Category: MLB

Happy Monday, folks. It’s been a day of some good Braves-related news and some funny Braves-related news.

On the good front, MLB Network reported that the Braves have no intention on hearing out any potential trade offers for star slugger Ronald Acuña Jr.

On the funny front, the Philadelphia Phillies are interested in Ha-Seong Kim for what is being reported is an important and versatile role? No doubt HSK’s 2027 season (lockout depending) will go better than his 2026 in Atlanta did. But I’m still skeptical of him stepping into an important role heading into next season.

The Dodgers on Monday claimed Christian Cairo off waivers from the New York Mets, a week after the utility player was designated for assignment.

Cairo played all last season in Triple-A, 128 games with Lehigh Valley in the Philadelphia Phillies system and two games with Norfolk in the Mets system after New York claimed him off waivers in September. Cairo hit .230/.381/.300 with a 95 wRC+ last season in the minors with 92 walks against 76 strikeouts in his 413 plate appearances, plus 25 stolen bases in 37 attempts.

The Mets designated Cairo for assignment last Monday amid various moves on the edges of the 40-man roster.

The bulk of Cairo’s time in the minors has come in the infield, with 160 starts at second base, 159 starts at third base, and 149 starts at shortstop, plus 54 starts in left field, 13 in center field, and four starts in right. It was more of the same in 2026, with 58 starts at shortstop, 26 at third base, 17 at second base, 16 in left field, and eight starts in center field.

Born in Bakersfield, Cairo was drafted by Cleveland in the fourth round in 2019, and played six seasons in the Guardians’ system before signing with the Phillies as a minor league free agent last offseason. Cairo exercised an upward-mobility clause in his contract and was added to Philadelphia’s 40-man roster before opening day, but was optioned to the minors and has yet to play in the majors.

Cairo, who turns 26 in June, has two option years remaining. He’s the son of longtime major league infielder Miguel Cairo.

With this move, the Dodgers have 38 players on their 40-man roster, including 17 position players.

Gabriel Moreno just completed the best season ever by a Diamondbacks catcher. Before this year, nobody had reached even five bWAR, the highest figure by a full-time player at the position belonging to Miguel Montero’s 4.5 bWAR, back in 2012. [Daulton Varsho did reach 4.9 in 2022, but he was very much an outfielder by this point, with only eighteen starts as a catcher] Montero blew that away, reaching 6.7 bWAR. Never mind at catcher, since the end of 2015, only Ketel Marte and Gerardo Perdomo have posted a higher figure, and Moreno ranked fourth among all National League position players. He’s likely to become only the second ever catcher, after Joe Mauer, to win the batting title, Golden Glove and Silver Slugger in the same season.

However, great though this success was to enjoy as a fan, it poses a really hard question for the team. Moreno’s current contract expires at the end of 2028. The topic of an extension has certainly cropped up between the team and the player. Speaking back in July, team president Derrick Hall said, “We love Gabi, and we’ve had those conversations in the past with him and I’m sure we’ll continue to have conversations with him about his future because he has become a mainstay.” But it is notable that, while Brandon Pfaadt and Geraldo Perdomo have both signed long-term deals, Moreno has remained on a year-to-year basis, now about to enter his second year of arbitration.

That, alone, is going to be expensive enough compared to his current salary. Moreno earned just $2.55 million this year, and on the back of that historic season MLB Trade Rumors is currently projecting more than double that, at $6.1 million. Though that would still represent a real bargain for 2027, providing he continues the same level of production (and taking the season as read, obviously). A major plus was Gaby largely remaining healthy this year. His 130 appearances was easily a career high, surpassing the 111 made in 2023. Interestingly, both campaigns saw him play the same number of games at catcher (104). The big difference was the 25 appearances at DH this season, compared to just one in 2023.

Unpalatable as it is to say so, Moreno’s trade value will never be higher. Two years of control left, coming off what feels deserving of a top five MVP performance, at a premium position? That would fetch a real haul, restocking several other areas of necessity. However, the obvious problem is, who would play catcher? The team does have a couple of good catching prospects, in Ryder Helfrick and Carlos Virahonda. But Helfrick was only drafted in June, and is only 21 years old. Virahonda is younger still, though is more advanced – he got a cup of coffee at Double-A last season. Still, 2028 is the earliest we should expect to see him.

Trading Moreno right now, would only make sense if the team was in tear-down mode, and the six wins lost wouldn’t matter. For an 86-win team with the misfortune to be in the wrong league, it’s less logical. But do they want to splash out for an extension either? To get an idea of what it might cost, let’s look at some recent contract extensions for catchers. The obvious point of comparison is Cal Raleigh, who signed one with the Mariners in March 2025, before his epic, 60-homer season. He was coming of his age 27 season – a year older than Gaby – where he posted 4.6 bWAR and had two arb years remaining like Moreno. Raleigh got a 6-year, $105 million extension, with a full no-trade clause.

In Cal’s favor, he had proven himself more durable than Gabriel. Over the two seasons prior to the extension, Raleigh averaged 149 games, with 120 starts per year at catcher. Even including his career-high playing time in 2026, Moreno has been considerably less durable, averaging 106 games and 82 starts per season. On the other hand, the factors which make this the best time to trade Gaby, make it the worst time to extend him, coming off what could well end up being his career best. Moreno may not have hit 60 homers, but a Gold Glove and a batting title balance that. The two catchers’ overall production in those season was quite close: 7.2 bWAR for Raleigh, 6.7 for Moreno. Imagine the Mariners trying to extend Raleigh after last year.

Should the D-backs back up the armored car to Casa Moreno? The good thing is, he is still young. A six-year deal, covering the two arb season and four in free agency, would still only run through Gaby’s age 32 season. There are plenty of cases of catchers remaining productive to that point – maybe not 5-6 wins, but certainly 2-3. Over the past decade, thirteen catchers have been worth 2.5 bWAR or better at age 32+. But, the reality is that the team will still be paying over the odds for a player who will be well onto the down side of the aging curve by that point. Younger, cheaper and possibly better alternatives, perhaps in the shape of Helfrick and Virahonda, may be available.

Long-term deals for catchers can work. Buster Posey’s 9-year, $167 million deal with the Giants was expensive, but worth 32.4 bWAR. On the other hand, the Twins signed Joe Mauer, to an 8-year, $184 million contract in March 2010. The years covered, 2011-2018, he averaged 128 games, and put up 22.4 bWAR. But he had to stop playing catcher less than half-way through it, and the math is rather different for a first-baseman. Or there’s Sean Murphy with the Braves. Over the past three years, he has earned $39 million, but been worth below four bWAR. There’s still two years and $30 million more to go on that, and the signs aren’t good.

To some extent, it depends on broader factors. The D-backs contended until the final weekend this year, and will hope to remain a contender in 2027. But who knows when that season might start, and 2028 is even less predictable, never mind 2029-2032. If the team believes their window of contention stretches several seasons ahead, then extending a core position would make sense. But if not, then maximizing Moreno’s value may involve trading him for prospects who can help in the next window. There are no easy answers, and no matter what is decided, it’s very likely we won’t know if it was the right choice for years.

Not that this will stop anyone from reacting, of course! So let’s get ahead of the curve. Here’s a poll with some options of ways to handle Moreno. I largely expect “back up the truck” to win, simply because history shows us that fans are very good at spending other people’s money. 🙂 But feel free to explain your reasoning in the comments.

Jimmy Slagle, who was the Cubs’ center fielder on their first three pennant-winning teams of the 20th Century (1906, 1907, 1908), was acquired by the Cubs from Boston in a bit of subterfuge, as noted in his SABR biography:

In Boston he impressed Frank Selee, the Hall of Fame manager who won 1,000 games with the Beaneaters before leaving Boston for the Chicago Orphans (soon to be the Cubs) in 1902. In 1901, when Jimmy had suffered a broken finger, Selee released him outright, but anticipating becoming Chicago’s manager in 1902, he told him not to sign with anyone for the next year. As planned, Selee convinced Cubs’ co-owner James Hart to sign Jimmy. He would play for Chicago for the rest of his major league career, batting leadoff and playing center field.

Almost immediately, Slagle became a star player, playing a strong center field and drawing tons of walks in the leadoff spot — 53 in 1902, good for a .386 on-base percentage, and maxed out at 97 walks in 1905. The 454 walks he drew in only seven Cubs seasons ranks 25th in franchise history.

In addition, Slagle was a good base-stealer, stealing 41 in his first Cubs season in 1902, the first of six straight years with at least 25 steals. In the fourth game of the 1907 World Series, Slagle stole home in the seventh inning, the third run in a key rally that broke open a tight 2-1 game to that point; the Cubs eventually won 6-1.

Arm injuries limited Slagle’s playing time in 1908, his last major league season. After playing two years for the then-minor league Baltimore Orioles, Slagle retired from baseball and settled in Chicago, where he died May 10, 1956, aged 82.

More than 50 years later, Slagle was remembered in his hometown of Worthville, Pennsylvania. From the SABR bio:

On October 19, 2007, a century after Chicago swept the Detroit Tigers in the World Series, a memorial to Jimmy Slagle was erected in his home town of Worthville. A bronze plaque mounted on a 600-pound sandstone rock, the memorial listed his accomplishments and noted that it was “dedicated to the memory of a country boy who made his mark on the world.”

Jimmy Slagle posted 14.4 bWAR in his seven years with the Cubs. This series will continue on Monday.

It’s very early days in the 2027 Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List, which will see us rank the top 44 prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization. But we’re already seeing some very close elections, including the most recent one to round out the top five.

But only one player can emerge victorious, and that player is right-handed pitcher Ramon Marquez, who has been voted as the No. 5 prospect in the system. And if you need evidence as to how much the farm system has been reworked and remade, you can find it right there: that’s two players in the top five who were acquired in the summer.

Marquez came to the Giants in the Luis Arráez trade, and serves as the bow on Arráez’s glorious but short Giants tenure. Now the question is: can that bow blossom into a fortune?

Not only is Marquez one of the top pitchers in the system, but he’s one of the top stories. The Philadelphia Phillies signed him out of Mexico for just $10,000 last year, and he was on the older side for an international signing. But he immediately opened eyes. Once he was in the professional setting of Minor League Baseball, and teams were able to put their high-tech equipment to use analyzing his pitches, it became abundantly clear that he was special.

Marquez, who turned 21 in September, had a strong debut season in the Complex League and in Low-A last year, but it was in 2026 that he really took off, and ascended onto the national radar. He opened the season in Low-A, where his numbers jumped off the page: a 1.86 ERA, a 2.67 FIP, and 47 strikeouts in just 29 innings, with only 10 walks.

A promotion to High-A didn’t slow him down; in fact, it seemed to accelerate him. In six starts with Philadelphia’s High-A affiliate, Marquez posted a 1.50 ERA and a 1.99 FIP, with 46 strikeouts in 30 innings, and just nine walks. He faded a touch upon the trade to the Giants, as he made just two starts with High-A Eugene (where he had a 5.40 ERA, a 3.82 FIP, and 12 strikeouts against one walk in 10 innings), before being shut down to rest and prepare for 2027.

Those numbers all look good, but they’re even better when you contextualize them and weigh them against the competition. Combining his numbers with both organizations, Marquez was one of 355 Minor League pitchers to throw at least 40 innings in High-A this year. Among those 355, he was 12th in ERA (2.48), first in FIP (2.45), 17th in strikeouts per nine innings (13.05), 25th in walks per nine innings (2.25), and 33rd in ground ball rate (53.4%). And he did it all while being more than three years younger than the average pitcher at the level.

Those numbers are, in a word, elite. In a few words, elite and exciting.

Marquez, who I would assume will open 2027 in AA despite having made just eight starts in High-A, does it all with a fantastic fastball/slider combo, which is backed up by his best pitch, an utterly destructive changeup. His mechanics are a little funky and violent, which is either a good thing (a foreign look for hitters) or a bad thing (harder to maintain consistency) depending on your view point. Either way, he’s a must-follow prospect next year … he’s only pitched twice for the Giants organization, and we’re all itching to see more!

Now let’s add to the list! Head to the comment section to vote on the next prospect.

The list so far

1. Josuar González — SS
2. Jackson Flora — RHP
3. Luis Hernández — SS
4. Jhonny Level — SS
5. Ramon Marquez — RHP

Note: Clicking on the above names will link to the CPL where they were voted onto the list.

No. 6 prospect nominees

Carson Bolemon — 19.7-year old LHP — yet to debut

JacobBresnahan — 21.4-year old LHP — 2.92 ERA/4.32 FIP in High-A (98.2 IP); 5.06 ERA/3.60 FIP in AA (16 IP)

ArgenisCayama — 20.1-year old RHP — 4.87 ERA/4.27 FIP in Low-A (57.1 IP)

BoDavidson — 24.3-year old OF — .861 OPS/122 wRC+ in AA (315 PA); .923 OPS/138 wRC+ in AAA (234 PA); .714 OPS/100 wRC+ in MLB (22 PA)

DakotaJordan — 23.5-year old OF — .879 OPS/125 wRC+ in High-A (355 PA); .697 OPS/87 wRC+ in AA (88 PA)

GavinKilen — 22.7-year old SS — .811 OPS/112 wRC+ in High-A (349 PA); .811 OPS/112 wRC+ in AA (143 PA)

Note: Each player’s first name links to their Baseball-Reference page, and their last name links to their Fangraphs page.All stats are from the 2026 season.

In this episode of the Viva El Birdos podcast (0:04), hosts Jake Wood and Gabe Simonds interview Derrick Goold, the lead baseball writer for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and host of the Best Podcast In Baseball. The discussion covers significant changes within the Cardinals organization, future front-office strategies, and the evolving landscape of Major League Baseball.

Key topics discussed include:

• Front Office Evolution: The hosts and Goold examine the Cardinals’ changing front-office structure, specifically addressing the departure of assistant GM Randy Flores to the Astros and the potential for new, outside voices to be brought in to prevent stagnation (3:00 – 9:51).
• Player Development & Coaching: The conversation touches on the hiring of Joel McKeithan as the new hitting coach (19:05 – 26:56). Goold explains that the team is focused on finding coaches who can grow with a younger core of players rather than just focusing on immediate results.
• CBA and League Economics:Goold provides insights into the potential for missed games due to CBA negotiations (39:43 – 45:17) and discusses the financial challenges teams face regarding Regional Sports Network (RSN) revenue declines (35:58 – 38:57).
• The “Metric” Disconnect: A major portion of the interview (1:23:03 – 1:32:13) focuses on the disconnect between the organization and fans. While fans primarily use total wins as the metric for success, the team is currently prioritizing long-term development, leading to a clash in expectations.

YouTube:

Spotify:

-Thanks for reading

Welcome to the 2026 edition of Ranking theRockies, where we take a look back at every player to log playing time for theRockies in 2026. The purpose of this list is to provide a snapshot of the player in context. The “Ranking” is an organizing principle that’s drawn from Baseball Reference’s WAR (rWAR). It’s not something the staff debated. We’ll begin with the player with the lowest rWAR and end up with the player with the highest. 

No. 25, Mickey Moniak (0.1 rWAR)

The Colorado Rockies made it clear that they had wanted to have Mickey Moniak in their organization since before he was drafted. When they finally got the chance to bring him in just before the 2025 regular season they wasted no time in signing him.

Moniak’s first year in purple was arguably the best in his now journeyman career. He entered the 2026 season looking to build upon that and cement himself as a regular for the Rockies moving forward.

After missing the first two series of the season due to a sprained right finger, Moniak made his season debut in the Rockies home opener, batting third against the team that drafted him. While he only managed a single in that first game against the Philadelphia Phillies, he went on to have probably the best month career so far.

Over the course of 25 games in April, Moniak hit an incredible .315/.361/.652 with eight home runs.

What’s more, his power came in bunches. Moniak had three multi-home run games by the start of May.

Moniak slowed down in terms of getting on base after April but his power remained. While his batting average slipped to .230 in May he slugged .514 with another four home runs.

Moniak’s most memorable game of the season came on his birthday, May 14. Not only did he hit the Rockies first three-run homer of the season, but he also followed that up with both a double and a triple. At the end of the day, he became just the second player in MLB history to come a single shy of the cycle on his birthday.

Early in the season when the Rockies pitching staff was at its best but the rest of the lineup had yet to really gel the way it eventually would in June, Moniak was hitting like the All-Star he was drafted to be.

Then came his trip to the injured list.

Moniak would remain on the IL for a full month until eventually returning on June 22.

In the first week after returning from the IL, Moniak appeared to have lost his early-season momentum and had only three hits during his eight games in June. Once he was able to get his timing back, however, he was back to being a key run producer for the Rockies in July. On the month, he slashed .320/.338/.560, good for a 128 wRC+.

By mid-summer, it looked like Moniak was potentially in the midst of a breakout season — the sort that can never be fully written off when it comes from a player drafted first overall.

Given his surging performance, his age, and the Rockies place in the standings it was reasonable to assume Moniak would be dealt at the trade deadline. Rumors swirled around his name, especially in connection to the Houston Astros who were searching for an outfield bat, but the deadline passed without any news of a Moniak transaction.

This lack of movement was befuddling to many but in president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta’s words “We had a set price in mind of what it would take to acquire any of our players.” None of the teams interested in Moniak met that price.

Given the fact that the Rockies still had Moniak under team control for another season after 2026, their urgency to move him if not getting the sort of return they wanted was limited. Following the trade deadline, however, the front office quickly pivoted and extended him for an additional season beyond 2027.

Ultimately, the price of buying out a single would be year of free agency for Moniak was pretty modest at $9 million in 2028. Given the inability to extract the level of return they wanted in trade and the way in which Moniak had hit all season, pivoting to a cheap extension may have been seen as the next best option to capitalize on the potential breakout of a once highly ranked prospect.

In the immediate aftermath of the extension, however, things did not play out as anyone had hoped.

After riding high for most of the season, Moniak came crashing down to earth in the final two months of the season. In 26 August games, he hit .188/.226/.365 and then followed that up by only collecting nine hits in the entire month of September.

If you just look at Moniak’s basic first half vs. second half splits, you can see the preposterous divide in his season, despite the fact that his second half numbers are propped up by part of a good July.

• In 227 first half plate appearances, Moniak hit .278 with 15 home runs which was good for a 130 wRC+.
• In 209 second half plate appearances, he hit .195 with eight home runs which was good for a 46 wRC+.

While the full reason for Moniak’s uneven performance is likely a combination of many smaller factors, there are two that are pretty obvious and not yet particularly worrying.

First, his batting average on balls in play plummeted from .312 in the first half down to .231 in the second half. For a player that has a .300 BABIP for his career, that second-half figure would seem to be the outlier. Speculatively, the right ankle injury that sent him to the injured list in May could have made him unable to beat out close plays at first that he otherwise may have.

Second, a higher percentage of his plate appearances came against left-handed pitchers. For his career, Moniak has a 103 wRC+ against righties as opposed to only a 35 wRC+ against lefties. Despite taking fewer total plate appearances in the second half, he actually faced left-handed pitchers more total times than he had in the first half of the season. Overall, he faced lefties in 5.5% more of his total plate appearances in the second half. That may not sound like much, but for a player that has always struggled so immensely against them, every at-bat matters.

With an offseason to rest his ankle, some positive regression, and the team treating him as the platoon player his numbers (and modest contract) indicate that he is, there is every reason to think that Moniak’s second half struggles are not a harbinger of what is to come for him.

For his part, Moniak has expressed both comfort with and affection for the Rockies organization. From the two-minute mark forward in the video interview below, he elaborates on his history with the Rockies franchise and how they have always shown extreme confidence in him.

Moniak has seen his share of ups and downs in his short MLB career but has felt consistently embraced by the Rockies through it all… even when he was a member of other teams.

Given that, the extended stretches of good performance these past two years and his contract status being locked in for the next two seasons, we shouldn’t be surprised if Moniak ends up wearing purple for some time to come.

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Theoretically, the Guardians will be adding some prospects to their 40-man roster ahead of the November 20th deadline to do so. Who are the top candidates to get the good news?

There are a fair amount of complicating factors to this year’s Rule-5 draft, in which players who signed at 18 years or younger and have been in a professioanl organization for five years or players who signed at 19 or older and have spent for years in a professional organization become eligible for any team to take if they are willing to add them to their 26-man roster and keep them there for a full season (or return them to their original team, if not). There will not be a Rule-5 draft in December due to the impending lockout to be imposed by MLB owners on the first of that month. Will there be one prior to the 2027 season, if there is one? There wasn’t a Rule-5 draft prior to the last season impacted by a lockout. Finally, are their players the Guardians will have to balance their desire to add them to the roster vs. the risk of them not being able to play in the minor leagues in 2027 if they are, indeed, added? Everyone on the 40-man roster will be unable to participate in minor-league play during a lockout.

I think the Guardians, and most MLB teams, will proceed as if there is going to be a Rule-5 draft because taking the risk that there will not be one is a big one when talking about the most valuable assets a team possesses – young, controllable talent. If you need a reminder of which Guardians’ prospects are eligible to be selected, I recommend TJStats excellent resource here. With that said, here are the players I believe the Guardians will add, and why:

Very Likely Adds:

Justin Campbell, RHP, 25 years-old – Campbell was one of the few bright spots in the Guardians’ minor league starting pitching last season with a 10.8/4.3 K/BB/9 and a 3.03 FIP, mostly at Columbus. Campbell did have a leg injury later in the year but still threw just short of 70 innings. I’d be shocked if they didn’t add him and have hopes he’ll get time in the major league rotation next season. After losing multiple years due to injuries, Campbell’s performances last year are one of the organizational highlights for the Guardians’ 2026 season.

Franklin Gomez, LHP, 21 years old – Gomez had a 3.90 FIP and a 9.64/3.13 K/BB/9 in 74.2 innings last season between High-A and Double-A for the Guardians. He also dealt with some sort of elbow injury but came back to pitch again before the season was done. As long as there are no huge red flags with his medicals, I’d guess they add Gomez because left-handers who seem to have potential to start in the big leagues are few and far between and the Guardians need all of that depth they can find.

Kody Huff, RHH C, will turn 26 in December – I get the sense that the Guardians really like Huff behind the plate and believe he can at least hit left-handed pitching reasonably well in the majors. For that reason, and Antonetti’s eugolic words about Austin Hedges at the end-of-season presser, I suspect Huff will pair with Patrick Bailey to begin next season. Huff had a 132 wRC+ at Columbus last season with a 19.5/14 K/BB%.

Jaison Chourio, SH OF, 21 years old – Chourio put up a 114 wRC+ between High-A and Double-A last season with a 20.5/14.5 K/BB%. Chourio still has a lot to prove to make himself a guy the Guardians are excited to make space for on the active roster, but he stole 42 bases last season, looks like he can play centerfield and has enough contact and plate discipline ability to give them hope he will gain some more power as he gets older. Chourio would be a tough player to have sit out a whole season (should that be in the cards), and maybe the Guardians gamble that a team won’t put him on their 26-man roster for a full season… but I suspect they take the safe route and add him.

Could Be Added:

Jacob Zibin, LHP, 21 years old – At High-A, Zibin put up a 3.70 ERA and a 10.47/3.70 K/BB/9. He also gave up a ton of homers. I find it pretty unlikely a team would carry Zibin on their roster for all of 2027, so I suspect the Guardians gamble that he will remain in the organization and get another minor-league season to develop.

Jack Jasiak, RHP, 25 years old – You can never absolutely dismiss the Guardians’ adding a reliever. I remember liking Cade Smith but being unsure the Guardians should be fearful of a team taking him in the Rule-5… man, I am glad they added him. Jasiak is not Cade Smith but he did put up an 11.75/2.54 K/BB/9 and a 3.02 ERA at Double-A before getting touched up a bit in eight innings in Columbus. Jasiak throws 94 mph, so I don’t think he’s the kind of pitcher you HAVE to add. Good organizational depth, but unlikely to be picked.

Jonah Advincula, LHH OF, turning 26 years old in December – Advincula put up a 124 wRC+ with a 14/16 K/BB/9 last year between High-A and Double-A. He’s an interesting left-field platoon depth guy. I don’t think the Guardians are in particular danger of another team snagging him, given his age.

Jogly Garcia, RHP, 23 years old – Garcia had a great 2025… then things fell apart for him at High-A last season with his walk-rate spiking up to 8 batters per nine. He can hit upper 90’s, but I don’t see much chance that another team would add him to their major league roster for a full season.

Magnus Ellerts, RHP, 25 years old – Ellerts averages 95 mph on his fastball and gets a lot of whiffs… he just can’t find the strike zone consistently. He’s 6 foot 5, and put up a 3.18 ERA with a 12.7/6.5 K/BB/9 in 2026. If there is a shock-add on this list, it’s probably Ellerts if the Guardians retain some optimism that they can help him refine control and command. But, it seems unlikely given his age that the improvements will be significant enough to make him a major league player.

Melkis Hernandez, LHP, 21 years old – You really can’t roster a player who walked 8 batters per 9 like Hernandez did in 2026 in High-A, but he is young, left-handed and did strike out 11 batters per 9 and only allow 8% of fly balls to be homers, so I have listed him here.

Tommy Hawke, LHH OF, 24 years old – Hawke only got 85 games in for 2026 as he continued to recover from a lower body injury, but he still stole 43 bases and put up a 117 wRC+ with a 17/17 K/BB%. He only made 25 of those starts in centerfield and I think a lot of his rosterability depends on what the team thinks of his potential as a defender in center. IF Hawke is seen as a viable major league centerfielder defensively, given his 108 stolen bases over the last two years, I really think the Guardians should add him and make him their version of Chandler Simpson (he IS only 5’8… not sure how much teams will fear the bat getting knocked out of his hands when he brings his contact skills to higher levels).

Matt Jahec, RHP, 25 years old – Jahec had one inning at Triple-A (it was bad) but put up a 2.05 ERA and a 12.3/3.4 K/BB/9 in 26 innings at Double-A while dealing with some injury issues. I think, like Jasiak, he is good organizational depth and unlikely to be rostered by another MLB organization for a full season.

The Guardians currently have three roster spots available, but may add more with non-tenders to players like Blake Perkins, Matt Festa or even David Fry.

So, what are your thoughts? Who would you add from these top eligible options ahead of a Rule-5 draft that will probably never happen? Let us know in the comments below.

A lockout is coming to Major League Baseball. When that happens, MLB players and teams will be sequestered and offseason business will be paused until the two sides can come to an agreement. The current CBA expires on November 30th, leaving about three weeks for teams to get their rosters in order before an indefinite stoppage.

In free agency, resource disparity (real or manufactured) gives some teams a leg up, but finding market inefficiencies is key in roster building. Moneyball, a frustratingly misunderstood book but also absolutely wonderful movie, is about just that. The point wasn’t that on-base percentage is good and defense doesn’t matter; it was that you could acquire OBP for less than those with gaudy RBI numbers, and that their offense was more valuable than their defense, making it a cost-effective way to win games.

In a normal offseason, those value-add strategies would be front and slightly off-center, next to the stars who are hitting free agency. This winter, the rules are changing, and so are the economics. Craig Breslow and the Red Sox will have to consider several factors in their early offseason plans as a result.

Money

This is the most obvious impact. I don’t think a salary cap will be implemented, but there could be changing rules about luxury tax thresholds or other ways to artificially limit spending. Allocating a budget that you don’t have is incredibly difficult. I’m of the opinion that the Red Sox should always be spending and ignoring luxury tax penalties because they’re the Boston Red Sox, one of the biggest brands in all of sports, and can afford to flex their financial muscle. Unfortunately, the last 10 or so years have proven that Fenway Sports Group won’t do that, so spending recklessly early in free agency, before a CBA is finalized, could have adverse effects down the road.

I want to win postseason games now. Future Jake can worry about the 2030 roster and spending decisions. I don’t make the decisions, though, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see the front office pump the brakes early on and deal on the margins rather than pushing their chips in for a big fish.

Length of Contracts

In a similar vein to the compensation, the length of the contracts Craig Breslow hands out is another consideration. Would you commit to paying someone in 2031 without knowing what the rules are in 2031? The same could be said of Ranger Suarez’s five-year deal last season, but the consequences of new contracts are especially under the microscope this November.

Red Sox Payroll on Twitter also posed the question of existing contracts. If a salary cap is instituted, how will teams abide by it given their current commitments? The league could allow contracts to be smoothed over a period of multiple years to make the transition easier. Teams might also elect to take big cap hits early in the first year to allow for more flexibility later on.

Type of Player

Should a lockout occur (it will), players and teams will be barred from communicating about baseball matters. In fact, I believe they aren’t supposed to communicate at all, with some exceptions for weddings and whatnot. Regardless of the rules, players typically receive offseason development plans specific to them. While the Red Sox will be able to distribute those plans before a lockout, they won’t be able to check in or make changes to the plan based on progress. If the team believes a lockout could drag into February, they might consider signing established veterans versus trading for projects.

When the Red Sox traded for Johan Oviedo last season, they knew he needed work. He walked too many hitters and couldn’t get his fastball in the zone. His season was lost to injury, but at the time of acquisition, they had four months to work with him to make tweaks to his mechanics, grips, and throwing programs. On the other hand, Sonny Gray came in with 13 years of experience and an established pitch mix. If the Red Sox want to compete in 2027, it might be an advantage to target established veterans over projects they believe they can take to the next level. That’s not to say those players should be written off, but all else being equal, short-term options like Robbie Ray or Zac Gallen might be better routes than chasing potential in Johan Oviedo-types. In a similar vein, Chris Cotillo noted that players coming off injury might be signed to minor league deals as a workaround for the lack of contact.

Overall, it’s a balancing act between risk and certainty before offseason action pauses. Players will want certainty, and might be more willing to sign early on rather than waiting out the market. The last time there was a lockout, no regular season games were lost, but Spring Training was shortened and Opening Day was pushed back one week. With that in mind, teams will want to get players on the roster early to hit the ground running when baseball activities resume. So the question is, do you take your shots now, or save your bullets until the rules of the game are clear? There’s no right answer, but these are all factors to keep in mind when the first Jeff Passan “BREAKING” tweet hits your timeline, and you rush to find out who got fleeced, who overpaid, and who committed highway robbery.

Every Monday afternoon we take a moment to check in on the Cubs minor leaguers who make up the Boys of Autumn for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League.

In case you missed the earlier installments, the Solar Sox are a team in the Arizona Fall League, a minor league that plays every October and November in Spring Training stadiums. The Mesa Solar Sox play their home games at Sloan Park, the Cubs’ Spring Training home. This year, their roster is made up of minor leaguers from the Cubs, Athletics, Angels, Blue Jays and Red Sox.

It you’ve missed earlier installments, here is the introduction, week one, week two, week three and week four installments.

The Solar Sox played five games this past week and went 2-3. That gives them an overall record of 11-14 and puts them in fifth place in the six-team AFL. They only have two regular AFL season games remaining and then they will play Salt River on Thursday in the first round of the playoffs. (All six teams make the playoffs.) After that, they go on as long they keep winning or play in the title game on Saturday, which will be televised on MLB Network.

The AFL Fall Stars Game was held on Sunday night and was televised on MLB Network. The contest matches up the best AFL performers from National League teams against the American League AFL prospects. Last night, the National League Fall Stars best the American League Fall Stars, 7-4. Cubs’ outfielder Kade Snell and pitcher Dominick Reid were named to the team, although Reid could not participate because of his injury. But Snell joined the game as a substitute in left field in the sixth inning. He went 1 for 3.

And here are the five games that the Solar Sox played over the past week. The home team is listed last.

Monday, November 2: Surprise Saguaros 18, SOLAR SOX 8

Tuesday, November 3: SOLAR SOX 5, Glendale Desert Dogs 10

Wednesday, November 4: SOLAR SOX 14, Peoria Javelinas 5

Thursday, November 5: SOLAR SOX 6, Desert Dogs 3

Friday, November 6: SOLAR SOX 4, Javelinas 13

Here’s how the individual Cubs farmhands did over the past week.

Infielder Juan Cabada: Cabada had probably his best week of the AFL season this past week, which is a promising sign that he’s adjusting a the higher level of competition than he’s previously experienced. Cabada played in four games this past week. On Monday, he was the third baseman and went 1 for 3 with two walks and a run scored. He came in as a pinch-hitter and stayed in the game afterwards on Tuesday, going 0 for 2.

On Wednesday, Cabada was the DH and went 1 for 4 with a double and he was hit by a pitch. On Friday he went 2 for 4. Add that all up, and Cabada was 4 for 13 with two walks and a hit by pitch.

For the season, Cabada is hitting .180/.317/.220 with two doubles and a stolen base. He has scored six runs and has driven home three.

Outfielder Harrison Feinberg: After not playing for almost two weeks, Feinberg was the DH on Wednesday and the right fielder on Thursday. He went 1 for 5 with a double an a run scored on Wednesday and 2 for 5 with a double and a run scored on Thursday.

Overall, Feinberg is hitting .321/.406/.393 with two doubles and two steals over seven games.

Here’s an interview with Feinberg and some highlights over the season. [VIDEO]

Outfielder Kade Snell: In addition to playing in the Fall Stars game, Snell ran wild this week with six steals in just three games. On Monday, Snell played center field and was 1 for 3 with a walk and he was hit by a pitch. He stole two bases in that game. He also had one RBI and one run scored.

On Tuesday, Snell was the right fielder and went 1 for 5 with two steals. He also scored one run. Snell played center field again on Thursday and was 1 for 4 with a walk and two more steals. He also stole one base.

So adding that all up, Snell went 3 for 12 with two walks, a hit batsman and six steals. For the entire AFL season, Snell is hitting .284/.435/.373 with one double, one triple and one home run. After this past week, he has 11 steals in 18 games. Snell has nine runs batted in and 14 runs scored.

Catcher Miguel Useche: Useche caught three games, getting behind the plate on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Monday, he was 2 for 4 with two walks and a stolen base. He also had one RBI. On Wednesday, he didn’t have a hit, going 0 for 3 but he walked three times. He scored twice and drove in two. Finally, on Friday Useche went 0 for 3 with a walk.

On the downside, Surprise stole 11 bases with Useche behind the plate on Monday. Glendale only stole four bases against him on Wednesday, but Glendale stole nine more bases on Friday. That’s 24 steals out of 24 attempts against Mesa with Useche behind the plate.

So for the week, Useche was 2 for 10 with six walks and a steal. On the season, Useche is hitting .289/.439/.489 with four doubles, a triple and a home run. He has 15 RBI and nine runs scored over 13 games.

Right-hander Jhon Cabral: Cabral made two appearances this past week. On Monday, Cabral entered the game in the top of the first inning after starter Trennor O’Donnell threw 34 pitches. Cabral let in one inherited runner on an RBI single to the first batter he faced, but then he got a strikeout (with Useche successfully challenging a pitch!) to end the inning and his night.

Cabral pitched again on Friday, facing two batters in the second inning and two more in the third. In the second, he entered the game with a runner on second. He walked the first batter he faced and struck out the second one to end the threat. In the third inning, he walked the first batter he faced and struck out the second one again before getting pulled from the game.

So for the season, Cabral has thrown 6.1 innings over nine appearances. He has an ERA of 2.84 and has struck out 12 batters and walked 11.

Right-hander Yoendris Gonzalez: Gonzalez has had a rough AFL and his one appearance on Tuesday wasn’t any better. Gonzalez entered the game with a man on and one out in the seventh inning. He walked one batter and then gave up a three-run home run. He stayed in to pitch to the first three batters of the eighth and all three reached, two walks and an RBI single, before he exited the game.

For the week, Gonzalez pitched 0.2+ innings and was charged with five runs on two hits. He walked three and struck out two.

For the season, Gonzalez has a 25.31 ERA over 5.1 innings. He’s allowed ten hits and walked ten in those 5.1 innings.

Right-hander Dominick Reid: I haven’t heard any official word, but Reid is almost certainly out for the rest of the AFL season after leaving last Tuesday’s game with an apparent injury. For the season, Reid is 2-1 with a 3.46 ERA over 13 innings. He’s struck out 17 batters and walked eight.

Right-hander Luis Rujano: Rujano pitched two scoreless innings of relief on Wednesday and ended up getting the win. Rujano did not allow a hit and walked just one while striking out four.

For the season, Rujano is now 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA over six appearances and eight innings. Rujano has struck out nine and walked five.

The Guardians added their first reliever of the offseason, the usual minor-league contract variety, in left-hander Antoine Kelly.

Kelly has had a 1 inning at the major league level so far, and will turn 27 years old soon. Last season in Triple-A for the Rockies, Cubs and Dodgers, he put up a 10.28/7.28 K/BB/9 and an FIP of 5. So, if the Guardians can help him halve his walk-rate, he could be their next reclamation project success. He has a mid-90’s fastball and a nice slider. There is no such thing as a bad minor-league deal. He gave up an .803 OPS to RHH and a .575 to LHH last season.

Guardians’ prospects Welbyn Francisca and Luke Hill both got singles in the Arizona Fall League All-Star Game yesterday, and Hill added a walk. Francisca started at short and Hill came in mid-game to play second base. Both players had an excellent first half of AFL play, and we’ll see how they do in their remaining games.

Guardians’ prospect Jaison Chourio will play winter ball in Venezuela, playing for the Aguilas del Zulia.

Currently, the Guardians have three open roster spots ahead of November 20th’s deadline to roster players ahead of the Rule-5. However, one would guess they will non-tender folks like Matt Festa and Blake Perkins on November 17th to open a couple more spots, and there may be other moves made prior to that.

The second week of Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz’s trial begins today. Sam Blum breaks down what has happened so far for the Athletic here. Basically, nothing is clear yet, except it’s a funny element that the judge apparently knows next to nothing about the game of baseball.

The Cubs boast one of the three finalists for the National League’s Most Valuable Player award in Pete Crow-Armstrong.

But Chicago won’t be adding two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal to the roster this winter, according to The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma.

The MLB General Manager Meetings kick off Tuesday in Las Vegas, which is usually a place for teams to lay the groundwork on potential offseason moves. But the Cubs likely won’t enter a bidding war with spending juggernauts such as the Dodgers and Mets amid labor uncertainty.

Skubal spent the second-half of the 2026 season with Los Angeles after being traded from the Tigers at the deadline, where he posted a 2.61 ERA with 70 strikeouts across 62 innings pitched.

While he had a successful campaign with the Dodgers, he also enjoyed his brief tenure with the organization. Skubal’s affinity for the team could very well play a leading role in his free agency process this winter.

The Cubs were poised to be one of the most dominant NL teams in the postseason, but were eliminated by the red, hot Padres in the wild-card round.

Crow-Armstrong and Alex Bregman’s bats went cold in the two-game sweep, but Chicago will likely focus on adding starting pitching this offseason.

But Skubal appears to be out of the team’s spending range, giving the Dodgers a clearer path to the left-hander’s return for 2027 and beyond.

Sources: Phillies eyeing free-agent infielder Ha-Seong Kim for important role originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

LAS VEGAS – Dave Dombrowski began the offseason with a challenge for shortstop Trea Turner.

Improve your defense or move off the position.

“We were very clear,” Dombrowski said last month. “He knows he has to be better at shortstop. I told him that’s really mandatory.

“If he plays shortstop like he did in ‘25, he can play shortstop. But if he plays it like he did in ‘26, he can’t.”

So, what happens if Turner doesn’t live up to the challenge and is moved to second base, third base or the outfield?

Or what happens if Turner is traded, a huge long shot considering the 33-year-old has a full no-trade clause and is signed for seven more years at $190 million.

Who plays shortstop?

Edmundo Sosa? Maybe he becomes a possibility later in the winter, but he’s out of the picture for now as he’s become a free agent and is seeking a long-term contract on the open market.

Bryson Stott could be a possibility. He was drafted as a shortstop and played there on a World Series team as a rookie in 2022.

It’s possible that the Phillies could push a prospect like Aidan Miller or Bryan Rincon into action at the position, but Miller could be more likely to play third base as Alec Bohm has moved on to free agency.

Any way you look at it, the Phillies need to add infield insurance, a player capable of slotting in at three positions with the ability to handle shortstop if the team needs to make a quick move on Turner.

According to sources, the Phillies are eyeing that type of player in free agent Ha-Seong Kim. The veteran infielder has played mostly shortstop during his six seasons in the majors. The Atlanta Braves signed him to a one-year, $20 million contract last December and planned to use him as their regular shortstop in 2026. That plan collapsed a month later when Kim tore a tendon in the middle finger of his right hand when he slipped on ice in his native South Korea. The injury required surgery and Kim was limited to just 51 games.

Mauricio Dubon filled much of the Braves’ void at shortstop and had a strong season, helping the club hold off the Phillies to win the NL East. Dubon is also a free agent. He would have the versatility the Phillies need, but he’s looking for a multi-year deal and the Phillies seem to prefer a shorter deal for a bounce-back candidate in the role.

Kim, 31, would fit that description.

A right-handed hitter, Kim put up strong seasons in San Diego from 2021 through 2024. He registered a bWAR of 5.0 and 5.4 in 2022 and 2023, respectively. He won a Gold Glove while playing three positions in 2023. Injuries (shoulder surgery in 2025 and hand surgery in 2026) have contributed to back-to-back down years.

All this makes him the bounce-back candidate/insurance policy the Phillies are looking for as the offseason gets humming at the general managers’ meetings this week.

Of course, the team has other more pressing needs, led by a bullpen upgrade and a right-handed run producer. Phillies officials, headed by Dombrowski, the team’s president of baseball operations, are one site, trying to fill those needs.

Major League Baseball’s general managers meetings start on Monday and run though Thursday in Las Vegas, a chance at a large chunk of the baseball world to congregate in one area. While these meeting don’t usually lend themselves to spurring transactions.

The winter meetings is usually the place where deals happen or start happening, but those might not even happen this year, with a lockout expected just after the collective bargaining agreement expires on December 1 at 8:59 p.m. PT.

Tarik Skubal is the big prize on the free agent market, but will he sign somewhere in these next three weeks before the darkness comes?

Five years ago, a handful of large deals got done just under the wire before the lockout. Corey Seager signed for $325 million with the Texas Rangers, Max Scherzer set a pitcher record for average annual value with his three years, $130 million with the New York Mets, and Kevin Gausman signed for five years, $110 million with the Toronto Blue Jays, among other deals.

The Dodgers’ big deal at the time was retaining Chris Taylor for four years, $60 million. Not every transaction pays off.

In a relatively week market and Skubal the clear top target, the right-hander is sure to command a princely sum with his next contract. Kiley McDaniel last week at ESPN said he expected Skubal to sign for somewhere between $325-400 million, surpassing Yoshinobu Yamamoto for largest total pitching contract ever if not also setting a new high mark for average annual value.

Jeff Passan at ESPN last week said, “the expectation is he will sign before the Dec. 1 lockout.” Both Passan and McDaniel listed the Dodgers and Mets as the top suitors for Skubal’s services.

Signing deals before the lockout suggest at least some confidence that such a deal would still work under whatever the labor landscape is under the next collective bargaining agreement. The owners have been angling for a salary cap for months, including in last week’s proposal which pushed back a salary cap to 2028, giving teams time to adjust. For a team like the Dodgers with the highest payroll in the sport, adding Skubal would make it harder to eventually reduce payroll to get under a potential cap, if there is one. Then again, Skubal is probably good enough to take the risk anyway.

Scott Boras, who represents Skubal and who represented Scherzer five years ago, talked with Andy McCullough at The Athletic in October about the coming offseason:

“For many teams, I can make an argument it’s clearly best for them to sign players currently, before the (new) CBA, than it is after,” agent Scott Boras said. “Because they have more freedom to do what they’re going to do. They can react later. Now they can get the talent. They can get what they want.”

At the very least, it would at least be funny to see the handwringing across the sport if the Dodgers were to sign Skubal, even if, as we saw in October, nothing is guaranteed.

Today’s question: When will Tarik Skubal signs his next contract? Pick the date that the deal becomes official.