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Josh Rojas

White Sox Designate Bobby Dalbec For Assignment

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The White Sox announced a series of roster moves this morning. The club reinstated infielder Josh Rojas from the injured list, selected the contract of right-hander Caleb Freeman, and recalled southpaw Tyler Gilbert to the big league roster. In corresponding moves, infielder Bobby Dalbec was designated for assignment while southpaw Fraser Ellard was placed on the 15-day injured list with a left lat strain and righty Penn Murfee was optioned to Triple-A.

Rojas, 31 next month, signed with the White Sox this past winter after being non-tendered by the Mariners. Drafted in the 26th round by the Astros back in 2017, Rojas was shipped to Arizona in the Zack Greinke trade and made his MLB debut with the Diamondbacks not long after. After struggling to hit at the big league level in his first two MLB seasons, Rojas took a step forward and became a quality regular with a roughly league average bat and a strong glove all around the infield starting in his age-27 campaign back in 2021. The last four seasons have seen Rojas slash .252/.327/.373 with a 97 wRC+ between the Diamondbacks and Mariners while accumulating 7.2 fWAR.

A difficult second half in Seattle last year led to his non-tender, however, and the White Sox scooped him up over the offseason to serve as a veteran option in their young and unproven infield. Rojas began the season on the shelf due to a late spring toe fracture, however, and is only just now getting activated for his debut with Chicago. Since Rojas went down, Lenyn Sosa and Miguel Vargas have mostly handled second and third base. Now that Rojas is in the mix, he figures to start everyday against at least right-handed pitchers, though it wouldn’t be a shock to see him get at least some play against lefties as well despite his lackluster platoon splits thanks to solid defense.

Making room for Rojas’s return in the positional mix is Dalbec, who had taken up a bench role with the White Sox in recent weeks. He made it into just seven games with Chicago before being designated for assignment today, slashing .222/.333/.278 in that time with a 28.6% strikeout rate. A former top-100 prospect for the Red Sox, Dalbec hit .243/.308/.511 with 33 homers in 156 games between the 2020 and ’21 seasons but since then has looked miscast at the big league level, hitting just .199/.272/.328 in 520 plate appearances since the start of the 2022 season while striking out at a whopping 37.5% clip. The White Sox will now have one week to trade Dalbec or attempt to pass him through waivers. Should he clear waivers, Dalbec will have the opportunity to elect free agency as a player with a previous career outright.

Dalbec’s 40-man roster spot will go to Freeman, whose first game with the Sox will be his major league debut. The 27-year-old was a 15th-rounder in the 2019 draft and has mostly posted pedestrian numbers throughout his MiLB career, but he’s gotten off to quite a hot start at Triple-A this year. In 13 1/3 innings of work across ten outings, Freeman has posted a 1.35 ERA while striking out 33.3% of his opponents. Those exciting numbers are still in a very small sample size, of course, but it was still enough for the White Sox to give the righty a look in a bullpen that could surely stand to benefit from a breakout performer within its ranks.

Ellard departs the roster in a move that makes room for Freeman on the active roster. The southpaw’s 6.75 ERA in seven outings this year is lackluster, though his 40% strikeout rate in that limited taste of big league action this year was exciting enough that the loss of Ellard from the bullpen mix is still a significant hit to the unit’s overall upside. Meanwhile, Gilbert rejoins the roster as a swing option despite below average results (5.59 ERA, 4.40 FIP) in 9 2/3 innings of work this year at the expense of Murfee, who has been torched for a 7.82 ERA in 15 outings this year and will head to Triple-A for a reset.

Josh Rojas Diagnosed With Hairline Fracture In Toe

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White Sox infielder Josh Rojas has a hairline fracture in his right big toe. Manager Will Venable passed the info on to reporters, including James Fegan of Sox Machine. Rojas is currently in a walking boot. He left Saturday’s game with soreness in that toe. Per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, Rojas was “shaking off some contact” with a baserunner on a tag play earlier in the game.

Venable didn’t specifically rule Rojas out for Opening Day, but that seems to be a fair inference. Per Fegan, the skipper said his return will mostly be about pain tolerance and he’s currently in a fair amount of pain. Opening Day is just over a week away and the Sox have little reason to rush him if he’s not 100%.

Rojas, 31 in June, was signed to a one-year, $3.5MM deal in January. When healthy, he will likely be bouncing around to various positions, depending on the performance of other players on the roster. He has primarily played third and second base in his career, though he has also had some appearances at shortstop, first base and the outfield corners.

The hot corner appears to be spoken for. Venable said last month that Miguel Vargas will be the primary third baseman. He’s having a huge spring, currently hitting .393/.455/.571. Andrew Vaughn isn’t performing that well in camp but should be the regular at first base.

There’s less certainty up the middle. There was a chance for Colson Montgomery to secure the shortstop job but he hit .111/.111/.444 in spring and got optioned last week. That left Rojas, Lenyn Sosa, Brooks Baldwin and Jacob Amaya as some of the middle infielders that were both on the roster and in camp. If Rojas needs to miss some time, that could create extra room for the guys in that group.

It could also open some paths to playing time for non-roster invitees. Veteran Brandon Drury has plenty of second base experience and is hitting .361/.395/.806 this spring. Nick Maton is another NRI crushing the ball right now, with a .346/.433/.731 line in camp. Tristan Gray currently has a .353/.333/.824 line going. Spring stats are always to be taken with a grain of salt but the Sox are coming off a 121-loss season and should be using the 2025 to ride any hot hand that comes along.

White Sox View Miguel Vargas As Primary Third Baseman

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White Sox manager Will Venable tells James Fegan of Sox Machine that Miguel Vargas is viewed as the club’s primary option at third base. He is playing a bit of first base in camp as well but will mostly line up at the hot corner.

Vargas, 25, became a key piece of the roster last summer. Prior to last year’s deadline. the Sox lined up a three-team trade with the Dodgers and Cardinals. Chicago gave up Erick Fedde, Michael Kopech, Tommy Pham and cash in that deal. In return, they received three minor leaguers, with Vargas being more of a high-profile addition than Alexander Albertus or Jeral Perez.

A few years ago, Vargas was a top 100 prospect. Baseball America gave him the #29 spot going into 2023. That’s largely on account of his huge numbers against minor league pitching, though he hasn’t yet translated that to the majors. He has hit .175/.273/.312 in 591 big league plate appearances thus far.

But over the past three years, he has hit .297/.412/.512 in 996 Triple-A appearances. That was in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League but his 15.6% walk rate and 16.7% strikeout rate in that time were both great and wRC+ still considered him to be 31% better than league average.

Defensively, Vargas primarily played third base on his way up the minor league ladder, though the Dodgers moved him around the diamond. That was partially to improve his chances of cracking their crowded roster but also because his defense at the hot corner hasn’t been especially highly rated. He spent time at second base, first base and left field.

After acquiring him last year, the Sox gave him 36 starts at third and one in left. They overhauled their staff since then, bringing in Venable to be the new manager in 2025. It seems the new skipper doesn’t change the plan and they will give Vargas some run at the hot corner and see how it goes. Obviously, making offensive strides at the major league level is going to be important for Vargas but finding a viable defensive home is also going to be key. Now is a good time for the Sox to experiment, since they clearly have no hope of contending in the near term after their historically bad season in 2024. Vargas is still under control for five years, so there’s some time to come up with a clear answer.

The Sox signed infielder Josh Rojas to a one-year, $3.5MM deal last month. He has played more third base than any other position in his career, over 2,000 innings, but has over 1,000 innings at second as well. He’s also dabbled in the outfield corners, at shortstop and first base.

Perhaps Rojas will end up securing the second base job, if Vargas is at third. He will have some competition from Lenyn Sosa, though Sosa has hit just .229/.257/.347 in his big league career thus far and may get pushed into a bench/utility job. Rookie Colson Montgomery could perhaps take the Opening Day shortstop job. Infielders Jacob Amaya, Brooks Baldwin and Bryan Ramos are also on the 40-man roster with Brandon Drury and Nick Maton providing some non-roster depth.

Elsewhere on the roster, right-hander Prelander Berroa has been diagnosed with a grade 1 elbow strain, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Merkin says “it looks as if” Berroa can avoid Tommy John surgery “in the short term,” with next steps to be determined.

Berroa, 25 in April, came to the Sox as part of the Gregory Santos trade about a year ago. He has a 3.05 earned run average in 20 2/3 innings thus far in his career between the M’s and White Sox. Control has been an issue, with a 17.6% walk rate in the big leagues thus far. However, he’s also shown huge strikeout stuff, punching out 31.9% of major league hitters faced.

Obviously, a Tommy John surgery would be unwelcome, leading to an absence of over a year. The Sox will explore other options for the time being to see if there’s a way to get him back on the mound that doesn’t involve a surgeon’s scalpel.

White Sox Sign Josh Rojas

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January 8: The White Sox officially announced the deal today, and that Rojas will make $3.5MM this year.

January 2: The White Sox are in agreement with infielder Josh Rojas on a one-year deal, according to a report from Scott Merkin of MLB.com. The financial terms of the deal are not yet known.

Rojas, 31 in June, was non-tendered by the Mariners back in November. It was an outcome few would have expected early in the 2024 season. Rojas had been a key piece of the trade that sent closer Paul Sewald to Arizona at the 2023 trade deadline and had hit a respectable .272/.321/.400 (105 wRC+) down the stretch with the Mariners. He followed that up with a torrid start to the 2024 campaign as well, hitting .318/.408/.530 (175 wRC+) through the end of April. Unfortunately for Rojas, the wheels came off completely from there. The rest of the way, Rojas hit a paltry .208/.285/.301 (75 wRC+), including a brutal .184/.265/.272 (62 wRC+) slash line over the season’s final two months while the Mariners slipped out of the playoff picture.

That tough offensive season was enough for the Mariners to decide against tendering him a contract for the 2025 season MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected would’ve earned Rojas $4.3MM. Even so, a weak free agent market for infielders made Rojas immediately one of the more intriguing lower-level free agent options available on this winter’s market. While Rojas has generally been an average to slightly below-average hitter in the majors since becoming a full-time player in Arizona back in 2021, he’s an versatile fielder who has posted excellent defensive numbers in each of the past two seasons. Since the start of the 2023 campaign, Rojas has +8 Outs Above Average at second base and +6 OAA at third base. Defensive Runs Saved is slightly less bullish on Rojas but still rates him as an above average fielder overall, with +2 DRS at second and +5 at third over the last two years. Rojas also has experience at shortstop and in the outfield corners at the big league level, though without the same impressive metrics backing his performance up.

That positional versatility, plus defense, and history as a league-average hitter was enough to make Rojas a sought after role player for a handful of teams this winter, including the Cubs. While the north side’s reportedly “serious” interest in Rojas likely involved him taking a part-time role backing up Nico Hoerner and top prospect Matt Shaw at second and third base, he should have a clearer path to regular reps on the south side of town. The club currently projects to utilize some combination of Miguel Vargas, Lenyn Sosa, Jacob Amaya, and Brooks Baldwin between shortstop, second base, and third base in 2025. While Vargas seems ticketed for everyday starts as a recent top-100 prospect who was the centerpiece of the return Chicago received for Michael Kopech, Tommy Pham, and Erick Fedde last summer, Rojas should be able to capture regular reps at whichever of second or third base Vargas doesn’t end up playing.

That should be particularly true against right-handed pitching, as Rojas sports a significant platoon split and hit just .133/.224/.133 against southpaws last year. It’s possible the White Sox will afford him the opportunity to prove he can hit lefties while in the thick of a rebuild, though perhaps they’ll simply platoon him with a right-handed infielder like Sosa in order to maximize his numbers ahead of what’s sure to be another fire sale at the trade deadline this year. For the White Sox, the addition of Rojas provides some stability to an infield mix that was in desperate need of attention this winter and a potential midseason trade chip. Meanwhile, Rojas will have the opportunity to be a regular with the club and could play his way into a role with a contender down the stretch.

With Rojas off the market, a handful of interesting infielders remain available in free agency for teams in need of help on the dirt. Whit Merrifield, Donovan Solano, and Cavan Biggio are among the players available who could provide versatility in a part-time or bench role, while Jorge Polanco, Paul DeJong, and Jose Iglesias are among a handful of potential regulars available in the lower tiers of free agency. One other wild card on the infield market is Hyeseong Kim, who was posted by the KBO’s Kiwoom Heroes last month and is available for MLB clubs to sign until tomorrow afternoon.

Cubs Among Teams Interested In Josh Rojas

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According to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, free agent Josh Rojas is drawing interest from multiple teams. The Cubs are one such club, and Feinsand characterizes their attraction to the veteran utility man as “serious.”

Rojas, who turns 31 next June, was somewhat surprisingly non-tendered by the Mariners earlier this offseason. His bat was middling at best in 2024, but he did steal 10 bases and draw walks at a well-above-average clip. More importantly, he graded out as a strong infield defender according to several metrics, including Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and Outs Above Average (OAA). As a result, he finished with 1.9 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) according to FanGraphs and 2.1 WAR according to Baseball Reference. If he could simply repeat that performance in 2025, he would have been well worth his projected $4.3MM salary. Yet, the Mariners decided to move on.

Although Rojas played the vast majority of his games at the hot corner in 2024, he is also a capable defensive second baseman. On top of that, he can cover most other positions in a pinch. He has played shortstop, both outfield corners, and (briefly) first base at times throughout his six-year MLB career.

The Cubs are stocked with Gold Glove winners at second base, shortstop, and both outfield corners. However, they don’t currently have anyone locked in at third base. Top prospect Matt Shaw seems like the most logical choice to replace Isaac Paredes on the far left side of the infield, but Shaw has no big league experience and only 35 games at Triple-A under his belt. To that point, Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer recently said Shaw will have a chance to earn the third base job, but it’s not his just yet. Recent trade acquisition Vidal Bruján can also play third base, but given his complete lack of MLB success over the past four years, Bruján should be nothing more than a utility player for the bench. Finally, Rule 5 pick Gage Workman is a terrific defender at third base, but like Shaw, he has no major league experience – and unlike Shaw, there are serious questions about how his bat will hold up against MLB pitching.

With all that in mind, Rojas seems like a perfect fit for the Cubs. He could take over as Chicago’s starting third baseman to begin the season, batting at the bottom of the lineup and supplementing what is already one of the best defensive alignments in the league. However, he wouldn’t block Shaw if the youngster proves himself ready for everyday playing time at the big league level. Instead, he would slide into the utility job on the bench, offering a significant upgrade over Bruján.

Financially speaking, the Cubs should have no trouble paying whatever price Rojas is seeking. Presumably, he’ll end up signing a one-year contract with a seven-figure guarantee. After offloading most of Cody Bellinger’s salary earlier this month, Chicago is approximately $50MM below the first luxury tax threshold and $54MM below last year’s final payroll (per RosterResource). If the Cubs don’t land Rojas, other free agents who could address the same need at a similar price point include Jose Iglesias and Paul DeJong.

Five Non-Tendered Hitters To Keep An Eye On This Winter

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Every year, MLB’s non-tender deadline sees clubs allow some of their players who remain under team control to test the open market early, whether it be due to an increasing price tag in arbitration or a need for additional space on the club’s 40-man roster. Previous seasons have seen a number of high-profile players wind up non-tendered, including Brandon Woodruff last winter and Cody Bellinger the year before that. Kyle Schwarber and Kevin Gausman are among a handful of other star players who have found themselves non-tendered for one reason or another during their careers, and all except Woodruff (who is expected to return to the mound next year after missing the 2024 season due to shoulder surgery) have gone on to enjoy big league success following their respective non-tenders.

While players of that caliber reaching free agency by way of a non-tender are extremely rare, plenty of players find themselves cut loose early by their clubs only to make an impact elsewhere down the line, whether as a regular in the lineup or rotation or simply as a solid contributor off the bench or out of the bullpen. With the majority of teams in the game signalling on some level or other that they hope to compete in 2025, clubs who get outbid in free agency or on the trade market this winter will surely be incentivized to try and uncover a diamond in the rough this winter as they hunt for offensive upgrades. Let’s take a look at five hitters who hit free agency following last week’s non-tender deadline and could be worth keeping an eye on throughout the coming offseason. Players are listed in alphabetical order, with their age for the 2025 season in parentheses.

Austin Hays (29)

Hays is perhaps the most surprising non-tender on this list, as he was an All-Star for the Orioles just last year and has been a reliable league-average bat capable of playing all three outfield spots throughout his career. That steady production is what convinced the Phillies to trade Seranthony Dominguez and Cristian Pache to the Orioles in order to acquire him over the summer. While he didn’t live up to those expectations in 22 games with Philadelphia down the stretch, his lackluster .256/.275/.397 slash line during that time comes with a massive caveat: Hays spent the second half of the year battling through a kidney infection that seriously hampered his ability to play, as was discussed at length in a recent article from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.

Given the serious illness that afflicted Hays during his time as a Phillie, it seems prudent to examine his free agency in the context of his career overall. By that metric, the outfielder would be a valuable addition to virtually any outfield mix in the big leagues. Over his three seasons as a full-time player with the Orioles from 2021 to 2023, Hays slashed a solid .261/.313/.439 (108 wRC+) in 420 games for Baltimore. During that time, he generated 6.1 fWAR, a number that placed him ahead of a number of solid regulars during that time such as Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Orioles teammate Anthony Santander. What’s more, Hays has continued to put up excellent numbers against left-handed pitching even during this year’s illness-plagued season that saw his role reduced to more of a part-time player: in 49 games against lefties this year, he hit an excellent .354/.407/.537, even better than his career line of .277/.331/.469 against southpaws. If Hays can rebound to the form he showed from 2021 to 2023, he could be a solid regular for a team with a vacancy in the corner outfield, especially one that struggles against left-handed pitching.

Ramon Laureano (30)

Early in his career, Laureano appeared to be a key piece of the Athletics’ core alongside Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Marcus Semien, Sean Manaea, and Frankie Montas. Over his first two seasons in the big leagues, Laureano hit a phenomenal .288/.345/.508 (128 wRC+) in a combined 657 trips to the plate while playing solid defense in right field. After that, however, Laureano’s career was thrown off course by three shortened seasons: the 60-game shortened campaign in 2020 and the 2021 and ’22 campaigns that were truncated for Laureano by an 80-game PED suspension. Across those three seasons, Laureano hit just .225/.310/.400 with a wRC+ of 103 and noticeably less impressive defense in the field. That lackluster production continued throughout the 2023 season, as he posted a 90 wRC+ overall between stints with the A’s and in Cleveland. His second season with the Guardians got off to an atrocious start in 2024, as he hit just .143 in 31 games before the club cut bait.

If that’s where Laureano’s story for the 2024 season ended, he’d be a fairly unremarkable name relegated to hoping for a minor league deal this winter. That’s not the case, however, because he joined the Braves lineup to fill in for Ronald Acuna Jr. after the reigning MVP suffered a torn ACL. He looked like the hitter he was earlier in his career during his time with Atlanta, hitting an excellent .296/.327/.505 (129 wRC+) in a part-time role that saw him collect 226 plate appearances across 67 games. While that performance wasn’t enough to convince the Braves to bring him back in spite of Acuna’s pending return early next year, plenty of teams could benefit from a solidly above average corner outfielder who crushes lefties (.305/.343/.526 in 102 PA this year) and puts up decent enough numbers against righties to be a passable regular.

Brendan Rodgers (28)

The youngest player on this list, Rodgers seemed to be coming into his own as a player during the 2021 and ’22 seasons. As the primary second baseman for the Rockies, Rodgers hit a respectable .274/.326/.434 (95 wRC+) while improving enough on defense to win the Gold Glove award at the position in 2022. Unfortunately, what should have been an opportunity to follow up on that strong performance was cut short when he underwent shoulder surgery in March of 2023, which left him sidelined until the end of July. He received regular playing time with Colorado upon returning, but didn’t look quite as good as he had previously. In 181 games since returning, he’s hit just .265/.314/.402 (85 wRC+). His defense has also fallen from the Gold Glove-caliber showing he flashed in 2022, with him posting relatively average defense by the metrics over the past two seasons.

While the red flags in Rodgers’s profile post-surgery are obvious, his youth, pedigree as a former top-20 prospect in the sport, and the thin infield market this winter seem likely to earn him some real consideration on the market. After all, if getting another year removed from his shoulder injury can help him rediscover the form he flashed in 2022, it’s easy to imagine him posting a strong season as a regular second baseman for a team without a clear answer at the position such as the Mariners, Yankees, or Giants. Unlike the outfielders on this list, Rodgers’s competition on the infield market is similarly flawed, with only a handful of players likely to land multi-year deals.

Josh Rojas (31)

Rojas was a somewhat surprising non-tendered, given his status as one of the Mariners’ better internal infield options headed into 2025. Evidently, the club wasn’t willing to pay a projected $4.3MM salary for his services next year after an up-and-down 2024 campaign that saw him slash a decent .204/.304/.336 (91 wRC+) overall. That slash line doesn’t tell the whole story, however, as Rojas hit just .192/.273/.301 (72 wRC+) after all the All-Star break this year. That’s an untenable slash line for an everyday player, particularly given the fact that Rojas is a rather pedestrian defender at both second and third base.

With that being said, Rojas figures to be benefit from a lackluster infield market just as Rodgers does. Over the past four seasons, Rojas has been a roughly league average hitter (97 wRC+) with the Diamondbacks and Mariners. It’s also worth noting that he stands out as a solid candidate for a platoon role; left-handed hitting infielders are somewhat scarce, and Rojas made the most of his platoon advantage by posting an above-average 104 wRC+ against right-handed pitching this year. With a lefty-mashing platoon partner or in a bench role that helps to limit his exposure to same-handed pitching, it’s easy to imagine Rojas enjoying a solid season in 2025. Another notable factor in Rojas’s free agency should be that he figures to remain arbitration-eligible next winter, meaning his next club could retain him for a second season if the first one goes well.

Mike Tauchman (34)

Tauchman is the oldest player on the list, but he’s noteworthy for being the only player here to post an above-average wRC+ in each of the past two seasons. After a brief sojourn to South Korea to play in the KBO during 2022, Tauchman latched on with the Cubs and excelled in a fourth outfielder role with the club. In 217 games with Chicago over the past two years, he’s slashed .250/.360/.372 with a wRC+ of 110 and an excellent 13.7% walk rate that even earned him a stint as the club’s regular leadoff hitter. Tauchman found himself non-tendered despite that solid production thanks in large part to his shrinking role with the club in the second half last year; the Cubs have Ian Happ, Cody Bellinger, Seiya Suzuki, and Pete Crow-Armstrong all penciled into the lineup for regular playing time, and youngsters like Alexander Canario, Owen Caissie, and Kevin Alcantara on the 40-man roster as depth options.

That made Tauchman expendable to Chicago, but he should be an interesting free agent option for a team in need of a steady, high-OBP veteran presence in their outfield mix. While he’s a pedestrian defender at all three outfield spots, Tauchman’s ability to play a passable center field should further add to his value, and like Rojas he comes with an additional season of team control after 2025 should the club that signs him have interest in his services the following year. Just 11 clubs posted a 110 wRC+ of higher in the outfield in 2024, and 15 clubs got below-average offensive production on the grass overall, meaning Tauchman could be a relatively inexpensive fit for a number of clubs in need of outfield help this winter.

Mariners Non-Tender Josh Rojas, Three Others

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The Mariners announced that they have non-tendered four players: infielder Josh Rojas, infielder/outfielder Sam Haggerty, as well as right-handers JT Chargois and Austin Voth. Haggerty’s non-tender was reported earlier by Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X link).

Rojas, 30, has had an up-and-down career thus far. With the Diamondbacks in 2021 and 2022, he slashed .266/.345/.401 for a wRC+ of 106, indicating he was 6% better than league average over that span. He also stole 32 bases while bouncing around to the three infield positions to the left of first base as well as the outfield corners.

But his performance dipped badly in 2023, as he slashed .228/.292/.296 in 59 games for the Snakes that year. The Mariners then tried to buy low on him, acquiring him as part of the July 2023 trade headlined by Paul Sewald.

Initially, it seemed like the buy-low move might have worked, as Rojas slashed .272/.321/.400 for a 105 wRC+ in 46 games after the trade. The M’s gave him a $3.1MM salary for 2024 and hoped that he could keep it going, but this year’s line of .225/.304/.336 led to a wRC+ of just 91. He still stole 10 bases and bounced all over the diamond, but the club has decided to go in a different direction. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Rojas for a bump to $4.3MM next year, though the M’s clearly weren’t willing to bring him back at that price point, sending him to free agency instead.

It’s been reported that the Mariners are looking to upgrade their infield and this further cements that desire. They had already declined a club option on Jorge Polanco and traded away Ty France. Deadline acquisition Justin Turner hit free agency. That means shortstop J.P. Crawford is the only stable portion of the club’s infield mix at present. Luke Raley could get lots of playing time at first base but could also be in the outfield. Players like Dylan Moore, Ryan Bliss, Austin Shenton, Leo Rivas, Samad Taylor or Tyler Locklear could be involved next year but the M’s will surely be looking for external additions in the coming months.

Turning to the others, Haggerty has been a useful part-time players for the Mariners in recent years but he only played eight games in 2024 due to a torn achilles. Voth and Chargois were each entering their final season of club control, so there was no long-term benefit to rostering them in 2025. Voth had a solid 3.69 earned run average this year but with a .236 batting average on balls in play. Chargois had a 2.23 ERA this year but is a journeyman who’s about to turn 34. Haggerty was projected for a salary of $900K, Voth $2.2MM and Chargois $1.7MM, but the M’s have balked at all of those prices and sent those players into free agency instead.

American League Non-Tenders: 11/22/24

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The deadline to tender a contract to arbitration-eligible players is tonight at 7pm CT. Here’s a rundown of the players on American League teams that have been non-tendered today. This post will be updated as more decisions are revealed. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all players eligible for arbitration last month. All players who are non-tendered before this evening’s deadline go directly into free agency, where they’re eligible to sign with any of MLB’s 30 clubs.

Onto the transactions…

  • The Angels announced that they have non-tendered left-hander Patrick Sandoval, infielder Eric Wagaman, as well as outfielders Jordyn Adams and Bryce Teodosio. You can read more about those moves here.
  • The Astros tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class.
  • The Athletics announced that they did not tender a contract to right-hander Dany Jiménez, who was projected for a $1MM salary. He posted a 4.91 in 25 appearances for the A’s in 2024. He struck out 21.4% of opponents but gave out walks at a 16.2% clip.
  • The Blue Jays are planning to non-tender righty Dillon Tate, per Ben Nicholson Smith and Shi Davidi of Sportsnet (X link). Tate was just claimed off waivers at the start of September and had a projected salary of $1.9MM. He’s a former fourth overall pick with some good numbers in his career but he missed most of 2023 due to injury and then posted a 4.66 ERA in 2024. The Jays are also non-tendering righty Jordan Romano, which you can read more about here.
  • The Guardians have non-tendered outfielder George Valera and right-hander Connor Gillispie, per Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com (X link). Both players were designated for assignment earlier this week.
  • The Mariners are going to non-tender outfielder Sam Haggerty, per Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X link). He was limited to just eight games in 2024 due to a torn achilles. He was only projected for a salary of $900K but the M’s have decided to move on. They also non-tendered infielder Josh Rojas and righties Austin Voth and JT Chargois, moves that are covered with more depth here.
  • The Orioles plan to non-tender right-hander Jacob Webb, per Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Banner (X link). Webb was projected for a salary of $1.7MM next year. The righty tossed 56 2/3 innings for the O’s in 2024 with a 3.02 ERA and 24.5% strikeout rate, but an 11.4% walk rate.
  • The Rays announced they have non-tendered outfielder Dylan Carlson as well as left-handers Tyler Alexander, Colin Poche and Richard Lovelady. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relayed the news (X link) prior to the official announcement. Carlson once seemed like a building block in St. Louis but his offense has declined for three straight years now and he was projected for a $2.7MM salary. Alexander was projected for $2.8MM and had a 5.10 ERA this year. Poche had a solid 3.86 ERA but was projected for $3.4MM. Lovelady was designated for assignment a few days ago.
  • The Rangers tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class.
  • The Red Sox announced that right-handers Bryan Mata and Isaiah Campbell were both non-tendered. Those two had been designated for assignment earlier this week.
  • The Royals tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class.
  • The Tigers announced that they have non-tendered infielder Eddys Leonard as well as right-handers Ricky Vanasco, Brendan White and Wilmer Flores. Three of those four were designated for assignment earlier this week. Flores, the lone exception, is the younger brother of the same-named Wilmer Flores of the Giants. The younger Flores was once a notable pitching prospect but was injured for most of 2024.
  • The Twins tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class.
  • The Yankees have non-tendered infielder Jon Berti, per Robert Murray of FanSided (X link). He was projected for a salary of $3.8MM. He was injured for much of the year and only got into 25 games. The Yankees also announced that they have non-tendered left-hander Tim Mayza, who was projected for a $4MM salary but had a 6.33 ERA in 2024.
  • The White Sox will non-tender first baseman/outfielder Gavin Sheets, which MLBTR covered earlier today. The Sox later announced Sheets and also that they non-tendered right-hander Enyel De Los Santos as well. De Los Santos was projected for a salary of $1.7MM but posted a 5.20 ERA this year.

Mariners Option Luis Urias

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The Mariners announced this evening that they’ve optioned infielder Luis Urías to Triple-A Tacoma. Seattle recalled rookie outfielder Jonatan Clase to take the open roster spot.

It’s a little surprising to see Urías optioned out entirely. The righty-hitting infielder has played regularly at third base this month. Urías hasn’t hit, though, slumping to a .152/.264/.316 line in 91 plate appearances on the season. Seattle welcomed J.P. Crawford back from the injured list earlier in the week, while Jorge Polanco has played two of the past three games after missing some time with a sore hamstring.

Crawford and Polanco should draw into middle infield on most days. Manager Scott Servais told reporters that Josh Rojas and Dylan Moore will platoon at third base (X link via Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). Rojas, a left-handed hitter, opened the season at the hot corner but moved to second base while Polanco was out. He’s out to a .286/.354/.421 line through 41 games, a solid rebound after his underwhelming 2023 season.

Moore has arguably been even more impressive. The righty-hitting utilityman handled shortstop while Crawford was injured and has hit .248/.359/.504 over 145 plate appearances. Moore has connected on six homers, including three in his last eight games, and is drawing walks at a lofty 12.4% clip.

As one would expect for a right-handed batter, Moore is better against lefty pitching. He has absolutely destroyed southpaws this season (.289/.391/.632 in 46 plate appearances), though he’s more than holding his own against righties as well. Moore has a .343 on-base percentage and is slugging .446 in 99 plate appearances without the platoon advantage, albeit with a modest .229 average.

Moore can also play second base and the corner outfield, so he should play fairly regularly even against right-handed pitching. He’ll likely be at third against opposing southpaws in place of Rojas, who is a career .253/.330/.346 hitter left-on-left. Urías, meanwhile, will get everyday reps in the Pacific Coast League as he tries to get on track. It’s the second straight year in which he has been optioned. The Brewers sent him down for 26 games midway through last season.

Urías entered 2024 with four years and 98 days of MLB service. He needs around three more weeks of major league time to cross the five-year threshold this season. In either case, that might wind up being immaterial. Urías is playing this season on a $5MM salary and would be in line for a modest raise next year if he’s tendered an arbitration contract.

He’d need a significant turnaround over the next few months or he’ll be an easy non-tender call for the Seattle front office. He’d already seemed like a non-tender candidate last offseason when he was with the Red Sox, but the M’s sent reliever Isaiah Campbell to Boston to give Urías a shot at a bounceback. It hasn’t transpired thus far.

AL West Notes: Kirby, Rojas, Langford, Astros

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Mariners right-hander George Kirby underwent an MRI exam on his right knee yesterday, manager Scott Servais told reporters (including Adam Jude of the Seattle Times) prior to last night’s game against Houston. Servais didn’t provide details on the results of Kirby’s MRI but made clear that the imaging was precautionary and expressed optimism that Kirby will make be ready to make his next start. The righty was pulled from his start on Friday after just 88 pitches due to the issue, though following that game Kirby noted that his knee had been “bugging” him for the “past couple of weeks.” He’s pitched through it to this point, however, and like Servais suggested that he wasn’t concerned about the problem.

That’s surely a relief for the Mariners, Kirby has gotten off to a strong start this year. While his 3.76 ERA is actually just below league average by measure of ERA+, he currently sports a career-best 26.3% strikeout rate to go along with a 2.6% walk rate, while his 65.4% strand rate is much lower than is sustainable through seven starts. Given that, it’s no surprise that Kirby has some of the best peripheral numbers in the league with a 2.08 FIP, a 2.84 xERA, a 3.03 SIERA and a 3.10 xFIP.

That type of production is extremely hard to replace, and Mariners fans are surely hoping that Kirby’s knee issue is as minor as he and the team believe it to be. Should Kirby require a trip to the IL, the Mariners could turn to struggling Triple-A starter Levi Stoudt or perhaps non-roster veteran Dallas Keuchel to fill out the rotation while youngster Bryan Woo finishes up a rehab assignment at the Triple-A level.

More from around the AL West…

  • Sticking with the Mariners, Servais indicated to reporters (including Jude) yesterday that the club is hoping to get infielder Josh Rojas additional at-bats going forward. Rojas has gotten off to a hot start this year as part of a platoon with Luis Urias at third base, slashing .338/.420/.535 in 82 trips to the plate. Per Servais, the solution to that could be moving Rojas to left field on days that Urias is playing the hot corner. With Dominic Canzone on the injured list, Seattle has primarily relied on Luke Raley and Dylan Moore in left this season but neither has taken hold of the position with particularly strong offensive numbers, so affording more playing time to Rojas and Urias could be a way to bolster an offense that ranks 22nd in the majors with a 96 wRC+, including a 58 wRC+ in left field.
  • Rangers youngster Wyatt Langford entered the season as a widely-speculated AL Rookie of the Year candidate after he fought his way onto the Opening Day roster with an incredible Spring Training, but he’s scuffled somewhat in the early going this season with a wRC+ of just 68 and an ISO of just .069 that puts him in the bottom five among all qualified outfielders this year in terms of power production. Now, however, Langford may be dealing with an injury on top of his struggles at the plate after he exited last night’s game with tightness in his right hamstring, as noted Jeff Wilson of Rangers Today. Should Langford require a trip to the IL, the club would likely turn to veteran outfielder Travis Jankowski to fill out the lineup in his absence.
  • Astros outfielder Chas McCormick has only been on the injured list for a few days, but manager Joe Espada told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart) that he is already making good progress in his rehab from a right hamstring issue. Per Espada, McCormick has begun running and is nearing the point where he’ll be able to begin batting practice, adding that the club hopes to get the 29-year-old out for a minor league rehab assignment “pretty soon.” McCormick scuffled at the plate to open the season this year but was one of the club’s strongest contributors in 2023, when he slashed .273/.353/.489 in 115 games.
  • Sticking with the Astros, Espada also provided an update to reporters (including McTaggart) about injured right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. McCullers last pitched in the majors in late 2022 but has now progressed to throwing off a mound in his rehab process. It’s a major step for McCullers, who has made just eight starts since the end of the 2021 postseason due to flexor tendon issues. When healthy enough to take the mound, McCullers has been an impact starter for the Astros with a 2.96 ERA and 3.51 FIP in 36 starts from 2021-22. The right-hander isn’t expecting to return to action until later this summer, though yesterday’s news appears to indicate he remains on track to pitch for the club this season.
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