Fresh off an MLB season in which its RSNs averaged 1.5 million viewers per night, Main Street Sports Group has inked media rights renewals with the Milwaukee Brewers, Cincinnati Reds and Kansas City Royals.
In exercising the options to extend their in-market deals with the owner/operator of the FanDuel Sports Network-branded RSNs, the three clubs have given Main Street a vote of confidence—one that ensures the company will begin the 2026 MLB campaign with the same roster that suited up for this past season.
The renewals arrive in the wake of a local-TV ratings boom, as FDSN enjoyed an 18% improvement in MLB deliveries over the course of the regular season. The overall audience gains coincided with a 101% uptick in streaming impressions, as more than 2.5 billion minutes of live action were consumed by fans in Main Street’s nine local baseball markets.
The Brewers, which finished an MLB-best 97-65 this past season, were Main Street’s biggest draws in 2025, as their RSN put up baseball’s second highest local-market ratings, trailing only the Phillies’ showing on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Among Milwaukee’s highest-rated telecasts was the latter half of an Aug. 19 Brewers-Cubs doubleheader, which averaged over 110,000 households on FDSN Wisconsin—a figure that represents 12% of the market’s TV homes.
The Brewers’ success was particularly gratifying for Main Street, as the franchise’s local ratings effectively ratified an earlier decision to remain in the RSN pool. After having announced its intentions last fall to quit the model for a spot under the MLB Media umbrella, Milwaukee backtracked on its decision, signing a one-year deal with Main Street in January.
“This past season’s surge in viewership is a reflection of our fans’ passion and the growing accessibility of Brewers baseball,” Brewers president of business operations Rick Schlesinger said in a statement. While cord-cutting continues to erode the national pay-TV base, local sports has managed to offset any losses in linear reach with a rapidly expanding streaming audience. Fans this past season streamed more than 400 million minutes of Brewers games, good for a year-over-year gain of over 30%.
The Brew Crew’s streaming boost was in keeping with the rest of Main Street’s MLB portfolio, which also includes the Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays. More than 900,000 unique users tuned in to Brewers games through the FDSN app, with total streaming up nearly 70% compared to 2024.
Main Street’s MLB renewals follow last month’s extensions with the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild. Representatives from the teams that have re-upped with their legacy RSNs within the last several weeks cited overall accessibility and the unique proposition afforded by a local media partnership as the primary factors in their respective renewals.
The nimbleness with which Main Street has rolled out its direct-to-consumer platform has gone a long way toward ensuring that younger fans aren’t being shut out of the action as the traditional pay-TV bundle continues to shrink. Main Street says it remains on pace to sign on 1 million DTC subscribers at year’s end, a tally that would mark a considerable gain over the 650,000 customers that were onboard when the company issued its latest head count in early May.
Coming off a strong bounceback season which culminated in the Blue Jays' first trip to the World Series since 1993, two-time All-Star shortstop Bo Bichette is hitting the open market this winter.
The Blue Jays extended Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with a 14-year, $500 million contract earlier this year, but can they afford to keep their other homegrown star?
Stars like Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, and Cody Bellinger join headliners Kyle Tucker, Dylan Cease, and Bo Bichette in a 2025–26 MLB free agent class loaded with impact bats and arms.
Don’t forget: Check out theRotoworld player news feed for all the latest news, rumors, and transactions as MLB’s Hot Stove gets underway!
Bichette in Review
Bichette was limited to 81 games in 2024 due to a calf strain and a fractured finger, and his production suffered along the way, as he hit just .225 with a .598 OPS. It would stand to reason that Bichette would bounce back with improved health, and that’s exactly what we saw this past season, as he rebounded with a .311 batting average to go along with 18 homers and 94 RBI across 139 games.
If it wasn’t for a left knee sprain on September 6, Bichette likely would have led the AL in hits in addition to surpassing 100 RBI for the second time in his career. Still, the 27-year-old was just one of seven qualified hitters to hit .300 while also posting the highest contact rate of his career.
Season
Strikeout rate
Contact rate
2024
19 percent
80.4 percent
2025
14.5 percent
83.1 percent
Career average
19.4 percent
80.5 percent
Bichette is a .294 career hitter through 748 games. Only five players (min. 500 games played) have a higher batting average since Bichette made his MLB debut in 2019.
Then there’s the downside. While Bichette’s offense is a strength, his defense at shortstop will be a topic of conversation. He ranked last among shortstops in defensive runs saved (-12) in 2025 and also ranked near the bottom in the outs above average (OAA) metric. He's also shown a steady decline in sprint speed, impacting his range, and he ranked in the 12th percentile in terms of bat speed in 2025. How could that impact him as he moves into his 30s?
Market Outlook
Bichette is the clear No. 1 shortstop option on the market. Full stop. That’s a good thing to be. However, most of the big-spending teams already have players firmly-entrenched at shortstop. Things could look different if the Yankees have run out of patience with Anthony Volpe or the Dodgers decide to make a play and move Mookie Betts back to the outfield. Both scenarios are possible, but just not likely as of today.
Of course, Bichette played second base when he returned for the World Series. It was his first time playing the position in the majors, but it also underscores the possibility of a position change in his future. That willingness would greatly expand his market this offseason.
Perhaps the best recent comp for Bichette’s situation is what the Giants did last season in signing Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million contract. Each player has different strengths, but Bichette is two years younger than Adames, so he’ll likely get eight or maybe nine years from someone. Corey Seager was close to the same age Bichette is now when he signed his 10-year, $325 million deal with the Rangers in November of 2021. Somewhere in the middle of those deals is where Bichette is likely to settle in.
Best Fits
Blue Jays: Home sweet home. There’s obviously appeal for both sides, as Bichette is a proven performer in Toronto and one of the key pieces of their lineup. He's also stated plainly that he'd like to return, so a reunion is logical. If Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins decide to spread out the team's spending, one alternative in free agency is Ha-Seong Kim, who just opted out of returning to the Braves. They could also look to the trade market or simply use Andrés Giménez there, which they did throughout the playoffs.
Bo Bichette on his future:
“I’ve said I want to be here from the beginning.” #BlueJays
Braves: Speaking of the Braves, Bichette would be a perfect fit at shortstop. Atlanta was last in the majors with a 59 wRC+ at the position in 2025. Nick Allen saw the bulk of the playing time and played fantastic defense, but that’s just not going to work. It would sting for Blue Jays fans if their former general manager Alex Anthopoulos was able to pry him away. Still, it’s not really the Braves’ style to sign big-ticket free agents. The franchise record guarantee for a free agent contract remains B.J. Upton’s five-year, $75.25M contract from November of 2012.
Tigers: As noted above, Gleyber Torres is a free agent, so the Tigers have a hole at second base and Bichette could certainly play shortstop for now, as Javier Báez and Trey Sweeney are the only internal options at the moment. Of course, the Tigers have prospect shortstop Kevin McGonigle on the way, but there's questions about his future defensive home as well.
Angels: The Angels are a hot mess in more ways than one, but signing a good player in his prime can help shift the narrative somewhat. This would only happen if Bichette accepts a role at second base, as Zach Neto is already in the fold at shortstop. Still, Bichette and Neto would make for a fun middle-of-the-infield for the next few years. Fun fact: Bichette's father, Dante Bichette, was originally drafted by the Angels and played his first three MLB seasons with the club before being traded to the Brewers for Dave Parker in 1991.
Contract Prediction
Given Bichette’s age — he'll be 28 in March — look for him to secure a long contract. My guess is eight years, but he could get a ninth year if there’s enough interest. His knee injury from late in the season is not expected to require surgery, so that shouldn't impact his market. The most likely scenario is that Bichette will eventually find his way back to the Blue Jays, which seems like the best fit for all parties after an emotional postseason run. Everyone should feel like they have a job to finish.
The Yankees will be active in this winter’s trade market – they always are – and, as you read this, Brian Cashman and his staff are probably evaluating potential deal concepts that no one sees coming.
So their offseason will be a fun watch, as usual. We’ll try to play along with our list of suggested Yankees trade targets, which is below. The Yanks need relief, a righty bat, and to figure out some outfield configurations. We address it all.
We’d love them to add a contact bat. Can postseason Ernie Clement be cloned? We know the Blue Jays wouldn’t trade him to the Yankees, nor should they.
We’re unsure if the Yanks would pay the high cost of trading for Tarik Skubal, if he’s dealt. Or for the other big aces who – maybe – could be had (Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez, Freddy Peralta). But they’ll definitely inquire on that kind of talent, to at least do a price check.
A big deal like that could flip the pinstriped winter, which would change our list. If one happens, check back with us. Everything on our list, of course, is contingent on how it goes in free agency, with their own free agents and with their own desire to promote from their farm.
Here are our rankings. Keep reading to see No. 1:
5. OF Adolis García, Rangers
This would’ve qualified as a blockbuster a few years ago, but García, 32, has had two consecutive down seasons. Now we’ll call it a potential buy-low. If the Yankees are looking to add a right-handed bat, García might be a decent bounce back candidate – he sagged to a .665 OPS and 19 homers last season in Texas, but still ranked in the 89th percentile in average exit velocity. In 2023, García smashed 39 home runs in an All-Star, Gold Glove season. Then he had an all-time ALCS, slugging five homers and driving in 15 runs en route to MVP honors. He had three homers and nine RBI over the final two games as the Rangers rallied from a 3-2 deficit to bury Houston. Sounds like the kind of postseason results that could boost the Yanks, eh?
4. RHP Mitch Keller, Pirates
Unlike many teams, the Yankees have the elements of a strong rotation in place with Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Luis Gil, and Will Warren set for the start of 2026 and early-season returns looming from Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón. But what if they use some of their young pitching (Gil or Warren) in a deal to shore up the bullpen or to find a center fielder? They’d need reliable rotation coverage, which is where Keller comes in.
He’ll turn 30 in April and he’s got three years and $55.7 million left on his contract. He might be gettable because the Pirates, unlike many teams, have an abundance of young pitching, including the incomparable Paul Skenes. Pittsburgh’s MLB-worst offense (3.6 runs per game in 2025) needs help. Maybe the Yanks can trade the Bucs some young offense for Keller, who had a 4.19 ERA in 32 starts last season and has made at least 29 starts in each of the past four years.
New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman walks on the field before game three of the 2024 MLB World Series between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
3. CF Oneil Cruz, Pirates
He’s so toolsy that it’s easy to dream on Cruz, what with his power, speed and arm strength. He tied for the NL lead in steals (38) with Juan Soto and also slugged 20 homers, all while playing center field full-time for the first time. Might he be a pinstriped answer in center, depending on how the rest of their winter goes?
Cruz ranked in the 98th percentile or better in hard hit percentage, bat speed, and average exit velocity, which is plenty enticing. But he batted just .200 with a 32 percent strikeout rate and the Yanks already have a few low-BA, big-whiff types. Maybe Cruz, who’s just 27, just had a bad year and his career arc is still trending skyward. He had a 114 OPS+ and 58 extra-base hits as a shortstop in 2024.
2. RHP Pete Fairbanks, Rays
The Yanks have some nice bullpen pieces in place, such as David Bednar, but Devin Williams and Luke Weaver are free agents, so there is significant work to be done on Bronx relief. Fairbanks, who reached career-bests in games (61) and saves (27) last season, would be a nice target as a setup man for Bednar. The Rays hold a $12.5 million option on Fairbanks for the 2026 season. That might be pricey for a reliever on a team that traditionally does not spend lavishly.
Fairbanks, who turns 32 in December, relies mostly on a 97 mph fastball and slider combo and has addressed some of the command issues that have plagued him in the past. Last season, he trimmed his walk rate to 7.4 percent, below the MLB average of 8.4 percent. One caution – he’s dealt with injuries in the past, though he was healthy for all of 2025 and notched a 2.83 ERA.
1. OF Steven Kwan, Guardians
Kwan is a little different than most of the hitters the Yankees currently employ, which might make him a nifty fit. He’s a put-the-ball-in-play type (seventh in the AL with 170 hits last season) who does not strike out (8.7 percent strikeout rate). Could be a leadoff solution – he’s got a .351 career on-base percentage, though it was only .330 last season. He’s also an expert left fielder, with four straight Gold Gloves there, and Yankee Stadium is one of the most difficult left fields in baseball.
Kwan is also an efficient base-stealer (80.7 percent in 2025; MLB average was 77.6). He doesn’t pound extra-base hits, but he’d look good scoring on a bushel of Aaron Judge bombs, no? The Guardians might not be specifically looking to deal Kwan, but they’ve swapped players as they move through arbitration before.
Rebuilding the bullpen is one of the Yankees’ main priorities this offseason, and they retained a key member of that group on Wednesday morning by picking up Tim Hill’s 2026 option.
Hill, who will make $3 million next season, was Aaron Boone’s go-to left-hander out of the pen in 2025, appearing in 70 games while pitching to a 3.09 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 67.0 innings.
The 35-year-old veteran was especially tough on left-handed hitters, holding them to a .444 OPS. Hill allowed just 23 hits to lefties all season while striking out 27 lefty hitters.
Hill was one of a number of relievers the Yanks could have lost to free agency. Devin Williams, Luke Weaver, Paul Blackburn, and Ryan Yarbrough are all free agents.
Meanwhile, the Yankees declined right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga’s $5 million option, making him a free agent as well.
A member of the Yankees for the past eight seasons, Loaisiga has some absolutely electric stuff, but his last few seasons have been derailed by injury. After elbow issues limited him to 17.2 innings in 2023, the righty had to have Tommy John surgery in 2024. While he came back in 2025, a flexor strain ended his season in August.
After three seasons in Philadelphia, Taijuan Walker remains one of the harder players on the roster to evaluate. Brought on to bring stability to the rotation, he’s been serviceable at times and frustrating at others. Now, he enters 2026 in a gray area between reliable and replaceable.
An average start
When the Phillies signed Walker to a four-year, $72 million deal in December 2022, the expectations were clear. He was coming off his best season in the bigs — a 3.49 ERA across 29 starts for the Mets — and was expected to be a steady option behind Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola.
In his first year in Philadelphia, Walker largely held up his end. He tallied 15 wins and logged 172 ⅔ innings, both career highs. But when October came, the Phillies failed to give him the ball one time across 13 postseason games that year. This expressed the questionable trust the organization had in the right-hander.
Underwhelming results since
Injuries and inconsistency followed. Walker battled injuries throughout 2024 and in 2025, he shifted between the rotation and bullpen. He made 21 starts and 13 relief outings, finishing with a 4.08 ERA and a 108 ERA+ — eight percent better than league average.
The tough reality has always been who Walker succeeds against. Since arriving in Philadelphia, Walker has a 6.67 ERA in 21 starts against playoff teams, with opponents hitting .306. Against non-playoff opponents, he owns a 4.17 ERA across 46 starts. For a club with postseason aspirations every season, that split is challenging to ignore.
The outlook for 2026
With Zack Wheeler recovering from thoracic outlet surgery and expected to miss around the first two months, the Phillies’ rotation remains unsettled. Ranger Suárez’s return in free agency appears unlikely, leaving Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo and Aaron Nola as the only locks for 2026.
Top prospect Andrew Painter is inching closer to the Majors after missing two full seasons with a torn UCL. He returned in 2025 but struggled across 26 starts between Single-A and Triple-A, posting a 5.49 ERA. The organization still believes in his upside, but command remains a concern — he averaged 3.6 walks per nine innings — which could make it tough to hand him a rotation spot out of Spring Training.
Walker’s situation feels similar to Marcus Stroman’s with the Yankees last season. Stroman, in the final year of an $18 million deal, opened the year in the rotation largely out of necessity after injuries to Gerrit Cole and Luis Gil. The results were uneven, but the Yankees had little choice but to ride it out until reinforcements arrived.
Where he fits, the path forward
Given the Phillies’ current rotation outlook, Walker could stick around out strictly out of need. He’s owed $18 million in the final year of his deal, and with the front office unlikely to spend heavily on another starter, his ability to take the ball every fifth day might keep him in the mix by default.
His limitations are obvious, but his value lies in stability. If he gives the Phillies 15-to-20 starts with an ERA around 4.00, that’s enough to steady the back end until Wheeler returns and Painter is ready.
If another team calls looking for pitching depth, Philadelphia could explore a trade while covering part of the salary. But for now, keeping Walker as a short-term bridge makes the most sense.
One of the top needs for the Mets this winter is to acquire a frontline type of starter. I look at that as getting a No. 1 or No. 2 type of arm that could pair with Nolan McLean atop the rotation.
I know there is an infatuation with the concept of the Mets needing an ace. That would be nice, and trading for Tarik Skubal would be getting an ace. Outside of that? I am not sure there is going to be another true ace available. I believe that term is thrown around too loosely on some pitchers, but that is a conversation for another day.
Among the many intriguing possibilities in the trade market, one of the standouts is Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara.
Here are the pros and cons of trading for him…
PROS
In 2022, Alcantara won the National League Cy Young award after posting a 2.28 ERA in 228.2 innings and throwing six complete games, which is unheard of in this era. He clearly looked like he was on the shortlist to be considered the best pitcher in the sport.
After undergoing Tommy John surgery in October of 2023, the now 30-year-old Alcantara returned in 2025 and continued to improve as the year went on. From July 18 through the end of the season, he posted a 3.33 ERA in 13 starts across 83.2 innings with 71 strikeouts. In seven of those 13 starts, Alcantara pitched 7.0 innings. In that span, opposing batters hit only .217 against him.
The starting pitchers’ inability to pitch deep into games was one of the downfalls of the 2025 Mets. Alcantara would be a boost to that.
As would be expected, Alcantara’s control and command steadily improved as he readjusted to being back on a normal rotational turn. He slashed his walk rate from nine percent in the first half to six percent in the second half, which would be just a touch higher than his Cy Young season.
Mar 27, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara (22) looks on against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at loanDepot Park. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Alcantara’s strikeout rate also rose from 17.3 percent to 21.3 percent in that stretch, which isn’t an elite number, but it is closer to average. He has always been a ground ball merchant, and his ground ball rate of 48.1 percent was not far off from 2022.
From a stuff standpoint, his average fastball velocity of 97.8 mph in the second half of 2025 is exactly the same as his average fastball velocity in 2022. By all accounts, he had a perfectly normal, expected return from Tommy John, where things got gradually better as his first season back wore on.
From a contractual standpoint, he is a tremendous fit. Unlike Skubal, for example, who would be a free agent at the end of the 2026 season, Alcantara would be under team control through 2027. He is owed $17 million in 2026 and there is a club option for 2027 at $21 million. A two-year $38 million dollar deal for a pitcher with this type of potential would look nice on a payroll sheet that includes some hefty, long-term contracts.
CONS
Yes, Alcantara won the Cy Young in 2022. But in 2023, he was more or less an average pitcher -- with a 4.14 ERA accompanied by a 4.03 FIP in 28 starts before his season ended in the beginning of September, leading into his Tommy John surgery.
When he returned from Tommy John in 2025, from Opening Day through July 9, Alcantara posted an ERA of 7.22. That stretch did come with a 4.22 FIP, which implies some bad luck.
It has been a tale of two almost equal, but opposite, stretches of time for Alcantara. From 2022 to 2025, he had an excellent year and a half stretch (2022+2025 second half) and a well below average or worse year and a half stretch (2023+2025 first half).
The question is, which version of Alcantara would the Mets be buying?
While the fastball velocity is there, Alcantara has never generated swings and misses at a rate more than average. In 2025, his chase percentage of 29 percent was in the 57th percentile. Previously, he carried elite numbers in chase percentage. In 2023, he was in the 97th percentile and in 2022, the 94th percentile. That chase number will have to rise to sustain success, given his profile of not missing a ton of bats.
That team-friendly contract also means the Marlins will have the right to have a very high asking price. Dealing Alcantara was an option for them at the 2025 trade deadline, but the general asking price for him was described to me as "massive."
After a great second half, what would be the Marlins' motivation to lower the asking price? Is there an in-division tax?
This likely means having to trade two of the Mets' top five prospects and possibly another piece or two on the back end.
Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara (22) pitches against the Colorado Rockies during the sixth inning at loanDepot Park / Sam Navarro - Imagn Images
VERDICT
There is a very real chance the Tigers hang onto Skubal, who should be the Mets' top priority, and make a push for a World Series in 2026. They can decide to deal with the future in the future.
Either way, the Mets cannot come up empty handed in the rotation this winter.
Could they look at a different arm in the trade market? Absolutely. There will be at least a few real options out there. Do the other options possess the same potential that Alcantara does? That is debatable, but I do not believe so.
If the asking price is one of Jett Williams or Carson Benge plus someone like Brandon Sproat, is that worth doing?
I would lean against making the blockbuster for Alcantara. While the upside is there, the downside is a lot of risk to be willing to part with multiple high-end prospects.
Vitello gets the chance to coach the organization’s top prospect, 21-year-old Bryce Eldridge. During an interview on 95.7 The Game’s “Willard & Dibs”, Vitello revealed how Eldridge can improve.
“Physically, he’s still growing into that body,” Vitello noted. “And body control is so important. Part of that is adding in agility stuff and things to become more athletic.”
Eldridge stands at 6-foot-7, weighing 240 pounds. He is the tallest position player to wear a Giants uniform since first baseman Damon Minor (2000-04).
At just 21-years-old, it probably hasn’t been long since Eldridge stopped growing. Getting more comfortable with his body, as Vitello says, will help him at the plate.
“With those guys, it takes longer to gain true core strength and control your body and just make things easier to repeat,” Vitello explained. “When he does that, it’ll be a higher percentage of success he has at the plate.”
Eldridge, called up from Triple-A in mid-September, had just three hits in 28 at-bats in his 10 games played with the Giants. Despite his quiet late-season major league stint, he was a force in the minor leagues, which earned him the call-up. In 102 games played across three minor league levels, Eldridge batted .260 with 25 home runs and 84 RBI.
Learning how to play in his body will help him with more than just hitting, Vitello notes.
“Defensively and on the bases, I think he’ll become a more complete player and more of a complete athlete,” Vitello said.
Eldridge’s new major league coach also praised the young prospect’s foundation that will help with his development.
“I wouldn’t by any means call him raw. He knows what he is doing,” Vitello said. “He played at a very high level in some competitive areas and on a great team when he was in high school even. And now he’s been through the system a little bit.”
Eldridge’s development could prove to be Vitello’s keystone project in his new job, given the manager’s expertise, and he clearly is excited about the prospect’s potential.
“What a blessing, to see a guy that is ultra-talented and can make an impact at a high level right away. But also, you can legitimately dream on what is to come,” Vitello said.
SAN DIEGO — Right-hander Yu Darvish will miss the 2026 season with the San Diego Padres after surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow.
The 39-year-old Darvish also got an internal brace in the surgery performed last week, the Padres announced Tuesday.
“I will be working hard on my rehab to be able to throw a ball comfortably again,” Darvish wrote in Japanese on social media.
Darvish had Tommy John surgery in March 2015 and returned to a major league mound on May 28, 2016.
The five-time All-Star went 5-5 with a 5.38 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP in 15 starts for the Padres last season after missing the first three months due to elbow inflammation. Darvish started the decisive Game 3 of San Diego's wild card series against the Chicago Cubs, but he took the loss after allowing two runs on four hits and failing to record an out in the second inning.
Darvish has completed three seasons of the $108 million, six-year contract he agreed to in February 2023 wkth the Padres, who acquired him before the 2021 season. Darvish led the AL in strikeouts in 2013 and led the NL in victories in 2020.
His injury is a blow to a Padres rotation that was already in flux after San Diego made the playoffs for the fourth time in six seasons, but failed to advance. Right-hander Dylan Cease is a free agent, and right-hander Michael King became a free agent Monday after declining his option for 2026.
The Padres' remaining proven starters are Nick Pivetta, Randy Vasquez and Joe Musgrove, who is scheduled to return next year from Tommy John surgery. San Diego also acquired JP Sears in the deadline trade that also brought vaunted reliever Mason Miller, a starter earlier in his career.
Darvish will have plenty to keep him occupied during his year away from the mound: His oldest son, Shoei, has committed to play baseball at UC San Diego after he graduates from high school next year.
The move comes after what was a down season for the Japanese southpaw. Imanaga went 9-8 with a 3.73 ERA across 25 starts in 2025. But those numbers don’t tell the entire story. The one-time All-Star had a second half to forget, with a 4.70 ERA over his final 13 starts.
His struggles continued into the postseason, where he pitched to a 8.10 ERA in two starts, including a dreadful NLDS outing against the Milwaukee Brewers in which he allowed four earned runs over 2 2/3 innings. Imanaga allowed at least one home run in each of his final 11 starts of 2025, regular season and postseason. Chicago chose not to start him in its winner-take-all NLDS Game 5, opting for a bullpen game instead — a telling reflection of the Cubs’ lack of confidence in the southpaw.
Imanaga finishes his tenure in Chicago 24-11 with a 3.28 ERA over 54 starts. He signed a four-year, $54 million deal with the Cubs the winter before the 2024 season. Now Imanaga, 32, will look for a new opportunity elsewhere. He becomes an interesting addition to a starting pitching market that lacks quality left-handers beyond Ranger Suárez.
With Imanaga’s departure, Chicago’s rotation is notably thin. While All-Star Matthew Boyd and NL Rookie of the Year finalist Cade Horton return, there are a lot of questions behind them. The Cubs will get left-hander Justin Steele back at some point in 2026, after he finishes recovering from Tommy John Surgery early in 2025. Other internal options include Javier Assad and Ben Brown, but the Cubs will surely need to acquire another arm or two this winter. — Dorsey
What to make of Imanaga’s free agency?
The complex, four-year contract Imanaga signed with the Cubs two years ago featured a crucial decision point following the 2025 season, when Chicago could opt to guarantee Imanaga three more seasons at $57 million or decline to do so, instead affording Imanaga the opportunity to exercise a $15.25 million player option for 2026. Chicago declined to extend Imanaga for three more years, and Imanaga then declined his own one-year option, adding him to the intriguing pool of free-agent starting pitchers.
Brilliant as a 30-year-old rookie in 2024, Imanaga regressed in his second major-league season in terms of both durability and effectiveness, missing several starts due to a hamstring strain midsummer and seeing his ERA rise from 2.91 to 3.73. While he remains an elite strike-thrower who doesn’t allow a boatload of baserunners — his WHIP actually improved in his second season — Imanaga is troublingly susceptible to opponents’ slugging, with a 1.93 HR/9 that ranked second-highest among pitchers with at least 100 innings thrown in 2025. That bugaboo proved costly in the postseason, when he surrendered two key long balls against Milwaukee in NLDS Game 2.
It’s an imperfect profile, but there is still a lot to like about what Imanaga brings on and off the field. Whether he ends up securing a deal in excess of the three-year, $57 million structure that Chicago declined to exercise is suddenly one of the more interesting subplots of this offseason. — Shusterman
When it comes to the lineup and rotation of the 2026 Boston Red Sox, the unknowns may outweigh the knowns. With trade possibilities looming and free-agent decisions to be made, Craig Breslow and Co. have a lot of work to do in the coming months to try to build a winner.
Some clarity came on Tuesday, though, when Trevor Story opted in to the final two years of his contract, according to several reports.
The decision was largely expected, as Story is due $25 million in each of the next two seasons. His deal also has a $25 million club option for 2028, with a $5 million buyout if the team opts to move on from the shortstop. Essentially, Story and his agents believed a guaranteed $55 million was a safer bet than going to market and seeking more.
For a soon-to-be 33-year-old who just had his first healthy season since 2021, that’s surely a smart move.
From the Red Sox’ perspective, it at least provides one sure thing in an infield full of question marks.
Alex Bregman, who shared the left side of the infield with Story last year, opted out of his contract. Bregman and agent Scott Boras are banking on a team willing to go above and beyond the $80 million that was left on his Red Sox deal. And even though Bregman will be 32 years old in March and missed seven weeks with a quad injury last season, he was productive and played exceptional defense at third base, potentially making him pricier than the Red Sox are willing to go this winter.
The backup plan if Bregman gets a big-money deal elsewhere is most likely Marcelo Mayer, who was called up to the majors after Bregman’s injury last May. Though the fourth overall pick of the 2021 draft got off to a slow start, he posted a .788 OPS in June and registered 11 extra-base hits over the final 100 at-bats of his season. He may be ready to play every day … if he can stay healthy.
A wrist injury (suffered on a check swing) limited him to just 87 games between Triple-A and Boston last year. He played in just 77 games in 2024 and 78 games in 2023. The Red Sox haven’t indicated their level of concern for Mayer’s proclivity for injury, but it’s a worthwhile question to wonder if they’d be motivated to trade Mayer if it helped land a frontline starting pitcher like Joe Ryan.
Either way, while the Red Sox might like to pencil in Mayer at third (or second) base next season, it doesn’t feel like a sure thing.
And all of that only covers one side of the infield. The other side’s even messier.
Six players spent time at second base in 2025.
One of them — Ceddanne Rafaela — just won the Gold Glove in center field. He should get the Rafael Devers treatment of being told to put his infielder’s glove away permanently.
One was David Hamilton, who posted a .590 OPS. Another was Romy Gonzalez, who’s primarily a platoon player who can hit lefties. One was Nick Sogard, and the other was the biggest question mark of them all: Kristian Campbell.
Campbell, of course, started the season in the majors, batted .423 in his first eight games, signed a long-term contract, and then struggled mightily offensively and defensively before getting sent down to Worcester in mid-June. He never made his way back to the big leagues.
Just like with Mayer, the Red Sox would like to pencil in Campbell as an everyday big leaguer in 2026, but his .799 OPS in 73 Triple-A games last year doesn’t indicate that he’s necessarily ready for that role.
And then there’s first base.
Triston Casas manned the position before his season-ending knee injury, though he was hitting just .182 through 29 games when he went down. At this point in his career (he made his MLB debut in 2022 and has played 251 games), Casas may simply not be the player the Red Sox hoped he’d be by now.
Gonzalez and Abraham Toro tried to hold down first base in the months that followed, but it wasn’t until the DFA’d Nathaniel Lowe was signed in August that the position was somewhat stabilized.
The Red Sox will surely be looking for an upgrade from “somewhat stabilized” at first base next year. With a number of free agents available — with Pete Alonso, Josh Naylor and Ryan O’Hearn atop the list — the Red Sox could solve this one with money. Just like with Mayer and Campbell, the team can’t feel overly confident relying on Casas.
Taken together, the Red Sox have a number of unresolved situations around the infield. And that’s ignoring the fact that they have four starting-caliber outfielders in Rafaela, Roman Anthony, Wilyer Abreu and Jarren Duran, and a designated hitter in Masataka Yoshida with a sub-.700 OPS.
As previously stated, a busy winter begins now for Breslow and the front office. But at the very least, they know for now that their shortstop will be Trevor Story.
That is, unless like he did in 2022, and again in 2023, and again in 2024, he suffers a significant injury.
In that sense, the only real sure thing learned on Tuesday is that the Red Sox will continue to pay Story a boatload of money while hoping for the best.
Opening Day is a mere 142 days away. The clock is officially ticking.
Clayton Kershaw hoists the World Series trophy at Rogers Centre on Saturday after the Dodgers' 11-inning win in Game 7. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
With confetti at his feet, a drink in his hand and a smile of equal parts relief and elation planted on his face, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy gave the question of the night only a cursory thought.
Over the last six seasons, Muncy had been one of six Dodgers players to have a hand in all three of their recent World Series championships. He had become one of the faces of a team that elevated itself to historic all-time heights.
But when the topic of the club’s legacy came up, as he stood on the field in the wake of the Dodgers’ Game 7 thrill ride in Toronto on Saturday night, the 35-year-old veteran’s mind was occupied by another thought. The pride he felt emanated from a different source.
“The thing that I’m most proud of is the culture that we have created,” he said. “I hope that’s what’s talked about the most.”
In the public discourse, of course, it won’t be.
These Dodgers, with their star-studded roster and record-setting $415 million payroll and long-established reputation as big-spending villains who might be ruining baseball, have only further fueled debates about the financial inequities of the sport.
With a labor battle looming next year, they will be turned into a proxy — the prime example, critics will argue, of what’s wrong with the only major professional sports league in North America without a hard salary cap.
Some of those concerns will be justified (the Dodgers are spending at levels MLB has never before seen, and well beyond most of their competition). Others will be exaggerated (they are also spending within the league’s rules, and re-investing revenues back into their roster at a higher percentage than almost all other franchises).
The players themselves, however, really couldn’t care less.
Money, after all, might have given them the talent to win back-to-back World Series. But it took something else to help them get to, and especially conquer, the mental and physical test they faced in Saturday’s Game 7.
“When you come to the Dodgers, and you put on that Dodgers uniform, it’s all about, ‘How do you do what you need to do to win the game? How do you help the team win the game?’” Muncy said, his hoarse voice beginning to crack. “I seriously can’t put into words how much it means to me that we’ve created something that’s that special. that everyone knows about now.”
Dodgers second baseman Miguel Rojas, right, celebrates with Max Muncy after the team won Game 7 of the World Series. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Culture and camaraderie might be clichéd traits easy to point to in the wake of any World Series championship, but they were nonetheless present in the Dodgers’ quest to repeat this year.
Take the first big turning point of this postseason: The iconic “wheel play” the Dodgers ran to defend a bunt in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the National League Division Series.
That maneuver was suggested and executed by Mookie Betts — a player the Dodgers signed for $365 million five years ago to be a Gold Glove right fielder, but who moved to shortstop out of roster necessity on a full-time basis this season and transformed into a Gold Glove finalist.
Dollars might be the reason Betts now plays in Los Angeles. But it was his tireless daily routine of taking infield grounders, and his ability to learn from and overcome early-season growing pains, that made that moment possible.
“For him to play that caliber of shortstop, I think, is underappreciated,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “I don't think people are paying enough attention to how difficult that was.”
Clinching the NLDS required contributions from another star talent serving in an unexpected new role.
When rookie Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki signed with the Dodgers this offseason, it enflamed the external worries about their hoarding of talent. Sasaki, however, struggled as a starter, missed most of the year with a shoulder injury, then faced a decision ahead of the playoffs about whether or not to move to the bullpen.
He accepted, despite having never been a reliever in his professional career before. And in the playoffs, he fulfilled the team’s gaping hole at closer, highlighted by the three perfect innings he pitched in their NLDS-clinching Game 4 win.
From left, Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki celebrate after winning the World Series. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
“For Roki to come through in that spot after the year he’s had,” Muncy said at the time, “that was just so huge for us.”
The NL Championship Series was the one time the Dodgers clearly outclassed a playoff opponent, rolling past the overmatched Milwaukee Brewers behind historic starting pitching performances from Blake Snell (a $182 million signing last offseason), Yoshinobu Yamamoto (a $365 million signing the winter before) and Tyler Glasnow (a $136.5 million acquisition), then an all-time two-way showing in Game 4 from Shohei Ohtani (the $700 million man who has been at the center of the consternation over the Dodgers’ spending).
The World Series, however, brought an unexpectedly stiff challenge from the Toronto Blue Jays — who were heavy underdogs to the Dodgers despite their own top-five payroll of $278 million.
In the Fall Classic, the Dodgers’ sheen of invincibility was shattered. Their lineup struggled. Only Yamamoto maintained his previous level of dominance in the rotation. A long-suspect bullpen finally faltered. And in many facets of the series (in which the Blue Jays outscored the Dodgers 34-26 and hit .269 to the Dodgers’ .203 team average), the Dodgers looked second-best.
“I mean, big picture-wise, we didn't play very well,” Friedman said. “But those big pivotal moments is where our guys really showed up … Which I think gets at who they are, the compete, how much they care about each other, how much they care about bringing a championship back to LA in back-to-back years.”
There was Game 3, when the Dodgers prevailed in an 18-inning marathon by getting an unforeseen boost from little-known reliever Will Klein, who was willing to sacrifice his arm in a grueling four-inning outing despite spending most of this year stuck in the minors.
There was Game 6, when the team survived a potential season-ending, ninth-inning jam thanks to the veteran defensive instinct Kiké Hernández (the high-energy October stalwart who started every game of the playoffs after limited playing time in the regular season) and Miguel Rojas (who has become one of the emotional leaders of the team since being acquired in a 2023 trade for a minor-league prospect, despite also serving in a depth role for most of the summer) flashed on a victory-sealing double play.
“That's what makes us really tough,” Rojas said. “[We’re] competing every single day, and regardless of what the situation is, I think everybody [is able to] just kind of forget about the past and focus on the moment right now.”
The Dodgers trailed early, with Rogers Centre shaking after Bo Bichette’s third-inning three-run homer. They couldn’t lean on Ohtani, who looked gassed while starting the game as a pitcher on short rest. They had to claw their way back instead, playing from behind all the way into the ninth inning — when their season was two outs away from ending in failure.
“We just kept going and going and going,” Muncy said. “I’m just really proud of all the guys for not giving up hope.”
It would’ve been easy to do so. After two exhausting years — full of deep postseason runs and season-opening international trips and the daily pressure that came with their heavy offseason expenditures — the club’s tank appeared to be teetering on empty. Sheer talent, after all, can only sustain for so long.
“It's been a long journey for the team, for the organization, for every player out here,” Rojas said before Game 6. “It's been really stressful and everybody's mentally tired.”
But this, Muncy declared, is where the Dodgers’ culture kicked in.
“It’s all about the team. It doesn’t matter about yourself,” he said. “When you’re coming in off the field and you have a whole group of guys in [the dugout] saying, ‘Hey, great inning. Let’s scrap something together. Let’s get a guy on base. Let’s get a run in,’ that kind of means everything.”
In the end, the Dodgers conjured their most heroic moments for when they needed them most.
With one out in the ninth, it was none other than Rojas — who was uncertain to even play in Game 7 after aggravating an intercostal injury the night before — who tied the score with a miraculous home run swing.
“When you play the game right, treat people right, are the teammate like Miguel is, I think we said it in there, the game honors you,” first baseman Freddie Freeman said. “Just doing whatever he could to help this team win.”
From there, the Dodgers (turning to their fourth traditional starter out of the bullpen on the night) summoned Yamamoto, who did something no record-breaking contract could have ever predicted by throwing 2 ⅔ scoreless innings on zero days’ rest after his 96-pitch start in Game 6.
“Can’t evaluate that,” Friedman said.
“That’s going to go down in history as one of the best championship performances in any sport,” pitching coach Mark Prior added.
Will Smith, one of the few homegrown talents on a team of hired guns, delivered the winning swing with his home run in the 11th.
“To me, he kind of epitomizes a lot of the success that we've had looking back,” Friedman said. “In terms of our scouting process, our player development process, how well they work together, and then him coming through and having the impact he's had at the Major League level."
And fittingly, it was Betts who recorded the championship-clinching outs on a double-play chopper hit to him at short.
“A perfect bow on what was an incredible season for what he did at shortstop this year,” Friedman said.
All of it, Muncy proudly noted, exemplified what the Dodgers maintain was the ethos of their team; the kind of intangibles that won’t show up on a balance sheet or payroll list, even with all the money they’ve spent.
“That’s what we’ve created here,” Muncy said. “And that’s what I’m most proud of.”
“We kept going, and we persevered,” manager Dave Roberts echoed. “And we're the last team standing.”
On the latest episode of The Mets Pod presented by Tri-State Cadillac, Connor Rogers and Joe DeMayo welcome the official beginning of the offseason, as the 2026 Mets begin to take shape.
First up, the guys recap the World Series and look for lessons to learn from the Dodgers' success, then discuss the free agencies of Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz, the return of A.J. Minter, as well as the prospect of Justin Willard as the team’s new pitching coach.
Then, Connor and Joe do a deep dive into several free agent options for the Mets in the position player group.
The show then goes Down on the Farm for a report on pitcher Jonathan Santucci, and answers Mailbag questions about the bullpen, the Dodgers being a threat to sign Diaz, trading for Vinnie Pasquantino, pursuing Alex Bregman and Josh Naylor, and which Mets player should enter the tournament to be John Cena’s final opponent in WWE.
Be sure to subscribe to The Mets Pod at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
This will be the second managerial gig of Weiss’ career. The 14-year big leaguer and 1988 AL Rookie of the Year helmed the Colorado Rockies, for whom he played four years, from 2013-16. That tenure was decidedly unfruitful, as Weiss posted a 283-365 record with an undermanned roster in Denver. After a year off, he joined the Braves as Snitker’s right-hand man for the 2018 season. Since then, the goateed 61-year-old has been a steady presence and key character during this extremely prosperous period of Atlanta baseball.
As such, his hiring represents cultural continuity for a Braves team coming off its worst season since 2017. Atlanta finished a distant fourth in the NL East, with a paltry 76-86 record. In an embarrassingly weak National League field — the Reds made the playoffs, despite being just four games over .500 — the Braves concluded the campaign seven games adrift in the standings.
Injuries and underperformance were dual culprits behind Atlanta’s disappointing 2025. Ronald Acuña Jr., Sean Murphy, Austin Riley, Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach and Reynaldo López all missed significant chunks of time. Michael Harris II and Marcell Ozuna took steps back offensively. Spencer Strider failed to rediscover his peak form after missing all of 2024 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Major free-agent signing Jurickson Profar was limited to 80 games after being hit with a PED suspension late in spring training.
So now Weiss is tasked with getting things back on track for a franchise that made seven consecutive postseasons, including winning six NL East titles, between 2018-24. It certainly doesn’t look like the most imposing turnaround job in MLB history; this Braves roster still has a plethora of enviable pieces. Simply put, another October spent on vacation would be considered a massive disappointment.
By promoting from within, the Braves and president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos are effectively doubling down on the status quo. Weiss is a known commodity. He knows the organization, and the organization knows him. He has been with the big-league club longer than every current Braves player except Ozzie Albies.
Critically, the players respect Weiss and listen to what he has to say. For an outside hire, that would have been an open question — or at least a process. Instead, the Braves can plug and play. It’s a sign that Antholopolous and his very small inner circle view 2025 as an aberration, not the start of a trend.
Weiss and his predecessor are, obviously, their own men. But both are cut from a gruff, hold-no-punches, old-school cloth. Like Snitker, Weiss is direct, honest, unapologetic. But while Snitker was no dinosaur, expect the new guy to be a bit more nimble with the analytical intricacies of modern baseball. Weiss’ hiring also means that Atlanta’s 2026 coaching staff will likely feature many of the same characters as in years past, though his bench coach role will need filling.
That it took more than a month between Snitker’s stepping down and Weiss’ stepping in is undeniably compelling. This was far from a preordained succession plan, even though Snitker was at Weiss’ introductory news conference on Tuesday. In the time since Snitker announced his retirement on Oct. 1, the Rangers, Angels, Giants, Twins, Nationals and Orioles all introduced new managers. That implies that Anthopoulos and Co., at the very least, discussed and considered making an outside hire.
But while a number of coaches were linked to this job — Tigers bench Coach George Lombard, Dodgers bench coach Danny Lehman, former Mets bench coach and big-league skipper John Gibbons — the buttoned-up nature of Atlanta’s front office has thus far prevented news of any interviews from leaking to the public.
That is, from a pessimist’s perspective, the biggest critique of Weiss’ promotion. The Braves have grown increasingly insular in recent years. That consistency can be valuable, but it also heightens the risk of an institution growing stale and stagnant. Weiss isn’t likely to arrive with any groundbreaking, new ideas — something that might have been helpful for an Atlanta team trying to keep pace in a rapidly evolving baseball world.
He is more of the same, which, considering how successful the Braves have been in recent years, might a good thing.
The Mets continue adding to their pitching depth early this offseason.
The team announced on Tuesday that they are bringing back LHP Brandon Waddell on a one-year major league deal.
Waddell returns to Queens after making 11 appearances with the team last season.
The 31-year-old southpaw spent the majority of the year down in Triple-A Syracuse after signing on a minor league deal, but he was called upon to make spot starts and provide innings out of the bullpen down the stretch.
He pitched to a 3.45 ERA and 1.27 WHIP with 22 strikeouts across 31.1 innings at the big league level.
Waddell will now compete for a spot as a bulk arm in what figures to be a revamped Mets bullpen in spring training.
Matthew Pouliot
