Latest On Wander Franco’s Legal Proceedings
Rays shortstop Wander Franco‘s retrial reached a verdict yesterday, with Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times among those to cover the details. Franco was found guilty of sexual and psychological abuse of a minor but will not serve prison time because the three-judge panel ruled that he was both a defendant and a victim in the case. He was given a judicial pardon which exempts him from punishment but the conviction stands. The minor’s mother was sentenced to ten years for money laundering and threats of exposure. The full verdict with more details will be read in court on the morning of June 16th.
It’s a similar result to the previous trial, which concluded in June of last year. At that time, Franco was found guilty. He received a two-year suspended sentence and would only have to serve the sentence if he didn’t meet certain conditions. The minor’s mother was found guilty of trafficking her daughter and sentenced to ten years. Both sides appealed and a new trial was ordered. Once again, the victim’s mother has received a ten-year sentence while Franco has been found guilty but is not expected to serve prison time.
“We are aware of today’s verdict in the Wander Franco trial and will conclude our investigation at the appropriate time,” Major League Baseball said in a statement late Monday afternoon.
“The Tampa Bay Rays are aware of today’s ruling in the Dominican Republic involving Wander Franco,” the team said in a statement. “We respect the legal process and the decision issued by the court. This is a serious matter, and our thoughts remain with those affected by the case. The Rays will continue to cooperate fully with Major League Baseball as it completes its review under the league’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. Out of respect for the legal process and all parties involved, we will have no further comment at this time.”
In August of 2023, investigators in the D.R. began looking into accusations that the Rays shortstop had engaged in a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl while he was 21. The age of consent in that country is 18. In July of 2024, Franco was formally charged with sexual abuse and sexual exploitation against a minor, as well as human trafficking. In September of last year, it was reported that the case would proceed to trial.
Major League Baseball placed Franco on administrative leave in August last year when the accusations first emerged, standard procedure for players who are being investigated under the joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. He was reinstated for the offseason in a procedural move but placed back on administrative leave when the 2024 campaign began. He was moved to the restricted list in July of 2024 when he was formally charged, at which point he was no longer receiving big league pay or service time.
Throughout the proceedings, accusations had also emerged against the girl’s mother, that she received payments from Franco worth thousands of dollars to remain silent about her daughter’s abuse.
Back in 2021, Franco and the Rays signed an 11-year, $182MM extension which was set to run through 2032. In the wake of his conviction, it’s unclear if he’ll be able to get the work visa necessary for him to return to the United States. Even if he somehow were able to get a visa, he may not be able to get back on the field. Under the aforementioned league policy, MLB can suspend players even in situations lacking a conviction. In Franco’s case, even though he may not serve time, he has been twice found guilty. The Rays haven’t been paying him for almost two years now and that will continue to be the case if he can’t get a visa or receives a suspension that keeps him on the restricted list.
Photo courtesy of Brad Penner, Imagn Images
Cole Ragans Pauses Rehab After Experiencing Elbow Stiffness
Royals left-hander Cole Ragans will be shut down from throwing for the next few days after feeling stiffness in his elbow. Kansas City’s ace went to the injured list with a left elbow impingement in early May. Ragans pitched well in a rehab outing on Saturday, but “did not recover well” from the start, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters, including Anne Rogers of MLB.com.
Ragans will take some time to see if the elbow stiffness fades before resuming his rehab. The lefty relayed to Rogers that the symptoms were similar to the pain he felt during his final big-league start before heading to the injured list. Ragans was pulled after three scoreless frames against the Guardians on May 6. He returned to the mound over the weekend, tossing 4 1/3 innings with Omaha. Ragans struck out three and had his typical fastball velocity.
The 28-year-old Ragans delivered a workhorse campaign in his first full year with Kansas City. He reached a career-high 186 1/3 innings over 32 starts in 2024. The lefty has now battled significant injury issues in each of the past two seasons.
Ragans missed three weeks with a groin strain early last year. He returned for one start in June, then went right back to the IL after straining his left rotator cuff. Ragans was knocked out of his third start of 2026 after taking a comebacker off his throwing hand. He recovered in time to make his next appearance, only to go down with the elbow issue in early May.
The stuff looks normal for Ragans this year, but the command has been out of whack. He has a massive 15.2% walk rate through 35 1/3 frames. The veteran has thrown just 60.4% of his pitches for strikes, easily a career-worst mark. Ragans piled up 12 walks in his first two starts after the hand injury, so it’s possible the comebacker was to blame for his poor control numbers. His Location+ was right at league average for one of those games, though. Ragans has an unsightly 87 Location+ for the season.
The Royals are patching together the rotation with Ragans and Kris Bubic on the shelf. The results have been solid so far. Stephen Kolek came off the IL to take Ragans’ spot. He dominated the Mariners over the weekend, tossing a complete game shutout. The righty has put together 15 1/3 scoreless innings in his past two outings. Bailey Falter and Luinder Avila are tag-teaming Bubic’s rotation spot. The pair limited the Red Sox to two earned runs over five innings last week. Falter and Avila are expected to team up against the Yankees on Tuesday.
Photo courtesy of Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images
Spencer Turnbull Signs With Mexican League Team
Veteran right-hander Spencer Turnbull has signed with Cerveceros de Tecate of the Mexican Northern League, relays Evan Woodbery of MLive.com. Turnbull made a handful of appearances with the Blue Jays last season. He closed the year in the Royals’ minor league system.
Turnbull, 33, spent parts of seven seasons in the big leagues. The majority of his time in the majors came with the Tigers. Detroit selected Turnbull with a second-round pick in the 2014 draft. He briefly debuted with the club in 2018, then emerged as a full-time member of the rotation in 2019. The righty had a sub-4.00 FIP and a 4.62 SIERA, but didn’t get much help from a Detroit squad that lost 114 games. Turnbull led the league with 17 losses that year.
After a decent performance in the shortened 2020 campaign, injuries derailed Turnbull’s career. He got off to a strong start in 2021, including a no-hitter against the Mariners, but went down with a forearm strain after nine appearances. The injury eventually required Tommy John surgery. Turnbull missed all of 2022. He came back the following season but was limited to seven starts with a neck injury.
Turnbull landed with the Phillies in 2024 after wrapping up his time in Detroit. He looked like a reliable swingman piece in the Philadelphia bullpen. The righty struck out more than a batter per inning across 54 1/3 innings, which included seven starts and 10 relief outings. He had a solid 3.80 xFIP and a 3.67 SIERA in the multi-faceted role. Turnbull’s season was cut short in late June due to a lat strain. He made three appearances for the Blue Jays last year, posting an ERA above 7.00. Turnbull had minor league stints with the Cubs and Royals before heading to Mexico.
Photo courtesy of Eric Hartline, Imagn Images
Cubs Re-Sign Ty Blach To Minor League Deal
May 26: Blach is headed back to the Cubs on a minor league deal, per MLBTR’s Steve Adams. He’ll remain with the organization as a depth option at Triple-A.
May 25: Left-hander Ty Blach has elected free agency, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He had been outrighted by the Cubs to Triple-A Iowa a few days ago but has instead exercised his right to head to the open market.
A player has the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency if he has a previous career outright or at least three years of big league service time. Blach qualifies on both counts and has exercised that right.
The Cubs signed him to a minor league deal in April. He made five Triple-A appearances, effectively stretched out as a starter. Only three of those five were officially starts but he went at least three innings each time he got the ball. He posted a 5.23 earned run average in that small sample before getting called up last week. He made one appearances for the big league squad, tossing three scoreless innings of relief in a 9-3 loss to the Brewers last Monday.
After that outing, Blach was probably going to be unavailable for a few days. Since the Cubs had Caleb Thielbar coming off the IL and Blach is out of options, the circumstances pushed Blach off the 40-man roster and now to free agency.
The 35-year-old Blach has a 5.39 ERA in his career, in 523 innings logged in 157 games. Part of that is likely due to him spending several years pitching in Coors Field as a member of the Rockies but he has also been a soft-tossing low strikeout guy. His four-seamer and sinker have averaged around 90 miles per hour in his career. He has punched out 12.9% of batters faced, barely half of the league average.
In these situations, it’s fairly common for a player to quickly re-sign with the club he was just with. However, that’s not a guarantee and Blach will have the chance to see what other opportunities may be out there for him.
Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy, Imagn Images
Cubs Designate Nicky Lopez, Promote Kevin Alcantara
May 26: Lopez has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Iowa, per his MLB.com transactions page.
May 23: The Cubs designated infielder Nicky Lopez for assignment, and called up outfielder Kevin Alcantara from Triple-A Iowa in the corresponding move. Alcantara was already on the 40-man roster and the Cubs already have an open spot on their 40-man roster, so Lopez’s DFA leaves Chicago with just 38 spots filled. 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine reported earlier today that Alcantara was present in the Cubs’ clubhouse.
After receiving 22 plate appearances in 13 MLB games over the last two seasons, Alcantara is back in the Show for another go, even if his path to playing time again seems limited. The right-handed hitting Alcantara projects to get some at-bats against southpaws, spelling either Pete Crow-Armstrong in center field or Michael Conforto at DH. Moises Ballesteros is currently the left-handed side of the DH timeshare, but since Ballesteros has only three hits in his last 55 plate appearances, he figures to lose playing time and could even be a candidate to be optioned back to Triple-A.
Because Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki are both free agents after the season, the expectation has been that Alcantara might have to wait until 2027 to get any extended looks in Chicago’s outfield. He still doesn’t turn 24 until July and he has yet to correct the swing-and-miss issues that have stood out as a red flag in the minor leagues. Granted, Alcantara has looked great when making contact, as evidenced by his 15 homers and his .247/.339/.567 slash line over 180 PA in Iowa this season. He does have 60 strikeouts within those 180 PA, and those holes in his swing may be more glaring against MLB pitching.
Lopez was acquired from the Rockies for cash considerations in late April, but he played in only four games during his month on the Cubs’ active roster. Chicago’s lineup is among the most stable in all of baseball, and Lopez joins Scott Kingery and Dylan Carlson as experienced players who have come and gone from the active roster with only a slight amount of playing time.
Once a regular in the Royals’ infield, Lopez has hit only .228/.298/.281 over 1220 PA with five different big league teams since the start of the 2022 season. He has a wealth of experience as shortstop, second baseman, and third baseman, but is little more than a depth option at this stage of his career.
It is possible another team in need of infield help could claim Lopez off waivers, but should he clear waivers and be outrighted, Lopez can decline that assignment in favor of free agency. Since Lopez has three different stints with the Cubs in 2025 alone, he might well become a free agent but then quickly re-sign with the team on a new minor league contract, since there’s obviously some connection between the two parties.
The Opener: Astros No-Hitter, Cowser, Misiorowski
Mets righty Nolan McLean hadn’t given up more than three earned runs in any start through nine outings. He’s now allowed 13 earned runs over his last two starts, after the Reds put up a touchdown on Monday. New York has lost six of seven after briefly rebounding in mid-May.
1. Astros toss combined no-hitter
Astros right-hander Tatsuya Imai and a pair of relievers worked together to no-hit the Rangers on Monday night. It was the first no-no in the big leagues since 2024. The outcome featured some improbable participants. Imai had been tagged for nine earned runs in 8 2/3 innings since coming back from a month-long stint on the IL for arm fatigue. The righty walked four, but navigated six innings for the first time as a big leaguer. After an inning from Steven Okert, it was Alimber Santa who finished the final two frames. The righty was making his MLB debut. “I never pictured myself coming in and finishing off a no-hitter,” Santa told reporters (h/t Brian McTaggart of MLB.com). “What I pictured was coming in and throwing strikes and maybe striking out one batter.”
2. Cowser does it again
The Orioles are off to a challenging start to the campaign, but the club has picked up three wins over the past four games, including two in exciting fashion. Outfielder Colton Cowser entered the weekend with just one home run all season. He came through with a three-run shot to walk off Kenley Jansen and the Tigers in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader. Cowser repeated the effort on Monday against the Rays, blasting a two-run homer to win the game in the bottom of the 13th inning. Baltimore will look to keep it going on Tuesday with Shane Baz heading to the mound against his former team.
3. Misiorowski breaks 100+ mph record
Brewers right-hander Jacob Misiorowski delivered another dazzling start on Monday, striking out 12 over seven innings in a win over the Cardinals. The lanky righty walked JJ Wetherholt to begin the game, then retired the next 15 batters. Misiorowski didn’t allow a hit until Pedro Pages led off the sixth inning with a single. He completed seven innings for the second time in three starts, capping off his outing with a strikeout of Masyn Winn that included six fastballs of 100+ mph. Misiorowski’s 57 pitches of 100+ mph easily set a record in the pitch-tracking era, which goes back to 2008 (h/t Adam McCalvy of MLB.com). “That’s what I do,” Misiorowski said. “I throw hard.”
Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images
Willson Contreras Is Thriving For The Red Sox
The 2025-26 offseason didn’t have a defining blockbuster like the Kyle Tucker trade in 2024-25 or the Juan Soto deal the winter before. However, what the trade market lacked in top-end quality, it made up for in quantity, with no shortage of big names switching teams. The Cardinals were arguably the top sellers, dealing away Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras, while the Red Sox were one of the most active buyers, picking up Gray and Contreras, along with Caleb Durbin and Johan Oviedo. It’s still too early to crown any winners of the offseason’s trades, but so far, Contreras is looking like one of the best pickups of the winter. Things aren’t going so well for the Red Sox right now, but adding the slugging first baseman is looking like one thing they definitely did right.
Through 50 games, Contreras is hitting .281 with 11 home runs and 33 RBI. His .899 OPS, .393 wOBA, and 148 wRC+ all put him among the AL’s top 10 qualified hitters. His .397 expected wOBA ranks fifth, trailing only Yordan Alvarez, Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Ben Rice. For what it’s worth, his glove has also looked sharper in his sophomore season at first base. In 2025, he finished with -1 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and a +4 Fielding Run Value (FRV). This year, he has a +3 DRS and a +4 FRV in less than half as many innings. The result of it all is 2.0 Wins Above Replacement, according to both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference. That’s All-Star-caliber production, although fellow first basemen Rice, Nick Kurtz, and Munetaka Murakami will give Contreras tough competition when it comes to making this summer’s AL All-Star squad.
All-Star or not, there is no overstating how important Contreras has been to an otherwise floundering Red Sox offense. He leads the team in home runs, RBI, Win Probability Added, OPS, wRC+, and fWAR. Red Sox Nation held its collective breath earlier this month when Nick Martinez hit Contreras on the hand with a fastball, forcing him out of the game. Luckily, Contreras avoided any sort of serious injury. On the contrary, he’s hit .349 with a 1.061 OPS and a 190 wRC+ in 11 games since. It’s safe to say his hand is feeling just fine.
Contreras has never played more than 138 games in a season or taken more than 563 trips to the plate. That’s partly because he used to be a catcher and partly because he found himself on the injured list 10 times in the first 10 years of his career. This year, he and the Red Sox are hoping he can avoid the IL entirely for the first time in a full season since 2018. If he can, he’s on track to blow past his previous career-highs in almost every counting stat category, including home runs, runs scored, and RBI. Of course, the rate stats are impressive too; his OPS, wRC+, and xwOBA would also be the best of his career. If Contreras keeps going at this pace, he’ll finish with just over 6.0 Wins Above Replacement, according to both the FanGraphs and Baseball Reference models. That would be far and away the highest total of his big league tenure.
Most players never have the privilege to say they were at their best in their mid-thirties. Indeed, in the last decade, only three position players have had a six-win season at age 34 or older, whether by fWAR or bWAR: Paul Goldschmidt in 2022, Brandon Crawford in 2021, and Adrian Beltré in 2016. Meanwhile, Crawford is the only hitter in the 21st century to have his first six-win season at age 34 or older. Contreras is hoping to join him.
Admittedly, it’s dangerous to extrapolate 50 games’ worth of production over a full season. Contreras has played at a six-win pace over his last 50 games, but the 10 seasons and 1,000-plus games he played before this year are probably more representative of his true talent. Besides, the aging curve tells us he’s much more likely to be worse at age 34 than he is to be better than ever. Yet, it’s more fun to be optimistic, and there are some pretty compelling reasons to believe Contreras can keep this up.
For one thing, he isn’t catching anymore. Hopefully, that should help him remain stronger and healthier throughout the rest of the season. The underlying offensive data is also incredibly promising. Over the first nine years of his career, Contreras had a pull-air rate of 13.3% (per Statcast). Then, in 2025, he increased his pull-air rate to nearly 20%. It was the first time in his career that he hit balls in the air to his pull side at a better-than-average rate. This season, his pull-air rate is up again. Just over a quarter of all his balls in play have been pulled in the air.
Here’s why that matters. The league-average wOBA on balls in play typically hovers around .360 to .370. When those balls in play are pulled in the air, that wOBA rises to the .730 to .740 range. What’s more, Contreras has always been particularly successful with this type of contact. His .874 career wOBA on pulled balls in the air puts him in the league’s 92nd percentile. The majority of hitters will succeed when they pull the ball in the air consistently, and Contreras can benefit more than most. His excellent numbers so far in 2026 are the proof.
What makes this development even more encouraging for Contreras is that his swing speed is still elite. Generally speaking, bat speed starts to decline precipitously when a player reaches his thirties. Those older hitters sometimes increase their pull rate, which temporarily helps to cover for their declining strength. That’s not what’s going on for Contreras, at least not in any significant way. His average bat speed on non-pulled contact is down a bit, though it’s still well above league average. Meanwhile, his bat speed on pulled contract is slightly higher than it was through May of last year (or the year before). Because he’s pulling more of his contact overall, his average swing speed is right in line with where it’s been the last two years. Out of 218 qualified swingers, only 14 have a higher average swing speed than Contreras. He may be 34, but he’s swinging like a much younger man.
Simply put, there’s no question Contreras has earned his success to date. He may not keep hitting at quite this level over the next four months, but he’s already given himself a strong head start. As long as he stays healthy, there’s a very good chance this ends up as the best season of an already highly successful career.
Images courtesy of Bob DeChiara and Jeff Curry, Imagn Images.
Astros Release Daniel Johnson
The Astros have released Daniel Johnson, according to his transaction log on MLB.com. The outfielder played in eight games for Houston and another 12 for Triple-A Sugar Land this season. He went 2-for-14 in the majors with two singles, two walks, a hit-by-pitch, and a run scored.
Drafted by the Nationals in 2016, Johnson was traded to the Guardians in 2018 and made his MLB debut for Cleveland in 2020. He has since played in parts of five seasons for the Guardians, Orioles, Giants, and Astros. In 169 career plate appearances, the lefty batter has hit .191 with five home runs and a .554 OPS. His sprint speed is elite, although he’s only 3-for-4 in stolen base attempts at the major league level. On the other side of the ball, he has looked like a solid defender in the time he’s split between all three outfield positions.
Johnson signed a minor league contract with Miami this offseason but failed to make the big league club out of spring training. The 30-year-old started the season at Triple-A Jacksonville, but the Marlins organization released him after five games. Next, he inked a minors pact with the Astros and earned a call-up shortly after, when Taylor Trammell suffered a groin strain. A couple of weeks later, he was designated for assignment in favor of Zach Cole. While Johnson elected free agency at the time, he quickly re-signed with Houston on a new minor league deal. He then spent the next two weeks with the Sugar Land Space Cowboys before his release over the weekend.
Craig Kimbrel Elects Free Agency
Craig Kimbrel has elected free agency, according to his transaction log on MLB.com. The Mets designated the right-hander for assignment last week, and he passed through outright waivers unclaimed. The nine-time All-Star is now free to look to continue his career elsewhere.
Kimbrel will turn 38 later this week, and he no longer has the dominant strikeout stuff he once possessed. His fastball, which used to touch triple digits, now averages 93.6 mph. His curveball doesn’t miss bats the way it did for so many years. While he has diversified his arsenal to try to compensate, there’s no denying that his best days are behind him. Nonetheless, he has shown a clear desire to prolong his career. Since being released by the Orioles in September 2024, he has signed deals with the Braves, Rangers, Astros, and Mets. He hasn’t been afraid to pitch in the minor leagues if it means another shot to prove he’s still worthy of the majors.
To Kimbrel’s credit, he has never stopped showing signs of promise, even if there have been more downs than ups the past few years. Despite his 5.33 ERA in 2024 and his 6.00 ERA this year with the Mets, he owns a 4.28 xERA and a 3.51 SIERA over the last three seasons, thanks to solid strikeout numbers and a continued ability to suppress hard contact. Although his present-day arsenal might look disappointing compared to his vintage self, he still has better stuff than most pitchers you’ll find in Triple-A. So, while Kimbrel might never have another chance to add to his career saves total (440, fifth all-time), he should be able to find another club willing to give him a chance on a minor league contract.
Luis García Elects Free Agency
Luis García made nine appearances for the Twins this season, giving up 10 runs in 8 2/3 innings of work. Over the weekend, Minnesota designated the right-hander for assignment. Today, he rejected an outright assignment in favor of free agency (per Dan Hayes of The Athletic).
García, 39, has pitched 618 games over the last 14 seasons. Only five active pitchers have thrown more games – and that’s being generous with the word “active.” The righty debuted with the Phillies in 2013 and spent the next six years of his career in Philadelphia. He then pitched for nine different teams from 2019 to ’26: the Angels, Rangers, Cardinals, Padres, Red Sox, Dodgers, Nationals, Mets, and Twins. All told, he owns a 4.20 ERA and a 3.94 SIERA in 598 1/3 innings of work. He is 28-31 with 19 saves, 118 holds, and 553 strikeouts. A groundball pitcher, García has induced 945 grounders in his career, second-most among relievers since his debut; only T.J. McFarland induced more batted balls on the ground.
Even in his best years, García was rarely a high-leverage arm. What he is is an innings eater, and he has continued to be just that into his late thirties. From 2023-25, his age-36 to 38 seasons, he tossed at least 55 innings each year, pitching to a 4.14 ERA and 3.82 SIERA. Unfortunately, the 2026 season hasn’t gone quite as well for him. He’s given up 16 runs (15 earned) in 15 innings for the Mets and Twins, with just six strikeouts and a career-worst 38.3% groundball rate. That explains why the veteran passed through waivers so quickly. Still, considering his track record, it wouldn’t be surprising to see García quickly latch on with a team in need of bullpen depth. Teams like that are never in short supply.