023. Last winter’s reunion with Gibson and additions of Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano did not go as planned. Bassitt is in a similar stage of his career as he nears his 37th birthday, but he should have a higher floor than those previous additions.

Bassitt didn’t reach 100 MLB innings in a season until his age-30 campaign in 2019. He has been a consistent mid-rotation presence over the last seven years. Only once did his earned run average climb north of 4.00. His 2.29 mark during the shortened season was a small sample outlier, but he has otherwise been a safe bet to allow between three and four earned runs per nine while logging a heavy workload. Bassitt has surpassed 150 innings in each of the last five seasons, one of just six pitchers to do that. He’s eighth in total innings over that stretch.

The veteran righty has paired the bulk with mid-rotation quality. He’s coming off a 3.96 ERA with slightly better than average underlying marks. Bassitt fanned 22.6% of batters faced against a 7.1% walk rate across 170 1/3 innings a year ago. His per-pitch whiff rate is a little below average, but he has managed to strike out between 22-23% of opponents in each of the past four seasons.

Bassitt’s velocity has ticked down slightly as he has gotten into his mid-30s. His sinker averaged 91.6 mph last season, narrowly a career low. That’s still not far off the 92-93 mph range in which he had worked throughout his career. The sinker is Bassitt’s primary offering, but Statcast identified eight distinct pitches that he used at least occasionally during his final season in Toronto. He mostly works with a sinker, cutter and curveball and generally does well to limit hard contact.

The biggest concern may be Bassitt’s issues against left-handed hitters. While he held them in check earlier in his career, Bassitt has seen his platoon splits widen over the past few seasons. Since the start of 2023, lefties have gotten to him at a .284/.360/.483 clip in more than 1200 plate appearances. He has held same-handed opponents to a punchless .224/.286/.323 line in a similar number of at-bats over that stretch.

Bassitt is coming off a three-year, $63MM contract with the division rival Blue Jays. He provided Toronto with 541 1/3 innings of 3.89 ERA ball during the regular season. Bassitt only once missed a start, as a minor bout of back inflammation sent him to the injured list last September. He missed the Division Series win over the Yankees but returned for the AL Championship Series. Bassitt pitched out of relief and emerged as one of John Schneider’s most trusted leverage arms in October. He fired 8 2/3 innings of one-run ball with 10 strikeouts during Toronto’s pennant run.

One year after helping the Jays go worst to first in the AL East, Bassitt will hope to accomplish the same feat with Baltimore. The Orioles have had a big offseason after stumbling to a 75-87 showing. They signed Pete Alonso (a former teammate of Bassitt’s in New York) to a monster five-year, $155MM deal. The O’s swapped oft-injured starter Grayson Rodriguez for another righty power bat, Taylor Ward, while dealing four prospects and a draft choice to the Rays for Shane Baz. They signed Ryan Helsley to a two-year deal to replace injured closer Félix Bautista and reunited with Zach Eflin on a $10MM contract.

The Orioles again shied away from the top of the free agent starting pitching market, preferring to make a splash in the middle of the lineup. They’ll hope to unlock another gear from Baz, a former top prospect who has shown flashes but been inconsistent over his first couple seasons. Trevor Rogers will look to build off last year’s fantastic final few months, while Kyle Bradish has a chance to be an upper mid-rotation starter now that he’s recovered from Tommy John surgery.

Bassitt slots behind Rogers, Bradish and Baz as locks to open the year in Craig Albernaz’s rotation. Eflin will be assured of the fifth starter role as long as he’s fully recovered from last August’s back surgery. He’s expected to be a full participant in Spring Training, so that should be the case. That could push Dean Kremer and/or Tyler Wells back to Triple-A Norfolk to open the season. Both pitchers still have an option remaining, though they’re each approaching the five-year service cutoff at which they’d earn the right to refuse any minor league assignments. Wells needs another 40 days on an MLB roster to get there, while Kremer is 60 days away.

The O’s could use Wells in long relief and start the year with Kremer rounding out a six-man rotation if they want both pitchers in the majors. A rotation surplus usually works itself out before long. The Braves, Blue Jays and Tigers have all announced significant injury losses within the first two days of camp. Even if all of Baltimore’s starters are currently healthy, they’d be fortunate if that’s the case by Opening Day.

Bassitt may not be the top-of-the-rotation type that O’s fans had coveted, but he’s a sensible pickup for a team that’ll keep an eye on Bradish’s and Eflin’s innings after lost seasons. MLBTR had predicted a two-year, $38MM contract at the beginning of the offseason. Baltimore was able to avoid committing that second season in an offseason when Merrill Kelly commanded $20MM annually over two years from the Diamondbacks at the same age.

The O’s payroll projection climbs to $166MM, as calculated by RosterResource. Despite the handful of significant offseason pickups, they’re only about $6MM above where they opened last season. This will probably wrap their significant offseason dealings, but they shouldn’t have an issue taking on some money midseason if they’re positioned to buy. Bassitt’s removal from the market leaves Zac Gallen, Lucas Giolito and Max Scherzer as the best free agents available for teams still looking to add.

Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the agreement and terms. Image courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images.

Brewers To Sign Luis Rengifo

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The Brewers are bringing in Luis Rengifo on a one-year major league deal, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The veteran infielder has spent his entire seven-year MLB career with the Angels. He’s a client of MVP Sports Group. The team has yet to announce the move.

Feinsand adds that Rengifo will earn a $3.5MM base salary in 2026. The agreement includes a $10MM mutual option for 2027. Rengifo can also make an extra $1.5MM in incentives this year.

Milwaukee had a hole to address in the infield after dealing Caleb Durbin to the Red Sox. This might not be the move MLBTR’s Steve Adams had in mind when he wrote about the potential for another notable addition, but Rengifo could provide credible production at multiple spots. The 28-year-old had delivered three seasons of above-league-average offense before struggling mightily last year. He has considerable experience at second base, third base, and shortstop.

Rengifo debuted with the Angels in 2019. He held down the second base job for the majority of the season. The infielder managed an 83 wRC+ across 406 plate appearances. He earned poor marks for his work at the keystone (-4 Defensive Runs Saved, -4 Outs Above Average). Rengifo fell into part-time work over the next two seasons, scuffling at the plate but offering defensive versatility.

The 2022 campaign represented a breakout for Rengifo. He slugged 17 home runs in 127 games. Rengifo came into the year with just 14 career homers. He improved his hard-hit rate while striking out just 15.5% of the time. Rengifo maintained the offensive gains the following year, popping 16 home runs with a 115 wRC+.

Rengifo remained a valuable asset in 2024, though his production took a different shape. He only left the yard six times, but stole 24 bases and hit an even .300. Rengifo had totaled 18 thefts in the previous five MLB seasons. He’d maxed out at a .264 batting average. Biceps and wrist injuries limited Rengifo to 78 games, and could have been to blame for his lack of power.

Last season was a challenge for Rengifo. His OPS tumbled to .622, his worst mark since 2021. He did chip in nine home runs and 10 steals. Rengifo managed to stay healthy for the full year, playing in a career-high 147 games.

The switch-hitting Rengifo has typically been better from the right side. He’s slashed .268/.311/.438 against lefties in his career, compared to .242/.305/.360 when facing righties. Rengifo didn’t show noticeable splits last season, with just two points separating his OPS from each side of the plate.

It’s been more quantity than quality for Rengifo with the glove. He’s logged at least 98 appearances at all three infield positions excluding first base, but doesn’t have a DRS better than -4 at any spot. Rengifo posted a -5 DRS at third base last season, though he was a +5 at second base.

Photos courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez and Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images

Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

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Anthony Franco

  • Good afternoon, hope you've all had a good week!
  • Decent number of questions in here, let's get rolling

Half St

  • There really isn't much for Nats fans to look forward to unless the new regime proves to be much better at developing young players. Do you feel there might be one young player who could make a surprise jump and carry the team forward from the absolute depths? James Wood seems the obvious answer, but should I be hoping on anybody else?

Anthony Franco

  • Wood's the obvious one. Durability's the big caveat for Cavalli but I think he'd be a mid-rotation starter if he can stay healthy. Harry Ford's stock is down a little from its peak but still feels like a capable starting catcher to me
  • Abrams has a higher gear but he's probably getting traded before they're back to being competitive. Confidence in Crews is waning. Lile feels like a role player to be, not a believer in Brady House at this point

Barron Of th Bullpen

  • How does BlueJays & Astros trade effect Cam Smith's playing time? What is your opinion of Smith long term?

Joey Loperfid'oh!

  • Who won this trade - Jays or Astros?

Anthony Franco

  • I prefer Houston's end of it because I'd have just non-tendered Sánchez, who I don't think is a $7M player. Loperfido is a fine bench bat, won't have any impact on Cam Smith
  • Seems like Houston wants Smith to start the season in Triple-A after how he finished last year, which is understandable. Loperfido's not blocking him and I imagine there's another move coming to add a mid-tier outfielder to replace Sánchez

Tony

  • Thanks for the chats.  With early posturing by owners for a salary cap, or seems as if the only way the players would agree is if MLB agrees to a floor and some kind of revenue sharing.  Both sides will argue the league needs to improve competition. Since owners have resisted sharing their books  is there a way forward?  Or will MLB have to edit the game to save it.

Anthony Franco

  • All the cap systems come with a salary floor. The league would be on board with that -- albeit with some dissent from the smaller-market owners -- but MLBPA continues to maintain that's a non-starter. If they budge on that, it would require a dramatic increase in revenue sharing to ensure the small-market teams meet the floor, yeah
  • Doesn't necessarily mean they need to open the books to the public. They'd need to share it with the Players Association but they already do that, the MLBPA just can't leak it. The bigger stumbling block -- again, beyond the PA considering this at all -- is how to calculate revenue. The players would want all the adjacent "ballpark village" stuff to factor into those calculations, while the team would obviously want to construe it much more narrowly

Sultan of Sling

  • The Giants can't possibly be done assembling their bullpen. Can they?

Anthony Franco

  • Haha well they signed Rowan Wick three minutes ago, so I guess not?
  • In all seriousness, yeah they're pretty much out of options back there and it's my biggest gripe with the roster

The Beatles Show

  • Hey Anthony, how's the weather for you?  Second...probably happier question:  With the Sanchez trade does that mean the Astros are going to keep Parades and move him to left?

Anthony Franco

  • Alright the past few days! All of January sucked. Don't thing Sánchez has any real impact on Paredes, they could've played him in LF either way if they wanted to do that. Seems ill advised when he's coming off the hamstring injury

Arizona

  • Which is more likely? A lottery pick or a playoff run?

Anthony Franco

  • Hmm, I think they'll end up in between but lottery pick feels a little more likely. The bullpen's really rough, rotation could go south quickly with an injury or two, and now there's a question about what they'll get from Carroll early in the season

Alex Anthopoulus

  • What am I doing? Our projected #2 starter goes down and I haven't done a thing to address the starting rotation issue (that got worse with the Schwellenbach injury). This is a very odd offseason, it started "adequately" but I still haven't solved the main problem from the beginning.

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