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NL West Notes: Adam, Matsui, Hentges, Rushing

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Padres reliever Jason Adam underwent surgery to fix a ruptured left quad last September, and as of November, Adam wasn’t sure if he’d be fully recovered in time for Opening Day.  However, the early days of Spring Training have been promising for the right-hander.  Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that Adam pitched a live batting practice for the first time today, and Adam is making slow but steady progress in fielding drills.

“Pitching-wise, we’re…beyond on pace.  It’s just a matter of being cleared” by San Diego’s medical staff, Adam said.  In terms of Opening Day readiness, Adam said the team’s trainers “haven’t told me ’no’ yet.”

One of baseball’s top relievers over the last four seasons, Adam has a 1.66 ERA over 92 innings since the Padres acquired the righty from the Rays at the 2024 trade deadline.  While the Padres still have an elite bullpen even without Adam, getting the All-Star back and healthy as early as possible in 2026 will be a huge boost to San Diego’s chances of both returning to the postseason and making a deeper run into October.

More from around the NL West…

  • While things are looking positive for Adam, fellow Padres reliever Yuki Matsui is day-to-day with groin tightness after his injury cut short a live BP session on Thursday.  Manager Craig Stammen told Acee and other reporters that the groin issue doesn’t appear to be serious enough to impact Matsui’s readiness for Opening Day, but it may well prevent the reliever from playing for Japan in the World Baseball Classic.  Since signing a five-year, $28MM deal with the Padres in the 2023-24 offseason, Matsui has a solid but unspectacular 3.86 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, and 11.3% walk rate across 126 relief innings.
  • Sam Hentges has thrown multiple 40-pitch bullpen sessions in the Giants’ camp thus far, but he tells MLB.com’s Maria Guardado that he doesn’t have a set throwing progression in place, and it isn’t clear if he’ll be part of San Francisco’s Opening Day roster.  The Giants signed the left-hander to a one-year, $1.4MM contract in December, even though Hentges hasn’t pitched in the majors since July 2024 (or in the minors since August 2024).  A shoulder surgery was responsible for most of that layoff, but Hentges also underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee this past September, which delayed his offseason prep and the final stages of his shoulder rehab.  Hentges acknowledged that his long absence played a role in the Giants’ decision to take it slowly with his spring work, though he is hoping to pitch in some games before Spring Training is over.
  • Dalton Rushing’s short-lived turn as an outfielder could be over, as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic’s Katie Woo and other reporters that Rushing will be used this season as a backup catcher and occasional first baseman.  Rushing played in 31 minor-league games as an outfielder in 2024, but was on the grass just twice with Triple-A Oklahoma City in 2025, and he didn’t see any outfield work after making his MLB debut with Los Angeles.  The former top prospect’s positional future has been a question mark ever since L.A. signed Will Smith to a ten-year extension in March 2024, locking Smith up as the Dodgers’ catcher for the foreseeable future.  Between Smith’s extension, Shohei Ohtani set as the DH, and Freddie Freeman at first base, Rushing could be limited to part-time duty perhaps for the next two seasons, until Freeman’s contract is up following the 2027 campaign.  While there has been plenty of speculation that the Dodgers could swing a trade, the team seems to still have designs on Rushing (who turns 25 tomorrow) as a key piece of their roster.

Yimi Garcia Won’t Be Ready For Blue Jays’ Opening Day Roster

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Yimi Garcia’s 2025 season was prematurely ended last September by surgery to fix scar tissue in his throwing elbow.  The right-hander’s recovery progress will stretch into at least the first bit of the 2026 campaign, as Garcia told Sportnet’s Shi Davidi that he will “100 percent” not be ready to pitch when the Blue Jays begin play on March 27.

It doesn’t appear as though Garcia will miss too much time, even if he does start the season on the 15-day injured list.  “I feel good right now, I feel better than last season,” Garcia said, and he expects to start throwing off a mound perhaps as early as this week.  Still, since the veteran reliever is “a little behind” in his throwing progression, it appears Garcia and the Jays are playing the long game in making sure he is fully ready for the coming season, even if that means some missed time in March and April.

To his chagrin, Garcia has been a frequent visitor to the IL in the last two seasons, as a variety of injuries have limited the righty to 61 appearances and 60 innings pitched for the Blue Jays and Mariners in 2024-25.  Garcia missed time in 2024 with both neuritis and inflammation in his right elbow, and he was limited by a shoulder impingement (leading to a 60-day IL stint) and a sprained left ankle in 2025.  Garcia hasn’t pitched since July 2, as his elbow issues resurfaced while he was rehabbing his ankle sprain.

All of these injuries would be a concern for any pitcher, especially a veteran like Garcia who is turning 36 this August.  Garcia has still been pretty effective when he has been able to pitch, posting a 3.60 ERA and 30.5% strikeout rate over his last 60 IP.  His walk rate did take a big leap upwards from 7.8% in 2024 to 13.3% in 2025, which could be viewed as an injury-related outlier given how Garcia’s previous career high BB% was 8.3%, and that came over 15 innings during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

The Blue Jays dealt Garcia to the Mariners at the 2024 trade deadline, and despite his elbow issues, Toronto felt comfortable enough to bring the reliever back on a two-year, $15MM free agent deal last winter.  It is quite possible that having a healthy Garcia in the bullpen might’ve put the Blue Jays over the top in the World Series, and the team is again viewing him as a key piece of the late-game mix.  When healthy, Garcia will join postseason workhorse Louis Varland and new signing Tyler Rogers as the top set-up options to closer Jeff Hoffman.

Angels Owner Arte Moreno Discusses Payroll, Broadcast Situation

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Angels owner Arte Moreno spoke to reporters (including Jeff Fletcher of Orange County Register and MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger) today about various topics related to the team.  Fans are encouraged to check out the article for all the details, but Moreno’s comments about the Halos’ payroll and uncertain broadcast situation are particularly noteworthy.

The two issues are naturally connected.  Last season, the Angels were on FanDuel Sports Network West, owned by Main Street Sports.  The company has been in a rough financial spot for a while and recently missed some payments to teams.  In response, the Angels and the eight other teams who were signed with Main Street terminated their deals last month.  Six of those clubs will now have their broadcasts handled by Major League Baseball itself, though the Angels are (for now) one of the holdouts.

Moreno promised some clarity “in the next five to seven days,” and said that “I’m not telling you I won’t” eventually sign with MLB.  That would seem like the easiest route for the Angels this close to the start of the season, since as Fletcher notes, plenty of “more work and negotiation” would be involved if the Halos pursued an alternative like starting their own TV network.

In signing on with MLB as a broadcast partner, teams can provide their fans with a blackout-free streaming option, but with less revenue going back to the club.  Travis Sawchik of MLB.com recently wrote that such clubs get an average of roughly 50% less revenue than in past broadcasting contracts, and naturally it is no small thing having a consistent revenue stream suddenly halved.

With less money coming in, some teams have reacted by curbing or cutting spending on player payroll.  The Angels have taken this route, as their 2026 payroll of $180.5MM (as estimated by RosterResource) is well below their $206MM figure from the end of the 2025 season.  While Los Angeles has made some notable moves this winter, the club’s most substantial transaction from a payroll perspective might’ve been its agreement to buy out Anthony Rendon’s final season under contract, deferring his $38MM salary for 2026 and spreading out that money over a five-year period.

Rendon’s bust of a contract is one of many high-profile signings that haven’t panned out for the Angels during Moreno’s ownership, so it makes some sense that Moreno would want to alter his approach.  The owner is now prioritizing young talent ahead of bigger-ticket free agents as a way to finally get the Angels back on a winning track.

“The question is do one or two players substantially change (the record)?  If you go out and spend $15 or $20 million a year times three or times five, it doesn’t get it done,” Moreno said.  This doesn’t mean the Halos will keep going forward with a reduced budget forever, as Moreno said “will [payroll] get back to $200 million?  Probably.  We’ve got to get our TV thing worked out and we just have to improve our brand.”

Moreno bought the Angels in early 2003, and the first half of his ownership tenure has been far more successful than the second.  From 2003-15, Los Angeles enjoyed 10 of 13 winning seasons and won six AL West crowns, twice advancing as far as the ALCS.  The last decade, however, has been dismal — the Angels have endured 10 straight losing seasons, and are coming off a 72-90 showing in 2025.  Between the many question marks on the L.A. roster and how even other teams within the AL West look much stronger on paper, it is hard to see the Angels getting back over the .500 mark this year.

This sustained lack of success has done untold damage to the Angels’ “brand,” which speaks to the catch-22 that Moreno faces in turning the team around while also spending less.  Barring either a full teardown or a much stronger minor league pipeline being developed, it’s hard to see the Angels succeeding with what seems to be a half-measures approach to rebuilding.

The headline quote from Moreno’s interview will be his claim that, according to fan surveys, Angels supporters aren’t overly concerned with a winning team as part of their gameday routine.  “The number one thing fans want is affordability,” Moreno said.  “They want affordability.  They want safety, and they want a good experience when they come to the ballpark.  Believe it or not, winning is not in their top five….The moms want to be able to afford to bring the kids.  Moms make about 80% of the decisions.  They want to be able to bring their kids and be affordable and they want safety and they want to have a good experience, so they get all the entertainment stuff or whatever.”

A winning Angels team above all is prioritized just by “the purists,” as Moreno said, though he says he shares that goal.  “For me, I’ve always wanted to win. It’s just what’s the cost of winning right now?”

After 10 losing seasons, it seems like a tone-deaf response for Moreno to downplay his fans’ desire to see a winning team.  Every fan would naturally want to take their family to the ballpark without having to break the bank, yet it is fair to say that Angels supporters would be more willing to spend a bit more on tickets if the team was competitive.  The fact that fans apparently have winning so low on their list of priorities isn’t a good thing, as it may reflect a lack of faith from fans in their team, or a sign that if affordability is such a concern, fans may decide their entertainment dollars are better spent elsewhere than a team that never wins.

Unsurprisingly, Moreno feels “we can compete” in the coming season, feeling his team’s pitching will be substantially better.  Moreno praised the work of GM Perry Minasian, but also hinted that this may be something of a make or break year given how the Angels have yet to get over the .500 mark in Minasian’s five seasons in charge of the front office.  The possibility of a GM change may be one reason new manager Kurt Suzuki was only given a one-year contract last fall, as 2026 is also the last guaranteed year of Minasian’s contract.

“I really like Perry.  At the end of the day, you have to start adding up wins and losses,” Moreno said.

In terms of his own stewardship of the franchise, Moreno said he has no plans to sell the team.  Moreno did explore selling the Angels back in 2022, but pulled the team off the market in 2023, and reiterated today that he continues to love owning the team.

Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images

MLB, MLBPA Putting Aside Money Ahead Of CBA Negotiations

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The collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball and the Players Association expires December 1st. Many in the industry expect a lockout and some even worry about the potential for lost games in 2027. Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of The New York Post report that the league has put aside a war chest of about $2 billion, roughly $75MM per team, from a central fund to help weather a potentially lengthy stoppage. The MLBPA has made similar preparations but the report doesn’t provide specifics for that side.

At first blush, it may seem ominous that such measures are being taken, especially when the rhetoric around the negotiations has been contentious. However, the piece from The Post points out that these kinds of steps are standard procedure when a CBA is expiring, both for MLB and the MLBPA.

When the previous CBA expired, the owners immediately locked out the players. That lockout lasted 99 days and was resolved just in time for a full 162-game season to be played in 2022. Another lockout is expected after the upcoming season. That’s both due to tensions seeming high and because MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has spoken positively about how a lockout affects negotiations. In the wake of those comments, then-executive director of the MLBPA Tony Clark said the union expects to be locked out. Clark recently resigned under the shroud of scandal with deputy director Bruce Meyer taking over on an interim basis.

For those pessimistic about a speedy resolution, there are things to point to. The economic imbalances of the game have seemingly grown more extreme. The Dodgers have been consistently in the playoffs for more than a decade and have won the past two titles, while running historically high payrolls. That has led to many fans to call for a salary cap, something many owners want as well. Ownership has historically favored a cap with the union opposed. The ownership side often cites competitive balance as a justification for a cap while the player side will say the owners simply want to control labor costs and increase franchise values.

An optimist could point to other factors. Manfred’s contract runs through January of 2029 and he has said he doesn’t plan to seek another term. He may not want to have a lengthy work stoppage as his parting legacy. He also intends for the league to seek a massive payday from broadcast rights after the 2028 season, when a large number of the current contracts will expire. Baseball’s popularity is currently on the rise but could drop if a large number of games are cancelled, which would hurt the value of the broadcast rights.

Time will tell how it all plays out. For now, both sides are getting prepared, as they always do. The Post says that negotiations are expected to begin once the regular season commences in late March.

Photo courtesy of Susan Tompor, Imagn Images

Jake Cave To Sign With Mexican League’s Tecolotes De Los Dos Laredos

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Former big league outfielder Jake Cave has an agreement in place with the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos in the Mexican League, reports Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. Cave is represented by the Ballengee Group.

Cave, 33, appeared in seven major league seasons from 2018 to 2024, mostly with the Twins but also suiting up for the Phillies and Rockies. He appeared in 523 contests and stepped to the plate 1,564 times, producing a .236/.292/.400 batting line. He hit 45 home runs and stole 13 bases. He played all three outfield spots and a bit of first base.

The Rockies outrighted him off the roster after the 2024 season and he elected free agency. He headed overseas for the 2025 season, signing with the Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization. He had a good campaign over there, getting into 136 games for the Bears. He hit 16 home runs and slashed .299/.351/.463 for a 125 wRC+.

Cave will now add another stamp to his passport and join one of the most hitter-friendly leagues in the world. The league-wide slash line in the Mexican League was .295/.378/.465 in 2025. That’s roughly equivalent to Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’2 2025 batting line of .292/.381/.467.

Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images

Trade Rumors Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

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Steve Adams

  • Greetings! Anthony and I flipped the Monday/Friday chats this week since I was off for the holiday, so you're stuck with me today. Apologies in advance!We'll get going around 3pm CT, but feel free to submit a question(s) ahead of time if you prefer!
  • We'll get started a few minutes early today and go til a bit after 4

BaseballRadio

  • Curious as to how the Cleveland Ownership can justify doing literally nothing to upgrade the offense, while dropping to around 70 million in payroll, pending the Clase/Ortiz situation… literally dead last in MLB ?

Steve Adams

  • It's pretty inexplicable. The only significant move they made this winter was extending Ramirez on a deal that saved them $10MM in 2026. They re-signed Austin Hedges and bought a few cheap, one-year relievers.For me, they had far and away the worst offseason in baseball. There are so many glaring holes in that lineup, and they're content to just hope a club that produced an AL-worst .226/.296/.373 batting line (87 wRC+) will become serviceable from an offensive standpoint based solely on in-house improvement and promotions of Bazzana, DeLauter, etc.
  • It's an indefensible offseason, and if I were a Cleveland fan, I'd be livid. I joked the other day with colleagues that maybe the Dolans are trying to force people to say "Look! See how badly MLB needs a floor!" ... and while I was mostly kidding, I wonder whether there's some partial truth to that sentiment.

Matt

  • Now that Pablo Lopez is out any chance the Twins listen to offers for Byron Buxton?

J. Zoll

  • So . . . a lot of Twins fans think trading Joe Ryan ASAP is the right thing to do in the wake of Pablo Lopez's need for TJ. This late in the winter, though, I'm wondering if a guy couldn't get more of a return closer to the deadline. Your thoughts?

Sam

  • Hey Steve, thanks as always for the chat! What avenue do you see the Twins taking to address the Pablo replacement while he recovers? Sign Giolito/Littell/Scherzer/another FA, acquire a seasoned innings eater via trade, or work with what they have?

Steve Adams

  • Lots and lots of Twins questions post-Pablo
  • For starters, no they're not going to trade Ryan now. Demand is down -- though teams would still want him -- and Tom Pohlad has done nothing but talk about how he wants to be aggressive and win now since he took over the executive chair position. They're not going to be good (unless about 15 different things break their way), but it's pretty hard for an owner to pull that kind of about-face when his whole schtick so far has been "I'm going to be accountable, answer tough questions and win back the fans."I don't think that's going to happen, but I don't see any way they trade Ryan before Opening Day. Deadline? Sure. But not before then.
  • Ditto Buxton on all that
  • I do think there's a realistic chance the Twins give a one-year deal to Giolito or Littell. I guess they could throw a year at Tyler Anderson to bring in some cheaper, fairly durable innings as well.There aren't many teams left with much budget space, but the Twins made a late run at Framber Valdez, so Pohlad clearly isn't married to the payroll staying at its $108MM-ish current level. It wouldn't be exciting, but his comments keep saying he wants to show the fans they'll try and be aggressive under his watch, well ... Gio/Littell is about the closest he can come at this point.
  • Even before the report on the Jays/Scherzer picking up talks, there was no way Max was signing in Minnesota. He wants a clear win-now contender.

Tribefan528

  • Is it inevitable that Agustin Ramirez moves to 1B? How does his bat project at dh/1b?

Steve Adams

  • Guys make crazy improvements all the time, but Ramirez would need seismic gains behind the plate to stay at catcher. He had one of the worst defensive seasons ever for a catcher... -14 DRS and -12 FRV per Statcast -- in only 605 innings!Even if you don't like/trust modern metrics, he had an 8.8% caught-stealing rate and allowed NINETEEN passed balls in 605 frames. Plus 36 wild pitches!
  • He has enough power to be a 1B/DH, but he undercuts that power by chasing too much ... if you're going to be a RH 1B/DH, you need more than a 6% walk rate.
  • He's only 24, but last season was pretty rough in all aspects, other than ripping 21 homers in 536 PAs.

john

  • Why has Giolito to Atl not happened yet?

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Orioles Claim Bryan Ramos

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2:36pm: The Orioles have formally announced the Ramos waiver claim. Bautista was indeed moved to the 60-day IL to open a spot on the 40-man roster, which remains at capacity.

12:50pm: The Orioles have acquired infielder Bryan Ramos from the Cardinals, reports Francys Romero of BeisbolFR. This is a waiver claim and not a trade, reports Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner. The Cards designated Ramos for assignment earlier this week when they claimed Zak Kent off waivers. Baltimore will need to open a 40-man roster spot but could easily do so by moving Félix Bautista to the 60-day injured list, since he is slated to miss most of the upcoming season.

This is the second time this month that the O’s have acquired Ramos. The White Sox designated him for assignment in late January and Baltimore sent cash considerations to Chicago to get him on February 1st. Five days later, the Orioles tried to pass Ramos through waivers but the Cards claimed him.

It may seem odd to trade for a player and put him on waivers almost immediately but the Orioles are the most aggressive club in trying to pass players through waivers to keep them as non-roster depth. There’s no 60-day injured list from five days after the World Series until pitchers and catchers report to spring training, so the O’s tried to get him through before other teams got some extra roster spots. The Cards intervened but now the Orioles have grabbed Ramos a second time.

When Ramos was first on the Baltimore roster, his path to playing time with the O’s wasn’t great. He has primarily been a third baseman in his career, with a bit of experience at second base, first base and left field as well. Baltimore’s infield was slated to include Jordan Westburg, Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday and Pete Alonso from left to right, with several corner outfielders on the roster as well. The O’s acquired Blaze Alexander in early February to serve as depth all over.

But the infield has quickly taken a few significant blows in the early days of spring training. Holliday suffered a hamate fracture and will start the season on the injured list. Westburg has a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow. He is trying to avoid surgery for now but is going to miss time regardless and could still end up under the knife in the future.

With those injuries, half the infield is now up in the air. Coby Mayo may ultimately take over the third base job but his defense there has been questionable enough that he spent more time at first base last year. Alexander could move from a bench role into the regular second base job while Holliday is out.

Ramos is out of options. He could perhaps give the O’s a bit of extra infield depth on the bench while they sort out the injury situation. They could also bring in further reinforcements and squeeze Ramos to the waiver wire again in the future. For now, he has a roster spot and is in the mix for a big league bench job alongside Jeremiah Jackson and non-roster invitees like Jose Barrero and Luis Vázquez.

During his time with the White Sox, Ramos was a notable prospect. Over the 2022 and 2023 seasons, he slashed .265/.346/.453 on the farm for 116 wRC+, getting as high as Double-A. But his stock has dipped since then. He hit .228/.314/.392 in the minors over the past two years, mostly at Triple-A, with that performance translating to an 82 wRC+. He has also produced a tepid .198/.244/.333 line in his major league plate appearances.

Ramos has exhausted his option status, so his recent struggles have pushed him to a fringe roster position. If he can carve out a role in Baltimore’s injury-battered infield, he can be controlled for six full seasons before reaching free agency.

Photo courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images

Blue Jays In Talks With Max Scherzer

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The Blue Jays have maintained some interest in Max Scherzer throughout the winter, and talks between the two sides have become more serious over the past week, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. There’s no deal in place, and there are still other clubs hoping to sign the future Hall of Famer, but Toronto has apparently hastened its efforts to get the three-time Cy Young winner back to the Rogers Centre.

Scherzer, 41, spent the 2025 season with the Jays after signing a one-year, $15.5MM deal in free agency last winter. Repeated injuries pertaining to his thumb and a nerve in his right arm limited him to 85 big league innings in the regular season, during which he posted a career-worst 5.19 ERA. However, Scherzer still fanned a roughly average 22.9% of opponents against a tidy 6.4% walk rate. His 10.7% swinging-strike rate was down about three ticks from his career mark but was closely aligned with the 11% league average.

Much of the damage against Scherzer came in one nightmare start, where he surrendered seven runs in two-thirds of an inning in his penultimate appearance of the season. He had a 4.48 ERA across his other 16 starts. Obviously, any pitcher looks better if you toss out his worst appearance of a season, and even that 4.48 mark isn’t great, but Scherzer was at least serviceable for much of the season and looked better in the playoffs, when he made three starts and posted a 3.77 ERA in 14 1/3 innings.

The Jays already have ample rotation depth. Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease, Trey Yesavage, Jose Berrios and KBO returnee Cody Ponce will open the season in the rotation, health permitting. Righty Shane Bieber is back on a one-year deal after forgoing free agency in favor of picking up his $16MM player option, but he’ll open the season on the injured list due to some forearm fatigue. The team is framing that as a matter of precaution after Bieber pitched 88 innings and worked deep into the postseason in his return from Tommy John surgery, but it’s still a notable development — as is the fact that one of the team’s top depth options, Bowden Francis, will miss the year due to Tommy John surgery.

With Toronto’s rotation depth taking those two hits in the past 10 days, it’s understandable if they’ve ramped up their efforts to bring in some further depth. An exact plan remains to be seen, assuming a deal comes together, that is. Nicholson-Smith suggests the Jays could possibly ease Scherzer up with a slow build, eyeing a season debut in late April or early May.

Price point will matter on any deal for Scherzer, particularly if the idea is for him to be on a slow progression early in the season. The Jays are in the top tier of luxury penalization and are exceeding the base threshold for a third straight season. They’ll pay a 110% tax on whatever money is paid out to Scherzer, which is a notable consideration for a team that’s already in line to establish a new franchise-record payroll by more than $30MM.

Still, there’s good reason to consider the depth in spite of the resulting tax bill. With Francis out for the season and Bieber opening on the IL, the sixth starter is Eric Lauer, who enjoyed a resurgent year with the Jays in 2025. He’ll open in a swing role, barring another injury to the top five arms, but depth options thereafter are murky.

Former top prospect Ricky Tiedemann should be healthy but hasn’t pitched since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024 — a season in which he totaled only 17 1/3 innings. Prospect Adam Macko struggled with poor command and posted an ERA over 5.00 in Triple-A last year. Righty Lazaro Estrada made his big league debut last year but was hit hard in 7 1/3 frames and logged a 5.73 ERA in the minors. Righties Angel Bastardo and Spencer Miles are also on the 40-man roster but are subject to Rule 5 restrictions. Bastardo was selected in 2024 but missed the 2025 season recovering from Tommy John surgery. He can’t be optioned to Triple-A before spending 90 days on the active roster. It’ll be hard for the Jays to carry either. Non-roster options in camp include Yariel Rodriguez, whom the Jays passed through waivers in December, and journeymen Connor Seabold and Michael Plassmeyer.

It’s not an especially deep or appealing set of depth options, and if Bieber winds up missing more time than expected and/or the Jays incur another injury on the big league staff, the depth will be tested in a hurry. In that sense, whether it’s a one-year reunion with Scherzer or a non-roster deal for a veteran like Anthony DeSclafani, bringing in some additional depth would be prudent for the Jays.

Which Clubs Could Provide A Landing Spot For The Top Remaining Starters?

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Every offseason, at least a handful of free agents linger on the market well into spring training. At times, that's been true even of the top names on the market. Bryce Harper and Manny Machado both signed their free agent contracts in February. Blake Snell, Matt Chapman and Jordan Montgomery all signed contracts in March during the 2023-24 offseason.

Things are a bit different this winter. The very top names among this year's crop of free agents have all come off the board. Framber Valdez and, to a lesser extent, Zac Gallen were the remaining big-ticket items on the market before signing in Detroit and Arizona, respectively.

Though there's no marquee superstar left unsigned, there are still some good starters on the board. Lucas Giolito, Zack Littell and Max Scherzer top the remaining group. In Scherzer's case, it's not entirely clear whether he'll sign prior to Opening Day. Scherzer is healthy and ready to sign at any time, but he told The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal late last month that he's being selective with his next home and would be content to wait to sign midseason if an opportunity on one of his preferred teams does not present itself. It stands to reason that Scherzer prefers a clear win-now club with realistic postseason aspirations. Any preferences beyond that -- be they geographic, monetary or otherwise -- are personal preferences that he has not divulged.

Giolito and Littell, however, are ready-made mid-rotation starters who, unlike their quadragenarian free agent counterpart, seemingly aren't lingering as a means of personal preference. Each has his flaws, certainly, but there's little doubt that either is a big league-caliber starter and that there are teams around the game who'd benefit from adding them to the rotation.

Let's take a look at each pitcher and which teams might have the remaining budget space and/or rotation need to make a play.

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Jordan Westburg Diagnosed With Partial UCL Tear

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Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg has been diagnosed with a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, president of baseball operations Mike Elias announced to reporters this morning (via Jake Rill of MLB.com). For now, Westburg will not undergo surgery. He’ll receive a platelet-rich plasma injection today in hopes of avoiding an internal brace or Tommy John procedure, either of which would sideline him for the majority or entirety of the year. Westburg will miss at least the month of April. A further timetable will hinge on how well the PRP injection works.

Given the timing of the injury, it makes sense that Westburg would opt for an injection, rest and rehab rather than immediately going under the knife. The recovery timetable for position players coming back from UCL surgery is shorter than for pitchers but still tends to take at least six months just to return as a designated hitter, though timelines vary depending on whether a full reconstruction (Tommy John surgery) or a less-invasive repair (internal brace) is required.

For instance, Bryce Harper had Tommy John surgery in Nov. 2022 and was on the field as a DH about five and a half months later. Trevor Story had an internal brace procedure in Jan. 2023 and made it back to the field as a shortstop seven months later. Every injury is different, and we don’t know the extent of the tear with which Westburg is dealing. Based on some recent precedents like Harper and Story, immediate surgery would probably have resulted in a best-case scenario of Westburg returning as a DH in August, with a chance of playing some third base very late in the regular season.

Of course, there’s also the strong possibility that undergoing surgery right now cost Westburg the entirety of the 2026 campaign. If the O’s and the medical experts with which Westburg consulted feel that was the likely outcome and that he’d be be sidelined until next spring anyhow, then this is a logical course of action. By going the PRP route, Westburg gives himself the best chance of being available for a decent chunk of the 2026 season — and if he has to undergo surgery in May, he’ll still be expected to be ready for next year’s spring training.

Elias detailed (via Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner) that Westburg felt elbow discomfort while throwing during his rehab from the oblique injury that he was already known to have. Imaging revealed a partial tear in his elbow, which doctors now believe to have been there for some time. There’s no telling right now whether the PRP will prove sufficient, but Elias suggested that Westburg could return as a designated hitter first if the injection looks to be taking hold.

Even if Westburg “only” misses a couple months of the season rather than the entire year, it’s still a critical loss for Baltimore. The O’s will already be without second baseman Jackson Holliday on Opening Day following his recent surgery to address a hamate fracture, so they’ll be down 50% of their starting infield.

Westburg, 27, has been a well-rounded, productive player ever since debuting in 2023. He’s a career .264/.312/.456 hitter with 38 homers, 53 doubles and eight triples in 1027 career plate appearances. Injuries have far too frequently kept him off the field, however. He’s missed time due to a broken hand, a pair of hamstring strains and an ankle sprain in his two-plus seasons at the MLB level. He’s yet to top 107 games in a big league season, and today’s injury revelation casts some major doubt on whether he’ll be able to further that career-high mark in 2026.

With Westburg and Holliday both shelved, the Orioles’ Opening Day infield will have quite a different look than expected. Former top prospect Coby Mayo has been focusing his offseason and spring work on third base and figures to open the season there in place of Westburg. Trade acquisition Blaze Alexander can handle third base if Mayo struggles considerably, but he’s also one of the lead options to open the season at second base in place of Holliday. Utilityman Jeremiah Jackson could log time at either position.

It’s also feasible that the Orioles could bring in some veteran infield depth. Old friends Ramón Urías, Jose Iglesias and Emmanuel Rivera remain unsigned, as do veteran utility options like Luis Urías (Ramon’s younger brother) and Jon Berti. Spring training always leads to the placement of a few dozen players on waivers, as non-roster veterans or prospects make their clubs and are selected to the 40-man roster with their current team. Some of those non-roster vets who don’t make the cut with their current club could opt out or be granted their release later in camp, which could give Baltimore other options to consider.

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