Category: Baseball

Not quite the stove being lit… and also, not that Freeman. Sorry.

Former #Rockies UTL Tyler Freeman has reached a Minor League deal and non-roster invitation to Spring Training with the #Braves. Had back surgery in October but says he "feels great" and could be reay for game action by the end of March.

— Thomas Harding (@harding_at_mlb) November 12, 2026

A veteran of parts of five major league seasons, including three with the team that drafted him (Cleveland) and his most recent two with the Rockies, Freeman hasn’t really found his footing yet. He’s played all over the diamond — every position other than pitcher and catcher so far in his career — but hasn’t really done anything on either side of the ball. He’s played both infield and outfield at a below-average rate, and his career batting line includes a .296 wOBA and .312 xwOBA. Put those together and he’s been worth -1.3 fWAR in 1,353 PAs, which really isn’t fun for anyone.

So, this is more a plug-and-play depth at Gwinnett move rather than anything else, but someone’s gotta play at Gwinnett and be around in case Luke Williams and Kyle Farmer aren’t, and it looks like the 28-year-old Freeman is a contender to fill that roster spot of dubious repute.

Profile-wise, you can kind of see why the Braves might want to work with Freeman, even if he isn’t expected to amount with anything. He has a ton of tools — he was fast earlier in his career, and has a huge throwing arm. He’s also very good at making contact, but it comes with a hyper-slap approach that prevents him from generating any power. He also, oddly, has some truly awful reactions and an inability to consistently make defensive plays, which is like the opposite of what you want from a utility guy. Maybe some of those things can be fixed.

In any case, he’s the Braves’ problem-and/or-thing-to-work-on now.

Unlike last year, where Eugenio Suarez’s four-homer performance was an absolutely shoo-in, this category likely counts as wide-open. There is no “obvious” choice this season, and that probably makes it more fun, since there is consequently no wrong answer here. Thanks to BTBaseball, kilnborn and Bryce.dbacks for giving their thoughts in the nomination thread. That helped me narrow down a field of performance which, in the final analysis, are likely to end up enshrined in the Diamondbacks Hall of Quite Good, rather than anything else.

Still, all of these were thoroughly enjoyable to experience, and deserve to be appreciated. Interestingly, the final selection ended up pitching heavy, with an extra relief performance being chosen over an offensive one. And, without further ado…

3/31, Jose Fernandez: 3-for-4 with two home-runs in his debut

Never mind nine total bases, before Fernandez, only one D-back had as many as six bases in their first game. And it was 28 years ago: the franchise’s first ever game and Travis Lee. Fernandez almost matched that by the fourth inning. After legging out an infield single in the second, he cranked a solo home-run off Casey Mize in the fourth. In the bottom of the eighth, he added a three-run shot to complete the comeback for Arizona, who scored seven unanswered runs after falling 5-0 behind, Fernandez driving in four of them. Jose had a WP of +64.5%; no D-backs debutant position player previously had reached even 35%. It was the highest in the NL since Kyle Farmer for the Dodgers in July 2017.

5/15, Merrill Kelly: 9 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, in Coors

The Diamondbacks have had only one complete game thrown for them in the past three years. Of course, it would happen in Coors Field. Merrill became just the fourth Arizona starter to toss a complete game in Denver, in 243 attempts, and the first for almost 13 years. Randy Johnson didn’t. Nor did Curt Schilling or Brandon Webb. [Try and guess the other three – answers below] It’s a very special achievement. The only blot was a solo shot by Hunter Goodman, but that’s okay. He hit 41 HR. And besides, Kelly’s predecessors in complete games at Coors all allowed at least a run too. Heck, one allowed eleven hits in his complete game. Merrill? Four, and no walks. Top stuff in an utterly unforgiving environment.

7/28, Gerardo Carrillo: 2 IP in extras, 0 H, stranded both Manfred Men, +76.7% WP

That Win Probability added is the highest ever by an Arizona reliever, surpassing the +65.1% set by Anthony DeSclafani last year. In the National League, it’s also the highest by any reliever since 2020, and the 7th highest in the wild-card era, dating back to 1995. Oh, and did I mention that Gerardo did it in just his third appearance in the major-leagues? Coming to any inning with a runner on second and no outs is a situation where you are expected to fail. Doing so would have ended the game, because it was tied 7-7 in the bottom of the 11th. But Carrillo not only kept the game tied there, he came back out in the 12th as well, and did it again to secure a D-back victory. He needed just 17 pitches, and retired all six batters faced, three by strikeout.

7/29, Eduardo Rodriguez: 8 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, +46.4% WP

The following night, E-Rod threw eight shutout innings against the Pirates – and, boy, was it needed. Arizona had used six relievers in Carrillo’s game, and available arms were thus extremely limited. Rodriguez had averaged barely five frames over his four previous outings in July, but really stepped it up on the night. A seven-pitch first inning set the tone for the night, Eduardo needing fewer than 15 pitches for five of the first six times up. Pittsburgh managed just two PA with a runner in scoring position all night, and Rodriguez faced four over the minimum, before handing the ball to Brandyn Garcia to close out the victory.

9/11, Justin Martinez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, immaculate inning

From 2013-25, the Diamondbacks didn’t have a single case of an immaculate inning – a frame where a pitcher throws nine pitches, all strikes and gets three K’s. This year, they had two. One by Michael Soroka in his debut for Arizona, and this outing by J-Mart. It only his eighth game back after missing fourteen months due to elbow surgery. You wouldn’t have known, six of the nine pitches being in triple digits, topping out at 102.6 mph. Pity the Tigers’ Evan Carter, who took an 89.2 mph splitter for a strike, then had to try and catch up with the next pitch at 102.5 mph. The Tigers swung at six pitches, with five whiffs and a foul. Arguably the most dominant frame in franchise history.

Here’s your poll – of course, you can explain your choice in the comments!

[The other three D-backs to throw a complete game in Coors: Omar Daal, 1999-05-22; Armando Reynoso, 2000-09-28; and Patrick Corbin, 2013-05-20]

Bill Bonham was another in a long line of similar pitchers in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s — a really hard-throwing right-hander who didn’t always know where the ball was going.

Three times he was drafted out of high school and junior college, and three times he didn’t sign. Then he went undrafted after his senior season at UCLA, and his SABR biography explains:

“I really didn’t have a great record with UCLA,” Bonham said. “Too, I think a lot of clubs thought I had a bad attitude.”

So the Cubs signed him as an undrafted free agent in June 1970 for $2,000. Even by inflationary standards that’s not a lot of money today — the equivalent of about $17,000.

As was the case for many in the Cubs system at the time, they didn’t have the infrastructure to develop good pitchers. So Bonham made 18 appearances in the Cubs system in 1970 and 1971, striking out 81 batters in 50 innings, and was deemed ready for the majors.

At age 22 in 1971, he posted a 4.65 ERA in 33 appearances, all but two in relief, with a high walk rate (13.2 percent), and started 1972 at Triple-A Wichita, where he struck out 116 in 125 innings. That was a really good K rate for the time, and in 1973 he was with the Cubs to stay.

Used mostly in relief early on, Bonham was pressed into the Cubs rotation in late July 1973, while the team was fading, and stabilized things, a bit, peaking with an 8.1-inning, three-hit, nine-strikeout performance against the Dodgers Aug. 17 at Wrigley Field.

The 3.02 ERA and six saves, along with a 19.3 percent K rate (very good for the time), got him 4.3 bWAR at age 24. With the team rebuilding after ‘73, Bonham was given a full slot in the Cubs rotation in 1974, basically second starter behind Rick Reuschel, and hopes were high.

If you ignore Bonham’s W/L record, his 1974 season was quite successful: 3.86 ERA, 191 strikeouts (sixth in the NL) and 3.2 bWAR. On a 96-loss team, though, a pitcher like that is likely going to lose more than he wins and Bonham wound up 11-22. He is the last Cubs pitcher to lose 20 or more games in a season. Of that, Bonham said (from the SABR bio):

“When I pitched badly I lost,” said Bonham, “and when I pitched good, I lost some of those games, too. For a while, it seemed it didn’t make any difference how I pitched. I didn’t get much in the way of results. It’s an unsuccessful thing to lose that many games and it makes you feel like a failure. It’s tough to digest 20 losses. But I try to look at the other aspects. I got a lot of innings in. I picked up a lot of experience.

“When you lose 22, you’ve got something wrong. I have to change something, but I don’t really know what it is. I’m going to have to keep working hard until I find the answer.”

It mostly wasn’t his fault. Bonham ranked 45th of 52 qualified starters in the NL in 1974 in run support at 3.3 per start. Of his 10 complete games, five were losses: two 1-0 losses, a 2-0 loss and two 2-1 losses.

Another note on Bonham’s 1974 season: In the first game of a doubleheader July 31 at Wrigley Field against the Expos, he became just the third pitcher in franchise history to strikeout four in an inning. The opposing pitcher, Mike Torrez, was the guy who reached base after striking out, on a passed ball.

Bonham’s ERA went up nearly a run in 1975, to 4.71, as the Cubs staff was torched for a league-high 827 runs, 133 of those charged to Bonham, and he gave up the most earned runs in the NL at 120. Things didn’t get any better in 1976, but in ‘77 Bonham started 34 times and posted a relatively high ERA, 4.36, but still had a 3.7 bWAR season.

All that did was get him traded to the Reds after 1977 for Woodie Fryman and Bill Caudill. Fryman, a veteran starter, was pretty awful and didn’t last even two months with the Cubs before being traded to the Expos for Jerry White. Caudill had a couple decent years in Chicago before he was sent to the Yankees as a PTBNL in the deal that brought Pat Tabler to the Cubs.

As for Bonham, he had a couple decent years in Cincinnati but was done after 1980 at age 31 due to elbow issues. He also had shoulder surgery after the 1980 season, and then was involved, along with his teammate Tom Hume, in an event that made national news:

A month after the surgery, Bonham, his wife, and Hume and his wife were staying at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, when the hotel was devastated by a fire.

The Bonhams and the Humes were in their rooms on the 24th floor when the fire broke out shortly after 7 A.M. After being awakened by shouts, “the Humes quickly aroused the Bonhams, who occupied an adjoining room, and the two couples headed for the fire exit stairway, aware they were 24 floors away from safety. As they descended, the smoke became denser. It became unbearable when they reached the 16th floor. All the guests who jammed the stairway then turned around and headed for the rooftop.”

About 1,000 people were rescued from the rooftop. The blaze, one of the worst hotel fires ever in the United States, claimed 85 lives, 75 from inhalation.

After his playing career, Bonham worked as a minor-league pitching instructor in the Astros organization for several seasons and later settled with his wife in southern California. He turned 78 in October.

Bill Bonham posted 14.6 bWAR in his seven seasons with the Cubs.

The Yankees officially have their seventh AL Cy Young Award winner in franchise history! Cam Schlittler rightly claimed a clean sweep of the highest pitching award in the land, becoming the third Yankee after Ron Guidry in 1978 and Gerrit Cole in 2023 to win the award in unanimous fashion. He fended off fellow frontrunner Dylan Cease with a stretch of late season excellence to author the best pitching season in franchise history since Guidry’s extraterrestrial award-winning campaign, finishing the year 14-6 in 33 starts, with a 1.95 ERA (215 ERA+), 2.56 FIP, 0.92 WHIP, and 239 strikeouts in 193.2 innings, leading all AL starters with 6.2 fWAR and setting a single-season franchise record with 21 starts allowing one or fewer runs. After enduring a 22 year drought since Roger Clemens took home the prize in 2001, the Yankees have now claimed two of the last four AL Cy Young’s between Cole and now Schlittler.

With Schlittler’s meteoric rise from an obscure draft pick to unheralded prospect to playoff hero to now the best pitcher in the AL, I would like to offer a mea culpa of sorts. I am not ashamed to admit that I was wrong about the Yankees’ now-undisputed ace.

First, I’ll give myself a small bit of credit for identifying Schlittler as the team’s breakout pitcher during 2025 spring training. While certainly impressed by his high octane velocity that seemingly came out of nowhere, I had my reservations about the repeatability of his mechanics and the resulting lack of command I believed that conferred. I was sharply critical during his first six or so starts during the regular season in 2025 about what I perceived as him being a thrower rather than a pitcher, his imprecise command, and the erratic nature of his slider. I went back to the time period surrounding those half-dozen starts to pull a few of my own quotes evaluating his up-and-down performances that yielded a 3.94 ERA, 5.26 FIP, and 10.8-percent walk rate at the time:

“Cam Schlittler’s principal issue since being promoted to the big league rotation has been a complete lack of command over his secondary pitches.”

“For all the velocity he possesses, far too often Schlittler seemingly has no idea where the slider is going which effectively removes the pitch as a reasonable selection. No amount of velocity in the world will then save you once you become a fastball-only pitcher.”

“The command of the slider was an issue with too many staying elevated or in the heart of the zone. He actually reworked the pitch in the offseason, adding velocity at the expense of movement — he even said during the postgame that he now considers the pitch to be a cutter rather than a gyro slider as Statcast currently has it categorized. I’m not convinced the current version of the pitch can be a reliable swing-and-miss option and I’d like to see him expand the use of the sweeper in advantageous counts.”

“His cutter was a home run machine when he first came up owing to a propensity to miss middle-middle.”

Suffice to say I did not envision at that point that roughly 15 months later, Schlittler would be unanimously selected as the 2026 Cy Young winner. And all the credit goes to him for not only identifying the areas of his game that needed improvement, but actively seeking help from the Yankees pitching coaches and his veteran teammates in the rotation. It is said that Schlittler is among the most eager and proactive pitchers in the organization at pouring over the pitch metric data and high-speed video to find the subtle adjustments for fine-tuning grip, finger positioning, release, and arm path mechanics, squeezing every drop out of his physical gifts.

One of the first things I noticed this year was a simplifying of his delivery. In 2025, it seemed he relied too much on brute arm speed to supply velocity, the longer arm path and more maximum effort delivery robbing him of precise fastball command. In 2026, he learned to engage his lower half more, sinking his hips to draw more power from his leg drive. This allowed him to shorten his takeaway and turned his somewhat loopy arm path into a more compact stroke, which not only sharpened his command but gave him access to a few more ticks on the heater, allowing him to touch 101 mph. With a more repeatable delivery, Schlittler found he could live on the top shelf of the strike zone with relative ease.

Schlittler’s receptiveness to feedback is super impressive, especially for a young player with rapidly growing hype surrounding him. He sought out Cole before the season, and a conversation they had about reshaping his slider into a cutter and throwing it as hard as he could unlocked a new level for Schlittler. Thus, he was able to transform probably the weakest facet of his game — a slider with unpredictable command — into one of the best cutters in the game, which also boosted the effectiveness of his four-seamer and sinker given the way its movement diverged from that latter pair of pitches. Adding the cutter is what allowed him to excel while throwing a fastball variant 89.3-percent of the time.

What impressed me most — and another piece of overwhelming evidence that Schlittler is indeed a pitcher and not just a thrower — is his constant quest to find that next level. Not content to simply rest on the laurels of his three overpowering fastballs, Schlittler evolved his game in the second half of the season by developing a unicorn curveball that could play off his new-found mastery of the top of the zone. Facing a Red Sox team fully expecting him to go heavy fastball when they met in the AL Wild Card Series, Schlittler threw a career-high 32 curveballs to completely confound their gameplan. This ability to be a step ahead of the opposition to me is evidence of Schlittler’s dedication to his craft.

It absolutely delights me to say how wrong I was about Schlittler in his first taste of the bigs. More and more pitchers these days can touch triple digits with their fastball. It is the rare player like Schlittler who is never satisfied with his physical gifts, and this insatiable push to keep becoming a better version of himself is why this unanimous AL Cy Young might not be the last of his career.

Jurickson Profar went MIA at a time when he may have needed to do some explaining.

One of the Braves’ big offseason decisions is whether to keep the polarizing outfielder for the 2027 season for $15 million after missing the entire 2026 season due to his second ban for performance-enhancing drugs since signing a three-year, $42 million pact with Atlanta.

And Profar certainly did not help himself with his actions after receiving his year-long ban in spring training on the heels of his 80-game ban in 2025.

“Talking with people around the team, after Profar got suspended a second time for his PED violation, this dude like disappeared off the face of the earth,” Braves reporter Scott Coleman said on the “Hammer Territory” podcast last month. “Changed his cellphone number, nobody heard from him, players hadn’t heard from him is what I was told.”

Those reported tactics are perhaps a reason why veteran Braves reporter Mark Bowman recently wrote that “Profar certainly wouldn’t be welcome back in the clubhouse after betraying his teammates both of the past two seasons with performance-enhancing drug suspensions.”

These reports make it seem highly likely Profar won’t be back with the Braves in 2027, leaving them with sizable wasted money at a time when they are clearly a step below other NL contenders.

Atlanta signed Profar after a career year with the Padres in 2024 and he’s since provided just 80 games due to his suspensions.

Profar, 33, actually played well in 80 games in 2025 following the 80-game sanction, posting a .787 OPS, but did not play last year after receiving a 162-game ban.

Atlanta only had to pay him a prorated amount for those two years due to the suspensions, but he’s set to go for 2027 — if the Braves want him.

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos said the Braves don’t have to rush a decision.

“We realize it’s something we’re going to have to address,” Anthopoulos said, per MLB.com. “But we’d like to get through the winter and have a better handle on what the roster looks like and what’s going to happen between now and Spring Training with signings, role and all that stuff.” 

Due to Profar’s actions and his salary, it’s hard to envision the Braves could find a trade partner.

“We haven’t come to any conclusions at all,” Anthopoulos said, according to MLB.com. “But look, it’s a topic. It’s something that’s going to need to be addressed at some point.

“The good news is it doesn’t have to be addressed today, because we have the offseason and the roster can change and things can change.” 

Jazz Chisholm Jr. may have a golden opportunity to show the Yankees they potentially made a mistake in not re-signing him.

The free-agent infielder’s representatives met with Blue Jays officials at the GM meetings on Wednesday, according to Sportsnet.

Chisholm reportedly is open to being a versatile piece for his next team after primarily manning second base with the Yankees.

The polarizing infielder staying in the AL East would provide some sizzle to the Yankees-Blue Jays rivalry.

Chisholm is an uber-talented player who can win games in a variety of ways, but his Yankees tenure came to be defined by his lack of focus at times, postseason struggles and coming nowhere close to the 50-homer, 50-steal goalhe ambitiously made public for the 2026 season.

He famously played defense while sucking on a Blow Pop in June, which irked manager Aaron Boone, and made an egregious error in the Yankees’ embarrassing display in the first inning of their Game 2 loss to the Rays in the ALDS that he later defended.

Chisholm posted a .773 OPS with the Yankees over two and a half seasons, he hit just .182 in October in pinstripes and was benched at critical times.

The Yankees ultimately passed on giving him the qualifying offer, essentially sealing his exit unless there’s a shocking reunion.

Anthony Volpe, who started at second base over Chisholm at times down the stretch and in the playoffs, could have the leg up at the position.

The Blue Jays are in search of offense after finishing in last in the AL East in 2026 following their World Series run in 2025, according to Sportsnet, and prefer outfield help but are being flexible.

Chisholm played outfield during his previous tenure with Miami and has shown he can play multiple positions, which can make him more attractive to teams in need of a bat.

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

No. 22, Seth Halvorsen (0.3 rWAR)

Seth Halvorsen’s potential was always as high as his 100-plus-mph fastball velocity.

But that potential hit roadblocks in 2026 — most notably shoulder inflammation in his throwing arm, a lower strikeout rate and the highest ERA of his three-year MLB career — and that ended Halvorsen’s career with the Colorado Rockies.

Throughout the first half of 2026, Halvorsen — who the Rockies drafted in the seventh round of the 2023 MLB Draft out of the University of Tennessee — went back and forth between Triple-A Albuquerque and the Rockies. Through the end of June, Halvorsen ranked No. 7 in MLB with consistent heat, throwing 233 pitches at 100 mph or faster since the beginning of 2025. Outside of his four-seam fastball, Halvorsen uses a split-finger and splitter, which can lock up hitters.

Just ask San Diego’s Ramón Laureano.

On June 30, Halvorsen had a rough outing, giving up three runs on four hits with one walk in one inning against the Miami Marlins in what would be his final outing in purple. By July 4, Halvorsen was placed on the 15-day IL, retroactive to July 1, with right shoulder inflammation. The 26-year-old was sent on a rehab assignment with the Isotopes on July 19. That same day, he threw one scoreless inning despite surrendering two hits against the Sacramento River Cats.

He didn’t pitch with Rockies organization again, however, as he was dealt to the Dodgers for RHP Nick Frasso and outfielder Landyn Vidourek (HM PuRP) on July 20.

Halvorsen ended his last season as a Rockie with 21 appearances (19 innings), posting a 4.74 ERA with two holds, 17 strikeouts and 15 walks with a 1.95 WHIP. In 16 games with the Isotopes, he was impressive, recording a 2.04 ERA with 24 strikeouts and only seven walks in 17.2 innings.

He followed a similar pattern with the Dodgers — showing promise in Triple-A, but struggling with command in the big leagues. In bouncing between the Oklahoma City Comets and Dodgers, Halvorsen never surrendered a run in 9.2 innings, while striking out 13 and only walking four for the Comets. For L.A., Halvorsen only threw 11 innings over 10 appearances because he posted an 8.10 ERA. Three homers didn’t help, significantly contributing to his nine earned runs.

Halvorsen combined to make 32 appearances in 2026 between the Dodgers and Rockies. He finished with his worst season with a 5.80 ERA and a 16.3% strikeout rate, way down from 28.3% in his short rookie campaign in 2024. His 100-mph four-seamer average from 2025 was reduced to 98.9 mph in 2026, even though he threw 114 fewer MLB pitches (636 in 2025 vs. 522 in 2026).

Halvorsen seemed like the type of pitcher the Rockies could really use in their bullpen, bringing heat and shutdown velocity. That promise didn’t come to fruition and the Rockies ended up getting Frasso to try to have that impact in the bullpen.

As Purple Row reported at the time of the trade, Rockies president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta told media, “I think Seth is going to be a really good major league reliever. He’s already had some major league success. It’s obviously a huge fastball, and I think he’s got the right mentality to pitch late in games. So again, it wasn’t something we were anxious to do, but in this case, we were presented with an opportunity where we get a player back that we think can actually fill a similar role to what we envisioned for Seth going forward.”

Frasso, a 28-year-old fourth-round pick by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2020 MLB Draft, didn’t fare much better. Frasso made his MLB debut on Aug. 4 and made 20 appearances. In 21.2 innings, he gave up 25 hits and 14 earned runs with 22 strikeouts and seven walks.

Both pitchers still have sky-high potential. If the Dodgers are able to help Halvorsen reach his, it won’t be the first time a former Rockies pitcher finds his way with L.A. With Frasso still in need of some work, and Vidourek struggling in his short time with the Low-A Fresno Grizzlies, time will tell whether the Dodgers or Rockies will win the Halvorsen trade.

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This morning, Spencer Nusbaum wrote about the state of the Nationals pitching staff entering 2027, and there was one thing that stood out. He said that Paul Toboni indicated Jake Irvin had “put himself in good position to compete for a rotation spot”. Given the way Irvin has pitched for the past 2.5 seasons, I find that to be discouraging. 

Also in The Athletic this AM: Rumblings on the Nats’ plans to improve their pitching next year, including details on an analytics department that they are becoming more confident in by the day: https://t.co/4wszWRh3kG

— Spencer Nusbaum (@spencernusbaum_) November 12, 2026

Back in 2024, Jake Irvin had a solid season, carried by a great first half. He posted a 4.41 ERA in 187.2 innings with 2 fWAR. Those are solid back of the rotation numbers. However, things have fallen apart since then. In 2025, he posted a 5.70 ERA and this season he had a 5.48 earned run average. With lower velocity and home run struggles, things have not been pretty for Irvin.

Given how bad things have been, I would be quite pessimistic about giving Irvin yet another year in the rotation. We have a very long sample size of Irvin not being effective now. Since the All-Star break of 2024, Jake Irvin has posted a 5.68 ERA in 358.1 innings. I get that the Nats trust their player development team, but running it back with Irvin in the rotation does not make much sense.

In some ways, I get why people would like Irvin. He is a big, strong right hander who generates a ton of extension and throws from a low arm slot. By all accounts, he is a great guy and hard worker as well. I actually think he could have success in the bullpen because of the fact he has shown the ability to sit in the mid-90’s for short bursts.

Lost in my coverage of Sunday's games was a very encouraging performance by Jake Irvin. Starting with a drastically lower arm slot, Irvin's fastball sustained its ride to push it to a plus offering. He also altered his slider to give it more loft. He is a name to follow! pic.twitter.com/RsOKuVQgmn

— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) March 30, 2026

A big reason why the Nats seem to have faith in Irvin is because they believe that with the right development, he can sit at 95 MPH deep into starts. That is what Nusbaum wrote in his piece. However, I am not as convinced about this. Velocity fluctuation has been a problem for years now with Irvin. Will the light just suddenly come on for a pitcher who is about to turn 30 years old?

That is what the team seems to hope for. Right now, he is working in West Palm Beach trying to increase that velocity. I will have to see it to believe it though because Irvin has been trying to solve this velocity problem for years now. In my opinion, the best way to solve that issue is to move him to the bullpen and just let him rip.

We have a multi-year sample of Jake Irvin being an ineffective starting pitcher. Not many guys get a third opportunity after back to back seasons with an ERA over 5.45. I am pretty confused about why things should be different for Irvin.

From 2005-20, the Nationals had only 1 pitcher with 100 IP and an ERA over 5.50 (Ramon Ortiz in 2006).

Since 2021, they've had 9:
Patrick Corbin (2021-22, 2024)
Erick Fedde (2022)
Trevor Williams (2023)
Mitchell Parker (2025)
Miles Mikolas (2026)
Jake Irvin (2025-26)

— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) September 26, 2026

If a pitcher goes down and you have to find someone to fill in, Irvin can do that. However, rolling into 2027 with Irvin in the starting five is just asking for trouble. Apparently, the Nats are likely to hold on to CJ Abrams, at least partially due to the fact they want to compete in 2027. Jake Irvin being in the rotation does not line up with that idea.

I really like Jake Irvin as a person, and his fastball-curveball combination can be money when he is on point. However, we have given him plenty of chances and things have not worked out. After winning 11 more games than last year, can the Lerner’s finally invest in this team and help this pitching staff.

Even if the budget is limited, I would want Paul Toboni to get creative and find different ways to fill out the rotation. Whether that is trading Dylan Crews for pitching or taking some higher risk fliers, those would be better than running it back with Irvin.

After last season, the expectations have been raised. We know this offense will at least be solid, especially with Abrams coming back. Now there needs to be some investment in the pitching staff. While player development is part of the equation, we need more talented arms to come into the fold.

I am not asking Lerner and Toboni to go out and get Tarik Skubal here. Just show the fans you are serious about winning and building a competent pitching staff. If the goal is to push for a Wild Card spot in 2027, the Nats have to aggressively look to upgrade the pitching staff with outside additions.

We have been doing this for a few years now: looking at the top free agents, using the contract Ben Clemens suggests he’ll get, and asking whether you would like the Jays to give him that contract. This year, the lockout makes it a little more complicated. Keith Law’s list is here. Ben Clemens’ is here.

Number 4 on Ben Clemens list and number 10 on Keith Law’s is Michael King.

King declined a $28 million option for 2027, taking a $5 million buyout instead.

He had a nice 2026, with a 3.21 ERA in 32 starts, with a 12-10 and a 4.3 bWAR (you don’t opt out of $28 million if you had a bad season). I bet you are thinking of checking your employment contract to see how much you would be paid if you quit.

King has been in the majors for eight seasons (well, one of those seasons totalled 2 innings), five with the Yankees, the last three with the Padres. In the last three years, he has a 3.15 ERA in 78 games, 77 starts with a 9.5 bWAR.

Among the things Law said:

He’s still a sinker/changeup guy, although in the last two months or so of the season he ramped up the use of a different slider, generating a 20 percent whiff rate on the pitch. It’s shorter, with more tilt to it and less vertical break, and having a better breaking-ball offering than his sweeper may actually mean he has a chance to be better in 2027 and beyond. I wrote last winter that the 2023-24 version of King was a $25 million a year pitcher. The Padres gave him that, and he delivered that and more. He’s a $30 million a year pitcher now, at least, and should get three years again at a higher AAV.

Ben:

Like Trevor Rogers ahead of him and Freddy Peralta behind him, King has a few blemishes that suitors will have to weigh against his bona fides. He posted career worsts in a number of process statistics this year – lowest swinging strike rate, lowest strikeout rate, highest walk rate, highest xFIP, xERA, and SIERA. He withstood those headwinds thanks to a low BABIP and a high left on base percentage, but you probably shouldn’t count on that happening to the same extent again. That would make King more of a nice starter than an elite one, which is roughly what the projections say too. I rounded up from there because I value King’s steady presence and flexibility, and because the Padres under A.J. Preller have never been averse to paying up a bit to retain their own guys.

Ben figures he’ll get $25 million a year for four years, $100 million total, making it a little weird that he would turn down $28 million for next year, but let’s go with it anyway.

If your answer depends on whether he can shower enough to get rid of the Yankees smell, you are my kind of people.

Welcome to the 2026-27 edition of Smash or Pass, in which we examine potential free agent and trade targets to determine whether the Red Sox should pursue them and what it would take to land them. Today, we continue the series with the surprisingly mysterious Brandon Lowe.

Who is he, and where does he come from?

He’s Brandon Lowe, and according to WAR (both Fangraphs (4.9) and Baseball Reference (5.3)), he just had the best season of his career for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Before that, he spent eight seasons playing for the Rays to varying degrees of availability and success.

Is he any good?

Yes, but he falls into the solid be not spectacular bucket. Lowe’s been a surprisingly reliable bat every year outside of 2022 when he dealt with multiple injuries, and 2026 marked the third time he’s hit over 30 home runs in his career. I do have my doubts however about whether he’d hit the most home runs on the 2027 Red Sox if you suddenly dropped him onto this roster, but he did manage to outhomer everybody in Boston on the 2026 team, so I can’t completely ignore what he brings to the table either.

One thing that does concern me however is his abysmal playoff record. He’s batted just .115 with a .423 OPS in 120 postseason plate appearances. (Although to be fair, a huge chunk of those were during Covid, which was the most useless MLB season of all time.)

TL;DR, just give me his 2026 stats

150 games, a .260 batting average, a .331 on base, an .824 OPS, a 121 wRC+, and a 5.1 WAR* when you average Baseball Reference and Fangraphs.

*Important disclaimer …

Here’s the thing that line doesn’t tell you: Lowe just had a career year on defense. Baseball Reference has him down for +13 runs in 2026 after being a -14 runs in 2025. Fangraphs meanwhile tells a very similar story, pegging him at +10.7 runs in overall defensive value in 2026 after clocking in at -10.0 in 2025. While the details vary slight, both agree that Lowe had BY FAR his best defensive season in 2026, and BY FAR his worst defensive season in 2025. That’s not really supposed to happen at age 32, and it makes nailing down his value going forward extremely tricky.

Why would he be a good fit for the Red Sox?

2026 Brandon Lowe would be a great fit for the Red Sox! Outstanding defense, 30 plus home run pop, took the field for a full 150 games, and plays a position that’s been a revolving door for a decade. What’s not to love?

Why wouldn’t he be a good fit for the Red Sox?

Well, for starters, he averaged just 93 games a year in his first eight seasons. (To be fair, the real number is probably closer to 115 games per season, which is the average you get before 2026 when you throw out his rookie season and Covid.) But on top of that, those wild swings in the defensive metrics really take a potential bite out of his value. You simply can’t rely on him to be a plus defense at second base for the life of his next contract when you combine his career numbers with the general fact that most guys tend to fall of sharply defensively once they hit their mid 30s.

The bottom line is that for a player who was so consistently good in 2026, he’s surrounded by question marks when you look at the bigger picture. And unfortunately for whoever signs him, this feels like the classic example of a guy who had a career season in his contract year and is never going to duplicate it again.

What would it take to get him?

So here’s the fun part — Nobody knows. Keith Law of the Athletic thinks he’s getting five years and $150 million while other outlets have him getting approximately half of those figures. Again, Lowe’s value going forward is mystery worthy of an Agatha Christie novel.

One thing we do know however is Lowe will come attached with a Qualifying Offer (assuming he declines it by the deadline next week), which means you’ll be paying in draft capital on top of the dollars.

Show me a cool highlight.

Here he is rocking a walk-off home run in August off Kenley Jansen, which is always nice to see after Jansen quit on the Red Sox clubhouse at the end of the 2024 season.

Smash or pass?

I’m a pass for now. The Red Sox have too many guys going into 2027 surrounded by question marks, and Lowe would only further muddy those waters. And curiously enough, the wild volatility of this club already includes what they’re going to get at second base with Curtis Mead. He could be anything from a power bat at the position who just unlocked the skill in 2026, or a borderline hitter who can’t stick at second base defensively.

But back to Lowe, because there is one caveat: I feel like Lowe is not going to be signed anytime soon (I could be completely wrong about this). He feels like a guy who is going to wait out for that $150 million Keith Law is predicting, and I don’t think he’s going to get it. It’s possible he’s sitting there on the backside of the lockout after the Red Sox have made several other moves. So who knows, maybe they loop back to him after the deck has been shuffled. Maybe he’s the lsat of the QO guys sitting there and the Red Sox whiffed on everybody else and have a gigantic hole left at second base and more room to spend than other big market clubs with a cap going in place. It’s not likely, but we’re not dealing with a normal winter here.

For now though, I’d echo Fitzy Mo Pena’s desire to prioritize Seiya Suzuki, and figure out where the dust settles with Franklin Arias, Trevor Story, Curtis Mead, a whole host of other middle infield utility options the Sox already have, and any potential middle infield trade rumors we don’t even know about yet. Just like with Lowe himself, uncertainty is the name of the game.

One of several prospects the Dodgers acquired as part of some roster reshuffling over the past few seasons—working around the margins—Adam Serwinowski did not necessarily live up to the promise of an exciting end of the year in High-A last season. Promoted to Double-A to begin the 2026 campaign, Serwinowski went through the baptism of fire of the Texas League, just like various talented prospects before him and plenty more in the future.

This was Serwinowski’s first full season in the Dodgers’ organization, acquired during last year’s trade deadline in a three-team deal that saw the Dodgers send catcher Hunter Feduccia to the Rays. Drafted in the 15th round of the MLB Draft by the Reds back in 2022, the 6-foot-5 left-hander had a slow development, falling short of 30 innings in his first two seasons as a pro in Rookie ball.

One of the workhorses for a Drillers team that smoked through the competition to earn an 88-50 record, Serwinowski not only led his team in strikeouts with 150 but also was number two in that category in the entire Texas League. The Dodgers’ left-handers stood behind only Daniel Eagen (157) of the Diamondbacks.

It’s easy to see that 5.31 ERA in a different light in the context of the extreme hitter-friendly Texas League and all the obstacles it brings to the table. There were moments of brilliance sprinkled throughout the year, like when he tossed seven scoreless against Corpus Christi in a one-hitter in late June, but usually the challenging outing to inflate that ERA back over five was just around the corner.

Speaking of challenges, the Springfield Cardinals—the team responsible for eliminating Tulsa in the semifinals—certainly had Serwinowski’s number in 2026, including in the playoffs. After scoring 12 runs against the tall left-hander in just 11.2 regular season innings, the Cardinals got on him for four runs in as many innings in an eventual 9-7 defeat for the Drillers.

As things currently stand, the Dodgers have a decision on their hands regarding Serwinowski, who for the first year in his career will be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. Whatever concessions we might make regarding the Texas League, the left-hander does not look ready for a promotion to the big league club in the near future, meaning LA would need to burn a 40-man spot to maintain its asset.

The alternative would be to do something that’s become common for this team in recent years: move a prospect for an even younger one and trade proximity to the majors for convenience since roster moves and playing time at and near the top require some sacrifices. Serwinowski is one to keep an eye on in any potential trade talks this offseason.

2026 particulars

Age: 22

Double-A Stats: .9-6, 5.31 ERA, 1.433 WHIP, 150 K, 69 BB, 127 IP

Game of the year

Having faced the Wichita Wind Surge five times in 27 starts, it’s no wonder some of Serwinowski’s most dominant performances came in this matchup, including his only double-digit strikeout game. In late May, Serwinowski held the Wind Surge to just one run through seven innings, allowing five baserunners (three hits and a walk).

MESA, Arizona — I generally like attending at least one Arizona Fall League game each year, a way to get a bit of a baseball fix before the winter with no baseball sets in (and this winter might have a much longer period with no baseball, as you know).

So I attended Wednesday’s AFL game between the Mesa Solar Sox (where Cubs prospects play) and the Salt River Rafters at Sloan Park, won by the Rafters 12-4.

Holy hell, that was an awful baseball game. And there’s a reason for it, which I’ll get to after I describe why this game was so bad. First, because the game had no impact on the AFL playoffs, which begin today, it was scheduled for seven innings.

Even so, it ran three hours and three minutes. Why was that? Because the teams combined for 22 (!) walks and threw a total of 343 (!) pitches. That would be a lot even for a nine-inning game. The Rafters pitchers were slightly less bad than the Solar Sox pitchers. They walked only seven.

The Solar Sox pitchers, who included Cubs prospect Jhon Cabral, walked 15 — and also struck out 13. Put another way: The Rafters sent 46 men to the plate. Only 18 of them put the ball in play.

Cabral, who was signed to a minor-league deal by the Cubs after the Marlins let him go in June, faced five batters. Not one of them put the ball in play. He struck out two and walked three, 30 pitches, 12 strikes. Here’s an example of how he threw:

So, Cabral throws hard but has no idea where the ball was going. Note that pitch 4 could have been challenged — it was clearly out of the zone — but the Rafters were out of challenges by then.

Cabral is 21. A guy who throws that hard — maybe the Cubs can refine that and help him throw strikes. Otherwise he’ll wash out of the system in a couple of years.

I was discussing this with Josh and he said, “It’s kind of like what Low-A has become. Teams just don’t send any pitching prospects to the AFL anymore.”

Which is true. AFL games used to be more like Triple-A games, with prospects about ready to make the majors. Ian Happ was the AFL championship game MVP back in 2016 when he homered twice. Nelson Velázquez won the league MVP award in 2021. That same year, Caleb Kilian threw six perfect innings in the AFL championship game.

It’s not like that anymore — and it’s not just the Cubs. I met up with Samantha Bradfield, who runs the SB Nation Rockies site Purple Row (and who also helped us out with our interview with Miguel Useche), at the game and she mentioned she had heard from Rockies director of player development Chris Forbes:

“The Fall League in probably a 10-year span has really changed. It’s not quite the pedigree that it used to be. Where it used to be guys are going and next year they’re probably going to debut, and this year, as we were picking through it – reward, like, Fidel Ulloa. That’s a good reward for a kid that’s been pretty steady and a reliever. And a reliever, Hunter Mann, that’s emerged this year as a two-plus guy. But from Konner Eaton, there’s a command plan for him. We need just a little bit more time with him. And then Stu Flesland III, who had an amazing year, they’ve got this velocity thing they’re trying to do with him, and they’re going to do that and then try to get him to try it in a game. So I think Sean’s our only starter, and guys like Stu will be coming out of the bullpen with just his plan in place.“

Last week, Jim McLennan, who runs our SB Nation Diamondbacks site AZ Snakepit, had this similar comment about an AFL game he attended, quoting a D-backs beat writer:

The game ended 5-3 to the Javelinas and was… interesting. It wasn’t very well-played, to be honest. Was chatting to Jack Sommers about it, and he said, “The quality of the AFL has gone down in recent years. There are fewer and fewer good pitchers, and it has skewed towards younger, less developed position players. Fifteen years ago it was much better quality.”

So, if you go to an AFL game, the sort of baseball you’re going to see is… different… from what it used to be. Whether this is good or bad is in the eye of the beholder.

Two Cubs hitting prospects had decent games Wednesday. Kade Snell, who is gaining some attention in the system, went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base. Outfielder Harrison Feinberg went 2-for-3 with a sacrifice fly.

One reason for the lopsided score, besides all the walks issued by Solar Sox pitchers, is that catcher Davis Diaz simply got run on by just about everyone. The Rafters stole 11 (!) bases and on a couple of the attempts, Diaz didn’t even attempt a throw. Diaz is a conversion guy, drafted by the A’s in the eighth round in 2024 out of Vanderbilt. He did not catch at all in college; the A’s are, well, trying to change that. Based on what I saw Wednesday, it’s not working.

The Solar Sox have prospects from the Cubs, A’s, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Angels. The Rafters have prospects from the Nationals, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Yankees and Twins.

It wasn’t great baseball, but it was baseball, the weather was gorgeous (80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky), and who knows when I’ll see players wearing Cubs uniforms on a field again… so it was still a worthwhile way to spend a Wednesday afternoon in November.

If you are interested, here’s the entire game:

Hot stove season is hitting it’s stride, and November 17th is one of the relatively hotter days for said proverbial stove in the MLB off-season calendar.

1. Rule 5 Draft Protection Date Deadline: Any minor-league players that are eligible to be drafted in the Rule 5 draft (have been in affiliated pro ball for 5 seasons if drafted at age 18 or younger, or 4 seasons if drafted when 19 or older) must be added to the 40-man by November 17.
2. Qualifying Offer Deadline: Any players tendered the 1-year, $23.1mm contract (known as a Qualifying Offer) must accept or decline by November 17. Teams that have a QO declined receive draft capital as compensation.
3. Owners Meetings: The Owners Meetings will also begin on November 17. These meetings are typically hotbeds of roster rumors and trade news. This year’s meetings will surely be colored by the pending expiration of the labor contract with the MLB Players Association (and associated owner-imposed lockout), so we might expect less trade activity than normal (or more!).

The Mariners have no obvious candidates for Rule 5 protection, per our prospect guru Max Ellingsen. Athletic-but-undersized outfielder Carlos Jimenez is the only top-30 prospect per MLB Pipeline (#25) that is Rule 5 eligible. Other long-shot candidates include a few pitchers: tantalizing-but-oft-injured Teddy McGraw, 29-year-old southpaw Peyton Alford, and recent Arizona Fall League All-Star Adam Smith..

As for the Qualifying Offer, that one is rather simple. Randy Arozarena, the anchor of the 2026 Mariners’ offense has been tendered his offer and is certain to decline it.

So, as is tradition, let’s burn some of our few hours of daylight by breaking down the current 40-man roster (as of November 12) by looking at each position group, see how this projects to a 26-man roster before this offseason’s free agent and trade acquisitions.

Pitchers: 22

Starting Pitchers: 7

Logan Gilbert, Bryan Woo, George Kirby, Kade Anderson (L), Emerson Hancock, Bryce Miller, Logan Evans

Not much has changed with the starting rotation from last season. Even after the mid-season trade of Luis Castillo, it is a position group that is ripe for trade rumors, for obvious reasons. The Mariners took several approaches to their embarrassment of riches, including a 6-man rotation, sending Bryce to the pen (and then back), and most notoriously, El Piggyback.

The working assumption is that Gilbert, Woo and Anderson are considered untouchable in these discussions, and Kirby, Hancock and Miller to be on the block. Evans underwent Tommy John surgery in January of 2026, leaving his availability for spring of 2027 in question, but he likely could be ready to provide rotation depth again once stretched out.

Relief Pitchers: 15

RHP: Eduard Bazardo, Matt Brash, C0oper Criswell, Nick Davila,Seranthony Domínguez, Isaac Mattson, Andrés Muñoz, Michael Rucker, Troy Taylor, Carlos Vargas, Cole Wilcox

LHP: José Ferrer, Gabe Speier, Robinson Ortiz

As usual and to be expected at this time of year, the bullpen section of the 40-man is a bit of a slop pile. There is a somewhat-clear top 7 of the depth chart here: Muñoz is the closer, Speier, Ferrer and Brash should be high-leverage options, while Domínguez, Bazardo and Vargas are solid arms to have as early-inning relief. But as the Mariners have seen over the last couple of years, it’s hard to go a full season without dipping deep into the 40-man for reinforcements for the bullpen. In particular, will Seattle run things back with Speier and Ferrer as the lone trusted lefties out of the pen, or will they seek to bolster their southpaw reserves?

Batters: 18

Catchers: 3

Cal Raleigh (S), Jhonny Pereda, Willie MacIver

The Mariners’ front office is likely satisfied with Pereda as their back-up for Raleigh. Raleigh will need to play a lot like more like 2025 & end-stage 2026 Cal, and a lot less like the nightmare that was most of his 2026. Seattle has ample catching depth just off the 40-man in their system, including Boston Smith and Luke Stevenson.

Infielders: 9

Josh Naylor (L), Cole Young (L), Brendan Donovan (L), Colt Emerson (L), Michael Arroyo, Ryan Bliss, Leo Rivas (S), Brock Rodden (S), Michael Toglia (S)

Naylor, Young, Donovan and Emerson looks a lot like your starting infield. Arroyo, the little positionless-hitter that could, impressed in his September call up, racking up 0.5 bWAR in 15 games while hitting .371. Expect Arroyo to see plenty of at-bats against left-handed pitchers, spelling Donovan or Young as necessary, or even slotting in to designated hitter. Depending on Donovan’s health and hitting, Arroyo could work himself into a platoon with the veteran infielder, a proposal made more challenging by Donovan’s similar positional uncertainty. Donovan might also project as the primary third baseman once again, but such a decision would be challenging with the club’s ostensible emphasis on defensive improvements.

Outfielders: 6

Julio Rodríguez, Dominic Canzone (L), Lazaro Montes (L), Brennan Davis, Grant McCray (L), Luke Raley (L)

Julio is the anchor here. Montes was as advertised in his September call-up – he struck out so much and hit the ball so far. He will likely rotate through the corners and DH, along with Canzone, who has finally played himself out of platoon jail with a breakout 2026. The fourth outfielder spot likely belongs to Luke Raley, who has shown the ability to hit between stints on the IL. One-time first-round pick Davis would be the 25th or 26th man on the roster today. Both Arroyo and Donovan will play outfield roles as well, as could some of their undersized infielders. Still, it’s worth noting Arroyo will likely miss the start of the season recovering from injury, while Davis, Raley, Donovan, and Canzone are far from bankably clean bills of health. Arozarena’s departure costs Seattle production, of course, but also reliability and availability.

Projected 26-man roster:

SP: Gilbert, Woo, Kirby, Anderson, Hancock, Miller

RP: Muñoz, Speier, Ferrer, Brash, Bazardo, Domínguez, Vargas

C: Raleigh, Pereda

INF: Naylor, Young, Donovan, Emerson, Arroyo, Rivas

OF: Rodríguez, Canzone, Montes, Raley, Davis

Projected Lineup:

1. Brendan Donovan (3B)
2. Julio Rodríguez (CF)
3. Cal Raleigh (C)
4. Dominic Canzone (RF)
5. Josh Naylor (1B)
6. Cole Young (2B)
7. Lazaro Montes (LF)
8. Colt Emerson (SS)
9. Michael Arroyo (DH)

Free Agency and Trade Priorities:

There is a glaring Randy-shaped hole in the lineup that most observers expect Seattle to fill via free agency or trade. Fellow QO-recipient, Seiya Suzuki, has been a name bandied about as an ideal fit for Seattle, including by our own John Trupin. However, given the proclivities of the front office, trading from the stores of starting pitchers seems more likely. This path makes even more sense given the imminence of Ryan Sloan.

More bullpen depth is needed as well, as there is a lot of question marks and churn-fodder beyond the top 7 or 8 arms. Running with a six-man rotation again seems hard to imagine given the cumulative consequences on the bullpen a season ago, but until a trade is made it’s hard to know if the club is willing to stick Bryce Miller in the bullpen again for a longer look.

If it looks like a questionable group, it seems reasonable that the M’s have been connected to several names already this winter. What it’ll shake out to be remains to be seen.

Hey now, you really love Mathias LaCombe!

Our first debut on the ballot to immediately advance is the right-handed Frenchman twirler, jumping right into the fray and winning Round 7, with 43 of 78 votes (55%):

LaCombe, a 12th round pick in 2023, finished as our No. 14-voted prospect last year. He’s the first right-handed reliever to advance this season.

Past No. 7s in the SSS Top Prospect Vote
2026 Billy Carlson (52%)
2025 Mason Adams (20%)
2024 Jake Eder (20%)
2023 Norge Vera (28%)
2022 Yolbert Sánchez (34%)
2021 Jonathan Stiever (40%)
2020 Jonathan Stiever (51%)
2019 Micker Adolfo (35%)
2018 Zack Burdi (39%)

The DSL announces its presence in the form of outfielder Sebastian Romero, who joins our ballot this round.

South Side Sox Top-Voted White Sox Prospects for 2027

1. Caleb Bonemer — 71% (Cholowsky 25%, Fauske 3%, Prosek 2%, Bergolla Jr./Carlson/McDougal/Sandlin/Thome/Volchko 0%)
2. Roch Cholowsky — 75% (Sandlin 8%, Bergolla Jr. 6%, Carlson 5%, McDougal 3%, Fauske/Mogollón 2%, Prosek/Thome/Volchko 0%)
3. David Sandlin — 30% (Carlson 23%, Fauske 10%, Bergolla Jr./McDougal 9%, Prosek 8%, Lodise/Thome 4%, Mogollón 3%, Volchko 0%)
4. Billy Carlson — 38% (Bergolla Jr. 27%, Fauske 13%, McDougal/Prosek 7%, Thome 4%, Lodise/Mogollón/Wolkow 2%, Volchko 0%)
5. William Bergolla Jr. — 27% (Fauske 25%, McDougal 21%, Prosek/Thome 10%, Lodise 4%, Mogollón/Wolkow 1%, Volchko/Weingartner 0%)
6. Jaden Fauske — 34% (McDougal 26%, Lodise/Prosek 9%, Thome 8%, Wolkow 6%, Volchko 4%, Mogollón 3%, Casteel 1%, Weingartner 0%)
7. Mathias LaCombe — 55% (McDougal 21%, Prosek 14%, Lodise/Thome 4%, Volchko/Wolkow 1%, Mogollón/Casteel/Weingartner 0%)

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Kyle Casteel
Right-Handed Starting Pitcher
Age 19
2026 high level Butler Area (H.S.)
Overall 2026 stats (H.S) 10-0 ▪️ 13 games ▪️ 65 ⅔ IP ▪️ 0.64 ERA ▪️ 103 K ▪️ 11 BB ▪️ 0.685 WHIP

Casteel is the sort of player you dream of getting to start off the $150,000 round of 10 picks: A player who the White Sox had been talking to regularly that, based on how the first round fell, now was draftable knowing the club could meet the prep’s demands. It’s undoubtable that Casteel is far better than the 315th pick (MLB had him ranked at No. 162 overall), and thus the White Sox pocketed a player who should have been selected in the fifth round. Casteel has power and control, and while the White Sox will bring him along with care, he has a rare profile in a pitching-starved White Sox system.

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Kyle Lodise
Shortstop
Age 22
2026 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 24
2026 high level Winston-Salem (High-A)
Age relative to high level 0.0 years
Overall 2026 stats 111 games ▪️ 20 HR ▪️ 77 RBI ▪️ .230/.380/.440 ▪️ 42-of-51 (82.4%) SB ▪️ 92 BB ▪️ 141 K ▪️ .957 FLD%▪️ 3.6 WAR

Lodise made a return visit to Winston-Salem in 2026, and his first full professional season went extremely well. With a low average and slug to burn, the shortstop fits right in with the org profile of swinging hard, damn the contact. Thankfully, Lodise is selective enough at the plate to produce astronomical OBPs. And his power bat is showing better than advertised at this point.

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Tanner McDougal
Right-Handed Starting Pitcher
Age 23
2024 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 33
2025 SSS Prospect Poll ranking N/R
2026 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 6
2026 high level Chicago (MLB)
Age relative to high level -6.2 years
Overall 2026 stats (High-A/AAA/MLB) 2-3 ▪️ 27 games (7 starts, 3 finishes) ▪️ 50 IP ▪️ 4.86 ERA ▪️ 53 K ▪️ 34 BB ▪️ 1.480 WHIP ▪️0.2 WAR

The good news is that McDougal was enough of a core piece to be promoted to Chicago in the second half of 2026. The bad news … well, where to start. McDougal’s presumptive march to the South Side rotation was stopped dead early in the season, when he was sidelined for weeks with forearm tightness. While the injury was thankfully not severe enough to necessitate a second TJS, Tanner was a relief arm for the rest of the season and not a stable one at that. His brief cameo in Chicago saw him rack up one out along with three walks.

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Javier Mogollón
Second Baseman
Age 21
2026 high level Winston-Salem (AA)
Age relative to high level -2.0 years
Overall 2026 stats (Low-A/High-A) 91 games ▪️ 14 HR ▪️ 57 RBI ▪️ .262/.368/.448 ▪️ 36-of-44 (81.8%) SB ▪️ 53 BB ▪️ 123 K ▪️ .965 FLD%▪️ 2.5 WAR

The diminutive (5´8´´, 160) infielder wowed in rookie ball and though his climb has slowed, Mogollón has steadily risen up our ranks, from No.62 in our 2024 Top 100 to the cusp of the Top 10 today. That said, he’s seen two straight seasons shortened by hamstring issues. At least in 2026, Mogollón was able to return before season’s end, providing a clutch bat coming that provided a .313/.389/.813 slash and eight RBIs en route to sweeping to a SALLY title.

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Cole Prosek
Third Baseman
Age 19
2026 High Level Magnolia Heights (H.S.)
Overall 2026 stats (H.S) 41 games ▪️ 18 HR ▪️ 79 RBI ▪️ .545/.678/1.177 ▪️ 62 R ▪️ 7 SB ▪️ 31 BB ▪️ 12 K

Coming to Chicago as a second-rounder, Prosek seems more highly-regarded by evaluators than the guy picked ahead of him by the White Sox, low first round choice Landon Thome. That’s a curious thing, but Prosek dominated his prep competition even more thoroughly than Thome. Plus, while the White Sox regard Prosek as a second baseman, his prep time was spent significantly at the hot corner, and he has experience behind the plate as well.

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Sebastian Romero
Center Fielder
Age 18
2026 high level DSL White Sox (Rookie)
Age relative to high level -0.6 years
Overall 2026 stats 52 games ▪️ 11 HR ▪️ 54 RBI ▪️ .277/.391/.538 ▪️ 7-of-10 (70.0%) SB ▪️ 18 BB ▪️ 61 K ▪️ .963 FLD%▪️ 1.6 WAR

The sexy international prospect for 2026-27 is Romero, who had a boisterous pro debut, flashing perhaps all tools but hit. Or, at least the bat control aspect of the hit tool, because 18 walks — just three more free passes than hit-by-pitches — indicates a willingness to swing at ANYTHING, as does his 61 Ks against woeful DSL arms. However, when contact is made, ball go boom.

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Landon Thome
Shortstop
Age 19
2026 High Level Nazareth Academy (H.S.)
Overall 2026 stats (H.S) 7 HR ▪️ 29 RBI ▪️ .545 AVG ▪️ 49-of-50 (98.0%) SB

How crazy is it to have two high school teammates (Thome and Jaden Fauske) on our first ballot of the voting year … or any ballot, ever? The White Sox were so hot to dip back into Nazareth’s roster that they dealt promising 2023 first-rounder Jacob Gonzalez to Pittsburgh to acquire the draft pick to snag him; clearly the club was not confident Thome would drop into the second round. Unlike his father, Hall-of-Famer and White Sox adviser Jim, Landon is better regarded for his speed and defense than his ability to put the ball over the fence. Slugging will come in time for junior, however.

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Joey Volchko
Right-handed starting pitcher
Age 21
2026 high level University of Georgia (NCAA)
Age relative to high level +0.1 years
Overall 2026 stats 11-2 ▪️ 18 starts ▪️ 1 CG ▪️ 95 1/3 IP ▪️ 3.68 ERA ▪️ 119 K ▪️ 46 BB ▪️ 1.343 WHIP ▪️ 2.1 WAR

This big-armed righty can touch 100 mph with his fastball, but wildness concerns might have precipitated Volchko’s drop to the White Sox in the third round in spite of MLB ranking him as a second round (68th-best) talent. He’s a big-game pitcher who dragged the Bulldogs to their first College World Series win in 18 years with a complete-game effort over the University of Texas. There’s a chance Volchko ends up as a high-leverage bullpen arm, but he will get every chance to stick as a starter.

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Alex Weingartner
Right Fielder
Age 19
2026 high level St. Augustine College Prep (H.S.)
Overall 2026 stats 30 games ▪️ 7 HR ▪️ 36 RBI ▪️ .495 AVG ▪️ .817 SLG ▪️ 33 SB ▪️ 21 BB

Oddly enough, Weingartner may be a doppelganger for the player listed right below; both he and George Wolkow were prep plums selected lower than their skill and scout rankings indicated, and both players scored sweet bonuses from the White Sox to lure them from potential college commitments. Both have rocket arms (Weingartner, in fact, pitched for his St. Augustine Hermits in 2026) as well.

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George Wolkow
Right Fielder
Age 21
2024 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 14
2025 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 13
2026 SSS Prospect Poll ranking 16
2026 high level Winston-Salem (High-A)
Age relative to high level -2.0 years
Overall 2026 stats 123 games ▪️ 22 HR ▪️ 100 RBI ▪️ .239/.317/.446 ▪️ 15-of-22 (68.2%) SB ▪️ 50 BB ▪️ 179 K ▪️ .971 FLD%▪️ 1.6 WAR

Wolkow sacrificed speed and what batting eye he had for power in 2026, and while that made for some impressive counting stats (22-100 plays on the back of any baseball card) the hole in his swing hasn’t been sewn. If the White Sox brass is having Wolkow bet on his best tool, power, at all others’ expense, he’s slipping into the Colson Category.

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