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Last night, MLB Pipleline released their list of Top 100 prospects, and the Cleveland Guardians landed six players in the list, second only to the Seattle Mariners’ seven prospects:

The players are:
20. Travis Bazzana
46. Chase DeLauter
66. Angel Genao
89. Ralphy Velazquez
95. Parker Messick
99. Cooper Ingle

Impressive! Now, to see if any of these five hitters will actually get an opportunity to and make good on the opportunity to hit major league pitching. We know the Guardians usually get the most out of their pitching prospects, and I think an argument can be legitimately made for both Khal Stephen and Braylon Doughty making this list.

In case you missed it, check out Tommy Pecoraro’s quick write-up of his experience of the Akron Rubber Ducks’ banquet headlined by Guardians President of Baseball Operations’ Chris Antonetti. Antonetti, again, made clear that the company line about not wanting to block young players by adding good major league hitters is going to be the Guardians’ excuse for being set to cut payroll by $20M or so. I guess we will see if they pursue some extensions in the spring to increase that number; they certainly should have the flexibility to do so if they want.

I will write more about this after Tommy gets a chance to write his full piece, but I simply don’t buy that the Guardians wouldn’t have upgraded the middle of their lineup and/or centerfield if they weren’t under some pretty severe payroll restrictions from ownership. It doesn’t pass the smell test for me. Since I can’t change that, and I also can’t even tell you how unfair or fair those restrictions are, here is the main thing I want to see in Spring Training:

-Fully open opportunities for the best Guardians’ young hitters to make the roster regardless of service time considerations. We all know that even if Bazzana comes to Spring Training and looks like a prime Chase Utley clone, he’s not making the roster for AT LEAST the convenient reasoning of missing spring training time with the World Baseball classic. Fine. But, let Juan Brito have a legitimate shot to play second over Gabriel Arias or Daniel Schneemann. Let Chase DeLauter, George Valera and, heck, Petey Halpin and Kahlil Watson have legitimate shots in the land of opportunity that is the Cleveland outfield. Do NOT simply hand centerfield to a Nolan Jones and Angel Martinez platoon for a two-week stretch to try to save a few million down the road on DeLauter. Do NOT attempt to convince us Logan Allen is a better fifth starter option than Parker Messick. If you’re going to lean on the strength of your young core in public comments, do it in private practice also.

Ok, that’s all I have to say for now. I am sure Antonetti is taking notes (where’s my sarcasm font when I need it?).

I am making an attempt as best I can to move away from Twitter links, but I could not find the following content from WEWS reporter Mason Horodyski anywhere else, so here is a clip of Antonetti talking about blocking young players:

And here is Antonetti reminding us that this organization is committed to winning a World Series at all costs (except, clearly, for the ownership group):

Meet the Mets

SNY broadcasts will look a little different moving forward, as John DeMarsico announced his departure from the network after seventeen years of directing Mets games.

The Mets have completely revamped their roster this offseason. Have they succeeded in improving upon the 2025 squad?

Carlos Beltrán has a lot to contemplate as he decides which hat to wear on his Hall of Fame plaque.

It’s never too early to start making predictions for what the Mets’ 26-man roster will look like on opening day.

After designating Cooper Criswell for assignment earlier this week, the Mets have dealt him to the Mariners for cash considerations.

Around the National League East

The Phillies have revealed their list of non-roster invitees to spring training, which includes top prospects Justin Crawford and Aidan Miller.

The Nationals reportedly rejected a trade proposal from the Giants that would have sent All-Star shortstop CJ Abrams to San Francisco.

Washington has added some depth by signing former Mets reliever Bryce Montes de Oca and catcher Tres Barrera to minor league deals.

Around Major League Baseball

MLB Pipeline released their updated list of the top 100 prospects in baseball last night.

One of the better remaining free agent relievers is now off the board, as the White Sox have inked Seranthony Domínguez to a two-year, $20 million deal.

ESPN’s baseball writers made some bold predictions for how the rest of the offseason will unfold.

It may still take some time for us to get used to Pete Alonso news belonging in this section of Mets Morning News, but the Polar Bear remains excited to be a Baltimore Oriole.

Max Scherzer still plans to pitch in 2026, but it’s possible he may wait and sign with a team mid-season.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Vasilis Drimalitis examined the state of the Mets’ rotation now that they’ve added Freddy Peralta.

The Amazin’ Avenue minor league crew ranked Will Watson as the ninth best prospect in the Mets’ farm system entering the 2026 season.

This Date in Mets History

Controlling shares of the Mets were sold to Doubleday & Company—with Fred Wilpon also coming on as a minority owner—on this date in 1980.

On Friday morning Dan Szymborski released the long-awaited Cardinals 2026 ZiPS projections and gave us all a short break from refreshing MLB Trade Rumors to see the latest on Brendan Donovan. ZiPS is the gold standard for publicly available projection systems and has been continuously refined to improve accuracy since Szymborski originally developed it in the early 2000s. If you haven’t yet, make sure to check out the full set of projections. 

The first sneak peek was originally tweeted out on Thursday.

At first glance this looks better than expected! It is important to note that the graphic above is based on the ZiPS projected rate stats, but the playing time allocation is based on the FanGraphs Depth Chart page, so the WAR totals in the graphic are not meant to line up with the ZiPS projection tables in the article. This also means that we cannot just add up the WAR totals to get a projected win total. The team projections will come out closer to the start of the season and are based on millions of simulations that account for much more variability and nuance than midpoint projections. With that lengthy caveat out of the way, I do think it is still worthwhile to see how the team’s projections stack up with the projections going into last year as well as the actual results in 2025.

Pitching

The Cardinals rotation was sneakily horrible last year thanks to the 250 innings given to Miles Mikolas and Erick Fedde, so even with the loss of Sonny Gray, the group as a whole won’t have to do much to improve.  Despite lacking a true standout, ZiPS sees enough depth to piece together a reasonable staff. While it may be deep, the rotation is also lacking upside. Dustin May is the only starting pitcher expected to open in the rotation with a projected strikeout rate over 20%. The Cardinals bullpen performed exceptionally well in 2025, so there is a lot of regression baked into the 2026 outlook. Getting a few breakout performances and/or starters moving to the pen and seeing their stuff play up will be a huge factor in the team’s 2026 storyline. Overall, I didn’t see too many surprises in the projections, but a few that stood out to me were:

Hunter Dobbins is given a projection a little too close to Aaron Wilkerson for my liking. He will probably always be a pitch to contact guy, but he is going to need to strike out more than 15.8% of batters to make much of an impact. 

Michael McGreevy projects as the staff ace as the only starting pitcher with an ERA+ greater than 100 and is given a 20% chance of putting up a 3+ WAR season. 

JoJo Romero is projected for almost half the bullpen WAR at 0.9. Hopefully some general manager saw the ZiPS release and decided to increase the prospect value they are willing to offer…

Hitters

On the position player side of things, you can see the hole at first base left by the Willson Contreras departure. The rest of the infield projects slightly better than last year’s projections and results. One thing to note here is that the Depth Charts page is only giving Wetherholt 371 plate appearances, so there is some upside there if he performs in line with his ZiPS projections and earns a full season’s worth of plate appearances. The outfield was projected to be terrible going into last season and was able to meaningfully underperform even from that baseline. Nootbaar and Scott get solid projections in left and center field. Walker is projected for 518 plate appearances, which surely will not happen if he struggles as much as last year. 

Looking a bit deeper at the individual player projections, Donovan, Nootbaar, Winn, and Burleson project about as expected. Winn’s offense backing up a bit in 2025 hurt his outlook, but that is made up for by his improved defensive projection. His 80th percentile outcome of a 4.5 WAR season seems a little light given that he was on track to eclipse that for most of last year before fading late while dealing with the knee injury. 

While the pitching projections didn’t offer many surprises, there were a bunch of position player projections that jumped out to me. 

JJ Wetherholt is projected for 2.9 WAR with a 100 OPS+ and above-average defense. While not flashy, this is an incredibly positive projection for a player with one full minor league season under his belt. ZiPS incorporates exit velocity data into the model, so it is good to see that Wetherholt was not knocked too much for his average performance on those metrics. 

Ivan Herrera is projected for a 125 OPS+. Going into last season he was projected at 103, so it is good to see that the computer believes in his offensive breakout. The model does incorporate injury data, but I am assuming it is not aware of the saga around Herrera’s arm problems and his impassioned pursuit of the starting catcher role. If he is able to catch 80-100 games, I think he would easily surpass his 80th percentile WAR projection of 3.5. 

Jordan Walker maybe shouldn’t be classified as a surprise, but you still hate to see a below replacement projection. The Cardinals still seem to believe in his upside and I am inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt as they try to sort through Walker’s issues. 

Nolan Gorman projecting for 1.9 WAR and above-average defense was one of the biggest surprises for me. It will be interesting to see how much leeway he is given early in the year. 

Jimmy Crooks is given a 2 WAR projection with an 89 OPS+. This was similar to the projection he received going into 2025. It is good to see that the computer still believes in him after a relatively lackluster AAA performance. 

Nathan Church didn’t convince the computer that his 2025 breakout was for real, as he still projects below average offensively and defensively. 

Bryan Torres has a steadily growing fan club and can now count ZiPS among his admirers with a 105 OPS+. His -8 defensive rating hurts his overall value projection and will be something to keep an eye on if he breaks camp with the Cardinals. 

Finally, a few prospects that don’t project to open in St. Louis but that had encouraging projections were:

Joshua Baez getting a 94 OPS+ projection is super exciting. I was worried the computer would hold his high strikeout rate in the lower minors against him. He is projected for a 29% strikeout rate, so it is still a risky profile, but it also means there is more upside if he keeps the swing and miss in check as he moves up. 

Deniel Ortiz was one of the breakout offensive prospects of the 2025 season. A projected OPS+ of 81 is incredibly solid for a player who has not yet reached Double-A. It is good to see ZiPS is not overly concerned with his high strikeout rate. 

Leonardo Bernal continues to get love with a league average WAR projection. It is hard to see him getting much time this year, but he is still moving in the right direction. 

All things considered, I am encouraged by where the projections landed. These aren’t the Cardinals from the last several decades that pump out 88+ win projections, but they still have the underlying attribute of depth that made those teams successful. Szymborski himself mentioned that this looks like a .500 team, which would surpass most fans’ expectations. I do think in all the talk of the rebuild, some fans are overlooking the importance of winning games in 2026. The Cardinals have a good farm system, but it is not the kind of system that can take a true-talent 70 win team and turn it into a World Series contender in a couple of years. If the 2026 team can meet or exceed the ZiPS expectations, the Cardinals will be primed for a competitive window moving forward.

As the tri-state area hunkers down for the impending snowstorm, let’s take this opportunity to enjoy a Phillies video from the past. Here’s a game from 1989.

You’re welcome.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• Is the rotation one of the best in the game right now, or one of the team’s potential concerns heading into 2026?
• Yes, the Mets had themselves a really good week. However, according to one opinion, let’s not get too ahead of ourselves where it concerns the Phillies ($).
• During his free agency, J.T. Realmuto felt “undervalued” with the negotiations the team was going through. That’s….interesting.

MLB news:

• The MacKenzie Gore deal was kind of surprising when it was announced. How the Nationals and Rangers both did in the deal varies in opinion ($).
• Tarik Skubal might yet remain with the Tigers this offseason as the Mets and Yankees are reportedly out on trading for him.
• Gore might be out, but he wasn’t the only one being shopped around. The Nationals also reportedly looking to move CJ Abrams and Jacob Young.

Good morning Birdland,

The Orioles’ search for another rotation upgrade probably feels a lot like going to the grocery store ahead of the big snow storm about to tear through half the country. Many of the shelves are barren.

If you poke around, you can probably find that last gallon of milk or loaf of bread, but then you see that it’s past its “Best By” date. That’s Justin Verlander. It could be fine. Those dates are just suggestions anyway. It doesn’t mean that the food has spoiled. And let’s be honest, you’ve bought questionable things like this before when you were desperate. But do you want to take the chance this time? Maybe if you can get a discount.

The fresh meat section has been picked through, but there is one package left. And it’s a steak! Framber Valdez! Maybe you’ll treat yourself. If you’re gonna be snowed in, you might as well make something special. But the price of beef is out of control right now, and it’s not even your favorite cut. Let’s do a loop and see if we can find something else.

As you’re shopping you peek in the carts of a few other folks in the store. It feels like they all already have their essentials. They must have gotten here earlier. The Red Sox got eggs AND toilet paper. How? No one is getting both!

It feels like a good time to pull your cart over, look at your list, and do a mental inventory of what you already have at home. Do you want pitching? Yes. But do you absolutely need it? What you have at home might be plenty to get through the storm. It might not make for the most luxurious 48 hours stuck inside, but you’ll survive. Once you’ve dug out and the roads have cleared, you can head back out and get what you need without as much stress.

The Orioles rotation is in better shape than it was at the end of the 2025 season, and it is worlds better than 12 months ago. They could use more, another playoff-caliber arm that you can depend on for both innings and quality. But you don’t have to settle for something you don’t actually want. You aren’t desperate. If Valdez fits what the front office is after, they should go get him. If they prefer someone else, and are OK to pay in prospects sometime mid-season, then they should do that. That one pitcher probably won’t change the team’s overall trajectory for the season. But it will matter in the second half, and especially if they get in the playoffs. So the time for panic may come, but it is not now.

Links

As a newbie, Alonso embraces ‘New Oriole Way’ | Orioles.com
I have trepidations about how the Pete Alonso contract will age, but the guy has said everything you could want him to since signing his deal back in mid-December. He comes off as genuine and excited to be a part of the Orioles organization. That’s all you can really ask for.

Basallo and Beavers give Orioles a pair of prospects who should contribute in 2026 | Roch Kubatko
It has felt like the public perception of the Orioles minor league system has diminished the last year or two. But that way of thinking might be getting crushed in 2026. The organization is back to having a handful of “Top 100” types in the minors, including the duo of Samuel Basallo and Dylan Beavers, who both have a chance to win Rookie of the Year.

White Sox To Sign Seranthony Domínguez | MLB Trade Rumors
There was some theorizing that Domínguez would fit right back into the Orioles bullpen. He was solid here, and it seemed like he and the organization really liked one another. But the Orioles were never going to give him the two-year, $20 million he just got from the White Sox. The hard-throwing righty will close games for the South Siders, which could set him up for an even bigger pay day two years from now. Good for him!

Orioles’ Gunnar Henderson looking forward to healthy season after dealing with shoulder impingement | The Baltimore Banner
Make no mistake, Henderson was still very good last year. But he was lacking some of his normal power. It sounds like both his shoulder and the intercostal strain played a part in that. The Orioles will need him back closer to an MVP level in 2026 if they are going to storm back into the playoffs. A side note in this one pertains to Heston Kjerstad. He is going to be a full participant in the spring, which is great to hear. He faces quite a battle to get in the lineup though.

Orioles birthdays

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

• Ashur Tolliver turns 38 today. The lefty pitched in five games out of the Orioles bullpen in 2016.
• Tim Stoddard celebrates his 73rd birthday. From 1978 through ‘83, the 6-foot-7 hurler tossed 313 total innings for the Orioles, all of which came in relief. Although he did not pitch in the 1983 World Series, he was still part of the team that won it, making him the first player to win both a World Series and an NCAA basketball championship. Stoddard was a starting forward on the 1973-74 NC State team that took home the national title.

This day in O’s history

1961 – The Orioles and the Kansas City Athletics agree to a six-player trade. Outfielders Whitey Herzog and Russ Snyder head to Baltimore in exchange for infielder Wayne Causey, pitcher Jim Archer, and outfielders Bob Boyd and Al Pilarcik.

The fury over the Dodgers signing Kyle Tucker makes me wonder who's shouting the loudest?

Could it be desperate, unfortunate fans whose beloved teams are owned by inheritors, nepo families, or private equity bros who celebrate their glamorous assets?

So how about a new metric in the sports page to accompany the ranking of teams and players: ownership. Not simply by wealth, but wisdom, brains and commitment. And for fun let's call it the McCourt-Moreno Index.

It's time we hold the Marge Schotts of pro sports accountable for the franchises they mismanage.

Bob Collector
Santa Barbara

There are some alarming implications to Bill Plaschke's "If it blows up baseball, so be it." Perhaps he means that MLB should be reduced to a burning garbage heap with three teams atop — Yankees, Cubs and Dodgers — because they were the only ones who went into the TV business and peddled their services for billions in the three largest TV markets.

Maybe he yearns to transform MLB into the NHL of my childhood, with six teams. That was OK if you lived in a shallow arc extending between New York and Chicago — not so good for everyone else.

"So be it," as Plaschke would say, but I can guarantee I won't be the only one who isn't watching anymore.

Thomas Bailey
Long Beach

Naturally Dodger fans are all excited about the signing of the $60-million-a-year All-Star right fielder, Kyle Tucker. But we're not going to be happy when Dodger Stadium becomes the first MLB ballpark with a two-drink minimum.

Joe Kevany
Mount Washington

As everyone seems to be raving about the Dodgers' acquisition of Kyle Tucker, I note the following: There is another player who was recently signed by the Yankees for less money and less signing bonus than Tucker who had higher numbers last year in average, home runs and WAR. He also plays more positions. Hadn’t the Dodgers heard of Cody Bellinger? Bellinger as a Yankee will never feel right to me.

Larry Macedo
West Hills

Ask a Major League Baseball owner like Arte Moreno, who sells out his ballpark whenever the Dodgers come to Anaheim, and sees Angel broadcast ratings surge whenever his team plays the Dodgers, if he thinks the Dodgers are ruining the game.

Marc Gerber
Encino

Even the poets know it

The Rams won the battle of which team gets to lose to Seattle.

That rhymes!

Vaughn Hardenberg
Westwood

Throwing the flag on PI

The NFL needs to clarify exactly what does and doesn’t constitute pass interference. There is no consistency as to how it's called with each official seeming to have their own definition of what constitutes pass interference. It has gotten to the point where it’s worse than major league umpires and their own definition of the strike zone. NFL, you need to clean this up because these are major calls that are ruining games.

Doug Vikser
Manhattan Beach

An offer they can refuse

Bill Plaschke finally wrote a column about the Lakers with which I agree. LeBron James is the past, Austin Reaves is the future, and $50 million will help the Lakers rebuild. Yes, it's really as simple as that.

Richard Raffalow
Valley Glen

With the Lakers defense costing them multiple games, reminiscent of the coach Mike (no D)'Antoni days, the only real interesting Laker news last week were the alleged Jeanie Buss comments about the King. They sounded like they were lines taken from a scene in "The Godfather" .... "What have I done to make you treat me so disrespectfully." My opinion is that it "was not personal and strictly business."

Mike Anderson
Sherman Oaks

Cheers to Indiana

When asked after each game how he'd celebrate another victory, Indiana's Curt Cignetti would say, "With a beer." After guiding his team to an undefeated season, and then winning the national championship, I doubt the Hoosiers' coach will ever have to buy another beer again.

Denny Freidenrich
Laguna Beach

Lincoln Riley is officially on the clock. In two years Curt Cignetti took a woebegone college team, with nary a five-star player, to an undefeated national championship. Cignetti has proven that, even in the NIL era, coaching matters. Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick …

Mark S. Roth
Playa Vista

Curt Cignetti and Indiana football playing in and winning the national championship was a modern-day version of the movie "Hoosiers" and would have made coach Norman Dale (actor Gene Hackman) proud. Now the question is, can new UCLA football coach Bob Chesney and his 40-plus transfers be the second coming of Indiana? Only time will tell.

Chris Sorce
Fountain Valley

Making a not-so-good point

Kings president Luc Robitaille appears to be happy with the Kings' status quo that appears to be getting one point every game in an overtime or shootout loss. Should we start referring to him as Luc RobitailleandthenloseinOT?

Nick Rose
Newport Coast

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