By Anthony Franco | at
The Phillies announced they’ve selected infielder Rafael Lantigua onto the big league roster. He replaces Edmundo Sosa, who heads to the 10-day injured list (retroactive to September 13) with a right groin strain. Philly needed to create a spot on the 40-man roster for Lantigua, so they designated outfielder Brewer Hicklen for assignment.
More to come.
By Anthony Franco | at
Bo Bichette will not return before the start of the postseason, Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters this evening (via Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet). However, Schneider said that a recent second evaluation on the shortstop’s sprained left knee was encouraging enough that he could resume baseball activities later in the week.
Bichette suffered the injury a week and a half ago when he collided with Yankees catcher Austin Wells in a play at home plate. Toronto announced the issue as a left knee sprain when they placed him on the injured list last week. Schneider specified last night that it’s a PCL sprain (via Mitch Bannon of The Athletic). Today’s second opinion was viewed as more of a routine follow-up than an indication the team feared a serious injury.
It’s decent news, all things considered, though the Jays have yet to firmly announce that he’ll be ready for the start of the playoffs. Jon Morosi of The MLB Network reported this afternoon that a postseason return remained a possibility. That will clearly be Bichette’s goal. He would return without having logged game reps for three weeks. It’s a suboptimal situation but one the Jays would be happy to live with if it meant getting one of their best hitters back in October.
Bichette’s regular season concludes with a .311/.357/.483 slash across 628 plate appearances. He still leads the majors in hits (181) and doubles (44), though he’ll probably relinquish the hits lead to Trea Turner within the next day or two. He’s 15 knocks up on Bobby Witt Jr., so it’s possible he’ll lead the American League in hits for the third time in his career despite the injury. Bichette also connected on 18 homers with a career-low 14.5% strikeout rate. He’s on track to cash in as he hits free agency going into his age-28 season.
It’s possible he has played his final regular season game in a Jays uniform, though he and the team will hope to finish this year with a long playoff run. It remains to be seen whether he’d be mobile enough to play shortstop next month. “In a perfect world, if he can come back and play short, great,” Schneider said last night (link via Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). “We’ll see how this goes. With how he’s moving, it seems to me that hitting will be a little bit in front of everything else. I think we’ll know more tomorrow or the next day, but if we can get his bat back, hell yeah, I’ll take that.”
Bichette’s injury has kicked Andrés Giménez from second base to shortstop. Ernie Clement is playing second regularly, leaving third base to Addison Barger. That’s a better defensive grouping than they had with Bichette up the middle, but Barger’s move to third base leaves Nathan Lukes as the everyday right fielder. Lukes has been a league average hitter overall but is batting .225 with a .238 on-base percentage in September.
If Bichette is able to hit but too injured to take the field, they’d be left to press George Springer into regular right field work. Springer has had a resurgent season at the plate but only started 48 games and logged 411 2/3 innings of outfield work. Toronto also hasn’t closed the door on a late-season comeback from Anthony Santander.
The switch-hitting Santander has been a non-factor in the first season of a five-year deal. He hasn’t played an MLB game since the end of May because of a left shoulder issue but started a rehab assignment at Triple-A Buffalo last week. He’s working as a designated hitter with the Bisons. Santander might be limited to a bench role if he gets back for the playoffs, especially if Bichette is questionable for defense. Even if Santander’s first season in Toronto has been a disaster, Schneider would surely welcome the opportunity to turn to a player who hit 44 home runs last year as a power bat off the bench.
Toronto has a magic number of four to clinch a playoff berth. That should happen by the end of this week. They hold a five-game cushion over the Yankees in the AL East. They’re three games ahead of the Tigers for the AL’s top seed and six games up on the AL West-leading Mariners. Locking down the division would almost certainly ensure they finish as a top two seed and secure a first-round bye. The Division Series begin on October 4.
By Anthony Franco | at
September 16: The Jays confirmed this evening that Martinez went unclaimed on release waivers. He’s officially a free agent.
September 15: The Blue Jays released former top infield prospect Orelvis Martinez, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Assuming he clears release waivers, he’ll be a free agent. The Jays had designated Martinez for assignment on Saturday when they needed a 40-man roster spot to activate Alek Manoah from the 60-day injured list in a procedural move.
Martinez was on optional assignment to Triple-A Buffalo and landed on the minor league injured list with an undisclosed injury last week. Injured players cannot be placed on outright waivers. Players on the 40-man roster can’t be traded after the deadline. Once the Jays designated Martinez for assignment, they had no choice but to release him.
Toronto could have placed Martinez on the MLB 60-day injured list rather than designating him for assignment in the first place. That also would have opened a 40-man roster spot but would have required paying him the prorated major league minimum salary for the final two weeks of the regular season. That the Jays preferred to release him rather than pay the roughly $70K to keep him on the IL is a testament to how far his stock has fallen. There’s a good chance they intended to run him through outright waivers at the beginning of the offseason.
The 23-year-old Martinez appeared in one major league game last season. He singled in three at-bats during his MLB debut. He had occupied a 40-man roster spot for the past three years and had otherwise been on optional assignment. He also missed 80 games last season following a failed performance-enhancing drug test. The PED ban was announced all of five days after Martinez received his first major league call in June 2024. He finished that year in Triple-A and has been in Buffalo for the entirety of this season.
Martinez has endured a nightmare season in the minors. He’s batting .176/.288/.348 while striking out at a 28.4% clip through 394 plate appearances. He has taken a lot of walks and connected on 13 home runs, but both his power production and contact rates have backed up relative to last season. Martinez had turned in a far stronger .267/.346/.523 line with 17 homers in 319 trips at the Triple-A level a year ago.
The Jays could look to bring Martinez back on a minor league contract. That is fairly common in situations where a team DFAs and subsequently releases an injured minor leaguer. Martinez will have the ability to look elsewhere in free agency, though, and it’s possible a change of scenery is ideal given the way his career has gone over the past year-plus. His youth and one-time projection as a potential power-hitting second/third baseman will surely intrigue plenty of teams if he’s relegated to a minor league deal going into 2026.
By Anthony Franco | at
September 16: Espada said today that Alvarez has a “pretty significant” injury (via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). The manager added that Alvarez would be “out for a while” but would not say whether he’ll be placed on the injured list or provide any further specifics on the timeline.
September 15: The Astros are sending Yordan Alvarez for an MRI on his left ankle, manager Joe Espada said postgame (via Space City’s Julia Morales). Houston’s star slugger gingerly exited tonight’s win over Texas in the first inning after hurting his ankle scoring a run. The club announced a few innings later that he was diagnosed with an ankle sprain. Chandler Rome of The Athletic observed that Alvarez was on crutches and in a walking boot in the clubhouse after the game.
Alvarez missed the bulk of the season with a small fracture in his right hand. He was out between the start of May and the final week of August. The three-time All-Star had started the year slowly but has raked since his return from the injured list. He’s hitting .369 with a trio of home runs in 18 games over the past three weeks. Alvarez has been in vintage form and is back as one of the team’s lineup anchors as they vie for a playoff spot.
The Astros have used Alvarez more frequently than they wanted in left field. That gave Jose Altuve more at-bats at designated hitter, though he’s been back at second base for the past few games. Victor Caratini stepped in at DH tonight. Alvarez’s exit pushed Jesús Sánchez from right to left field. Rookie Zach Cole came off the bench to play right field. Cole picked up a pair of hits and his second MLB home run in his first four games.
Cole would probably see an uptick in playing time in the corner outfield if Alvarez requires another injured list stint. Altuve could also see mostly everyday DH work with Mauricio Dubón stepping in as a defensive upgrade at second base.
By Steve Adams | at
The Angels announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of infielder Carter Kieboom and placed shortstop Zach Neto on the 10-day injured list due to a left hand strain. The Halos had an open 40-man roster spot after previously outrighting utilityman Scott Kingery.
Kieboom, 28, hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2023. The former top-100 prospect was once viewed as a potential long-term contributor with the Nationals but never found his footing in the big leagues. He’s a career .199/.297/.301 hitter in 508 plate appearances, all of which came with the Nationals, who selected him with the No. 28 overall pick back in 2016.
The 2025 season is Kieboom’s first away from the Nats. He’s had a fine year in Triple-A Salt Lake, slashing .319/.368/.449 with nine homers and 11 steals in 402 trips to the plate. It’s an impressive-looking stat line, though after weighting for home park and league run-scoring environment, Kieboom’s rate stats are about two percent better than league average in the overwhelmingly hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League (by measure of wRC+).
Neto, 24, returns to the injured list for the second time this season. The 2023 first-rounder missed the first few weeks of the year recovering from 2024 shoulder surgery but has largely matched his breakout 2024 form when healthy. In 128 games and 554 plate appearances, Neto has slashed .257.319/.474 with 26 homers and stolen bases apiece. He hit .249/.318/.443 with 23 homers and 30 steals in 155 games/603 plate appearances last season.
The Angels haven’t specified how long Neto will need to recover, although given how close we are to the end of the season, it’s obviously possible that he could miss the remainder of the year. With Neto sidelined, the Angels’ options at shortstop include Denzer Guzman and Oswald Peraza. Veteran utilityman Chris Taylor has plenty of career innings at shortstop under his belt as well, though he hasn’t played there at all since the 2023 season.
By Steve Adams | at
The Orioles have designated infielder Emmanuel Rivera for assignment and reinstated Jordan Westburg from the 10-day injured list, per a team announcement. Baltimore also optioned lefty Grant Wolfram to Triple-A Norfolk, clearing a spot for the activation of lefty Jose Castillo, whom the O’s claimed off waivers yesterday.
Rivera, 29, came to the Orioles following a DFA in Miami last summer. He erupted for a .313/.370/.578 slash and four homers in 73 plate appearances down the stretch, prompting the O’s to tender him a $1MM contract in the offseason. He hasn’t replicated that output in 2025, however. Through 127 turns at the plate, Rivera has logged a tepid .250/.291/.283 slash that more closely resembles his career .245/.305/.360 output in 1169 plate appearances.
He’s still a quality defender at third base and has added some experience at first base, but Rivera is out of minor league options and thus couldn’t simply be sent to the minors without first being removed from the 40-man roster by way of a DFA. He’ll now be made available to the game’s 29 other teams via outright waivers. If and when he clears, Rivera would have the right to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency (both by virtue of having more than three years of MLB service and a prior outright in his career).
It’s been a stop-and-start year for the 26-year-old Westburg. He’s been highly productive when healthy enough to take the field but has endured lengthy IL stints owing to both a hamstring strain and a right ankle sprain. He’s just now returning from the latter of those two maladies after spending nearly a month on the shelf.
When he’s been able to take the field, Westburg has popped 25 extra-base hits (15 homers, nine doubles, one triple) and recorded a stout .276/.326/.473 batting line while splitting his time between third base and second base. Dating back to last season, Westburg has belted 33 home runs in just 751 plate appearances — despite being a right-handed hitter in a ballpark that overwhelmingly sapped right-handed power in 2024 (before altering their left field dimensions this past offseason).
Westburg is controllable for another four seasons in Baltimore and won’t be eligible for arbitration until after the 2026 season. He’s been limited to just 73 games this season, but he’s demonstrated potential 30-homer pop if he can remain healthy for a full year. He’ll enter the offseason lined up as the Orioles’ starter at third base, joining shortstop Gunnar Henderson and second baseman Jackson Holliday as locks in the infield at Camden Yards.
Former top prospect Coby Mayo is currently getting plenty of run at first base but has yet to solidify himself as a credible hitter at the MLB level. Samuel Basallo, another touted prospect (whom the Orioles recently extended), will also be in the mix for reps at first base. Longtime O’s slugger Ryan Mountcastle is also still in the picture, but he’s slumping badly to close out a down year overall and will be owed a raise on this year’s $6.78MM salary ahead of his final season of club control, making him a non-tender or trade candidate.
By Darragh McDonald | at
The Pirates announced that they have selected the contract of catcher/first baseman Rafael Flores. In a corresponding active roster move, infielder Liover Peguero has been optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. The 40-man roster had a vacancy but is now full.
Flores, 24, was just acquired from the Yankees as part of the deadline deal sending David Bednar to the Bronx. He was going to be available in the upcoming Rule 5 draft if not added to Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster. They were surely planning to give him a roster spot in order to him from that draft. Doing so a few months early allows them to get a look at him in the big leagues before the offseason arrives.
The youngster took an unusual path to being a notable prospect. He attended Rio Honda, a community college outside Los Angeles, and was playing summer ball for the Alaska Goldpanners when the Yanks found him and signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2022. He was roughly league average at the plate in 2023 while playing at the High-A level.
Flores seemed to take a big step forward last year, both offensively and defensively. He stepped to the plate 506 times between High-A and Double-A, producing a combined .279/.379/.495 line and 152 wRC+. FanGraphs ranked him 34th in the system prior to that campaign, noting that his work behind the plate was improving. Baseball America ranked him tenth among New York farmhands heading into the current season.
The 2025 season has seen Flores boost his stock even further. The righty-swinging 24-year-old clobbered Double-A pitching at a .287/.346/.496 pace (145 wRC+) in 370 plate appearances and has hit .281/.363/.459 (119 wRC+) in 157 Triple-A plate appearances with the Pirates following the trade. He’s not great when it comes to controlling the running game, but Baseball Prospectus gives him above-average framing and blocking grades in the minors this year. At the very least, he has the makings of a bat-first option behind the plate — an area of dire need for the Pirates for the past several years.
Catcher has been a revolving door in Pittsburgh ever since the Bucs traded Jacob Stallings to the Marlins after the 2021 season. They’ve since used a combination of Henry Davis, Endy Rodriguez, Joey Bart, Jason Delay, Yasmani Grandal, Tyler Heineman, Austin Hedges, Michael Perez, Andrew Knapp and Roberto Perez — among others — and received disastrous results with the bat. Only the Guardians have received less offensive output from their catchers than Pittsburgh’s combined .208/.285/.314 since Opening Day 2022.
The hope moving forward will be that Flores can turn that tide — or at least play a meaningful role in a catching committee that begins to right the ship. The Pirates’ offense, in general, is among the most anemic in baseball on an annual basis. If Flores can provide even average offense (or slightly above), he ought to receive plenty of looks moving forward, given the difficulty the Bucs have had when it comes to scoring runs year over year.
By Steve Adams | at
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Less popular idea — let me duck/shield my self from Astros fans quick — would be to trade Jeremy Pena to help replenish what’s a pretty barren rotation. Two more years of team control, but he’s a Boras client who’s not likely to sign the type of extensions the Astros offer. Could go Correa at SS, Paredes at 3B, Walker 1B and Altuve/Brice Matthews at 2B.
Not saying they should/will do it — just that it’s something I can envision other teams inquiring about, and the Astros ought to at least hear them out to see what kind of arm is out there.
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I imagine the Dodgers will have interest in bounceback deals with Devin Williams and Ryan Helsley and Luke Weaver, and they’ll probably be open to paying up for some buzz relievers who’ve elevated their standing considerably this season (someone like Brad Keller)
But in general, I wouldn’t expect them to be on someone like Edwin Diaz or Robert Suarez (the top relievers this winter)
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If Realmuto goes elsewhere, the trade market probably makes more sense. Ryan Jeffers, Jake Rogers, Tyler Stephenson are among the guys I can see available this winter.
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Meidroth seems fine, but there’s not a lot of ceiling with the lack of power.
Broadly speaking, it’s not a bad group. And I remain a weird Miguel Vargas truther who still thinks Vargas will be an above-average hitter.
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On the one hand, sure you can say these guys are professionals and they should be able to take the criticism. But on the other, it’s so unnecessary, and that seems particularly true with a young kid like Volpe. It’s just … weird. Be transparent.
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Other possibilities: Eugenio Suarez, Jorge Polanco, Munetaka Murakami, Kazuma Okamoto or the trade market (Josh Jung, Isaac Paredes, Royce Lewis — to name a few)
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I don’t think there’s anything wrong with preferring Judge, but I’m taking the guy who’s played more often and put up prodigious power output while playing the most physically demanding position on the field for over 1000 innings.
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free agency will be boring
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I think Boston went a little wild with that deal, but regardless, 5/120 doesn’t feel strong enough to get Gilbert to sign.
By Steve Adams | at
The Royals will reinstate left-hander Cole Ragans from the 60-day injured list tomorrow, per Anne Rogers of MLB.com. Kansas City already has an open 40-man roster spot, so unless there are other 40-man moves coming in conjunction with Ragans’ return, they’ll only need to clear a spot on the active roster.
Ragans, 28 this offseason, has been out more than three months due to a strained rotator cuff in his left shoulder. His absence has been a major reason for Kansas City’s slide in the standings and the team’s all but certain elimination from playoff contention, although Ragans certainly hasn’t been the only rotation member to run into health woes this year.
Kris Bubic’s own rotator cuff strain ended his season in late July. Seth Lugo has had IL stints due to both finger and lower back injuries. Michael Lorenzen missed more than a month with an oblique strain. Michael Wacha has been on the concussion list for the past week but is expected to return for tonight’s game. Alec Marsh hasn’t pitched all season due to a shoulder impingement. It’s a far cry from the 2024 season, when the Royals improbably had four pitchers make at least 29 starts (and five make at least 25 starts).
Still, the loss of Ragans has arguably been the most damaging. The southpaw was sitting on an ugly 5.18 ERA in ten starts when healthy, although much of the damage against him came in his final three starts before landing on the IL with this shoulder issue. Ragans carried a 3.79 ERA into mid-May and reached double-digit strikeout figures in four of his first seven starts of the season. And, of course, the lefty’s 2024 breakout was one of the driving forces behind the Royals’ return to the postseason. Ragans pitched 186 1/3 innings with a 3.14 ERA, 29.3% strikeout rate and 8.8% walk rate across 32 starts last year, garnering an All-Star nod and fourth-place finish in Cy Young voting for his efforts.
At 75-75, the Royals haven’t been mathematically eliminated from the postseason just yet, but they’re 6.5 games out in the AL Wild Card chase with 12 games left to play. It’d take a borderline miracle for them to sneak into the field. Even with little to play for in terms of 2025 results, however, Ragans’ return gives him the chance to head into the offseason feeling that his shoulder troubles are behind him. If he looks sharp in two starts between now and season’s end, Kansas City would surely feel a bit better about its staff heading into next year. Ragans posted a 4.35 ERA and punched out 20 of the 43 hitters he faced (46.5%) across three minor league starts while rehabbing in recent weeks.
By Anthony Franco | at
The Braves announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of lefty José Suarez from Triple-A Gwinnett. Catcher Sean Murphy, who underwent season-ending hip surgery recently, was moved to the 60-day IL to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Atlanta also recalled righty Nathan Wiles from Gwinnett and optioned righties Connor Seabold and Alexis Díaz to Triple-A in a series of corresponding moves.
Suarez will make a spot start in Game 1 of today’s doubleheader in Washington. He’ll be opposed by Nationals righty Jake Irvin, who has struggled to a 5.70 ERA over 30 starts. There’s a much more exciting pitching matchup with Chris Sale and MacKenzie Gore squaring off in the nightcap.
Atlanta acquired Suarez from the Angels in a swap for Ian Anderson at the end of Spring Training. The 27-year-old southpaw began the season in Brian Snitker’s bullpen. He tossed 7 1/3 innings over three appearances, allowing three runs (two earned) with seven walks and five strikeouts. Atlanta designated him for assignment and ran him through outright waivers at the end of April.
Suarez has spent most of the season on the minor league injured list. He has been limited to nine appearances (eight starts) with Gwinnett, where he has pitched to a 3.53 ERA over 43 1/3 frames. Suarez has punched out 28% of opponents with a sub-5% walk rate. That earns him at least his first MLB start of the season, and it’s possible he’ll stick on the big league roster in long relief for the last two weeks. Suarez will be controllable through arbitration if he finishes the season on the 40-man roster, though he’d likely be non-tendered.
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