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Angels To Re-Sign Yoan Moncada

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The Angels are reportedly in agreement with Yoán Moncada on a one-year deal. It’s a $4MM guarantee for the client of The Movement Baseball. The Angels have an opening on the 40-man roster and will not need to make a corresponding move to finalize the contract.

Moncada is back for a second season with the Halos. It’s a similar contract to the $5MM deal that he signed last February. Moncada played reasonably well when healthy but missed a third of the season to a pair of injured list stints. A right thumb sprain and inflammation in his right knee kept him out of action for the majority of the first half. He only played in 36 games before the All-Star Break, though he was available for the entire second half.

The 30-year-old Moncada put together a .234/.336/.448 showing across 289 plate appearances. He connected on 12 home runs and drew walks at a strong 11.1% rate while striking out a little more than a quarter of the time. It was a typical Moncada season — solid power and on-base skills with lots of strikeouts and a couple injury absences.

Moncada was once the top prospect in MLB. He had a couple star-level performances with the White Sox in 2019 and ’21 but didn’t become the franchise player they expected when they signed him to a $70MM extension in Spring Training 2020. Moncada combined for a .234/.288/.386 batting line between 2022-23. He barely played in ’24 because of a serious adductor (groin) strain, and the White Sox had an easy call to buy him out for $5MM instead of a $25MM club option.

A switch-hitter, Moncada has been better from the left side of the plate over his career. The Angels used mostly in a platoon capacity last year, as he only took 27 plate appearances against southpaws. He’ll get the majority of playing time at third base but could cede some at-bats against lefties, with righty-hitting Vaughn Grissom and Denzer Guzman options for at-bats.

Grissom, acquired from the Red Sox in a buy-low trade at the Winter Meetings, is a better fit at second base. The Angels are likely to give former first-round pick Christian Moore another look at the keystone, but he struggled to a .198/.284/.370 line in his first 53 MLB games. Moore has only 30 games of Triple-A experience and could need more time in the minors. Grissom is out of options and will be on the big league roster in some capacity. Former top prospect Oswald Peraza is also out of options but seems less assured to avoid landing on waivers out of Spring Training.

The Angels have signed five MLB free agent contracts this offseason, all via one-year deals. Kirby Yates, Drew Pomeranz, Jordan Romano and Alek Manoah came aboard for $5MM or less. They’ve spent a combined $16.95MM this offseason without making any moves that extend beyond 2026. RosterResource now calculates their payroll around $180MM, about $13MM south of where they opened the ’25 season. They still need to add at least one starter and would ideally upgrade in center field, where Josh Lowe, Bryce Teodosio and Wade Meckler are the top options.

Francys Romero first reported the agreement. Jon Heyman of The New York Post had the $4MM guarantee. Image courtesy of Peter Aiken, Imagn Images.

Mets, Brewers In Conversations About Freddy Peralta

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The Mets and Brewers are in discussions about star right-hander Freddy Peralta, according to reports from Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated and Jon Heyman of The New York Post. There’s no deal in place, but The Post’s Joel Sherman characterizes talks as “serious.” Ragazzo adds that middle infield/center field prospect Jett Williams has come up in conversations.

This morning, Michael Marino reported that Milwaukee was looking to acquire Williams and rookie right-hander Brandon Sproat in a Peralta deal. According to Marino, the Mets rebuffed earlier interest from the Brew Crew in top pitching prospect Jonah Tong. Meanwhile, Sherman adds that swingman Tobias Myers would likely head from Milwaukee to Queens if a deal gets across the finish line.

Peralta has been a top target for teams in need of rotation help. He’s coming off a fifth place Cy Young finish behind 176 2/3 innings of 2.70 ERA ball. The Mets have been in the rotation market all offseason but haven’t been keen on making long-term free agent commitments. President of baseball operations David Stearns reiterated this morning that he still hoped to add a starter (link via Jorge Castillo of ESPN).

Braves Sign Tayler Scott, Tristin English To Minor League Deals

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The Braves signed right-handers Javy Guerra and Blayne Enlow to minor league contracts (h/t to Baseball America’s Matt Eddy). They also added first baseman Tristin English and reliever Tayler Scott on minor league deals last month, according to the MLB.com transaction log.

Scott, 33, is a well-traveled righty who made 24 appearances between the Astros and Diamondbacks last year. He struggled to a 7.90 earned run average over 27 1/3 innings. The South Africa-born pitcher is only a year removed from firing 68 2/3 frames of 2.23 ERA ball with Houston. He carries a 5.51 mark with a 21.2% strikeout percentage and 12.2% walk rate over parts of five MLB campaigns.

Guerra returns to affiliated ball after two seasons in Japan. The 30-year-old infielder turned reliever was employed by the Hanshin Tigers from 2024-25. Guerra pitched to a 1.55 ERA across 59 appearances two seasons ago. He nevertheless spent most of last year with the Tigers’ minor league affiliate, only pitching 4 2/3 innings at the NPB level. The Panamanian-born Guerra has a big arm but has struggled to throw strikes since making the mid-career move to pitching.

English, a 28-year-old first baseman, played seven games for the Diamondbacks last year. He went 2-22 with a walk and eight strikeouts. English had a good season for Arizona’s Triple-A affiliate, batting .324/.368/.524 with 16 homers across 428 plate appearances. That was better than average production even at a hitter’s paradise in Reno. English has good contact skills and reasonable power, but he’s prone to expanding the strike zone. The deal with the Braves is a homecoming for the Georgia Tech product, who’ll likely open the season at Triple-A Gwinnett.

Enlow, 27 in March, is a former third-round pick who was once a well-regarded prospect in the Minnesota system. The 6’3″ righty pitched well through Double-A but hit a wall at the Triple-A level. Enlow signed a minor league deal with the Giants going into 2024 but suffered a season-ending injury after two starts, then missed all of last season. He’s a pure depth add for the rotation who is still looking to reach the majors for the first time.

Tigers To Sign Phil Bickford To Minor League Deal

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The Tigers and right-hander Phil Bickford have agreed to a minor league deal, reports Evan Woodbery of MLive Media Group. The Klutch Sports client will presumably be in big league camp in spring training.

Bickford, 30, is coming off a couple of years in the wilderness but had some decent major league results prior to that. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 179 2/3 innings in the big leagues, allowing 4.26 earned runs per nine. His 9.5% walk rate was a bit on the high side but he struck out 26.6% of batters faced.

He finished the 2023 season on the Mets’ roster and qualified for arbitration as a Super Two player. He and the Mets couldn’t agree on a salary and went to a hearing with a tiny separation. Bickford filed at $900K and the team at $815K.

Bickford’s side won the hearing but it may have cost him his roster spot. Under the current collective bargaining agreement, arbitration salaries are not guaranteed if they are the result of a hearing. A little more than a month after Bickford’s win, he was designated for assignment and released. The Mets had to pay him about $217K in termination pay.

He then signed a minor league deal with the Yankees. He had some brief looks on that club’s roster, which is his only major league action of the past two years. He allowed eight earned runs in 8 1/3 innings. He spent 2025 with the Cubs and Phillies on minor league deals.

Even though he hasn’t seen a lot of major league action over the past couple of campaigns, his work on the farm has been strong. He has thrown 96 1/3 Triple-A innings since the start of 2024 with a 3.46 ERA, 29.3% strikeout rate and 8.4% walk rate.

For the Tigers, there’s no risk in bringing Bickford aboard via a non-roster pact. They can get a close-up look at him and see if there’s room for him on the roster at some point. Their current bullpen has a decent amount of fluidity. Kenley Jansen and Kyle Finnegan are the only two guys in the mix who can’t be optioned to the minors. If Bickford eventually gets a roster spot, he is out of options but can also be retained for future seasons via arbitration.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Sousa, Imagn Images

Braves Sign Sean Reid-Foley To Minor League Deal

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The Braves have signed right-hander Sean Reid-Foley to a minor league contract, as first indicated on the MLB.com transaction log. There’s no invitation to major league camp on the righty’s deal.

The 30-year-old Reid-Foley was a second-round pick by the Blue Jays back in 2014 and ranked as a well-regarded pitching prospect for a couple years early in his pro career. He’s shown huge swing-and-miss ability but also persistent command troubles — all amid ongoing injury problems. Most notably, he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022, which wiped out more than a calendar year. Reid-Foley also had multiple stints on the injured list due to a shoulder impingement in 2024.

In 131 2/3 innings at the major league level, Reid-Foley has posted a 4.10 earned run average while punching out 25.6% of his opponents. His strikeout numbers spiked in 2023-24, in particular, as he fanned nearly one-third of his opponents (backed by a 13.5% swinging-strike rate) — albeit in a small sample of 29 1/3 innings. His workload during those two seasons was cut short by that Tommy John rehab and the subsequent shoulder impingement.

Reid-Foley split the 2025 season between the D-backs and Mets organizations, pitching exactly 14 innings for each club’s Triple-A affiliate. He struggled considerably. In last year’s 28 frames, Reid-Foley was roughed up for a 7.07 ERA thanks to a glut of both home runs and walks.

Command has long been an issue for Reid-Foley. Even as he’s piled up big strikeout totals and rates in prior seasons, he’s struggled to keep runners off base due to his lack of precision. The 6’3″, 230-pound righty has walked a bloated 14.2% of his major league opponents and had similar struggles in parts of six seasons at Triple-A, where his career 13.7% walk rate is only marginally better than his major league rate.

With Atlanta, Reid-Foley doesn’t have a clear path to the majors — and wouldn’t even if he had a big league invite on his deal — given the Braves’ crowded, very veteran bullpen. He’ll be slated to open the season with Triple-A Gwinnett and could emerge as an option later in the year if the Braves incur injuries in the majors and/or if he can bounce back from last year’s dismal Triple-A results.

Mets Designate Tsung-Che Cheng For Assignment

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The Mets announced today that infielder Tsung-Che Cheng has been designated for assignment. That is the corresponding move to open a 40-man spot for right-hander Luis García, whose signing is now official.

Cheng, 24, has never played for the Mets. He has only ever played in the Pirates’ system but he has been making the transactional rounds this offseason. Pittsburgh designated him for assignment in December. He went to the Rays and then the Mets via waivers.

His major league track record is quite limited so far. He made seven plate appearances with the Pirates last year. He struck out three times and was only able to reach base once, which was due to an error.

The minor league work offers more encouragement and an explanation as to why so many teams have shown interest this offseason. He has extensive experience at the two middle infield positions and has played a decent amount of third base as well, with strong reviews for his glovework on the whole.

His offense has been less consistent. In 2023, splitting his time between High-A and Double-A, he had a 9.7% walk rate, 18.7% strikeout rate, .278/.352/.456 line and 116 wRC+. But over the past two seasons, he has a combined .217/.319/.312 line and a wRC+ of 81.

Cheng is still fairly young and has an option remaining. His ability to cover shortstop makes him an intriguing depth piece, even if his offense stays a bit light. Any kind of step forward with the bat is a potential bonus.

It might seem odd for a team to claim a player and then quickly cut him but this kind of sequence is becoming more common. The team is usually hoping the player clears waivers the next time, so that he can be kept without using a roster spot. The Mets themselves already did this once this winter, claiming Ji Hwan Bae and later outrighting him to the minors. Cheng doesn’t have a previous career outright nor does he have three years of service time, so he wouldn’t have the right to elect free agency if he were outrighted.

With Cheng, they will have a week of DFA limbo to work with. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so they could hold him for five days and field trade interest. They could also put him on the wire sooner than that if they so choose.

Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images

Mets Sign Luis García

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3:55pm: The Mets have now officially announced the Garcia signing. Infielder Tsung-Che Cheng was designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

2:40pm: García has passed his physical, MLBTR has learned.

1:02pm: The Mets and veteran right-handed reliever Luis García are in agreement on a contract, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. It’s a one-year, $1.75MM major league deal that can be worth up to $3MM after incentives, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The deal is pending a physical. García is represented by agents Larry Reynolds, Rosie-Lopez Herrera and Noah Herrera.

García, 39 next week, is a veteran of 13 big league seasons who’s pitched for eight clubs to this point in his career. He sports a lifetime 4.07 earned run average but has pitched better than that in the latter stages of his career; dating back to 2021, he carries a 3.86 ERA with even better marks from metrics like SIERA (3.55) and FIP (3.45). García split the 2025 season between the Dodgers, Nationals and Angels, combining for a 3.42 ERA. His strikeout rate (20.6%) and walk rate (11.2%) were both worse than average, but he induced grounders at a strong 49.7% clip and averaged just under 97 mph on his sinker.

While García almost certainly won’t sustain a minuscule 0.33 HR/9 mark and 4.7% homer-to-flyball ratio moving forward, there’s a good chance he can improve on last year’s command. He entered the 2025 season with a 7.8% walk rate across the four prior seasons, making last year’s 11.2% clip somewhat uncharacteristic. García’s roughly average swinging-strike and opponents’ chase rates would support a modest bump in strikeouts as well, though he’s now turned in a below-average strikeout rate in three consecutive seasons.

The Mets have now added three free agent relievers to the bullpen this winter, although García’s contract is obviously on a much smaller scale than those of presumptive closer Devin Williams (three years, $51MM) and top setup man Luke Weaver (two years, $22MM). García will slot into the middle-relief mix and figures to work lower-leverage situations than Williams, Weaver, A.J. Minter and Brooks Raley, although with 17 career saves and 117 holds, he’s no stranger to high-pressure settings.

With the Mets already in the top tier of luxury penalization, García’s $1.75MM base salary will actually cost the team $3.675MM. The additional $1.25MM worth of incentives, if unlocked in full, would cost the club a total of $2.625MM. Of course, if he maxes out his incentive package, it’ll likely because he’s pitched well enough to make the end-of-day $6.3MM price point well worth the cost.

Poll: Have The Mets Done Enough To Retool Their Lineup?

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Last night, the Mets officially announced their recent deal with star infielder Bo Bichette and swung a trade for former All-Star Luis Robert Jr. to patrol center field for the team this year. Those moves are the latest in what’s turned into a major overhaul of the Mets’ offense coming off a disappointing 83-win campaign that saw them miss the playoffs in Juan Soto’s first season under club control. Franchise stalwarts Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo, and Jeff McNeil departed the club and a group of new faces have been brought in. It’s a bold decision by president of baseball operations David Stearns to overhaul the offense so dramatically when the team’s 112 wRC+ was good for fifth-best in the majors last season.

The club also missed out on Kyle Tucker and haven’t yet managed to secure a front-of-the-rotation arm. Those developments have left some fans frustrated with the team headed into 2026. Spring Training is now less than a month away. While it’s certainly not impossible to make additional moves to round out the roster, there’s a chance the biggest moves are now done. If the collection of position players the Mets have now is what they’ll enter the 2026 campaign with, how does it compare to the group they put forward last year?

Both lineups will have the one-two punch of Francisco Lindor at shortstop and Soto in right field to kick things off. Things start to get significantly different from there, though. Alonso’s 141 wRC+ is difficult to replace, and no player the Mets have added so far figures to put up a gaudy number like that this year. Bichette (134 wRC+) and Jorge Polanco (132 wRC+) have both come into the mix on the heels of strong seasons in their own rights, however, and both figure to serve as legitimate middle-of-the-order threats for the Mets this season. Neither Bichette nor Polanco figure to provide the power that Alonso offered, as he swatted 38 long balls this year. Bichette has never hit even 30 homers in his career, and Polanco last did so in 2021.

As tough as the loss of Alonso is, however, it can certainly be argued at the team’s additions lengthen the lineup overall. While neither Bichette or Polanco offers quite the same offensive impact as Alonso, both were fair superior to Brandon Nimmo (115 wRC+) and Jeff McNeil (111 wRC+) last season. Marcus Semien (89 wRC+) and Robert (84 wRC+) weren’t at that level, but both are coming off injury-marred campaigns in 2025 and could see their numbers tick back up towards league average with better health. In the case of Robert, however, even a repeat of last year would be a substantial improvement for the Mets relative to what they got out of center field last year. The team’s center fielders (primarily Tyrone Taylor and Cedric Mullins) combined for a wRC+ of 71 with just 0.7 fWAR. That makes Robert a likely upgrade even if he can’t get close to the All-Star form he flashed back in 2023, when he posted a 129 wRC+ and 4.9 fWAR in 145 games.

Health for both Semien and Robert figures to be key to a successful Mets lineup this year, but perhaps the biggest wild card is how the team’s young talent will perform. All indications suggest that, if another move isn’t made, top outfield prospect Carson Benge will get a clear shot at regular playing time for the Mets in the outfield. Meanwhile, Brett Baty will be looking to build on a successful 2025 season while likely spending time at first base and DH alongside Polanco, and Francisco Alvarez will try to replicate last season’s monster second half across the full year. Versatile prospect Jett Williams also figures to play a role for the team at some point this year, though when that will be (and where on the diamond he’ll wind up playing) remains to be seen.

Assuming a big trade like Jarren Duran isn’t coming down the pipeline to change the look of New York’s offense, how do MLBTR readers think the Mets’ lineup will fare in 2026? Will they be able to match last season’s production? Could they exceed it? Or will they come up short and be a less productive offense than the one Alonso helped lead last year? Have your say in the poll below:

Cubs, Trent Thornton Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Cubs have agreed to a deal with right-hander Trent Thornton, as first announced on Instagram by his trainers at Tread Athletics. It’s a minor league deal with a non-roster invitation to spring training, MLBTR has learned.

Thornton, a Wasserman client, has pitched in parts of seven big league seasons, all coming between the Blue Jays and Mariners. The 32-year-old had more success with the latter, pitching to a combined 3.65 ERA in 140 2/3 frames from 2023-25. Thornton was sitting on a 4.68 ERA in 42 1/3 innings this past season, his numbers still recovering from a five-run meltdown early in the season, when he suffered a torn Achilles that ended his season.

Tread’s announcement on the deal noted that Thornton is “ahead of schedule” in his rehab from that season-ending injury. A source tells MLBTR he’s full-go off the mound already and will be healthy for spring training.

Thornton began his career as a starter with the Jays, taking the ball 29 times and tossing 154 1/3 innings as a rookie in 2019. He struggled in 2020 and was moved to the bullpen the following season. After a couple years of middling numbers in Toronto’s bullpen, Thornton landed in Seattle and turned his career around. He logged a 2.08 ERA with solid rate stats in 26 innings during the 2023 season and then tossed 72 1/3 innings with a 3.61 ERA the following season.

During that 2024 season, Thornton sat 95.5 mph with his heater but leaned far more heavily on a mid-80s slider, tossing it at a near-52% clip. Overall, during his Mariners stint, Thornton fanned 22.5% of opponents against a 6.6% walk rate. His 39.7% ground-ball rate was a bit lower than average.

Thornton won’t be guaranteed a spot in the Chicago ’pen but will hope to follow the Brad Keller model, parlaying a non-roster deal into a relief job and a hearty free-agent contract next winter. The bullpen at Wrigley Field has become more crowded after offseason signings of Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, Hunter Harvey and Jacob Webb, as well as the re-signings of Colin Rea and Caleb Thielbar. Those six, along with holdover Daniel Palencia, will comprise the majority of Chicago’s bullpen. Thornton could compete for the final spot and, with a good showing in spring (or early in the Triple-A season) could be one of the first names up in the event of an injury.

Cardinals Hire Yadier Molina As Special Assistant

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The Cardinals announced today that franchise legend Yadier Molina has been hired as special assistant to president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. His duties will be focused on catching and game planning strategy.

“We are happy to welcome Yadi back to the Cardinals organization,” said Bloom in a statement, as relayed by John Denton of MLB.com. “He is an elite competitor, a consistent winner, and one of the greatest ever at his position, and we look forward to many contributions during his visits with us in this new role, both in and out of uniform. Yadi will provide input on our catching program, will advise our staff on catching and game planning strategy, and will give me and our front office valuable perspective from his unique vantage point. Perhaps most important, he will help us nurture in our players the high standards, attention to detail, and championship mindset that are so critical to winning.”

Fans in the St. Louis area are well familiar with Molina and his many accolades. He played for the Cardinals for nearly 20 years, beginning in 2004 and sticking around through 2022. His offense was up-and-down over his career but great at his peak. Even when his bat was on the lighter side, he provided value with his defense and intangible abilities as a team leader. Along the way, he made ten All-Star teams, won nine Gold Gloves and helped the Cards win titles in 2006 and 2011.

Due to those leadership qualities, he has long been seen as a future coach or manager, and he has expressed a desire to pursue those jobs. He has gained some managerial experience in a few Latin American leagues. He also managed the Puerto Rican team in the 2023 World Baseball Classic and is slated to do the same for this year’s version.

He and the Cards have previously broached the subject of him returning to the organization for a dugout role with them. Per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, family commitments have been an obstacle to him taking on a full-time gig so far. Perhaps that will come to fruition in the future. For now, Molina will help the club in this role.

The Cards are in a rebuilding phase where they will be focusing on developing young players. That includes a cluster of catchers including Iván Herrera, Pedro Pagés, Yohel Pozo, Leonardo Bernal, Jimmy Crooks, Rainiel Rodriguez and others. Molina will presumably be working closely with those guys as they try to absorb some of what made him such a great backstop during his career. If he does eventually commit to a coaching job in the future, the building of relationships with those catchers will have a head-start.

Photo courtesy of Jake Roth, Imagn Images

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