The Phillies re-signed J.T. Realmuto. Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
The Mets had been trying to sign Kyle Tucker before the Dodgers inked him to a four-year, $240 million deal Thursday night.
For now, Philadelphia will settle for bringing back Realmuto’s steadying presence behind the plate.
Realmuto, who has been with the Phillies for the past seven seasons, hit .257 last year with 12 home runs and 52 RBIs in 134 games.
The Phillies have re-signed slugger Kyle Schwarber, signed outfielder Adolis Garcia and brought in versatile reliever Brad Keller so far this offseason.
They lost starter Ranger Suarez to the Red Sox.
The Phillies finished 96-66 last season, winning the NL East by 13 games over the Mets before going out in four games to the eventual champion Dodgers in the NLDS.
The long wintertime staring contest between J.T. Realmuto and the Philadelphia Phillies is finally over.
Realmuto, the three-time All-Star catcher and highly respected handler of the Phillies' pitching staff, agreed to terms on a three-year, $45 million contract Jan. 16, according to a person with direct knowledge of the agreement.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal, first reported by The Athletic, has not yet been finalized.
Realmuto turns 35 in March and while he has been worth between 2.5 and 6.5 WAR in the six full seasons since the Phillies acquired him in 2019, his advancing age gave the club some pause entering the offseason. Multiple reports indicated the club preferred a two-year term and while both desired a reunion, the team scheduled a Zoom meeting with free agent infielder Bo Bichette on Jan. 12.
Acquiring Bichette would have all but ensured Realmuto's exit, but Bichette reached agreement with the New York Metsearlier in the day, and Realmuto's agreement with the Phillies - which includes incentives worth up to $5 million per season - came together shortly thereafter.
Realmuto was acquired from Miami before the 2019 season and led the major leagues in games caught in 2022, 2023 and 2025. Despite that workload he has largely produced well above league average offensively, with his finest season coming in 2022, when he hit 22 homers with an .870 OPS and a 130 adjusted OPS.
But that mark dwindled to 91 this past season when he hit a career-low 12 homers in 133 games.
It's been a whirlwind 24 hours for the Mets after the first two-plus months of their offseason saw them say goodbye to a large chunk of the offensive core.
The deal has been met with mostly excitement, but also with some wondering how Bichette fits given David Stearns' emphasis on improving the club's run prevention.
While that question is fair, there are two things to point out.
First, run prevention is not just defense. It's also pitching. And most people seem to be focusing only on the defensive aspect. Of course, the Mets still need to add significantly to their starting rotation this offseason.
Second, while Bichette has rated poorly at shortstop when it comes to his range, he should be better suited for third base -- and should be helped additionally by the rangy Francisco Lindor being to his left.
With Bichette now in tow, there are a number of ways the Mets can go with their infield alignment.
Brett Baty, 1B Marcus Semien, 2B Francisco Lindor, SS Bo Bichette, 3B
With Bichette taking over at third base, sliding Baty to first could make sense.
New York Mets third baseman Brett Baty (7) rounds the bases after hitting a two run home run against the Los Angeles Angels during the fourth inning at Citi Field. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
In that scenario, Jorge Polanco would be the regular DH.
Aside from one inning in left field in 2023, Baty has spent his entire major league career on the dirt. And the fact that he transitioned well to second base duty last season suggests that it isn't crazy to ask him to pick up a first base glove.
There are a lot of intricate things to learn at first base that you don't have to learn at second base, though. So it's easier said than done.
But with months to prepare, it's fair to believe Baty would be able to handle it.
Mark Vientos, 1B Marcus Semien, 2B Francisco Lindor, SS Bo Bichette, 3B
The probability might not be high, but the Mets exploring the trade market for Baty -- especially if it helps them land a difference-making outfielder or starting pitcher -- shouldn't be ruled out.
In a world where Baty is dealt, it could open up first base for Vientos (with Polanco at DH). Vientos has gotten time at first each of the last three seasons.
Vientos has been a poor defender at third base, though, so it's fair to wonder how he'd look at first base in a regular role.
The makeshift 2021 Cubs, after a bad run for most of August, won 10 of 13 late that month and early September, then went on another long losing jag, losing 10 of 13 entering a doubleheader date with the Cardinals on Sept. 24.
In 2021, as was the case in 2020, doubleheader games were limited to seven innings (unless tied after seven). The Cubs dropped the first game 8-5 and in the second game, David Ross sent Zach Davies, Scott Effross, Rex Brothers, Trevor Megill and Adam Morgan to the mound and they got pounded for 16 hits and 12 runs in 6.2 innings. Ross had wanted Morgan to finish off the game, with the Cubs trailing 9-4 entering the seventh, but Morgan allowed four hits and three runs, including a pair of homers while recording only two outs.
After Paul Goldschmidt hit an RBI double off Morgan, Ross had seen enough and sent infielder Sergio Alcántara in to pitch to Tyler O’Neill.
As noted in the clip, that pitch was thrown at 91 miles per hour. In fact, all these pitches look pretty decent:
Maybe the Cubs should have tried Alcántara as a pitcher. After he left the Cubs, he spent time with the Diamondbacks and Padres, and played one game for the Giants in 2025. He’s currently a free agent.
Note: Today is nomination day! Head to the comment section to nominate the next group of Giants prospects.
Spring Training is less than a month away, and the smell of baseball is almost in the air. To prepare ourselves, we’re continuing with the Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List, which will see us work together to rank the top 44 prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization. And we almost have a top 30!
The last chapter was a very close one, and it narrowly featured a winner who we might see in the Major Leagues this year: right-handed reliever Trent Harris, who has been voted as the No. 29 prospect in the system. That’s a drop of nine spots for Harris, who was No. 20 a year ago, and that speaks more to the improved strength of the system than his talent.
2025 was a tale of two stories for Harris. It was just his second full season of Minor League Baseball, as he joined the organization in the summer of 2023 as an undrafted free agent (remarkably, the Giants have three UDFAs in their top 30). Harris, who is 6’2 and well built, began the year with AA Richmond, where he was utterly dynamic. He posted a 1.69 ERA and a 1.73 FIP in 13 relief appearances, while striking out 25 batters in just 16 innings … and only walking four. Everything was going brilliantly, and he received an early promotion to AAA Sacramento.
That’s where the struggles began, as they do for so many pitchers entering the Pacific Coast League. Harris struggled mightily out of the gates, and never really covered over his few months with the River Cats. In all, he made 30 appearances in AAA, and finished with a 5.44 ERA and a 4.69 FIP. The strikeout stuff came down dramatically (8.71 per nine innings), though he did a good job of limiting walks (3.27 per nine).
On a recent podcast with Roger Munter, Harris attributed some of his struggles to shelving his curveball — largely viewed as his best pitch — after it got shellacked in the early going by more advanced hitters. And indeed, the numbers bore that out: Harris’ most used pitch in AAA was his cutter, which he threw nearly half the time, with quite poor results: a .313 expected batting average, a .492 expected slugging percentage, and an 18.4% whiff rate. His curve (which he threw 16.4% of the time), despite those early struggles, had an xBA of .242, an xSLG of .392, and a whiff rate of 30.3%, while his sweeper, which he threw roughly a third of the time, carried a .216 xBA, a .288 xSLG, and a 33.0% whiff rate. He also has a splitter, which was statistically speaking his best pitch, though in part because he so rarely used it.
So it would seem that the goal for Harris would be to get his pitch mix sorted a little better … and perhaps he can turn to teammate Trevor McDonald for some inspiration and optimism. McDonald put up poor numbers in AAA last year, but with a defensive savant calling his games and a talented infield defense behind him, wowed during his 2025 MLB stint. That could help Harris, as could adding a little velo to his heater, which averaged just 94.1 mph in Sacramento.
Needless to say, 2026 will be a critical year for Harris, in part because he’s no spring chicken (by prospect standards, at least) — he turns 27 next week. He’ll certainly be a non-roster invitee when pitchers and catchers report to Scottsdale in mid-February, and don’t be surprised if he’s coming out of the bullpen and taking the ball from Tony Vitello at some point this year.
Now let’s add to the list, and don’t forget that it’s nomination day. Nominations and prospect voting both take place in the comment section now.
Note: Clicking on the above names will link to the CPL where they were voted onto the list.
No. 30 prospect nominees
RaynerArias — 19.8-year old OF — .173 OPS/-42 wRC+ in Low-A (30 PA); .699 OPS/87 wRC+ in ACL (178 PA)
CarlosDe La Rosa — 18.1-year old LHP — 4.73 ERA/2.30 FIP in DSL (32.1 IP)
LisbelDiaz — 20.5-year old OF — .725 OPS/96 wRC+ in Low-A (561 PA)
DiegoVelasquez — 22.3-year old 2B — .677 OPS/107 wRC+ in AA (566 PA)
Note: Each player’s first name links to their Baseball-Reference page, and their last name links to their Fangraphs page.All stats are from the 2025 season.
Major League Baseball's annual game of musical chairs was accompanied by a waltz-like soundtrack for two months - then somebody suddenly flipped it over to speed metal.
The wham-bang contract agreements forged by Kyle Tucker with the Los Angeles Dodgers and brand new New York Met Bo Bichette in the span of roughly 15 hours suddenly swept the board clean of franchise players younger than 30 - and curtailed the destinations of a few players still out there.
Bichette's three-year, $126 million agreement resets the perception of the offseason for multiple teams, players and fan bases. With that, let's take a look at the winners and losers from Bichette's Citi Field foray:
Winners
Bo Bichette
Nah, it wasn't the $300 million deal one might have envisioned for Bichette both earlier in his career and as he put together an outstanding platform season in lifting the Blue Jays to the AL East title. But lest we forget, Bichette produced a .225/.277.322 line over 81 games just one year ago, worth -0.1 WAR. He finished this regular season with an injured knee, but a gallant World Series return reminded the world how impactful a player he can be.
At second base. Yeah, Bichette had to swallow some pride and will now likely be a second or third baseman the rest of his career, his defensive metrics being what they are. Yet with all that, he will command a $42 million salary - and be able to opt out next winter, when he's just 28.
Pete Alonso and Alex Bregman showed how swimmingly that can work out. And Bichette is both younger and more positionally diverse than both of them. He may yet near a $300 million total guarantee once he signs his next deal.
The Mets' unflappable president, empowered by bottomless-pocketed owner Steve Cohen's megabucks, nearly fumbled it all away this winter - letting Alonso walk without so much as a courtesy offer, declaring he'd pass on the elite starting pitching market, losing peerless closer Edwin Diaz by just a few bucks, the eh acquisitions of infielder Jorge Polanco, second baseman Marcus Semien and closer Devin Williams.
Bichette does not cure all. There's still a gaping hole in left field where Brandon Nimmo once stood, and there's tons of ambiguity surrounding how much trust and how many plate appearances the Mets will invest in several young players.
Still, Cody Bellinger remains on the market if they want to go big in left, and tweak the Yankees at the same time. Stearns' notion of going economy on the rotation looks wise - a glut of fairly trusty veteran starters remain on the market.
And Bichette's ability to "flat-out hit," as they say - he's twice led the AL in hits and is in the 86th percentile in K rate - will create a suffocating 1-2-3 atop the lineup with Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto.
Still not ideal. But far from the cataclysmic winter hyperventilating Mets observers envisioned.
The AL East
Whew.
For a minute there, the Blue Jays and their Rogers Communications arsenal were starting to look like George Steinbrenner North. They struck quickly for ace Dylan Cease, and the notion of adding Tucker and retaining Bichette didn't seem so farfetched at the outset of the season.
Under those circumstances, would the Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles and Rays be playing for second? Not quite, eh, but it would have been far less optimal.
Yet 2026 will bring no Tucker and no Bichette to the Blue Jays - or anyone else in the AL. The competitive balance of both division and league suddenly got a lot flatter.
J.T. Realmuto
The venerable Phillies catcher had been locked in a staring contest with his club, which just so happened to schedule a Zoom call with Bichette four days ago. Signing Bichette would have required moving several pieces around - and moving on from Realmuto.
Yet just hours after Bichette's Mets agreement, team and club found common ground on a three-year, $45 million deal, ensuring their ironman backstop who turns 35 in March is back in the fold.
Sure, the re-signing of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to a $500 million extension seemed certain to break up the organization's power couple: Bo and Vladdy, together for a decade, legacy players and beloved in all of Canada.
Yet Bichette's subpar 2024 dampened his value. His 2025 comeback did not totally send it into the stratosphere. Maybe the de facto brothers would be together forever.
Alas, it will be Vladdy going it alone, and suddenly the Jays' $60 million signing of Japanese infielder Kazuma Okamoto looks all the more critical. His early performance will be watched warily, as Japanese hitters often need a greater adjustment time than pitchers.
So, too, will the Blue Jays' many playoff heroes. Ernie Clement and Addison Barger and Andrés Giménez are now far more primary, rather than complementary pieces.
Sure, the Jays may yet forge a mini-dynasty in the AL. But it just got a lot tougher.
Cody Bellinger
For a minute there, it looked like he had the Yankees over a barrel. Maybe he still does.
But as he and the Yankees squabble over number of years on a contract, two of his alternatives – the Dodgers and Mets – spent big for Tucker and Bichette. Not to say the Mets won't get back in the Bellinger game, and perhaps the Blue Jays will jump in, with money to burn and an upgrade over Nathan Lukes readily available.
We still believe the Yankees and Belli will find common ground somewhere between five and seven years. But it feels like the Yankees wield a little more clout in the power exchange now.
Mets corner infielders
Maybe someday, Mark Vientos and Brett Baty will get an unadulterated crack at a full-time job.
Unfortunately, they are developing players on a club that will be in perpetual win-now mode for the foreseeable future. And thus, Baty's 3.1 WAR accrued in a 121-game 2025 campaign gets nudged to the side. Vientos's backslide in 2025 after a second-half surge in 2024 might have slammed the door on any chance at a full-time gig going forward.
For now, the two third basemen are DH partners on paper, but with four projected regulars in their 30s, it's not hard to imagine many of those at-bats will be gobbled up by veterans needing a day out of the field.
Perhaps a trade and a fresh start will be in the offing for one of them. For now, winter remains the time their playing time dreams evaporate.
Atlanta Braves
It's getting increasingly difficult for one of the game's best-run organizations to keep up with the Northeast behemoths.
The Braves were considered a solid candidate for Bichette's services at the start of the winter. They opted to retain shortstop Ha-Seong Kim. Totally fine. Really good player.
Yet it will be hard to match the Mets' and Phillies' firepower, especially since Atlanta's 2026 calculus likely bakes in bounceback seasons from the likes of Austin Riley and Jurickson Profar. Their margin for error is looking pretty thin.
It's not like the Braves are paupers; listen to any old Liberty Media earnings call and you realize the Braves and The Battery are, as public equity bros might say, just printing. Still, they remain hesitant for big free agent splashes that upset the formula of retaining their own players.
From 2018 to 2023, when they ruled the NL East, that was fine. But it seems to get harder every year.
Ty Johnson, RHP 24 | 6’6” | 205 AA | 2.61 ERA, 2.33 FIP, 110.1 IP (26 G, 20 GS), 34.7% K, 8.8% BB
A dip-and-drive pitcher with a quick arm action and a limited arsenal with a flat plane have given Johnson a reliever projection most of his minor league career, but his success speaks for itself. Johnson has a fastball that continues to be difficult for batters to see. It sits around 94 as a starter and can ramp up to 98, but talking about the fastball buries the lede. Johnson’s slider passed the test of Double-A in part because he was able to throw it fast and slow to keep hitters off balance. Accordingly, he hasn’t really needed a third pitch just yet, but there’s a change up in development for problematic lefties.
Rank
Player
Position
Votes
Total
Percentage
Last Season
1
Carson Williams
SS
14
25
56%
1
2
Brody Hopkins
RHP
19
25
76%
8
3
Jacob Melton
OF
14
28
50%
N/A
4
Theo Gillen
OF
14
26
54%
13
5
Ty Johnson
RHP
12
25
48%
15
Ty Johnson is the first significant variation from the national lists, who appears destined for a 20-30 range ranking at other sites. Our commentariat believes in the results, though, and has vaulted him into the Top-5. Daniel Pierce was a close second with 8 votes, while Jadher Areinamo, Anderson Brito, Slater de Brun, Michael Forret, and TJ Nichols all got votes. Up next we add a personal favorite, Brendan Summerhill.
Acquired in return for Danny Jansen at the 2025 trade deadline, Arienamo was promoted straight to Double-A by the Rays, and his success at that level carried over into the Venezuealan winter league, where his 1.112 OPS and 13 HR were each the second highest marks in the league. He’s considered to have a high baseball IQ, strong motor, excellent bat control, and defensive flexibility, any one of which could earn him an entertaining major league debut.
Caden Bodine, C 22 | S/R| 5’10” | 200 A (BAL) | .326/.408/.349 (133 wRC+) 49 PA, 0 HR, 0 SB, 5 BB, 8 K
Drafted 30th overall in 2025, Bodine was acquired in the Shane Baz trade. He profiles as a relatively safe prospect thanks to near-70 grade bat-to-ball skills, and comfortably-plus blocking and receiving behind the plate. There is some concern that his smaller frame limits him to fringe power, but those concerns are off-set by solid plate discipline from both sides of the plate; his sweeter swing is left handed. All catching prospects will see their value proposition shift with the challenge system, but his defensive actions, leadership, and receiving give him real value, projecting him as a solid major league contributor.
Acquired in the Brandon Lowe trade, Brito has three plus pitches with a fastball that touches 100 with cut-ride, and two breakers in a mid-80s curveball with surprising depth and a mid-80s slider he commands best. He also mixes in a developing low-90s cutter and a scattershot but intriguing mid-80s changeup with strong velocity and movement separation, with some added deception from his smaller frame helping limit hard contact. The concern is control, as he’s posted below-average strike rates in A-ball across 2024–25 and lacks consistent feel outside the slider, leaving him to project as a slightly wild, high-leverage reliever for now. Still, with multiple plus pitches, improved durability, and meaningful command gains, he has mid-rotation starter upside, giving him possibly the widest range of outcomes on this list.
Slater de Brun, OF 18 | L/L | 5’10” | 187
Drafted 37th overall in 2025, through a draft pick traded by the Rays, de Brun was essentially re-acquired in the Shane Baz trade. Like many Rays outfield prospects he’s not expected to develop much power, but compensates with an ability to hit to all fields, and has the benefit of years to develop. His hit tool rates plus thanks to a quick, compact swing, and his double-plus speed elevates both his baserunning and range in center; he has a solid arm and can stick long term. The key to his development will be improving pitch selection to maximize his power potential. Despite not yet playing in a pro game, he’s a good bet to skip the complex league and debut in Charleston this season.
Michael Forret, RHP 22 | 6’3” | 190 A+ (BAL) | 1.51 ERA, 2.45 FIP, 59.2 IP (16 G, 15 GS), 33.5% K, 7.5% BB AA (BAL) | 1.88 ERA, 2.03 FIP, 14.1 IP (3 GS), 15 K, 3 BB
A product of the State College of Florida Manatee – Sarasota (formerly Manatee Junior College), Forret was a well above slot ($450k) 14th round draft choice in 2023 and arrives via the Shane Baz trade. Despite missing some time to a back injury in 2025, his array of fastballs and breaking balls already look major league ready. He seems adept at trying new things, as he picked up a whiff-worthy kick change in 2024, and is already tinkering with a Rays-like sweeper, both through his offseason program at Tread Athletics. He has a low release point (below 6 feet) but a rising fastball, and has — to quote Eric Longenhagen — “sensational feel.” He pitches with efficiency and variety, and could climb the ladder quickly in 2026.
Isaac had his season cut short large-in-part due to the discovery of a brain tumor, disrupting an otherwise great start to the season that duplicated his cup of coffee in Double-A as a 20-year old, despite some minor arm injuries along the way. He has the best power projection in the system, and if he can hold his own for a full season in 2026 — particularly against southpaws, which is somewhat of a concern — the former first round pick (29th overall, 2021) could see his status restored near the top of the Rays prospect rankings.
A sixth rounder from 2023, Nichols entered the Rays organization with low mileage and control issues, a match made in development heaven. Fast forward to 2025, and his 68% strike percentage ranked 10th best among all minor league pitchers with 100 innings, according to Baseball America. His breaking ball is a big fish in a little pond thanks to its two-plane movement. By my eye, he has a mid-90’s dead zone-ish fastball with easy, over the top heat, and a classic but inconsistent change up. Despite all his gains in control it’s his command that might hold him back, but he fills the zone and might be able to eat innings, which is enough for a back end starter floor. If you’re buying stock, he’s Kimberly-Clark.
Daniel Pierce, SS 19 | R/R | 6’0” | 185
The 14th overall pick in the 2025 draft, Pierce is a preternatural defender at short stop, with a top flight glove that could rival any player in the organization. Early reports say he’s already started building muscle as a professional, which is helpful for his projection on offense. His hit tool carries, with a swing similar to Bobby Witt Jr. — out of the draft he received comps of a “faster Dansby Swanson.” A coach’s son, he has the good face, and should get the starting role in the Holy City and have plenty of time to develop into or above his projection of an above average regular.
Santiago Suarez, RHP 21 | 6’2” | ? A+ | 2.88 ERA, 2.07 FIP, 40.2 IP (10 GS), 26.9% K, 3.6% BB AAA | 5 ER (9 H, 2 BB, 3 HR) 11.0 IP (2 GS), 9 K
Suarez climbed the ladder to Triple-A to finish a short season, as some triceps/shoulder issues hampered his 2025, but when called upon this Venezuelan strike-thrower has earned the trust of his managers to go out there and pitch. He has two plus fastballs, with easy heat but average ride on the 4-seam, and a hard cutter with tight bite. His only complimentary pitch thus far is a 12-6 curve, which makes it a fairly vertical arsenal. He gets good extension, although I’d be remiss to not mention the double pump in his plant leg that on first glance looks like noise, but has led to evident repeatability. What Suarez boasts in control he might lack in command. Right now it’s a supinator’s profile with an average arm slot. To progress he either needs to add some east-west depth to his arsenal (à la Chris Bassitt), or find ways to unlock the spin rates a touch more (Shane Baz). I’d expect him to slot into Montgomery’s rotation as one of the younger starters for his level.
Brendan Summerhill, OF 22 | L/R | 6’3” | 200 A | .333/.429/.444 (160 wRC+) 42 PA, 0 HR, 5 SB, 14.3% BB, 11.9% K
Following an All-Star performance at the Cape Cod summer league, Summerhill exhibited some of the best bat-to-ball skills in NCAA as a junior at Arizona. His draft stock took a minor hit due to injury (broken hand from from punching a cooler), and was drafted 42nd overall ($2m signing bonus), but Summerhill rebounded well with a dominant stop at Charleston to finish the year. Summerhill has plus barrel control, allowing for a high-contact approach for his long swing. He has plus speed as well, which provides a chance to stick in center. Evaluators would like to see more power to complete a five-tool profile. If he does in his first professional season, it’s an above average contributor’s projection.
MLB Rumors: Bo Bichette and the New York Mets are in agreement on a three year, $126 million deal, per multiple reports. The deal reportedly includes opt outs after each of the first two years.
Bichette, who turns 28 in March, had spent his entire career with the Toronto Blue Jays, who selected him in the second round of the 2016 draft. The son of former major league Dante Bichette, he established himself as a regular in the 2021 season, when he made the All Star team, finished 12th in the MVP voting, and led the American League in hits while slashing .298/.343/.484.
A bat-first shortstop, Bichette has a career .294/.337/.469 slash line, and has had an OPS over 800 in every season other than his injury-shortened 2024 campaign, when he put up a 598 OPS in 81 games. His glove is a concern, however — he was in the bottom 1 percent in range in 2025, per Statcast — and it has been anticipated he would have to move off of the position in the relatively near future. With Francisco Lindor at shortstop and the newly acquired Marcus Semien at second base, Bichette, who has only played shortstop and DH in the majors, will presumably move out of the middle infield in 2026.
Here’s where this gets fun (and, yes, please spare us the rant about homers and RBIs not mattering, we’ll get to our point shortly).
Kyle Tucker received $240 million. Getty Images
Player 1 just landed a $240 million contract with a $60 million annual average value, the most for any non-two-way player in MLB history.
Player 2 is perhaps the most unpopular player among fans on his team.
For those guessing, Player 1 is the newest Dodger, Kyle Tucker, while Player 2 is embattled Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe.
Tucker landing with the Dodgers on Thursday did not raise as many questions about how the Dodgers yet again landed a premier free agent with their seemingly never-ending supply of cash, but more of a focus on just how Tucker — a very good-to-elite but non-MVP-level player — landed $60 million per season.
To put that in perspective, he’s making $20 million more per season than Aaron Judge, who has three MVPs to his name, compared to the lone fifth-place AL finish from Tucker in 2023.
He’s making $9 million more per season that Juan Soto, who has five top-six MVP finishes.
Heck, he’s making roughly $35 million more on average per season than two-time NL MVP Bryce Harper.
Obviously, contracts are signed at different times and in different markets. Tucker would not have been the top free agent last year with Soto, but this year’s class lacked elite position players.
Aaron Judge is a three-time MVP. JASON SZENES/ NY POST
MLB is not like football, though, where each quarterback that signs a deal precedes the previous one in terms of setting the record for the position.
The Dodgers didn’t have to pay Tucker $60 million to top some previous deal, yet both they and the Mets — who offered $220 million over four years and then pivoted to signing Bo Bichette on Friday — had no problems doing so.
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Tucker turns 29 on Saturday, and team are always willing to pay a premium for players already in or entering their prime.
Judge signed his nine-year, $360 million deal before his age-31 season. Soto received his 15-year, $765 million deal prior to his age-26 campaign.
Teams want to play players entering their prime, and they’re more willing to do so for players who have their best years ahead of them versus those exiting that stage.
Then, there’s his Baseball Savant page (we apologize for the nerdiness in advance).
Juan Soto has never won MVP but is an elite player. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
He ranked in the 98th percentile in chase rate, 96th percentile in walk rate, 93rd percentile in expected weighted on-base average), 90th percentile in batting run value and 85th percentile in strikeout rate.
Those are categories that teams emphasize.
Tucker is a player who controls the zone, walks a ton and doesn’t strike out a lot.
Those players are extremely valued in today’s sport.
Let’s compare him to Judge and Soto in these metrics for 2025.
Players
Batting Run Value percentile
Expected weight on-base average percentile
Chase rate percentile
Walk percentage percentile
Strikeout percentile
Tucker
90
93
98
96
85
Judge
100
100
84
1000
36
Soto
99
100
100
100
62
Courtesy of Baseball Savant
Tucker ranks very well in those categories, although he’s clearly not on Judge and Soto’s level.
Looking beyond just 2025, Tucker ranks 10th in both weighted runs created plus over the last five years and wins above replacement.
He’s been a very, very good player for the last five years, although he has yet to truly have an elite season that puts him in the talk for the best players in the sport.
One other point to consider is that the Dodgers may have been paying up now for a premium bat knowing they won’t be doing so in the near future.
The next two free agent markets are rather bad for hitters, with next winter’s class being headlined by Jazz Chisholm Jr., Nico Hoerner and perhaps Dalton Varsho.
The 2027 class features William Contreras, Freddie Freeman (who will be 38) and Jeremy Pena.
Those players — excluding Freeman, who will be 38 at the time — are not at the franchise cornerstone level where they are worth hundreds of millions.
You add these factors together, and while it’s OK to disagree, the Dodgers felt that giving Tucker more money per year than Judge and Soto made sense in their quest for a three-peat.
The Tampa Bay Rays sent outfielder Josh Lowe to the Angels as part of a three-team trade in which left-handed reliever Brock Burke went from Los Angeles to Cincinnati.
Infielder Gavin Lux moved from the Reds to Tampa Bay and minor league right-hander Chris Clark from the Angels to the Rays.
Lowe, who turns 28 on Feb. 2, batted a career-worst .220 with 11 homers and 40 RBIs last year. He injured his right oblique for the third time in 13 months and didn’t play between the March 28 opener and May 15.
Lowe has a one-year, $2.6 million contract and is on track to be eligible for free agency after the 2028 World Series. He has a .250 average with 43 homers and 170 RBIs in five big league seasons, all with the Rays.
Lux, 28, hit .269 with five homers and 53 RBIs in his only season with the Reds. He agreed last week to a $5,525,000, one-year contract and can become a free agent after this year’s World Series.
He has a .256 average with 33 homers and 208 RBIs in six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers (2019-24) and the Reds, who acquired him last January for minor league outfielder Mike Sirota and a draft pick. Lux missed the 2023 season after tearing his right ACL in a spring training game.
Burke, 29, was 7-1 with a 3.36 ERA in 68 relief appearances and one start for the Angels. He has a $2,325,000 salary also also can become a free agent after this year’s World Series.
Clark, 24, was a fifth-round draft pick in 2023 from Harvard and was 4-10 with a 4.73 ERA in 20 starts last year for Class A Inland Empire, High A Tri-City and Double-A Rocket City.
The Detroit Tigers draft strategy under Scott Harris has focused on prep talent and a few value plays for college players. That has left them looking for bargain development projects with their other picks in order to save the money to go overslot on their main targets. Right-hander Preston Howey fits that mold, receiving the minimum bonus to sign as a college senior out of St. Mary’s College as the Tigers’ 14th rounder in the 2024 draft. The now 23-year-old Howey didn’t receive any particular notice on draft day, but he emerged as a low key interesting relief prospect for the Tigers in 2025.
Howey threw a little in 2024 after the draft, and then began the 2025 season at High-A West Michigan. He worked in a relief role for most of the season before the Tigers let him stretch out and make nine starts to close out the year. He threw 62 innings total, posting a 3.19 ERA. A bout of walks over his final few starts hurt his peripheral numbers but were likely caused by the extra workload late in his first pro season. Prior to that he’d pounded the strikezone and was very rarely hit hard.
The right-hander stands just 5’10” with a compact, athletic build and gets a little above average extension to the plate. He’s shown a little increase in velocity in pro ball, as Howey was pretty comfortably sitting 94 mph later in the season and touching 95-96 mph. A relatively low release gives him decent plane to the top of the zone, and a year of work turning his above average fastball spin into better riding action out of his three-quarters arm slot helped him take better advantage of those traits. Still, it’s not explosive ride and he’ll need a little more gas to really turn the fastball into an above average weapon.
The breaking ball is a firm slider at 87 mph and while it played down a little due to its inconsistency, the best ones were above average with tight late break. His circle change is about the same speed and while it doesn’t fall off the table, its deception and late fade drew some ugly swings from Midwest League hitters. That pitch is unlikely to be a significant factor for him unless there’s a real breakthrough. As a four year college pitcher, Howey does have more experience and less obvious upside than some, but if he can find a bit more velo and break that slider off consistently he’ll rapidly become a more interesting relief prospect.
Howey already has pretty solid fastball command, and he used that to good effect in High-A. Hitters rarely hit anything hard in the air, and while he didn’t draw a ton of whiffs with his slider, those should come with better command of the pitch. While the Tigers did move him into a starting role late in the year, that was probably more out of necessity, and not his actual path to an eventual big league role. If he can build a little more velocity to sit 96-97 mph in relief and refine the slider a little more, he’ll turn himself into a quality middle relief prospect next summer as he tackles the Double-A level.
NEW YORK — Bo Bichette and the New York Mets agreed to a three-year, $126 million contract, two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was subject to a successful physical.
The infielder Bichette can opt out after the first and second season. He would receive $47 million for one year and $89 million for two years, one of the people said.
The deal does not contain any deferred money and Bichette gets a full no-trade provision.
A two-time All-Star shortstop, Bichette hit 18 home runs and 94 RBIs for the Blue Jays in 2025. He homered off Shohei Ohtani in Game 7 of the World Series.
Bichette was injured last season in a Sept. 6 collision with Yankees catcher Austin Wells. It kept him out of the lineup until the World Series. He returned for Game 1 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and played second base for the first time in six years.
Bichette finished second in the major leagues to Yankees slugger Aaron Judge with a .311 batting average this season, hitting 18 homers with 94 RBIs in 139 games.
He’s twice led the AL in hits.
Bichette turns 28 in March and had played his entire career with the Blue Jays since they drafted him in the second round of the 2018 draft. The son of former big leaguer Dante Bichette, Bo Bichette is a career .294 hitter with 111 home runs and 437 RBIs in 748 career games.
Bichette was one of the last remaining big name free agents after Kyle Tucker agreed to a four-year, $240 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Waking up to the news that the Rays traded Josh Lowe was bittersweet.
The first thing I wrote for DRaysBay was how excited I was about Josh Lowe heading into the 2023 season. The power and speed combo was exciting at the time, and the data suggested all he needed was an opportunity. Fast forward almost three years later, and I still think Josh Lowe can be an everyday ML player. I’m happy for him that he’ll have that opportunity with the Angels.
With that said, let’s look at the Rays 2026 outlook.
Short-term impact of the trade
I’m excited about the path to playing time this provides for Jacob Melton. Jacob Melton (and subsequently the Rays OF production and offense as a whole) might be the biggest winner in this trade.
I’ve already written about Melton, but a summary of what to expect from him is that he provides plus power, speed, and defense at all three OF positions with enough of a hit tool to make him an above average everyday player. Melton will have an even greater opportunity to win a roster spot during spring training.
The Rays also acquired a one-year stopgap in Gavin Lux – possibly to buy some time before Jadher Areinamo could be ready to take over the everyday 2B role in 2027. Lux seems like a relatively safe player the further he gets from his ACL tear in 2023, but his profile may be a bit redundant as he is incredibly similar on both sides of the ball to Richie Palacios (who also has dealt with some knee-related injuries). But Lux has no options, so I expect him to be on the Opening Day roster with some kind of role that includes reps at second base. Palacios has one more option year remaining, so he may be on the outside-looking-in this spring.
Lux has been a roughly average producer in his career. He pairs below average power with an above average hit tool to provide value at multiple positions. Lux’s acquisition continues the trend we’ve seen this offseason where the Rays are leaning more into bat-to-ball ability, possibly at the expense of power and impact.
The second base depth chart took a hit when Brandon Lowe was traded away, but it looks to be in an okay spot now with Lux. I think recent returnee Brett Wisely might not have a seat on the roster when the music stops at the end of spring training. He’s almost certainly behind both Lux and Palacios on the depth chart as a LH utility guy who can play a decent second base. Wisely is also out of options, so he might not even make it to AAA to serve as depth.
Long-term impact of the trade
This trade doesn’t end at Melton and Lux though. I think the main target in this trade was Chris Clark.
Clark is a low-slot RHP with a fastball that sits in the low 90s and can touch 95-96 at times. He’s 6’4, so his lower release height relative to his frame coupled with above average extension adds a layer of deception that helps his stuff play up a bit. He primarily works off an average two-seam fastball in the zone, and he has flashed a four-seam variant for whiffs above the zone.
Clark’s best pitch is his low 80s sweepy breaking ball. It’s an above average pitch that he’s comfortable throwing to both sides of the plate and he has plus feel for it. Clark also has shown a mid 80s offspeed pitch that looks like a split or kick grip with above average vertical separation from his fastball. While it might not be a viable offering yet, I think that it might be an above average pitch someday if he can continue to refine his command of it and maybe find a way to add some velocity separation from the fastball (that could mean adding more heat to the fastball or subtracting some from the offspeed pitch).
The command and control across Clark’s arsenal looks average and he doesn’t currently generate a ton of swing and miss, so he fits the profile of a backend starter right now; however, if he continues to develop his offspeed pitch or add a cutter to bridge his fastball and breaking ball shapes, I could see a mid-rotation starter. His feel for spin evident in his breaking ball suggests a cutter might be relatively easy for him to add to his toolbox.
Either way, Clark doesn’t appear to have much reliever risk as there’s room to add velocity, more pitches, and even refine his command.
Conclusion
The Rays traded from a position of surplus at the major league level to gain a pitching prospect they’ve potentially coveted while simultaneously filling a gap at second base in the short-term.
Interestingly, Gavin Lux is essentially Richie Palacios without options, as they have nearly identical power, plate skills, and defensive versatility.
Chris Clark is a slower-burn development project for Winston Doom and his team, but I think if we squint, we can see a potential mid rotation starter with interesting release traits and a pair of solid secondary pitches.
The Tampa Bay Rays, Anaheim Angels and Cincinnati Reds have made an interesting three-team trade that has former Rangers pitcher Brock Burke going from Anaheim to Cincinnati, Chris Clark going from Anaheim to Tampa, Gavin Lux going from Cincinnati to Tampa, and Josh Lowe going from Tampa to Anaheim.
From Anaheim’s perspective, this is a move that fits in with what they’ve been doing all offseason — acquiring players coming off a bad year(s) but who have been successful in the past, in the hope of recapturing that past glory. Lowe, a lefthanded hitting right fielder who turns 28 next month, and who is the younger brother of former Ranger first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, had a big 2023 season for the Rays, slashing .292/.335/.500 in 501 plate appearances, going 32 for 35 on the basepaths, and putting up a 3.7 bWAR.
Lowe has not come close to that the past two seasons, however. In 2024-25, he has put up a .230/.292/.378 slash line in 822 plate appearances with a 0.8 bWAR, albeit while continuing to be very good on the basepaths (43 of 48 on stolen base attempts). He has especially struggled against lefthanded pitchers, putting up a 459 OPS in 2025 and a 547 OPS in 2024.
So Lowe would seem to be, at this point, a marginal platoon outfielder. He is, however, in just his first year of arbitration eligibility, and is under team control through 2028. If the Angels can get him hitting again like they did in 2023, they have a pretty good player for a decent period of time.
The cost to the Angels is fairly slight. Burke, a 29 year old lefty, was originally acquired by the Rangers from Tampa in a different three-team trade seven years. After having his career de-railed due to shoulder issues, Burke ended up being a surprisingly good member of the Rangers’ bullpen in 2022. He regressed in 2023, though, and ended up being waived early in 2024 after putting up a 9.22 ERA in 13 innings. He was claimed on waivers by the Angels and has been a useful middle reliever for them since then, with a 3.40 ERA in 82 innings over 90 appearances.
Burke is a free agent after 2026, as is Lux, so the Reds are not gaining or losing anything from a team control perspective in this swap. Lux was once a consensus top 10 prospect in MLB while coming up in teh Los Angeles Dodgers’ system, and his presence was part of the reason the Dodgers were willing to let Corey Seager depart. Lux missed all of 2023 due to injury, though. Upon his return in 2024, he slashed .251/.320/.383 while splitting time between second base and shortstop.
The Reds acquired Lux for outfielder Mike Sirota and a competitive balance pick last offseason in a deal that worked out great for L.A., as Sirota is now their #3 prospect (per BA) after posting an OPS in excess of 1000 while splitting the 2025 season between low-A and high-A, and they used the draft pick of Arkansas outfielder Charles Davalan, their #6 prospect, per BA.
Lux put up a good OBP but hit for little power in 2025, slashing .269/.350/.374 with 5 homers in 503 plate appearances while splitting time between DH, left field, and second base. The Reds apparently saw enough, and cashed him in for Brock.
This doesn’t look like a real exciting return for the Rays. Lux gives them a multi-positional guy who gets on base, and we know that they like that, but they only get him for a year. Clark was a 2023 5th round pick out of Harvard who hasn’t made BA’s top 30 list for the Angels either of the past two seasons.
Combined with $765 million man Juan Soto and perpetual All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor, Bichette both lengthens and diversifies New York's lineup. Bichette banged out 181 hits in 139 games in 2025, and twice led the AL in hits, in 2021 (191) and 2022 (189).
It also lessens the reliance on young cornermen Mark Vientos and Brett Baty, who will still get plate appearances at first, third and designated hitter, along with previous acquisition Jorge Polanco. But don't get too comfortable: Bichette has opt-out clauses after the first two years of this deal, and a healthy and regularly productive 2026 season means he'll almost certainly hit the market again next winter at age 28.
