Category: MLB

The Orioles never seemed like they were entirely sure what to do with Tyler Wells. Count him as a starter for a potentially competitive rotation? Stick him in the bullpen and let him rip? It went back and forth for a while, with a long layoff due to Tommy John surgery in the middle there. Heading into 2026, the O’s had finally committed to Wells as a reliever. The results were so great that when trade deadline season arrived, Wells generated enough interest that the Orioles “had to” trade him.

They didn’t actually have to trade Wells, of course, just like they didn’t have to trade Adley Rutschman or Dean Kremer. They could have held onto him if they believed he could be a good part of the 2027 Orioles bullpen. Mike Elias decided that getting back one of the prospects he traded to the Rays in the Shane Baz deal – pitching prospect Michael Forret – was worth parting with Wells. The 6’8” righty went on to pitch in the World Series with his new team.

It’s not much surprise that Wells had managed to bring about trade interest. He was getting masterful results that were getting better as the season went along. By July, Wells was frequently in the mix of where you could call him the Orioles closer, or at least an Orioles closer. He pitched 14 games that month, picking up four saves and a win. Wells went multiple innings more than once. He had a 1.10 ERA in July.

That’s probably what did it for the trade interest. Other teams would want Wells, not just for the rest of this season but knowing they could control him for 2027 for relatively cheap – projected around $4 million. Elias would be tempted to think it was the time to sell high on a potentially volatile relief asset. That’s what he ended up doing, bringing back a pitcher who was at the Triple-A level and could be close to making a difference for the MLB team.

The thing about Wells that makes him volatile is that he is an extreme fly ball pitcher. This was already true prior to this year, when Wells was typically at a ground ball rate around just 33% for his career; average pitchers are usually in the low-40s. Zack Britton, at the peak of his powers for the Orioles in 2016, had a ground ball rate of exactly 80%. For pitchers, ground balls are great. They’re most often outs. The hits are typically singles and they definitely don’t end up as homers.

In 2026, Wells ended up with a ground ball rate at 26.5%. Among pitchers with at least 50 innings pitched, Wells was literally in the bottom 5 in the league for ground ball rate. For a pitcher who was as homer-prone as Wells had been before this season, that’s a real potential problem area. There’s a small margin for error there. Slip just a little bit and you’re giving up dingers left, right, and center.

Wells mostly did not slip up this year. Just 8% of his fly balls allowed went for home runs, close to a third less than the league average of about 11%. There is an element of luck to this that will probably not carry over into 2027.

Yet there was a lot of skill and a lot of good pitching too. Wells’s Statcast page for 2026 has a whole heck of a lot of red. He was great at getting batters to swing at pitches outside of the strike zone, great at getting them to swing and miss, great at avoiding walks, and great at not having batters hit the ball hard. All of these are good ways to avoid giving up a lot of homers! Assuming you can duplicate this – which, with the Rays, his odds are probably better than if he’d stayed with the Orioles.

All of this allows Wells to succeed even when some of the predictive stats don’t believe in him as much. Counting his time with both the Orioles and Rays, Wells had a 2.38 ERA. That puts a reliever among the game’s elite for that season.

With Fielding Independent Pitching, a stat that tries to take defense out of the equation by just considering what a pitcher can control, Wells was at a still decent but much less exciting 3.38. A stat that spins further off of this, xFIP, which normalizes the home run rate, put it higher at 4.03. Make that number an ERA and that’s basically Anthony Nunez’s season-long number in 2026. Not much interesting about any reliever with a 4+ ERA.

What’s the real Wells for 2027 going to be? If he loses just a little bit of the edge going into his age 32 season, it could go a lot worse for him. If he duplicates this, Elias could end up looking like an idiot. It wouldn’t be the first time, even if we limit the discussion to the Orioles trading a reliever to the Rays.

Maybe both teams will be happy with what they get out of the trade, if Forret becomes some kind of solid pitcher for the Orioles – maybe as soon as next year – and Wells helps the Rays again next year. There are such things as win-win trades out there.

Good morning.

The GM meetings begin this week in Las Vegas and Mark Feinsand writes that there is potential for it to be busier than usual with the impending lockout looming next month.

Mike Axisa checks out a handful of under-the-radar free agents, one of which is recent Rangers leadoff hitter Joc Pederson.

The 20th annual Fall Stars Game was played yesterday in Arizona Fall League action and MLB dot com’s Jesse Borek and Tim Crowley write about how each prospect fared, including a quartet of Rangers farmhands.

Have a nice day!

Happy Monday, everyone! Not a ton of news stories to update you on, but we’ve got little bits to make sure you’re in the know about everything going on in baseball. The Tigers are keeping an eye on some Japanese free agents; a former Tiger may not be retiring the way many expected he would; and a former All-Star might be taking an unexpected stance in MLB and MLBPA’s labor disagreement.

That and more below, so let’s just jump right into it.

Detroit Tigers News

• The Tigers are scouting some Japanese talent this offseason and were evidently also interested in signing Shota Imagana at one point. The Tigers have been one of many teams showing interest in Teruaki Sato and Kaima Taira, but it remains to be seen how serious they actually are about acquiring fresh international talent.

MLB News

• Former Tiger Max Scherzer might not be done with baseball just yet, after all.
• The best free agents available by position.
• Seiya Suzuki has never been an All-Star but he might be one of the best free agents available this offseason.
• Could the Yankees’ pitching rotation be even better in 2027?
• Chris Sale’s three seasons with the Braves have been historically great.
• How can the Cubs fix their starting rotation problem?
• How can the Yankees and Mets meet their goals for 2027?
• Pedro Martinez urges MLB and players to come to an agreement, reflecting on the 1994 strikes.
• Jyun-Yue Tseng of Taiwan’s Fubon Guardians is entering MLB’s posting system.
• A tear-jerker of a story about a hidden gem baseball card shop that has gone unexpectedly viral. ($)
• Cody Bellinger and Pete Crow-Armstrong are now Platinum Glove winners. ($)
• Can’t tell if sarcasm…

• I don’t care that this isn’t technically directly related to baseball, it’s still very, very cute.

• A throwback to World Cup shenanigans.

• The best free agents available by position.

Even with the lockout looming-slash-pending, the GM Meetings are still happening in Las Vegas this week.

Will they be weirder than usual? More action, because the lockout is pending? Or, less action, because teams and/or players have been instructed to keep their jets on a substantially cool setting as a labor negotiating position?

The MLB.com article noted that a ton of money in huge deals was handed out ahead of the last CBA. This isn’t a very strong free agent market, but teams could still hand out a lot of cash to Tarik Skubal and Trevor Rogers… provided that there’s any interest in doing so ahead of the lockout itself.

Alex Anthopoulos always says that these meetings are places to lay groundwork for deals rather than complete deals themselves, but his view isn’t a unaninmous one. So, more action, less action, or the same amount of action? What say you?

In resetting the bullpen for 2027, there is one lefty that might represent a reasonable snag for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Nick Lodolo’s recent injuries and middling results could create a buying opportunity, particularly if the Reds aren’t convinced he has another level to reach. His projected $5.7 million salary for 2027 is affordable enough for the Rays to take a chance on a pitcher who already has a major-league track record, but the Reds’ willingness to move him – and the prospect cost – would determine whether he is a realistic target.

There are a few areas of Lodolo’s arsenal that could benefit from some adjustments, but he already does several things really well. The first is his unique, low-slot delivery from the left side. He further adds to this deception by throwing the ball across his body with a long arm action.

Another strength of Lodolo is the consistency of his pitch locations. This is measured by something I call “command deltas.” His location consistency of most of his pitches has been comfortably above-average throughout his career:

Lodolo’s breaking ball showed roughly average location consistency in previous seasons, but that consistency declined in 2026. He experimented with a new grip in July, around the same time the location data began to deteriorate. The timing raises the possibility that he hasn’t fully developed a feel for the new shape, although the available data can’t establish whether the grip change is responsible.

If the new shape isn’t producing a meaningful improvement in movement or results, reverting to the previous grip would be worth considering. Here’s Lodolo’s heat map for his breaking ball from March through June of this year:

And then July through the end of the year:

Lodolo’s changeup has limited velocity and VAA separation from his fastballs, potentially limiting its ability to disrupt hitters’ timing and generate swings and misses.

An alternative grip could help him create a more distinct offering, though any change would need to be evaluated by its resulting movement, location, and performance. Lodolo currently employs a more traditional offspeed grip that looks similar to a circle-change:

Lodolo could experiment with alternative changeup grips, including a spiked or split grip, to see whether he can create greater movement and separation from his fastballs. His current offspeed pitch has about six mph of velocity separation, so there may be an opportunity to develop a more distinct offering. Whether a new grip produces better depth, more velocity separation, or improved swing-and-miss would need to be evaluated through testing.

Regardless, Lodolo’s release traits give him a foundation for continuing to attack left-handed hitters with his fastball and breaking ball.

Adding some changeups could provide a different speed and movement profile, giving hitters another look without requiring a wholesale change to his existing approach. It would also fit with the Rays’ recent interest in using offspeed pitches against same-handed hitters.

His approach against righties is a little too fastball-heavy. He throws a fastball roughly 50% of the time against right-handed hitters, split between his four-seamer (30%) and two-seamer (20%). Against right-handed hitters, Lodolo’s four-seamer has substantially outperformed his two-seamer: it has allowed a .300 wOBA and generated a 26.4% whiff rate, compared with a .442 wOBA and 14.4% whiff rate on his two-seamer. Shifting more of his fastball usage toward the four-seamer looks like his clearest opportunity for improvement. His two-seamer could still be thrown front-door to righties early in counts when they’re less likely to swing, and an adjustment in position on the rubber could create a difficult angle on those pitches to make them more effective even if hitters do swing.

Nick Lodolo is already a good major-league pitcher, with distinctive release traits and a foundation of consistent pitch location. For the Rays, he could be an affordable trade target with several plausible avenues for improvement:

• Evaluate whether his new breaking-ball grip offers enough movement or performance gains to justify the decline in location consistency, and consider returning to his previous grip if it doesn’t.
• Experiment with alternative changeup grips to create more separation from his fastballs, judging any changes by their movement, command, and ability to generate swings and misses.
• Introduce the changeup more often against left-handed hitters as a secondary look, and test whether greater usage against righties can generate more chase and whiffs.
• Against righties, shift fastball usage toward the more effective four-seamer and reduce reliance on the two-seamer, while retaining the latter as a situational option.

Lodolo wouldn’t need every adjustment to work for the trade to pay off. The appeal is that he already has a major-league foundation, and the Rays could explore several targeted changes without needing to overhaul his entire arsenal.

One of the biggest positions of emphasis for the Houston Astros has to be center field. One of the things I like to do is take a look at past results while also defining our terms. There are a number of metrics we will look at in this edition and some of you will be unfamiliar with some of them. Obviously, we start with the standard SLASH statistics (AVG/OBP/SLG) and go from there.

We can derive a few different numbers from those including isolated power and isolated patience. ISO power is calculated by subtracting batting average from slugging percentage. Isolated patience is derived by subtracting batting average from on base percentage. We can then take those two and add them together for the basis of secondary average. Secondary average includes a base running element we will not include. However, we can take that product and add it to batting average and divide by two to get a number I will call real offensive value (ROV). If secondary average is everything a hitter does that does not include batting average then averaging that number with batting average should give us an overall look at the player’s contributions.

Finally, we get bases per out. Those of you that have been frequent readers are familair with the stat, but we will reset in case anyone is new to this. You take total bases, walks, stolen bases, and hit by pitches and then divide that sum by the total number of outs a player accrues. Any time we take a look at a position this winter we should start by looking where the league is on these numbers and where the Astros were to get a frame of reference to go on.

Obviously, the Astros have their own secret sauce in how they look at these things. They are armed with servers and advanced software. I am armed with a ten year old Macbook. However, all of these numbers show the same thing to varying degrees. The Astros center fielders were decidedly below average when compared to the MLB universe. Keep in mind the MLB universe includes every positions and both part time players and regular players. So, finishing this far under average at a position like center field is not promising.

The goal should be to get back to the MLB average. Anything above and beyond that is gravy. Assuming this team keeps everyone we would surmise that Yordan Alvarez, Jeremy Pena, Isaac Paredes, and Carlos Correa are all significantly above average. Yainer Diaz, Christian Walker, and Jose Altuve are closer to the league average. So, if the Astros can get average performance out of center field and left field then they will have an offense that is significantly above average overall.

Internal Candidates

There are three players that likely will challenge for the position as it stands now. We can presume that Jake Meyers is likely out since he has been DFAed. There is always the possibility that he could stick on a minor league contract and get an opportunity, but we will look at Brice Mathews, Lucas Spence, and Zach Cole. Since Mathews is the only one to get extensive major league time, we will look at their numbers from their collective minor league careers.

Keep in mind we are talking about minor league numbers. These will include all the way down to A ball and through AAA. This is probably a Jimmy Price question. I do not have a minor league to major league decoder ring. All I know is that in all likelihood, most players will not produce at the big league level what they produced at the minor league level. Cole barely produced an .801 OPS during his minor league career. The other two did not get there. So, the likelihood of any of these guys being significantly above average is probably not all that good.

Keep in mind that the average OPS was .718, so I suppose there is hope that one of them could turn some magic beans into ML average performance. Obviously, Spence is the darling after his September performance, but he has the least impressive minor league numbers of the three. His K rate is the only one under 25 percent though, so he might have the upper hand coming into camp.

Free Agent Options

All five of these players have one thing in common. They all have had one really magical season that has captivated scouts and fans alike. It is tempting to look at the back of their baseball card and dream about them repeating that one season. These numbers are their career numbers and probably closer to what fans can hope for. Ironically, Mullins and Varsho demonstrate a significant difference between ROV and BPO. BPO has a base running element and Mullins is obviously more of a threat there.

On the surface, all five look like they are better than the league average. That is of course assuming that each can reach their career averages in 2027. It also assumes they can stay healthy which we know is an issue in some cases. Finally, it does not even include their fielding numbers. So, there is a ton that goes into these decisions, but at first blush it would appear like any of them would be better than what the Astros threw out there last season for much of the season.

Trade Candidates

This is my least favorite portion of the analysis. I hate speculating on who might be available. So, we are combining Spotrac’s trade list and adding Jarren Durran who the Red Sox and Astros flirted around last season. Boston is one of the rumored destinations for Jeremy Pena, so there is always the possibility that Durran could be coming back. This does not include any AA or AAA level players that could be close to being ready that could be involved in a theoretical deal.

Duran is similar to the free agents above. He has one really good season to his name and that is buttressing his numbers some. Last season he produced a .207/.266/.361 slash line, but that includes a .210 ROV and .586 BPO, So, acquiring Duran is a bet on two things. First, that he will bounce back from that season and come closer to 2024 and 2025 when he played at an all-star level. Secondly, it is a bet that he can continue to be a plus defender. He can become a free agent in 2029 under current rules, so you would be getting two more years of club control.

The other three have varying levels of fielding ability, but none of them are likely to be even average performers offensively. Such a trade would have to be part of a larger package where you are settling for an overall average cnterr fielder and hopefully improving another slot at the same time. So, if you are trading for a big league center fielder then you are probably going to be disappointed. There are likely minor league options though.

Final Thoughts

It looks like the best bet will come in free agency. However, this is where things get dicey. The Astros are already up against the tax threshold as it stands. They likely have wants in the rotations, at left field, and maybe in the bullpen if they allow Bryan Abreu to walk. So, it is nice to say go out and pay for a guy, but that money might be spoken for.

Obviously, that can change if players like Christian Walker, Jeremy Pena, and/or Josh Hader are dealt. That presents opportunities to get a center fielder in exchange or at least clear out enough salary to allow them to sign one of the guys above. All five would present upgrades over the numbers put up last season. Some will be better than others but also more expensive than others. It’s part of the fun task that Randy Flores has in outfitting this team for next season.

The Orioles outfield situation was an absolute mess in the 2026 season. Though the team has moved on from a couple of players who participated in that disaster this year, a few remain projected for starting roles as things stand right now. It is imperative that this change.

In this week’s episode of the podcast, my message is simple. The Orioles need to sign a good outfielder! They don’t have a lot of leeway to try to get cute with upside plays on cheaper, likely-mediocre options. They can’t keep waiting around for their stagnated “core” players to get back on a positive track. The best way that they can solve their problems is to spend a bunch of David Rubenstein’s money on who they think will be the best of the top free agent outfield options.

Will Mike Elias actually do this? That’s the question. In a fit of optimism that I’m not completely wasting my time by doing so, I spend this week talking about the cases for guys like Seiya Suzuki, Randy Arozarena, and Ian Happ:

If the above player isn’t displaying, view this article in Incognito Mode or check it out on the show’s page.

This is my weekly podcast about whatever is going on lately with the Orioles. If you enjoyed this episode, please make sure to subscribe. You can get the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you prefer to access your podcasts.

How are you feeling about the way things are going with the Orioles as we head towards the start of the free agency period? Answers could make it into the mailbag section of a future episode of the podcast.

Meet the Mets

The National League Rookie of the Year Award will be handed out tonight and Carson Benge is one of the three announced finalists for the honor.

After a failed season, it’s only natural for the Mets to make some changes and additions for next year, and the General Managers Meetings are the perfect place to start.

Around the National League East

Just in case enough things didn’t go well for the Braves, Chris Sale in the red and blue has been better than at any point in his career.

Headed by Paul Toboni, the shrewd Nationals might have come out of the Foster Griffin deal with a robbery named Will Dion.

Around Major League Baseball

The General Manager Meetings take place this week in Las Vegas which might be more important than usual considering the sport is three weeks and a day from locking out for months.

At the same time, MLB is having their annual BBWAA Awards week and the quartet of ceremonies kicks off tonight with the Rookies of the Year.

Someone who suffered during the last sustained work stoppage in 1994, Pedro Martinez weighed in on the battle between the owners and the MLBPA.

Despite never making an All Star team and only reaching free agency at the age of 32, Seiya Suzuki might be the best hitter available on the market this offseason.

For the rest of the free agent field, it’s only fair to put together a collection of the best players at each position and MLB dot com was naturally on that.

The Home Run Derby happened! Well, not that one. Blue Jays prospect Aaron Parker won the Arizona Fall League Home Run Derby with 19 total homers.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Grace Carbone reviewed the final days of David Peterson, New York Met.

This Date in Mets History

Happy birthday to certified Mets Legend Joe Nunnally.

Japanese right-hander Shoki Oda is one of the most interesting names of the offseason, as the 18-year-old right-hander is meeting with MLB teams, including the Dodgers.

The lure of a larger bonus in the U.S. than what they might get in the NPB draft has led to some Japanese teenagers to jump stateside. Yuri Karasawa talked about this trend as well as Oda as a guest of Ben Lindbergh on an episode of the Effectively Wild Podcast last week.

Karasawa went deeper into Oda with Jordan Shusterman and Jake Mintz on the Baseball Bar-B-Cast podcast.

Eric Longenhagen at FanGraphs scouted several Japanese players available this winter, and wrote, “My sources tell me Oda is more likely to sign after the new international signing period begins in 2027 rather than try to sneak in before the end of 2026.”

Aaron Bates and the Dodgers couldn’t come to an agreement on a contract extension which led to the hitting coach and the team parting ways last week after a dozen years coaching in the organization. Bates told Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times he was initially surprised by the split, but otherwise took the high road:

“Processing it, I think that there’s always a time and a place, and I think that things run their course,” Bates said. “But I have nothing but amazing things to say about the Dodgers organization and people.”

Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich at The Athletic spoke to several baseball agents, who are aligned with one another on at least one thing — MLB should not have a salary cap. This quote is from Rafa Nieves, agent of Teoscar Hernández and others:

“The league proposals, and the way they are trying to bully the players, have united them,” Nieves said. “A year or two ago, I would have maybe answered differently. … But when you come up with these proposals, just insulting them, it is going to wrangle them together. Which is what I have noticed: They’re more united, they’re more together, they’re getting more informed.”

Over the past several weeks, many eyes have been on the future of Major League Baseball on the Arizona Fall League. And for the Braves, two of the more impressive talents this year have been Tate Soutisene and Brigg Mckenzie. Both prospects participated in the AFL All-Star game, wrapping up a really successful AFL for both players. This was a continuation of an impressive 2026 season for both players, and what the Braves hope will be a continued ascension in development.

Braves News

JR Ritchie made his MLB debut this season and pitched several times for the Braves. However, much more often than not, he did not look ready to be reliable as a member of the rotation.

Chris Sale’s production as a Brave so far in his career has been quite historic.

MLB News

With the December 1st lockout almost guaranteed to occur, the GM Meetings this week could serve as a “Winter Meetings Lite”. There could be more rumors and actions than usual this year as teams look to get some offseason work done.

Happy Monday, everyone! It has been a fairly quiet weekend news-wise, so we have a little taste of stories below, but nothing crazy breaking. We’ve got bits about a Cy Young pitcher who might not be retiring as everyone assumed, a former All-Star who is taking strange sides in the MLB/MLBPA battle, and also a look at some free agent news and rumors.

Plenty to get your week started as we wait for the hot stove to start scorching, so let’s just jump right into it.

• Max Scherzer might not be done with baseball just yet, reports Charlie Wright.
• Brian Murphy looks at how Chris Sale’s seasons with the Braves have been historically great.
• Jyun-Yue Tseng of Taiwan’s Fubon Guardians will be entering MLB’s posting system. (AP)
• I can’t tell if he’s being sarcastic.

• Mark Feinsand breaks down the best free agents available by position.
• Jorge Castillo determines how the Yankees and Mets might be able to meet their goals for 2027.
• Stephen J. Nesbitt has the best feel-good story of the year about an unexpected gem of a baseball card shop, and the old man who runs it. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• It’s not TECHNICALLY baseball-related, but it’s still very, very cute.

• Theo DeRosa wonders if the Yankees’ pitching rotation could be even better in 2027.
• Pedro Martinez reflects on the 1994 strike and urges MLB and players to come to an agreement. (ESPN)
• Cody Bellinger joins Pete Crow-Armstrong as a newly anointed Platinum Glove winner. Story by Sahadev Sharma and Dan Hayes. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Throwing it back to the World Cup shenanigans.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.

Craig Brown writes about the Hunter Mense hire.

He spoke to David Laurilla at FanGraphs back in 2022 about how he focused on improving decisions at the plate and what that did to a plate appearance.

“You’ve always heard about the professionalism of the at-bats, and that’s what you see here (in Toronto). Guys aren’t anxious to swing at every single pitch, because they know that 1) the stuff up here is really good, and 2) they have confidence to hit in every sort of count, in any situation, so they’re willing to take a pitch if it’s not one that they want to drive. They’re willing to wait, wait, wait, wait until they get the pitch they want. What that filters down to is the swing-decision aspect of hitting.

“Decision-making is so key at this level, in part because, again, the stuff is so good. They can expose you so fast, especially if you’re not a good decision-maker. They will find holes really, really fast, and are going to keep exploiting them. If you keep making bad decisions, they’re going to keep going there and expose you.”

I’m going to pause right there and say this feels like a fantastic hire for the organization. How many times did it seem like we were watching a hitter over the last couple of years who was just up there hacking? This isn’t about what the broadcast loves to harp on in things like “a 75 percent swing” or giving kudos for going the opposite way to move a runner. It’s about having a plan to find that pitch you can do damage on. That may be about going the opposite way, which is fine. But again…it’s about having a plan and finding the right pitch.

Giants fans discuss losing Hunter Mense.

But if we’re just looking at results, the lineup did turn things around after a bad start. Rafael Devers is a Silver Slugger Award finalist. Bryce Eldridge never looked overmatched. Drew Gilbert found a groove.

There were some nice things about the situation, but maybe not good enough to keep him around? It seems hard to believe that this is a personality conflict with the manager. As noted when he was hired:

Mense — pronounced “MENTZ,” like how Hunter Pence pronounces his surname — is good friends with Tony Vitello, so those who’ve been on the Vitello MLB Connections beat are being rewarded right now. Pavlovic mentions, “Both are Missouri natives and Mense played at Missouri while Vitello was an assistant coach.” This is the same setup for those Max Scherzer to the Giants rumors, by the way, and Scherzer is currently the only active major leaguer from Vitello’s time in Missouri.

The Royals signed pitcher Hobie Harris to a minor league deal.

Harris has spent the last two seasons in the Boston system. He didn’t get a major league opportunity with the Red Sox, instead pitching mostly with Triple-A Worcester. Harris posted a 4.15 ERA in 31 outings with the WooSox in 2025. Harris missed the first half of the ’26 season to injury, returning to throw 24 2/3 frames of 2.55 ERA ball down the stretch. He struck out more than a quarter of opponents but walked over 15% of batters faced, which wasn’t enough to get a look in a strong Boston bullpen.

The 33-year-old Harris has 16 games of major league experience, all of which came with the 2023 Nationals. He surrendered 12 runs (11 earned) with more walks than strikeouts across 19 1/3 innings. Harris has a 95 mph fastball but leans more heavily on his splitter and cutter. The University of Pittsburgh product carries a 4.26 ERA across parts of six Triple-A campaigns.

Justin Lamkin pitches a perfect inning in the Fall Stars Game.

The case for each Rookie of the Year finalist.

The Mets sign journeyman reliever Robert Stock to a one-year deal.

What to know about the general manager meetings this week.

Who could trade for Steven Kwan?

Taiwanese reliever Jyun-Yue Tseng will enter the posting system.

Corbin Carroll has elbow surgery but should be ready for Opening Day.

What adjustments did Ryan O’Hearn make in Pittsburgh?

Could the Cardinals trade with the Orioles for a third baseman?

The Tigers are interested in Teruaki Sato.

The Samsung Lions won the Korean Series.

An MRI did not reveal a major injury for Patrick Mahomes.

Blades Brown became the youngest PGA Tour winner in 88 years.

Where did Stonehenge’s mysterious six-tone altar stone come from?

Did the media miss that Russell Brand was a sexual predator?

Nvidia is investigating CEO Jensen Huang’s relationship with an alleged Chinese spy.

Your song of the day is The Killers with The Man.

Good morning, baseball fans!

Since the season ended, the McCovey Chronicles staff have begun doing player reviews that go over each member of the San Francisco Giants’ 2026 season. Today, I’m going to kick off our community reviews as well, where we ask you all to weigh in on how you feel like each player did this year and what your favorite highlights were.

Today, we’re going to take a look at Patrick Bailey. Steven wrote an excellent review last month that I highly encourage everyone to take a look at, if you missed it.

Ultimately, I agree with Steven’s sentiments here. Bailey had a better season with the Cleveland Guardians than he did with the Giants, and also the trade didn’t make a ton of sense and still doesn’t. But that can be said about just about everything that took place in the 2026 season, I suppose.

Given the fact that he was traded less than two months into the season, I’m giving Bailey’s Giants season an incomplete, instead of a grade. I think he probably would have improved if they hadn’t traded him. And I don’t think the season would have been any worse in that scenario, though I don’t know that it would have gotten better either. But we’ll never know.

How did you feel about Bailey’s 2026 season? And what was your favorite highlight?

Major League Baseball’s awards week will begin on Monday as the BBWAA announces the winners of all of the major awards for the 2026 season. A lot of the awards appear to have clear-cut favorites but as we have seen in the past, surprises do happen. There will be a new award featured this year as the BBWAA will recognize the best relief pitchers in each league with a Reliever of the Year Award. It is important to remember that the votes for all of these awards were cast before the postseason. 

I’m not a member of the BBWAA and probably never will be. Below you will find the finalists for each award and my pick for the winner. Let’s get to it!

NL MVP (Announced Nov 12)

Finalists:  Pete Crow Armstrong, Shohei Ohtani, Brice Turang

Shohei Ohtani has taken home three straight MVP awards, one with the Angels and the last two with the Dodgers, but that streak will come to an end in 2026. Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong turned in one of the best seasons in major league history. Crow-Armstrong became the seventh player in league history to have a 40-40 season. He led the league with 119 runs scored, drove in 107 runs and nearly lapped the field by putting up 10.6 fWAR. The only intrigue here will be whether or not Ohtani or Brewers second baseman Brice Turang, who was third in the NL with 5.9 fWAR finishes second. 

Prediction: Pete Crow-Armstrong

AL MVP (Announced Nov 12)

Finalists: Yordan Alvarez, Junior Caminero, Bobby Witt Jr. 

Things are a little less clear cut in the American League but only slightly. Astros outfielder/DH Yordan Alvarez flirted with the Triple Crown but ended up finishing second in both home runs and RBIs. His 6.8 fWAR is second to Royals’ shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. Witt’s 7.0 fWAR was largely driven by his defensive value at shortstop. He was second in the AL with 45 stolen bases, but only hit 18 home runs and finished with a 119 wRC+. Rays third baseman Junior Caminero slugged 42 home runs and drove in 100 runs and was a key piece of a Rays team that finished with the best record in the American League. 

I don’t think being on a team with a winning record is a requirement for winning MVP but I also don’t think Caminero’s success should be overlooked. He’d be my pick if I had a vote but I expect the award to go to Alvarez. 

Prediction: Yordan Alvarez

NL Cy Young (Announced Nov 11)

Finalists: Jacob Misiorowski, Chris Sale, Christopher Sanchez

I have seen some suggest that the NL Cy Young race might be closer than expected. I’m not buying it though and I believe that Jacob Misiorowski will win by a safe margin. Misiorowski led the NL in strikeout percentage, ERA, xERA, FIP and xFIP. Chris Sale and Cristopher Sanchez both put up exceptional seasons but Misiorowski was just better. Like NL MVP, the better question might be who will finish second?

Prediction Jacob Misiorowski

AL Cy Young (Announced Nov 11)

Finalists: Dylan Cease, Parker Messick, Cam Schlittler

The Cy Young award in the AL appears to be a two-horse race between Cam Schlittle and Dylan Cease. An injury to Cease in the final weeks might have provided just enough separation for Schlittler to take home the award. Schlittler logged more innings (193.2) and led the AL in ERA (1.95) and expected ERA (2.85). Cease was right behind him though and had a better strikeout rate. I think Schlittler wins this and he would get my vote, but the margin might be greater than it really should be. Cleveland’s Parker Messick finishes a distant third, but more on him in a bit. 

Prediction: Cam Schlittler

NL Rookie of the Year (Announced Nov 9)

Finalists: Carson Benge, Sal Stewart, JJ Wetherholt

If there is any drama with any of this year’s awards, then it will probably be with the Rookie of the Year award in the National League. Reds first baseman Sal Stewart led all rookies with 32 home runs and 112 RBIs but was fifth among NL rookies with 2.0 fWAR. JJ Wetherholt led the NL with 4.6 fWAR while Carson Benge finished second with 4.3. 

Now WAR isn’t the end all be all but that is a big gap between first and fifth place. If I had a vote, it would go to Benge by a slim margin over Wetherholt. However, I’m expecting the old school offensive stats to carry Stewart. 

Prediction: Sal Stewart

AL Rookie of the Year (Announced Nov 9)

Finalists: Kevin McGonigle, Parker Messick, Payton Tolle

I will admit that I have expected this award to go to Kevin McGonigle pretty much all season. He certainly didn’t disappoint while posting a 129 wRC+ and 5.4 fWAR as a rookie which was the best total for a rookie in the majors. However, he is up against two pitchers in Messick and Boston’s Peyton Tolle that played big parts in their team’s respective runs to the postseason. Messick logged more innings than Tolle and had the better ERA. Tolle had a better strikeout rate and the better expected ERA. 

You really can’t fault a vote for any of these three players. If I had one I think it would go to McGonigle. 

Prediction: Kevin McGonigle

NL Relief Pitcher of the Year (Announced Nov 11)

Finalists: Jhoan Duran, Trevor Megill, Mason Miller

The BBWAA will recognize relief pitchers for the first time ever in 2026 with the Relief Pitcher of the Year Award. Like some of the other awards, it feels like the intrigue here will be with who finishes second. Mason Miller should win this one going away after putting up 129 strikeouts in just 70 innings. He had a 1.67 ERA and a 1.17 FIP to go along with 38 saves. 

Prediction Mason Miller

AL Relief Pitcher of the Year (Announced Nov 11)

Finalists: Bryan Baker, Cade Smith, Louis Varland

Bryan Baker and Cade Smith tied for the AL lead with 41 saves, but it was Toronto’s Louis Varland that might have had the better season. Varland posted a miniscule 1.27 ERA and a 1.83 FIP in 78 innings. Smith has a slight edge in strikeout rate and he and Baker both pitched for a division winner. This one feels almost too close to call but I think my hypothetical vote would go to Varland. 

Prediction: Louis Varland

NL Manager of the Year (Announced Nov 10)

Finalists: Don Mattingly, Pat Murphy, Walt Weiss

Look I don’t know what criteria goes into winning Manager of the Year. I feel like Pat Murphy right now is the best manager in the game but he has won this award two straight times and you have to remember that voting is done before the postseason. So perhaps some voter fatigue sets in with Murphy.

Don Mattingly deserves credit for helping the Phillies turnaround their season after a tough start but they really struggled down the stretch and had to hold on to secure a spot in the postseason. Walt Weiss was in his first year as manager of the Braves after taking over for Brian Snitker. The Braves led the NL East pretty much wire to wire. 

If I had a vote, it would go to Murphy, but I think Weiss might steal this one. 

Prediction: Walt Weiss

AL Manager of the Year (Announced Nov 10)

Finalists: Kevin Cash, Chad Tracy, Will Venable

From 2023 through 2025, the White Sox lost 324 games. Will Venable guided them back to the postseason in 2026 and absolutely no one expected prior to the season. They did let the AL Central slip away late, but if this turnaround doesn’t win you a Manager of the Year Award, then I don’t know what will. 

Prediction: Will Venable

You all have mastered the art of commenting but can you name a former baseball player faster than your fellow commenters? That’s the challenge with in-5, our daily trivia game, and today we’re announcing the debut of the game in the SB Nation app (in-5 is available on the web too, you’ve probably seen it at the top of the site).

The rules are simple. You get five clues to guess a player’s name. The fewer clues you need the better. Once you’ve played, drop your score in the comments of the game post and see how you stack up.

It’s a good opportunity to see if you can beat the commenter we all know you want to beat. Maybe you get it in the coveted first clue, maybe it takes four. But share your score in the comments, whatever it is.

How to play: In-5 is a daily trivia game. You get five clues to guess a player’s name. The clues go from broadest to most specific.

Play other teams and sports: We’ve got four broader sport games for MLB, NBA, NFL, MMA, and pro wrestling, and we have 25 team-specific games across pro baseball, basketball, and football.

Tigers fans, you can also play Lions trivia by joining them on the app. To play the general MLB game, follow our “MLB” community on the SB Nation app.