PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 17: Garrett Mitchell #5 of the Milwaukee Brewers slides in safely to score a run past Henry Davis #32 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the eighth inning during the game at PNC Park on September 17, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Pittsburgh Pirates and the rest of Major League Baseball is officially in the offseason after the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5 of the World Series to clinch their first title in franchise history.
After two years of the Los Angeles Dodgers winning it all with a top-three payroll in the league, this was a stark difference. Both the Brewers and Rays finished in the bottom half of the league in terms of payroll, yet they were the two most successful teams in the league all season long.
Milwaukee finished the season with a payroll of $146.2 million, which ranked 19th in the league, while the Rays were at $95.6 million. Only the Miami Marlins and Cleveland Guardians, who lost in the American League Championship Series, had cheaper payrolls than the Rays.
The Pirates hovered right in the middle of the Brewers and Rays, with a payroll of $106.7 million, which ranked 23rd in the league. They finished the year with an 82-80 record, their best mark since the 2018 season. They snapped an eight-year streak of losing seasons this year, proving that they are making some strong decisions within the organization.
Last offseason, the Pirates made an effort to spend a little bit more than they have in the past. In 2025, the team had an $84.4 million payroll, which ranked 27th in the league, and that resulted in just 71 wins for the club. By signing players like Ryan O’Hearn and trading for Brandon Lowe in free agency, the Pirates were able to improve their win total by 11 games, which could be a sign of what’s to come.
If the Pirates spend a little bit more money this offseason to improve some of their weaker spots in the lineup, it could result in another jump in the record books. That could lead to their first playoff appearance since 2015, when they were in the National League Wild Card game.
A lot needs to go the right way for the Pirates, but the Brewers’ success in scouting and development, along with just a smidge more spending, could go a long way for them.
MIAMI, FLORIDA - MARCH 14: Hiromi Itoh #14 of Team Japan pitches in the sixth inning during the game between Venezuela and Japan at loanDepot park on March 14, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Gene Wang - Capture At Media/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In my last installment of “Playing Picollo,” I made a series of trades to reshape the Royals’ roster, leaving me with about $40 million to spend in free agency. The bullpen remains the biggest need, but there are still holes to fill in the outfield and rotation, and a couple of high-profile free agents have caught my eye. Unfortunately, I can’t have everyone, so I’ll have to make some tough choices. And before I’m done, I may have one more trade up my sleeve.
If you’ve listened to the Royals Rundown podcast much since the season ended, you know I desperately want to sign both Seiya Suzuki and Adrián Morejon. Unfortunately, they’re probably the two best players at their positions in free agency, so the bidding is going to be high on them. The Athletic predicts them at 5 years/$120 million and 3 years/$42 million, respectively. Technically, I could fit those two contracts into my roster, as their combined AAV comes to $40 million. But, realistically, I would guess that The Athletic is a bit low on at least one of them, and that would give me no wiggle room to do anything else. So I’m going to have to choose.
It’s a difficult choice. The bullpen needs help even more than the lineup does, but Suzuki would represent possible inroads into the Asian market that the Royals have thus far been unable to penetrate. It’s such a difficult choice that, instead of making it, I’m going to make one more trade first. I actually got both Jacob Milham and Max Rieper to sign off on this one.
Trade: Seth Lugo to Astros for Tatsuya Imai
This is a classic swap of dud contracts in the hopes that the players do better with a change of scenery. My favorite example will always be the time the Royals sent Jonathan Sanchez to the Rockies for Jeremy Guthrie. Imai is the clearly better pitcher, but he still wasn’t very good. And the real problem is that if he rebounds, he’s gone, because his contract is a series of player options. However, if he’s bad, you’ve got to pay him another $19 million in 2028. But I’m going to bet on Brian Sweeney getting him pitching well enough that he’ll decline to exercise that option.
Another benefit from the Royals’ perspective is that Imai has more recent bullpen experience. He finished the season in the Astros’ pen, so we can probably start him there and feel more comfortable about it than we would have with Lugo.
OK, time to make that choice.
Free agent signings
LHP Adrián Morejón, 3 years/$45 million
The Royals need depth more than they need a star, so I’m going to take the cheaper of my two preferred free agents and use the savings to bring in more guys. In case you’re unaware of how good Morejón was last year, he accrued almost 3 fWAR as a reliever. That’s nearly impossible to do. He had a 2.83 ERA and a 22.4% K-BB%. He’s going to be an exciting new closer and allow us to shift everyone else in the bullpen back a step, strengthening the whole unit.
I gave him a bit more than the projection because I think that’s what it would take to outbid everyone else. I’d probably even be willing to go as high as $50 million, but I’d want to start deferring some of that if possible.
LHP Steven Okert, 2 years/$16 million with a mutual option
I’m giving Okert a mutual option here with a $4 million buyout to push some of that money down the road. Okert doesn’t have a prediction on The Athletic’s article, so I looked at the reliever deals they have on there and knocked a couple million off because he’s comparable to at least some of those guys. Okert wasn’t great until two years ago, when he joined the Astros, but he’s been lights-out ever since, with good K-BB% figures and ERAs to match. I traded Daniel Lynch IV and baseball is chock full of left-handed hitters now, so I want to make sure my bullpen is stocked with them.
OF Taylor Ward, 1 year/$10 million
That’s the projected offer from The Athletic, and based on how poorly his season ended, I’ll do it. I think it’s worth the risk to see if he can rebound a bit. He can also platoon in left field with John Rave while Dylan Crews and Carson Roccaforte handle center field. I don’t plan for either position to be a strict platoon, of course. We need to play the hot hand regardless of the pitcher, but having the option to flip handedness and pinch-hit should give Matt Quatraro the flexibility to get the most out of his lineup.
RHP Hiromi Itoh, 3 years/$30 million
Since I didn’t get Suzuki but I did trade for Imai, and Kansas City isn’t known for its huge Asian population, I’d like to add Itoh here – coming from the Nippon Ham Fighters of the NPB – to give us a strong foothold in the Japanese market and hopefully to help both pitchers adjust to MLB. I don’t think Itoh is going to be in high demand because of his slight frame and lack of velocity despite his real NPB success, but that might mean he’s ripe to take a chance on a team that’s willing to take a chance on him.
As I’ve repeatedly written and spoken about, I simply don’t believe free agency is a good way to build a roster these days. So I did most of my work through the trade market, but I feel pretty good about these free agent signings to fill the remaining gaps. There are a number of relievers I’d offer minor league deals to for depth, including A.J. Minter, Evan Phillips, Derek Law, and Craig Kimbrel. They might get major league deals elsewhere, and good for them. I don’t think it’s smart to spend a ton of money on the bullpen, especially past the top guy or two. Guys surprise in both good and bad ways all the time and you don’t want to be locked in.
Final roster
Before I give you the 26-man roster, here are the guys I’m cutting from the 40-man to fit the four new free agents:
Alec Marsh
James McArthur
Steven Zobac
Ben Kudrna
I could have chosen Carlos Duran instead of any of them. And I really like McArthur, so actually, yeah, let’s make that switch.
Alec Marsh
Carlos Duran
Steven Zobac
Ben Kudrna
Anyway, here’s the new 26-man roster, first the position players (all new players in bold):
C Salvador Perez
C Carter Jensen
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Michael Massey
3B Maikel Garcia
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
OF Jac Caglianone
OF Carson Roccaforte
OF Dylan Crews
OF Taylor Ward
OF John Rave
UT Nick Loftin
UT Tyler Tolbert
And the pitchers:
SP Reid Detmers
SP Noah Cameron
SP Michael Wacha
SP George Kirby
SP Hiromi Itoh
RHP Ryan Feltner
RHP Lucas Erceg
RHP Nate Pearson
RHP Tatsuya Imai
LHP Adrián Morejón
LHP Anthony Gose
LHP Steven Okert
RHP Tony Gonsolin
Isaac Collins, Connor Thomas, Steven Cruz, and Nolan Hoffman all have options, so I can safely demote them to the minors. The relievers will all be up at some point. Collins probably will, too, assuming the entire outfield doesn’t stay healthy for the entire season.
While we’re at it, let’s imagine the lineups against left-handed and right-handed pitching.
Against right-handers:
C Carter Jensen
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
RF Jac Caglianone
3B Maikel Garcia
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Michael Massey
DH Salvador Perez
LF John Rave
CF Carson Roccaforte
Against left-handers:
3B Maikel Garcia
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
RF Jac Caglianone
DH Carter Jensen
LF Taylor Ward
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Nick Loftin
C Salvador Perez
CF Dylan Crews
Again, you don’t have to do it strictly by handedness. If Crews is hot and Rocc isn’t, then let Crews hit righties for a bit, etc.
Overall, I think this is a pretty decent roster considering how much work there was to do to get it where it needed to be. That’s not a perfect lineup, but I think it would be better than last year’s. And my new starting rotation has a much better history of health than the one the Royals started 2026 with. The silver lining with all those guys going down with TJ surgery last year is that some of them should return in midseason to help fill in the gaps as this team accrues its own injuries.
I even came in under budget! I added $43 million in salary obligations, but dropped around $3 million by demoting players and saved myself $4 million in the Lugo/Imai swap. That brings me to approximately $162 million spent.
The 2028 season is a completely different problem, and maybe I should be more concerned about that. But as a GM who is focused on building my roster through trades as opposed to just promoting from within or signing a lot of free agents, I think if we need to make adjustments downward in spending for 2028, I’ll be able to find takers for some of my expensive players as the prospects I still have rise through the ranks to fill those gaps.
What do you think of this roster? Would you be excited if this is what the Royals actually did?
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - APRIL 30: Jose Suarez #54 of the Atlanta Braves pitches during the ninth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Truist Park on April 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After a relatively topsy-turvy offseason, José Suárez somehow ended up back with the Atlanta Braves after getting DFA’d twice during the offseason by two different teams. He ended up doing well enough in Spring Training to make the Opening Day roster and even made a start for the Braves while he was here.
I think the fact that I am mentioning that he “made a start” for the Braves is an indicator that this wasn’t exactly a rip-roaring success for Suárez during his second go-around with Atlanta. Let’s talk about it, though.
How Acquired
After the Braves initially picked up Suárez in a trade with the Angels for Ian Anderson, he was DFA’d by Atlanta in January 2026 and subsequently claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. A few days later, the Braves claimed him back after the Orioles DFA’d him not long after claiming him. Ah, the life of being a fringe player in Major League Baseball, man.
What were the expectations?
Considering the offseason that he had with the Braves that I just described to you, it sure didn’t seem like Atlanta had many big plans for José Suárez in 2026. Sure, he was pretty good at accumulating whiffs, avoiding barrels and keeping the ball on the ground, but he wasn’t too successful with anything else — outside of a spot start in September where he absolutely dominated the Nationals (and then added on three more shutout innings against Washington a few days after that). He also didn’t really get much of an opportunity, as he only made seven appearances for the Braves in 2025.
With that said, Suárez did have some success as a starter and swingman in 2021-2022, though he fell apart afterwards. Projection systems didn’t seem to fully abandon that: Steamer saw him as a decent long man and fifth starter type, while ZiPS was a lot more optimistic with its central estimate of Suarez serving as a pretty bulky, 1 WAR-ish swing guy.
2026 Results
This time, José Suárez made eight appearances for the Braves in 2026. He ended up making the Opening Day roster out of Spring Training as a long relief pitcher and made his debut on March 31 in a start against the Athletics. It was, um, inauspicious to say the least; that was basically the end of any ideas of Suárez potentially being a starter for the Braves in 2026.
He then went on to pitch mostly low-leverage innings for the handful of appearances that he made from that point forward. Outside of his usual dominance against the Nationals, there wasn’t much to write home about for Suarez as the valleys ended up being deeper than his peaks. While his FIP- of 66 (2.73 FIP) suggests that he may have suffered from a little bit of bad luck compared to his lofty ERA- of 158 (6.60 ERA), he also benefited from a low HR/FB rate (93 xFIP-). The problem was that the José Suárez Experience made that FIP and xFIP nigh-unlivable, because he was walking batters at a 15.2 percent rate, and usually you’re asking for trouble with that much self-inflicted traffic on the basepaths. Sure, he struck out enough guys to not totally fall apart, and kept the ball on the ground-ish, but no one wants to insert the pitching equivalent of a rain delay into a game and hope he doesn’t blow up.
Either way, his appearance on April 30 (in the ninth inning, no less!) against the Tigers wound up being his final one for the Braves, as Atlanta DFA’d him on May 1 and the Mariners claimed him soon after that. He only made one appearance for Seattle before being DFA’d once again, but he ended up getting moved to the A’s for cash considerations. He actually got to spend a decent amount of time with the Athletics and made 36 total appearances before the A’s eventually DFA’d and released him in early-September.
His seasonal line was actually pretty good and right in line with projections: 0.6 fWAR on the back of a 134 ERA-, 89 FIP-, and 100 xFIP-. It was simultaneously a pretty good season for Suárez, but also kind of a miserable one in terms of the experience for the teams that employed him.
What went right?
Well, he ended up finishing the season with a Barrel percentage of 2.7 percent (99th percentile according to StatCast) and a Hard-Hit percentage of 32.3 percent (91st percentile) so he was pretty good at not getting hit hard. While he was with the Braves, he managed to deliver another strong performance against the Washington Nationals on April 21. He came in while the Braves were trailing 4-1 after a rough start from Reynaldo López and he proceeded to eat up nine outs while striking out four batters. He did give up four walks but none of them came around to score, so this was a solid effort for Suárez. (The Braves were blown out in the game… but not while Suarez was pitching.)
This was right after he pitched three scoreless innings against the Phillies on April 17 (and got credited with a save!), so there was a brief period where Suárez was looking pretty successful on the mound.
What went wrong?
Well, Suárez got a chance in high leverage on April 30 against the Tigers, where he got the ball in the ninth inning with the Braves down 3-2. Suárez struck out the first two batters and then it all went to pot from there, as he ended up going walk-single (with error)-walk-double to end up putting the Braves in a three-run hole in the bottom of the ninth.
Now granted, that single (and the subsequent error from Mike Yastrzemski) was comical and had to be seen to be believed but still, those two walks and that double basically put the Braves in a really tough position to bounce back and it ended up being Suárez’s swan song in the South. It absolutely wasn’t encouraging to see Suárez struggle with a particularly weak portion of Detroit’s lineup and it probably didn’t seem like things would get any better from there, so the DFA made sense.
It was also the second time he was present for an implosion in about a week: on April 25, he came into a tie game in the tenth against the Phillies, after Tyler Kinley had walked the first batter. Asked to face Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, and company, Suárez also issued a walk to load the bases with none out, and a couple of two-run singles doomed the Braves from there. He actually struck out the side in the inning, but as is the theme here: he did okay, the team did not have a good time.
It also didn’t help that he got dinged for four runs on five hits and three walks during his only start of the season (back on March 31 against the A’s) for Atlanta. First impressions are a real thing, y’all.
2027 Outlook
Suárez is currently a free agent but he’s also 28 and a lefty, so it’s not hard to imagine him finding work somewhere in the bigs next season. Plus, all in all, he was pretty much fine in 2026, just in a really painful, unpleasant to watch way. It probably won’t be for a contender but if there’s a rebuilding team that needs some depth and someone to eat some innings when needed, Suárez will certainly be an option for that. I do think it’s safe to say that his time with the Braves is over after two seasons of minimal production with few chances. He probably projects as a generic reliever/swingman going forward… it just depends on how much a team is willing to tolerate his walk-laden profile.
CANADA - MARCH 01: Unlike previous Blue Jay spring camps, this one was much more relaxed, as demonstrated by right fielder Jesse Barfield below left, who turns the tables on news photographers. (Photo by Bernard Weil/Toronto Star via Getty Images) | Toronto Star via Getty Images
Celebrating Jesse Barfield’s 67th Birthday
Jesse Barfield has always been one of my favorite players.
Barfield was selected in the 9th round of the 1977 amateur draft, the inaugural year for the Blue Jays and Mariners. MLB granted them the final two picks of each round, showcasing their generosity.
Barfield debuted in the majors in 1981 and spent nine seasons with the Blue Jays. He ranks near the top of several franchise leaderboards:
4th in bWAR among position players, 29.5
2nd in defensive WAR, 9.5 (behind Tony Fernandez)
11th in slugging average, .483
11th in games played, 1032
7th in home runs, 179
9th in RBI, 527
Barfield was known for his powerful bat and exceptional defense, especially his strong, accurate arm in right field and remarkable range. Some even believed he could have excelled as a center fielder. There are countless legendary stories about his arm—like throwing a ball over the center-field fence from home plate. I remember watching him snare a line drive on a bounce and fire to first for the out. Barfield led the American League in outfield assists for three straight years (1985–87), largely because teams rarely risked running on his arm. In 1985 alone, he had eight outfield double plays, and from 1985–1987, he recorded 21—more than many teams tally in an entire season.
Barfield, Lloyd Moseby, and George Bell formed an outfield trio that remains the best in Blue Jays history. During his time in Toronto, Barfield won two Gold Gloves, one Silver Slugger, and earned an All-Star selection.
Many people contributed to my love of baseball, but the outfield of Bell, Moseby, and Barfield stands out. Watching them develop into the best outfield in baseball deepened my appreciation for the game. I often compared them to other legendary outfields—while not the greatest ever (the Tigers’ trio of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach likely holds that honor), I believe Bell, Moseby, and Barfield deserve a spot among the top ten outfields of all time.
In 1989, the Blue Jays traded Barfield to the Yankees for Al Leiter—a heartbreaking deal that ultimately did not work out in Toronto’s favor.
I once received a signed ball from Barfield in Cooperstown during Roy Halladay’s induction. Remarkably, he looked just as he did during his playing days. He was very friendly, but the thing i noticed most was his hands were twice the size of mine.
Barfield remains active on social media: @JesseBarfield29.
Happy birthday, Jesse! Wishing you a wonderful day.
Celebrating R.A. Dickey’s 52nd Birthday
R.A. Dickey joined the Blue Jays via trade from the Mets, along with catchers Mike Nickeas and Josh Thole. In exchange, Toronto sent Wuilmer Becerra, John Buck, Travis d’Arnaud, and Noah Syndergaard to New York.
General manager Alex Anthopoulos sought an ace to guide the Blue Jays to the playoffs, but things didn’t go as planned. Dickey spent four seasons in Toronto, posting a 49–52 record and a 4.03 ERA over 131 games (130 starts).
Dickey often started seasons slowly with the Jays. For example, in 2013 he posted a 4.80 ERA before the All-Star break and a 3.57 ERA afterward. In 2014, his ERA was 3.82 in the first half and 3.57 in the second. In 2016, he went from 5.28 in the first half to 3.56 in the second. The exception was 2015, when his ERA was 3.11 early and 4.83 after the break.
The Blue Jays reached the playoffs in 2015 and 2016. Dickey made two postseason starts in 2015: one was strong, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing just one run before being replaced by David Price; the other was rough, lasting only 1.2 innings and surrendering five runs in a loss to the Royals.
Dickey appears on several franchise pitching leaderboards:
Tied for 15th in wins.
13th in innings pitched.
18th in strikeouts
13th in starts.
Many fans were disappointed by Dickey’s performance, largely because expectations were set so high after his Cy Young-winning season with the Mets. We believed he would be the ace to take us to the World Series, but it was unfair to place all those hopes on him.
Dickey came across as a genuinely good person who appeared to enjoy his time in Toronto. He was far from the typical baseball player—he took pleasure in playful media interviews, using big words to keep reporters on their toes. For us fans who appreciated his intellect, it was refreshing to see a fellow ‘nerd’ on the team.
In 2017, Dickey pitched for the Braves, finishing 10–10 with a 4.26 ERA in 31 starts.
Over his 15-season career, Dickey posted a 120–118 record with a 4.04 ERA in 300 starts and 100 relief appearances. His best year was 2012, when he went 20–6 with a 2.73 ERA.
Happy birthday, R.A.! Hope you have a fantastic day.
It’s also Dana Eveland’s 43rd birthday. In 2010, Eveland made nine starts for the Blue Jays, posting a 6.45 ERA.
Eveland pitched in 11 MLB seasons, appearing in 187 games and making 61 starts. He compiled a 20–28 record with a 5.46 ERA.
After Game 4’s extra-inning victory to avoid the sweep, Walls was asked by The Athletic reporter Ken Rosenthal: “Was it important to win one just to show you’re on this level?”
Walls did not like the framing of that question.
Tampa Bay Rays’ Taylor Walls was not a fan of the questions being asked by Ken Rosenthal. Getty Images
“No,” Walls quickly responded after the 12-inning 4-3 win on Tuesday. “I think that’s pretty disrespectful, honestly. We’re a team that’s capable of winning four.”
Rosenthal quickly apologized for the question, saying, “Sorry for the wording,” in the locker room.
Ken Rosenthal: Was it important to win one just to show you’re on this level?
Taylor Walls: I think that’s pretty disrespectful honestly
“No team wants to get swept, but at the end of the day, we think we can win the whole thing,” Walls said. “So whether it starts with us down 0-3 and winning four in a row, or whether it started winning the first one or the second one, we have full confidence that we can do it.”
The Rays did not pull off the impossible of coming back from down 3-0, a feat only completed by the 2004 Red Sox against the Yankees in the ALCS.
Tampa Bay had a tough time scoring runs in the series, putting up only 11 runs in five games as their bats went quiet and looked largely overmatched with weak contact.
Walls responding to Rosenthal after Game 4. @TalkinBaseball_/X
Walls, who isn’t exactly a bopper in his own right as a defense-first player to begin with, hit just .103 in the postseason with four hits in 39 at-bats.
Rasmussen then had to pitch on short rest in a do-or-die Game 5 and lasted only four innings.
Ken Rosenthal interviews Aaron Ashby after a World Series win. Fox Sports via Getty Images
The Rays still had a successful season by all standards, even if Walls didn’t want to hear the underdog noise from reporters, considering they were able to make the World Series after coming into the year with some expecting them to be a lesser team in the AL East.
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and the Boston Red Sox will be busy over the next few days.
The MLB offseason officially began Wednesday night after the Milwaukee Brewers were crowned 2026 World Series champions. That means clubs must add players from the 60-day injured list back onto the 40-man roster by Monday.
The Red Sox have a full 40-man roster, plus seven players on the 60-day IL: Eli White, Triston Casas, Justin Slaten, Kutter Crawford, Zack Kelly, Johan Oviedo, and Eduardo Rivera. All seven must be reactivated, meaning seven spots have to be cleared.
Three were cleared on Thursday. Left-hander Patrick Sandoval and utility man Isiah Kiner-Falefa officially became free agents, and outfielder Nate Eaton was traded to the Athletics for 18-year-old minor-league pitcher Jareth Rayo. Plus, veteran right-hander Sonny Gray’s $30 million mutual option will almost certainly be declined, leaving the Red Sox with three more cuts to make via trade, release, waivers, or designating for assignment.
Who could be next on Boston’s chopping block? Here are the most likely cut candidates:
Raymond Burgos, LHP
Burgos provided bullpen depth in the final stretch of the 2026 season, posting a 4.22 ERA and 0.844 WHIP in nine appearances (21.1 innings pitched). The 28-year-old is a candidate to be waived, clear waivers, and land back in Triple-A.
Jovani Moran, LHP
Moran was an effective southpaw out of Boston’s bullpen in 2026, finishing with a 3.15 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 50 outings. He was left off the playoff roster, however, and is out of minor-league options.
Jahmai Jones, DH/OF
Jones stepped up as a lefty masher immediately after being acquired from the Detroit Tigers, but he struggled mightily throughout September. The Red Sox outfield remains crowded even after the Eaton trade, and with Romy Gonzalez presumably good to go for 2027, having both him and Jones on the roster as specialists against southpaws would be redundant.
Zack Kelly, RHP
Kelly notched a 3.31 ERA in 17 bullpen appearances last season before suffering a season-ending elbow injury. Injuries have been an issue throughout his career, making him an obvious cut candidate especially now that he’s out of minor-league options.
Tsung-Che Cheng, SS
Cheng played an important role as a fill-in shortstop during the Red Sox’ incredible midseason turnaround. He hit a modest .256 in his 14 games with the club, but his defense was a legitimate difference-maker. Still, he’s a fringe big-leaguer and a candidate to be traded or DFA’d before Monday.
Tyler Samaniego, LHP
Left-handed reliever Samaniego posted a 2.66 ERA across 20 outings (one as an opener) in his first MLB stint. Despite his effectiveness, he was sent down to Triple-A in early June and never called back up the majors. He’d still be a useful depth piece, but the 27-year-old could also bring back something of value in a trade if Boston opts to part ways.
Eduardo Rivera, LHP
Rivera made four appearances (three starts) with Boston in 2026. The 23-year-old had a 6.30 ERA and 1.40 WHIP over 10 innings. Like Samaniego, he’s expendable as a depth reliever with at least some trade value.
Alec Gamboa, LHP
Gamboa was a revelation for the Red Sox bullpen in 2026, posting a 1.91 ERA across 21 appearances (three as an opener) in his first big-league stint. The 29-year-old’s efforts earned him a spot on the postseason roster.
As great as Gamboa was, he’s a strong candidate to be moved. Boston has plenty of left-handed bullpen depth, and Gamboa’s value after an outstanding rookie season is undoubtedly at its peak.
Like so many Milwaukee fans, Christian Yelich took a moment while celebrating the Brewers’ first World Series title to remember a man he wished had been around to see it.
“Uecky, I love you, man,” Yelich said in reference to beloved Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker, who died in January 2025 at the age of 90. “We did it.”
Yelich’s tribute after the Brewers’ 4-1 Game 5 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays recalled a dramatically different postgame setting two years earlier, when Milwaukee couldn’t hang on to a 2-0 ninth-inning lead and fell to the New York Mets in the decisive game of an NL Wild Card Series.
That would be the last game in the broadcasting career of Uecker, who had been calling games through the 2023 and 2024 seasons while battling small cell lung cancer. Uecker had kept that information private up until his death and shared it only with a select group of people, including Yelich.
Uecker capped his game broadcast that night by saying, “That one had some sting on it,” then went into a silent locker room and offered condolences to the Brewers players, a moment that was detailed in a documentary on Uecker that came out this year. Yelich struggled to contain his emotions that night as he discussed the hardest part of having a season end that way.
“For me, it was talking to Ueck,” Yelich said at the time. “That’s kind of a tough one. All the other stuff, it is what it is. It’s a tough way for your season to end, but talking to Uecky one on one, it was tough.”
Learning from the low moments
That made Wednesday’s moment all the more cathartic for Yelich, who has been with the Brewers through all their celebrations and commiserations over the last several years as the franchise had its greatest run of sustained success.
The guy who was named the first captain in franchise history last month accepted congratulations on the field from Hall of Fame shortstop Robin Yount, regarded as the Brewers’ greatest player ever. Yount had been an MVP in 1982 when the Brewers made their only previous World Series appearance. He praised Yelich for helping the Brewers finally get it done.
Yelich, 34, and pitcher Brandon Woodruff are the only players who have been with the Brewers since they began their run of eight playoff berths in nine seasons in 2018. They’d been through plenty of heartache as the Brewers struggled to translate their regular-season success into the postseason.
“All those low moments, you don’t realize at the time, but those low moments prepare you for this moment,” Yelich said. “Without those, this wouldn’t be possible. It doesn’t feel like it in the moment sometimes when it’s happening to you, when you’re in those lows. It can be tough at times, but it makes you tougher. There’s lessons to be learned from it, and it’s all geared towards moments like this. Man, is it worth it.”
The Brewers acquired Yelich before the 2018 season, and he went on to become the NL MVP that year as Milwaukee reached Game 7 of the NL Championship Series. He was contending for another MVP award the following year before fracturing his kneecap, the first in a series of injuries he would battle through over the last several years.
Even though Yelich is no longer the Brewers’ best player, he remains the face of the franchise in many respects.
“I don’t think all of them were clear enough on what it was going to take,” manager Pat Murphy said. “Yeli kept speaking it into existence. He kept saying, ‘Hey, you know, we’re going to win the World Series,’ and everybody kind of snapped their head like, ‘You believe that? Did you see us play last week?’ That type of thing.”
Producing in the postseason
Yelich wasn’t merely leading in the clubhouse. He also was delivering a postseason breakthrough on the field while bouncing back from a regular season in which he posted career lows in on-base percentage (.315) and OPS (.692).
He drove in two runs in Game 2 of the NLCS as the Brewers swept the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
In the World Series, Yelich hit a first-inning RBI triple to put Milwaukee ahead for good in a 3-2 Game 1 win, and he went 2 for 3 with a walk and an RBI in the Brewers’ 10-1 Game 3 blowout victory. He scored one of the Brewers’ four runs in the Game 5 clincher Wednesday.
Now he’s finally a World Series champion. He could only wonder what Uecker would have been thinking.
“He’s smiling, man,” Yelich said. “He’s smiling. I really wish he could have been here to see this. That would have meant everything to him. But like we said a bunch, he’s been with us a lot. We keep him close to our hearts. This one’s still for Bob.”
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Venezuela’s flag draped around him, flashing a wide smile and filled with pride, William Contreras was willing to boast.
“I don’t want to offend any of the other catchers in the league. The last thing I want to do is offend any of them,” he said, speaking through a translator. “But sitting up here today, champion of the world, I feel like I’m the best catcher in the league. Again, that’s no disrespect to any of them. That’s the last thing I want to do. But today I feel like I’m the best catcher in the world.”
Contreras became the eighth catcher voted the World Series MVP after lifting the Milwaukee Brewers to their first World Series championship.
Leader of the small-market Brewers, the 28-year-old hit .381 while guiding his pitching staff, throwing out four attempted base stealers and winning 10 of 13 appeals in the first Series with the Automated Ball-Strike challenge system. He had a run-scoring double during Milwaukee’s clinching 4-1 victory in Game 5 on Wednesday night.
“He’s our pit bull. You don’t just walk up and pet him. There’s a chance you get nipped,” manager Pat Murphy said.
Moments after being awarded the MVP trophy, Contreras embraced his 34-year-old brother, Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras, a World Series champion with the 2016 Chicago Cubs.
“My brother is my role model. I don’t have a lot of friends. He’s my friend,” William Contreras said. “If I have something to ask somebody, I ask Willson.”
William teared up when asked about Venezuela, his home country. Contreras was on Venezuela’s team that won its first World Baseball Classic in March, though he was 0 for 13 with no RBIs.
He and teammates Jackson Chourio and Antonio Senzatela joined Americans Alex Bregman and Luke Gregerson of the 2017 Houston Astros in winning the WBC and World Series in the same year.
“It means everything because that’s the first time Venezuela guys win the WBC and the World Series,” William Contreras said. “It’s history, history for my country. I love Venezuela. It’s my country.”
He joined Gene Tenace (1972), Johnny Bench (1976), Steve Yeager (co-winner in 1981), Darrell Porter (1982), Rick Dempsey (1983), Pat Borders (1992) and Salvador Perez (2015) as catchers to win the award.
A three-time All-Star, Contreras hit .270 with 18 homers and a career-best 94 RBIs as the Brewers won their fourth straight NL Central title.
“Think about what he’s achieved, and he’s disappointed his numbers aren’t better,” Murphy said. “He’s disappointed that he isn’t Gold Glove.’'
Contreras was best at leveraging baseball’s new robot umpires, leading Major League Baseball with 185 challenges and 105 overturns during the regular season. He won 22 of 33 in the postseason.
“It’s not magic,” Contreras said. “I think it’s the experience of playing every day throughout the season.”
He batted .444 with a pair of solo homers in the Division Series against San Diego, hitting a tiebreaking, seventh-inning drive in the opener and another homer in Game 3. He batted .357 with one homer and three RBIs in the Championship Series sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Milwaukee had several worthy MVP candidates.
Cooper Pratt set a Series rookie record with six straight hits and tied Gil McDougald’s rookie mark from 1951 with seven RBIs, including go-ahead hits in the final three games. Jackson Chourio was 11 for 24 (.458), the most hits by a player in a five-game World Series. Ace Jacob Misiorowski was 2-0 and allowed one run in 10 2/3 innings, and reliever Aaron Ashby pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings with a save and nine strikeouts.
“I told him before the game: You will be the MVP of the World Series,” Murphy said of Contreras. “People recognized what that kid did for us. There was no doubt in my mind. Yeah, he’s special.”
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 15: Tarik Skubal #29 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on from the dugout prior to Game Four of the National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on Thursday, October 15, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The World Series is over and Major League Baseball’s offseason has begun. This offseason will have a different look with the impending labor situation. Baseball’s current CBA between MLB and the Major League Baseball Player’s Association is set to expire at midnight on December 1.
Even with the lockout on the horizon, there will still be a lot of league activity in November. Free agents will file Thursday morning. Teams will then have a five-day negotiation window to re-sign their own players. Free agency will officially open on November 2 at 5 pm ET.
MLB’s free agent period is normally slower than those in the NFL and NBA with major signings sometimes dragging into the next calendar year. With a lockout coming, there is a chance that we see a heightened sense of urgency by some players in hopes of locking down a deal before the sport shuts down.
Dodgers lefty Tarik Skubal headlines this offseason’s free agent class. Skubal is a two-time Cy Young Award winner and one of the most dominant pitchers in the sport. He underwent an elbow procedure in early May but returned and pitched well for the Tigers and Dodgers down the stretch. He is in line for a record breaking contract and will become the highest-paid pitching in league history.
The rest of the class is a little less inspiring. Michael King anchored the Padres pitching staff and had a good showing in the postseason. Freddy Peralta rediscovered his form after a deadline trade to the Rays and was MVP of the ALCS. Randy Arozarena put up a career-best season for the Mariners. There are really good players available but all of them are a level or two below Skubal.
Below is our ranking of the top-40 MLB free agents.
Number
Name
Position
Previous Team
1
Tarik Skubal
LHP
Tigers
2
Michael King
RHP
Padres
3
Teruaki Sato
3B
Hanshin (NPB)
4
Freddy Peralta
RHP
Rays
5
Randy Arozarena
OF
Mariners
6
Seiya Suzuki
OF
Cubs
7
Brandon Lowe
2B
Pirates
8
Adrian Morejon
LHP
Padres
9
Clay Holmes
RHP
Cubs
10
Trevor Rogers
LHP
Orioles
11
Jake Bauers
1B
Brewers
12
Sonny Gray
RHP
Red Sox
13
David Bednar
RHP
Yankees
14
Jazz Chisholm Jr.
2B
Yankees
15
Ryan Jeffers
C
Twins
16
Tyler Mahle
RHP
Braves
17
Luis Arraez
2B
Phillies
18
Foster Griffin
LHP
Guardians
19
Casey Mize
RHP
Padres
20
Nick Martinez
RHP
Rays
21
Gleyber Torres
2B
Tigers
22
Kaima Taira
RHP
Seibu (NPB)
23
Ian Happ
OF
Cubs
24
Michael Soroka
RHP
Diamondbacks
25
Kevin Gausman
RHP
Cubs
26
Shota Imanaga
LHP
Cubs
27
Raisel Iglesias
RHP
Braves
28
Ty France
1B
Padres
29
Alec Bohm
1B/3B
Phillies
30
Hiromi Itoh
RHP
Nippon (NPB)
31
Robbie Ray
LHP
Padres
32
Shane Bieber
RHP
Blue Jays
33
Daulton Varsho
OF
Astros
34
Alex Vesia
LHP
Dodgers
35
Mauricio Dubon
OF/SS
Braves
36
Tyler Stephenson
C
Reds
37
Gregory Soto
LHP
Pirates
38
Sean Newcomb
LHP
White Sox
39
Trent Grisham
OF
Yankees
40
J.P. Crawford
SS
Mariners
Where will Skubal land?
Every team will be interested in Tarik Skubal but only a few have a realistic shot at landing the free agent left-hander. It will be easy to connect him to some of the biggest spenders. The Mets entered the 2026 season with high expectations but flopped in a big way. Steve Cohen may be looking to make a splash and signing Skubal would be the biggest splash available.
The Yankees, Phillies and Blue Jays are other teams that could get in the mix for Skubal. He would make a ton of sense for a team like the Cubs that featured one of the best offenses in the majors but also one of the worst pitching staffs. A potential pairing of Skubal and Chris Sale would give the Braves two of the most dominant left-handed pitchers in the league. It would also require them to make a significant free agent investment which is not something that they normally do.
Then there is the Dodgers who acquired Skubal from the Tigers at the trade deadline. LA’s core position players are getting older and their biggest need is shoring up that area. Still, they can never be counted out on a big name free agent.
My gut is that Skubal ends up back with the Dodgers but I’m hoping that another team gets in the mix.
What about Teruaki Sato?
Another intriguing name to keep an eye on this winter is Japanese third baseman Teruaki Sato. Sato won the MVP Award in the NPB in 2026 after hitting .306 with 39 home runs, 40 doubles and 106 RBIs. He played third base in Japan but there are questions about whether he will stick at the position in MLB. Teams like the Yankees, Phillies and Red Sox are thought to be among the group that will be interested. That could lead to a big payday for him.
What does the lockout mean for free agency
Free agency will officially open on November 2 at 5 pm ET, but it will pause once the lockout begins. The CBA expires on December 1, at which point a lockout is expected to commence.
MLB free agency is typically a slow-moving process and it is a little difficult to project how the lockout might affect that. We do have a recent example to draw from. The owners locked out the players prior to the 2022 season and we saw a flurry of big contracts handed out before the CBA expired. The Texas Rangers gave Corey Seager and Marcus Semien a combined $500 million. Max Scherzer signed a big deal with the Mets while Javier Baez landed a six-year, $140 million deal from the Tigers.
This could be a similar situation. For teams already with big payrolls, they may look to add more top stars before facing possible restrictions from a proposed salary cap. Players may see an incentive to sign early because of the uncertainty of what things might look like once the lockout ends. I wouldn’t say it is a certainty that we will see increased activity in November but it is very much a possibility.
NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1990: Jesse Barfield #29 o the New York Yankees look on during an American League game at Yankee Stadium circa 1990 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Louis Requena/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Practically every franchise has cycled through peaks of contention and troughs of irrelevance, and the Yankees certainly have not been immune. The period covering the late 80s and early 90s represented a nadir for an organization close to celebrating its 100th birthday. Owner meddling, injuries to star players, and general poor roster building left a once-proud franchise stagnating in mediocrity with no clear path out of the mire.
This prevailing mood around the team had the unfortunate effect of distorting the perception of many of the players who donned the pinstripes during those years. One of the familiar names from that era was Jesse Barfield, an All-Star, Gold Glove outfielder for the Blue Jays who Steinbrenner brought to the Bronx in a move that was equal parts vindictive and short-sighted. This was no fault of Barfield’s, who performed ably when he was on the field yet whose short legacy with the Yankees is often viewed through the lens of the failure of those squads.
Jesse Lee Barfield Born: October 29, 1959 (Joliet, IL) Yankees Tenure: 1989-92
Jesse Lee Barfield was born in Joliet, IL, on October 29, 1959, to single mother Annie J. Barfield, his father having abandoned the family around the time of his birth. The George Werden Buck Boys Club was a haven in his childhood, the young Barfield falling in love with baseball watching his hero Ernie Banks and copying his batting stance. On a day trip to Comiskey Park with the Boys Club, the 13-year-old Barfield declared, “Man, one day I’m going to be playing right out there. You watch,” and so it was destined to be.
Barfield starred in the outfield for Joliet Central High School and caught the eye of Blue Jays scout Bobby Mattick, who convinced Toronto to draft Barfield in the ninth round of the 1977 June Amateur Draft. The Blue Jays offered a $2,500 signing bonus but Barfield declined as he had been awarded a scholarship to study architectural drawing in college after winning a statewide drafting competition, but the Blue Jays secured his signature when they tripled their offer, Barfield using the bonus to buy his mother a Ford Thunderbird.
Despite a slow start and growing pains in the low minors, Barfield kept his head down and slowly worked his way up the ladder before finally earning a call-up to the major league team in 1981. He debuted on September 3rd, and as fate would have it his first game was in right field in Comiskey Park, Barfield lining an RBI single in his second big league AB. He would play 25 games that season, showing enough to be named Opening Day starter in right in 1982 under manager Bobby Cox, and he never looked back.
Barfield established himself as one of the preeminent dual-threat outfielders in the majors by the mid 80s, his raw power and cannon arm leading to an All-Star appearance in 1986, AL Gold Gloves in 1986 and 1987, and AL Silver Slugger in 1986. He led the AL in home runs in 1986 with 40 and led all AL outfielders in outfield assists in five separate seasons. His peak came in the second-half of the 80s, Barfield posting back-to-back seasons of at least seven fWAR with a wRC+ over 140 in 1985 and 1986 as part of Toronto’s star-studded outfield alongside George Bell and Lloyd Moseby. Between 1985 and 1990, Barfield ranked seventh in MLB with 30.8 fWAR and eighth with 161 home runs.
By 1987, Barfield’s $1,525,000 salary made him the highest-paid position player in Blue Jays history at the time, and he was further rewarded with a three-year, $4.2 million deal at the end of the year. However, around this time the left wrist that Barfield had broken playing high school basketball was beginning to flare up, his production tailing off in his final year-and-a-half with the Blue Jays as the days out injured started to pile up. It was also around this time that George Steinbrenner was launching a full court press to expel Dave Winfield from the team, the Yankees owner attempting and failing to trade Winfield for Barfield in 1988.
Steinbrenner wouldn’t be denied his man for long, eventually acquiring Barfield from Toronto in exchange for pitching prospect Al Leiter on April 30, 1989. He missed time to a concussion at the start of his Yankees career but rebounded in the second half providing some much-needed cover in the lineup for Don Mattingly with Winfield out for the year after undergoing back surgery. Barfield recorded ten outfield assists in a 21-game span, finishing the year with a .234/.345/.415 triple slash line, 23 home runs, 67 RBIs, a 116 wRC+, and 4.1 fWAR in 150 games between Toronto and New York. This performance convinced the Yankees to extend him on a three-year contract worth $5.7 million.
1990 rolled around and despite Winfield’s return to health, Steinbrenner aimed a thinly-veiled dig at the future Hall of Famer, calling Barfield, “the best right fielder we’ve ever had.” Barfield continued to man Winfield’s normal position in right, Winfield relegated to DH and left field until he was traded to the Angels on May 11th. On April 26th of that season, Barfield hit his 199th and 200th home runs off Randy Johnson at Yankee Stadium. Despite all the turmoil surrounding the team — Steinbrenner would be suspended for hiring a criminal to dig up dirt on Winfield as his team set a franchise record for the most losses (95) in a season — Barfield led the team with 25 home runs and 78 RBIs, slashing .246/.359/.456 with a 128 wRC+ and 4.6 fWAR in 153 games.
Steinbrenner’s tenure was characterized by the combative interactions he had with his players and managers, but Barfield was one of the few players to stay in the owner’s good graces despite frequently finishing among the league leaders in strikeouts in an era when strikeouts were far less common or accepted as today. Barfield convinced Steinbrenner to move in the left field fences by ten feet to boost his and his teammates’ offensive numbers, though the promise went unfulfilled after Steinbrenner failed to add certain pitchers he was pursuing. Steinbrenner also sent Barfield a bottle of champagne in the clubhouse following the two-homer game against the Mariners.
“I think George should definitely be in the Hall of Fame, for changing the face of baseball. He always was very good for me and to me. He treated me with a lot of respect and I’ll never forget that.”
Despite a strong start to the 1991 season, Barfield’s body was beginning to betray him. A stress fracture in his left foot limited him to 84 games that season. The following year, Barfield dislocated a bone in his left wrist after slipping in a sauna and ended up requiring a radical procedure in August that left doctors unsure whether he would ever play baseball again. He appeared in just 114 games across his final two seasons with the Yankees, slashing .203/.286/.391 with 19 home runs, 55 RBIs, an 83 wRC+ and 1.0 fWAR. He signed with NPB’s Yomiuri Giants in 1993 where he became teammates with a certain rookie named Hideki Matsui, and after a failed attempt to return to MLB with the Astros where he was released before Opening Day in 1994, Barfield called curtains on a 12-year big league career.
Barfield made the playoffs just once in his career, losing to the Royals in the 1985 ALCS while still with the Blue Jays. He had the misfortune of joining the Yankees during one of the most fallow periods in the franchise’s history and as such was likely never appreciated as much as he deserved (not helped by the fact that he effectively replaced Winfield on the roster). The Yankees teams he played for never finished higher than fifth in the division, ending with a losing record in all four of his seasons in pinstripes. The swift accumulation of injuries at the end meant he just missed out on the next era of Yankees dominance. However, there is no doubt that he was one of the most fearsome players of his era with the bat and in the field.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
Johnny Johnson, [1930s]. Poster for a play. The Federal Theatre Project, created by the U.S. Works Progress Administration in 1935, was designed to conserve and develop the skills of theater workers, re-employ them on public relief, and to bring theater to thousands in the United States who had never before seen live theatrical performances. Creator: Unknown. (Photo by Heritage Art/Heritage Images via Getty Images) | Getty Images
It is a Thursday, and the MLB season is officially over. Time for a trivia question.
As always, a couple of rules…
1 — Put a spoiler over your answer in the comments.
2 — Don’t go digging around on baseball sites to try to discover the answer. This is a trivia question, not a scavenger hunt.
Here is an alphabetical list of professional baseball players:
Grant Anderson
Brandon Boggs
Jeff Bronkey
Matt Bush
David Hulse
Kevin Reimer
These players all have something in common, and this is a complete list of every professional baseball player who has this commonality (so, for example, the answer can’t be “Players who have never been in my kitchen,” because Buddy Bell and Losing Pitcher Mulcahy and Rabbit Maranville, among others, also haven’t been in your kitchen).
Can you guess what this is a complete list of?
I will update later today in the afternoon with the answer.
And they may just be getting started. The Brew Crew will have almost everyone from this year's championship squad back in 2027, with one possible exception.
First baseman Jake Bauers, the National League Championship Series MVP in Milwaukee's sweep of the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, is a free agent this winter. And after a stellar regular season in which he hit .266 with 26 home runs, 86 RBI, 93 runs scored and 11 stolen bases, Bauers is poised to cash in on the free agent market.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy seemed well aware of that fact when Bauers presented him with the ball he caught for the final out in the clinching Game 5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.
"You're gonna be a rich (expletive)," Murphy said (Warning: Explicit language). "Just remember when you're on that horse (expletive) Yankee team and you're all playing for yourselves ... Just remember, this is the way we used to do it."
Bauers may not be among the top 10 potential free agents this offseason, but the class is top-heavy with pitching (Tarik Skubal, Michael King and Freddy Peralta are the headliners), but teams in need of a power bat could certainly use someone with Bauers' skills.
Over his seven-year MLB career Bauers has played for five different teams, including the Rays and the Yankees. But then again, with supporters like Murphy, why would he want to leave Milwaukee?
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The Milwaukee Brewers winning the World Series was the ultimate feel-good ending to the MLB season for anyone who believes that small, close-knit teams can still succeed in an era where big-money organizations dominate free agency and the trade market by throwing cash at every single problem.
Nothing typified that better than Jake Bauers gifting the final out ball to manager Pat Murphy, and having an incredible exchange in what will potentially be Bauers’ final moment in a Milwaukee uniform. Murphy told Bauers “You’re gonna be a rich (expletive). Just remember when you’re on that horse (expletive) Yankee team and you’re all playing for yourselves … just remember this is the way we used to do it.”
Jake Bauers gifted Pat Murphy the final out ball. Murphy thanked him and told him
“You’re gonna be a rich fucker. Just remember when you’re on that horse shit Yankee team and you’re all playing for yourselves….just remember this is way we used to do it”#ThisIsMyCrewpic.twitter.com/LLOeKju4VQ
Bauers signed a one-year, $3.7M deal with the Brewers to play in 2026, and will be a free agent this winter. There is going to be no shortage of suitors for him, especially after an incredible season that saw him bat .266 for 28 home runs and 86 RBI. Murphy is referring less specifically to the Yankees and more using them as shorthand for any of the big-spending clubs in baseball, which he believes emphasizes individual play over the power of a team. Invoking the Yankees is also a callback to Bauers’ history in baseball when he played with the Yankees in 2023 on a mediocre 82-80 team that missed the postseason.
There has never been a more meaningful season for a small-market, lower spending team to win the World Series. Another championship year from the Dodgers or a team in their ilk would have given owners ammunition to push for a salary cap in baseball, which would directly damage the earnings of players, while owners got more wealthy. The Brewers win turns back that doomsday clock a couple of hours, by proving that baseball still needs an entire team to win, rather than a collection of talented individuals.
It might not have been the most media-friendly way of making his point, with live camera picking up Murphy’s colorful language — but goodness, was this an incredible moment between a player who is destined to leave, and the manager who loved coaching him.
Boston, MA - September 24: Boston Red Sox pitcher Raymond Burgos reacts after third baseman Caleb Durbin calls him off a fly ball in the eighth inning. The Boston Red Sox played the Cleveland Guardians at Fenway Park on September 24, 2026. (Photo by Danielle Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) | Boston Globe via Getty Images
As we embark on an offseason that will become known for its dearth of activity in the dead of winter, the Red Sox actually have some pretty big decisions to make right off the bat. The first of which involves them needing to get their 40-man roster back down to 40 men.
Why is it not at 40 men right now? Well, due to a combination of a rough battle with the injury bug all season, quirky MLB roster rules, and a surprising lack Boston free agents free agents, the Red Sox have an overflow problem. For those unaware, guys placed on the 60-day IL do not count towards a 40-man roster spot. This means that while baseball is being played, teams can have significantly more than 40 guys on their 40 man roster.
The Red Sox took full advantage of this all summer long as injuries piled up, and as of right now, they technically have 47 guys on the roster. However, five days after the World Series ends, the 60-day IL disappears and those on it need to return to the 40-man roster.
Normally, this isn’t a problem because impending free agents also leave the 40-man roster five days after the conclusion of the World Series. However, in Boston’s case, they have only three free agents: Sonny Gray, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Patrick Sandoval. Compare that with the following seven guys all set to come off the 60-day IL:
Tristian Casas
Kutter Crawford
Zack Kelly
Johan Oviedo
Eduardo Rivera
Justin Slaten
Eli White
So now, the Sox have some big decisions to make. Four guys need to be removed from this roster by the middle of next week (a total of seven, but we know three will be the free agents), and the obvious question becomes “who are they?”
To supplement the discussion here, I’ll provide this link to the wonderful folks at Sox Prospects, who keep an excellent 40-man roster page. There’s a few obvious contenders (Eduardo Rivera and Raymond Burgos are the highest on my list), but the actual decision here is complex, as it will partially come down to who the Sox think they might be able to sneak back into their minor league system when all the dust settles.
Either way, this is the first real decision of the offseason, and this thread is a good place to kick off the discussion of who we all think should, and who we all think will be off the 40-man by this time next week. As always, keep it civil, and be good to one another!
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 28: The Milwaukee Brewers celebrate with Trevor Megill #29 after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2026 World Series at Tropicana Field on October 28, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Milwaukee Brewers won the World Series. May it be so for us someday.
Now, we wait to see what happens in free agency and trades before baseball shuts down for an indeterminate amount of time due to an owner-imposed lockout on December 1st.
Free agents can now negotiate with their current teams and then on November 2nd, open free agency Begins. The deadline to tender arbitration-eligible players is November 20th, and the deadline to put Rule-5 -eligible players on the roster is November 17th. Generally speaking, teams treat a Rule-5 draft as if it will happen while knowing a lockout makes it unlikely.
So, there you have it. We’ll have some baseball news for the next 32 days… and then just lockout posturing for about 5 months, before a deal is inevitably struck. That’s my prediction.
