Category: MLB

Drew Rasmussen will start Game 5 for the Tampa Bay Rays, their second consecutive do-or-die contest in this World Series. 

Rasmussen started Game 2 and will make this start on just three days' rest, a significant departure from his routine during the regular season, when the club often afforded him extra rest. Rasmussen has undergone three major arm surgeries since 2017. 

"Ras is going to take the ball and give us what he can give us," Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters.

Dylan’s Notes

My first impression of the Mizzou softball team was an overwhelmingly positive one. I attended Saturday’s game when they defeated UA Rich Mountain, a community college in Arkansas, 28-1. Here are my key musings from the showdown, and how much can really translate to the spring. 

Disclaimer

Before I get too much into the weeds of the performance, first I must say that this UA Rich Mountain team is nowhere near the level of SEC competition. You could see it in the physical differences and in the talent on the diamond; plenty of mistakes that you’d never see a Top-25 team make. 

While they did finish 37-17 a season ago, most of them were against schools you never knew existed. Two of their wins came against Arkansas State Mid-South; can’t say I have any idea where that school is besides Arkansas.

With that out of the way, I think there’s still some valuable information to see who is ready to step up for this team. Here’s who stood out to me in my observations.

Emma Jackson: 

After transferring in from East Carolina ahead of the 2026 season, Jackson had an underwhelming first year with the Tigers. She only played in 18 games, batting .167 with no homers. In the exhibition, she looked possessed. 

Jackson hit two home runs; a 3-run bomb and a grand slam. She had a patient approach, exploding to the ball when she saw the right pitch with plenty of power. If Jackson can separate herself as a starting outfielder for Mizzou when the season starts in February, that additional bat raises the ceiling of this team.

Stefania Abruscato:

Abruscato enters the season as one of the Tigers’ leaders, both on the field and in the locker room. As the senior catcher, she carries a large amount of respect and backs it up with her play. 

She continued to prove her worth in the exhibition with a grand slam of her own. While Abruscato is the primary catcher, sophomore Gracie Britton spent most of the game behind the dish. Having two catchers helps take the load of your starter, especially during the early season tournaments when you play five games in three days. 

But when it comes down to crunch time and you need your best lineup, Mizzou is going to put its trust in Abruscato.

Nealy Lamb:

In the circle, the South Carolina transfer started to separate herself. In her one season with the Gamecocks, she made 34 appearances, finishing the season with a 4.37 ERA and 47 strikeouts. 

She looked on pace to shatter her strikeout numbers in the exhibition, recording three Ks across six batters. While she did allow two softly-hit singles, there was never a moment where she didn’t feel in control. 

While Abby Carr and Marissa McCann are projected to be the Tigers’ top two starters, there is certainly a role for Lamb to carve out this season, bringing much-needed depth to Mizzou’s pitching staff.

Karen’s Notes

I was on hand on Sunday to watch the team’s fall ball finale against a school we’ve actually heard of, Iowa, who finished last season with a .500 record overall, and 7-17 in the Big 10 with no wins over Top 25 teams. (To be fair, hardly any of the Big 10 teams were ranked.)

After a bit of a slow start, the Tigers started to pile on the runs in the fourth inning, ultimately ending the 10-inning contest, 7-1. The Tigers collected bombs from Stefania Abruscato, who hit a 2-run shot in the third to make it 2-0, as well as Sidney Forrester, who had a solo shot in the fourth to make it 3-0.

While there were a handful of strikeouts from the Tigers, they also showed a good bit of plate discipline, with Madison Uptegrove working two walks, along with one each from Saniya Hill, Abruscato, Emma Jackson and Middle Tennessee transfer Jana Want. Abby Hay, Forrester, Jackson and freshman Katelynn Knight each went for extra bases, and Addy Waits, who came in in the seventh, recorded singles in both of her at-bats.

Pitching Prevails

Marissa McCann looked strong in her seven innings of work, with six strikeouts and just one walk. After allowing a leadoff triple in the first, she didn’t allow another baserunner until the fifth, when the Hawkeyes were awarded a homerun on a play off the top of the left field wall that Saniya Hill couldn’t quite make a play on. McCann also allowed an additional base hit later, but overall, was extremely effective.

Rylee Michalak took over in the circle in the eighth inning for an inning of work, allowing a base hit.

Nealy Lamb entered in the ninth and pitched two innings, allowing two baserunners in her first inning of work before getting out of the jam, and working in a pair of strikeouts. Like Dylan mentioned above, I think she’ll be helpful to the team this year.

Arizona State transfer Mary Peyton Hodge, reliever Natalie Touchet, and Abby Carr (injury) were not used in this one. Carr is expected to be ready for the season, however.

Saniya Hill:
A good day at the plate for the Tigers’ leadoff hitter was good at the plate. She walked and had two base hits (which during an actual game, might have been scored as errors), as well as a run scored. She’s a good bat to have in this Tiger lineup, and I would expect her to be a mainstay come the regular season. She does still need a bit of work on the fielding aspect — I think both the triple and the homerun were playable, but she didn’t perhaps make the correct read.

Emma Jackson, Part 2:

Dylan already mentioned her above, but a season after being a non-factor, I think she’s set to play a significant role in 2027. On Sunday, while she struck out in her first at-bat, she also had a double and walk in this one. Whether she ends up as an outfielder— she was DP in this one— remains to be seen, but I forecast a different season for her than her first in the black and gold.

Newbies:

Katelynn Knight and Hadley Borders (CF) were the lone starters in Sunday’s game to the best of my recollection. Of Knight’s three at-bats, she recorded a double and was caught stealing (it wasn’t close). Borders had a strikeout and a base hit.

Katie Guilliam came in in the seventh and had two at-bats. She did not reach base, recording a groundout and a liner to short which led to a double play.

I do not think we saw Audrey Cathey.

UP NEXT: The real thing, which I expect to kick off in February, likely in the Sunshine State, as per usual. MU Tigers has not offered an updated schedule at this point. Dylan, Aaron Segal and I will be your Mizzou Softball writing team this season, so stay tuned for updates.

The Milwaukee Brewers are one game away. One win from becoming World Series Champions for the first time in team history.

Pittsburgh’s NL Central rival was the best team in baseball throughout the year, winning 103 games and dominating the competition. 

The Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays meet in the “Small Market World Series” conveniently leading into the most tense labor negotiations the sport has seen in over 30 years. At least unlike 1994, the World Series is being played.

In a world where owners are locked and loaded to argue that the sport is unfair for small market clubs and teams with a payroll disadvantage compared to major markets, the smallest market in baseball will be the last team standing. 

Milwaukee is the smallest media market size across MLB. The Brewers rank 19th in payroll ($146 million) while the Rays rank 28th ($95 million). The Cleveland Guardians clinched a spot in the ALCS despite owning the lowest payroll ($74.2 million).

So, it looks like the sport is in great hands! Not so fast.

I’d like to formally welcome you to one of the greatest outlier seasons in baseball since the turn of the century. 

Since 2000, only three teams have won the World Series with an Opening Day payroll outside the top 15: the 2003 Florida Marlins (25th), the 2015 Kansas City Royals (17th), and the 2017 Houston Astros (17th). Both the Royals and Astros moved into the top half by mid-season. 

10 times a team in the Top 5 of payroll won the World Series. The Dodgers and Yankees combined for five. During that span, major markets like Boston (four) and San Francisco (three) built dynasties while Philadelphia and both Chicago teams hoisted the trophy.

Where’s Cincinnati? Where’s Tampa? Where’s Pittsburgh? Where’s Baltimore? Where’s Oakland/wherever the A’s are playing? 

While baseball shifted after the 1994 strike and free agency became an ultimate spending spree without limitations, small markets began to come to light.

Why should New York have such a distinct advantage over Pittsburgh and Cincinnati for players? Shouldn’t the economic playing field be equal for teams?

A salary cap and floor isn’t an immediate fix to all problems; teams like the Cleveland Browns still find ways to get in their own way every year. But it makes the playing field more fair. Isn’t that what’s best for the fans?

If the NFL had baseball’s system, Josh Allen would have had a nice run with the Bills and would be playing for the New York Giants. Remember that Paul Skenes Yankees jersey I captured in the parking lot on Opening Day two years ago? It’s unfathomable to think of. 

It’s ironic that the year before baseball shuts down to argue over a cap and floor system that the smallest market in baseball makes it look easy.

That shouldn’t rewrite the past or make people forget about 

While the Rays, Brewers, Guardians, and other small market teams have had successful regular seasons and some postseason success, it’s all about hoisting the trophy in late October. Up until this season, the last small market team to win the World Series was the Kansas City Royals in 2015.

The Brewers and Rays are proving it’s not impossible to win without a cap/floor system, but it’s significantly more difficult. The Brewers traded ace Freddie Peralta’s expiring contract to the Mets before the season, knowing they wouldn’t re-sign him. The Rays did the same by trading Brandon Lowe to the Pirates and acquiring assets.

Would the Dodgers do that? Yankees? Mets? Rangers? Braves? Phillies? Cubs? Short answer: no. The smaller market clubs must maximize ROI by making smart trades, analytics, and development. 

The most staggering number of all is what the Dodgers spent compared to what Cleveland spent. LA won 100 games with an estimated payroll of $412 million, over $330 million more than the Guardians, who finished with 85 victories. 

They both ended up in the same place, Cleveland, thanks to a very weak American League, but should any league have that type of payroll difference?

A cap and floor system makes the NFL, NHL, and NBA thrive. In the last 10 years, small markets like the Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Florida Panthers have won back-to-back cups. The Kansas City Chiefs built a dynasty and sustained it. The Milwaukee Bucks and OKC Thunder won titles.

Spare me the idea that a small market World Series changes the game. It doesn’t, and it shouldn’t. 

Multiple things are true. Can small markets compete? Yes. Is it significantly more likely big markets will win? Also yes. Does market size make any difference in other sports? Nope. So why should it be in pro baseball?

When the curtain comes down in 2026, we don’t know when Major League Baseball will play again. But despite what happened in one single postseason, the need for a cap and floor will never change at all. 

Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger has been named the 2026 Philanthropist of the Year by the Players Trust, which is the charitable arm of the MLBPA.

The link above has a summary of some of the charity and community work Burger has done. Burger’s daughter, Penelope, has Down’s Syndrome, and much of the work he has done the past two years has focused on causes and issues related to Down’s Syndrome. When he joined the Rangers, he also changed his uniform number from 36 to 21, as Down’s Syndrome results from an individual having an extra Chromosome 21.

The announcement was made as part of the Players Choice Awards, which were announced today. Headlining those awards was Pete Crow-Armstrong, who was named the 2026 Most Outstanding Player in the National League, as well as the overall Player of the Year. The Astros’ Yordan Alvarez was the pick for the American League,

Nauseating. Pathetic. Embarassment.

Those are just several of the damning words Adam Schein, host of The Post’s daily “Schein Time” show on YouTube, used to describe the exclusive revelation from former catcher Jorge Posada on “The Show” on Tuesday that he does not feel welcome around the Yankees anymore.

And to Schein, when combined with Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe not connecting with Hall of Famer Derek Jeter amid a career of underachievement, it speaks to an issue among the Bronx Bombers’ 26-man roster.

“So, I think this officially is a clubhouse issue. I think this officially is a player issue,” Schein said Tuesday on his show. “I think that Aaron Judge needs to take control of his own clubhouse. I want to know where Giancarlo Stanton is? Where’s the veteran leadership?

“If Derek Jeter can’t get Anthony Volpe on the phone, if Jorge Posada isn’t welcome, if you don’t want to pick the brain of Tino Martinez, then we’ve got problems. It’s as simple as that.”

Posada, a Yankees legend from 1995-2011, revealed on Tuesday’s show that he feels distant from the only team he played for during his career.

“I don’t think they want me there, to tell you the truth,” Posada said when asked by Joel Sherman about possibly helping the Yankees in the future.

“I don’t feel welcome when I go there, you know? Even in spring training, I don’t feel like — I’m just like, I don’t know, like, I don’t feel welcome. I don’t feel like they want me there, so I don’t go.”

Posada did not pinpoint that feeling to any specific instance or moment, although he called his final season in 2011 “a really tough one.”

The Yankees shifted him away from catcher to designated hitter and reduced his playing time, and Posada posted just a .714 OPS.

“So, it’s just tough to back and feel that again,” he said.

Schein believes that Yankees manager Aaron Boone, general manager Brian Cashman and owner Hal Steinbrenner are absolved of blame in this lingering Posada situation.

He gives Boone a “free pass,” believing a baseball lifer would not turn his back to legends, and doesn’t think Steinbrenner and Cashman would too reject on an esteemed player like Posada.

Posada has indicated in the past that there was some bad beef with top executives about that final season, while he did not blame then-manager Joe Girardi.

Adding this Posada reveal on top of the Jeter-Volpe non-relationship makes Schein believe that the current Yankees are not doing their part to lean on those with championship pedigree.

“Look at Jorge Posada’s resume. Come on? He doesn’t feel welcome at spring training? You’re telling me Austin Wells couldn’t use talking to Jorge Posada?” Schein said. “You’re telling me Anthony Volpe couldn’t use some kind of direction from Derek Jeter? These are guys who just want to be there, because it seems like they care more about winning than the current Yankee players.”

Schein also noted that this group of Yankees having yet to win a title — and has just one World Series appearance in the Aaron Judge era dating to 2017 — only makes this situation worse.

Posada won five titles during his time in The Bronx, including the franchise’s last World Series in 2009.

“If the Yankees of the current group, if they were winning, we’re not having this conversation but they’re losing and they’re fundamentally unsound, and they play at their worse when it matters the most,” Schein said. “The antithesis of Posada and Jeter and those amazing Yankees teams. That right there, that’s painful. … That makes me sick.

“The fact that Jorge Posada, an all-time great Yankee. Blood, guts, sweat, tears, joy, jubilation, a guy who understands what winning is all about, he doesn’t feeling welcome at spring training, the Yankee clubhouse? Man, and you wonder why this team can’t perform in big spots. You wonder why they can’t perform in extra innings. You wonder why they can’t have a lead in a series against the Tampa Rays. What a joke, an embarrassment, that was nauseating. Absolutely pathetic.”

For months, one question has lingered over the Dodgers.

With team owner Mark Walter facing a federal investigation into his business empire, and having unexpectedly sold his stakes in the Lakers and Chelsea Football Club this summer, would the billionaire businessman consider selling the Dodgers next?

On Tuesday, in an exclusive interview with the California Post, Walter offered a definitive answer.

“We’re going to keep the team no matter what,” he said. “We’re going to be winning for 10 years or more. I think our commitment to do so will be just like it has been in the past. And, you know, we don’t win every year, but we’re going to try to.”

In other words, just as everyone from team president Stan Kasten to president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has repeatedly reiterated in recent months, Walter plans on things being business as usual for his iconic baseball franchise.

“I certainly hope we can look forward to winning another World Series next year under my ownership,” he said. “And I think we’re just trying to win consistently, and do so for not just next season, but for the next decade and decades beyond that.”

The team has spent the last couple of months spewing the same sentiment. But those words coming out of Walter’s mouth is notable.

His comments came amid continued speculation surrounding the 66-year-old and his status as the team’s owner and chairman.

Last year, the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission began investigating certain affiliated loans made from insurance companies under his control to other businesses he owns.

Weeks after that probe became public in July, he stunningly sold the Lakers to venture capitalist Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger at a $12.5 billion valuation –– flipping the franchise barely a year after he had acquired a majority stake in it from the Buss family at a $10 billion valuation.

Later in August, he also began a process with his business partner, Todd Boehly (another member of the Walter-led Guggenheim Baseball Management group that owns the Dodgers), to sell their stakes in Chelsea FC of the English Premier League.

Those moves came amid reports that Walter’s Guggenheim Partners investment firm was trying to raise capital for its insurance operations, and rectify the so-called “affiliated” loans that had drawn the scrutiny of federal investigators and state regulators.

Walter’s holding company, TWG Global, released a statement in late August denying all wrongdoing and reaffirming Walter’s plans to retain ownership of the Dodgers. 

Still, doubts remained about whether his role with the team would indeed remain unaffected.

On Tuesday, while speaking with the Post in a call that also included Friedman, Walter for the first time publicly stated his intention to not only continue owning the Dodgers, but supporting them with the same level of financial resources that have allowed them to set MLB payroll records each of the last two seasons.

“We don’t see any glaring weaknesses that demand our attention, but there’s always room to get better,” he said of the club’s approach this offseason, following an unsuccessful World Series three-peat bid that ended in a sweep to the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Championship Series this month.

“We’ll explore every avenue we can to make this team stronger,” he added.

Walter declined to address the federal investigation into his insurance companies, saying it was “not appropriate for me to comment while the investigation is ongoing.”

However, he was adamant that the sale of the Lakers had “nothing to do with the Dodgers at all,” and that he wasn’t actively shopping the basketball team until Kushner approached him with a record-setting offer that he agreed to within 72 hours.

Walter also declined to comment on recent reporting from Bloomberg that he is looking to sell the WNBA’s Sparks, but again reiterated that it will have no bearing on his Dodgers’ ownership status.

As one of MLB’s 30 principal owners, Walter will have involvement in the league’s ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement; which are taking place amid a messy labor fight with the MLB Players’ Association that is likely to lead to a lockout this offseason and could threaten the beginning of the 2027 campaign.

While the league has already begun to push for a salary cap, Walter declined to address his stance on the issue. 

What he was confident in was that, regardless of any new (and potentially stricter) spending rules a new CBA might entail, the Dodgers should be well-positioned to continue the run of dominance they have enjoyed as three-time World Series champions, five-time National League pennant winners, and 13-time NL West champions during his 15-year tenure as owner.

“It’s not just spending,” he said. “Our farm system is pretty strong, and that and player development are really big things for us. So I think on any playing field, we’ll still be among the elite teams.”

Friedman echoed that sentiment, pointing to the Dodgers’ organizational track record of success under Walter’s ownership.

“At every turn since I’ve been with the Dodgers, the financial backing and aggressiveness [from Walter] has been seemingly unmatched,” Friedman said, adding: “I think all of us being in lockstep on that has contributed to the success we’ve had looking back, and I think keeps us well-positioned for future success.”

Despite the uncertainties that have surrounded him this year, Walter was insistent that future would continue to feature him as the Dodgers’ owner.

“I really hope that the fans feel how much we appreciate them, because we’re all fans too,” he said. “And this [year] was a kind of bad end to the season for us. But you’ve got to look at how we’ve done every year and really realize they’re gonna come back and support us again next year, because we’re going to be out there fighting again for a World Series.”

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

No. 33, Sammy Peralta (0.0 rWAR)

Sammy Peralta has played for five different organizations, including two different stints with two teams, since being drafted in the 18th round of the 2019 draft by the Chicago White Sox.

The Rockies became a short stop on Peralta’s MLB journey in 2026 as the 28-year-old reliever made two appearances for Colorado, neither of which went especially well. He recorded a 10.13 ERA in 2.2 innings with two walks, two hit batters and four strikeouts. After 84 days as a Rockie, a tenure that included yo-yoing back and forth from the big leagues to Triple-A Albuquerque.

The Rockies picked up Peralta, who made his MLB debut in May of 2023, on April 4 after the Milwaukee Brewers designated him for assignment. He went straight to Albuquerque before being called up for three days in late April without seeing any action with the Rockies.

After another three weeks with the Isotopes, Peralta was called up again and made his purple debut as an opener against the Texas Rangers at Coors Field on May 19. It didn’t go as planned, however, as Peralta didn’t even make it out of the first inning. He walked the first batter, got a pop-up out and then hit the next batter. He then gave up a single, a double and a walk as the Rangers went up 2-0. He then got Alejandro Osuna looking for his first strikeout with the Rockies to end his first outing.

The Rockies went on to lose the game 10-0. Colorado sent Peralta back to Albuquerque two days later.

By June 7, he was back in Colorado, and made his second appearance on June 11 against the Chicago Cubs at Coors Field. This time, he entered the game in the eighth inning. The Rockies were already down 8-3 when Peralta gave up a solo homer to Carson Kelly. However, Peralta also registered three strikeouts, including Dansby Swanson and Ian Happ. He also got Pete Crow-Armstrong to ground out.

But that was the last appearance Peralta would make for the Rockies. He was optioned to Triple-A the next day and designated for assignment on June 21. He cleared waivers and opted for free agency, inking a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Angels on June 27.

Peralta then made two stints with the Angels to finish out the 2026 season, pitching 20.1 innings over 14 appearances with a 6.20 ERA. He finished 2026 with decent numbers for the Isotopes, posting a 5.06 ERA in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, going 7-1 in 21 appearances (two starts) with 24 strikeouts compared to seven walks. Peralta is now playing for the Estrellas Orientales in the Dominican League, where he’s played in the past as well.

Peralta has had similar seasons with the White Sox (2019-2024, break, 2024 again), Seattle Mariners (2024), Angels (2025, 2026) and Brewers (2025-2026). A lot of relievers come and go from the Colorado Rockies bullpen and Sammy Peralta became another name on that list in 2026.

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Before we begin looking ahead to 2027, OTM is looking back at 2026, diving into the highs and lows of the roster. Today, we look at a midseason addition to the bullpen.

2026 In a Nutshell

Miller was acquired at the trade deadline in exchange for Marcelo Mayer. With that return, the expectations for Miller were high. The lefty reliever met them at first, dominating over his first 14 appearances. After the honeymoon period, he struggled down the stretch, allowing six earned runs over his final five regular-season appearances and retiring just two of the five hitters he faced in the Wild Card Series.

The Good

Miller’s end of season performance probably left a bad taste in a lot of people’s mouths, but there’s a lot to like about the lefty going forward. His combination of velocity and horizontal movement from his arm slot is unique, creating a really difficult look for lefties. Those factors combined for a massive ground ball rate and miniscule hard hit rate against the pitch. He also features a wipeout slider that pairs well with it and returned a huge swining strike rate, fueling his 33% strikeout rate against lefties. Those two pitches will allow him to match up favorably against left-handed hitters going forward.

The Bad

Miller has control problems. At the time he was traded to the Red Sox, he had a 15% walk rate in 38 games with San Francisco. Upon his arrival in Boston, he simplified his approach by eliminating his four-seam and changeup from his arsenal. In his first 11 games, he walked just 3 of the 46 hitters he faced (6.5%). Unfortunately, it didn’t last. In the month of September, he walked 9 of 39 (23%). In the postseason, the walks didn’t show up, but he left a sinker over the heart of the plate to Ben Rice that ended up in the bleachers. While it was in the zone, which is often a problem for Miller, it was decidedly not where he wanted to throw it.

The next day, he surrendered a base hit to Cody Bellinger that extended the Yankees’ lead. Miller got crushed for giving it up on back to back days, but I’ll stick up for him and say that one was a perfectly fine pitch, and Bellinger put a good swing on it. That’s baseball.

The control issues are a problem, though, and I can’t defend those.

Weird Fact That I Stumbled Upon In The Writing Process That Doesn’t Really Fit In Any Of The Usual Buckets

Miller was called upon in the fifth inning of both games one and two of the Wild Card Series. In both games, he entered with two outs. In game two, he entered with runners on first and third. During his time with the Red Sox, the only time he entered a game in the middle of an inning was his first appearance, back on August. In every other appearance he made for the team (19 games), he was given a clean inning.

That’s not at all an excuse for the performance, but it is interesting to note that he spent all of August and September pitching in clean innings, and then was put in a new situation in the postseason. I don’t know if that matters, but it’s food for thought.

Best Game or Moment

Miller didn’t have any signature moments, but he was dominant for a time. He threw two scoreless innings in the 13 inning game against the White Sox, striking out three hitters in the process. In late August, he struck out the side on 13 pitches to send the game to extra innings.

The Big Question

Is his control problem fixable? The Red Sox have had success at getting historically wild pitchers such as Aroldis Chapman and Tyron Guerrero in the zone, but couldn’t do the same for Jordan Hicks. If they can get Miller throwing strikes consistently, he’ll be dominant.

Something stuck with me over the last two months that I never actually got around to looking into, until now. I’m a regular listener of the Effectively Wild podcast on FanGraphs, with Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley, and in August they did a stat blast that happened to involve the Dodgers.

A listener wondered what was the longest succession of the same first name batting consecutively in a starting lineup, and it turned out to be the 1988 Dodgers who topped the list. In two different games, the Dodgers had these four players batting in order, fifth through eighth:

• Mike Marshall, first base
• Mike Davis, right field
• Mike Deveraux, center field
• Mike Scioscia, catcher

Four straight players with the same first name is the record, so let’s look into the two games in question from 38 years ago.

Rainouts are so rare at Dodger Stadium, that the preemptive rescheduling in August 2023 due to a tropical storm was the first schedule change due to rain in Los Angeles in 23 years, the longest such streak in major league history. The previous record without a rainout was also at Dodger Stadium, between rainouts in 1988 and 1999.

But in 1988, the Dodgers had three home rainouts in a row, from April 19-21 against the San Diego Padres. Then on Friday, April 22 the Dodgers’ opener in San Francisco was also rained out. Figuring out when to make up that Friday game was a sore spot for the Giants, due to a right provided players in the collective bargaining agreement. From Sam McManis at the Los Angeles Times:

It began even before the first pitch, when a vote of Dodger players overturned the Giants’ plans for making up Friday night’s rainout on Monday night–originally a day off for the teams. Since teams are not required to come to the ballpark for more than 20 consecutive days, the Dodgers could–and did–veto the plans of Giant General Manager Al Rosen. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader in July.

“It’s difficult for me to understand why a team that had four days off can invoke the 20-day rule,” an indignant Rosen said. “Seems to me they would want to go back to work.”

The Dodgers would make up the Friday rainout on July 26, and won both games of that doubleheader.

But for the Saturday, April 23 game, it was Mike Marshall who stood out. He walked and scored in the seventh inning, and singled in the eighth. In the ninth inning, the Dodgers were up 6-3 with two outs and runners on second and third base. Giants manager Roger Craig intentionally walked Pedro Guerrero to bring up Marshall.

One year earlier, also in San Francisco, Craig walked Guerrero in the 10th inning and Marshall responded with a game-winning three-run home run, then pointed into the Giants dugout as he rounded the bases.

But on April 23, 1988, Marshall was more muted when he crushed a grand slam, widening the Dodgers’ lead to 10-3. More from McManis in the LA Times:

“I don’t blame any manager for walking Pete,” Marshall said. “He’s one of the top five hitters in the National League. It’s important that I do the job, because batting in the fifth slot is important on this team. The most important thing is that, next time, maybe Pete will get to hit.”

Also in this game, Mike Scioscia singled three times and walked, and scored three runs, the latter matching his career high.

Mike Davis did not get in on the hitting party in that April 23 game, going hitless in five at-bats, with three strikeouts. After hitting 65 home runs in the previous three seasons with the A’s, Davis signed with the Dodgers before 1988. This was a different time in baseball, such that free agency was barely more than a decade old, and the Dodgers for the most part avoided free agency entirely between the disastrous signings of pitchers Don Stanhouse and Dave Goltz after 1980, until 1988.

Davis hit just .216/.279/.315 with a 75 wRC+ in his two seasons with the Dodgers, and he never played in the majors again after his age-30 season in 1989. But he’s also etched in franchise lore for working a walk off the stingy Dennis Eckersley in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the 1988 World Series, keeping the game alive for Kirk Gibson to do his thing.

Devereaux was a fifth-round draft pick of the Dodgers in 1985 out of Arizona State, and he played in 49 games for Los Angeles in 1987-88 combined. He only started 16 times for the Dodgers, including just five starts among his 30 total games in 1988. Two starts were these games to complete the consecutive Mike quartet.

The Dodgers traded Devereaux in March 1989 for another Mike, pitcher Mike Morgan, the former No. 1-overall draft pick who debuted in the majors at 18 and pitched for a dozen teams during his 22-year career.

Devereaux was 0 for 4 on April 23 against the Giants, then was 0 for 2 on May 1 at home against the St. Louis Cardinals before Franklin Stubbs pinch-hit for him in the eighth inning. Stubbs, more known as a first baseman and occasional corner outfielder in his career, remained in the game for Devereaux in center field, one of 32 career games for Stubbs in center.

In fairness to Devereaux, no Dodgers did much of anything in that May 1 game.

The Cardinals jumped on Tim Leary for six runs in the first inning and he was done after only two outs.

Meanwhile, John Tudor didn’t allow a hit in his six innings. He did walk Alfredo Griffin, he of the low 4.6-percent career walk rate, in the first inning and Devereaux reached on an error in the second. But Tudor got everyone else out, including retiring 13 in a row to finish out his six innings, and exited up seven runs.

Tudor was in his second start coming off the injured list, so the Cardinals were cautious.

“I knew I wasn’t going nine before the game,” Tudor said, per McManis in the LA Times. “But I guess at that point, it was my choice. I could have gone another inning, but I didn’t see the point. I was starting to feel a little stiff.”

“He’s an All-Star, a quality pitcher,” said Steve Sax, per the UPI game recap. “He’s gonna have days like that. We’re just not hitting right now, but the worm will turn.”

Even with the April injury, Tudor will still effective on the mound, and was leading the National League with a 2.29 ERA on August 16, when the Dodgers acquired the 34-year-old left-hander for star hitter Pedro Guerrero. Tudor allowed two or fewer runs in eight of his nine regular-season starts with the Dodgers, then allowed four runs in five innings in his lone NLCS start, and walked off the mound in the second inning of Game 3 of the World Series with an elbow injury that would eventually require Tommy John surgery in the offseason.

Back in that May 1 game, Scott Terry followed Tudor with a scoreless outing of his own to earn a three-inning save. Any chance at a combined no-hitter ended when Kirk Gibson greeted Terry with a single to open the seventh inning. But that was it for the Dodgers other than a Danny Heep walk in the eighth in a 9-0 loss.

The Mike quartet combined to go 0 for 11, but the rest of the team was just 1 for 17.

That was the last time a major league team started four players in a row with the same first name.

On Monday, we kicked off my favorite annual tradition ‘round these parts: the Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List, in which we, as a collective, will rank the top 44 prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization.

The introductory post served not just to lay out the rules and regulations, but also to nominate the first group of names for us to vote on. I think we all know who is going to earn the coveted title of No. 1 prospect now that Bryce Eldridge has moved on to higher-paying pastures, but we still need to vote! It’s that time of year, after all, and we respect the democratic process around here.

Voting will take place in the comment section this year. I will leave a list of the players to vote on in the comments, and you can click the “rec” button on the name you wish to cast your vote for. And while you’re in the comment section, stump and debate!

No. 1 prospect nominees

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

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

JacksonFlora — 21.5-year old RHP — 0.00 ERA/3.41 FIP in Low-A (1 IP); great numbers in a small sample in the playoffs (Low-A and AA)

JosuarGonzález — 19.0-year old SS — .966 OPS/139 wRC+ in the ACL (122 PA); 1.010 OPS/151 wRC+ in Low-A (153 PA)

LuisHernández — 17.10-year old SS — .917 OPS/117 wRC+ in the ACL (228 PA); .594 OPS/48 wRC+ in Low-A (98 PA)

JhonnyLevel — 19.6-year old SS — .968 OPS/134 wRC+ in Low-A (217 PA); .836 OPS/119 wRC+ in High-A (331 PA)

RamonMarquez — 21.1-year old RHP — 1.86 ERA/2.67 FIP in Low-A (29 IP); 2.48 ERA/2.45 FIP in High-A (40 IP)

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

In the cinematic classic that is Pokemon: The First Movie, there is a scene where Mewtwo and his clone army face off against the heroes and their pokemon companions. The pokemon and their clone counterparts engage in an epic battle with neither side claiming a clear advantage. The battle rages on for an eternity until eventually both sides just collapse from exhaustion.

That is how I picture the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers right now after playing 12 incredibly strenuous innings last night in game four of the 2026 World Series.

Tampa Bay came out victorious, stalling out the Brewers World Series hopes for at least one more night.

Now, they’ll have to do it all over again.

Who will be on the mound for the Rays?

Nick Martinez was the scheduled starting pitcher but after entering last night’s game in relief, delivering two scoreless innings, he might not be available to start tonight’s game for more than 1-2 innings, and that’s assuming he’s good to go.

Following the game last night, Kevin Cash said it will be all hands on deck and we know that each Rays pitcher would be willing to throw. However, realistically, Cash’s options are a lot more limited.

The Brewers offense has been relentless in grinding down the Rays pitching staff, forcing the hurlers to inflated pitch counts. The two most well rested arms for Kevin Cash to turn to will be Cleavinger and Steven Matz; Matz has made two appearances in the World Series, last pitching on Monday when he threw 17 pitches.

Tampa Bay may also call upon potential game 6 and 7 starters Drew Rasmussen and Freddy Peralta to help cover some innings. Drew Rasmussen told reporters that “I’ll be smoking hot” and both starters will need a bullpen day before their scheduled starts. It might as well be tonight!

The pitching plan is obvious for Milwaukee.

They’ll be sending the eventual National League Cy Young to the mound, Jacob Misiorowski.

However the Jacob Misiorowski of the postseason has not been the same dominant force of the Summer. His triple digit fastball isn’t generating as many whiffs and his command of his slider has been off leading to an inability to quickly put hitters away and driving up his pitch count.

Thus far in three postseason outings, Misiorowski is averaging under 5 innings a start with strikeout rate dropping to 25.5% compared to 37.9% during the regular season. During his start in game one of the World Series, Misiorowski allowed a run on 4 hits, while he walked one and struck out three over five innings pitched; the three strikeouts were the fewest he had in any start of 2026 and since striking out three Cubs in the postseason last year on October 11th, 2025.

Concluding thoughts

The Rays offense, despite walking it off last night, has been abysmal all postseason. They are currently averaging 3.5 runs a game and have a 68 wRC+, while the Brewers have a 110 wRC+. The World Series has seen the Rays unable to draw walks (4.2 BB%) or hit for power as they are collectively hitting .195/.236/.256 with only one homerun. For the Rays to have any chance of making a historic comeback, the offense needs to wake up.

There is also uncertainty regarding Junior Caminero who suffered a thus far undisclosed injury during the game last night. It looks like he might have gotten hurt during the play in the 4th inning, in which Caminero avoided a tag from David Hamilton. Later in the game, Caminero noticeably had difficulty making it up the line on a groundout. Then in the 12th, he also was seen in pain as he reached base on an error. He was still able to race to third base on Liam Hicks’ basehit but was then removed for Cedric Mullins.

Caminero told reporters that he would play in game five, but given his injury situation it may make things tricky for Kevin Cash in terms of a defensive lineup.

There are a lot of important decisions to be made between now and first pitch later tonight.

Since he was called up in 2023, Jake Irvin has been an ever-present in the Nats rotation. He has been a durable arm, tallying 595.1 innings since he got called up. In the first half of the 2024 season, Irvin flashed middle of the rotation potential. However, he has been on a downward slide since then.

Irvin has posted an ERA well over 5 in each of the past two seasons. As the Nats look to take the next step, Irvin may not be a fit in the rotation anymore. While Irvin is durable and seems like a great guy off the field, the results just have not been there. He has been plagued by home run problems and has been unable to capture that early 2024 magic.

Jake Irvin will be arbitration eligible this offseason entering his age 30 season. That means Paul Toboni will have to make a decision about whether to keep Irvin around. Honestly, there are cases for both sides, which I will break down.

According to the MLB Trade Rumors projections, bringing back Irvin will not exactly break the bank. He is expected to make around $3.4 million next season if the Nats tender him a contract. That is not nothing, but it is not some huge number either.

While the last two years have not been pretty, I think there is a path for Irvin to be worth this much and maybe even a bit more. Irvin posted a 5.48 ERA this season, but he did generate more swing and miss. He struck out 110 batters in 106.2 innings, or 9.28 K/9. That is by far the best mark of his career. For context, he only struck out 6.20 per 9 in 2025.

Irvin had plenty of issues in 2026, but his curveball was extremely effective. Batters hit just .161 against the pitch with a 34% whiff rate. It is an unusual curveball that moves a lot like a sweeper. Irvin’s curve has always been solid, but it was better than ever in 2026.

His 4-seam fastball also generated pretty good results. Batters hit just .242 with a 23.6% whiff rate against that offering. That is not elite, but it is a rock solid mark, especially for a 93 MPH fastball. Those two pitches worked well for Irvin, the issue is that everything else was very bad.

Hitters absolutely teed off on Irvin sinker, with a .338 average and .676 slugging percentage. He also struggled to find another secondary pitch to complement the curveball. His cutter and sweeper were not very good, while his changeup flashed, but he only threw it 7.8% of the time. 

Another aspect of Irvin’s game that is problematic is his velocity fluctuations. He often started games throwing in the 94-96 MPH range pretty consistently. However, by the time the third inning rolled around, he would be sitting between 90-93. 

A lot of these characteristics lead me to believe Irvin would be better off in a bullpen role. It would allow him to throw harder and shrink his arsenal. I think Irvin could be a solid middle reliever who leans heavily on his 4-seamer and curveball.

However, is a guy who could be a decent middle reliever worth $3.4 million? I am not so sure about that. With how the past couple of years have gone, I am not very high on Irvin as a starter. He will post every 5th day, but on a team that has real aspirations, I don’t think he will be effective enough.

This will be an intriguing decision for the Nats early this offseason. I actually think Irvin has some talent, but it is unlikely to work as a starter. The Nats also have a plethora of multi-inning relief options. In my opinion, Irvin is surplus to requirements at this point, but it would not be unreasonable to tender him a contract.

There is no doubt that one of the biggest weaknesses for the Royals in 2026 was the bullpen. Royals relievers had a 5.07 ERA overall, second-worst in baseball, with 26 blown saves and a league-worst 6.65 ERA in the ninth inning. J.J. Picollo acknowledged it as a top priority in his end-of-the-year press conference, when he indicated that the “bullpen is going to be a focus for us” in the offseason.

It might be tempting to take a shortcut and splurge in the free agent market to upgrade the pen. But the Royals have tried that before. Before the 2024 season, Picollo signed free agent relievers Will Smith and Chris Stratton, paying them a combined $13 million. In 2024, they pitched in 102 games, combining for a 5.98 ERA.

Ah, but maybe the problem was that they were shopping in the bargain bin? Let’s look at all of last year’s top free agent relievers who signed for $7 million or more and how they fared.

The results are pretty mixed. Of the 14 pitchers, I think you can say Tyler Rogers, Luke Weaver, Raisel Iglesias, and Gregory Soto were unqualified successes, while the rest either had injury issues or were ineffective.

The two World Series participants, the Brewers and Rays, do not have a single member of their bullpen who was signed as a Major League free agent aside from Steven Matz, who was signed as a starter. Instead, the found quality relievers through a number of different avenues – the draft (Ian Seymour, Aaron Ashby), international signings (Abner Uribe), minor league trades (Garrett Cleavinger, Chad Patrick, Trevor Megill, Grant Anderson), major league trades (Bryan Baker, Tyler Wells, DL Hall, Antonio Senzatela), cash considerations (Cole Sulser), minor league deals (Cam Booser), and the Rule 5 draft (Kevin Kelly).

The Brewers and Rays illustrate a different way to build a bullpen. Rather than paying a premium for established relievers, they assembled their relief corps through a variety of avenues, giving them more chances to find undervalued talent. Not every acquisition works, of course, but spreading the risk across several pitchers makes it easier to absorb a miss without having an expensive contract clog up the bullpen.

Of the top 50 relievers with the lowest ERAs last year, only seven were originally acquired by their team as a major league free agent – Aroldis Chapman, Taylor Clarke, Raisel Iglesias, Yuki Matsui, Tyler Rogers, Tanner Scott, and Luke Weaver. Free agent relievers tend to be old, and older relievers tend to be less effective. In 2012, Bill Petti and Jeff Zimmerman at FanGraphs found relievers “age more dramatically than starters.” Their velocity drops, their strikeout rates decline, and their walk rates rise.

Relievers also tend to have volatile performances on a year-by-year basis. Petti also found reliever performance was much more erratic on a season-by-season basis than for starters. Craig Edwards at FanGraphs looked at the bust rate for relievers in 2017 and found that while elite relievers tend to meet projections, “merely ‘good’ relievers had more trouble.” Relievers have smaller samples of performance to evaluate, leaving open the possibility that a few bad outings or plain bad luck can turn a promising season into a disappointing one. That makes it risky to pay a premium for a reliever based on one strong season, particularly when projecting how he’ll perform over a multiyear contract.

Instead, smaller-market clubs should value flexibility. If a free-agent reliever on a multiyear, multimillion-dollar deal endures a rough stretch, a team can find itself stuck with him, reluctant to eat the remaining salary or risk losing him for nothing. But if the bullpen is populated by lower-cost pitchers, the team has more options. A struggling reliever with minor-league options can be sent down to work things out, while another can be released without leaving a significant financial hole. The club can cycle through arms until it finds the right combination, giving opportunities to younger pitchers or taking a chance on someone else’s castoffs.

Of course, this approach isn’t without drawbacks. Cheap relievers are cheap for a reason, and a bullpen built entirely from unproven arms can become a revolving door of ineffectiveness. There is something to be said for coaching and pitcher development, areas in which the Rays and Brewers have excelled in for a long time. The Royals need to be on the cutting edge of development as well. They need to find enough quality among those lower-cost options to build a reliable group while reserving the biggest investments for pitchers who offer a meaningful advantage over the alternatives.

For the Royals, this may mean cultivating in-house options that show signs of success, like Steven Cruz and Nate Pearson, and supplementing them with pitchers acquired through other means. Picollo suggested the team will look at pitchers who provide a variety of “different looks” or “different stuff,” giving hitters a wide range of arm angles, pitch shapes, and velocity profiles to contend with.

That could mean trying more pitchers like Jose Cuas, who throws from different arm angles. It could mean trying more pitchers like Carlos Durán, who excels with a slider, but struggle with command. It could mean trying more pitchers like Nolan Hoffman, who throws from a lower arm angle.

But it is clear that the solution won’t come exclusively from spending lavishly on free agents. The Royals have already tried that approach, and it hasn’t consistently produced the results they need.

“We plan to be aggressive in acquisition,” J.J. Picollo said at his end-of-season press conference, before cautioning that he didn’t want that to be mistaken for being “aggressive in payroll.” He noted that the Royals ranked among the top five teams in bullpen spending over the previous three seasons, but the results have been mixed.

The lesson isn’t that the Royals should stop spending on relievers, but that spending more money doesn’t necessarily translate into a better bullpen. They need to be more effective at identifying which pitchers are worth investing in, while continuing to look for value, and maintaining flexibility. It shouldn’t take much to upgrade an awful bullpen. But the Royals need to get to the top of the league if they want to return to the postseason.

The second 2022 first-round pick to debut for the Braves this season, Owen Murphy got less of a chance than JR Ritchie to make an impression, not making his debut until July 6 and getting just five appearances spanning 12 innings.

How Acquired

Murphy was the 16th overall selection in the 2022 MLB Draft with the Braves’ first first-round draft pick, 19 picks ahead of their selection of Ritchie in Competitive Balance Round A. The right-handed pitcher from Riverside, Illinois signed for $2.55 million, well below the $3.41 million slot value, electing to pass on his commitment to Notre Dame.

What were the expectations?

Murphy was somewhat of a slow riser through the minors. He debuted in rookie-ball in 2022 but didn’t reach Double-A until 2026, in part because of Tommy John surgery in June 2024 which kept him out for most of the 2025 campaign. He was excellent upon his return, posting a 1.19 ERA, 2.29 FIP and 2.94 xFIP over seven starts and 30 1/3 innings between the FCL Braves and Rome in 2025, with 34 strikeouts and just six walks.

He started the season as Battery Power’s fourth-ranked prospect in the organization, and was getting fringy rotation regular grades (e.g., a 45+ FV from FanGraphs). That said, he wasn’t really thought of as a guy that could immediately jump in and help in 2026, as the general timeline saw him as a 2027-ish debut.

2026 Results

But, he made his debut in 2026 anyway, and it was a promotion that was at least partially driven by necessity. Martin Pérez was placed on the IL when he was hit by a comebacker amidst a(nother) cursed run of starter injury luck, and Murphy was the next guy up. Given those circumstances, it wasn’t clear what exactly the Braves should have expected from Murphy. But, as noted, they didn’t have too many options.

Prior to being called up, Murphy wasn’t exactly thriving in the minors, with a 4.44 ERA and 4.67 FIP across 16 starts (11 of them at Triple-A). With that said, he was certainly improving as the season went along, with an ERA and FIP in the low 3.00s in the even outings before his callup.

With all that said, major league debuts don’t get much more intense than Murphy’s, when he was tasked with pitching the 10th inning of a game against the Mets on July 6. He was unable to do get the job done, retiring the first two batters before hitting a batter and giving up a two-run double. The Braves got one run back in the bottom of the inning, but lost by a score of 7-6.

He was much better in his second appearance, delivering three perfect innings with three strikeouts. But over his final three outings spanning one July start and two September relief appearances, he gave up 16 hits and eight runs (seven earned) over eight innings.

The right-hander finished with a -0.3 fWAR, a 7.49 xERA, 6.93 FIP and 5.37 xFIP over 12 innings.

Murphy was a Triple-A All-Star, with a 3.07 ERA (66 ERA-), a 4.23 FIP (90 FIP-) and a strikeout percentage of 24.2% in Gwinnett.

What went right?

While walks have been an occasional problem throughout Murphy’s time in the organization, they were not his issue at the major league level this season. He walked just three batters in 12 innings for a 5.4 percent walk rate. He also had a 34.7% chase percentage, which is borderline elite. Those two things probably went hand-in-hand: Murphy pounded the zone, so he got a lot of swings, even at non-strikes.

His pitches also all showed pretty good shape — which is probably a necessity given his lack of velocity.

Murphy’s lone unequivocally good outing came when he threw three innings while the Braves were down three runs. He breezed through the Cardinal lineup, basically getting a mix of easy flies and strikeouts. Unfortunately, the Braves weren’t able to mount a comeback.

What went wrong?

While Murphy did miss quite a few bats, the contact against him was loud when he wasn’t inducing whiffs.

His barrel percentage (11.6 percent), average exit velocity (92.4 mph) and hard-hit percentage (48.8 percent) were all well above the major league averages. This led to a situation where his four-seamer had a .333 xwOBA-against, but his other three offerings were in the no-go zone of at least a .400 xwOBA-against.

A lot of this can be tied to a total lack of command, as all of his secondaries were pretty much all over the place, and the fastball was “in the zone” without Murphy showing any real ability to keep it out of scary areas. Even the slider, which he at least had the idea of consistently locating on a corner, ended up over the plate — and the curve’s location was just a big mess.

All of this culminated in a very high fly ball rate, and four homers in his last three outings, as batters found it exceedingly easy to pull the ball in the air on pretty much all of his offerings. That’s what Luis Torrens did to hit that game-winning double in Murphy’s MLB debut, and it just continued further from there.

2027 Outlook

The more Murphy pitched for the Braves, it became more clear he wasn’t quite ready to stick at the major league level.

That makes this offseason, with that experience under his belt, a critical one for his future. Assuming there is baseball in 2027, the state of the Braves’ pitching staff health will likely provide Murphy another opportunity to pitch at the major league level.

He turned 23 in September, so time isn’t anywhere close to running out yet. But after four of his first five major league appearances came out of the bullpen, this could be an offseason to define his role.

If his command gets to “playable,” his offspeed stuff can start missing more bats, and his walks stay down, could he be a reliever even if his fastball velocity isn’t elite for a right-handed pitcher? You don’t want to bail on him as a starter yet, especially after he’s been good at that role in the minor leagues since returning from Tommy John, but early returns in the majors weren’t great. The Braves might want to wait until he really shows an ability to dominate the minors before giving him another shot… but their hand might be forced by injuries, as has happened repeatedly over the last few years. Hopefully, Murphy has made some improvements by then.

Assuming Tarik Skubal will be the Mets’ biggest move this offseason (he said hopefully), what do you predict will be their second biggest move this offseason? It can be either a player type (a 1B, another SP, etc.) or a specific name if you have one. – Supremeinteligencia on Threads

First of all, I received a few versions of this question, so consider this my answer to all variations (@BelieveMetsBlog, this means you and your question about signing both Skubal and Holmes, too!)

I do not know exactly how Steve CohenandDavid Stearns view Skubal’s role in their offseason at this moment, but what I have gleaned from conversations is the following: Stearns and his like-minded colleagues in the front office will be reluctant to give Skubal a long-term deal, but they also anticipate that Cohen will push for it anyway. Skubal meets their biggest need. They have more long-term payroll flexibility than it seems -- and more flexibility after next year than other contenders who might jump in but be deterred by a potential salary cap. Skubal just makes sense here.

Still, I think Stearns and Co. have to – and will, unless Skubal signs immediately – conduct their offseason in a way that assumes they will not get him. To me, that means pursuing other impactful starting pitching additions in one form or another. So my guess for the biggest non-Skubal addition to the Mets roster is a solid starting pitcher, but I think that person could take many forms.

If Clay Holmes opts out (as expected) and Michael King opts out (not impossible with two years and $50 million left on his deal), I think the Mets will likely pursue both or either. People I’ve talked to on both sides believe Holmes is open to a reunion for the right deal, but for Holmes and King, the usual Stearns caveats apply: If they are looking for years upon years in their next deals, instead of high average annual value, he probably will not give them.

But if the Mets sign Skubal and still need to add, I could see them pursuing a similar deal to the one they made for Peralta this year, plucking a proven guy about to hit free agency away from a team that will not pay him. Joe Ryan from Minnesota, Nick Martinez (big mutual option in Tampa), Drew Rasmussen (also potentially big option in Tampa), George Kirby and others fit this profile. I do not know exactly how the Mets feel about any of those players in particular, other than Derek Falvey’s experience with Ryan in Minnesota should mean they can make an informed decision about his ability to survive New York. But I think even if Skubal signs, another biggish-name starter could still be on the way.

That said: Don’t rule out Teruaki Sato as a big addition. Stearns went to see him in Japan firsthand as soon as the Mets' season ended. You don’t make that trip if you aren’t seriously considering making a push for him.

What is your read on Bo Bichette's decision? If he opts in, will they still be willing to spend? And if he opts out, what’s their plan? - @UncIeSteveCohen

My read – and it is truly just my read, because no one has said anything to me definitively – is that Bichette will opt in. I say that for a few reasons, one of which is as simple as he did not look like a player saying his goodbyes when he left Washington on the last day of the season. Plus, that day, both Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor spoke like they expected to have him back more than simply hoped for it. But reading into things like that is risky and certainly is not enough to say anything for sure.

The other evidence I have is that people around the Mets – so people who spend time around the team daily but are not necessarily in decision-making capacities to know first-hand – also seem fairly convinced Bichette will stay. He has spoken glowingly of Andy Green. He seems to want to prove he can succeed in New York. And frankly, he isn’t going to get anywhere near the average annual value on another deal they gave him on this one. He seemed to settle into the clubhouse down the stretch, much like everyone did. So read into that what you will.

If he does opt in, I still believe the Mets will spend. They do have a lot of financial bloat on the books next year in Kodai Senga's contract, Sean Manaea's deal, Jorge Polanco's remaining $20 million, and Marcus Semien's remaining $46 million. But owners have said that even if the collective bargaining negotiations result in a salary cap, they do not expect it to be phased in for a few years, meaning the Mets have time to clear that bloat before they would have to adjust to any new rules.

Plus, a salary cap might not materialize. Even if it does, Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, Nolan McLean, Christian Scott, Zac Thornton, and others will be low-cost pieces of an emerging core. This is Cohen. If he sees a chance to win, he will spend. History proves it.

So if Bichette opts out, I think the Mets make a big push for Sato or another corner bat.

If he opts in, I think they still explore Sato as a first base option, then try to decide where Bichette fits best in their infield next year. Top prospect Jefferson Rojas will almost certainly be in major league camp next season, whenever that is. Some people around the Mets believe he fits best at third base. In that situation, could the Mets consider moving Bichette to second? Potentially. But they could also try Rojas or whichever prospect emerges at second to push Semien. Green and Stearns already said Semien will need to hit better in 2027 to receive consistent playing time. So maybe if Bichette returns, the Mets go with an infield of Bichette, Lindor, Semien/Baty/eventually a prospect, and… Sato? Jared Young? Another outside first base option? If Bichette opts in, they have plenty of choices.

Are the Mets looking to add to the bullpen before the lockout? - @JahrellC

Well, as you know, since you are asking this, the Mets definitely have to add to their bullpen. I have not gotten a sense of how much Stearns believes they need in terms of number of guys or how many back-end types, but they have a need there.

The other thing I know for sure is that Stearns is a "do what the market allows" kind of guy. If free agency and the trade market are moving like crazy before the lockout, I think Stearns will make his push accordingly.

In other words, yes, I think they will add bullpen help before the lockout. But what I’m still trying to figure out is exactly how much and what kinds of help they’re envisioning.

Which prospect in Triple-A will help the 2027 Mets first? – indolentrascal on Threads

Great question. Given the way Benge and Ewing impacted the Mets early last year, I bet Stearns will not hesitate to give someone else an early chance, especially if Semien struggles to find himself offensively at second.

My current guess is Rojas. He hit like crazy after he was traded from the Cubs and has looked strong in the Dominican Winter League, which isn’t the big leagues, but is nevertheless a high-profile place to face people who have pitched in MLB.

My sense from talking to people around the Mets is that he is more polished, perhaps, than some of the other infielders. Mitch Voit climbed fast last year and impressed so much defensively that the Mets tried moving him around the infield. Émilien Pitre looks like a very Stearns-y contact and speed guy who could play second in a pinch. Any of them could be the choice to push Semien if he struggles, but I would bet Rojas gets the longest early chance.