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Twins Select Cody Laweryson

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The Twins announced that right-hander Justin Topa has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to a left oblique strain, retroactive to September 9th. Fellow righty Cody Laweryson has been selected to take Topa’s place on the roster. The Twins had just 37 men on their 40-man, so no other corresponding move is required as this brings their count up to 38.

It’s unclear how serious Topa’s injury is but this presumably ends his season. Even with the backdating of the move, he could only come back for the final few days of the schedule. With the Twins buried in the standings, there’s not much motivation for him to rush back. Assuming he’s done, he finishes the year with a 3.90 earned run average in 60 innings. His 18.3% strikeout rate was subpar but his 6.7% walk rate and 47.7% ground ball rate were good figures.

The Twins will have to decide whether or not to trigger a $2MM club option for 2026 or go for a $225K buyout. Even if they go for the buyout, they could still keep Topa for next year via arbitration. Assuming they want Topa back next year, the decision would simply come down to which path they expect to be cheaper.

His injury allows Laweryson to get up to the majors for the first time. Now 27, Laweryson was drafted with a 14th-round pick back in 2019. He worked both as a starter and a reliever as he climbed the minor league ladder but has been working exclusively out of the bullpen in recent years.

On the most recent FanGraphs list of top prospects in the system, Laweryson got an honorable mention, with the report noting that his deception helps him get better results than one would expect from his middling stuff. He has thrown 44 innings this year between Double-A and Triple-A with a 2.86 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 46.3% ground ball rate. Laweryson will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. Since this is his first time cracking a big league roster, he has a full slate of options.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Phillies To Select Walker Buehler, Place José Alvarado On IL

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The Phillies are going to select right-hander Walker Buehler to the roster to start tonight’s game. Left-hander José Alvarado will be placed on the injured list to open an active roster spot, per Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The nature of Alvarado’s injury is unclear. The Phils will also need to open a 40-man roster spot.

Buehler signed a minor league deal with the Phils a couple of weeks ago, after he had been released by the Red Sox. It was a bit of a surprise that Boston let him go, if only because they had made a notable $21.05MM commitment to him this year, but the move was also justified by Buehler’s poor performance.

Earlier in his career, Buehler was arguably an ace. While pitching for the Dodgers, he twice finished in the top ten in National League Cy Young voting, including a fourth-place finish in 2021. But he missed the 2023 campaign recovering from Tommy John surgery, the second such procedure of his career, and hasn’t looked the same since. From the start of 2024 until the present, he has logged 187 2/3 innings with a 5.42 earned run average, 17.4% strikeout rate, 9.7% walk rate and 45.1% ground ball rate.

Despite his recent struggles, he was a sensible pick-up for the Phils. They recently lost Zack Wheeler due to a blood clot/thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosis. Even without Wheeler, they had a solid rotation group consisting of Aaron Nola, Ranger Suarez, Jesús Luzardo, Cristopher Sánchez and Taijuan Walker. But bringing in Buehler added another arm at no extra cost. Since the Sox released him, they are on the hook for the majority of his remaining salary. The Phils will only have to pay him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster.

At this point, it’s unclear exactly how long he will spend on the roster. The Phils are currently in the midst of a stretch where in they play 15 days in a row. After today, there are five more games in that span. They then only play three times in the following five days, before finishing out the schedule with six in a row.

It’s possible this is just a spot start to give the starters some extra rest during a tough part of the schedule. After today, it would make sense to go back down to five guys. The Phils are cruising to a playoff spot and also to a bye through the Wild Card round. They have an 11-game lead over the Mets in the East and will surely win that division. They are two games behind the Brewers for top spot in the National League but 4.5 games clear of the Dodgers.

That comfortable position could entice them to rest some of their starters. But on the other hand, since they are likely to be sitting out the first round, the pitchers are already looking at having almost a full week off between the regular season and the Division Series round. In order to avoid rust build-up, they may want their pitchers to keep throwing all the way through the end of the schedule. Time will tell if Buehler sticks around with the aim of making another start, gets moved to a long relief role or bumped back off the roster entirely.

As for Alvarado, his absence shouldn’t be too consequential, especially in the short term. He’s been putting up good numbers this year but isn’t eligible for the postseason due to the PED suspension he received earlier this year. His absence hurts the bullpen for the final few weeks of the regular season but, as mentioned, the Phils are in a pretty comfortable position in the playoff picture.

If it’s a long-term injury, then that would be more notable. The club has a $9MM club option for his services in 2026 with a $500K buyout. Naturally, a serious injury that would extend into next year could impact the club’s decision on that option.

Photo courtesy of Brian Fluharty, Imagn Images

The Reds Could Have Starting Pitching To Trade This Offseason

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Not long ago, the Reds found themselves in possession of what looked to be a borderline surplus of infielders. Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Jonathan India, Noelvi Marte, Spencer Steer and Christian Encarnacion-Strand all had varying levels big league experience even before Cincinnati signed Jeimer Candelario to a three-year contract. A wide range of opinions on how to best divide the playing time persisted, but the Reds had the makings of a formidable collection of young bats.

Fast forward a few years, and none of that has really panned out. As MLBTR's Anthony Franco explored last month, that group has turned over a fair bit. Marte now patrols the outfield more than the infield. India is in Kansas City, traded last winter in exchange for right-hander Brady Singer. Candelario was released halfway through what has turned out to be a significant misstep of a signing. Encarnacion-Strand has been beset by injury. Steer has bounced all around the diamond, including in the outfield, but he's settled in more at first base. De La Cruz is entrenched at shortstop. McLain, who's struggled in the wake of 2024 shoulder surgery, remains an ongoing question mark. Top prospect Sal Stewart was recently promoted to the majors for his first look, giving them yet another high-upside infield piece to consider.

Even with that prior glut of infielders, the Reds felt compelled to trade for Ke'Bryan Hayes at this year's deadline and infielder/outfielder Gavin Lux last offseason. The overall offense in Cincinnati has been tepid, at best. The Reds, despite playing in perhaps the most homer-friendly park in the sport, rank 23rd in MLB with 146 home runs. They're 13th in runs scored, 16th in batting average and on-base percentage, and 21st in slugging percentage. The offense is ... fine. It's not a glaring deficiency, but it's also not going to turn any heads.

On the other side of the game, however, the Reds have enjoyed a more significant boom. Cincinnati's pitching staff is virtually teeming with enticing young options. Even with Nick Martinez and deadline pickup Zack Littell slated to become free agents, the Reds are deep in rotation arms. The aforementioned Singer is the priciest of the bunch heading into 2026, as he'll be due a raise on his $8.75MM salary, presumably pushing him past $12MM. The rest of the group is generally affordable, if not making at or very near the league minimum.

It's a fine line to walk, of course, as any "surplus" in baseball can dry out in a hurry, but this version of the Reds seems well positioned to flip some of that pitching talent in exchange for some offensive firepower when the offseason rolls around.

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Rockies To Place Chase Dollander On Injured List

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The Rockies will place Chase Dollander on the injured list with a knee injury, reports Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post. The 2023 ninth overall pick would have been lined up to start Saturday’s game in San Diego.

Instead, it appears his rookie season will come to a slightly premature end. Dollander will technically be eligible to return in the final five days of the season, so it’s possible he makes one more start, but there’s no incentive for him to pitch through any kind of discomfort. He’ll likely finish his debut campaign with a 6.52 earned run average across 21 starts.

Dollander had a very difficult time pitching at Coors Field. He allowed nearly 10 earned runs per nine innings during his 11 home starts. His road numbers are much better. The 6’2″ righty pitched to a 3.46 ERA in 10 starts outside Denver. Dollander held opposing hitters to a .200/.297/.324 slash in his road starts. His strikeout (22.2%) and walk (11.3%) rates on the road aren’t as strong as the ERA or slash line, but there are at least some encouraging signs. That included a solid final appearance in Los Angeles on Monday, as Dollander held the Dodgers to one run on a lone hit with five strikeouts in as many innings.

The 23-year-old Dollander is the Rox’s most talented young pitcher. He’ll obviously need to be far more competitive at Coors Field to have long-term success. There’ll be plenty of opportunity to do so in a Colorado rotation that doesn’t project to be much better in 2026 than it was this season. Germán Márquez is likely to walk in free agency. Neither Tanner Gordon nor McCade Brown has pitched well enough to merit an Opening Day rotation spot. Antonio Senzatela performed so poorly this year that the Rox have demoted him to long relief. Dollander and Kyle Freeland should be joined by three offseason acquisitions.

Colorado will need to call up a fifth starter or run a bullpen game in Dollander’s place tomorrow. Bradley Blalock is on the 40-man roster and would probably be the choice if they recall a starting pitcher from Triple-A Albuquerque. Former first-round pick Gabriel Hughes could also be a consideration. He’s not on the 40-man but would need to be added this offseason if the Rockies don’t want to expose him to the Rule 5 draft. That could lead them to give Hughes a couple starts down the stretch, as they’re doing with Brown.

The Opener: Trout, Senga, Wild Card Chase

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Here are three things to keep an eye on around baseball this weekend…

1. Trout chasing 400:

Mike Trout belted the 399th home run of his illustrious career last night, placing him just one round-tripper shy of becoming the 59th player in MLB history to reach the 400 milestone. Trout, currently in a three-way tie with Andres Galarraga and Al Kaline on the all-time leaderboard, is hitting .235/.368/.426 (119 wRC+) and has already secured the tenth 20-homer season of his career (plus 17 homers during the shortened 2020 season). He’ll square off against Luis Castillo, Bryan Woo and George Kirby this weekend as he looks to add another accolade to what’s already a surefire Cooperstown résumé.

2. Senga on the mound for Syracuse:

The Mets optioned Kodai Senga to Triple-A Syracuse last week upon calling up top prospect Brandon Sproat, hoping to get the former Cy Young runner-up back on track. Senga posted a 6.56 ERA over eight starts after returning from a monthlong IL stint due to a hamstring strain. His season ERA still sits at 3.02, but his mounting struggles at a time when the Mets are fighting for their postseason life became too severe for the team to ignore. Senga will make the first of what’ll be multiple Triple-A starts (barring an injury in the big league rotation) later today when he takes on the Red Sox’ Worcester affiliate in a game slated to begin at 6:35pm ET. Home runs (2.02 HR/9) and walks (12.9%) have been particularly problematic for Senga during this poor stretch, so it’ll be worth keeping a close eye on how the right-hander commands the ball during what the Mets hope will be a swift Triple-A reset.

3. Key Wild Card series abound:

The Mets have lost six in a row, shrinking their Wild Card lead to a mere 1.5 games over both the Giants and Reds. Things won’t get easier for the Mets, as they’ll be tasked with stopping their September swoon in a matchup with old friend Jacob deGrom, who’s pitched to a resurgent 2.78 ERA, 27.9% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate in 155 2/3 innings this year. The Rangers are in Queens for a three-game set that also has major implications in the AL Wild Card hunt as well; Texas sits just two games back of an also-reeling Astros club that is now tied with the Mariners for first place in the AL West.

Elsewhere in the NL Wild Card scramble, the Giants have a tough task keeping their hopes alive, as they’ll host the Dodgers for a three-game set pitting them against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Clayton Kershaw and Tyler Glasnow, each of whom has an ERA south of 3.30 on the season. The Reds, meanwhile, travel to West Sacramento to take on the A’s in a three-game series where they’ll face righties J.T. Ginn, Luis Severino and Luis Morales.

Both the D-backs and Guardians can keep their faint playoff hopes alive with series wins over retooling AL Central clubs; Arizona hosts the Twins for a three-game set, while Cleveland hosts the White Sox. The Diamondbacks have pulled to within three games of the Mets (though they’d also need to leapfrog the Giants and Reds). The Guards are 3.5 games back in the American League. The Cardinals are still within four games of an NL spot, but they’d likely need to sweep the Brewers in Milwaukee this weekend to truly stay afloat.

Anthony Volpe Playing Through Partial Labrum Tear

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Anthony Volpe has been the Yankees’ regular shortstop for close to three years now. Lately, he has struggled enough that José Caballero has taken some playing time. It’s possible that health is playing a role in Volpe’s downturn. He injured his left shoulder back in early May. Today, Joel Sherman of The New York Post reports that the shoulder discomfort has lingered since then and Volpe received a cortisone shot in that shoulder yesterday.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone spoke to the media before tonight’s game and provided more details, per Brendan Kuty of The Athletic and Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. Boone confirmed the report of the cortisone shot and said Volpe has a small labrum tear in his shoulder. When the injury was discovered in May, they believed it was an old injury that he could play through. He has since aggravated it multiple times, including on Sunday. He also had a cortisone shot during the All-Star break, per Kuty. The Yanks don’t believe he needs an IL stint now. He will have another MRI after the season.

At the time of that injury, Volpe said he heard a “pop” in his shoulder but quickly felt better. “It happened quick and it was scary, but after that, I felt OK and I felt like I had my strength,” Volpe said at the time. “I’ve never really had anything else pop or dislocate or anything like that, so I have nothing to compare it to.”

Greg Joyce of The New York Post writes that the Yankees have consistently downplayed the shoulder injury even though Volpe is usually wrapped up in ice after most games. Just yesterday, Boone brushed off the problem, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.

“I think early on after that, maybe a little bit,” the skipper said, when asked if Volpe’s shoulder has been impacting his performance. “I think it’s something that’s also improved over the course of the year. I feel like, even lately, it’s been in as good of a place as it’s been. I don’t necessarily think that’s the case, but he’s also a very tough kid and a gamer. I don’t think so, but I guess shouldn’t rule it out.”

As noted by Sherman, there’s a stark contrast between Volpe’s pre- and post-injury numbers. On May 4th, he had a .233/.326/.442 batting line. That translated to a 114 wRC+, indicating he was 14% better than league average at that point in the season. Since then, he has a .197/.248/.378 line and 70 wRC+.

It’s also possible that the injury is impacting Volpe defensively. He was credited with 15 Defensive Runs Saved in 2023 and six last year but is at just one here in 2025. Outs Above Average is even more notable. That metric gave Volpe a +1 grade in 2023 and +14 last year but has dropped him all the way to -9 here in 2025. Volpe made eight throwing errors in 2023 and nine last year but already has 13 in 2025, in a smaller sample of playing time.

Despite the declining numbers, Boone has stuck by Volpe. A couple of weeks ago, the skipper said that he still considered Volpe to be the club’s shortstop while Caballero was considered a “10th man” who could bounce around to various positions in a utility capacity.

More recently, it’s possible there’s been a shift. Caballero has started in place of Volpe in two of the past five games. It’s possible the cortisone shot leads to Volpe missing some more time, as players usually require a few days’ rest after receiving such injections.

On the one hand, it’s somewhat encouraging that Volpe’s struggles have a possible explanation. On the other hand, it’s a less than ideal situation at this time of year when every game is meaningful. The Yanks currently hold a Wild Card spot but they are in a tight battle with clubs like the Red Sox, Mariners, Rangers, Guardians, Royals and Rays. The Yanks are also surely hoping to chase down the Blue Jays for the division lead, currently trailing by just three games.

Sending Volpe to the injured list or simply sitting him for a few games could perhaps help his shoulder woes a bit but that would leave the club a bit thinner at shortstop as they play meaningful games. There would also be the risk of Volpe getting rusty after a layoff and not having time to get into a better groove.

For now, it seems Caballero could benefit from a bit more playing time. He has a solid .239/.345/.413 line since being acquired at the deadline but he has a career .226/.313/.335 slash and 89 wRC+. Even if his hitting is subpar, his glovework is good and he’s one of the top base stealers in the majors. If Volpe does require a stint on the IL, the Yanks could perhaps recall Braden Shewmake to serve as a glove-first backup to Caballero.

Photo courtesy of John Jones, Imagn Images

Mets Outright Wander Suero

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The Mets announced earlier today that they’ve assigned right-hander Wander Suero outright to Triple-A. The move comes after he was designated for assignment earlier this week to accommodate the return of outfielder Jose Siri.

Suero, 33, has pitched in parts of seven MLB seasons but departs the Mets’ roster without making an appearance. The righty made his big league debut with the Nationals during the 2018 season and enjoyed a solid three-year run where he pitched to a 4.10 ERA (108 ERA+) with a 3.20 FIP and a 26.1% strikeout rate across 142 2/3 innings of work from 2018 to 2020. That stretch included the franchise’s 2019 World Series championship, which saw Suero make the postseason roster and post three scoreless appearances during the World Series against the Astros.

Unfortunately, the good times came to an abrupt halt in 2021. Suero turned in a brutal 6.33 ERA with a FIP of 5.80 in 45 appearances that year. While his 23.2% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate were hardly disastrous, he allowed a ridiculous 11 home runs in 42 2/3 innings as 19.3% of his fly balls left the yard. Between that massive spike in home runs and the fact that he stranded just 59.7% of the base runners he allowed, Suero racked up runs in a hurry and was non-tendered by the Nationals during the 2021-22 offseason.

In the years since he departed the nation’s capital, Suero has bounced around the league as a journeyman. A minor league deal with the Angels in 2022 didn’t lead Suero back to the majors, as he struggled to a 6.08 ERA at Triple-A thanks in part to the Pacific Coast League’s inflated offensive environment. He seemingly mastered the level after his first season in the PCL, however, as subsequent stints with the Dodgers and Astros yielded much better results. Posting ERAs of 3.26 and 2.66 at Triple-A for each of those clubs earned call-ups to their respective big league teams, though between the 2023 and ’24 seasons Suero posted a brutal 7.88 ERA in eight innings of work for Los Angeles and Houston.

Entering 2025, Suero signed a minor league deal with the Braves and got called up to the big leagues in July after posting a 1.50 ERA with a 33.6% strikeout rate for Triple-A Gwinnett. Suero surrendered eight runs on ten hits (three homers) and four walks while striking out seven in 6 1/3 innings of work for Atlanta before being designated for assignment earlier this month. The Mets claimed him off waivers to offer some bullpen depth, but optioned him to Triple-A before he could make an MLB appearance and designated him for assignment shortly thereafter.

Assuming Suero accepts his outright assignment, he’ll finish the year at Triple-A for the Mets and have the opportunity to elect minor league free agency this offseason if not added back to the 40-man roster. In free agency, the right-hander figures to continue getting attention on minor league deals given his dominant results at Triple-A in recent years, and he’ll continue to search for an organization that can help him get back to effectiveness at the big league level. Suero has a previous outright on his resume and could also choose to elect free agency early and get a head start on the open market, if he so chooses.

Angels Outright Chad Stevens

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The Angels have assigned infielder Chad Stevens outright to Triple-A Salt Lake, according to the transactions tracker on Stevens’s MLB.com profile page. Stevens was previously designated for assignment by the Angels over the weekend.

Stevens, 26, was an 11th-round pick by the Astros in the 2021 draft. He steadily climbed the minor league ladder in Houston until he reached the Double-A level in 2023. He hit a middling .220/.333/.397 in 122 games with Corpus Christi that year, and made a return to the level in 2024. Repeating a level for the first time in his career did not go especially well, as Stevens hit just .153/.242/.235 in 95 plate appearances before the Astros decided to release him in May of last year. Stevens didn’t linger on the market long after being cut by Houston, however, as he was signed to a minor league deal by the Angels later that same month.

Upon joining the Angels organization, Stevens went back to High-A in order to regain his footing after his struggles at Double-A. After putting up fantastic numbers in 44 games, Stevens was promoted and hit a much stronger .316/.359/.491 in just 17 games with Double-A Rocket City. That small sample was enough to convince Angels brass to promote Stevens to Triple-A Salt Lake, though he did end up scuffling to finish the year with a .238/.289/.345 slash line at the highest level of the minors.

Fortunately for both Stevens and the Angels, he returned to Salt Lake at the start of the 2025 and quickly proved he was up to the challenge Triple-A had to offer. In his first 72 games at the level this year, Stevens hit .302 with a .389 on-base percentage and slugged .542. That was enough, in the organization’s mind, to earn the 26-year-old his first big league call-up. He arrived in Anaheim on July 3 and made it into five games, though he went 2-13 with a 50% strikeout rate in his limited time in the majors before being sent back down the minors. After returning to Triple-A, Stevens’s hot start to the 2025 season had faded. He hit a more pedestrian .258/.348/.403 in 44 games down the stretch before he was designated for assignment last week in a move that made room for left-hander Sammy Peralta on the 40-man roster.

Because Stevens does not have the requisite service time or prior outright on his record to reject the assignment, he’ll return to Triple-A and serve as non-roster depth for the Angels through the end of the season. If not added back to the 40-man roster before the start of the offseason, however, he’ll have the opportunity to head back into minor league free agency and test the open market this winter. Stevens has experience all over the infield but has overwhelmingly played shortstop and third base during his time as a professional, and players like Zach Neto, Kyren Paris, Christian Moore, and even Oswald Peraza all figure to be prioritized on the Anaheim depth chart over someone like Stevens. That could mean he’d be better off looking for a role elsewhere, perhaps in an organization with less controllable infield depth on the roster.

Craig Breslow, Red Sox Plan To Hire GM This Offseason

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With the 2025 season nearing its conclusion, teams around the league are beginning to turn their attention towards staffing changes during the offseason. The Orioles are known to be looking for a second-in-command for president of baseball operations Mike Elias, while the Nationals are looking for the successor to Mike Rizzo and have already begun contacting possible candidates. It seems the Red Sox will also be joining the fray looking for front office talent, as Rob Bradford of Audacy Sports writes that chief baseball officer Craig Breslow will “prioritize” finding a GM to serve as his second-in-command in the Red Sox front office this year after going the first two years of his tenure in Boston without one.

It’s hardly a surprise that Breslow would be looking for a number two. Breslow conducted an audit of the Red Sox front office early in his tenure with the organization, a decision which postponed his search for a second-in-command as it would necessarily involve evaluating the work of in-house candidates. That audit concluded last year, however, and the Red Sox still entered the 2025 campaign without hiring a GM. The Red Sox did hire Taylor Smith away from the Rays for an assistant GM role last winter, but that made Smith one of several assistant GMs already in the organization. At the time of Smith’s hire, there was some speculation that perhaps Smith was being brought into the fold to take over the responsibilities of assistant GM Paul Toboni, who was at the time viewed as the top internal candidate for the GM role.

No such promotion ultimately came to pass for Toboni, however, and now that Breslow is gearing up to hire a GM this winter it’s unclear if he (or any other internal Red Sox personnel, for that matter) will be considered as candidates for the job or not. At the time, Toboni was viewed as a candidate for a handful of vacancies around the game and promoting him could have served as a way to keep him in the organization. He ultimately remained in the organization with his same title, but now could once again be a hot commodity on the market for other clubs looking to add to their front offices.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com writes that Toboni is a candidate for the Nationals’ vacant GM job, where he would replace former head of baseball operations Mike Rizzo. While the Red Sox would be able to offer Toboni that same title, it would come with significantly more responsibility in Washington given that the GM of the Nationals is the club’s top baseball operations position. Of course, it must be noted that it’s unclear whether Toboni has been asked to interview for the position or if he’s even been contacted at this point. Even so, the fact that Toboni is even under consideration to lead an organization’s baseball operations department, in conjunction with his name coming up in various other GM searches around the league in previous years, suggests that he’s well-regarded within the industry and could once again be a candidate for various opportunities around the game.

It should be noted that Breslow’s pool of talent from which he can draw from in his GM search will naturally be smaller given that the candidate he hires will not be given the top job in baseball operations. While the Nats have been connected to names such as Cubs GM Carter Hawkins, other organizations will typically block their executives from jumping ship for a lateral move. That means anyone who is currently the #2 of an organization with a president of baseball operations, such as Hawkins, would be unlikely to even be permitted to interview for the job as Breslow’s right-hand man.

Still, there are plenty of executives around the game in assistant GM roles and other lower-level positions who Breslow would be able to consider without much issue if he would like to hire from outside the Red Sox organization. Dodgers senior VP Josh Byrnes and Diamondbacks assistant GM Amiel Sawdaye are two other names reportedly connected to the Nationals’ GM search, and while they haven’t been connected to Boston’s GM job at this point they’re both examples of executives who currently hold positions that would not necessarily preclude them from being interviewed for the role.

Blue Jays Designate Orelvis Martinez For Assignment

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The Blue Jays announced this evening that they’ve designated infielder Orelvis Martinez for assignment. The move allowed the club to activate Alek Manoah from the 60-day injured list and option him to Triple-A Buffalo. Manoah has previously been on a rehab assignment as he worked his way back from UCL surgery he underwent in June 2024.

Martinez, 24 in November, was a consensus top-100 prospect as recently as the 2024 season. He made his big league debut in June of last year but was given an 80-game suspension after testing positive for Clomiphene, a banned performance-enhancing substance, just one week later. Martinez had only appeared in one MLB game at the time of his suspension and hasn’t returned to the majors since as the Blue Jays kept him at Triple-A for the end of the 2024 season and all throughout 2025.

While Toronto’s decision not to bring Martinez back to the majors for the final weeks of the 2024 campaign could at least conceivably have been related to his suspension, it’s hard to view him not returning to the big leagues this year as anything other than performance based. Martinez struggled badly at Triple-A during is age-23 campaign, slashing just .176/.288/.348 across 394 plate appearances in 99 games. He struck out at an elevated 28.4% clip and managed just 13 homers, a massive decline in power relative to what he had shown in previous seasons, including his 28 homers in 129 Triple-A games between 2023 and ’24.

While Martinez looked utterly lost at the plate this year, his relative youth in conjunction with his former top prospect status may well be enough to get him attention from other organizations. He has experience at second base, third base, and shortstop across his minor league career, though he’s mostly moved off of shortstop in recent years. An infielder who will spend all of next year at 24 years old and has flashed the potential to be a quality hitter in the past seems likely to be an attractive candidate to join a number of rebuilding clubs, who could afford to be patient with Martinez and give him ample time to get things back on track and prove himself capable of handling major league pitching.

The Blue Jays will have one week to put Martinez through waivers, where any club will have the ability to claim him. If he goes unclaimed, Toronto can then outright him to Triple-A for the remainder of the season. If not claimed off waivers or added back to the Jays’ 40-man roster by the start of the offseason, Martinez will have the opportunity to elect minor league free agency and look for an opportunity elsewhere on the open market.

As for Manoah, the right-hander’s activation from the injured list is purely procedural. Manoah has already made five starts at the Triple-A level this year while rehabbing, and while he sports a 3.09 ERA in 23 1/3 innings of work at that level, that figure is heavily propped up by eight unearned runs allowed. Manoah has been teed off against by opposing hitters at Triple-A this year to the tune of a .239/.346/.457 slash line, has surrendered five home runs and hit three batters, and is walking opponents at a 13.0% clip. Much of that is surely rust from a lengthy layoff following UCL surgery, but it hardly seems likely that the Blue Jays would entrust starts to Manoah as they look to fend off the Yankees and Red Sox in the AL East and head towards the postseason barring a massive turnaround or a rash of injuries that tests the club’s pitching depth.

Looking ahead to 2026, Manoah is ticketed for his second trip through arbitration this winter after getting a $2.2MM contract for the 2025 season from the Jays last offseason. Given his past success in the majors and remaining team control, keeping the 27-year-old in the fold for the 2026 season and seeing if he can return to form once further removed from Tommy John surgery seems like the likeliest course of action for the Jays. With that being said, a non-tender or trade this winter isn’t completely implausible given his lack of production since his All-Star 2022 campaign and his ugly performance at Triple-A since returning from injury.

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