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Reds Acquire Owen White

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The Rangers have traded right-hander Owen White to the Reds in exchange for cash considerations, according to announcements from both clubs. The righty had been designated for assignment by Texas last month. The Reds had an open 40-man spot and don’t need to make a corresponding move.

White, 25, was designated for assignment a couple of weeks ago when the Rangers signed Hoby Milner. DFA limbo normally comes with a seven-day maximum but that clock is put on pause over the holidays, so White’s situation resolved at a slower pace than usual.

Though White has struggled recently and lost his roster spot in Texas, it seemed fair that some other club would take a shot on him based on his past prospect pedigree, which has indeed come to pass.

The Rangers initially grabbed him in the second-round of the 2018 draft, though his professional debut was delayed both by Tommy John surgery in 2019 and the pandemic in 2020. He quickly got back on track, however, throwing 115 2/3 minor league innings over 2021 and 2022, allowing 3.42 earned runs per nine. He struck out 34.1% of opponents and limited walks to a 7.5% clip, getting as high as Double-A in the process.

Going into 2023, he was added to the Rangers’ roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft and also found his way onto top 100 lists. Unfortunately, the past two years have been a struggle. He made his major league debut in 2023 but was roughed up, allowing five earned runs in four innings. In his 108 2/3 minor league innings, his 4.22 ERA wasn’t disastrous but he was lucky that number wasn’t worse. He only struck out 17.2% of batters against an 11.9% walk rate. If it weren’t for a low .254 batting average on balls in play, far more runs would have crossed the plate, which is why his 5.96 FIP was far higher than his ERA.

2024 didn’t go much better. He allowed eight earned runs in three major league innings, spiking his career ERA to an unsightly 16.71 at the big league level, though in a tiny sample of seven innings. In Triple-A, he tossed 99 innings with a 5.64 ERA, 19.5% strikeout rate and 10.7% walk rate.

After two straight years of poor results, it’s understandable why the Rangers nudged him off the roster, but it’s also easy to see why the Reds would take a shot. White was transitioned to a relief role midway through 2024 and saw a bump in his strikeout rate, punching out 25.6% of batters faced over his final 18 innings. He still walked 12.8% of opponents and had a 5.50 ERA in that stretch, but it’s perhaps a good sign that the punchouts came back.

White still has one option year remaining, so the Reds have some time to get a close-up look at him and see how things go, without needing to give him an active roster spot. Considering he is still young and is not too far removed from being one of the top pitching prospects in the sport, it’s a sensible buy-low move to make for what is surely a nominal sum of money in baseball terms. White has just a handful of service days and can be cheaply retained well into the future if he can get things back on track.

Where Will Jack Flaherty End Up?

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If there’s been one defining characteristic of the 2024-25 offseason so far (aside from Juan Soto’s record-shattering contract), it’s that the market for starting pitching has been extremely robust. On the heels of a 2023-24 offseason that saw top-of-the-market arms like Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery linger on the market until the calendar flipped to March, right-hander Michael Wacha kicked things off by re-upping with the Royals before free agency started and the pace hasn’t slowed down much since then. After right-hander Corbin Burnes reached a deal with the Diamondbacks in the final days of December, nearly every notable starting pitcher was already off the market by the time the calendar flipped to January.

Perhaps the biggest exception to that is right-hander Jack Flaherty, who MLBTR ranked as the offseason’s #8 free agent (fourth among starters) at the outset of the winter as part of our annual Top 50 MLB Free Agents list. At the time, we predicted Flaherty would land a five-year, $115MM pact in free agency. That prediction at least seems to have ended up in the right ballpark, as Flaherty is reportedly seeking a five-year deal at this stage of his free agency. Between the winter’s robust market for pitching and the fact that Flaherty was able to reach free agency unencumbered by a Qualifying Offer thanks to a midseason trade from the Tigers to the Dodgers, it stands to reason that he should have a strong chance of reaching that sort of deal.

On the other hand, however, it’s worth noting that there are some signs the market for pitching has begun to cool. Burnes’s deal with Arizona just before the New Year came with a strong average annual value and a potentially lucrative opt-out clause after the second year, but the deferred money involved in the deal reportedly knocks the net present value of the pact below $200MM. MLBTR predicted a seven-year, $200MM pact for Burnes at the outset of the winter, so while even that diminished net present value is more-or-less in line with expectations headed into the offseason, the deal in some ways pales in comparison to the one signed by Max Fried earlier in the winter and certainly falls short of the righty’s reported asking price of $245MM.

If the market for starters has indeed begun to cool somewhat, it’s possible that the market for Flaherty could start to fizzle out when the start of Spring Training games draws near. After all, we need only look back at Montgomery and Snell last winter to see how a pitcher’s market can collapse once they don’t have enough time left to have a typical Spring Training. For now, however, Flaherty still seems to enjoy a fairly robust market. The Blue Jays, Giants, Cubs, Tigers and Oroles have all been connected to the right-hander in recent days.

The Blue Jays and Giants have both been connected to the majority of the offseason’s high-end free agents, as neither club has been particularly shy about its desire to land impact talent this winter. Toronto was notably among the apparent finalists for Burnes before he signed in Arizona, and while the Giants were also strongly connected to Burnes there’s been some indications in the aftermath of his deal with the Diamondbacks that San Francisco is more focused on offense than pitching. Given that the Giants have been attached to first baseman Pete Alonso, it’s possible that the club’s interest in a pitcher of Flaherty’s caliber is more as a backup plan in case they find themselves unable to land the big bat they desire. There’s a possibility that a similar situation could play out with the Blue Jays, as well. The club is known to have extended an offer to outfielder Anthony Santander already, and reporting earlier this winter suggested that Toronto may only have room for one significant multi-year deal in the budget.

It’s possible that the Tigers fall into a similar boat. While the club certainly has the payroll flexibility to make multiple significant multi-year additions if they so desire, president of baseball operations Scott Harris has seemed to be hesitant about making significant multi-year commitments this winter, instead opting to land Alex Cobb and Gleyber Torres on one-year deals. That hasn’t stopped them from engaging in the markets of some big-time free agents, but with Tarik Skubal and Reese Olson helping to anchor a young rotation it’s easy to imaging the club prioritizing a hitter if they decide to offer a nine-figure deal to a player this winter. To that end, Detroit has been one of the teams most frequently connected to third baseman Alex Bregman and also appears to be in the mix for Santander.

Two clubs that have been generally focused on pitching upgrades this winter are the Orioles and the Cubs. Baltimore has already added Tomoyuki Sugano and Charlie Morton to its rotation this winter, and those additions have left them with a deep group of potential starters that isn’t in desperate need of another arm. With that being said, neither Sugano nor Morton can be expected to replace Burnes as the ace of the staff, and with 2023’s staff ace Kyle Bradish expected to miss at least the first half of 2025 it’s fair to think the club would benefit from adding a player of Flaherty’s caliber. To that end, they’ve seemingly remained on the periphery of his market as they continue their search for upgrades even after last week’s deal for Morton.

As for Chicago, they in some ways appear to be the best fit for Flaherty’s services. The Cubs appear to be mostly set on offense after adding Kyle Tucker and Carson Kelly; while there’s potentially room at third base for another bat, they haven’t been closely connected to Alex Bregman in free agency given the presence of top prospect Matt Shaw as a potential Opening Day starter at the position. There’s been plenty of buzz about them adding to their pitching staff, however, and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic recently described another rotation addition as “inevitable” for the club, whether that’s a move to improve depth or bringing a more impactful piece into the fold. Flaherty would certainly fall into the latter category, but it’s worth noting that Sharma reported earlier this winter that while the Cubs have engaged with Flaherty, they were feeling a bit squeamish about his asking price at that point.

There’s some incentive for Flaherty to wait at least a little longer before making his decision: the presence of right-hander Roki Sasaki on the market. Sasaki is being pursued by a large number of teams and is rumored to have met with at least two Flaherty suitors: the Giants and Cubs. Given his unique situation as a potential front-of-the-rotation piece who can be had for nothing more than a minor league deal (and a hefty portion of a club’s international bonus pool), it’s easy to imagine a number of pitching-hungry clubs focusing their attention squarely on Sasaki while he’s available. The right-hander’s decision is due by January 23, so it’s not hard to imagine Flaherty waiting for that date in case a club that misses out on Sasaki either steps up their offer or enters the fray as a new potential suitor.

In the meantime, how do you think Flaherty’s free agency will play out? Will he land with one of his currently known suitors, or will a “mystery team” swoop in and get a deal done? Is the right-hander going to land a deal within the ballpark of MLBTR’s prediction? Will he fall short of, or perhaps exceed, expectations? Have your say in the polls below.

Where Will Flaherty Sign?
Giants 23.83% (1,987 votes)
Tigers 18.97% (1,582 votes)
Orioles 17.71% (1,477 votes)
Blue Jays 14.82% (1,236 votes)
Cubs 13.30% (1,109 votes)
Other (Specify in the comments) 11.36% (947 votes)
Total Votes: 8,338
How Much Will Flaherty Be Guaranteed?
Less than $100MM 46.66% (2,995 votes)
$100MM - $125MM 44.04% (2,827 votes)
More than $125MM 9.30% (597 votes)
Total Votes: 6,419

The Opener: Santander, Infield Market, Cartaya

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As the 2024-25 offseason continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Could Santander’s market be heating up?

Over the weekend, reports surfaced that seemed to indicate the market for outfielder Anthony Santander could be heating up. The slugger has at least one offer on the table from the Blue Jays, and the Angels are also reportedly considered “frontrunners” for his services. He’s also been connected to each of the Tigers, Red Sox, and Yankees, though New York seems to be the least likely destination given that their reported interest stems from before Cody Bellinger was brought into the fold. The Dodgers’ recent move to re-sign Teoscar Hernandez may help to get Santander’s market moving further, seeing as it took a major alternative to the switch-hitter’s services off the board.

That’s not necessarily a guarantee, however. Santander is joined by first baseman Pete Alonso and third baseman Alex Bregman as the best remaining hitters on the market, and it’s fair to note that while Nolan Arenado’s availability on the trade market appears to be a factor holding up Bregman’s free agency, the market for Alonso did not heat up much following Christian Walker’s deal with the Astros. Santander’s reported asking price of $100MM over five years may serve as a sticking point in negotiations that drags things out a bit longer, particularly after Hernandez signed for just three years and $66MM.

2. Infielders coming off the board:

The hottest market in baseball right now is surely that for infielders—though not for top-tier options like Bregman or Arenado. Rather, recent days have seen a number of utility infielders come off the board. The Dodgers adding Hyeseong Kim on Friday stands out as the most notable transaction in this corner of the market, but Josh Rojas also inked a big league deal with the White Sox on Thursday while the Royals and Yankees both added players in this part of the market (Cavan Biggio and Andrew Velazquez, respectively) on minor league pacts. Could the next domino to fall be switch-hitting third baseman Yoán Moncada, who it was reported yesterday has received interest from the Cubs, Mariners, and Blue Jays? Jose Iglesias, Whit Merrifield, Amed Rosario, and Jorge Polanco are among the other hitters available in this tier of free agency.

3. Cartaya on the trade block:

The Dodgers made a somewhat surprising move on Friday when they opted to designate former top catching prospect Diego Cartaya for assignment. The 23-year-old was a consensus top-20 prospect in the sport as recently as the 2023 season but hit just .208/.293/.350 at Triple-A last year and is entering his final minor league option year. With Will Smith already in L.A. on a long-term deal and Dalton Rushing having leapfrogged Cartaya on the organization depth chart, it’s easy to see why that sort of performance made Cartaya expendable for the Dodgers. Even so, his status as a former top prospect and the ever-present need around baseball for upper-level catching depth could make Cartaya an attractive potential option on the trade market for rival clubs, to the point where it’s easy to imagine Cartaya not making it to the waiver wire. The Dodgers have only a few days to work out a trade before they’ll need to expose the catcher to waivers—could a deal come together today?

Red Sox Notes: Arenado, Casas, Bregman, Sasaki

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Reports last month from MLB.com’s John Denton indicated that the Red Sox, Mets, Phillies, Padres, Dodgers, and Angels were six of the teams (and perhaps the only six teams) Nolan Arenado was willing to waive his no-trade protection to join, should the Cardinals work out an acceptable swap with any of these clubs.  Four weeks after that initial report, Boston remains “a preferred destination” for Arenado, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam.  What isn’t known, however, is if the Red Sox and Cardinals are anywhere close on a deal, or if the Sox are particularly motivated to bring Arenado to Beantown.

Acquiring Arenado would check a couple of big needs off of Boston’s offseason shopping list.  Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow reiterated earlier this week that the Sox were looking to add “a right-handed bat out of the middle of the lineup,” considering that the team is heavy with left-handed hitters.  Bringing one of the best defensive third basemen of all time to Fenway Park would instantly help Boston’s subpar infield defense, and Arenado would even be reunited with his good friend and former Rockies teammate Trevor Story.

One initial roadblock, of course, is the fact that the Red Sox already have a star third baseman in Rafael Devers.  Though Arenado has indicated that he is open to a position change in the right circumstance and Devers’ agent said in no uncertain terms in November that his client was staying at third base, it is hard to believe that Arenado would move off the hot corner in deference to a much weaker fielder in Devers.  If a trade did happen, Devers would presumably become the new first baseman or DH, though this creates other conflicts with Triston Casas and Masataka Yoshida.

Both of those players, however, have been mentioned in trade talks this winter, and even in some of the same trade talks.  Casas is the far more valuable trade asset of the two, and while Breslow said “we’re certainly not shopping him,” that naturally doesn’t mean Casas is off limits.  Indeed, Cotillo and McAdam write that “there remains a belief in the industry that the Red Sox remain open to trading Casas, potentially for young pitching, to facilitate other roster maneuvering.”

It could be that the Sox are looking to first trade Casas before making any other moves, as their leverage in a Casas deal would be lessened if the Red Sox created a positional logjam beforehand.  Trading Casas purely as a vehicle to clear payroll space surely isn’t Breslow’s preference, which is why that aforementioned attempt to link Yoshida and Casas together was still part of an attempt to bring Luis Castillo from Seattle to Boston.

Payroll is also a major aspect of any Arenado trade, as the third baseman is owed $74MM over the remaining three seasons of his contract.  Between deferrals and the $10MM being covered by the Rockies, the present-day value of Arenado’s contract reportedly works out to $60MM.  The Cardinals’ chief incentive in trading Arenado is naturally to move as much of this money as possible, and the proposed deal with the Astros that Arenado blocked would’ve seen Houston take on either $45MM (as per Katie Woo and Chandler Rome of the Athletic) or $59MM (as per ESPN’s Jeff Passan) of the $60MM figure.

Theoretically, the Red Sox could absorb the entire contract and still stay under the $241MM luxury tax threshold, as RosterResource estimates Boston’s current tax number at just under $212MM.  It remains unclear exactly how much payroll capacity Breslow has been allotted this winter, as while the Sox have made overtures to several top free agents, their spending has been pretty modest to date.  The Red Sox could perhaps convince the Cardinals to take on a bigger chunk of Arenado’s salary (or at least closer to the $45MM figure) if better prospects are offered in return.  Chaim Bloom’s involvement in this speculative trade is an interesting wrinkle, as the incoming St. Louis president of baseball operations has plenty of knowledge of Boston’s farm system due to his past stint as the Red Sox CBO.

Trading for Arenado would come at a lesser overall cost than signing Alex Bregman, another top third baseman who remains on Boston’s radar.  That said, the Red Sox are known to still be in the running for Bregman, who has some notable ties to the Sox in manager Alex Cora (from their days together in Houston) and his longtime friend Walker Buehler, who just signed with the Sox himself before Christmas.  Buehler recently told Cotillo and other reporters that even in his brief time in a Sox uniform, “I have certainly made a pitch all over the place for [Bregman] to come to Boston.”

Turning to other Red Sox targets, it remains unknown if Boston is still one of the teams getting consideration from Roki Sasaki.  Earlier this week, Sasaki’s agent Joel Wolfe updated reporters on his client’s search for a Major League team, and didn’t give any indication that the right-hander was finished with his in-person meetings with interested clubs.

The Red Sox weren’t one of the seven teams known to have spoken with Sasaki already, and word hasn’t broken if a meeting has been scheduled or perhaps it is has already taken place since Wolfe’s last presser.  As of yesterday, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reported that the Sox hadn’t “been told they are out of” the running for Sasaki’s services, so the situation is still up in the air.

How NL Teams Have Addressed Their Weakest Positions Of 2024

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We covered the American League yesterday, so now let’s see what the National League’s 15 teams have done (so far) to address their least-productive positions from the 2024 campaign.  Baseball Reference’s position-by-position bWAR breakdown is our guide, so let’s dive in…

Braves (Left field, -0.2 bWAR): Atlanta took a big chunk of money off the Mariners’ payroll to facilitate last winter’s five-player trade involving former top prospect Jarred Kelenic, with the idea that Kelenic would break out with a change of scenery.  Unfortunately for the Braves, their investment didn’t pay off, as Kelenic hit only .231/.286/.393 over 449 plate appearances with his new team.  Old friends Adam Duvall and Eddie Rosario were also ineffective as part of the left field timeshare, and while Ramon Laureano played well, Atlanta still opted to non-tender Laureano in November.  Bryan De La Cruz was brought in on a split league deal but he might be targeted to play right field in place of the recovering Ronald Acuna Jr., and then perhaps shifted into a platoon with Kelenic once Acuna returns from his ACL rehab.  It has been a pretty quiet offseason overall for Atlanta, but acquiring an everyday outfielder to supplant Kelenic and company entirely might still be on the to-do list.

Brewers (First base, -0.6 bWAR): It’s never good when a team’s second highest-paid player is chiefly responsible for its least-effective spot on the diamond, particularly when that club is a lower-payroll outfit like Milwaukee.  Rhys Hoskins signed a two-year, $34MM deal with the Brew Crew last winter and unsurprisingly passed on an opt-out clause after he hit an uninspiring .214/.303/.419 over 517 PA in 2024.  Jake Bauers was even less effective as the left-handed side of the platoon and was outrighted off the 40-man roster and into free agency at season’s end.  The Brewers won’t be able to trade Hoskins unless they eat most of the $22MM still owed on his deal, so the hope for now is that the veteran will more consistent in his second year in Milwaukee, perhaps with former top prospect Tyler Black also contributing as Bauers’ replacement.

Cardinals (Right field, -0.1 bWAR): Alec Burleson put up pretty decent numbers during his 173 PA as a right fielder, but the other seven players who cycled through the Cardinals’ right field position didn’t contribute much of anything.  With St. Louis focusing on its younger core in 2025, the plan for now is to give former top prospect Jordan Walker an extended look as the everyday right fielder.  Walker doesn’t turn 23 until May and he has just 643 big league plate appearances over two seasons, so there’s still plenty of time for a breakout.

Cubs (Third base, 0.2 bWAR): The deadline deal that brought Isaac Paredes in from the Rays didn’t do much to stabilize the Wrigleyville hot corner, and the Cubs then shook the position up again by dealing Paredes to the Astros as part of the Kyle Tucker trade package.  President of baseball operations Jed Hoyer told reporters last month that top prospect Matt Shaw will get a “long look” at third base, but “he has to earn that job.”  Chicago has been linked to such experienced third basemen as Josh Rojas and Yoan Moncada in the aftermath of the Tucker trade, so chances are the Cubs will bring in a veteran to compete with Shaw or split time at third base.

Diamondbacks (Rotation, 3.0 bWAR): Technically, the 2.2 bWAR that the Diamondbacks received from the center field spot is their lowest position on Baseball Reference’s chart.  However, since only two teams got less from their starting pitchers than Arizona did in 2024, it is more accurate to point to the rotation as the flaw that left the D’Backs painfully short of a playoff berth.  Injuries were the biggest reason for the rotation’s struggles, and it is possible that things will improve just if Eduardo Rodriguez, Merrill Kelly, and Jordan Montgomery are all healthier in 2025.  That didn’t stop the D’Backs from going out and signing Corbin Burnes to a surprising six-year, $210MM deal, which only enhances the likelihood that Arizona can now trade from its starting depth before Opening Day.

Dodgers (Center field, 1.2 bWAR): James Outman and Chris Taylor both struggled, and rookie Andy Pages fared far better defensively in left field than in center.  Fortunately for Los Angeles, trade deadline pickups Tommy Edman, Enrique Hernandez, and Kevin Kiermaier stabilized things up the middle late in the season and throughout the playoffs, helping the Dodgers win the World Series.  With Edman now signed to a long-term extension, he looks to be the top choice in center field going forward, though his ability to play all over the diamond gives the Dodgers some flexibility if another center-field option emerges.

Giants (Second base, -0.2 bWAR): Tyler Fitzgerald’s excellent rookie season ensured that he’d be lining up somewhere in San Francisco’s 2025 lineup, and the only question was whether or not the Giants would keep him at shortstop or move him elsewhere around the diamond.  With Willy Adames now locked in as the new starting shortstop, Fitzgerald will slide across the middle infield and take over the keystone.  Fitzgerald’s inflated .380 BABIP hints at a regression from his big 2024 numbers, though even a couple of steps back will still represent an improvement over what the Giants received from their second base mix last year.  Thairo Estrada saw the bulk of the playing time as the Giants’ second baseman in 2024, but the two sides parted ways entirely after the season and Estrada is now set to play for an NL West rival in Colorado.

Marlins (Left field, -1.2 bWAR): Left field edges out the catching position, as the Marlins only received -1.1 bWAR from their backstops in 2024.  Bryan De La Cruz and Nick Gordon are both gone, leaving left field open for Kyle Stowers or Jesus Sanchez as the primary left fielder next season, unless that duo are instead deployed in center (Stowers) and right (Sanchez).  Griffin Conine, Dane Myers, Javier Sanoja, and Derek Hill figure to all be part of the outfield mix in some regard, leaving the rebuilding Marlins with options about how exactly they’ll divvy up the playing time.

Mets (Bullpen, 0.0 bWAR): Only the Blue Jays and Rockies received less from their bullpens than the Mets in 2024, which perhaps reflects New York’s high-risk and high-reward approach to the relief corps.  The Mets had the highest reliever strikeout rate (27.7%) in baseball, but also the third-worst walk rate (10.7%), evening things out to a 4.03 bullpen ERA that ranked 17th of 30 teams.  President of baseball operations David Stearns has a long history of finding unheralded relievers that deliver good performances, which could be why the Mets’ bullpen moves have thus far been mostly restricted to adding a bunch of pitchers on minor league contracts.  Finding a gem or two within that group would help immensely, but signing a more clear-cut candidate for high-leverage innings would help immensely, particularly if that reliever is left-handed.

Nationals (Third base, -0.5 bWAR): After acquiring Nathaniel Lowe and Josh Bell to address their deficiencies at first base (0.3 bWAR) and DH (0.1 bWR), the Nationals figure to now more fully turn their attention to the hot corner.  The Nats explored the creative solution of longtime second baseman Gleyber Torres at the position, but Torres didn’t have interest in moving off the keystone and instead signed with the Tigers.  Whatever veteran third baseman Washington adds is likely to be a short-term fix, as top prospect Brady House looks like the long-term answer at the position and figures to make his MLB debut at some point in 2025.

Padres (Pinch-hitting, 0.4 bWAR): Among more regular positions, the Padres’ lowest total was 0.9 bWAR from their catchers.  Kyle Higashioka left in free agency to sign with the Rangers, weakening both areas and leaving Luis Campusano as San Diego’s top choice behind the plate.  There has been plenty of speculation swirling about the Padres’ offseason but little in the way of substantive moves, perhaps owing to the uncertainty surrounding exactly how much the front office has available to spend this winter.  Since the Padres are one of Roki Sasaki’s top suitors, it is possible the team might be holding off until Sasaki makes his decision to know exactly how they’ll proceed in configuring the rotation, perhaps trading away a bigger salary or two, and bolstering the catching corps and the bench.

Phillies (Right field, 1.0 bWAR): Nick Castellanos hit .254/.311/.431 with 23 homers over 659 plate appearances, translating to a decent but unspectacular 105 wRC+.  Castellanos’ value was further limited by his right-field glovework, which drew dismal reviews from public defensive metrics.  It added up to an 0.8 bWAR season for Castellanos, which isn’t a great result for a player on a $20MM salary.  With two years and $40MM more on Castellanos’ contract, the Phillies’ efforts to find a trade partner will be difficult, leaving the Phils somewhat limited to just hoping that Castellanos can hit better in his age-33 season.

Pirates (Right field, -1.2 bWAR): On the bright side for the Phillies, at least they didn’t have the shakiest right field situation in the state of Pennsylvania.  A whopping 12 different players saw some action in right field for the Pirates last season, and the three players with the most innings logged at the position — Bryan De La Cruz, Edward Olivares, Connor Joe — have already been let go.  Pittsburgh has been seeking some new outfield help but hasn’t yet landed a prominent regular to suit up alongside center fielder Oneil Cruz and left fielder Bryan Reynolds.  As always, the limited payroll will shorten the Buccos’ list of possible targets, but adding even a platoon bat to split time with the incumbent in-house backup outfielders would fill a big hole in the roster.

Reds (Third base, -1.9 bWAR): Cincinnati received only 4.4 total bWAR from its position players in 2024, the third-lowest total of any team in the sport.  This lackluster number included sub-replacement scores from pinch-hitters (-0.1), the DH spot (-1.3), first base (-1.3) and finally the hot corner as the weakest cog in this faulty model of the Big Red Machine.  Unfortunately for the Reds, third base was the position that was supposed to have been firmed up by the signing of Jeimer Candelario to a three-year, $45MM contract last winter, but Candelario struggled to a 225/.279/.429 slash line in the first season of his deal.  Santiago Espinal and Noelvi Marte also didn’t hit well in their time at third base when Candelario was deployed over at first base, yet the Reds seem likely to run it back with this same trio at the hot corner next year.  A bounce-back from Candelario would be most helpful in the short term, and a breakout from former top prospect Marte (who missed 80 games due to a PED suspension) could give Cincinnati a longer-term fix as the Reds continue to try and figure out their infield mix.

Rockies (Bullpen, -2.0 bWAR): Only the Blue Jays’ pen had a lower bWAR total, and Toronto was also the only collective pitching staff in the league with a negative bWAR, as the Rockies finished 29th of 30 in the overall pitching category with an even 0.0 bWAR.  The Rockies have thus far brought in a couple of experienced relievers in Diego Castillo and Jimmy Herget to compete for jobs, but as you might expect, it isn’t easy luring bigger-name bullpen arms to the thin air of Coors Field.  With the club unlikely to splurge much on signings, Colorado could be counting on some more minor league signings or internal improvement to help upgrade the relief corps.

Royals Sign Cavan Biggio To Minor League Contract

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The Royals announced that utilityman Cavan Biggio has been signed to a minor league contract.  While no mention was made in the team’s official announcement, it can be assumed that Biggio received an invitation to Kansas City’s big league Spring Training camp.

K.C. is Biggio’s fifth different organization within the last seven months.  Biggio had spent his entire pro career with the Blue Jays until Toronto traded him to the Dodgers in June, and Los Angeles released him two months later.  The Giants then picked Biggio up on another minors contract in August but he didn’t see any big league time with San Francisco before he was traded to the Braves in August.  Biggio appeared in four games with Atlanta and was then outrighted off the 40-man roster at season’s end, with Biggio opting for free agency.

Though all the moves, Biggio hit .197/.314/.303 over 224 total plate appearances with the Jays, Dodgers, and Braves in 2024.  Initially viewed as a potential cornerstone piece for the Blue Jays when he posted strong numbers in the 2019-20 seasons, Biggio hasn’t really been the same since his injury-riddled 2021 campaign, hitting only .216/.325/.349 over 1159 PA since Opening Day 2021.

The Blue Jays were short enough on left-handed batters that they kept looking for ways for Biggio to stick in the lineup in at least a platoon capacity, and he had some bursts of effectiveness in 2023 before falling back to earth last season.  While not a defensive standout at any position, Biggio has played first base, second base, third base, and both corner outfield slots during his career.  At the plate, Biggio has been able to draw walks pretty consistently, but this ability to get on base has been undermined by a lack of power and a lack of hard contact.

If Biggio makes the Royals’ roster, he projects as a left-handed hitting complement to Hunter Renfroe in right field or possibly Maikel Garcia at third base, though Biggio’s third-base glovework was far below par during his time at the position in Toronto.  Biggio’s general versatility could help him win a job on the K.C. roster, or he could act as minor league depth if he doesn’t opt out of his contract to seek out an opportunity on yet another new team.

Free Agent Profile: Jorge Polanco

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Just under a year ago, the Mariners acquired second baseman Jorge Polanco from the Twins as part of a five-player deal that also involved right-hander Anthony DeScalfani, the latter of whom was traded to Seattle as part of the Robbie Ray trade earlier that same month. At the time of the deal, adding Polanco seemed to be something of a coup for the Mariners, who were in desperate need of an upgrade over Kolten Wong at second base and managed to take advantage of the fact that the Twins were facing a mandate to cut payroll and had plenty of infield depth at their disposal.

That allowed them to add a former All-Star with who had slashed .255/.333/.462 (120 wRC+) over the previous three seasons. Polanco even came with multiple years of control in the form of a $12MM team option ($750K buyout) that seemed quite likely to be a no-brainer for the club to pick up when the trade was executed. Flash forward to the end of the 2024 campaign, however, and Polanco had posted arguably the worst full season of his career before undergoing knee surgery in October. Given that, it was a surprise to no one when the Mariners opted to decline their option on the switch-hitter and pocket the $11.25MM in savings for use on other areas of the roster.

Since then, Polanco has been awaiting an opportunity on the free agent market. The infielder is slated to return to baseball activities at some point this month and be fully ready to go in time for Spring Training, but his market has nonetheless been rather quiet. The Astros reportedly had some level of interest in Polanco as a fallback plan in the event they failed to land Alex Bregman, but they instead pivoted to a combination of Isaac Paredes at third base and Christian Walker at first. That seems likely to close the door on the possibility of Polanco heading to Houston, and no other teams have been publicly connected to the infielder.

Some trepidation from clubs regarding Polanco is understandable. In addition to the fact that he’s coming off offseason surgery, there are some worrisome signs in his performance last year even going beyond his raw production. Polanco’s 29.2% strikeout rate was by far the worst mark of his 11-year MLB tenure. He’s struck out just a 19.5% clip throughout his career, but his strikeouts have been steadily increasing over the last several years. He struck out at just an 18.3% clip back in 2021, which was by far the best season of his career. Since then, however, his strikeouts have climbed each season with a 21.3% figure in 2022 and 25.7% in ’23 before topping out with last year’s aforementioned 29.2% clip.

It’s a worrying trend that was present even when Polanco was productive in previous years and shows little sign of turning around. After making contact on 81.6% of pitches he swung at in 2021, good for the 32nd-highest contact rate among 132 qualified hitters. That figure dropped to 73.6% last year, though, which was just 124th among 169 hitters with at least 450 plate appearances. That’s a steep drop, though it’s not the culprit of Polanco’s downturn in production on its own. After all, his 77.1% and 77.2% contact rates in 2022 and ’23 were diminished relative to 2021 as well and Polanco still managed to remain productive.

Where Polanco found success in those years but not 2024 was in the power department: his barrel rate in 2022 was a well above-average 10.2%, and it jumped to an excellent 13.8% two seasons ago. Last year, however, it dipped to just 8.9%. That’s still an above-average figure overall, but a nearly five-point drop in barrel rate is sure to sap any hitter’s power output. Polanco was no exception to that, as after crushing 14 homers and 18 doubles in just 343 plate appearances in 2023 last year saw Polanco slug just 16 homers and 11 doubles despite stepping up to the plate 136 more times than he had the year prior.

While Polanco’s deteriorating contact numbers and vanishing power are both clear causes for concern, there is some reason for optimism as well. His 9.8% walk rate remained well above average in 2024, and his .311 xwOBA was 24 points higher than his .287 wOBA. That suggests at least some of his lackluster campaign last year was due to poor batted ball luck, and after a season where he posted a 92 wRC+ for the Mariners it’s easy to imagine him being more of an average to slightly above-average hitter by that metric had his results matched more closely with the underlying metrics.

A second baseman who can put up a wRC+ in the 100-105 range can be a valuable regular even when factoring in Polanco’s lackluster defense at the keystone, and it’s not hard to imagine Polanco being a steady, two-win regular if healthy enough to play a full season in 2025 even without his contract or power bouncing back. Between that solid floor of production at the possibility Polanco can rediscover either the power stroke or the more contact-oriented approach he found success with in previous seasons, he figures to be one of the better players available to teams in need of help at second or third base at this point in the winter—particularly for clubs that aren’t willing to commit what it would take to land Bregman, Nolan Arenado, or Ha-Seong Kim on an annual basis. The Yankees, Angels, Cubs, and Pirates are among a number of teams that could use help around the infield that Polanco could be a speculative fit for.

Cubs, Mariners Among Teams Interested In Yoan Moncada

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“Several” teams remain involved the market for third baseman Yoán Moncada, according to a report from Francys Romero this afternoon. Romero goes on to report that the Cubs and Mariners are among the clubs with interest in Moncada’s services in addition to the Blue Jays, who were previously reported as a potential suitor last month.

After spending eight seasons on the south side of Chicago, the prospect of Moncada moving on to the north side and joining the Cubs makes plenty of sense. The switch-hitter has primarily played third base throughout his career but has also spent time at the keystone. Those are perhaps the two positions where the Cubs could stand to benefit most from shoring up their depth. The club parted ways with third baseman Isaac Paredes as part of the deal that brought Kyle Tucker to Chicago last month, and while top prospect Matt Shaw seems poised to take over everyday reps at the hot corner he has just 35 games of experience at the Triple-A level.

It would be a surprise for the club to simply anoint an unproven player as an everyday player, even one as talented as Shaw. To that end, president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer indicated last month that Shaw will have to “earn” the position in Spring Training. There’s at least some semblance of internal competition for the role in the form of Rule 5 draft pick Gage Workman as well as utility infielders Miles Mastrobuoni and Vidal Bruján, but adding a player with more of a big league track record to the mix could give Shaw some more robust competition for the role. Moncada is as good a choice as any player available on the infield market for that role. Though he’s often been injured in recent years, he’s hit a respectable .262/.311/.422 (101 wRC+) over the past two seasons and was a well above-average regular as recently as 2021.

In addition to providing competition to Shaw this spring, adding Moncada to the Cubs’ infield mix would give the club additional protection against the possibility that incumbent second baseman Nico Hoerner isn’t ready for Opening Day. Hoerner underwent flexor tendon surgery back in October, and the Cubs have subsequently indicated that although he’s expected to be ready early in the 2025 season at the latest, a specific timetable for his return won’t be clear until camp opens next month. With so much uncertainty surrounding both second and third base, the addition of Moncada to the mix would give the Cubs a high-upside veteran who could fill in for Hoerner in the lineup early in the year and act as an insurance policy against Shaw struggling in his first taste of big league action.

As for the Mariners, MLBTR discussed Moncada as a potential fit for their needs at third base in a post last night. Given the club’s wide-open third base competition, the prospect of everyday playing time is one that would surely appeal to Moncada if it were to be made available to him. With that being said, Moncada’s 29.4% strikeout rate over the past two seasons could give the Mariners some level of pause given their efforts to cut down on strikeouts in their lineup over the past couple of years. With that being said, the third base options available in free agency this winter are fairly limited and it’s difficult to imagine Seattle finding a clearly better option for the hot corner unless they can swing a trade for a player like Alec Bohm or Willi Castro.

While Toronto’s interest in Moncada’s services isn’t exactly news, it’s nonetheless noteworthy given that prior reports of interest in his services originated prior to the Andrés Giménez trade last month. With Giménez and Bo Bichette seemingly locked into the club’s middle infield barring a Bichette trade coming together at some point, that seemingly left youngsters like Ernie Clement and Addison Barger to jockey for playing time at the hot corner. Adding Moncada to the mix might push those youngsters to the bench or Triple-A, though it’s also possible that the Jays could instead have a bench role in mind for Moncada while Clement remains as the club’s likely regular at third.

Looking For A Match In A Jordan Montgomery Trade

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When the Diamondbacks shocked the baseball world by landing right-hander Corbin Burnes in free agency, the move gave them nearly unparalleled depth in the rotation: the righty is joined by Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez, Jordan Montgomery, Brandon Pfaadt, and Ryne Nelson among the club’s starting options headed into 2025. That sort of depth will cause plenty of speculation regarding the possibility of a trade, and Arizona’s rotation has been no exception to that. While the club reportedly wasn’t close to dealing any of its pitchers last week, they’ve has garnered interest on their rotation throughout the winter.

Of that group, Montgomery has long seemed to be the most likely player to move. The lefty was a late-spring signing by the Diamondbacks last year, and the deal hasn’t gone well for anyone. Montgomery struggled badly in his first season in the desert, pitching to a 6.23 ERA in 117 innings of work. His 4.48 FIP was substantially better than that top-level run prevention figure, though even that was below average. Diamondbacks ownership went as far as to publicly criticize Montgomery shortly after the 2024 season came to a close, so it’s no surprise that the Snakes have long appeared motivated to move the southpaw ahead of his age-32 season. The addition of Burnes could at least theoretically open the door to Arizona feeling comfortable enough with its rotation depth to more seriously consider dealing one of its other arms, but it stands to reason that the club would still prefer to move Montgomery all else equal.

After such a disastrous 2024 campaign, it’s hard to imagine the Diamondbacks getting much of significance for the lefty’s services beyond some salary relief. Montgomery is slated to earn $22.5MM in 2025, a hefty sum that it seems unlikely that the club will be able to fully get off of its books. With that being said, the ever-increasing price of starting pitching makes the deal at least a little bit more palatable than it might seem at first glance. After all, the Red Sox guaranteed right-hander Walker Buehler $21.05MM for the 2025 season on the heels of a lackluster campaign where he posted a 5.38 ERA in 16 starts. The Tigers, meanwhile, guaranteed 37-year-old veteran Alex Cobb $15MM on the heels of a 2024 campaign where he made just three regular season starts.

Both of those players have substantial previous success to lean on, but so does Montgomery. The lefty won the World Series with the Rangers in 2023, and in doing so capped off a three-season stretch where he pitched to a strong 3.48 ERA (120 ERA+) with a 3.62 FIP across 94 starts. So long as the Diamondbacks aren’t looking to get anything of particular significance back in return, it’s relatively easy to imagine them being able to offload at least $15MM or so of Montgomery’s salary. Which teams could be best positioned to take a one-year roll of the dice on the lefty’s services? A look at nine potential suitors, listed alphabetically within tiers:

Best Fits

  • Athletics: The A’s have been quite aggressive in looking to upgrade their club this winter, in part as they attempt to avoid a grievance with the MLBPA regarding their use of revenue sharing dollars. They’ve already added Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs to their rotation this winter, but club brass left the door open for a third starting pitching acquisition this winter if the opportunity presented itself. Enter Montgomery, the acquisition of whom could push the club’s luxury tax payroll up to $105MM range they’re reportedly targeting even if Arizona ate some of the money. If Montgomery manages to bounce back in 2025, he’d join Severino, Springs, JP Sears, and Mitch Spence in a surprisingly formidable rotation for the club’s first season in West Sacramento.
  • Braves: Atlanta has a clear need for rotation help after losing both Max Fried and Charlie Morton in free agency this winter, but the club has been uncharacteristically slow to get to work this winter. With that being said, Alex Anthopoulos’s front office has long shown a fondness for one-year additions coming off down seasons like Josh Donaldson and Marcell Ozuna. Arguably, that list also includes reigning NL Cy Young award winner Chris Sale as the lefty was entering the final guaranteed year of his deal with Boston when the Braves traded for him. A trade for Montgomery surely wouldn’t go quite as well as the one for Sale did, but it’s easy to imagine the lefty bouncing back in the Braves rotation alongside Sale, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo López, and Spencer Schwellenbach in 2025.
  • White Sox: Chicago may seem like an odd fit for Montgomery, given the fact that they’re coming off the worst season in MLB history with virtually no hope of making noise in the AL Central race during this coming season. The fact that they’re one of the only clearly rebuilding clubs in the game right now could make them a unique potential suitor for Montgomery’s services, however. Their rotation mix is filled to the brim with young arms who could prove to be interesting but offer little certainty, so adding a veteran arm like Montgomery could make sense for all sides. It’s possible the White Sox, with a payroll that RosterResource projects at just $78MM in 2025, could actually absorb the entirety of Montgomery’s salary in exchange for a prospect from Arizona. If Montgomery pitches well in the first half, Chicago could then flip the lefty at the deadline for additional young talent to keep their rebuild chugging along.

Next Tier Down

  • Astros: It’s possible to imagine the Astros being content with their current starting depth after adding Hayden Wesneski to the mix in the Kyle Tucker trade and likely welcoming right-hander Luis Garcia back into the fold in time for Opening Day after he missed the 2024 season due to injury. With that being said, the club did lose both Justin Verlander and Jose Urquidy from its rotation depth this winter and is known to be shopping right-hander Ryan Pressly on the trade market this winter while searching for left-handed hitting outfielders. Arizona has a surplus of left-handed hitting outfielders and is known to be on the hunt of late-inning relief help, so perhaps there’s a fit here involving some combination of Montgomery, Pressly, and young Diamondbacks outfielder like Alek Thomas.
  • Mariners: Seattle may seem like a somewhat unusual fit for Montgomery’s services given the club’s strong rotation, but there seems to be at least some possibility that the club will trade right-hander Luis Castillo this winter. Doing so would leave the club with little rotation depth, however. Theoretically, it’s easy enough to imagine the Mariners dealing Castillo to another club in exchange for infield help, and then using the saved money from the deal in order to pivot towards acquiring Montgomery to restock the rotation. Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto has certainly shown a willingness to get similarly creative in the past, and Mike Hazen’s front office in Arizona has been one of his most frequent trade partners over the years.
  • Mets: The Mets aren’t in a position where they need to add another starter, with a rotation mix that currently runs eight players deep. With that being said, Montgomery’s salary would hardly be excessively cumbersome for the big-spending Mets, and David Stearns has shown a fondness for reclamation projects in the rotation. Given the Mets’ success in rehabilitating the careers of Luis Severino and Sean Manaea last winter, it would hardly be a surprise if the club found similar success in doing so with Montgomery.

Longer Shots

  • Cubs: The White Sox aren’t the only Chicago team Montgomery could at least theoretically make sense for. The Cubs are known to be in the market for another starting pitcher, and their pursuit of lefty Jesús Luzardo earlier this winter indicate a willingness on the club’s part to roll the dice on a hurler coming off a down season like Montgomery. With that being said, the club reportedly turned down a trade involving Montgomery and Cody Bellinger earlier this winter. Given the fact that the Cubs ended up trading Bellinger for little more than salary relief last month, it stands to reason that Jed Hoyer’s front office either has little interest in Montgomery’s services or at the very least preferred to open up that payroll space for other pursuits.
  • Orioles: Baltimore would’ve seemed like one of the better on-paper fits for Montgomery’s services just a week ago, but they recently inked right-hander Charlie Morton to a one-year deal for 2025. That won’t necessarily take them out of the rotation market entirely, but it seems as though Baltimore would only add to its rotation in order to bring in a clear upgrade over its internal options. Given Montgomery’s down season, it’s hard to imagine the club feeling that way about him at this point. After all, fifth starter Dean Kremer posted a higher ERA+ than Montgomery in two of the last three seasons.
  • Rangers: Montgomery was a key piece in the Rangers’ 2023 World Series championship, and the club seemingly had plenty of interest in bringing the lefty back last winter. Much like Montgomery himself, the Rangers had a down year in 2024 and missed the postseason. With Max Scherzer and Andrew Heaney now free agents, there could potentially be room for a reunion in the Texas rotation. With that being said, the club appears determined to remain under the first luxury tax threshold and has a number of young starters who they could opt to lean on in 2025 instead, like Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker.

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