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MLB Mailbag: Orioles, Tigers, Trades

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This week's mailbag gets into Orioles starting pitcher targets, whether the Tigers have championship core pieces beyond Tarik Skubal, many hypothetical trade scenarios, and much more.

Tim asks:

I appreciate all the work you put into the Top 50 Free Agent list, as well as the Top 40 Trade Candidates list. My question is: do you really expect the Orioles to pursue any top of the rotation pitchers? I have a hard time believing Mike Elias will pursue such pitchers via Free Agency, as evidenced by his risk-averse history. Please calm my fears that we'll have a repeat of last offseason's lackluster moves.

Ben asks:

After their tepid foray into the starting pitching market last year (Sugano, Morton, Gibson) yielded less than stellar results, do you see Baltimore adjusting their approach on the starting pitching market by targeting more high-end arms? If so, do you think a trade or free agent signing is more likely?

These questions work well together, because we're trying to guess whether Elias will repeat his over-cautious approach to the rotation, or learn from it.

The Orioles were in on all the big names last offseason, but apparently didn't like the prices on any of them.  By January 3rd, the Orioles had committed to Tomoyuki Sugano and Charlie Morton.  The only good starting pitcher remaining on the market at that point was Nick Pivetta.

Part of Elias' folly was reliance on Grayson Rodriguez and Zach Eflin.  Injuries have pretty much been constant throughout Rodriguez's big league career.  Eflin had a run of good health from 2023-24, but he was also dealing with chronic knee and back pain.  While he'd pitched really well for the Orioles in nine regular season starts in '24, his success was mostly about strike-throwing.

I've written before in this space that holding on to a well-regarded prospect who ultimately does not pan out is just as bad as trading one who does.  Elias is not exactly going to get fired for holding on to Heston Kjerstad or Coby Mayo last winter, but you have to wonder whether Garrett Crochet or Jesus Luzardo could've become Orioles.  The Orioles gave up Joey Ortiz and DL Hall to get Corbin Burnes, but didn't take a similar chance last winter.

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Braves Focused On Shortstop, Rotation Early In Offseason

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There’s not a whole lot of mystery surrounding the Braves’ offseason needs. Ha-Seong Kim declining his player option leaves them back at square one at shortstop. They need more depth in a rotation that was battered by injury. They’re potentially losing three high-leverage relievers (Raisel Iglesias, Pierce Johnson and Tyler Kinley) to free agency.

President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said on Tuesday that starting pitching and shortstop will take precedence early in the offseason. “We’re going to focus on those spots,” he told reporters (relayed by David O’Brien of The Athletic). “We’ll see where those lead us, what the acquisition costs are and all that, and then we’ll turn our attention to the bullpen.”

The Braves more or less telegraphed that course of action when they declined their club options on Johnson and Kinley. The latter was particularly surprising, as Kinley could have been retained for $5.5MM. That seemed a bargain price for a pitcher who’d turned in a 0.72 ERA over 25 innings after a deadline deal with the Rockies. Johnson seemed a slightly easier cut given his rocky finish to the season, but he’d still been a generally effective high-leverage arm over two and a half seasons with the Braves.

Cutting Kinley and Johnson saved the Braves $11.5MM. Another $16MM came off the books once Kim opted out. Some of that is offset by raises for Ronald Acuña Jr., Spencer Strider, Aaron Bummer and Reynaldo López. The Braves have $176.5MM committed to 12 players, though they’re likely to have one of the sport’s lightest arbitration classes. Dylan Lee and Nick Allen might be the only two arbitration-eligible players whom they tender contracts, and they’d project for less than $4MM between the two of them.

The Braves opened last season with a player payroll around $208MM. They should have a decent amount of spending capacity to at least make middle-tier free agent additions akin to last winter’s Jurickson Profar pickup. Their claim of Kim in the first place indicated they were willing to pay him $16MM. He’s presumably still their main target at shortstop, where there simply aren’t many alternatives.

Bo Bichette is the only other free agent regular at the position. He’d obviously be far more expensive than Kim would. The trade market looks barren, especially if the Nationals don’t want to trade CJ Abrams to a division rival. Maybe there’ll be a long shot trade option like J.P. Crawford or Ezequiel Tovar, but the likelier outcome is that the Braves would either need to stick with Allen or trade for a similarly low-upside stopgap if they don’t get a Kim deal done.

The rotation currently projects as Sale, Strider, López, Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep. That’d be an excellent group if all five pitchers made 30+ starts, but that’s not realistic. All but Waldrep missed time last season. López made just one start before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery. Schwellenbach broke his elbow and missed the second half. Sale is going into his age-37 season. Grant Holmes may or may not be able to pitch through an elbow sprain. The Braves can’t run things back with only Bryce Elder, Didier Fuentes, and maybe Alek Manoah as their depth arms.

Atlanta has not spent big on free agent pitching under Anthopoulos (though they reportedly made a run at Aaron Nola before he re-signed with Philadelphia on a seven-year deal). Could that change this offseason? Georgia native Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez, Michael King and Zac Gallen are among the more notable free agent starters available.

Luke Weaver and Brad Keller are candidates for the mid-tier “reliever to starter” conversion contract which the Braves tried with López. The Braves have one of the weakest farm systems in MLB, which would put them at a disadvantage in a bidding war for a top controllable trade candidate like Joe Ryan. They could accommodate a decent-sized salary on the trade market, though, which perhaps brings someone like Sonny Gray, Luis Severino, Robbie Ray or Jack Flaherty into play if they’re looking for a mid-rotation source of innings.

Emphasizing the rotation and shortstop could leave them looking for cheaper bullpen targets later in the winter. Lee, Bummer and Joe Jiménez (who missed all of last season rehabbing knee surgery) are their top internal options at the back end. They’ll need to add at least one right-hander who can pitch in leverage spots while overhauling the middle innings group.

MLB, MLBPA Hold Preliminary Meeting On Labor Issues

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Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have had a preliminary conversation about the sport’s economic structure, report Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich of The Athletic. It’s not an official start to bargaining but represents their first known talks of any kind with the collective bargaining agreement a little over a year away from expiration. Respective lead negotiators Dan Halem (MLB) and Bruce Meyer (MLBPA) were both present, according to the report.

It’s more a symbolic discussion than anything else. Drellich and Rosenthal write that substantive bargaining is unlikely to begin until next spring. This served as an opportunity for each side to lay out diverging views of the game’s economics. It is widely expected that the sides will not be able to line up on a new deal before the expiration of the current CBA on December 1, 2026. If that’s the case, MLB would immediately implement a lockout to freeze the 2026-27 offseason.

Commissioner Rob Manfred said last winter that an offseason lockout is likely to be the new norm. While the league doesn’t technically need to implement a lockout once the CBA expires, it behooves them to do so. Waiting would otherwise give the MLBPA the ability to strike, ceding the leverage for timing a work stoppage to the players.

The 2022-23 lockout lasted 99 days. It was the first official work stoppage in MLB since the 1994-95 strike that canceled the ’94 World Series. (One could argue there was an unofficial work stoppage in 2020, when negotiations about prorated salaries delayed the return to play coming out of the first few months of the pandemic.) The ’22 lockout did not result in any forfeited games, though Opening Day was pushed back by about a week and a half. It’s generally believed that MLB will make another push for a salary cap, which the players union has maintained is a non-starter, in the upcoming CBA talks.

Dodgers Have Interest In Devin Williams

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The Dodgers have shown interest in Devin Williams as they pursue a high-leverage righty reliever, reports Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. They join the Marlins as teams known to be interested in the two-time All-Star.

Williams was one of the three to five best relievers in MLB throughout his time with the Brewers. He pitched to a 1.83 earned run average over parts of six seasons in Milwaukee. That included three straight sub-2.00 ERA showings between 2022-24. Among relievers with 100+ innings over that stretch, Williams trailed only Edwin Díaz and Félix Bautista with a 39.5% strikeout rate. The only real concern were the back fractures that cost him the first half of the ’24 season.

Milwaukee traded Williams to the Yankees before his final year of arbitration. He had the worst season of his career in the Bronx. Williams turned in a 4.79 ERA over 62 innings. He started the year poorly enough that he lost the closer role in April. Williams reclaimed it in June when Luke Weaver went on the injured list but scuffled again in July. The Yankees acquired David Bednar at the deadline to push Williams into a setup role for the remainder of the season.

While it was clearly an uneven season, there’s still reason to expect a return to form. Williams fanned an excellent 34.7% of batters faced while getting swinging strikes nearly 17% of the time. Those aren’t quite at the same level as his Milwaukee days, but they’re still top 15 marks in MLB. His 94.1 MPH average four-seam fastball speed was in line with his career levels. Williams continues to get ridiculous movement on the changeup/screwball that has been his signature pitch throughout his career. Opposing hitters had a lofty .339 average on balls in play when runners were on base. Some teams could chalk that up as poor sequencing luck and continue to project Williams as a top 10 reliever moving forward.

The poor season meant the Yankees weren’t willing to risk Williams accepting a $22.025MM qualifying offer to return to the Bronx. MLBTR ranked his earning potential second among relievers behind Díaz, predicting that the strong peripherals would lead a club to offer him a four-year, $68MM deal. That’d require a team to overlook the unsightly ERA, though, so it’s certainly not out of the question that he’s forced to settle for a shorter-term contract. Robert Suárez, Kyle Finnegan and Pete Fairbanks are among other closers available on the free agent market.

The Dodgers made the biggest free agent reliever move of last offseason. Their four-year, $72MM investment in Tanner Scott did not look good in the first season. Neither did bringing back Blake Treinen on a two-year deal or the one-year contract for Kirby Yates. Among their traditional relievers, the Dodgers were essentially down to Alex Vesia as their lone reliable late-game arm in the postseason.

Converted starters Emmet Sheehan and Roki Sasaki were their top righty relievers in October. Both pitchers are expected to be back in the rotation mix next spring. General manager Brandon Gomes said this evening that the team “absolutely” still views Sasaki as a starter (link via Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register). Gomes nevertheless said the Dodgers don’t feel they need to land a top-tier reliever this offseason. He expressed optimism in a Scott bounce back, and they could get Brusdar Graterol and Brock Stewart back from injuries. Neither Graterol nor Stewart has shown much ability to stay healthy, though, so there’s presumably a measure of “GM speak” in Gomes downplaying the need for a high-octane arm.

Emmanuel Clase, Luis Ortiz Indicted On Gambling Charges

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November 11: Ken Rosenthal and Zack Meisel of The Athletic report that MLB is hopeful of imposing discipline by the beginning of Spring Training. The pitchers remain on paid administrative leave, though obviously they’re not collecting salary during the offseason. If there’s no change to their status by the time games resume, the Guardians would need to continue paying them until discipline is formally imposed.

That doesn’t matter much for the Guardians with Ortiz, who had yet to reach arbitration. Clase had been slated to earn $6MM next year, though, and the Guardians would prefer not to pay that if the pitcher is unavailable. A suspension would get them off the hook for that money. Players found to have bet on games in which their team has been involved are given a lifetime ban. Attorneys for Clase and Ortiz released statements denying their involvement in the wake of the criminal charges.

November 9: Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz have been indicted by prosecutors in Brooklyn on charges involving sports betting, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN, among others. Ortiz was arrested earlier today. Clase is not currently in custody.

Clase and Ortiz are charged with “wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy, for their alleged roles in a scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown” according to the Department of Justice, relayed by Zack Meisel of The Athletic. The indictment details an alleged scheme that involves the pitchers purposely throwing balls so gamblers could bet on pitches being balls or strikes.

The allegations from prosecutors in the indictment include a specific incident on June 15, when Ortiz was paid $5K for throwing an intentional ball, and Clase received $5K for facilitating it. Co-conspirators won at least $400K on fraudulent wagers relating to Clase and at least $60K on fraudulent wagers relating to Ortiz, prosecutors allege in the indictment. (Meisel explored some of the incidents detailed in the indictment in a longer piece for The Athletic.) Clase and Ortiz face up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

“MLB contacted federal law enforcement at the outset of its investigation and has fully cooperated throughout the process. We are aware of the indictment and today’s arrest, and our investigation is ongoing,” the league said in a statement to ESPN.

Ortiz was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave in early July, and Clase followed later in the month. The pitchers had their absences extended “until further notice” at the end of August as the league continued its gambling investigation.

Photo courtesy of David Richard, Imagn Images

Cherington: Paul Skenes “Is Going To Be A Pirate In 2026”

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Every offseason there are at least a handful of high-profile players other clubs and their fans dream upon as the trade market begins to ramp up. Pirates ace and likely NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes may be coveted by every other team and fan base in the league, but general manager Ben Cherington was quick to stomp out any trade chatter before it even picked up. Speaking with FanSided’s Robert Murray, Cherington plainly stated that he will not trade his ace this offseason. Skenes “is going to be a Pirate in 2026,” Cherington said.

There’s little reason to think the Pirates would move Skenes at this juncture anyhow, save for owner Bob Nutting’s typically frugal habits. Skenes, the No. 1 overall pick from the 2023 draft, burst onto the scene early in the 2024 season, started the All-Star Game just a couple months later, won ’24 NL Rookie of the Year honors and is now poised to win the first of what could very well be multiple Cy Young Awards in his career.

Since taking a major league mound for the first time, Skenes has started 55 games and posted a comical 1.96 earned run average (1.96 ERA in 2024, 1.97 in 2025). He’s punched out 31% of his opponents against just a 5.9% walk rate and has only allowed 21 home runs in 320 2/3 innings (0.59 HR/9). Forty-seven percent of his batted balls have been grounders, and opponents have averaged a paltry 87.7 mph off the bat against him. He’s already staked a defensible claim to being the best pitcher in the National League, and were it not for the fact that Tigers ace Tarik Skubal is poised to win his second straight Cy Young Award in the AL, Skenes might well be the consensus top pitcher in the sport.

Trading Skenes somewhere down the road feels almost inevitable. If he continues this trajectory, he’ll have the opportunity to shatter contract precedents for starting pitchers. He already has two full years of big league service and won’t turn 24 until next May. He’ll reach free agency heading into his age-28 season. The thrifty Pirates almost certainly aren’t going to put forth a record-breaking extension offer, which is presumably already what it’d take to extend Skenes.

That said, Skenes is still under club control for four more seasons, and he won’t even reach arbitration until after the 2026 season. At least the first of his arb years will be affordable even by Pirates standards, and for a pitcher of this caliber it wouldn’t be surprising to see them hold Skenes later than some of the prior pitchers they’ve traded away with two years of club control remaining (e.g. Gerrit Cole, Joe Musgrove).

There was never really any expectation that Skenes would be traded this offseason — we didn’t include him on our list of the offseason’s top 40 trade candidates — but it’s nevertheless notable to hear the team’s baseball operations leader so definitively say a trade won’t happen. Most front office leaders tend to avoid speaking in absolutes of this nature, after all.

Beyond that, Cherington’s comment comes at a time when the Pirates are widely expected to make a bit more of a push for a return to contention. The 2026 season will be year six of Cherington’s GM tenure, and the team hasn’t topped 76 wins during his time running the club. Pittsburgh already dismissed manager Derek Shelton back in May — he’s since been hired as the Twins’ new skipper — and the baseball ops leader tends to be next on the chopping block after a manager is shown the door.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal said earlier today in an appearance on Fair Territory that agents he’s spoken to have already received signals from the Pirates that they’re planning to be more active on the open market this winter (video link). That doesn’t mean the Bucs are going to play at the top of the market, of course, but the 2025-26 offseason could see them step out of the bottom tiers of free agency where they tend to reside. Cherington himself told Murray that he has “more flexibility than we’ve had in [any] other offseasons I’ve been in Pittsburgh.”

As MLBTR’s Contract Tracker shows, it’s been nearly a decade since the Pirates have signed a free agent to a multi-year contract. That’s not an indication that they haven’t made any multi-year offers, but the Pirates certainly haven’t been aggressive during Nutting’s ownership, whether under Cherington or predecessor Neal Huntington.

In an appearance on the MLB Trade Rumors podcast late in the season, Cherington acknowledged that he’s made multi-year offers to free agents — specifically free agent position players. Obviously, those offers have been rebuffed. Still, the sixth-year Pittsburgh GM made clear that he plans to continue those efforts, and there are now multiple indicators that he might have the financial latitude to be a bit more aggressive as he looks to line up on such a deal to add some offense to the lineup.

The Bucs could still trade some pitching to add a big league bat(s), but veteran Mitch Keller or 26-year-old Mike Burrows seem like more plausible candidates than Skenes, Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft or Jared Jones (on whom they’d be selling low as he finishes off his rehab from UCL surgery).

Pat Murphy, Stephen Vogt Win Manager Of The Year

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For the second consecutive season, Pat Murphy and Stephen Vogt have been named the Managers of the Year. Murphy received 27 of 30 first-place votes in the National League. The American League tally was closer, but Vogt picked up 17 first-place nods to keep his title.

Both skippers have won the award in their first two seasons on the job. They’ve each led a small-market franchise to a Central division title in consecutive seasons. Milwaukee won 97 games and played .500 or better ball in every month after starting the season 0-4 in the final few days of March. The Brewers coasted to another division title and held off the Phillies for the top seed in the Senior Circuit.

The Brewers seamlessly integrated a few quality rookies along the way. Caleb Durbin, Isaac Collins, Chad Patrick and Jacob Misiorowski all made strong contributions in their debut campaigns. Milwaukee also weathered a series of early-season rotation injuries behind Freddy Peralta. A mid-April trade for Quinn Priester paid massive dividends. The offense, meanwhile, trailed only the Yankees and Dodgers in scoring despite the free agent departure of Willy Adames.

Milwaukee knocked off the Cubs in a five-game Division Series. They were swept by the Dodgers in the NLCS and are still searching for their first trip to the Fall Classic since 1982. Awards voting takes place at the end of the regular season, so the postseason performance is irrelevant.

While the Brewers were well positioned to make the playoffs by the end of June, the Guardians got in via a late-season run that surely surprised even the Cleveland front office. The Guards were deadline sellers and seemed more or less finished once Emmanuel Clase was placed on administrative leave. A ten-game losing streak dropped them as low as eight games under .500 shortly before the All-Star Break, and they trailed Detroit by as much as 15.5 games in the division.

The Guards went 14-13 in August before reeling off a 20-7 record in September to steal a division title. They never led the AL Central by more than one game but had the edge when it mattered, finishing the season at 88-74. That included a 5-1 showing against the Tigers in the final two weeks of the regular season. Detroit wound up getting the last laugh in October, though, going into Cleveland and bouncing the Guards in the Wild Card Series.

Murphy appeared first or second on all but one ballot in the NL. Cincinnati’s Terry Francona and Philadelphia’s Rob Thomson also received at least one-first place vote. They finished second and third, respectively. Craig Counsell, Clayton McCullough, Torey Lovullo and Mike Shildt all received votes. Toronto’s John Schneider was a close-runner up in the Junior Circuit. He received 10 first-place votes. Seattle’s Dan Wilson (the other finalist) and Boston’s Alex Cora also had at least one first-place nod. A.J. Hinch and Joe Espada received votes.

Full vote tallies courtesy of the BBWAA. Images via Imagn Images.

Angels Add John Gibbons, Adam Eaton To Coaching Staff

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The Angels are hiring former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons as their bench coach under new manager Kurt Suzuki, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. They’re also hiring former big league outfielder Adam Eaton as their first base coach, per the report.

Gibbons, 63, has managed 11 seasons in the majors — all with the Blue Jays. That lengthy history of running a dugout and clubhouse will prove valuable for a Suzuki, who’s not only a rookie manager but has never even coached prior to his hiring as the Angels’ new skipper. In two separate stints as Toronto’s manager, Gibbons holds a 793-789 record. His Blue Jays reached the American League Championship Series in back-to-back seasons in 2015-16 but failed to advance to the World Series either year, falling to Kansas City and Cleveland in those respective seasons.

Over the past two seasons, Gibbons has served as the bench coach for the Mets under another rookie skipper: Carlos Mendoza. He’s also coached in the majors with the Blue Jays and Royals in addition to minor league managerial stints with the Mets and Padres organizations.

Eaton, 37 next month, was playing in the majors as recently as 2021. He spent a decade in the majors between the White Sox, Nationals, Diamondbacks and — briefly at the end of his career — the same Angels club for which he’ll now be coaching. That stint with the Halos in 2021 surely familiarized him with the organization and with general manager Perry Minasian. He and Suzuki were teammates for two years with the Nationals as well, including during the team’s 2019 World Series victory.

Fletcher notes that Eaton has spent the past two seasons as the director of player development at Michigan State University, but this will be his first coaching assignment in pro ball. In addition to his work as first base coach, Eaton will be an outfield instructor. He finished his career with strong defensive grades, due in no small part to some stellar early seasons in the field — particularly a 2016 campaign in which he likely should have won a Gold Glove after posting a stunning 28 Defensive Runs Saved and 18 Outs Above Average in right field for the White Sox.

Hazen: Trade Of Star Hitter “Mostly Unlikely”

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As the Diamondbacks enter an offseason that’ll be focused on addressing the pitching staff, there’s been some speculation about them trading away a star hitter. Bob Nightengale of USA Today wrote on Monday that the Diamondbacks could shop second baseman Ketel Marte before he gets to 10 years of service time and locks in full no-trade rights two weeks into next season. Under the CBA, any player with 10 years of service, the past five of which have come with one team, cannot be traded without their consent.

Arizona general manager Mike Hazen has addressed Marte’s status from this week’s GM Meetings. Hazen downplayed the idea that the Snakes were looking to move Marte, albeit with the caveat that he wouldn’t fully shut the door on conversations. “It’s what happens. Everyone checks in on your better players,” the GM told The Burns & Gambo Show on Arizona Sports. “They’re coming after your better players. … He’s one of our best players. We have some of the top position players in all of baseball on our roster and we need those players to be good next year.”

Hazen added that he “(has) to listen to what people say.” He noted that the team’s need for multiple arms in both the rotation and bullpen requires a general open-mindedness to trade conversations. However, it doesn’t seem they’re viewing a Marte deal as the best way to accomplish that. Hazen told The MLB Network’s Jon Morosi that while the club has gotten calls on Marte and their other star players, “it’s mostly unlikely” that a trade of that magnitude would happen.

The Diamondbacks have signed Marte to three separate extensions. The most recent of those came in April and has Marte signed through the 2031 season. There’d been trade speculation following midseason reports that some of the three-time All-Star’s teammates were frustrated with his work habits. Manager Torey Lovullo seemingly has a close relationship with Marte and defended him publicly. Hazen seemed similarly disinclined to trade the second baseman when asked about the possibility in August.

“Ketel is one of, if not our best player,” Hazen told Wolf & Luke of Arizona Sports at the time. “He’s a superstar in this league. You win with superstars in this league. Yes, I do know it’s a team game and putting a team together to win baseball games is also equally important. That’s on us to figure out what the right mix of players is.

Two years ago, we went to the World Series with this player on our team. … So this mindset of where he is on our team and his inability or ability to help us win is hard for me to just take that. … Where this lays down at his feet and where it’s coming from now is a little bizarre to me. I’m not ignoring the inconsistencies with some of the things that have happened. He’s addressed those things. We’ve addressed those things with him.

We’re not blind to having an imperfect clubhouse and an imperfect roster. … I’m also in a job and position to put players on the field that can win you baseball games, because ultimately that’s what this comes down to. We are going to put the best team on the field every single day we can.”

Latest On Dodgers, Kyle Tucker

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Kyle Tucker is the top free agent in this year’s class. That more or less guarantees that he’ll be linked to the two-time defending champions. Jon Heyman of The New York Post wrote last month that the Dodgers were likely to make a run at Tucker this offseason.

That may well be the case, but Jeff Passan of ESPN writes that the Dodgers don’t seem inclined to make a decade-long commitment to the star outfielder. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic wrote last night that while the Dodgers aren’t ruling out a Tucker pursuit, they’re also not opposed to making a short-term outfield move while awaiting the arrival of internal reinforcements.

In the short term, the Dodgers’ biggest weaknesses are the outfield and late-inning relief. Michael Conforto certainly won’t be back after his one-year free agent deal busted. Kiké Hernández, their primary left fielder in the postseason, is also a free agent. Andy Pages had a poor second half that carried into a dreadful playoffs. Tommy Edman battled an ankle injury late in the season that led the Dodgers to prefer him at second base. (He’s undergoing surgery and is expected to be full go for Spring Training.) Even Teoscar Hernández was a relative weak point in right field. He hit .247/.284/.454 while playing very poor defense.

Assuming the Dodgers intend to keep Mookie Betts at shortstop, the outfield isn’t currently in great shape. It’d probably line up with Pages, Edman and Hernández as the primary options. Alex Call and Ryan Ward — the latter of whom was just added to the 40-man roster to keep him out of minor league free agency — could platoon in left field if the Dodgers want Edman in the infield.

They’ll need to make some kind of external acquisition, but it’s understandable if they don’t want to make an extended free agent play. The long-term outfield picture is more promising than the current mix. In August, Baseball America included four Dodgers outfielders (Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Mike Sirota and Eduardo Quintero) among the sport’s top 60 overall prospects. That doesn’t include top catching prospect Dalton Rushing, whose path to playing time behind the plate is blocked by Will Smith. Rushing didn’t play any outfield during his rookie season but has logged a little less than 300 career innings as a left fielder in the minors.

Of the aforementioned prospects, only Rushing will be in the mix for an MLB roster spot early in 2026. Sirota and Quintero have yet to reach Double-A. De Paula and Hope have played a combined 10 games at that level. None of the four have any Triple-A experience. It’s unlikely all four will pan out given the attrition rate of prospects who are that far from the majors, but the Dodgers will want to have long-term opportunities available for each of them.

The balance could be to turn to the trade market. Steven Kwan, Lars Nootbaar (recovering from heel surgeries), Brendan Donovan and Wilyer Abreu are among the outfield-capable players who might be available. The Dodgers were tied  to Kwan and Donovan at last summer’s deadline. They certainly have the farm system to make a strong offer for a controllable outfielder. Rushing could be a trade chip if the Dodgers don’t feel he’d be an above-average regular in left field, for instance.

The Dodgers obviously have the spending capacity to make a run at any free agent as well. They’ve generally preferred making shorter-term commitments at huge annual rates to offering decade-long deals, though. They’ve broken that precedent for Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but both were special cases. Ohtani is the best player in the world and Yamamoto was a 25-year-old ace. Tucker is an excellent player but not that kind of unique free agent. The Dodgers would probably be more amenable to a five- or six-year deal at a premium AAV if Tucker winds up going that route, but it stands to reason his camp will try to pull a ten-plus year commitment in the early part of the offseason.

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