Category: MLB

The Phillies entered the 2026 season with Otto Kemp penciled in for a big role on the MLB roster. He was supposed to be Brandon Marsh’s right-handed platoon partner in the outfield, as the team finally acknowledged that Marsh should be prevented from facing lefties. Dave Dombrowski and the Phillies took every opportunity to talk up Kemp over the offseason and cited a knee injury as reason to believe he would improve upon his rookie season.

Felix Reyes was the first attempt to correct that colossal mistake of putting all the eggs in the Otto Kemp basket, as Reyes was promoted in mid-April when Kemp was demoted following a dreadful start to the season. Reyes, despite mostly playing first base in his minor league career and hardly having played above Double-A, was selected to be Marsh’s new platoon partner in left field.

2026 stats: 12 games, .158/.158/.263, 1 home run, 11 OPS+, -0.6 WAR

What went right

Reyes was not someone particularly on the radar for an MLB job, but a strong spring training no doubt helped get his name into some consideration despite only having played six career games above Double-A. The 25-year-old hit .303 with a .930 OPS and three home runs in 18 Grapefruit League games this year. He was sent to Triple-A to begin the season but unexpectedly found himself on the Phillies roster on April 18th thanks to the aforementioned struggles of Kemp. The Phillies were throwing a dart to see if they could get some production out of an unexpected source because they had no real backup plan in the rather likely possibility of Kemp’s position being untenable.

They appeared to have gotten lucky in Reyes’ first game, as he launched a home run off of Chris Sale in his first career at-bat in the Majors while batting cleanup behind Bryce Harper.

It would quickly go downhill from there though.

What went wrong

It became very apparent, very fast that Reyes was simply overmatched in the major leagues. The tendency for chasing Reyes showed in the minors was easily exploited by MLB pitching, as he swung at 53% of the pitches he saw outside of the zone in his short time with the Phillies. He also racked up nine strikeouts in 38 plate appearances and did not walk once, as Reyes collected just five more hits after that debut home run. His brief time on the MLB roster ended exactly a month after it began when the Phillies optioned him to Triple-A on May 18th.

Reyes remained with Lehigh Valley the rest of the year, hitting .287 with an .830 OPS and 21 home runs before a broken wrist ended his season on August 15th.

Final Grade: F

This isn’t as much of a grade for Reyes as it is for the circumstances that led to him being on the Phillies roster. Reyes is the exact type of player that teams with poor depth are forced to rely on, and that’s exactly what the Phillies are. A 25-year-old career minor leaguer who had barely played above Double-A should not be plan B for a significant role on an MLB roster. The Phillies dramatically overvalued Kemp, and his predictable struggles and the team’s utter lack of upper minor league depth led to the Phillies thrusting Reyes into a role he frankly was not suited for. That included batting him cleanup for almost half of his plate appearances because the Phillies didn’t have any other real options for right-handed production behind Harper and Kyle Schwarber.

It was also head-scratching at the time that the Phillies went to Reyes over Bryan De La Cruz, who also had a strong camp but had vastly more MLB experience and was an actual outfielder. That decision looks even worse in hindsight as once the Phillies finally did add De La Cruz to their roster on July 21st, he hit .280 with a .762 OPS in 34 games. Regardless, the whole saga involving Reyes is just an exacerbation of the Phillies failure to develop even the smallest of contributors from within.

Morning, all!

The Rangers will be exploring the potential trade market for Corey Seager at the GM meetings, and Evan Grant suggests that the only realistic trade partners are limited to Boston, Philadelphia,

The team also needs another catcher, and while Logan O’Hoppe is another catcher he has not, historically, been that great at the catching part of the job.

The question for the offseason will be ““do the Rangers offload some or all of their big contracts or do they keep doing what they’ve been doing?”

Chris You g says the team is ““open monded” about what other teams may have on offer for Seager, deGrom, and Eovaldi.

Last night we got our first big piece of Nats related news from the GM Meetings. Spencer Nusbaum reported that Dylan Crews has emerged as a popular trade target around the league. The Nats also seem open to the idea, which makes sense after extending Jacob Young. With that in mind, I came up with three trade proposals that would make sense for the Nats.

With a slim supply of right-handed hitting outfielders, Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews has emerged as a popular trade target around the league, per sources.

More on this from the GM meetings in Vegas, free to read:https://t.co/ypGJLSvoAE

— Spencer Nusbaum (@spencernusbaum_) November 11, 2026

Dylan Crews Heads North of the Border: 

One team that is on the hunt for outfielders is the Toronto Blue Jays. After reaching the World Series in 2025, the Jays took a big step back last season. A big reason for that was poor production from the outfield. For that reason, they make a lot of sense as a Crews suitor.

My proposal would send Crews to the Blue Jays in exchange for Sean Keys and Ricky Tiedemann. I think this is a trade that makes sense for both sides. For the Jays, they get a high upside outfielder who could platoon with Brett Bateman in center field, while also getting opportunities in the corners. It would also be a fresh start for Crews, who has not lived up to the hype in DC.

Meanwhile, the Nats get two players who could help the club in 2027. Keys is the headlining piece of the package in my opinion. He is a high upside bat who would battle with Abimelec Ortiz for the first base position. In the end, I think Keys would win out.

Ortiz and Keys share a lot of similarities, but Keys is younger and was more productive. Last season, Keys hit .294 with 28 homers and a 1.019 OPS in AA and AAA. The 23 year old was one of the most productive hitters in all of minor league baseball. It was a true breakout for a guy who posted good but not great numbers in High-A last year.

Sean Keys (TOR) wants another chance in the Majors!

The Blue Jays slugger has been nearly unstoppable in August, posting a 1.190 OPS at AAA while registering phenomenal batted ball metrics and tacking on 6 HR. With Toronto strapped for power, Keys could help ignite their offense https://t.co/J8HYmcaCkUpic.twitter.com/opcyck9oI7

— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) August 24, 2026

These insane numbers led to Keys seeing some big league action. He appeared in 25 games last year, but hit just .197 with a .570 OPS. Keys has tremendous raw power, and is great at translating it into games. His air pull percentage was over 25% in AAA, which is an elite number. Keys also made contact at an above average clip in the minors, though he did have some strikeout issues in the big leagues.

Like Ortiz, he is a fairly aggressive hitter, and that got exposed in the big leagues. However, it is important to point out that Keys was only in High-A last year. It is not a huge shock that a player so inexperienced had growing pains in the MLB. A Keys and Ortiz competition would be interesting to watch heading into 2027.

The second piece of the package is a pitcher with a lot of pedigree. There was a time where Ricky Tiedemann was easily a top 100 prospect. However, he has suffered a ton of injuries. At this point, he is a reliever, but I think he has the talent to be a good lefty reliever.

He throws from a low slot and has a nasty sweeper, which are traits the Nats covet. However, he also averaged 96 MPH in the big leagues. Tiedemann will never be the front line starter some expected before the injuries, but I think he could be a great lefty reliever. A package of Keys and Tiedemann would be a win-win for the Nats and Jays.

A One for One NL East Swap:

One idea that has been floating around is the Dylan Crews for Andrew Painter swap. This would be the classic case of two teams exchanging former mega-prospects who have not put it all together yet. We all know about the Dylan Crews hype train, but there was also a time where Painter was seen as the Phillies next ace.

After being drafted out of high school, Painter’s first pro season was one for the ages. He posted a 1.56 ERA with 155 strikeouts to just 25 walks in 103.2 innings. The youngster went from Low-A all the way to Double-A, and dominated every step of the way. However, his road has been bumpy since then.

Painter had to undergo Tommy John in 2023, and did not return to the mound until 2025. When he came back, his fastball shape had degraded and hitters punished him. He posted an ERA over 5 in AAA last year. Painter was still throwing hard, but things did not look the same.

Despite those struggles, Painter was given a spot in the Phillies rotation, where his woes continued. He posted an ERA over 7 before getting sent down in June. However, Painter made some adjustments in the minors and came back looking much better. In the second half, Painter pitched to a 3.65 ERA.

The biggest change he made was swapping his splitter for a changeup. That changeup became a dominant pitch for Painter. Batters hit just .153 with a 35.4% whiff rate against the change. His fastball shape also slowly improved in the second half. He was beginning to look like the old Painter.

Andrew Painter has done a complete 180 and looks like a brand new pitcher!

Over his last 3 starts:

20 IP
1.80 ERA
20 K : 3 BB

The changeup usage has done wonders for him. pic.twitter.com/jjAvlrk7JM

— Andrew DeCeglie (@Andrew_FBB) September 3, 2026

Honestly, the fact he improved so much makes a trade less likely. Out of all the packages, this is the one I find most unrealistic. While the Phillies need outfield help and the Nats need pitching, I don’t think Dave Dombrowski moves off Painter. They have always loved Painter, and he is finally starting to reward their faith.

A Crews for Painter swap is an interesting idea in theory, and makes some sense for both teams. However, I do not think the Phillies pull the trigger, especially to a team within the division. It is worth making a call though.

Crews Goes to the City of Angels:

As we all know, the Nats need bullpen help and this last swap would be a creative way to do that. My proposal here is to send Dylan Crews to the Angels in exchange for Samy Natera Jr. and Talon Haley. The main prize of this package would be Natera though.

Natera made his MLB debut last season as a 26 year old and excelled. In 28 outings, Natera posted a 3.13 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 31.2 innings. That is a 36.6% strikeout rate, which is insane. Natera does this mostly with one pitch.

Samy Natera Jr. has a special fastball. He throws his heater 80% of the time, but hitters still can’t do anything with it. The fastball has a ton of IVB while averaging 95 MPH. That combination of velocity and movement led to a .209 average against and a 31.3% whiff rate. Those are extraordinary numbers for a pitch with such high usage.

Samy Natera Jr. is one of the funkiest RPs I've seen: A thread 🧵

S/O @OCBaseball814 and @thebabygiraffe3, both contributed many valuable insights! pic.twitter.com/7pBigsWVdG

— Nate Roper (@NateRoper_) October 21, 2026

When he did mix in his slider, hitters had no answers. They hit just .148 with a 56.3% whiff rate. Even MLB hitters had to cheat in order to catch up to his fastball. That meant that his slider totally threw hitters into a loop. Natera does not have pinpoint command, but a sub-10% walk rate is more than good enough for a pitcher with such nasty stuff.

If Natera became a National, he would be the closer and the team’s best reliever. While trading Dylan Crews for a reliever would be risky, I think Natera is the right kind of arm to make it work. He did end the season on the IL with forearm tightness, but there was no structural damage.

Due to that injury and the fact he is a reliever, I decided to throw in Talon Haley as a sweetener. Haley is a 20 year old lefty, who is the Angels 15th ranked prospect. He struck out 121 batters in 87.2 innings, but also had 51 walks. With a low to mid-90’s fastball and a strong feel to spin, Haley has some intriguing traits, but he is many years away.

I think all of these packages would get Paul Toboni’s attention. After the Jacob Young extension and this report, I think there is a strong possibility we see a Dylan Crews trade. What do you think the Nats should target in a return and which team would be the best fit?

Ties aren’t just for spring training, you know.

The Glendale Desert Dogs allowed two runs in the bottom of the seventh and final inning on Tuesday afternoon in Mesa, tying the Solar Sox 3-3 in Arizona Fall League action in the circuit’s final week.

Charles Davalan drove home a run with a groundout in the first inning, and doubled home another tally in the second, and scored later in the frame, giving the Desert Dogs a 3-1 lead. Davalan later singled.

Double Davalan!@dodgers No. 6 prospect Charles Davalan hits his third double this season to give the lead to the Desert Dogs! pic.twitter.com/d7AVgdJ3yv

— MLB's Arizona Fall League (@MLBazFallLeague) November 10, 2026

Eduardo Quintero did not put the ball in play in any of his four plate appearances, but he did walk three times to go with his lone strikeout. Quintero also stole a base, tying for the team lead with seven on the season. Quintero also has a team-best 18 walks in 17 games, ranking sixth in the AFL.

Wals have been the saving grace for Quintero, who has only eight hits in 52 at-bats with one double, hitting just .154/.375/.173.

Dodgers pitcher Sam Horn pitched the second inning and allowed a one-out walk to Kade Snell, who stole second base. Horn balked him to third base on a mound disengagement violation, then permitted a run on a sacrifice fly.

There have been 163 games so far in the Arizona Fall League this year, and Tuesday was the second tie, and both have been in Mesa. On October 5, the Solar Sox tied the Scottsdale Scorpions, 6-6.

Tuesday scores

Glendale 3, Mesa 3

Wednesday schedule

2:30 p.m. PT: Glendale vs. Scottsdale (live stream)

The final day of the AFL regular season, with at least one postseason game for Glendale coming Thursday.

The offseason is upon us, but it could soon come to a screeching halt. In less than three weeks, the Collective Bargaining Agreement expires, and barring an agreement between owners and players by then, owners will impose a lockout. That will mean a freeze of transactions after December 1, an end to communications between players and teams, heck, even team websites will have all images and videos of players scrubbed.

Teams will have to navigate a very uncertain offseason without knowing what baseball’s financial structure will look like on the other side. Owners and players have each made proposals on how to change the financial inequities in the game, with owners adamant about imposing a salary cap.

The Royals have several holes to fill this offseason, particularly in the bullpen and outfield. A looming lockout could affect their efforts to address needs in several ways.

A stop-and-start timeline

This offseason will have a frustrating pace to it. Many are expecting a flurry of activity in November, although we are nearly two weeks in and it has been eerily quiet. But once the labor deal expires, all Major League transactions will cease until a new deal is worked out. Once owners and players come to an agreement, it will be a feeding frenzy of free agent signings, although the timing of that agreement could have significant implications for how much time teams have to prepare for the season.

Will the Royals get an early jump on the offseason and try to get transactions in before the labor deal expires? Or will they wait to see how things shake out? Will waiting out the market cause free agent prices to fall, particularly if the work stoppage stretches into spring training? Or will the Royals be left empty-handed by waiting too long?

Will the Royals have more money to work with?

The recent World Series between the Brewers and Rays proved that teams can overcome financial limitations to be successful. But it didn’t disprove the fact that money can help build a roster. The Royals fielded a $140 million Opening Day payroll, 18th-largest in baseball last season. But could they receive more revenues under a new labor deal that can provide the resources to field a more competitive roster?

The owners are proposing pooling all local TV revenues and splitting it 30 ways. They argue that their proposal would create a more level playing field by giving every team an equal share of local television revenue, while establishing a salary floor to force low-spending teams to invest more in their rosters. They also argue that a salary cap would prevent wealthier teams from dramatically outspending the competition. Their proposal would set a $180.2 million floor and a $258.3 million cap, although it wouldn’t start until 2028.

The MLBPA argues that a salary cap is unnecessary to achieve competitive balance and would artificially limit player salaries. They have countered by proposing teams pool the first $50 million of each team’s local TV revenue, plus two-thirds of the amount above $50 million, for redistribution. The union’s proposal includes provisions requiring revenue-sharing recipients to maintain at least a $150 million payroll to retain those funds, along with additional incentives for winning teams. Under their plan, each team would be guaranteed $240 million in annual revenue, although Forbes estimates the Royals already make $330 million in revenues. 

Either way, the next labor agreement seems likely to change the financial landscape for teams like the Royals. The question is whether those changes will translate into more money being invested in the roster, and whether ownership will take advantage of the opportunity to build a more competitive team.

A buyer’s market for one-year rentals

The trade market provides opportunities to improve the roster, but the Royals don’t have a ton of depth in their farm system to deal from. However this offseason could provide opportunities to trade for players at reduced prices. If a lockout stretches into spring training or even costs regular-season games teams may be reluctant to surrender valuable prospects for a player who could end up providing less than a full season of production.

That could create a buyer’s market for the Royals to acquire short-term help without having to give up too much, particularly if they’re willing to take on some salary. Teams might be more motivated to get something for a player on an expiring deal, rather than risk being unable to trade him in the frenzy before the season begins.

Of course, the Royals would have to weigh the opportunity to acquire a player against the risk of losing valuable playing time to the work stoppage themselves. And they would have to aggressively seek a trade before the work stoppage, while there is still uncertainty. But uncertainty can create opportunities for teams willing to take calculated risks, and the Royals could potentially find some bargains in that environment.

Minor league deals for injured players

When the labor deal expires, there will be a freeze on Major League transactions and restrictions on club interactions with players on the 40-man roster. But players can still sign minor league deals. And anyone not on a 40-man roster can still interact with the team.

That could lead to several players nursing offseason injuries to sign minor league deals to allow them to work with Major League medical staffs and have access to team training facilities.

Players coming off injuries are going to sign minor league deals over major league deals at a high rate in the next month so teams can be in contact and track their progressions even when the lockout happens. https://t.co/6znrkcEXQY

— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) November 6, 2026

It could also influence how teams approach their 40-man rosters. Clubs may be more inclined to leave certain players off the 40-man roster if they want to have interactions with them during a work stoppage or ensure they will have a full spring training to prepare for the season. For the Royals, that could make decisions about injured players and Rule 5 protections even more complicated. They’ll have to consider not only which players deserve a spot on the roster, but also whether putting them on the 40-man roster could limit the organization’s ability to work with them during a lockout.

This is an important offseason for the Royals. After back-to-back winning seasons, they regressed badly in 2026. They need to improve a bullpen that was among the worst in baseball, find more production in the outfield and add starting pitching depth to overcome injuries. A looming lockout makes those tasks more complicated, but it could also create opportunities for a front office willing to be creative and take calculated risks.

Good morning friends, and Happy Veterans Day!

Yesterday was very busy in the baseball world as the GM Meetings are starting to bear some fruit. Let’s get to all of that and more.

In Mariners news…

• The Mariners have reportedly informed longtime infielder J.P. Crawford that he will not be returning to the club. Kate Preusser wrote about his impact on his teammates and on the organization.
• Max Ellingsen recapped the 2026 season for the Tacoma Rainiers.
• Bryan Woo and Ken Griffey, Jr. will take part in Capital One’s MLB Open later this month. The golf tournament will include two people representing each club.
• It seems Jason Kanzler was ticketed for a pretty significant promotion with the Cubs before the Mariners snatched him.

Around the league…

• Will Venable of the White Sox and Pat Murphy of the Brewers were named the 2026 Managers of the Year.
• The Tigers agreed to a one-year, $11M deal with closer Emilio Pagán.
• The Padres inked right-hander Ryan Weiss to a one-year major league deal.
• The Mets are reportedly meeting with star free agent left-hander Tarik Skubal next week.
• Cubs right-hander Ben Brown underwent successful cervical spine surgery. He is expected to return to action some time in 2027.
• Yankees lefty Max Fried underwent surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow. He should be good to go for spring training.
• You’ve got to admire Jameson Taillon for continuing to battle injury after injury to come back to the sport.

Hey everyone, I’m back! 5 weeks out from flexor and internal brace surgery. I’m 34 years old and on my 3rd elbow surgery, but I truly believe I have my best years ahead. Going to use this space to document some of my rehab journey over the next 10 months!

— Jameson Taillon (@JTaillon50) November 10, 2026

• The White Sox are planning to move long reliever Grant Taylor to the starting rotation next season.
• The Rangers are reportedly fielding trade offers for infielder Corey Seager this offseason.
• The Giants’ new first base coach has made history.

• Longtime catcher and manager Bob Boone passed away on Monday at the age of 78.
• The way the Blue Jays are talking, I’d be surprised if they keep Anthony Santander around beyond this winter.

• Wick Terrell at Red Reporter thinks Sal Stewart deserves first crack at the starting third base job for the Reds this coming season. Stewart played the majority of his games at first base in 2026.
• Jeff Passan at ESPN outlined the ideal offseason move for each of the 17 teams most likely to push for the postseason in 2027.

Si-Hwan Roh was born on December 3, 2000 in Ulsan, South Korea’s eighth largest city. His family moved to Busan when he was a child, and Roh ended up attending Kyungnam High School, a college prep school known for fielding one of South Korea’s best high school baseball teams year after year. Serving as the team’s clean-up hitter and ace pitcher, he was selected by the Hanwa Eagles in the 2019 KBO Rookie Draft.

The 18-year-old rookie didn’t exactly get off to a quick start as a professional. Many were expecting an all-star season, but Roh hit .186/.241/.260 in 91 games instead. He improved slightly in 2020, hitting .220/.298/.387 in 106 games, but fans and team executives still expected more. Finally, in 2021, the infielder began hitting his stride. Appearing in 107 games, he hit .271/.386/.466 with 18 doubles, 1 triple, 18 home runs, 5 stolen bases, and 73 walks to 107 strikeouts; the 20-year-old seemed well on his way to hitting 20 home runs, but a broken toe sustained near the end of the season ended his pursuit of that benchmark.

That off-season, Roh changed his training routine to include more weightlifting, but dealt with nagging lower body injuries during the 2022 season that didn’t cause him to miss much time but affected his production. In 115 games, Roh hit .281/.355/.382 with 24 doubles, 1 triple, 6 home runs, 6 stolen bases, and 48 walks to 95 strikeouts. He modified training schedule that winter, building lean muscle while losing some excess weight, and when he returned to the Eagles for the 2023 season, finally had the breakout season many knew he was capable of having. Appearing in 131 games, Roh hit .298/.388/.541 with 30 doubles, 1 triple, 30 home runs, 2 stolen bases, and 74 walks to 118 strikeouts, his 31 home runs leading the KBO.

The 2023 season was not simply a blip, and represented a new paradigm for the young Eagles infielder. In 2024, he appeared in 136 games and hit .272/.356/.454 with 20 doubles, 2 triples, 24 home runs, 6 stolen bases, and 60 walks to 129 strikeouts. In 2025, he appeared in 144 games and hit .260/.354/.497 with 28 doubles, 2 triples, 32 home runs, 14 stolen bases, and 70 walks to 125 stakeouts, ending the season the runner-up in MVP voting to Cody Ponce.

In February 2026, Roh signed an 11-year, ₩30.7 billion (~$21.3 million) contract extension with the Eagles, the largest and longest contract in KBO history, keeping him with the team until 2037; it did, however, contain a specific clause that allowed the infielder to opt-out of the contract after one season to explore an MLB posting. The 25-year-old would go on to appear in 3 games for the South Korean team during the World Baseball classic, drawing a walk, stealing a base, and striking out twice, and would then hit .283/.360/.505 for the Eagles, logging 21 doubles, 2 triples, 29 home runs, 3 stolen bases, and drawing 51 walks to 147 strikeouts.

At the plate, the 6’0”, 210-pound Roh stands slightly open, holding his hands high at the eyes and wrapping his bat behind his head at roughly 2:00. He swings with a moderate leg lift and has an angular, upper-cutty swing path that maximizes flyballs. He does more damage against low pitches, fully extending and lifting them either to his pull-side or back up the middle. Even on pitches that he is able to hit squarely for home runs, Roh rarely produces exit velocities exceeding 95 MPH. Earlier in his career, he had problems with making contact, posting a 59.8% Contact% in his rookie season, but the right-hander has improved in that regard, running a mid-70% Contact% in the aggregate since.

Roh has primarily been Hanwa’s third baseman but has some time playing first base and shortstop as well. He is considered a good defender, one of, if not the, best defensive third basemen in the KBO. He shows quick reactions, has a lot of range, and has a strong arm. Earlier in his career, he was considered a poor defender- especially in 2022 when he began putting on muscle and suffered from lower body injuries- but Roh continued improving on his defense year after year. He has the ability to play shortstop, but does not have the experience to play the position in any long-term capacity.

On Tuesday, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reported from the GM Meetings in Las Vegas that a few executives have mentioned Detroit Tigers’ slugger Riley Greene as a possible trade candidate this offseason. The 26-year-old left fielder has two years remaining until free agency and Scott Harris has shown absolutely zero interest in a long-term contract extension. Yet when Morosi asked the question, Harris also downplayed any rumors around Greene, saying only that he’d listen as part of his due diligence, but views Greene as one of the key players to the Tigers plans. Something here doesn’t add up.

Tigers fans will recall that for the majority of the 2025 season, it looked like Riley Greene had reached a new level as one of the premier sluggers in baseball. He then endured a catastropic collapse after the All-Star break that extended through the postseason. Suddenly Greene was in the doghouse. With his speed declining, the talk of Greene’s new level of dominance rapidly pivoted to whether he was physically breaking down, and whether the Tigers should consider dealing him at peak value.

At the time, my argument was that the 2025-2026 offseason was the perfect time to seek a long-term contract extension. After getting humbled by the worst stretch of his career and with three years left to free agency, it was a pretty good time to strike if they were ever going to do it, but for all the same reasons it was easy to see why the Tigers weren’t pursuing an extension. The Tigers said almost nothing about Greene all offseason and made no move to initiate extension talks. Nor was there ever a hint that they were shopping him in trade.

Greene bounced back at the plate in 2026, shaking off his tough August-October of 2025 stretch. He was a huge force at the plate once again, posting a whopping. 370 on-base percentage with 21 homers and a .194 isolated power mark (ISO) on the year. However, concerns about his declining athleticism only got louder as Greene’s defensive numbers collapsed.

Greene was a net -11 in defensive runs saved (DRS) in 2026, and his -5 outs above average (OAA) was the first time in the negative in his career. His 26.6 ft/sec spring speed per Statcast was awful, putting him in below average territory for the second straight season. Other than Gleyber Torres, Spencer Torkelson, and Eduardo Valencia, Greene was the slowest player on the team. He can’t outrun the Tigers’ starting catcher. At age 26, the athleticism that allowed him to play a solid center field early in his major league career is gone. What’s left is a more sluggish outfielder with a noodle arm who can still really punish the baseball.

Greene trimmed his strikeouts this year, and continues to boast premium batspeed and power. This is still a very dangerous hitter, but between his struggles in big spots and the collapse of the rest of his game, he’s looking more and more like a player who should be at least a part-time designated hitter going forward.

So, declining to extend Greene is understandable. He may well be a good power hitter for another half decade, but he’s becoming a liability in most other respects. That makes the possibility of a trade more realistic, perhaps. Harris did say that he considers Greene a big part of their lineup, but he also acknowledged that it’s his job to listen to offers. That’s standard fare, but the circumstances themselves are what adds some interest in the idea.

Tigers OF Riley Greene has been mentioned as a trade candidate by industry execs here at the GM meetings.

Here’s the response from Scott Harris when I asked him about the possibility today on @MLBNetwork. pic.twitter.com/6EFbILePel

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 11, 2026

Maybe finding a good offer for Greene just isn’t in the cards. Even at just 26 years old, and despite some signs that he may have another level yet to unlock as an all around hitter, teams are only going to pay so much in prospects for a player who is at least a minor liability in left field and is declining in speed.

For now, the move is to keep Greene unless somehow aggressively pursues a trade, and instead try to help him rebuild some speed in his offseason conditioning. That didn’t happen last season, but then it hadn’t really affected his defense too much at that point. Greene has always thrived as an outfielder by getting good jumps and closing well on the ball to make every catch possible. He was never fast. With those defensive numbers collapsing this year, perhaps he’ll be more motivated to find solutions. His potential value as a free agent two years from now is tracking a lot worse than would’ve been predicted even a year ago. If Greene can turn it around defensively to a degree, the Tigers might find more aggressive suitors for his services at the deadline next summer or next offseason. They might also be more apt to offer an extension offer were that to occur, but he’ll have free agency in his sights by then.

Riley Greene remains a dangerous hitter and one of the more consistent power producers in the game over the last few seasons, but the rest of his game is in shambles. Without any hint of extension talks, we have to assume that Greene is going to reach free agency, and that probably means he’s more available to reasonable trade offers than Scott Harris would like to admit. There’s no reason to diminish your own player by criticizing him publicly or by shopping him aggressively. Harris will do none of those things, but if there’s going to be a surprise trade of any magnitude this offseason, Greene does feel like the likeliest candidate. It’s just hard to picture many teams offering enough for the Tigers to bother right now.

Good morning everyone! Happy Wednesday!

Following Monday’s Rookie of the Year announcements, MLB continued its award season by revealing the 2026 Managers of the Year yesterday.

Athletics skipper Mark Kotsay was not among the contenders for this prestigious prize. He has yet to lead the team to a winning record or a playoff appearance since succeeding Bob Melvin in 2022. If the 2027 season begins as scheduled and the A’s rise from fourth to first in the American League West standings, Kotsay will likely find himself in the conversation for this award. In contrast, another losing campaign could put his future with the organization in serious doubt.

Chicago White Sox manager Will Venable deservedly won the AL Manager of the Year award, beating fellow finalists Kevin Cash of the Tampa Bay Rays and Chad Tracy of the Boston Red Sox. Under Venable’s leadership, the White Sox, who lost 100 or more games in each of the previous three seasons, won 84 games and earned an American League Division Series appearance this year.

In the National League, Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy made history by becoming the first manager to win three consecutive Manager of the Year awards. He received more votes than the other two finalists, Philadelphia Phillies manager Don Mattingly and Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss.

Today, attention shifts to the pitchers. Brewers right-hander Jacob Misiorowski is the favorite for NL Cy Young Award honors after his record-setting season, with New York Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler the favorite for AL Cy Young Award honors. 

Tomorrow, the Most Valuable Player presentations wrap up MLB award season. Like the Cy Young races, the outcomes appear largely predictable, with Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez destined to win their first MVP awards.

Meanwhile, the general managers meetings in Las Vegas enter day three. There, offseason trade and free agency discussions are beginning to take shape. The meetings represent the first opportunity for the A’s new front-office duo of Taylor Smith and Carlos Castro to meet with executives from around the league and start identifying potential additions to the 2027 roster.

Despite the looming lockout, the MLB offseason is off to its typically slow start, with no major free-agent signings or trades yet. Should the A’s break the ice by becoming the first team to make a move in free agency? If so, which players would best fit their needs?

A’s Coverage:

• A’s First 2 Off-Season Additions Bode Well
• New GM Castro, POBO Smith give glimpse into vision for A’s
• Athletics Hire Cam Castro As General Manager
• Taylor Smith’s Improbable Quest: A Quality SP
• A’s trade RHP prospect to Red Sox for outfielder Eaton
• Three A’s Officially Elect Free Agency
• 28 A’s Minor Leaguers Choose Free Agency
• A’s prospect who was ‘born to hit’ bringing big smiles, intangibles to Fall League
• After standout year, No. 7 prospect Taylor could factor into A’s ‘27 plans
• Q&A: Smith discusses his new role as youngest head of baseball ops in MLB
• Taylor Smith’s Improbable Quest: A Quality SP
• Why A’s Bringing Back Sonny Gray Could Make Sense
• Optics vs. Infrastructure: Taylor Smith’s First Dilemma
• Athletics Hire Taylor Smith As Next President of Baseball Operations
• A’s Max Muncy Undergoes Knee Debridement
• The five biggest questions facing the A’s this offseason
• Inside the A’s State-of-the-Art Las Vegas Ballpark
• Landlord of future A’s Vegas stadium may need to cover additional construction costs
• How technology will shape fan experiences at the A’s Las Vegas ballpark
• Pitching prospect Huggins growing his game with the help of this A’s Hall of Famer
• ’Be a sponge’: No. 19 prospect leads A’s Fall League group with do-it-all mentality
• Get the best of Athletics Nation on the new SB Nation app
• How to play in-5 Trivia on the SB Nation app

MLB News & Interest:

• Manager of the Year Awards recognize leaders of surprising upstart, dominant juggernaut
• Tigers’ all-around star and Reds’ throwback slugger named Rookies of the Year
• Here are the Rookie of the Year vote totals
• Padres sign right-hander Ryan Weiss to 1-year deal with option for ’28
• ’27 Rookie of the Year candidates — one from each team
• The case for each 2026 Manager of the Year finalist
• Padres Have Expressed Interest In Tarik Skubal
• Cubs starter Brown undergoes spine surgery, sources say
• 5 teams to watch at GM Meetings as Skubal sweepstakes begin
• Willie Mays to be honored on U.S. postal stamps
• Bob Boone, champ with 1980 Phils and father of Aaron and Bret, dies at 78
• Dodgers hire Pedro Guerrero away from Marlins as new hitting coach
• Hot Stove rumors: Padres, Skubal, Seiya, Morejon, Yanks
• Cardinals, JoJo Romero Have Mutual Interest In Reunion
• Angels To Begin Preliminary Meetings With GM Candidates
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

The introductions continue. Now, it is time for Cam Castro and Taylor Smith to begin reshaping the Athletics roster into one capable of competing for the playoffs next season.

get to know Cam, our new General Manager! pic.twitter.com/SI9rqPn66h

— Athletics (@Athletics) November 10, 2026

This reflects Castro’s newness to the organization. After featuring MLB’s worst pitching staff last season, the Athletics desperately need offseason pitching reinforcements to bolster confidence in their rotation and bullpen.

Athletics GM Cam Castro talks about plans for the team's starting pitching and top prospect Leo De Vries:

"A lot of comfort with that starting group…"

MLB Network + @SageUSAmericapic.twitter.com/qT9TzwVDsF

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 10, 2026

The A’s Las Vegas ballpark is expected to favor hitters because of its desert location. However, the dome and humidor could help make it more challenging for teams to hit home runs and score runs.

"It's probably something similar to what Arizona is like"

In town for the GM Meetings, new #Athletics President Taylor Smith on the new ballpark being built in Las Vegas:

📻 Front Office in Las Vegas with @JimDuquetteGM & @JimBowdenGM
🔗 https://t.co/iXax8hx4iOpic.twitter.com/3HBkeFjufR

— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) November 10, 2026

One relief option off the board.

Tigers, RHP Emilio Pagán reportedly agree to one-year deal, per multiple reports including @MLBNetwork insider @JonHeyman. pic.twitter.com/HEvMlcweyP

— MLB (@MLB) November 11, 2026

Last week, I explored a pair of free agent starting pitchers that could be potential fits for the Colorado Rockies rotation in 2026. Now that the market is wide open and the clock is ticking until Doomsday (the lockout, not “The Avengers” movie), we are in a “wait and see” period until the Rockies start making moves. The GM meetings started on Monday, which is usually viewed as the true start of the offseason activity.

Once again, I’m putting on my GM hat and trying to pinpoint another pair of free agents the Rockies could target. This time I’m looking at a pair of pitchers that could be enticing because of connections to new pitching coach Ethan Katz.

Erick Fedde

Back in 2014, the Washington Nationals selected Erik Fedde with the 18th overall pick. Three years later, he made his debut but struggled through parts of six seasons with the Nationals to the tune of a 5.41 ERA in 102 games. Following the 2022 season, Fedde headed to Korea for an opportunity in the KBO.

At the age of 30, he dominated, going 20- 6 with a 2.00 ERA across 180.3 innings for the NC Dinos in 2023. He tallied 209 strikeouts, walked just 35 batters, and received the Choi Dong-won Award, the KBO equivalent of the Cy Young. By leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts, Fedde became the fourth pitcher — and the first foreign starter — to earn the pitching Triple Crown in the KBO.

That performance caught the eye of the Chicago White Sox, and they signed him to a two-year, $15 million deal. Under Katz and the other pitching coaches, Fedde continued his dominance in 2024 with the White Sox. In 121.2 innings, he posted a 3.11 ERA with a 21.5% strikeout rate and 6.8% walk rate alongside a 44.7% groundball rate. He was then traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, where he put up a 3.72 ERA across 10 games to finish the season.

His Cardinals tenure was not as successful in 2025 as he went 3-10 with a 5.22 ERA over 20 starts and was traded to the Atlanta Braves after being designated for assignment. That time with the Braves was short-lived, however, as he posted an 8.10 ERA over 23.1 innings with an equal number (13) of walks and strikeouts over his five appearances. He was released and then found a spot with the Milwaukee Brewers, where he worked out of the bullpen and found a little more success working out of the bullpen. In 16 innings over seven games, he posted a 3.38 ERA in seven games.

Fedde returned to the White Sox this past season, signing a $1.5 million deal and had a return to success with a 3.83 ERA over 144 innings in a bit of a swing-man role while improving his walk and strikeout rates from the previous year.

He primarily works off a four-pitch mix that is headlined by a sweeper, a pitch he adopted while in the KBO. It continues to be his best offering and helps set up his sinker and cutter usage. The main goal for Fedde is to induce weak contact and get ground balls, something that often fits the Rockies.

Additionally, Fedde will eat innings whether it be as a starter every five days or following an opener. As a rebuilding team, the best thing the Rockies can look for is length out of starters, and Fedde was one of four pitchers to toss at least 140 innings for the White Sox last season.

He also isn’t projected to cost too much. Spotrac projects his market value around $12 million for a two-year deal as he enters his age 34 season. Could Katz help convince the club and Fedde to unite and lay a groundwork of familiarity? After all, Katz has been brought in because of his ability to develop relationships with his players, and that might be enough to persuade some to come to Colorado.

Lucas Giolito

While Fedde seems like a reasonable pickup if it came to fruition, the idea of adding someone like Lucas Giolito seems a bit murkier despite the intrigue.

A first-round pick of the Washington Nationals in 2012, Giolito was part of a pitching trio sent to the Chicago White Sox in 2016 for outfielder Adam Eaton. After a solid, albeit brief, showing in 2017 and a rough 2018, Giolito came into his own in 2019 putting up an All-Star season and finishing sixth in Cy Young voting. He followed up with a seventh-place finish for the award in 2020.

Heading into the 2021 season, the White Sox needed a new pitching coach, and Giolito ended up contacting the front office to recommend Katz for the job. Giolito has known Katz since he was 15 years old when Katz was coaching Giolito at Harvard-Westlake High School in Los Angeles.The connection seemed to pay off as Giolito put up another excellent seaon in 2021, finishing 11th in Cy Young voting while posting a 3.53 ERA over 31 starts with 201 strikeouts.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to maintain those highs of his career, but he managed to be a reliable starter in 2022 and 2023 before he was traded to the Los Angeles Angels in late July of that season, partly because the White Sox had never been able to work out an extension. The Angels collapsed in August, and Giolito found no success with a 6.89 ERA over six starts and was claimed off waivers by the Cleveland Guardians. While in Cleveland, he struggled to a 7.04 ERA over six starts to close out the season.

Giolitio signed a two-year bridge deal with the Boston Red Sox after the 2023 season, a deal worth $38.5 million but included a player opt-out for the 2025 season. Unfortunately for the Red Sox and Giolito, he suffered a UCL injury in spring training and missed the entire season after undergoing an internal brace repair. After recovering, he exercised his option and put forth a quality 2025 for the Red Sox, going 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA over 145 innings alongside 121 strikeouts and 56 walks.

Some bouts of injury hampered him toward the end of the season, and Giolitio found himself on the market once again. A combination of injury concerns and perhaps too high an asking price left him on the market until he signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the San Diego Padres. After some ramp-up time in the minors, Giolitio managed just a 5.16 ERA over 29.2 innings with the Padres before a bout of right elbow inflammation sent him to the injured list for the rest of the season.

There are legitimate concerns about health and effectiveness as a starter at this point in his career, but is Giolitio worth the low-risk gamble to reunit with his high school pitching coach? Walks were an issue for him in 2026, but historically he’s been about league average in that department. The strikeout rate has also declined since 2023.

Giolitio offers a fairly standard four-pitch mix and is more prone to being a flyball pitcher, which is another risk. However, the fact that he could be signed on a cheap one-year deal, perhaps even a minor-league contract, could be an opportunity for the Rockies to see if they can go about “fixing” an ailing pitcher, kind of like they did with Jordan Romano this season.

Reunions?

When looking for pitching to come to Colorado, the Rockies have to utilize the connections of the pitching coaches to entice players. Ethan Katz has his work cut out for him, and helping recruit players he is familiar with could be a helpful way to start things off. Fedde and Giolitio would be budget options but could be vital depth pieces for the rotation.

The Rockies have a lot of options available and need to cast a wide net to bring in arms ready and willing to embrace the challenge of Coors Field and look for ways to improve.

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1926
The White Sox traded one future Hall-of-Famer player-manager for another.

Second baseman-manager Eddie Collins was released (as player, and manager), with catcher Ray Schalk taking over as manager as well. Indicating there was somehow some bad blood (or, at least, awkwardness) between owner Charles Comiskey and Collins, superstar was let go without even a phone call of warning.

Collins had guided the team to an 81-72 record in 1926 … and chipped in with a .344 batting average and 4.3 WAR! However, Collins proved a poor manager, recording -4.7 managerial WAR (mWAR) that season, after a -3.1 mWAR in 1925.

Still, Collins caught on as a player-coach with his old club, the Philadelphia A’s and put up one final, outstanding season in 1927, hitting .336 with a 2.3 WAR.

Schalk played in just 18 games in Chicago over two seasons as a player-manager, guiding the club to a 102-125 record over one-plus seasons at the helm. He ended up an even worse manager than Collins, recording -5.8 mWAR in his lone full season managing Chicago.

All three of Collins’ seasons managing the White Sox were winning ones, and he finished with a career record of 174-160.

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1964
Future White Sox closer Roberto Hernández was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico.

Hernández was acquired in a minor deal with the Angels in 1989, and two years later was pitching for the South Siders. After getting shelling in the second two of three starts made in 1989, Hernández moved to the pen and with the fast demise of closer Bobby Thigpen, became the White Sox closer for good in mid-August.

He would throw 345 games for the White Sox all told, with his final full season on the South Side, 1996, his greatest: 4.1 WAR and a sixth-place finish in Cy Young voting. The next year, Hernández was part of the “White Flag Trade” made with the San Francisco Giants.

He left Chicago with 161 saves, then second-most in club history behind Thigpen, and still third all-time.

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1981
The White Sox hired Charley Lau as batting coach, giving him an unprecedented six-year contract. The contract was warranted given his popular hitting approach, best manifested in the success of Kansas City’s George Brett and encapsulated in Lau’s book, The Art of Hitting .300.

Lau only lived through the first two years of his White Sox deal, as he was stricken with colon cancer and died before the 1984 season, at the age of 50. Since his death, Lau’s No. 6 has been unofficially retired by the White Sox, used only by Lau disciple Walt Hriniak during his coaching tenure in Chicago.

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1998
White Sox GM Ron Schueler swapped promising center fielder Mike Cameron to the Reds for infielder Paul Konerko. 

Konerko would eventually blossom into a consistent, power-hitting first baseman, finishing his career with 432 home runs and 1,383 RBIs. He was a six-time All-Star, a World Series champion, the 2005 ALCS MVP and 2002 Comeback Player of the Year.  

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2005
They never made it on the cover of Sports Illustrated for winning the World Series, but the Sox did make the cover of The Sporting Newsfor the accomplishment.

The caption was short and to the point: “Sweep!”

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2010
Alexei Ramírez was awarded his first Silver Slugger, the only White Sox player so honored in 2010. For Ramírez, the 2010 season was his breakout star turn, his best-ever season in the majors, so the award was duly earned. The shortstop added a second Silver Slugger to his trophy cabinet in 2014 — but two years later he was out of baseball.

The San Diego Padres have been in the headlines during the GM Meetings in Las Vegas. There have been reports about how aggressive general manager A.J. Preller has been in the free agent market, especially considering the enormous need for pitching in San Diego. There have been reports about how much interest Preller has in adding players from Japan who are either making the move from overseas or who have already spent some time in MLB. And of course, there is the biggest rumor that the Padres are a player for top free agent pitcher Tarik Skubal.

The Friar Faithful have come to know and in many cases expect these storylines to permeate through GM Meetings and Winter Meetings year after year. That is one of the things that come with having Preller, the Rockstar GM, as the architect of your baseball team.

In recent years, Preller has operated on a minimal or seemingly no-existent budget — he has even cut payroll and still been able to put together a competitive team. San Diego has made the playoffs each of the past three seasons, but has not had enough to reach the pinnacle of the sport. This season, if there is a season, should be no different especially with financial backing from new ownership. It is unknown what kind of financial commitment Jose E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones will make in terms of payroll spending, but when you purchase a team for billions of dollars there is no reason to expect they will go cheap.

With that said, San Diego did make an addition to the roster with the signing of Ryan Weiss who is a right-handed pitcher who most recently was with the Houston Astros. It is unclear whether Weiss will be used as a reliever or a depth possibility in the rotation, but with pitching coach Ruben Niebla and his track record with pitchers surely all options are on the table. It was not the signing many fans hoped for, but it should be the first of many as the GM Meetings and offseason continues leading up to the expected lockout on Dec. 1.

Padres News:

• It is no secret the Padres need starting pitching. Cheri Bell of Gaslamp Ball looked at the state of the San Diego rotation at this point in the offseason.

• Adrian Morejon has been with the Padres his entire career and that may come to an end as he enters free agency, but he was dominant in 2026 for San Diego. See what grade he received from Lincoln Zdunich of Gaslamp Ball.

• Reports from the GM Meetings regarding Morejon and his free agency have stated the pitcher wants to remain a reliever despite some teams wanting to convert him to a starter.

Baseball News:

• Will Venable of the Chicago White Sox and Pat Murphy of the Milwaukee Brewers win Manager of the Year in their respective leagues.

• Multiple teams are expected to meet with Tarik Skubal in the coming weeks.

• Free agent reliever Emilio Pagan agreed to a one year deal with the Detroit Tigers.

• New York Yankees starter Max Fried had offseason surgery to remove a bone spur.

• The Texas Rangers are open to trading stars off their roster.

• The Seattle Mariners do not intend to bring back J.P. Crawford.

When the Orioles traded for Trevor Rogers at the trade deadline in 2024, I wasn’t especially impressed. He had a high ERA and an injury history. When he pitched to a 7.11 ERA in his first four starts, then made his final five starts down in Triple-A, I was less impressed. 2024 Stacey would not believe that 2026 Stacey is advocating for the Orioles to sign Trevor Rogers to a hefty free agent contract, and yet here we are.

Starting in 2025, Rogers turned things around in a big way. He missed the start of the season with a knee injury, then underwent a lengthy minor-league rehab. During that rehab, his numbers were terrible. But he was obviously working on things because after making his season debut with the Orioles on May 24th, he was incredible and never looked back.

You know the rest of that season. A 1.81 ERA in 18 starts. Awarded Most Valuable Oriole despite missing the first two months. People were calling to extend him then, but for me, at least, it felt early. I remembered 2024. I knew his shaky numbers with the Marlins before he arrived. I guess I was wrong.

He was the 2026 Opening Day pitcher and while that game was good, he got off to a rocky start. No one expected him to repeat his 1.81 ERA, but we sure didn’t expect that number to be 6.84 at the end of May. It was disappointing, but in retrospect, it seemed that his late April IL stint related to the flu really took him out.

It seemed to take him quite a while to fully recover. But once he did, he was back to the guy we wanted to see at the top of the Orioles’ rotation.

From June 4th through the end of the season, Rogers posted a 2.90 ERA over 20 starts. He struck out 119 in 121 innings. He walked 21. His fastball velocity had dipped earlier in the year and was back up to about 93 mph. He looked a lot like the pitcher the Orioles saw in 2025. The fans had quieted down about extending him when his ERA was over six, but they were back at it over the final two-thirds of the season. And rightly so.

When asked about his future at various times by the press, Rogers expressed his fondness for Baltimore but also stated that he doesn’t negotiate during the season. And why would he? He is a 28-year-old left-handed starting pitcher coming off two impressive seasons. He is arguably the second-best starting pitcher on the FA market this year (there is no arguing the first: Tarik Skubal).

This is Rogers’s time to lock down his big contract. First, he has to turn down the $23.15 million qualifying offer from the Orioles. He will do that. Then it’s on for him.

I don’t begrudge Rogers going after that big contract. But I think the Orioles are in a place to be the ones who re-sign him. We know that Mike Elias has not yet signed a free-agent pitcher to a big contract. There was a time when I believed he wouldn’t do that. But I don’t believe it now. He signed Kyle Bradish and Shane Baz to contract extensions. And he, of course, made the incredible signing of Pete Alonso last year. Alonso isn’t a pitcher, but it proves that Elias is willing to go big.

The Orioles need to sign or trade for a top pitcher for 2027. Between Bradish, Baz, and Brandon Young they have a solid mid-to-back of the rotation, at worst. Bradish has number one potential but struggled, and he will be coming off an injury after having a hernia repair in October. Baz was unreliable in 2026. And Young, who went beyond expectations last year, has to prove he can repeat his success.

If the Orioles don’t sign Rogers or similar, those three will be the top of the rotation. That leaves Cade Povich and Trey Gibson to round things out. And that can’t be the way that it goes for the Orioles. Not if they want any hope of competing.

Trevor Rogers is a known quantity. He is one of the top starting pitchers on the FA market. He is going to get his payday. MLB Trade Rumors predicts Rogers will get a five-year contract worth $115 million. Five years would take Rogers through his 33rd birthday. So you’re not looking at giving a guy a contract that will take him through until he’s old. I know it’s not my money, but I’d take that deal on Rogers without hesitation.

The Orioles have a lot of work to do if they want to contend in 2027. Upgrading the rotation is a requirement, and they can do by reuniting with the pitcher who has been so good for them the last two seasons.

When the 2026 MLB season started, J.C. Escarra was entrusted with the inglorious position of backup catcher. Backup catchers occupy a unique role, as they are expected to shoulder a relatively steady workload while facing fairly low offensive expectations. Even with those low expectations, Escarra left fans and the front office wanting more in 2026.

Nothing personal, but many were surprised when the front office opted to pair Austin Wells with Escarra’s left-handed bat instead of going with a right-handed-hitting backstop out of spring training. The former delivery driver filled the role through the first few months of the season before finding himself shuttled between the majors and Scranton. After a series of moves, he spent most of the summer with the RailRiders before returning to the big-league club in late September.

Grade: D-

2026 Stats: 32 G, 92 PA, 8 R, 16 H, 5 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 7 RBI, 0 SB, .188/.239/.271, 42 OPS+, 40 wRC+, 0.1 fWAR, 0.1 bWAR.

2027 Contract Status: Pre-arbitration eligible

In 2025, defense was Escarra’s calling card. He displayed strong framing and receiving skills, but unfortunately, he could not replicate those results in 2026. According to Baseball Savant, Escarra’s Catcher Framing Runs went from five to zero. The rest of his defensive metrics were still solid, with his blocking and throwing rankings placing him above average. However, losing that strike-stealing advantage is tough to overcome when you are a bit of a one-trick pony.

Offensively, Escarra struggled, even by backup catcher standards. His final slash line was .188/.239/.271, as he managed just 16 hits in 32 games, with no homers. In his defense, he did at least hold his own against lefties. In an extremely small sample of 21 plate appearances, Escarra hit .316 and slugged .421 while striking out just twice. This split of course was the other side of the coin to Escarra struggling mightily against right-handed pitching.

The underlying metrics don’t paint a much prettier picture. Escarra posted a .206 expected batting average and a .308 expected slugging percentage. His barrel rate dropped from 5.6 percent in 2025 to 4.5 percent in 2026, while his hard-hit rate fell from 43.1 percent to 33.8 percent. Simply put, Escarra struggled to make consistent quality contact against major league pitching.

At the end of June, the Yankees optioned the slumping catcher to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Back in the minors, Escarra’s bat woke up, as he crushed International League pitching to the tune of a .301 average and 11 home runs in 256 at-bats. Trying to find his way back to the big club, Escarra started to dabble with switch-hitting. However, even after the press had some fun with the storyline, Escarra did not take a single official major or minor league plate appearance from the right side during the 2026 season.

Heading into 2027, Escarra is still under team control. With the Yankees expected to be in the market for a catcher, it is possible Escarra will once again factor into the Triple-A catching mix for the newly-minted Highlanders. However, at 31 years old, he is not exactly a prospect who needs everyday at-bats to develop. His minor league production shows that he can still hit lower-level pitching, but the challenge is translating that success against major league arms. If he cannot provide consistent offense, he needs to be elite defensively to justify a spot on the roster. Teams are always looking for catchers in the spring, so Escarra should continue to have some value moving forward.

One last note: the impact of Tanner Swanson taking a job in Seattle may be worth tracking this offseason. With the longtime catching coordinator now in the Mariners’ dugout, it is at least possible that a catcher like Escarra could be part of a trade between the two clubs this offseason if they are able to link up for a deal.

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See more of the Yankees Roster Report Card series here.

Okay, it’s totally bad form to add more Big Board-esque questions when I’ve done eff-all to score any of the existing ones, but here we go. When I first thought about the Big Board, this was the sort of one-off debate I thought it would be useful for, and while I’m not sure why this of all things is one of the more-organic opportunities for weighing in that we’ve had over the last season or two, it is, and here we are.

We’ve even got dueling reporter narratives: one reporter says the clubhouse would be happy to welcome him back, another says he’s basically persona non grata. And, the Braves really do care about the clubhouse, so that presumably matters. But, the sum total of considerations could be expansive.

Yes, Profar has been gone for a full year, and it’s not like he was all that impressive in the second half of 2025 (barely above 2 fWAR/600 while massively outhitting your xwOBA is not a great way to go through life, son). But, cutting him or sending him away in a bad contract swap is also getting nothing for your money, and the Braves may be loath to do that. If there are clubhouse effects, those probably swing the decision one way or another, but hard to know which way they may go. Combine all that with the fact that Mike Yastrzemski kinda sucked in 2026, and that Ronald Acuña Jr.‘s central estimate of playing time is probably going to be somewhere in the three- or four-month range rather than a full season, and that makes removing even an unexciting bench-quality option with a low floor and a lot of skew towards that floor harder to part with. But, the Braves could also part ways with Profar and use their limited resources on whatever Profar was theoretically supposed to provide back when he was signed (an actual starter-quality guy in a corner outfield spot).

Anyway, the question is simple: will Jurickson Profar record an appearance for the Braves in 2027? Please add a confidence integer to your answer: 1 for “I have no idea and am just participating for the fun of it,” 5 for “I am dead certain this will happen,” or the other three digits on the gradient in between those two.