Category: MLB

In this edition, we look at the Cubs’ Japanese southpaw.

Shōta Imanaga, the ‘throwing philosopher’, has been with the Cubs for two interesting seasons now. It’s impossible to say whether Shōta, the crafty lefty with fool-me stuff is going to start a given game, or if his alter ego ‘Mike’ will take the ball for as long as it stays in the park.

Imanaga was an All-Star in that splendid rookie campaign, going 15-3, 2.91, allowing 1.4 HR/9, with a strikeout an inning. in 2025, Mike took the ball far too often, and the erstwhile Ace went a thoroughly disappointing 9-8, 3.73, allowed 1.9 HR/9 and struck out 7.3 men per nine-inning stint. The difference was solo homers, more or less. He threw less of them in 2025. 3.0 bWAR, 1.5 bWar, consecutive years.

Most prediction systems see him as even more average than that, with ERAs in the low 4s and win totals of 8 or 9. At that point, I can see the Cubs cutting their losses with Imanaga and just putting Jordan Wicks out there, since that’s what you get from him and he’s way cheaper. Or say Jaxon Wiggins is armed and ready. Something like that. Something Cub.

Might happen before the All-Star Game. You never know.

He’s gonna be okay but I suspect he is going to wear a different uniform next year. He’s 32 and has pitched a lot of innings. Mike is going to show up a few times. But good Shōta is very good indeed.

The stats above are kind of misleading. I remember 2025 as much worse than that. I recall Mike had really bad timing, at least. He needs to pitch in a cavern. Shōta doesn’t.

Spring Training is here! San Francisco Giants players are in action! Excitement — and more importantly, baseball — is in the air!

And still our Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List marches on, as we grow oh so close to finishing our communal rankings of the top 44 prospects in the Giants organization. Only one more name and we’ll have a top 40!

Despite there being seven names on the ballot, the last chapter wasn’t all that close. Earning the title of the No. 39 prospect in the system is someone new to the list: second baseman Nate Furman.

Giants fans haven’t gotten to watch much Furman, as he’s only played 36 games for the organization. The left-handed hitter, who will turn 25 over the summer, came over the Giants in the 2024 deadline deal that sent Alex Cobb to the Cleveland Guardians (Furman was the player to be named later, with LHP Jacob Bresnahan — No. 11 on this list — the headlining piece). The short infielder, who was selected by Cleveland in the fourth round of the 2022 draft, was injured at the time of the trade, and didn’t debut with the Giants until 2025.

Unfortunately, his 2025 was shortened due to injuries as well. He was injured when the year began, and didn’t get on the field until late July, nearly a year after the trade had taken place. But once he got on the field, he wasted no time showing why the Giants love him. He played one rehab game in the Complex League, and drew two walks. He spent five games with the Low-A San Jose Giants, and hit 5-12 with two extra-base hits and three walks.

He spent the bulk of his time with the High-A Eugene Emeralds, getting back up to speed at a level he had conquered in 2024 while in Cleveland’s system. He conquered it for the Giants as well, playing 21 games and slashing .364/.490/.649, for a 1.139 OPS and a 211 wRC+. It was abundantly clear that he was way too good for the level.

Furman concluded the year with a brief stint with the AA Richmond Flying Squirrels, though it wasn’t his first attempt at the level — he played 13 AA games in 2024 before the injury. In nine games with Richmond, Furman didn’t slow down at all, hitting .387/.486/.484 for a .970 OPS and a 188 wRC+.

Those numbers are absolutely dandy, but the real reason for optimism probably comes from somewhere else: the Giants choosing to send Furman to camp as a non-roster invitee. That certainly speaks highly to how they view his skills considering his lack of playing time in the upper Minors, and the fact that players with more experience, like Diego Velasquez, were passed over.

In many ways, Furman mirrors the player he’ll be backing up in Scottsdale, Luis Arráez. He has arguably the best bat-to-ball skills in the entire farm, but struggles to use those skills for power, and his defense is quite suspect. But we know the Giants love contact skills, and across the four levels last year, Furman hit .369 with just an 11.7% strikeout rate.

Those K numbers underscore just how impressive his contact is (some of the strikeouts came by passivity). The Giants had 95 Minor League hitters with at least 100 plate appearances last year, and only six of those 95 had swinging strike rates under 7%. Furman led the way at 3.5%, miles ahead of second place (Turner Hill, 4.7%). His ability to put the bat on the ball is truly impressive. It’s just a matter of what he’ll be able to do with the ball when he does that.

Despite playing just 22 games in AA, it wouldn’t be a shock if Furman starts 2026 with AAA Sacramento, especially if he has a strong showing at Spring Training. That would allow Velasquez to continue developing in Richmond, while placing Furman in good position to establish himself as a depth piece for the Major League roster.

Now let’s add to the list, and a reminder that voting now takes place in the comment section, using the “rec” feature.

The list so far

1. Bryce Eldridge — 1B
2. Josuar González — SS
3. Jhonny Level — SS
4. Bo Davidson — CF
5. Dakota Jordan — CF
6. Luis Hernández — SS
7. Gavin Kilen — SS
8. Carson Whisenhunt — LHP
9. Blade Tidwell — RHP
10. Keyner Martinez — RHP
11. Jacob Bresnahan — LHP
12. Trevor McDonald — RHP
13. Argenis Cayama — RHP
14. Luis De La Torre — LHP
15. Trevor Cohen — OF
16. Jesús Rodríguez — C
17. Parks Harber — OF/3B
18. Carlos Gutierrez — OF
19. Drew Cavanaugh — C
20. Daniel Susac — C
21. Gerelmi Maldonado — RHP
22. Josh Bostick — RHP
23. Lorenzo Meola — SS/2B
24. Will Bednar — RHP
25. Yunior Marte — RHP
26. Joe Whitman — LHP
27. Joel Peguero — RHP
28. Alberto Laroche — RHP
29. Trent Harris — RHP
30. Carlos De La Rosa — LHP
31. Diego Velasquez — 2B
32. Lisbel Diaz — OF
33. Maui Ahuna — SS
34. Cam Maldonado — OF
35. Victor Bericoto — OF/1B
36. Reid Worley — RHP
37. Jack Choate — LHP
38. Rayner Arias — OF
39. Nate Furman — 2B

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

No. 40 prospect nominees

Sabin Ceballos — 23.5-year old 3B — .670 OPS/102 wRC+ in AA (420 PA)

Jakob Christian — 23.4-year old OF/1B — .950 OPS/155 wRC+ in High-A (92 PA); .815 OPS/119 wRC+ in Low-A (318 PA)

Reggie Crawford — 25.2-year old LHP — did not pitch in 2025; 1.04 ERA/4.07 FIP in AAA in 2024 (8.2 IP); 4.66 ERA/4.93 FIP in AA in 2024 (9.2 IP)

Juan Sánchez — 25.2-year old LHP — did not pitch in 2025; 3.93 ERA/5.17 FIP in AAA in 2024 (34.1 IP)

Charlie Szykowny — 25.7-year old 3B/1B — .816 OPS/122 wRC+ in High-A (549 PA)

Jancel Villarroel — 21.0-year old C — .699 OPS/91 wRC+ in High-A (61 PA); .746 OPS/123 wRC+ in Low-A (372 PA)

Note: Each player’s first name links to their Baseball-Reference page, and their last name links to their Fangraphs page. All stats are from the 2025 season.

Left-handed pitcher Kris Bubic has won his salary arbitration case against the Royals, according to MLB.com reporter Mark Feinsand, and will receive his requested salary of $6.15 million. The Royals had offered $5.15 million.

Bubic had a breakout season last year, posting a 2.55 ERA in 20 starts, with 116 strikeouts in 116.1 innings, earning his first All-Star appearance. But he suffered a left rotator cuff strain in July, forcing him to miss the last two months of the season. Injuries have impacted much of his career – he missed nearly the entire 2023 season with an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery. He returned in 2024, but as a reliever, and was effective with a 2.67 ERA in 30.1 innings.

The 28-year-old was originally a first-round pick in 2018 out of Stanford, who had mixed results in his first few years in the big leagues despite a plus change-up. Bubic has thrived under pitching coach Brian Sweeney, adding a sweeper that opponents hit just .194 against last year. He is eligible for free agency after the season.

Bubic is the first Royals player to win his arbitration case against the Royals since Andrew Benintendi in 2022. The Royals have 12 wins in 24 arbitration cases in club history. Vinnie Pasquantino also filed for arbitration, but the Royals avoided a hearing with him by signing him to a two-year, $11 million deal.

Eric Lauer is a 30-year-old (31 in June, so this will be his age 31 season), left-handed pitcher. The Jays signed him to a minor league contract in December of 2024. He had been a Jays draft pick in 2013, but he elected to play college ball instead and then was drafted in the first round of the 2016 draft by the Padres.

Since then he’s been a Brewer, Pirate, Astros and pitched in Korea. He pitched in 53 games, 52 starts in 2018 and 2019 with the Padres and 67 games, 60 starts over 4 seasons with the Brewers. And then made 7 starts in the KBO with a 4.93 ERA.

In the majors, he had a 4.30 ERA with 230 walks and 567 strikeouts in 596 innings with a 3.7 bWAR. I really don’t understand why he couldn’t do better than a minor league contract.

Lauer made five starts for the Bisons (4.50 ERA in 24 innings) and then Max Scherzer went on the IL and Lauer was called up. He wasn’t put straight into the rotation, but made three relief starts (9 innings, 1 earned), made a couple of starts, back to the pen (9.2 innings, 0 earned), then to the rotation for 13 starts (the Jays won 11 of them) and then back in the bullpen for September.

If I had the time to look, I’d love to know if that was the best season ever for a guy the Jays signed to a minor league contract before the season, but I’m sure it has to be top five. 9-2, a 3.18 ERA in 104.2 innings. Baseball Reference has him at a 0.8 WAR, FanGraphs 1.4.

Last year he threw:

• Four-seamer 46.5% of the time averaging 91.7 mph.
• Cutter 20.5% of the time.
• Curveball 14.4%.
• Slider 10.6%.
• Changeup 8.0%.

And he didn’t have much of a left/right split, with lefties having a

He’s earned himself a nice raise, though we don’t know how much he’ll be paid yet. He and the Jays went to arbitration; he’ll either make $5.75 million or $4.4 million. We’ll likely find out within moments of when I hit publish, because that’s the way the universe works.

I was wrong….the Arbitrator picked the Jays number, Eric will earn $4.4 million this year.

His role this year is still up in the air. Bieber being out to start the season might open a spot in the pen. And unfortunately, things tend to happen during spring training. If he doesn’t get a starting role, he’ll be good to have as a long man/lefty in the pen.

Steamer sees him as a reliever, pitching in 51 games, 3 starts, 66 innings, with a 4.13 ERA.

MESA, AZ — It has been nearly a decade since the Chicago Cubs won the NL Central in a full season.

They have reached the postseason just three times since 2017.

And they reside in the same division as their annoying neighbors, the Milwaukee Brewers, who won the most games in baseball last season while capturing their third consecutive division title.

The Cubs know all this, but on their first day of spring training, they boldly believe they are now the team to beat in the NL Central, and perhaps become the team that can finally derail the powerful Los Angeles Dodgers.

In the words of Cubs manager Craig Counsell, they have expectations, big expectations, and they worked awfully hard to have them.

They spent $228 million this winter, the second-most money in baseball, signing free agent third baseman Alex Bregman to a five-year, $175 million contract, trading for starter Edward Cabrera, and bolstering a team that earned a wild-card berth a year ago.

“Everybody’s optimistic right now, we all should be,’’ Counsell said. “I was optimistic last year at this time, absolutely, very optimistic. And we won 92 games. That’s good. You win 92 games, you take it. That’s a playoff team.’’

It just wasn’t good enough to knock off the Brewers, the Cubs finishing five games back in the NL Central.

Yet, with the Cubs spending their most money in an offseason since 2015 − the year before they won their first World Series since 1908 − and the Brewers spending only $3 million, it’s easy to see why expectations are soaring in Chicago.

Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA projects the Cubs to win the division by 10 games over the Brewers, while FanGraphs predicts the Cubs to win the division by four games over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

“I know the expectations are high,’’ said Jed Hoyer, Cubs president of baseball operations, “which I think is great. That’s what you want. I think the excitement in camp is palpable. I think the players are talking about it and the coaches are talking about it. I think that they’re excited about our team. They’re excited about our group, both from a talent standpoint and a camaraderie standpoint.

“So many of the guys were here last year. I think they feel like we had a really good season, but there’s unfinished business. And I think in a lot of ways that’s the best kind of spring training, when there’s a hunger. I think that the expectations don’t create anxiety, they create hunger with this group, and I think this group is excited to get started.’’

The Cubs certainly created plenty of versatility and depth when they signed Bregman to play third base, moving Matt Shaw to a super-utility role where he’ll play third base, second base and the outfield, while keeping Nico Hoerner at second base. They have a solid starting rotation led by Matthew Boyd, Cade Horton (who finished second in the rookie-of-the-year balloting), Cabrera, Shota Imanaga and Jameson Taillon, with ace Justin Steele possibly returning to the rotation as early as May. They also remain in talks with free-agent starter Zac Gallen. Gallen would not only give them a powerful top of the rotation, but provide insurance for the future with Taillon, Boyd and Imanaga eligible for free agency after the season.

“We have a lot of free agents,’’ Hoyer said, “that’s going to be a topic of conversation.’’

The Cubs also overhauled their bullpen with four new relievers − Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, Jacob Webb and Hunter Harvey − while retaining Caleb Thielbar and anointing Danny Palencia to be their official closer.

“I know I’m ready,’’ said Palencia, who saved 22 games and struck out 61 in 52.2 innings in his first season as a closer.

Really, the Cubs will tell you, they see no reason why they shouldn’t be playing at Wrigley Field until the leaves turn brown.

“Look at the rotation, the arms we have, the depth we have,’’ Boyd said, “it’s impressive. You think about what Cade (Horton) is going to do after his year of experience. You think about what the rest of us are going to do, the adjustments that we’ve made, and the experience that we’ve gained from last season pitching into the postseason. It’s all things that will make us better, collectively.’’

It has the Cubs with World Series dreams dancing in their heads, believing that even with the loss of All-Star right fielder Kyle Tucker, this team is built for a deep October run, resurrecting memories of 2016.

“That’s the expectation we hold ourselves to,’’ Boyd said. “It makes it more exciting when you know No. 3 (Bregman) is here, what he’s got to offer, Cabrera, and you go, 'Ok, here we go.’ We know your mission. It’s the same as last year. We came up short. It was a lot of fun. It was awesome. Very grateful for it.

“But ultimately, we didn’t go where we wanted to. Doesn’t mean it was a failure. Just means we didn’t get there yet.’’

Follow Nightengale on X: @BNightengale

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chicago Cubs dreaming of World Series after big offseason

The Mets aren’t the only team dealing with a superstar undergoing hand surgery.

Diamondbacks standout outfielder Corbin Carroll is undergoing surgery for a broken hamate bone in his right hand, according to ESPN.

Carroll will reportedly no longer participate for Team USA in the upcoming World Baseball Classic and his availability for the Diamondbacks’ season-opening road game against the back-to-back defending World Series champion Dodgers on March 26 is also uncertain.

The 25-year-old suffered the injury during batting practice Tuesday, per MLB.com, and joins the Mets’ Francisco Lindor and the Orioles’ Jackson Holliday as notable players to recently suffer the malady.

The hamate bone is “one of the carpal bones on the small finger side of the wrist, just above the ulna. The bone connects the wrist to the hand, specifically supporting the metacarpal bones of the ring and small (pinky) finger,” according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Such an injury obviously affects a player’s ability to swing, and Carroll would be facing an approximate six-week recovery period should he receive a similar timeframe to Lindor.

Such an injury is a tough blow for a Diamondbacks team coming off a disappointing 80-82 season and looking to rebound in the tough NL West.

Carroll showed last year why he’s one of baseball’s top young players, finishing sixth in the NL MVP voting by hitting 31 homers with 84 RBIs and 32 stolen bases.

He posted an .883 OPS.

For his career, Carroll has slashed .258/.341/.491 and has finished in the top-six in NL MVP voting twice while also winning NL Rookie of the Year in 2023.

He’s been durable throughout his career, appearing in at least 143 games in each of three full seasons in the big leagues.

The Diamondbacks had a relatively quiet offseason, acquiring third baseman Nolan Arenado from the Cardinals and signing first baseman Carlos Santana.

Whenever I share content, I strive to make sure that it’s based on facts. I need to disclose that this will not be based on many of those, but instead on my admittedly unrealistic optimism about the upcoming St. Louis Cardinals 2026 season.

Let’s get the facts out of the way from the get go. As I mentioned yesterday, the new PECOTA projections shared by Baseball Prospectus do not envision much happiness for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2026. They see the Cardinals as a 66-win team while ZiPS isn’t much different. I have not come across any reliable baseball protagonist predicting anything above a .500 season for St. Louis and I don’t disagree that the roster doesn’t look like much on paper.

So why am I so gosh-darned giddy about the St. Louis Cardinals 2026 season? I don’t have a good answer other than to say that it’s partially Spring’s fault since the upcoming warmer weather months tend to put me in a better mood, but I have baseball reasons also. First, I haven’t been this happy about St. Louis Cardinals baseball since 2022. The return of Albert Pujols for his final season and the 700 home run chase was a blast. I was also naively thinking that the Goldschmidt/Arenado era would bring us championship contention again. That was all dashed by the Philadelphia Phillies in the first round of the playoffs and I can’t say I’ve been very happy with the organization since. The past 3 seasons were an infuriating experiment in watching the baseball team I have cheered on since birth tread water and seem to accept mediocrity. I don’t read minds, but I had the perception that John Mozeliak and Cardinals ownership simply wanted a team that might be good enough to sneak into the playoffs instead of building a juggernaut that could contend against filthy-rich teams like the Dodgers.

New President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom and his team have changed the atmosphere significantly by aggressively moving Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, Nolan Arenado and their no-trade clauses elsewhere while restocking our minor league system with young blood. As the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported a few days ago, the Cardinals farm system is now rated #2 in baseball by Baseball America, the highest it’s been in 13 years. It’s about dang freaking time, I say. We now possess the super-interesting Jurrangelo Cijntje who may or may not continue his lefty/righty pitching approach in his St. Louis Cardinals progression, but his upside is tantalizing. Credit also to John Mozeliak for drafting Liam Doyle who will be infuriating opposing teams sometime in the next year or two. If you didn’t get Chris Carpenter vibes listening to him answer questions during the Winter Warmup, you missed something awesome.

As I look at the St. Louis Cardinals going into Spring Training, I can’t wait to see what JJ Wetherholt does with his open opportunity to make the starting day roster. I’m also unrealistically hopeful that Nolan Gorman and Jordan Walker will find their sky high potential. I think it will be fun to see what Dustin May does now that he’s a part of the St. Louis Cardinals and not those dastardly Dodgers. I also think this will be the year when Riley O’Brien becomes a feared closer. OK, so maybe feared is TOO optimistic, but I think he’s someone the Cardinals can rely on to get them through this transitional rebuilding phase.

What will be interesting to me will be how the overall St. Louis Cardinals fanbase shows up (or not) for the 2026 season. I know there are many who have anecdotally shared the bad vibes they overheard at many games last year. How many of them, I wonder, understand what Chaim Bloom has accomplished already and the big picture of where this will hopefully take the team? Are they excited to see the debut of JJ Wetherholt? I sure hope so. While I’m not planning to concede losses before any games get played, I admit the St. Louis Cardinals will likely not be a contender this year. That does not diminish my newfound happiness that the turnaround has started and mediocrity is no longer good enough. I cannot wait to see where this takes us over the next few seasons.

Injury concerns for Josh Hader and Yainer Diaz highlight roster inadequacies.

I want to preface this with the following statements:

• I like Dana Brown and I think he’s done a good job overall
• I understand Brown is working with limited resources as the Astros are close to the first tax line and Jim Crane prefers not to exceed the first tax line on Opening Day
• Today is the first day of Spring Training and a lot can happen between now and Opening Day

With that out of the way, I think we need to have a conversation about whether or not Dana Brown failed this offseason. Day 1 of pitchers and catchers did not cause this conversation, but it definitely exacerbated it.

On the first day of pitchers and catchers, we learned that Josh Hader had an offseason setback, Yainer Diaz injured his ankle in winter ball, and that Enyel De Los Santos has been shut down with a knee injury.

JOSH HADER

Josh Hader today said he is a few weeks behind schedule due to a setback in the offseason and is throwing off flat ground right now.

Josh Hader said he’s a few weeks behind schedule but felt fine after resuming throwing off flat ground today pic.twitter.com/6pkR0kr5mo

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) February 11, 2026

That is a big difference from what he told KPRC2’s Randy McIlvoy in December:

Concerning news on #Astros closer Josh Hader's build up. Buster Olney says he's only throwing lightly &from Flat ground . He was on IL late last season w/ shoulder strain.
This report today is quite different from what Hader told us in DEC at his holiday event at Daikin Park. pic.twitter.com/9OnBocdi4N

— Randy McIlvoy (@KPRC2RandyMc) February 11, 2026

Revisit this piece from November: https://www.crawfishboxes.com/houston-astros-analysis-commentary/71050/do-the-astros-need-a-backup-plan-for-josh-hader

Hader was shut down for the season August 12 with a sprained shoulder capsule. A sprain can mean a myriad of things, anything from an overstretching of the ligaments or the capsule tissue to a minor tear of either to a significant tear involving dislocation.

We don’t know how serious the injury was and the Astros certainly are not going to tell us.

What we do know is that shoulder capsule injuries are very serious, and torn shoulder capsules ultimately require a surgery that is long known for diminishing the performance of pitchers.

Recovery times on sprained shoulder capsules are generally up to 4 weeks for a mild sprain, 6-12 weeks for a more moderate injury, and longer for more severe injuries.

At the time Hader spoke with McIlvoy at KPRC2, it was approximately 15 weeks since he had been placed on the IL. It is approximately 11 weeks from that time to now, for a total of 26 weeks (that’s 6 months) and Hader is still only throwing from flat ground.

Hader experienced bicep inflammation, which was the cause of his setback. However the premise is still the same.

Hader was always going to be an injury risk coming into the season, and he is going to be one all season because of the shoulder capsule.

The Astros still have 3 years remaining on the 5-year, $95M contract they gave Hader, and it is certainly in the team’s best interest to keep their elite closer as healthy as possible.

Even if he were to be healthy to start the season, the team had already spoken to not having him pitch more than one inning at a time in the early part of the season. Now it appears he will likely not be ready for Opening Day.

That leaves the Astros pen with Bryan Abreu as the closer and a lot of question marks about who can step up to be the bridge to Abreu.

Bryan King is a LHP who had serious reverse splits last season, and was ineffective vs lefty hitters to whom he allowed an .841 OPS to, as opposed to holding righties to a .573 OPS. Those numbers make King more of a middle reliever with select high leverage outings against all righthanded batters.

Steven Okert was successful against both righties and lefties equally, holding both under a .500 OPS last season, but walks were his undoing when he struggled in July and September.

Bennett Sousa looked to be stepping up to take the mantle of setup reliever last season before he wound up being shut down with a flexor/pronator strain one week after Hader was shut down. Sousa was coming back from Thoracic Outlet Surgery the year before, a surgery that is often difficult for pitchers to return from. Sousa wound up pitching the best baseball of his career before his injury. The injury leaves him as a question mark going forward as well.

As for the rest of the pen? It will likely be made up of righties who don’t make the rotation. The Astros pen is very lefthanded (especially with Hader and Sousa both healthy – making 4 LHP in the pen) and with a shortened pen due to utilization of a six-man rotation, they will need arms who can go multiple innings.

These things all lead to something I have been saying on AREA 45 on Sportsradio 610 since the season ended – the Astros needed to get a leverage arm for the pen to protect against injury downtime for Hader, and to a lesser extent, Sousa.

The significant uncertainty of the pen and who could fill key leverage setup roles in the 7th and 8th innings should Hader be unavailable for stretches of time should have been all the red flags needed for the Astros front office to prioritize getting another high leverage arm in the pen.

Maybe they find one among the extra starter arms they brought to camp. Maybe they still sign/trade for one before Opening Day. It was a need as far back as November and it appears to be an ever greater need now.

Not addressing this need appears to be a significant oversight from Brown.

YAINER DIAZ

Diaz suffered a sprained foot in the Dominican Winter League, which is why his winter league season was cut short.

Espada gives an update on Yainer Diaz pic.twitter.com/xA3gCcrtdr

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) February 11, 2026

While it appears that the Astros and Diaz may have avoided any kind of major trouble with Diaz right now, it underscores how preciously thin the team is at catcher. Houston already is concerned about whether or not current likely backup Cesar Salazar’s bat can translate to heavier usage at the MLB level.

Diaz is one player the Astros cannot afford to go down with injury because right now they have no one in the organization capable of carrying a starting catcher’s workload.

This is where not paying Victor Caratini really stands out.

I understand paying a backup catcher $8M per year for 2 years seems like a lot of money. The reality is, they had no plan of succession for Caratini, who provided them important innings at catcher, first base, and DH. He was often the only lefty bat in the lineup. He was very clutch for them in pinch hitting roles.

While no one in a team’s front office wants to “overpay” a player, there are two times when it is ok to overpay a player:

• player is an elite talent and is worth more than just their on-field production
• player is irreplaceable on your roster

The latter was clearly the case with Caratini and the Astros.

Now, the Astros didn’t need to do a big overpay, this wasn’t going to be a 5-year deal with nine figures. Giving Caratini an extra million per year over what he got to leave, however, would have been a small enough overpay to keep him with the Astros and give the team peace of mind at the catcher position.

For a team worried about Salazar’s ability to hit playing 1-2 times per week, they are one injury away from Salazar playing every day.

Not bringing back Caratini and not having a plan for his replacement seems like another significant oversight by Brown.

ENYEL DE LOS SANTOS

Reliever Enyel De Los Santos has been shut down with a right knee strain, Joe Espada said.

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) February 11, 2026

While De Los Santos projects at best as a middle reliever, it continues to underscore the question marks in the Astros bullpen. The pen is very back-heavy with Hader and Abreu, and then there is a significant drop off in “trust” among the other relievers.

If Hader is unable to start the year, it becomes a decent possibility that the Astros best righthanded reliever may be A.J. Blubaugh, who is both a starter and a rookie. Blubaugh had notable command issues last season before a midseason adjustment helped him and turned his season around at AAA, earning himself a call-up to Houston.

The De Los Santos injury highlights the depth concerns in the pen and further underscores the importance of adding a high leverage arm to the pen.

All told, while Brown did generate a lot of starting pitching depth, the major question marks on this roster at backup catcher and in the pen could be serious issues for the Astros to overcome. If they are, Brown will have failed the offseason badly.

Agree or disagree? Tell us in the comments below:

The Milwaukee Brewers entered the offseason with a potential need at backup catcher. Danny Jansen was hitting free agency and was unlikely to return, ultimately signing with the Texas Rangers. That left just William Contreras and prospect Jeferson Quero as the only catchers on the 40-man roster.

While Quero is still viewed by many as the Brewers’ catcher of the future, it still seemed they needed additional catching depth to get through the season. Now, as pitchers and catchers officially report to spring training, the Brewers have finally made that addition at catcher.

Jon Heyman has reported that the Brewers have brought back 33-year-old Gary Sánchez on a one-year, $1.75 million deal.

The Brewers first signed Sánchez for the 2024 season on a one-year deal. He also saw time at DH and first base. That season, he hit .220 with 11 homers and a .699 OPS in 89 games. During the final two months of the season, he was part of a three-man weave at catcher and DH with Contreras and Eric Haase to help manage the loss of Christian Yelich to a back injury.

Last season, the Brewers let Sánchez walk to roll with Eric Haase as the backup catcher. Sánchez signed with the Baltimore Orioles where he posted a .231 average with five homers and a .715 OPS in 29 games as he dealt with wrist, finger, and knee injuries that limited his time on the field.

Sánchez is now the favorite to be the backup catcher to William Contreras in 2026. Jeferson Quero is now likely to start the season back in Triple-A Nashville for some more seasoning and regular playing time. Contreras doesn’t come out of the lineup often so this may end up being better for Quero in the long run.

One big benefit to this signing is that Sánchez does have some familiarity with the Brewers pitching staff. Granted there has been a decent number of new additions to this staff since Sánchez was here last, but still, he knows the coaching staff and should be able to pick things up quickly.

Sánchez brings a veteran presence to the catching room and is comfortable in that backup role. The Brewers also have Reese McGuire on a minor league deal with an invite to spring training to have additional depth should any injuries occur in the coming weeks.

Any intriguing potential Nats storyline emerged earlier today. It was reported that Corbin Carroll broke his Hamate bone in batting practice and will be missing the WBC. That means Team USA will have to find a replacement. Nationals star left fielder James Wood is reportedly on the shortlist of names according to Jon Morosi.

. @WBCBaseball news:

USA Baseball officials are working through possible injury replacements for Corbin Carroll.

Steven Kwan, Tyler Soderstrom, Riley Greene, Roman Anthony, James Wood, Wyatt Langford and Kyle Stowers are under consideration, per source.@MLBNetworkRadio@MLB

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) February 11, 2026

This is an exciting and potentially impactful development. While Wood is far from a lock to be the man Team USA picks, I think he is one of the top candidates. With Carroll out of the picture, Team USA’s outfielders are now Byron Buxton, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Aaron Judge. Wood would be a nice complement to those three. He brings an element of left handed power that this trio misses.

Clearly, that is what the folks running Team USA are looking for. Wyatt Langford is the only right handed bat in the mix. If Team USA wanted a contact oriented profile, Steven Kwan is the obvious pick, but the other options are power bats. However, none of the other names have quite as much raw power as Wood.

I think Wood has the most upside of anyone in that group. We know what he can do when he gets hot. It would also be a great experience for him as well. He would be able to take in knowledge from some of the game’s best players. Fellow giant outfielder Aaron Judge would be a great person for him to learn from. Judge had strikeout issues when he entered the league, but has fixed those.

When Wood gets a hold of a baseball, it looks like a left handed Aaron Judge at times. The raw power is totally jaw dropping. I remember his home run against the Orioles early in the season so well. It was the one of the first flyballs he pulled all season and he sent it 460 feet and hit the ball about 117 MPH.

#🪵InWBC

pic.twitter.com/jOk7jwuFxFhttps://t.co/NXw1g9vZMn

— Kev (@klwoodjr) February 11, 2026

While his Home Run Derby appearance did not go according to plan, the fact he got the invite shows he is highly thought of. You have to think people at Team USA may view Wood as a potential successor to Judge for the future. Bringing him to this event would be a great opportunity for him and Team USA.

It is easy to forget just how young James Wood is. He is entering his age 23 season and still has so much ahead of him. In his first full season as a big leaguer, Wood hit 31 homers and posted an .825 OPS. The second half and all the strikeouts left a sour taste, but that is still one heck of a season for a guy who was 22 for most of the year.

James Wood dominated in Year 2, slugging 31 HR on his way to an All-Star season! #BlackHistoryMonthpic.twitter.com/X7WvH2RKIX

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 9, 2026

However, sending Wood to the WBC would not be without some risks. He would obviously be away from the team for a couple weeks. That could be time spent working with the Nats new coaches where he can refine his swing. There is also some injury risk, but that also exists in regular Spring Training games.

I think the reward far outweighs the risk though and it would be a good opportunity for Wood himself. He is not around any veteran stars in DC, so being with some of the best in the game at the WBC would be great for him. Wood is likely to learn a thing or two from the future Hall of Famers he is playing with. The chance to represent your country is always an honor as well.

Given he would be a replacement player, Wood probably won’t start the biggest games. However, he will still get playing time and would be a strong piece. If Team USA needed a big hit late in a game, Wood would be a great pinch hitter for a guy like Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Again, it is far from a guarantee that he will make the team, but James Wood is in the mix for Team USA. The Nats only have two players at the WBC right now, which is fewer than most teams. Hopefully James Wood can add a third Nat to the mix at this great competition.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Rangers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Folks, there’s a guy in the Texas Rangers’ organization from the Bahamas that you may have heard of. His name is Sebastian Walcott. He is 19 years old and plays shortstop.

Now, you may be saying to yourself, a baseball player from the Bahamas? Get out of here with your crazy self. They don’t play baseball in the Bahamas!

However, you’d be wrong. They do play baseball there! Granted, there’s not a lot of players in MLB history from the Bahamas — just nine of them, in fact. Someone named Andre Rodgers is the player from the Bahamas with the longest career, playing 854 games from 1957-67. Jazz Chisholm, Jr. is second, at 579 games.

Third is Ed Armbrister. He is best known for a World Series bunt where he maybe should have been called for interfering with Carlton Fisk, but wasn’t, in the bottom of the tenth inning of Game 3 in 1975. It led to Joe Morgan hitting a walkoff single off of Roger Moret for a Reds victory. Had he been called for interference, maybe the Reds don’t score that inning, the Red Sox end up winning, and Carlton Fisk’s legendary Game 6 home run would have won the series for Boston and spared us 30+ years of “Curse of the Bambino” nonsense and a terrible Jimmy Fallon movie.

Anyway, Sebastian Walcott will almost certainly be the tenth. A consensus top 20 prospect in MLB who was solid if unspectacular at AA last year (though solid if unspectacular at AA at age 19 is pretty damn good), Walcott likely will be starting the season at AAA Round Rock. He played some third base as well as shortstop at AA last year, and I expect him to do the same in 2026 for the Express, with maybe some corner outfield mixed in.

Which leads us to today’s question…when do you believe Sebastian Walcott will make his major league debut?

Cast your vote below…

The Mets announced that Francisco Lindor is undergoing surgery on his hand today to address the hamate issue that became public knowledge yesterday. As David Stearns had said in giving that update, the expected recovery timeline for Lindor is six weeks. The Mets’ 2026 season begins six weeks from tomorrow.

It goes without saying that Lindor is crucial to the Mets’ success, as he’s been the team’s best player over the past several years. And even with the addition of Juan Soto last year, Lindor was the team’s best player by fWAR, albeit by a relatively small margin, while he slightly trailed Soto in bWAR.

If Lindor’s recovery goes smoothly and he is ready to play on Opening Day, the time he misses in spring training shouldn’t be a major problem. If there are delays, though, it’ll be interesting to see what the Mets do at shortstop in the early part of the season. The team has several players who have played short in the past, but whether or not any of them are ideal substitutes for Lindor is another matter.