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Orioles Designate Jhonkensy Noel For Assignment

By Darragh McDonald | January 7, 2026 at 2:40pm CDT

The Orioles announced that they have claimed outfielder Marco Luciano off waivers from the Pirates, a move which was previously reported. To open a 40-man spot, outfielder Jhonkensy Noel has been designated for assignment. The O’s also announced that left-hander Josh Walker, who was designated for assignment last month, has cleared waivers and been sent to Triple-A Norfolk.

Noel, 24, was just claimed off waivers two days ago. It may seem strange to acquire a player and then immediately cut him from the roster but this sequence of events is becoming more common in baseball and the Orioles are one of the more aggressive teams in attempting it. The ideal outcome for the team is that the player eventually clears waivers and stays in the organization as depth without taking up a roster spot.

Baltimore fans should be familiar with the upside of the move. The O’s acquired Ryan O’Hearn from the Royals in January of 2023. He was designated for assignment two days later and cleared waivers. A few months after that, he hit his way back onto the roster and was a productive member of the club for over two years.

Up until he was claimed by the Orioles, Noel had spent his entire career with the Guardians. With that club, he has shown huge power potential but also a poor approach at the plate. He has 351 big league plate appearances to this point with 19 home runs but his 4.8% walk rate and 32.8% strikeout rate are both awful numbers. Despite the long balls, he has a .193/.242/.401 batting line and 79 wRC+, indicating he’s been 21% worse than the league average hitter.

He exhausted his final option season in 2025, which has pushed him into fringe roster territory. The Guards nudged him off and the O’s scooped him up. He’s now back into DFA limbo again, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the O’s could field trade interest for the next five days, but the Guards weren’t able to line up a trade in the previous weeks. Most likely, Noel will be back on the waiver wire.

Despite the rough major league results, he could draw interest from the raw power and also his better minor league numbers. Over the past two years, he has stepped to the plate 536 times at Triple-A. His 7.5% walk rate and 23.7% strikeout rate at that level are still not great but much closer to average. That’s helped him put up a .285/.349/.538 line and 130 wRC+.

If some other club scoops him up, Noel has just over a year of big league service time. That means he can be controlled for five full seasons and is still two years away from an arbitration raise. If he clears waivers, the O’s can keep him. Since he doesn’t have three years of service nor a previous career outright, he doesn’t have the right to reject an outright assignment.

The situation with Walker is somewhat similar. The O’s claimed him off waivers from the Phillies in August. The O’s then signed him to a major league deal in November. Salary terms of that pact haven’t been reported but it presumably pays Walker something slightly above the $780K league minimum, since he still hasn’t qualified for arbitration.

He was designated for assignment two days later. Like with the O’Hearn and Noel situations, the O’s were hoping Walker would clear waivers and stick with the club in a non-roster capacity. It didn’t work initially, as Atlanta claimed him. But that club designated him for assignment a few weeks later, which allowed the Orioles to claim him back. The O’s then tried again, designating Walker for assignment once more on December 19th.

DFA limbo normally only lasts a week at most, but there are different rules around the holidays, so Walker lingered in the ether for a few weeks. Today, he finally has clarity on his status. While he probably isn’t glad to lose his roster spot, he now at least knows which spring training location he’ll be reporting to.

Walker will try to win in the Baltimore bullpen at some point in 2026. His major league track record isn’t amazing, as he has a 6.59 earned run average in 27 1/3 innings. However, he just posted some intriguing minor league numbers in 2025. Split between the Blue Jays, Phillies and Orioles, he logged 42 2/3 Triple-A frames. His 4.64 ERA in that sample isn’t too exciting but he struck out 24.1% of batters faced and got grounders on 52.1% of balls in play.

Photo courtesy of Ken Blaze, Imagn Images

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Baltimore Orioles Pittsburgh Pirates Transactions Jhonkensy Noel Josh Walker Marco Luciano

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Reds Outright Lyon Richardson

By Darragh McDonald | January 7, 2026 at 1:55pm CDT

The Reds announced that right-hander Lyon Richardson has been sent outright to Triple-A Louisville. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last month when Cincinnati acquired outfielder Dane Myers from the Marlins.

Richardson, 26 this month, was a second-round pick of the Reds back in 2018. Cincinnati added him to the 40-man roster in November of 2022 to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He spent the past three years as an up-and-down depth arm for the Reds, getting shuttled between Cincinnati and Louisville.

Over those three seasons, he tossed 55 innings in the majors, allowing 6.05 earned runs per nine. He averaged above 95 miles per hour with both his four-seamer and sinker while also throwing a slider, curveball and changeup. His 51.1% ground ball rate was good but his 16.7% strikeout rate and 14.3% walk rate were both well off league average. He also tossed 199 2/3 Triple-A innings in that span with a 4.19 ERA. His 12.7% walk rate was still rough but he did punch out 26% of batters faced.

He was kept in a relief role in 2025, after mostly working as a starter in prior years. The Triple-A results were decent, as he tossed 32 innings with a 4.22 ERA, 23.5% strikeout rate, 9.6% walk rate and 50% ground ball rate. It didn’t really translate to the majors, however, with a 17.4% strikeout rate and 12.2% walk rate in the show.

He exhausted his final option year in 2025, pushing him to the fringe of the roster. The Reds nudged him off December 27th. DFA limbo is normally capped at a week but the rules are different around the holidays, so Richardson spent close to two weeks in a liminal space but now has clarity on his situation. This is his first career outright and he does not have three years of big league service time. That means he does not have the right to elect free agency. He’ll stick with the Reds in a non-roster capacity and try to earn his way back to the big leagues.

Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images

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Cincinnati Reds Transactions Lyon Richardson

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Royals, Josh Rojas Agree To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | January 7, 2026 at 1:54pm CDT

The Royals have agreed to a minor league contract with infielder/outfielder Josh Rojas, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. The MVP Sports client will receive a non-roster invitation to major league camp this spring.

Rojas, 31, will compete for a bench spot in camp. He’s a left-handed hitter who has experience at second base, third base, shortstop and in the outfield corners, although metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average have heavily panned his glovework at shortstop and at third base.

A former 26th-rounder out of the University of Hawaii who signed just a $1000 bonus in the draft, Rojas climbed to the majors with the 2019 D-backs and had a couple seasons as a solid regular in Arizona. From 2021-22, he totaled 1060 plate appearances and slashed .266/.345/.401 (106 wRC+) while splitting his time between second base, third base and left field.

Rojas got out to an awful start in 2023 and wound up being traded to Seattle alongside Dominic Canzone and Ryan Bliss that summer in the trade sending Paul Sewald from Seattle to Arizona. He hit .236/.308/.351 during a season and a half with the Mariners before being non-tendered last offseason. The White Sox then signed Rojas to a one-year deal, but his .180/.252/.259 output in 211 plate appearances was poor enough that the Sox designated him for assignment and released him in August.

Kansas City has been on the lookout for a utility player to deepen its bench mix, and while Rojas isn’t going to be viewed as a definitive answer in that regard, he can compete for that sort of role in spring training if the Royals don’t wind up landing a veteran on a guaranteed deal or bringing someone in via trade. Kansas City has Jonathan India at second base, Maikel Garcia at third base, Isaac Collins in left field and will hope for a Jac Caglianone breakout in right field this year. Rojas can provide some depth at all those spots, but he’ll have to hit his way onto the club once Cactus League play commences in a couple months.

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Kansas City Royals Transactions Josh Rojas

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Cubs Claim Ryan Rolison

By Steve Adams | January 7, 2026 at 1:36pm CDT

The Cubs have claimed left-hander Ryan Rolison off waivers from the White Sox, per ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. The Sox designated Rolison for assignment when they needed to open a 40-man roster spot for free agent signee Sean Newcomb. The Cubs currently have four vacancies on their 40-man, so a corresponding move isn’t needed.

A first-round pick by the Rockies back in 2018, Rolison didn’t make his major league debut until the 2025 season, as injuries significantly derailed his trajectory to the majors. He wound up tossing 42 1/3 frames for Colorado — 31 relief appearances, one start —  and being tagged for a grim 7.02 earned run average in that time. He pitched well out of the bullpen in Triple-A, however, notching a 3.34 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate and 48.8% ground-ball rate.

Rolison previously sat in the upper 80s and low 90s with his four-seamer while working as a starter, but his average fastball jumped to 93 mph this season while working in short relief. Home runs were a major issue for him in his debut campaign (2.34 HR/9), but despite that penchant for serving up the long ball, he actually induced a large amount of weak contact. When opponents did manage to barrel Rolison, those balls left the yard too often, but hitters still averaged a measly 87.5 mph off the bat against him.

It’s been some time since the former Ole Miss standout was a prospect of real note, but big league clubs clearly still see something in Rolison now that he’s healthy. He’s bounced from the Rockies, to the Braves, to the White Sox, to the Cubs now since his original DFA in Colorado. Following his DFAs with the Rockies and Braves, he didn’t even make it to waivers. The Braves and Cubs acquired him via small trades. And even in spite of those rough-looking numbers in his debut, he still wasn’t able to be passed through waivers by the South Siders.

Rolison has a minor league option remaining, so the Cubs don’t necessarily need to carry him on the Opening Day roster. He’s been used more in relief than as a starter in recent seasons, which isn’t a huge surprise for a former starter who lost about two years of his still-young career to a torn labrum in his left shoulder, which required surgery. The Cubs are quite deep in rotation options — particularly with a trade for Marlins righty Edward Cabrera reportedly in its final stages — and have deepened their bullpen this winter with signings of Phil Maton, Hunter Harvey, Jacob Webb, Hoby Milner and Caleb Thielbar. Rolison joins lefties Luke Little and Riley Martin as southpaw bullpen options who seem likely to begin the year in Triple-A Iowa.

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Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Transactions Ryan Rolison

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Rockies Claim Keegan Thompson

By Darragh McDonald | January 7, 2026 at 1:25pm CDT

The Rockies have claimed right-hander Keegan Thompson off waivers from the Reds, according to announcements from both clubs. Cincinnati had designated him for assignment last month. Colorado’s 40-man roster count climbs from 38 to 39. DFA limbo is normally capped at one week but there are exceptions around the holidays, so Thompson was out there for almost two weeks.

Thompson, 31, just signed with the Reds in November. He’ll be on a split deal this year, making a salary of $1.3MM in the majors. It might seem curious for a team to sign a pitcher and then cut him from the roster the next month but these types of transactions are becoming more common in baseball. The hope for the team is that the player clears waivers and then stays in the organization but without taking up a roster spot.

The best-case scenario is what the Orioles got from Ryan O’Hearn. They acquired him from the Royals in January of 2023 and designated him for assignment a couple of days later. He cleared waivers and stayed in Baltimore’s system. He later hit his way back onto the roster and was a productive member of the club for over two years.

Thompson has just over three years of big league service time. That means he has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. However, since he has less than five years of service, he would have to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in exercising that right. It would appear the Reds signed him to that $1.3MM deal hoping it would be enough for other teams to pass on claiming and also for Thompson to accept a Triple-A assignment.

The Rockies have spoiled that plan, which makes sense for them. They had a couple of roster spots open and have a huge need for arms. It’s always a challenge to pitch well in Coors Field but things have been especially rough lately. The Rockies had a collective 5.99 earned run average in 2025.

Thompson has primarily been with the Cubs in his career. He was drafted by that club in 2017 and was with them through the 2025 season. He tossed 227 1/3 innings from 2021 to 2024 with a 3.64 ERA. His four-seamer and sinker both averaged around 93 miles per hour as he also featured a cutter, slider, curveball and changeup. His 23% strikeout rate and 41% ground ball rate were around league average but his 11.3% walk rate was on the high side.

He exhausted his final option season in 2024. The Cubs ran him through waivers in March of 2025 and he stayed with the club in a non-roster capacity last year. He tossed 64 innings over 33 Triple-A appearances, including five starts, with a 4.50 ERA. His 41.4% grounder rate was around normal for him but his 8.9% walk rate and 29.5% strikeout rate were both intriguing improvements. His ERA likely would have been more impressive if not for a .367 batting average on balls in play. He wasn’t added back to the roster and became a free agent at season’s end.

The Rockies will bring Thompson aboard and have him compete for a spot. He has worked both as a starter and a reliever in his career and could potentially help in either department, or even oscillate between the two roles. General manager Josh Byrnes did say this week that they hoped to have some veterans eat some innings out of the rotation this year.

Photo courtesy of Darren Yamashita, Imagn Images

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Cincinnati Reds Colorado Rockies Transactions Keegan Thompson

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Orioles Claim Marco Luciano

By Darragh McDonald | January 7, 2026 at 12:45pm CDT

The Orioles have claimed outfielder Marco Luciano off waivers from the Pirates, reports Francys Romero of BeisbolFR. The Bucs designated him for assignment last month. The O’s will need to make a corresponding move to open a 40-man spot.

DFA limbo is normally capped at one week but the rules are clearly different around the holidays, even if the specifics of the exceptions aren’t publicly known. Luciano was bumped off Pittsburgh’s roster on December 19th, almost three weeks ago.

The 24-year-old Luciano was once one of the top prospects in baseball. The Giants gave him a $2.6MM signing bonus in 2018 as an international amateur out of the Dominican Republic. He flashed huge power potential from the shortstop position and Baseball America ranked him the #12 prospect in the league in 2021. Since then, his glovework tailed off to the extent that he was moved to left field, putting more pressure on him to provide value with the bat. Unfortunately, significant strikeout issues have plagued him since reaching the upper levels of the minors.

He has taken 939 trips to the plate at the Triple-A level over the past two years. His 16% walk rate in that sample is massive but he’s also been punched out at a 29.1% clip, leading to a .229/.354/.400 line and 101 wRC+. He also has 126 big league plate appearances with a 35.7% strikeout rate, 8.7% walk rate, .217/.286/.304 line and 68 wRC+.

Luciano exhausted his final option season last year, pushing him to a fringe roster position. The Giants put him on waivers in early December. The Pirates scooped him up but he was nudged off their roster a few weeks later.

The Orioles are one of the most aggressive clubs when it comes to claiming players off waivers, often putting the same players back on the wire later on. The ideal outcome in that scenario is that the player stays in the organization without taking up a roster spot. He can then be retained as depth and be added back to the roster if he earns a spot.

The best-case scenario in that situation is Ryan O’Hearn. The O’s acquired him from the Royals in January of 2023 and then designated him for assignment a few days later. He cleared waivers but eventually hit his way back onto the roster and was a productive member of the club for over two years.

That is perhaps the plan with Luciano, as it’s hard to see a path for him earning a regular role on the current roster. The Orioles have an outfield mix consisting of Colton Cowser, Taylor Ward, Dylan Beavers, Tyler O’Neill, Jeremiah Jackson, Leody Taveras, Heston Kjerstad, Reed Trimble and Jhonkensy Noel. The designated hitter spot doesn’t provide much relief as the O’s are likely going to have Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo sharing the catching duties. There’s also the first base group consisting of Pete Alonso, Coby Mayo and Ryan Mountcastle, which should spill into the DH spot.

Luciano has fewer than three years of service time and hasn’t been outrighted in his career. That means he would not have the right to elect free agency if he eventually clears outright waivers. That may be his fate with the Orioles or some other club but he gets a roster spot for now after a long holiday in limbo.

Photo courtesy of Robert Edwards, Imagn Images

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Baltimore Orioles Pittsburgh Pirates Transactions Marco Luciano

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Guardians Re-Sign Dom Nuñez To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | January 7, 2026 at 10:23am CDT

The Guardians announced Wednesday that they’ve re-signed catcher Dom Nuñez to a minor league contract. The ALIGND Sports client will be in major league camp as a non-roster invitee this spring.

Nuñez, 31 later this month, has spent the past two seasons with the Guardians, mostly with their Triple-A affiliate. He briefly appeared in majors in 2025, going 2-for-7 with a pair of singles in two games, but has taken 561 plate appearances and caught nearly 900 innings with their Columbus club dating back to 2024. He became a free agent after the season when Cleveland passed him through outright waivers.

Originally a sixth-round pick by the Rockies back in 2013, Nuñez has appeared in parts of four big league seasons but owns just a .182/.280/.371 slash (58 wRC+) in 354 trips to the plate. He hasn’t hit much in five Triple-A seasons either (.206/.333/.383, 27.6% strikeout rate) but has shown a knack for drawing walks and has some pop in his bat when he does make contact.

Nuñez, however, has a sound defensive reputation. He’s posted solid framing and blocking marks in the minors and majors alike, and he’s nabbed a strong 29% of would-be thieves on the bases in his minor league career. Cleveland clearly places immense value on catcher defense — hence the team’s repeated re-signings of Austin Hedges — and Nuñez will give them a quality defender to plug into the depth chart in the upper minors.

On the big league side of things, Hedges will reprise his role as backup to Bo Naylor (another plus defender with a light bat), but that pair increasingly looks like a placeholder for top prospect Cooper Ingle. The 23-year-old Ingle hit .260/.389/.419 with more walks than strikeouts in 510 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A last year. Ingle played only 28 games in Triple-A last season, so the Guards seem likely to send the 2023 fourth-rounder back to Columbus for a bit more seasoning, but a debut in 2026 seems likely as long as he stays healthy.

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Cleveland Guardians Transactions Dom Nunez

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White Sox Among Teams Interested In Griffin Canning

By Steve Adams | January 7, 2026 at 9:34am CDT

The White Sox have added some depth to the rotation already this winter, signing lefties Anthony Kay and Sean Newcomb to respective two-year and one-year contracts ($12MM for Kay; $4.5MM for Newcomb). Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic report this morning that the South Siders are still hoping to bring in another veteran arm on a one-year deal, with Griffin Canning among the pitchers they’ve targeted.

There’s no indication that a deal is close. Canning surely isn’t Chicago’s lone target, nor are the White Sox the sole team looking at the possibility of signing him. The fit between the two parties is a fairly sensible one, however.

Canning, 30 in May, is a former second-round pick and top prospect with the Angels. He showed flashes of making good on that potential across parts of five seasons with the Halos, but injuries repeatedly set him back. The Angels eventually swapped him out for Jorge Soler in a Nov. 2024 deal with the Braves. Atlanta non-tendered him a few weeks later. Canning went on to sign a one-year deal with the Mets.

Early in the 2025 campaign, that low-cost pickup looked like a steal for the Mets. Thrust into the rotation mix after spring injuries to Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea, Canning raced out of the gates with a 2.47 ERA, 23.2% strikeout rate, 8.6% walk rate and gaudy 55.2% ground-ball rate in his first nine starts. Fielding-independent metrics like SIERA (3.84) and FIP (3.92) weren’t quite as bullish as his earned run average, but Canning very much looked the part of a quality mid-rotation arm over that span of nearly two months.

The right-hander then ran into some troubles with his command, issuing 18 walks over his next 26 1/3 frames. His numbers obviously took a step back along the way, and Canning never got much of a chance to right the ship. He was through 2 2/3 spotless innings against the Braves on June 26 when he suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon that ended his season. Overall, Canning closed out the year with a 3.77 ERA, 21.3% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate and 50.9% grounder rate.

The uptick in grounders was a new development for Canning, who’d previously carried just a 39.5% ground-ball rate in his career. The Mets scrapped his prior curveball in favor of a knuckle curve, but the more prominent factor in his newfound success in that regard were changes to his slider and changeup, which generated grounders at respective rates of 57% and 62%. Canning threw his slider at career-high levels in ’25 and used his four-seamer at a career-low mark (while also averaging 94.1 mph on the pitch — second-best in his career).

Discouraging as his finish to the season was, Canning showed enough in his 16 starts with the Mets to command a big league deal this winter. He’s a relative upside play, which makes him a good fit for a club that can promise him a rotation spot and trot him out every fifth day. The White Sox, still working through another rebuilding effort, can afford that opportunity far more easily than a clear-cut contender.

At the moment, each of Kay, Shane Smith, Sean Burke and Davis Martin appear locked into manager Will Venable’s rotation. Newcomb could compete for a starting gig this spring but spent more time in the bullpen in recent seasons. Jonathan Cannon will be in the mix but has a minor league option remaining. Top prospects Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith could both debut in 2026, but each could probably use some more minor league time. Smith hasn’t pitched at all in Triple-A, and Schultz struggled mightily there in five starts (9.37 ERA) after a much stronger showing in Double-A. Both southpaws could stand to improve their command, in particular.

Whether it’s Canning or another veteran, there appears to be ample room for at least one more arm in the White Sox’ rotation. Kay is looking to continue his NPB breakout but has never had much big league success. Smith (a 2024 Rule 5 pick) and Burke only have one season of solid results in the majors. Martin has pitched like a fourth or fifth starter in parts of three MLB seasons. Smith, Martin and Burke all have minor league options remaining.

At the moment, RosterResource projects just an $87MM payroll for the White Sox. That’s over $100MM shy of their franchise-record mark, set back in 2022 ($193MM). The Sox carried just a $75MM payroll on Opening Day last year but were well over $100MM in both 2024 ($123MM) and in 2023 ($181MM).

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Chicago White Sox Griffin Canning

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The Opener: Tucker, DFA Resolutions, Bregman

By Nick Deeds | January 7, 2026 at 8:44am CDT

Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world today:

1. Movement on Tucker’s market?

Outfielder Kyle Tucker’s market has moved more slowly than the top free agents of recent offseasons. Players like Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, and Aaron Judge had all already signed by this point when they were on the open market. There’s been at least some smoke with regard to Tucker of late, however; the Blue Jays have seemingly stepped up their pursuit of the offseason’s top hitter. Adding Tucker would be a crown jewel on a banner offseason for Toronto, transforming the middle of their lineup with the addition of a lefty slugger who can complement Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and balance a lineup that leans heavily right-handed. Toronto isn’t the only known suitor for Tucker. He’s been at least loosely connected to teams like the Mets and Dodgers, although Los Angeles would primarily be interested in a shorter-term deal.

2. DFA resolutions continue:

As we move further from the holiday season, the players who were left in DFA limbo during the league’s holiday pause continue to find resolutions. Yesterday saw Justyn-Henry Malloy traded from the Tigers to the Rays, while the Cardinals scooped up Justin Bruihl from the Guardians. Today figures to see more players’ situations resolved. In particular, lefty Josh Walker, outfielder Wade Meckler, and former top prospect Marco Luciano all appear likely to either be claimed off waivers or outrighted by their current clubs today. They were all designated for assignment two days after Jhonkensy Noel and Joey Wiemer. Noel and Wiemer were both claimed off waivers Monday.

3. Will Bregman find a long-term offer?

After opting out of the final two years and $80MM remaining on his contract with the Red Sox, third baseman Alex Bregman re-entered free agency hoping to land more long-term security this winter. That path worked out for the other big bat from last winter’s class who settled for a short-term deal with an opt-out, as Pete Alonso landed in Baltimore on a healthy five-year guarantee. It’s been unclear if there was something similar in the cards for Bregman throughout the offseason. Bregman was receiving real interest from Toronto, but the team’s recent Kazuma Okamoto signing makes it more difficult to see a fit between the two sides. He’s also drawn varying levels of interest from the Cubs, Tigers and D-backs. Some recent rumors have suggested the Red Sox are getting more aggressive in their pursuit of Bregman. Will that be enough to net him the long-term offer he covets, or will another suitor like Chicago or Arizona need to step up its efforts in order to get him there?

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The Opener

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The Best Fits For A Ketel Marte Trade

By Steve Adams | January 6, 2026 at 11:59pm CDT

Star Diamondbacks infielder Ketel Marte has dominated trade rumblings over the past month-plus. Despite frequently stating that he doesn't consider a trade likely, general manager Mike Hazen has been hammered by calls from opposing teams hoping to pry the All-Star slugger away from Arizona.

Marte is enough of a known commodity that we needn't run through an extensive breakdown of his résumé here, but it bears spelling out some of the basics. The three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner has steadily produced anywhere from above-average to elite offense dating back to 2018. He's a switch-hitter who touts a massive .283/.368/.519 slash (140 wRC+) over the past three seasons. Marte is a superstar talent who's signed to a contract more commensurate with a freshly extended arbitration player. He's owed $102.5MM over the next six seasons, with the final year of that being an $11.5MM player option. He'll be paid $15MM in 2026, $12MM in 2027, $20MM in 2028 and $22MM in 2029-30.

Arizona has reportedly been seeking multiple major league-ready starting pitchers to even consider parting with Marte. Specifically, they're targeting controllable arms who can be long-term cogs in the starting staff. They reportedly talked with the Rays about a deal including both Ryan Pepiot and Shane Baz before the latter was traded to Baltimore, for instance.

Hazen has been relatively open about listening to offers and his reluctance to actually move Marte throughout the winter. He indicated last week that one way or another, he'd like to wrap up this situation soon. That was understandably viewed by many as something of a call for best and final offers.

With resolution on the situation seemingly nigh, one way or another, it feels worth running through the league to find the best fits for Marte, some viable dark-horse spots, and also lay out the clubs that don't feel like they'll be much of a factor at all. Let's run through it all.

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