Reds Sign JJ Bleday
10:31AM: The contract will pay Bleday $1.4MM in guaranteed money, plus more is available via incentives, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand writes.
9:30AM: The Reds have signed outfielder JJ Bleday, according to FanSided’s Robert Murray. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon adds that the contract is a one-year Major League contract, and that the signing will become official once Cincinnati makes another move to clear a spot on its full 40-man roster. Bleday is represented by Excel Sports Management.
Selected fourth overall by the Marlins in the 2019 draft, it looked like Bleday had broken out in 2024, when he hit .243/.324/.437 with 20 homers over 642 plate appearances during the Athletics’ final season in Oakland. This 120 wRC+ at the plate was enough to power Bleday to 3.2 fWAR during the season, despite some very rough (-19 Defensive Runs Saved, -3 Outs Above Average) reviews of his defensive performance in center field.
One would’ve expected that, if anything, Bleday’s bat would’ve become even more potent as the A’s moved to Sutter Health Park, yet he instead struggled through a brutal 2025 campaign. Bleday delivered only a 90 wRC+ from a .212/.294/.404 slash line and 14 homers over 344 PA, and he played in just 98 big league games as he was twice demoted to Triple-A. Bleday’s barrel numbers and strikeout rate both dropped off considerably from 2024, falling to below-average marks. The A’s moved Bleday out of center field, but his glovework was still passable at best as a corner outfielder.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Bleday to earn $2.2MM in his first of three trips through the arbitration process. The Athletics chose to move on entirely by designating Bleday for assignment in November, and he was then cut loose at the non-tender deadline. The Reds now control Bleday through the 2028 season, and since he has a minor league option remaining, Cincinnati can send him back to down to Triple-A if necessary.
Bleday is a left-handed hitter, which makes him something of an imperfect fit in a Reds outfield that already includes such lefty-swingers as TJ Friedl, Gavin Lux, and Will Benson. Noelvi Marte is a right-handed hitter, but he is also likely the only outfielder slated for everyday duty in the wake of his successful transition to the right field position in 2025. Today’s move could indicate that the Reds are thinking about parting ways with Lux or Benson, or since this entire group is pretty inexpensive, Cincinnati could wait until Spring Training to figure out exactly how the outfield playing time will be split.
A bounce-back candidate like Bleday is far from any kind of clear-cut upgrade to the Reds lineup. Cincinnati squeaked into the postseason despite middling numbers at best in most offensive categories, and the multi-positional flexibility of most of the Reds’ current players gave the team plenty of room to maneuver in considering offseason moves. Such names as Brandon Lowe (since dealt to the Pirates), Jake Meyers, and Luis Robert Jr. have reportedly been on the Reds’ trade radar, and the club even considered an uncharacteristic free agent splash with a five-year offer in the $125MM range for Kyle Schwarber. However, that specific pursuit seemed linked to Schwarber’s local ties to the Cincinnati area, and the Reds are very likely not spending anything close to that number for any other free agent bat.
In that sense, Bleday is a better fit within the Reds’ limited budget, and perhaps a sign that the Reds will be focusing more on trades than free agents. If the move to Sutter Health Park didn’t agree with Bleday, perhaps playing in another hitter-friendly venue (and a proper big league stadium) like The Great American Ballpark will do the trick. Bleday isn’t likely to be the last of the Reds’ offensive additions, as a better lineup would help the club take a step forward as true contenders.
Kohei Arihara Signs With NPB’s Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
Former Rangers right-hander Kohei Arihara‘s bid to return to MLB is over. The veteran will remain in NPB, signing a four-year deal with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, reports Yuri Karasawa of World Baseball Network (Yakyu Cosmopolitan on X). Arihara will earn about $15.4MM, adds Karasawa.
After three seasons with the SoftBank Hawks, Arihara became a free agent on December 2. Reports emerged in late November that the righty was considering coming stateside. Instead, he’ll head back to the team he debuted with back in 2018. Arihara’s solid results with the club from 2018 to 2020 earned him a big-league look with the Rangers. After two injury-plagued MLB seasons, Arihara returned to NPB in 2023. He posted three strong years with the Hawks, including a 2.36 ERA over 26 starts in 2024.
It’s unclear if Arihara was generating interest at the MLB level. The notion that he would leave NPB may have been a negotiating tactic, and it seems to have worked. As Karasawa points out, the AAV of Arihara’s contract approaches $4MM, a hefty number by NPB standards.
Arihara’s stint in MLB was ruined by a serious shoulder injury. After a handful of decent outings to open his career, the righty was slowed by an arm issue that ended up being an aneurysm in his throwing shoulder. Surgery knocked him out until the final month of the 2021 season. He was hammered for nine earned runs over 12 innings once he returned to the mound. Arihara made it back up with the Rangers the following year, but posted a 9.45 ERA across 20 innings. He was designated for assignment in September 2022 and hit free agency at the end of the season.
Photo courtesy of Jim Cowsert, Imagn Images
Padres Considering Song In Outfield
San Diego landed Sung Mun Song on a four-year, $15MM deal last week. The KBO star is headed toward a versatile role with the Padres, which could include opportunities in the outfield. Song never appeared in the outfield during his time in the KBO, but manager Craig Stammen mentioned the position as a possibility.
“Wherever we can get his bat in the lineup, that’s what we’re going to try to do. And we want to find a spot for him where he can be productive for the Padres, and there’s a lot of different places that I think he can fit,” Stammen told reporters, including Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News.
Song has bounced around the diamond in his career, spending considerable time at first base, second base, and third base. He’s been mostly at the hot corner in recent seasons, including 108 starts at the position in 2025. The Padres obviously have Manny Machado locked in at third base, though he could spend more time at DH as he enters his age-33 season.
The right side of San Diego’s infield is far less settled. Luis Arraez is a free agent, which leaves Jake Cronenworth and Gavin Sheets as candidates for first base. Mason McCoy and Will Wagner are the current options at second base, along with Cronenworth. Song might have the inside track for reps at the keystone, given the unproven competition.
The Padres’ outfield is set in stone with the trio of Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill, and Ramon Laureano, so it’s interesting that Stammen mentioned Song as an option on the grass. He did reference the Dodgers and their usage of players like Enrique Hernandez, Miguel Rojas, and Tommy Edman as an example of an elite team with movable parts. Song could match the multi-faceted defensive contributions of those players, even if the outfield discussion doesn’t amount to in-season reps.
Finding ways to get Song’s bat in the lineup makes sense, considering his recent production in the KBO. The lefty hit a career-high .340 in 2024, while also setting career-best marks in home runs (19) and stolen bases (21). Song followed it up with a 25/25 campaign that included a career-high 103 runs scored. He’s always had good plate discipline, but Song has added a new level of power recently. After four straight seasons with a sub-.375 slugging percentage, he’s been above .500 the past two years.
Photo courtesy of Mike Watters, Imagn Images
Athletics Open To Higher Payroll, Extension With GM
The Athletics were financially active last offseason, handing out considerable free-agent deals to Luis Severino and José Leclerc, while also inking Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler to extensions. Reports of a potential grievance from the MLB Players Association if the club didn’t boost its CBT number likely spurred some of those moves. This offseason doesn’t have the same MLBPA considerations, but spending could still continue.
“I can tell you [payroll] is going to be higher,” owner John Fisher told Evan Drellich of The Athletic. “That’s something that we’re continuing to work on internally. At the end of the day, our goal is to put the greatest team on the field that we can, and payroll is an important part of that.”
Fisher took a step toward that promise on Christmas Day, when the club locked up Tyler Soderstrom on a seven-year, $86MM extension. The 24-year-old outfielder will now be under team control through his age-31 season. With Shea Langeliers just entering arbitration, and Jacob Wilson and Nick Kurtz still in the pre-arbitration phase, the Athletics have their hitting core in place for the foreseeable future.
The Athletics barely topped $50MM in payroll in 2022, per RosterResource. That number crept up to $59MM in 2023, and then $63MM in 2024. Last year’s $79MM mark pales in comparison to most other teams around the league, but it continued an upward trend for the franchise. The Athletics’ estimated mark is currently $99MM for 2026.
While not all of the spending worked out (Leclerc missed most of the season with injury, Severino struggled mightily at home), the Athletics did put together one of their better seasons this decade. The club finished 76-86, reaching 70 wins for the first time since 2021. They closed the season with a 35-29 stretch. Kurtz cruised to AL Rookie of the Year honors. Langeliers put together a massive offensive season. Denzel Clarke was a SportsCenter Top 10 regular with his work in center field. “It was everything that we could have hoped it would be and more,” Fisher said of the 2025 results.
The current architect of the roster is only under contract through 2026, but that could change soon. Fisher said the club is in extension talks with general manager David Forst. “I’m really proud of the work that he’s done, and how well we work together, and we’re continuing to have conversations about the future, and those conversations are ongoing.”
Forst’s previous contract ran out at the end of the 2025 campaign. Reports emerged shortly after the season ended that he’d be back for 2026, though the details of a new deal weren’t made available. Fisher’s comments suggest the sides are working on something that goes beyond next season.
Forst has been with the organization for 25 years. He first came on board as a scout in 2000. Forst took over as GM in 2022, with legendary executive Billy Beane serving in an advisory role. He’s had to navigate an extended rebuild, a city change, and home games in a minor league stadium. Despite the challenges, Forst has the team trending in the right direction. The recent extensions and the general willingness toward increased spending should give the club a shot to reach the postseason for the first time since the shortened 2020 season.
Photo courtesy of D. Ross Cameron, Imagn Images
Red Sox Notes: Contreras, Casas, Rafaela
The Red Sox landed an impact bat in Willson Contreras on Sunday. The longtime catcher made the move to first base last season, and that’s expected to stick in Boston. “We see him primarily at first base, maybe some DH opportunities. But the more that we can get his bat in the lineup, the better off we’re going to be,” chief baseball officer Craig Breslow told reporters, including Sean McAdam of MassLive.com.
Contreras bounced around a bit when he first came up with the Cubs, even logging innings at third base and the corner outfield spots, but spent the majority of his time behind the plate. He served as Chicago’s primary catcher from 2017 through 2021. Conteras split his time fairly equally between catcher and DH in 2022. He went to St. Louis in 2023 and continued to play both catcher and DH somewhat evenly. The Cardinals changed course this past season, slotting Contreras in as their primary first baseman. He also made the occasional start at DH.
Heading into 2025, Contreras only had 11 career appearances at first base. He made 119 starts at the position this past season. Contreras delivered fine to solid defensive results, depending on the metric. Outs Above Average looked favorably on Contreras, with a +4 grade. Defensive Runs Saved wasn’t as kind at -1. Given Contreras’ significant contributions as a hitter, Boston will likely be fine with close to average defensive numbers. The 33-year-old has posted a wRC+ of at least 124 in four straight seasons.
Boston has Carlos Narvaez and Connor Wong penciled in as its two backstops. Narvaez had just six games of big-league experience when he was dealt from the Yankees to the Red Sox last offseason. He emerged as a reliable offensive contributor, hitting 15 home runs and slashing .241/.306/.419 across 118 appearances. Wong fell off significantly after a strong 2024. He failed to get on track at the plate after missing most of April with a broken finger. Wong has shown enough in the past to be relied on as a backup heading into next season, and it seems he’ll maintain that role if Boston isn’t interested in playing Contreras at the position.
The Contreras addition immediately puts Triston Casas‘ role into question. For his part, Breslow expressed optimism about Casas’ outlook. “We still have a ton of confidence and belief in Triston. What he needs to do is commit to doing everything possible to get back on the field. He’s doing that right now,” Breslow said, relayed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. Casas is currently recovering from a ruptured patellar tendon that cost him most of 2025. His status for the start of next season is uncertain.
Casas has frequently come up in trade rumors this offseason, even before Boston acquired Contreras. The fact that the team added a player at his position could increase the chances he’s on the move. The main inhibitor toward a potential deal is Casas’ recent performance, both in terms of production and health. He hit just .182 over 29 games before going down with the knee injury. Casas was better in 2024, but also spent three months on the injury list with a rib strain.
It’s not just Contreras pushing Casas, either. Boston has another DH option in Masataka Yoshida, who’s been squeezed out of the outfield mix by Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, and Ceddanne Rafaela. Wilyer Abreu also performed well last year, mostly against right-handed pitching. Breslow didn’t sound overly concerned about the potential roster glut. “Those things tend to work out. (It’s an) opportunity to keep everybody fresh, to keep everybody involved and engaged at the same time.”
Sliding Rafaela to the infield could help alleviate some of the roadblocks for Casas and the young outfielders, but that isn’t the current intention of the club. “We’re a better team with Ceddanne in center field, and we’ll try to keep (him) there,” Breslow said, per Ari Alexander of 7News Boston WHDH. Rafaela earned a Gold Glove in center field this past season.
After splitting his time between shortstop and center field in 2024, Rafaela was primarily on the grass this past season. He made 19 starts at second base, but the rest of his appearances came in the outfield. Rafaela was one of the most impactful defenders at any position in 2025. He tied for second with Alejandro Kirk in Statcast’s Fielding Run Value metric. Patrick Bailey was the only player to be more productive as a defender.
Second base is an area of need for the Red Sox at the moment. If the season started today, Boston would likely be rolling with an uninspiring platoon of Romy Gonzalez and Nick Sogard at the position. Kristian Campbell could factor into that mix, though he’ll need to show more in the minors to earn another big-league opportunity.
Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images
Latest On Edward Cabrera’s Market
A pair of potential suitors may have fallen out of the Edward Cabrera race. Houston and Baltimore are no longer trade candidates for the talented right-hander, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Jackson adds that Miami doesn’t want to sell short on Cabrera in a deal.
The Marlins’ starting rotation has been a frequent subject of trade rumblings throughout the offseason. Reports emerged in early December that the club was listening to offers on all of its starters, outside of Eury Perez. Sandy Alcantara has been the subject of frequent rumors the past few seasons, while Cabrera and Ryan Weathers have been floated as possible trade chips recently. It would take a massive offer to land Alcantara, notes Jackson.
The Orioles were specifically linked to Cabrera a few weeks back. The club has been connected to almost every high-end name in free agency and on the trade market, from Framber Valdez and Ranger Suarez to Freddy Peralta and MacKenzie Gore. President of baseball operations Mike Elias was able to land a significant rotation upgrade last week, flipping several prospects and a draft pick for right-hander Shane Baz. Elias has said the organization will continue working to strengthen the rotation, though the recent trade might have ended their Cabrera pursuit, given the capital it took to pry Baz from Tampa Bay.
Baltimore and Miami joined forces on a deal at the 2024 trade deadline that worked out for both teams. The Marlins sent lefty Trevor Rogers to the Orioles for outfielder Kyle Stowers and infielder Connor Norby. Rogers broke out as Baltimore’s top starter this past season, while Stowers delivered an All-Star campaign with his new team.
Houston has been in the market for young, controllable starting pitching this offseason. The club’s rotation was destroyed by injuries in 2025, with Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski, and Brandon Walter all needing Tommy John surgery and Luis Garcia going down with another elbow injury. With Valdez hitting free agency, the Astros entered the offseason with Hunter Brown and a slew of unproven options to fill out the staff.
Just like the Orioles, the Astros made a notable move to address their pitching needs last week, acquiring Mike Burrows from the Pirates in a three-team trade headlined by Brandon Lowe. Similar to Baltimore, Houston spent significant prospect capital to land a young starter. Outfielder Jacob Melton and right-hander Anderson Brito went to the Rays in the deal. Melton was among the organization’s top prospects, while Brito was an up-and-coming name, albeit with minimal professional experience. Parting with both Melton and Brito to land Burrows likely affected Houston’s ability to put together a Cabrera package.
After periods of brilliance frequently cut short by injuries, Cabrera finally put together an extended stretch of strong results in 2025. The 27-year-old recorded a 3.53 ERA across a career-high 137 2/3 innings this past season. Cabrera maintained a solid 25.8% strikeout rate while pushing his walk rate into single digits for the first time.
Cabrera went down with an elbow sprain in early September, but returned in the final week of the season for a pair of outings. The brief comeback could’ve been an audition for trade suitors, showing interested teams that Cabrera was good to go for 2026. The righty is under team control through 2028. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Cabrera to earn $3.7MM in arbitration. An acquiring team would have him for three seasons at a reasonable cost.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Brayan Bello Receiving Trade Interest From Rival Teams
The Red Sox have gotten a lot of calls about right-hander Brayan Bello, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon. The source who shared this information with Rosenthal/Sammon pushed back, however, on the idea that the Sox had “quietly shopped” Bello themselves, as one rival executive framed the situation.
On paper, it would seem odd that the Red Sox are trying to move Bello when they’ve spent most of the offseason trying to reinforce their rotation. Bello is coming off a season that saw him post a 3.35 ERA over a career-best 166 2/3 innings, and the righty has tossed 486 games over 87 games (86 of them starts) for the Sox over the last three years.
Back in March 2024, the Red Sox showed their commitment to Bello by locking him up to a six-year, $55MM extension covering the 2024-29 seasons, and Boston holds a $21MM club option Bello for the 2030 season that includes a $1MM buyout. Bello doesn’t even return 27 until May, so between his age and the long-term contract, it would seem like the Red Sox have a homegrown arm locked into the rotation for at least the remainder of the decade.
As Rosenthal and Sammon point out, however, it makes some sense that the Red Sox might at least be testing the waters about what they could get for Bello, given the value of controllable starting pitching. Even if “control” in this sense reflects Bello’s extension rather than a player’s arbitration or pre-arb years, Bello’s remaining price tag of $50.5MM over the next four seasons seems like a fair price, and potentially even still a bargain.
While Bello has been solid over his four MLB seasons, it can be argued that the Red Sox were hoping for a bit more from a pitcher who posted much bigger strikeout numbers in the minors. In the Show, Bello has only a 19.8% strikeout rate over 543 1/3 career innings, and his 17.7K% this season was the lowest of his career. He has an unspectacular 8.3% career walk rate to go along with that lack of missed bats.
Bello has gotten good bottom-line results by limiting hard contact, and inducing a lot of grounders, with a 52.7% groundball rate for his career. His 95.2 mph fastball has solid velocity but Bello’s sinker is his primary pitch, even if the sinker’s effectiveness hasn’t tended to vary in consistency. Over his career, Bello’s 4.09 ERA isn’t much below his 4.26 SIERA, but that gap stretched much wider (3.35 to 4.55) in 2025.
The Red Sox entered the offseason with plenty of big league-ready or experienced arms in their organization, but there was a clear goal of raising the rotation’s ceiling with more established hurlers. To date, Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo have been brought in via trades with the Cardinals and Pirates, respectively, and now project to be part of Boston’s 2026 rotation. Richard Fitts and left-handed pitching prospect Brandon Clarke were dealt to St. Louis for Gray, lower-level righty Jesus Travieso was moved to Pittsburgh as part of the Oviedo trade, plus Boston sent right-hander Hunter Dobbins and two more lower-level arms to the Cardinals in a separate trade for first baseman Willson Contreras.
Whether the Red Sox are actually trying to actively trade Bello or are just listening to offers out of due diligence remains unclear, as the Rosenthal/Sammon item implies. The truth may lie somewhere in between all of the common offseason hot stove terminology. Still, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has said his team is open to moving controllable pitching “in order to address other areas of the roster.”
Trading Bello would be a much different animal than moving a pitcher like Fitts or Dobbins or someone else not even guaranteed of a big league job in 2026, yet in a sense, a Bello deal would be an elevated version of the raise-the-ceiling strategy. If the front office has some misgivings over Bello’s ability to sustain his production, or he is no longer viewed as a pitcher who can reliably be counted on for a playoff rotation, the Red Sox could potentially look to deal Bello. Speculatively, he could be dealt for a more clear-cut frontline pitcher with fewer years of control, or perhaps moved to address a need in the lineup.
Within that same notes post, Rosenthal and Sammon also write that the Red Sox remain engaged with the Cardinals about Brendan Donovan. Boston is one of many teams linked to Donovan’s market, however, and the most recent reports suggested that the Mariners and Giants were the favorites to pry Donovan away from St. Louis. That said, Cards president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has shown plenty of willingness to swing trades with his former Boston team, and Bloom’s time running the Sox front office overlapped with a big chunk of Bello’s career. Speculatively, the length of Bello’s extension could make him a factor in a Cardinals rotation even after the team is through its rebuild period, even if the Cardinals are more likely to explore higher-end prospects in any Donovan trade package.
MLBTR Live Chat
Mark P
- A bonus post-holiday edition of the Weekend Chat, since things got postponed last weekend due to the big Willson Contreras trade. Let’s open up the queue….
Guest
- What is goinf on withe Luis Roberts rumors
Mark P
- It’s hard to say if much or anything has changed about Robert’s market since the summer, except for the fact that his 2026 salary is now guaranteed. My guess is that unless Chicago budges on its asking price, Robert will still be on the south side on Opening Day, as probably more teams view Robert as a Plan B rather than a top option
Mike Elias
- Any chance I’m still in on Kyle Tucker?
Mark P
- Probably not. If the O’s make another big strike, it would likely be for pitching.
Friend
- Do you see Arenado or Castellanos ending up with the Padres?
Mark P
- Arenado makes no sense given Machado’s presence at 3B. Castellanos is a slightly better fit since SD isn’t entirely settled at DH, but if the Padres want an outfield bat, they can do a lot better.
- I guess Preller and Dombrowski might be able to come up with some kind of interesting bad contract swap, but I don’t really see a fit here
Spider
- What ther hold up realmuto
Mark P
- It’s worth noting that the last time JTR was a free agent, he didn’t sign until the end of January. So he seems to be content in taking his time and monitoring the market, since one catching injury or another unexpected development could quickly bring another team into the fold.
Philly has an offer on the table to Realmuto, so it seems like he’s evaluating things to see if any team is willing to match or top it. Chances are Realmuto’s camp will then give the Phillies another chance to up their offer, and overall I expect Realmuto to re-sign
The big Yo
- Are the Vegas A’s going to win it all in ‘28 and is all star week going to be held in Vegas that same year?
Mark P
- I’d expect MLB isn’t going to schedule the All-Star Game for Vegas until the stadium is fully up and running. Seems like 2028 will be in an AL ballpark just because the 2025-27 games are all in NL parks, and Toronto is apparently lobbying hard to host another ASG soon
Giants Sign Nick Margevicius To Minor League Deal
The Giants have signed left-hander Nick Margevicius to a minor league contract, according to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. Margevicius will receive a $825K salary if he reaches the majors, MLB Trade Rumors’ Steve Adams reports. Margevicius will receive an invitation to San Francisco’s big league Spring Training camp.
It has been over four years since Margevicius’ last MLB game, as the southpaw made five appearances for the 2021 Mariners before his season was cut short by thoracic outlet syndrome. Margevicius spent the 2022-23 seasons in the minors pitching in the Seattle and Atlanta farm systems, then spent 2024 abroad pitching for the TSG Hawks of the Chinese Professional Baseball. Returning to North America last year, Margevicius began the 2025 campaign in the Mexican League before catching on with the Tigers on a minors contract.
This return to Triple-A ball went pretty well, as Margevicius posted a 3.89 ERA, 22% strikeout rate, and 5.7% walk rate over 74 innings (starting 14 of 17 games) with Triple-A Toledo. It was a big step up from the ugly numbers the left-hander posted in his last Triple-A stint in 2022-23, and to some extent a continuation of the strong work Margevicius delivered with the Hawks and in Mexico. While still not a hard thrower, Margevicius upped his fastball velocity a tick to 91.9mph, and he has incorporated a cutter into his repertoire.
Margevicius’ work didn’t earn him a look on Detroit’s MLB roster, but the Giants were apparently intrigued enough to issue the the southpaw a non-roster invite. Margevicius could be a spot starter or perhaps just a pure Triple-A depth option, or the Giants could conceivably use him as more of a long reliever if his contract gets selected. San Francisco’s fifth starter competiton features a host of younger arms without much big league experience, though Margevicius’ 32 games with the Padres and Mariners from 2019-21 doesn’t really give him much of an edge in this department given how it was so relatively long ago.
Phillies Sign Mark Kolozsvary To Minor League Deal
The Phillies have signed catcher Mark Kolozsvary to a minor league contract, The Athletic’s Will Sammon reports. The deal contains an invitation for Kolozsvary to attend Philadelphia’s big league spring camp.
Kolozsvary has played in only 11 Major League games, and none since the 2023 season. Rafael Marchan and Garrett Stubbs are the only other catchers in the Phillies organization with any big league playing time at all, so the 30-year-old Kolozsvary adds some experience to the depth chart. J.T. Realmuto‘s continued stay in free agency remains the biggest question hanging over the Phillies’ catching situation, but given how Marchan and Stubbs also haven’t shown much at the MLB level, adding another catcher to the Spring Training backup competition was likely on the Phils’ to-do list with or without Realmuto back in the fold.
A seventh-round pick for the Reds in the 2017 draft, Kolozsvary’s time with his original team culminated in 10 MLB games and 21 plate appearances during the 2022 season. The Orioles claimed Kolozsvary off waivers from Cincinnati following the 2022 campaign, and Kolozsvary ended up making a single appearance as a late-game defensive sub during a brief stay on Baltimore’s active roster in June 2023. The O’s designated him for assignment shortly thereafter and Kolozsvary caught on with the Twins on a minor league deal, and he then spent the 2024-25 seasons playing in the Red Sox farm system.
Kolozsvary has a reputation as a very solid defensive catcher, which has helped him extend his career despite a modest .194/.309/.338 slash line over 407 plate appearances at the Triple-A level (let alone his .200/.238/.450 slash in the small sample size of his 21 PA with the Reds).
Kolozsvary has two minor league options remaining, which is a notable detail because both Marchan and Stubbs are out of options. While the Phillies avoided arbitration with Marchan and Stubbs by signing them to guaranteed salaries for the 2026 season, neither contract is expensive, and Stubbs’ deal is a split contract. This opens the door for Kolozsvary to possibly supplant Stubbs as the top depth catcher, though the Phillies’ catching mix remains fluid as long as Realmuto remains unsigned.