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Kyle Hendricks Undecided On Pitching In 2026

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The Angels’ 4-3 win over the Astros yesterday marked Kyle Hendricks’ final start of the 2025 season, and it might also be the last outing of the right-hander’s big league career.  Hendricks told MLB.com’s Andres Soto and other reporters that he will take some time after the season to decide whether to hang up the cleats or to explore returning for a 13th season in the Show.

Beyond just his own feelings, Hendricks cited the need to consult with his family and the “lot of people involved” in his career.  “I’ve been so lucky with the support group I’ve had behind me,” Hendricks said.  “It takes an army.  You can’t do this by yourself, so it comes down to all their opinions and just taking some time away and seeing how you feel.”

Hendricks made similar statements earlier this week, seemingly pushing back against a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, who last weekend wrote that Hendricks “has informed friends that he expects to retire after the season.”  In a statement to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times last Wednesday, Hendricks implied that Nightengale hadn’t spoken to him before publishing the item.

Hendricks turns 36 in December, and he is re-entering free agency after signing a one-year, $2.5MM deal with the Angels last winter.  For that modest sum, he posted a 4.76 ERA over 164 2/3 innings, and in some ways delivered what has become his prototypical set of numbers over his lengthy career.  Hendricks displayed strong control (6.2% walk rate), an excellent 34.3% hard-hit ball rate, and his typically strong curveball spin rate and chase rate.

Despite the 31.7% chase rate, however, the right-hander’s 16.4% strikeout rate and 18.3% whiff rate both ranked near the bottom of the league.  Never a hard thrower, Hendricks has ranked within the second percentile of all pitchers in terms of velocity in each of the last nine seasons, and his fastball sat at only 86.5mph this year.  While batters had trouble squaring up against Hendricks in general, they made it count when they did make hard contact, as Hendricks allowed 25 homers and had only a middling barrel rate.

This is more or less the same level of production Hendricks has kept up since the start of the 2021 season, and he has a 4.79 ERA over 697 2/3 frames during the last five seasons.  Before this downturn, Hendricks had a 3.12 ERA over 1047 1/3 innings with the Cubs from 2014-20, becoming a staple in the rotation and a major part of the team’s 2016 World Series championship team.  Hendricks posted a league-best 2.13 ERA in 2016, finishing third in NL Cy Young Award voting.

Hendricks had spent his entire big league career in Chicago up until last offseason, when the Mission Viejo native signed with the Angels.  Ending his career with his hometown team is perhaps fitting from a narrative standpoint, though the righty hasn’t yet closed the door on pitching in 2026.  One would imagine that the Angels would have interest in a reunion on another low-cost contract, as the Halos have holes to fill in the rotation and Hendricks can both eat innings and continue his off-the-field role as a clubhouse mentor.

Yankees, Mets Discussed Grisham-For-Baty Trade At Deadline

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Prior to the trade deadline, the Yankees and Mets had some talks about a swap that would’ve generated a ton of headlines in both the Big Apple and around baseball.  According to SNY’s Andy Martino, the two New York teams explored a one-for-one deal that would’ve sent Trent Grisham to Queens in exchange for Brett Baty.

Aaron Judge’s health situation was a major component in these trade discussions, and the Yankees’ entire deadline direction.  Judge hurt his elbow while making a throw from right field on July 22, and the discomfort continued when the star outfielder was clearly having some issues throwing in the Bronx Bombers’ 12-5 loss to the Phillies on July 25.  A trip to the 10-day injured list followed, and Judge was limited to DH duty for over a month after returning from that fairly minimal IL stint.

Importantly, however, Judge’s elbow issue was minor a flexor strain that came without any UCL damage.  The initial fear was that Judge’s UCL was damaged to the point that a season-ending Tommy John surgery would’ve been required, and obviously losing their superstar would’ve completely altered the Yankees’ deadline plans.  As Martino put it, the Yankees had “a thought about selling” in the few days when Judge’s health situation was uncertain, which would’ve translated as the Bombers shopping pending free agents.  An NL scout told Martino in late July that the Yankees were at least open to offers for Grisham, Luke Weaver, Devin Williams, and Cody Bellinger (who is expected to opt out of the final season of his contract to test the market).

It shouldn’t be overlooked that the Yankees had a losing record (25-27) over June and July, so even with Judge firing on all cylinders, the club was in the midst of an extended slump as the deadline approached.  Losing their first five games in August added to the team’s woes, but the Yankees fully righted the ship by mid-August, going 28-11 over their last 39 games.  With two days left in the regular season, New York can still both capture both the AL East and the top overall seed in the AL playoff bracket, if the team can finish with a better record than the Blue Jays (since Toronto holds the head-to-head tiebreaker).

Grisham has been a big part of that surge, continuing what has been a career year for the 28-year-old outfielder.  Grisham is hitting .238/.349/.469 over 573 plate appearances, along with a total of 34 home runs that far exceeds his previous career high of 17.  In a strange reversal of his career norm, Grisham has gone from being a defensive standout with an average-at-best bat to being a slugging center fielder whose glovework (-11 Defensive Runs Saved, -2 Outs Above Average) has been a minus.

Even if the Yankees had sold some rental players at the deadline, it wasn’t going to be a fire sale.  The team was still looking to win and upgrade the 2025 roster, just in a way that perhaps focused more towards the future than making a direct all-in push towards a World Series this year.  Landing a controllable former top prospect in Baty would have fit the bill, and the Bombers viewed him as an answer at third base, even though he has gotten a lot of time as the Mets’ second baseman this year.

Now in his fourth MLB season, Baty’s 110 wRC+ represents a career best, and he has hit .254/.313/.435 with 18 home runs over 432 PA.  Baty has come about these numbers in inconsistent fashion, and the Mets even demoted him to Triple-A early in the season after an ice-cold start.  While these may not yet be the numbers Queens fans expected given Baty’s lofty prospect status, becoming a solid big league regular is no small feat, and Baty’s latest hot streak has quietly made him one of the more productive hitters in baseball over the last six weeks.

The Mets were reportedly open to trading from their young infield depth at the deadline, with Baty, Mark Vientos, Ronny Mauricio, and Luisangel Acuna all available for the right offer.  As it turned out, the Mets ended up primarily trading from their minor league pitching depth when making their pre-deadline moves, though infield prospect Jesus Baez was a prominent part of the trade package sent to the Cardinals for Ryan Helsley.

Rather than Grisham, the Mets addressed their outfield by acquiring Cedric Mullins from the Orioles in a trade that simply hasn’t worked out.  Mullins (who is also a free agent this winter) has hit only .183/.286/.283 over 142 PA in a Mets uniform, playing as the regular center fielder against right-handed pitching.  As for the Yankees, they held onto their impending free agents, and brought in a collection of veterans at the deadline to bolster the roster.  For third base in particular, Ryan McMahon was brought over from the Rockies and has at least stabilized the position from a defensive standpoint, even if McMahon isn’t hitting.

Naturally every deadline season goes by with countless eye-opening trades that didn’t come to fruition, so there’s no shortage of 20-20 hindsight that can be applied to any of these proposed deals.  In this particular Grisham-for-Baty swap, there’s some additional interest just due to the fact that the Yankees and Mets rarely trade with each other, not to mention the sliding-doors nature of what this trade might have done to each team’s season.

While the Yankees have been rolling in September, the Mets’ struggles have now reached critical mass, as the Amazins sit outside the NL postseason picture with two games remaining.  The Reds have a magic number of 2 for clinching the final NL wild card slot, since Cincinnati holds the tiebreaker over New York should the two teams finish with the same record.

With just a 20-31 record since August 1, the Mets’ deadline approach has already come under fire, even if Mullins’ struggles are far from the only reason the club has slumped.  It can be argued that in the world where Baty was dealt for Grisham, the Mets might still be in this same position, given Baty’s recent contributions and the fact that pitching has been the larger issue in Queens.  Hanging onto Baty may prove fruitful in the long run, but it won’t do much to ease the immediate dismay of Mets fans (or the organization itself) since their record payroll may not even result in a postseason trip.

Braves Claim Alek Manoah

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The Braves have claimed right-hander Alek Manoah off waivers from the Blue Jays, according to announcements from both clubs. Toronto designated him for assignment earlier this week. To open a 40-man spot for Manoah, Atlanta transferred infielder Ozzie Albies to the 60-day injured list.

Manoah, 27, has been trending down for a few years but is a former Cy Young contender. In 2022, he made 31 starts for the Blue Jays, tossing 196 2/3 innings with a 2.24 earned run average. That ERA was probably a bit misleading. Manoah’s 6.5% walk rate was good but his 22.9% strikeout rate was only about average and his 37.5% ground ball rate was subpar. He benefited from a .244 batting average on balls in play and 82.6% strand rate. Adjusted metrics like his 3.35 FIP and his 3.85 SIERA thought he was more good than great. Regardless, Manoah finished third in American League Cy Young voting, behind Justin Verlander and Dylan Cease.

A major correction came in the following season. Manoah was optioned to the minors in early June of 2023 after posting a 6.36 ERA in his first 13 starts. His strikeout rate had dropped to 17% while his walked rate had climbed to 14.9%. He came back up to make a few more starts in the second half but finished the year with a 5.87 ERA over 19 starts.

Going into 2024, there were some trade rumors surrounding Manoah but he ended up staying with the Jays. He missed the start of the season due to some shoulder soreness. He was able to come off the IL in May and made five decent starts, with a 3.70 ERA, 25.2% strikeout rate and 7.8% walk rate. However, he then required Tommy John surgery, putting him out of action for the rest of the year.

Here in 2025, Manoah has been working to get back on track but it hasn’t been an encouraging return. He has thrown 38 2/3 innings in the minors this year, mostly on rehab but the Jays also eventually reinstated him from the IL and optioned him. His 3.96 ERA in those minor league innings isn’t bad but his 19.6% strikeout rate and 12.8% walk rate are both poor. He has only been averaging 91 miles per hour on his fastball, whereas he was around 94 mph in that great 2022 season.

This was Manoah’s first of three arbitration seasons and he is making $2.2MM. Since he hasn’t pitched in the big leagues this year, he should be in line to make the same salary next year. The Jays recently needed a 40-man spot to reinstate Anthony Santander from the 60-day IL and they bumped Manoah off. That seems to suggest they weren’t planning to tender Manoah a contract and keep him around for next year.

He’s a sensible flier for another club to take. A salary between $2MM and $3MM is tiny by modern starting pitching standards. Soft-tossing veterans like Kyle Hendricks and Wade Miley each signed for $2.5MM last offseason. If Manoah can regain some of his lost velocity next year, there would be the added upside of him being controllable in 2027 as well. He also still has options, meaning he could be stashed in Triple-A as depth if he still isn’t back on track by March of next year.

That makes it somewhat surprising that a few clubs passed on Manoah. Waivers go in reverse order of the standings and are not league specific. With Atlanta winning the claim, it can be concluded that the Rockies, White Sox, Nationals, Twins, Pirates and Angels all passed. Some of those clubs have decent pitching, despite their poor records. But a few of those teams are desperate for arms, particularly the Rockies, who have a 6.02 ERA this season. Given their difficulties in convincing free agents to pitch at Coors Field, it’s a bit startling to see them shrug here.

Atlanta came into 2025 with championship aspirations but it turned into a Murphy’s law season. A mountain of injuries, some poor performances and a PED suspension for Jurickson Profar all combined to produce a dreadful campaign. As they have been playing out the string, president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has been trying to take advantage of any opportunity to grab players who might help the club bounce back next year.

In the past two months, Atlanta has claimed Ha-Seong Kim, Jake Fraley, Joey Wentz, Vidal Bruján, Brett Wisely, Joel Payamps, Chuckie Robinson, Alexis Díaz and now Manoah off waivers. Presumably, the club is comfortable tendering Manoah a contract for next year, though they don’t have to decide on that today. Perhaps they will have Manoah report to one of their facilities to throw some bullpens as they take a close-up look at him. If they want to, they could always walk away before the deadline to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players, which is usually in late November.

Going into 2026, Atlanta’s rotation projects to potentially include Chris Sale, Hurston Waldrep, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo López, Spencer Schwellenbach, Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder and others. That’s a lot of names but there are lots of question marks in there. Sale has had plenty of injuries over the years and turns 37 in March. Waldrep may be having a nice breakout but still has less than 70 big league innings pitched. Strider returned from his own surgery absence this year and hasn’t been his usual self. López missed almost this entire season due to a shoulder injury. Schwellenbach has been out almost three months due to an elbow fracture. Holmes probably needs UCL surgery but is trying non-surgical rehab for now. Elder has an unimpressive 5.30 ERA this year.

Assuming Manoah is tendered a contract, he cheaply adds another name into that mix and gives the club some more rotation depth. As mentioned, he has options and can be sent to Triple-A Gwinnett if he doesn’t earn a rotation job out of camp. If he is able to return to form, Atlanta could control him for the 2027 season as well.

It’s also possible they tender him a contract and then try to pass him through waivers later. Manoah will finish this year between four and five years of major league service time. That means he has the right to reject outright assignments but has to walk away from his remaining salary commitments in exercising that right. Players in that spot sometimes find themselves making a few million, which decreases the chances of them being claimed, allowing the club to stash them as non-roster depth.

As for Albies, he suffered a hamate fracture a few days ago and was going to miss the remainder of the season. He’ll spend the rest of the campaign on the 60-day IL but will need to be reinstated for the offseason, as the IL goes away five days after the World Series and doesn’t come back until pitchers and catchers report to spring training.

Photo courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski, Imagn Images

Rockies Notes: Front Office, Marquez, Halvorsen

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The Rockies are concluding one of the worst seasons in MLB history. They’ll come up just shy of 120 losses and are the only team since 1900 to be outscored by more than 400 runs. It led the historically loyal organization to fire manager Bud Black after a 7-33 start to the season. They’ve gone 36-84 under interim skipper Warren Schaeffer.

Walker Monfort, son of Rox’s owner Dick Monfort, was promoted to executive vice president in June. The team announced at the time that chief operating officer Greg Feasel would step aside at the end of the season. The team did not make any in-season changes to the baseball operations staff, yet that could happen in the next few weeks.

Buster Olney and Jesse Rogers of ESPN reported on Thursday that the Rox are “likely” to make changes to the front office. That may extend to the top of baseball operations. Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post wrote a couple weeks back that “it appears likely that (GM Bill Schmidt) will be fired or reassigned” at season’s end.

Schmidt has led baseball operations on a full-time basis since the 2021-22 offseason. He inherited a below-average roster from previous GM Jeff Bridich, but the results have gotten progressively worse. They lost 94 games during his first season and have lost 100+ games in each of the past three years — the first such seasons in franchise history.

No team has a worse record than Colorado’s 231-415 mark over the last four years. Schmidt had been in the organization for more than two decades before ascending to the GM role. He has been in the charge of the team’s amateur drafts since 2000. The Rox had brief runs of success during that time — highlighted by the National League pennant in 2007 — but only have five postseason appearances in a franchise history that dates back to 1993.

Whether they make a change atop baseball operations or not, the Rockies will need to decide whether to stick with Schaeffer as their permanent manager. They’re also likely to see the departure of one of their longest-tenured players. Germán Márquez made what’ll probably be his final start as a Rockie this evening. The impending free agent gave up six runs over 4 1/3 innings and took the loss. He finishes the season with a grisly 6.70 earned run average over 26 starts.

Márquez had much better seasons earlier in his career. He had a pair of sub-4.00 ERA seasons at Coors Field in 2018 and ’20 while securing an All-Star nod in 2021. Márquez has spent nine-plus seasons in Denver but is unlikely to return in free agency. Saunders wrote this evening that Colorado doesn’t intend to re-sign him.

The righty reflected on the run after making his final home start last weekend (link via Thomas Harding of MLB.com). “It was very, very emotional. It may have been the last game that I throw as a Rockie at Coors Field. I don’t know,” he acknowledged. “I was thinking about that the whole game. This is my home. I’ve been here for my whole career. I feel happy. I feel free here. But it’s baseball, and I need to see what’s going to happen.”

Márquez might well have been traded at this summer’s deadline had he not been placed on the injured list with biceps tendinitis in late July. The Rockies were more willing sellers than they’d been in previous seasons. They traded Ryan McMahon, Jake Bird and Tyler Kinley while at least hearing teams out on controllable relievers Seth Halvorsen and Victor Vodnik. They ended up holding both late-game arms.

Vodnik finished the season as the closer. Halvorsen went down immediately after the deadline with a mild flexor strain. That ended his season, but the fireballing righty has progressed to throwing off a mound as he prepares for the offseason (via the MLB.com injury tracker). He’s an unlikely offseason trade candidate coming off a season-ending elbow injury when he’s still under club control for five seasons. If he’s healthy, he’d have a good chance at beginning next year as the closer.

Guardians’ Sam Hentges Undergoes Knee Surgery

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Guardians left-hander Sam Hentges underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, reports Tim Stebbins of MLB.com. That comes with a 3-4 month rehab timeline that’ll delay his offseason. Hentges was already out for the entire 2025 season after undergoing shoulder surgery in September ’24.

The 29-year-old Hentges was a solid reliever for the Guards before the shoulder injury. He combined for a 2.93 earned run average across 138 appearances from 2022-24. The former fourth-round draftee punched out 27% of opponents while holding them to a .220/.282/.312 batting line. He hasn’t thrown an MLB pitch in more than 14 months.

Cleveland will need to activate Hentges from the injured list at the beginning of the offseason. They’ll decide whether to carry him on the 40-man roster throughout the offseason or non-tender him. Hentges made $1.337MM this year in his second season of arbitration as a Super Two player. He’d make the same amount next year if Cleveland offers him a contract. He’s under club control through 2027.

The Guardians’ bullpen is stronger from the right side than the left. Erik Sabrowski is their best lefty reliever. He has plus stuff and bat-missing ability but has walked nearly 18% of opposing hitters. Sabrowski has turned in a 1.86 earned run average across 29 innings, yet that’ll be hard to maintain while issuing free passes at that rate.

Tim Herrin has had a rough year. After posting a 1.92 ERA a season ago, he has allowed nearly five earned runs per nine while walking 15.5% of batters faced. Kolby Allard has provided the club 63 innings of 2.71 ERA ball. He’s working with a 90 MPH fastball and has a career-low 15.4% strikeout rate. The Guardians ran him through waivers in July before re-signing him to work in low-leverage situations.

Mets To Select Dylan Ross

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10:21pm: New York is indeed calling Ross up, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. They already have three open spots on the 40-man but will need to make an active roster move. Huascar Brazobán and Kevin Herget are the two pitchers in the MLB bullpen who have options remaining. They each pitched an inning of mop-up work in tonight’s 6-2 loss in Miami, so one of them will probably be sent out.

11:43am: The Mets are mulling a promotion for pitching prospect Dylan Ross and could bring him up for his big league debut as soon as tomorrow, Mika Puma of the New York Post reports. SNY’s Andy Martino reported last week that Ross was in consideration for a big league look before season’s end.

The 25-year-old Ross was New York’s 13th-round pick in 2022. He’s elevated his prospect status considerably in 2025 with a dominant showing out of the bullpen across three minor league levels. The former Georgia Bulldog has tossed a combined 54 innings with a 2.17 ERA — including a 1.69 mark in 32 frames at the Triple-A level. Ross has fanned just under 36% of his opponents this season and kept nearly 55% of the batted balls against him on the ground. Command, or lack thereof, is his most notable flaw. He’s walked an ugly 14.7% of his opponents (17.3% in Triple-A).

Listed at 6’5″ and 251 pounds, Ross is a prototypical flamethrowing reliever. He’s averaged 96.8 mph on his four-seamer this season and can run the pitch up into triple digits. He complements that fiery heater with a splitter and cutter that both sit just under 90 mph, a slider that sits 87.5 mph and a seldom-used curveball in the low-80s. MLB.com ranks Ross 20th among Mets farmhands.

Ross underwent Tommy John surgery during his draft season at Georgia and needed a revision of that procedure in 2023. He only pitched one inning in the minors in 2024 and has all of 55 professional innings under his belt to date. However, due to his status as a college draftee who’s now been in professional ball for three full seasons, he’d be eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft this winter. Given his outstanding season in the minors and the power nature of his repertoire, it’s likely the Mets would add him to the 40-man roster in November to protect him from being selected anyhow — which only strengthens his case for a call to the majors late in the season.

New York’s bullpen has slipped over the past couple months. Mets relievers have a combined 4.18 ERA since the trade deadline, ranking 18th in the majors. Edwin Diaz, Tyler Rogers and Brooks Raley have all been excellent, but the acquisition of Ryan Helsley (7.58 ERA as a Met) has backfired and Ryne Stanek (7.50 ERA since Aug. 1) has struggled considerably. The Mets lost lefties A.J. Minter and Danny Young to lat surgery and Tommy John surgery, respectively, back in May. Setup man Reed Garrett was recommended for Tommy John surgery earlier this month.

That string of struggles and injuries has created plenty of uncertainty in the bullpen. There’d obviously be risk in carrying a 25-year-old rookie with subpar command on the team’s postseason roster — should they qualify — but the many of the more veteran options currently in the mix don’t exactly ooze confidence at the moment themselves.

Brewers Notes: Misiorowski, Megill, Quintana

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The Brewers need one win over the Reds or a Phillies loss to the Twins to secure the #1 seed in the National League. Although this weekend isn’t a meaningless series for the Brew Crew, they’re far more concerned about shaping plans for the Division Series that’ll begin eight days from now.

That includes using Jacob Misiorowski out of the bullpen in preparation for his expected postseason role. The 23-year-old will make his first career relief appearance behind lefty Robert Gasser tomorrow (link via Adam McCalvy of MLB.com). Gasser will likely be limited to 3-4 innings as he continues building back from last year’s elbow surgery. Misiorowski should work multiple innings out of the ’pen.

The rookie righty was so electric over his first few appearances that he was named to the All-Star Game five starts into his career. He has a 5.45 earned run average in the second half. Misiorowski has only gone beyond five innings once over his past nine times out. He has very little experience turning a lineup over more than twice. Milwaukee prefers to let him max out over shorter stints in high-leverage situations in October.

Milwaukee’s bullpen should get another big boost this weekend. Closer Trevor Megill is expected back from the 15-day injured list on Sunday, reports Curt Hogg of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The Brewers will probably get him into that game regardless of the score to ensure he gets on the mound before the start of the postseason. Megill, who has 30 saves with a 2.54 ERA, has missed the past month with a forearm strain. Skipper Pat Murphy has since used a committee approach in the ninth inning. Abner Uribe, Jared Koenig and Aaron Ashby have each recorded saves in Megill’s absence.

Jose Quintana won’t pitch this weekend but also seems to be trending towards a return in the Division Series. The veteran starter tossed three innings in a live batting practice session this afternoon (via the MLB.com injury tracker). Quintana has been down since the middle of September with a strained left calf.

If he’s healthy, Quintana could line up to start Game 3 of the NLDS. Milwaukee will very likely go with Freddy Peralta and Quinn Priester in the first two contests. Brandon Woodruff hasn’t officially been ruled out for the Division Series, but that’d require him returning from a lat strain after a minimal stint. If Woodruff can’t make it back, Quintana and rookie righty Chad Patrick would presumably be the options to take the ball in the third game. Murphy wouldn’t wait long to get into a deep bullpen in that one.

Brock Stewart To Undergo Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

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Dodgers reliever Brock Stewart will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, manager Dave Roberts tells the L.A. beat (including Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic). It’s a debridement procedure, added GM Brandon Gomes (relayed by Jack Harris of The Los Angeles Times). While he’s unlikely to be ready for Opening Day, the Dodgers expect him to return at some point in the first half of the 2026 season. The right-hander has been on the injured list since the middle of August.

It’s another hit to a bullpen that is the Dodgers’ biggest weakness heading into the playoffs. Blake Treinen has given up 11 runs in 7 1/3 innings this month. Closer Tanner Scott has surrendered six runs over his past 7 1/3 frames. Treinen has a 5.47 earned run average on the season; Scott has allowed 4.82 earned runs per nine. Kirby Yates has been knocked around as well, and he went down with a hamstring strain earlier in the week.

Michael Kopech has been limited to 11 innings by a trio of injuries. He’s back on the IL with knee inflammation and will at least be unavailable for the Wild Card Series. Brusdar Graterol never made it back from last year’s shoulder surgery. Evan Phillips underwent Tommy John surgery in June. Stewart is their seventh potential high-leverage arm who is either unavailable or not performing to expectations.

It leaves the Dodgers very vulnerable late in games. Lefty Alex Vesia has excelled for a second straight season and fourth time in the past five years. He has gotten the most high-leverage assignments and leads the team with eight holds in the second half. Fellow southpaws Anthony Banda, Justin Wrobleski and Jack Dreyer have each pitched well down the stretch.

Neither Wrobleski nor Dreyer has any postseason experience. Banda tossed eight innings during L.A.’s World Series run a year ago. He pitched well enough but wasn’t tasked with many key situations. There’s almost no certainty from the right side. The Dodgers just activated Roki Sasaki after a four-month absence due to his own shoulder injury. He’ll pitch in relief and is alongside Edgardo Henriquez as right-handed alternatives if Treinen doesn’t figure it out.

Their best options aside from Vesia are probably all converted starters who could go to the bullpen in October. That’ll almost certainly be Emmet Sheehan’s role. Clayton Kershaw came out of the bullpen on Wednesday in preparation for a potential relief job. Shohei Ohtani has even left the door open to pitching late in games (link via Thomas Harrigan and Sonja Chen of MLB.com).

That’s complicated by MLB’s two-way player rule only applying to starting pitchers. If Ohtani begins the game as a designated hitter and then pitches out of the bullpen, the Dodgers would lose the DH. Unless he’s called in to close, that’d require them to play Ohtani in the outfield — something he has done for all of 8 1/3 innings in the major leagues — or lose his bat late in games.

The Dodgers decided not to aggressively attack that tenuous relief group at the trade deadline. Stewart and minor leaguer Paul Gervase were their only bullpen pickups in July. Stewart’s talent wasn’t a question. The 33-year-old righty was sitting on a 2.38 ERA with a near-30% strikeout rate over 39 appearances with Minnesota. Swapping him for James Outman, a strikeout-prone outfielder who’d plummeted down the depth chart made sense.

However, Stewart’s lengthy injury history meant the Dodgers were taking a big risk by making him their only relief pickup of significance. Stewart has never reached 40 MLB innings in a season. He was shut down in June 2023 by elbow problems and battled shoulder issues for much of last year, culminating in arthroscopic surgery. He hadn’t had any arm injuries in the first half of ’25, but it unfortunately didn’t register as a huge surprise when he went down after four appearances following the trade.

The Dodgers can transfer Stewart to the 60-day injured list if they need to open a 40-man roster spot before the end of the season. He’s playing on an $870K salary that is barely above the league minimum. Stewart will go through arbitration twice more and won’t hit free agency until the end of his age-35 season.

Los Angeles has clinched the NL West and the #3 seed. They’ll host the league’s final playoff team (one of the Mets, Reds or Diamondbacks) in the Wild Card Series beginning on Tuesday. If they survive that three-game set, they’re likely to match up with the Phillies in the Division Series.

Rangers Promote Jose Corniell

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The Rangers made a few moves going into their final series in Cleveland. Texas selected infielder Donovan Solano onto the major league roster. He takes the spot of utilityman Josh Smith, who goes to the paternity list. Texas also shut down relievers Chris Martin (thoracic outlet syndrome) and Cole Winn (rotator cuff strain) for the season. Luis Curvelo and Jose Corniell were recalled to fill the two open spots on the pitching staff.

Solano signed a minor league deal with the Rangers three weeks ago. He’d been released by the Mariners after hitting .252/.295/.344 with three homers through 176 plate appearances. He hit .212 in 10 games with Triple-A Round Rock. The veteran infielder will return to free agency at the end of the season. He’ll provide a right-handed bat off Bruce Bochy’s bench against the Guardians in the interim.

It’s a more meaningful call for the 22-year-old Corniell. The Dominican-born righty reaches the big leagues for the first time. The move is technically a recall because Corniell has occupied a spot on the 40-man roster since the 2023-24 offseason.

Initially a Mariners signee, Corniell was traded to Texas for reliever Rafael Montero before the ’21 season. The 6’3″ righty had never thrown a minor league pitch. He’d signed with Seattle during the 2019-20 international period, then saw his first professional season canceled by the pandemic. Corniell struggled over the next two seasons but had a breakout year in the low minors in 2023. Texas put him on the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

Corniell blew out early last season. He underwent UCL surgery in June and was on the injured list until shortly after this year’s All-Star Break. He made six abbreviated starts at Double-A and dominated. Cornell turned in 20 innings of two-run ball (one earned) with 20 punchouts and one walk. Texas bumped him to Triple-A, where he recorded 12 1/3 frames with five runs allowed. He fanned 14 while issuing six free passes.

Jack Leiter is on the mound for tonight’s series opener. Texas hasn’t announced its starters for the final two games. They’d have Merrill Kelly and Patrick Corbin on their usual schedules. The Rangers aren’t playing for anything, but Cleveland is battling for a playoff spot and the AL Central title. It’d be a surprise if the Rangers scratched one of their veteran arms to give Corniell the ball in that context. He could get a chance to make his debut as a long reliever if one of the games is a blowout.

Martin’s season concludes with a thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosis. The 39-year-old from Arlington signed a one-year free agent deal to rejoin his hometown team last winter. He pitched well when healthy, working to a 2.98 ERA through 42 1/3 innings. This is his third injured list stint of the season. He missed time earlier in the year with shoulder fatigue and lost all of August to a calf strain.

The Rangers haven’t provided any specifics on the severity of the injury. Martin said last September that he expected 2025 to be his final season. If this is the end, he’ll finish his career with a 3.33 earned run average across 10 seasons in the big leagues. The highly respected righty recorded the 400th strikeout of his career last night, fanning Minnesota’s Austin Martin.

Phillies Outright Donovan Walton

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The Phillies announced that infielder Donovan Walton has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He had been designated for assignment a couple of days ago when fellow infielder Edmundo Sosa was reinstated from the injured list.

Walton, 31, was added to the Philly roster a few weeks ago when both Trea Turner and Alec Bohm hit the IL. He was hitting .339/.413/.424 for the IronPigs at the time. He lasted a little over two weeks on the big league roster but got into just two games. He went one for eight with a single and a sacrifice bunt in nine plate appearances.

Combined with his time as a Mariner and a Giant, he has now appeared in 72 big league games with a .172/.223/.298 slash line in 214 plate appearances. He has performed far better on the farm, with a .282/.369/.432 line and 111 wRC+ dating back to the start of 2021. He provides defensive versatility, with experience at all four infield spots and left field. But the lack of major league success and his out-of-options status make it hard for him to keep a roster spot for long.

Walton has previously been outrighted in his career. That means he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency. It’s possible he accepts since he would remain postseason eligible with the Phillies. Lehigh Valley’s season is done, so he wouldn’t need to actually report to that club. If a few injuries pop up for the Phillies, he could return to the big league roster. If he stays in the system and doesn’t get added back to the roster, he would be eligible for free agency at season’s end anyway.

Photo courtesy of Bill Streicher, Imagn Images

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