Worldwide Sports News

Good morning everyone! We’ve got plenty of news to unpack with the biggest remaining free agent now off the board — and much more. It’s time to dive into it.

In Mariners news…

• In case you missed it, the Mariners signed yet another Driveline darling, agreeing to a minor league deal with right-hander Ray Cebulski.

• The Mariners’ planned home double-header in June against the Red Sox is no more. The unusual scheduling quirk was originally set up to avoid a conflict with the FIFA World Cup game happening across the street on the same day, but instead they will in fact have a game that day and will welcome a potential traffic and parking Armageddon.

Around the league…

• In one of the winter’s most shocking moves, the Tigers agreed to a three-year, $115M deal with lefty Framber Valdez, the largest AAV for left-hander in MLB history. This coming the same winter that Detroit is pinching pennies over the contract of homegrown ace Tarik Skubal. Speaking of…
• Skubal and the Tigers officially went to an arbitration hearing yesterday over the star left-hander’s 2026 contract. We are expected to hear the arbitrators’ much-anticipated decision later today.
• The Red Sox found their Alex Bregman replacement, signing utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa to a one-year, $6M contract.
• Infielder Miguel Andújar inked a one-year, $4M pact with the Padres.
• Veteran outfielder David Peralta announced his retirement after an 11-year career that saw him earn both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger.
• Baseball Prospectus unveiled their list of the top 101 prospects in baseball — perhaps the most bullish list yet on the Mariners’ farmhands. ($)

Anders’ picks…

• With a Seahawks Super Bowl appearance on the horizon, Lookout Landing alum Matthew Roberson spoke to Jeopardy host (and Seattle native) Ken Jennings about Ken’s Seattle sports fandom.
• Relatedly, Christopher Crawford at Seattle Met thinks this might be the best year ever for Seattle sports fandom.

Almost a century before Derek Jeter manned shortstop and held the captaincy for the New York Yankees, another athletic young player did the same. Roger Peckinpaugh, who came to the Yankees at the age of 20, never experienced the level of team success that Jeter did, nor could he boast a similar offensive profile.

But Peck was the Yankees’ starting shortstop for the better part of a decade, heralded for his outstanding glovework. And when he briefly stepped in as the Yankees’ manager at the tender age of 23, he not only did something the greatest shortstop in Yankee history never did. He became one of the youngest managers in major league history, and the youngest since the turn of the 20th century.

Roger Thorpe Peckinpaugh
Born: February 5, 1891 (Wooster, OH)
Died: November 17, 1977 (Cleveland, OH)
Yankees Tenure: 1913-21

Future Hall of Famer Nap Lajoie approached Peckinpaugh shortly after the latter graduated high school with an offer to play pro ball. After consulting his father and his high school principal, Peck accepted, and signed with the Cleveland Naps – I wonder who they were named after…

Peckinpaugh debuted with Cleveland in 1910 at the age of 19. He was, to put it simply, overwhelmed by big league pitching in his initial taste of the bigs. Cleveland perhaps recognized this and left him in the minor leagues in 1911 before bringing him back to The Show in 1912. He was slightly better at the dish that season but through his first 85 career games there was no reason to think he’d ever be able to hit big league pitching.

In May 1913, Peck’s career trajectory drastically changed. One game into the season for Cleveland, he found himself dealt to the Yankees, where he settled in at shortstop. If not for that trade, he’d have been in no position for what came next.

Yankee manager Frank Chance saw leadership potential and abilities in his young shortstop and, in 1914, named Peck the club’s captain. 23 years old, young Peckinpaugh was now responsible for leading a major league locker room. In his first full season, he led with more than just words. An excellent defensive shortstop, he also swiped 38 bags that year for the Yankees, leading to a 23rd-place finish in AL MVP voting.

Moreover, in mid-September the Yankees parted ways with Chance, after paying off the remainder of his contract. In need of someone to manage the club for the rest of the season, they appointed Peckinpaugh. Still only 23 years old, Peck was now the manager of the New York Yankees. Peck is not the youngest manager in major league history, as a pair of 20-year-olds managed in the 19th century. But not until Lou Boudreau played for and managed Cleveland in 1942 at the age of 24 did anyone come close to matching Peckinpaugh’s young age while managing in the 20th century.

A pair of Federal League teams tried to poach Peckinpaugh from New York after the 1914 season. “FEDS AFTER PECKINPAUGH” has to be one of the greatest, and most misleading, headlines in the history of the New York Times. Declining their overtures, Peck stayed in New York and played some of the best ball of his career.

In 1916, he was an above-average offensive player for the first time in his career, with a 102 OPS+. Then, in 1919, he set career bests in runs scored (89), home runs (7), batting average (.305), on-base percentage (.390), slugging percentage (.404), on-base-plus-slugging percentage (.794), and bWAR (6.3).

His timing could not have been better, considering the Yankees acquired that Babe Ruth fellow prior to the 1920 season. With Peckinpaugh’s newfound ability to get on base, it made sense to have him at the top of the lineup. And he held up his end of the bargain with a .356 OBP in 1920 and a .380 OBP in 1921 leading to back-to-back seasons with at least 100 runs scored. Being on base in front of Ruth was a nice way to pad some stats.

1921 was also the only time Peck played playoff baseball in pinstripes. Unfortunately for him, he struggled at the plate against the crosstown Giants in the World Series. Worse, his glove, the calling card for which he was and is still best known, abandoned him when he needed it.

New York entered Game 8 (the Fall Classic was a best-of-nine that season) down 4 games to 3. In the first inning, the Giants put men on first and second with one out for High Pockets Kelly, who hit a routine ground ball to Peck. The Yankee shortstop booted it, with the ball ending up in left field. The runner on second came around to score the first, last, and only run of Game 8 as the Yankees fell 5 games to 3.

In the offseason, the Yanks dealt Peckinpaugh to Boston, ending his tenure with the club. It was not an amiable exit. Peckinpaugh was stunned and took a shot at the Yankees’ lack of loyalty. “The deal is entirely news to me,” he said, “but it seems that no matter how good a player one is or how loyal service he gives the New York team his position is never safe.”

Happily, there is a playoff redemption arc for Peck. In 1924, playing for the Washington Nationals, Peck returned to the World Series. In his way, again, were the New York Giants. This time, he emerged on the winning end. He mustered five hits in 12 at-bats as the Nationals won 4 games to 3, getting Peck his first and only World Series championship. He was in excellent company as “The Big Train” Walter Johnson, a venerable 36 years of age, also won the only championship of his Hall of Fame career that season.

After Peckinpaugh’s playing career ended, he returned to Cleveland where he managed several seasons. Once he was done with baseball for good, he went to work for the Cleveland Oak Belting Company, where he worked until he was 85 years old.

Roger Peckinpaugh died in 1977 at the age of 86. Shortstop, captain, and manager for the Yankees, his playing career earned him a spot as one of Pinstripe Alley’s Top 100 Yankees of All-Time. Happy birthday, Peck.

References

Winterhalt, Kevin. “Pinstripe Alley Top 100 Yankees: #57 Roger Peckinpaugh.” Pinstripe Alley. December 8, 2023.

See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.

It’s been a little over a year since the Mets claimed right-handed relief pitcher Austin Warren off waivers from the Giants, and with today being Warren’s 30th birthday, it seems like as good a time as any to take a look at what might be in store for him in 2026.

Taken by the Angels in the sixth round of the draft in 2018 as a reliever out of UNC Wilmington, Warren has spent the vast majority of his career thus far in the minors. After relatively brief stops in rookie ball, Single-A, and Double-A in the first two years of his career, he found himself in Triple-A to start the 2021 season as minor league baseball returned from the pandemic.

Since then, Warren has thrown 151.0 innings in Triple-A, but he made his major league debut during that 2021 season and now has 58.0 big league innings to his name. The Angels released him ahead of the 2024 season, and the Giants signed him shortly thereafter.

Over the course of his Triple-A career, Warren has a 4.35 ERA with 168 strikeouts and 63 walks, and he’s given up 20 home runs. So his 4.97 ERA with 58 strikeouts, 19 walks, and 9 home runs allowed in 50.2 innings in Syracuse last year mostly check out. The fact that he gave up nearly half of his home runs at the level in just one-third of his innings there is the part that’s the least ideal.

In his short stints with the Mets at the major league level, however, Warren fared well. He had a 0.96 ERA and a 3.89 FIP in 9.1 innings over five appearances. That’s extremely small sample size stuff, but it was nice to see him pitch better than anyone might’ve expected in those outings.

Per FanGraphs, Warren has an option remaining going into the 2026 season, which means it’s incredibly likely that he’ll spend at least some time in Syracuse again this year. Roster Resource currently has him penciled in to the team’s Opening Day bullpen, but there figures to be quite a bit of competition for at least one or two spots in the bullpen in spring training.

Warren throws five pitches, per Statcast: a sinker, a sweeper, a cutter, a four-seam fastball, and a changeup. By modern standards, he doesn’t throw particularly hard, as his fastball averaged just shy of 94 miles per hour in 2025. Assuming he survives any potential 40-man roster crunch between now and the start of the season, it’ll be interesting to see if the Mets work with him to tweak that approach or have him keep doing what he was doing last year. And if he starts the year in Syracuse, cutting down on that home run rate seems like it would be the best potential path back to Queens.

Morning, all!

Evan Grant had a video Q&A at the DMN where, among other things, he opined that Corey Seager and Marcus Semien didn’t have much of a relationship as teammates.

The Rangers have four players that will be participating in the World Baseball Classic, with Robert Garcia probably being the most significant.

It looks like the competition for the fifth starter spot will boil down to Kumar Rocker and Jacob Latz.

If the Rangers are going to have a better offense there are a bunch of guys who are going to need to return to prior form.

One year ago, the New York Islanders found themselves at an inflection point. They were not going to make the playoffs, and had been dumped out in round one two straight seasons prior by the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Islanders' then-General Manager Lou Lamoriello needed to chart a new path forward. Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri were pending unrestricted free agents, with no extensions in place.

After an appearance for Team USA at the 4 Nations' Face-Off, three straight seasons of 30+ goals and steady two-way play, Nelson's trade value would never be higher.

After attempting to re-sign Nelson, Lamoriello pulled the trigger on a franchise-altering trade, shipping Nelson and William Dufour to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Calum Ritchie, a 2026 first-round pick, a conditional 2028 third-round pick (conditions not met [COL needed to win the Stanley Cup in 2025]), and defenseman Oliver Kylington.

Ritchie immediately became the Islanders' top prospect, while the first-round pick added to the magnitude of the return. At the time, Ritchie was a consensus top-50 prospect in the NHL, and by far Colorado's top prospect.

Nelson possessed just a 16-team no-trade clause, so he did not control his destination, nor did the receiving team. What's more, publicly, nobody knew what Lamoriello would do up until about an hour prior to the deal, when word finally leaked out that Lamoriello intended to deal Nelson.

Lamoriello displayed a masterclass in controlling the situation, thereby giving him all the leverage over the situation. It helped that Nelson only held a 16-team no-trade clause, too.

Nelson's reported destinations were always out west, but it remains unclear how much of a factor his 16-team no-trade clause was. 

Fast-forward one year. The New York Rangers are stuck in reverse. They publicly declared they'll be shipping out just about anyone not named Adam Fox, J.T. Miller, or Igor Shesterkin. 

Immediately, questions turned to the pending UFA Artemi Panarin, the Rangers' best forward since signing in free agency in July 2019. Reportedly, the Rangers told Panarin they wouldn't be re-signing him, and told the forward to prepare for a trade.

Panarin, however, holds a full no-movement clause. That clause gives him all the control and leverage privately, as he can hand-pick his destination.

In years past, similar versions of this have gone down, such as Taylor Hall hand-picking the Boston Bruins at the 2021 Trade Deadline, with the Buffalo Sabres only receiving a minimal package for the forward. 

Rangers' General Manager Chris Drury lost public control of the narrative the second the letter hit the world. Panarin and his agent privately were granted permission to talk extension with multiple potential trade suitors.

The Rangers decided to healthy-scratch Panarin until a trade, setting an internal deadline by the Olympic Roster Freeze. 

Panarin decided on his future the day of that deadline, reportedly telling the Rangers he'd only waive for the Los Angeles Kings.

So the deal was made shortly thereafter. In return, the Rangers received the Kings' top prospect, Liam Greentree, and a conditional third-round pick.

While Greentree is the Kings' top prospect, he is not viewed as a top-100 prospect in the league. The third-round pick becomes a second if the Kings win a playoff series, something they've failed to do with four straight losses in round one to the Edmonton Oilers.

Two franchises in one city publicly needed a new direction. One maintained discipline and control over the situation, the other had no control and no leverage.

That's why, despite both teams retaining 50% of the cap hit, Panarin being considered a tier (or three) above Nelson as a player, the Islanders did so much better than the Rangers did at a retool-starting trade.

The day started with news about the bulk of the lawsuit between Sheel Seidler and Matt and Bob Seidler being settled and it ended with reports the San Diego Padres signed free agent outfielder Miguel Andujar to a one-year, $4 million contract. He is expected to be the right-handed bat with pop the Padres were looking to add this offseason. San Diego president of baseball operations and general manager A.J. Preller recently stated he wanted to add a bat or two and wanted to make additions to the rotation. Could Preller bring in a free agent pitcher or two prior to the start of Spring Training? It would generate some excitement as the Padres open camp Feb. 12.

Padres News:

• Following the reported addition of Andujar, Lincoln Zdunich of Gaslamp Ball set his sights on projecting ideal lineups for the Padres and their rotation.
• Fernando Tatis Jr. is a two-time Platinum Glove award-winning right fielder, and he is entering the 2026 season with an idea of winning an MVP award. Tatis Jr. has not shown the offensive production he displayed prior to his PED suspension, but he thinks some mechanical adjustments to his swing could unlock an extended run of success.
• AJ Cassavell of Padres.com believes there are three players from the Padres Spring Training non-roster invitees who have potential to impact the major league roster and he identifies pitcher Triston McKenzie as the top candidate. Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune lists catcher Ethan Salas as the headliner of the non-roster invitees.
• Sanders focused on the San Diego outfielders for his latest spring training primer. There are high expectations when the starters are Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Ramon Laureano. He also put the spotlight on Merrill as the subject of his ongoing Padres roster review.

Baseball News:

• The top free agent pitcher on the market, Framber Valdez, agreed to a three-year, $115 million deal with the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday. The top remaining free agent pitchers after the Valdez deal are Zac Gallen, Chris Bassitt and Lucas Giolito.
• The Boston Red Sox added to their infield agreeing to a one-year deal with Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
• Former Padres outfielder David Peralta announced his retirement, Wednesday.

Good morning! The Red Sox have a new infielder. And, uh, he’s not exactly one to get all that excited about.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa is a perfectly good backup to have on your team. He plays three positions in the infield and plays them all well — possibly better than anyone else currently on the Red Sox if you’re not yet convinced of Marcelo Mayer’s glove (though I am). He makes contact and doesn’t strike out much. He’s right-handed, which is important for this Red Sox team. He’s a perfectly cromulent backup, is what I’m saying.

But where the worry creeps in is in the possibility that he doesn’t end up being a backup on the Red Sox. Six million dollars is in no way a lot of money for the Boston Red Sox, a team that finds all kinds of ways (both benign and not so benign) to print money — but it’s a curious amount to give to a backup who is only a marginal upgrade over the backups that are currently in-house. Are the Sox envisaging something of an everday role for IKF? And even if they’re not, will he end up playing essentially every day anyway, given the injury risks on the left side of the Red Sox infield?

How do you see this infield situation shaking out this year?

Talk about that, whatever else you want, and, as always, be good to one another.

THIS IS A GUEST ROCKPILE BY ZEKE PEREZ JR

Since the departure of Charlie Blackmon, the Colorado Rockies have been without a face of the franchise. Sadly, the team also lacks a face for just about every position on the field.

Looking at the most common players by game at each position over the last decade, six different positions have had six different starters across that span. In recent history, the revolving door has continued across four of those positions (catcher, second base, left field, and right field), where the team has utilized three different starters over as many years.

Paul DePodesta has made it clear that developing a team identity is a priority for the 2026 season. Barring injuries or trades, core pieces like Brenton Doyle and Ezequiel Tovar will continue to anchor their respective positions and make life a little easier for the new president. Across the rest of the lineup, he’ll look to evaluate solutions to the perpetual thorns in the Rockies’ side, both for 2026 and beyond.

Where They’re Set

Aside from center field and shortstop (the only two positions returning the same starter for a fourth consecutive year), the Rox might be closest to crossing catcher off their list of needs.

• Things are feeling a little steadier behind the plate with Hunter Goodman taking on the role, starting 97 games as catcher last year. He made some big strides, especially offensively, pacing the team in hits, doubles, homers, batting average and RBI on his way to securing his first Silver Slugger. His 3.7 rWAR is also the highest the Rockies have seen at the position since Iannetta’s 3.1 in 2011.

Where They’re Shaky

Michael Toglia and Ryan McMahon had first base and third base, respectively, covered in recent years, albeit with varying success. With Toglia being designated for assignment this winter and McMahon traded to the Bronx last July, the Rockies will have to look elsewhere.

• Toglia was a solid power contributor in 2024 (25 HR, 2.2 rWAR) but had a fall from grace after struggling in 2025 with a negative rWAR, a .190 batting average and a top 5 finish in strikeouts. The Rockies recently claimed Troy Johnston off of waivers and could use him as a bridge while top prospect Charlie Condon grows into the role at first.

• Kyle Karros will look to pick up where he left off after the McMahon deal and get the bulk of the reps at third. In 43 games in the bigs last year, Karros had a slash line of .226/.308/.277. McMahon left big shoes to fill, and Karros will need to continue to grow into them offensively to be the long-term option.

Where They’re Desperate

Left and right field are where things devolve into a very unfunny version of “Who’s on First?”

The organization was stockpiling a surplus of outfielders across drafts, but some of these promising prospects have floundered and are no longer in the pipeline (or with the organization). Luckily, there’s a good bit of potential waiting in the wings to be explored, as Jordan Beck continues to develop, and Zac Veen (No. 7 mid-season PuRP) and Cole Carrigg (No. 6 mid-season PuRP) look to climb into the platoon.

• Right field has been tough to crack. Beyond the Kris Bryant problem, the spot has seen prospects stall and veterans dip in production. It felt like Veen might finally get the bulk of playing time in 2025, but he struggled in his time in the majors, batting just .118 over 12 games. As he tries to rebound, Mickey Moniak is set to be the frontrunner for 2026. Moniak didn’t quite live up to his ceiling last year but still had a better on-base percentage (.270) than most of the roster. The team was impressed enough to bring him back on a one-year contract. Even as other prospects climb the ranks, Moniak should command a share of the games and could flourish as a fourth outfielder in the rotation as things move on, at the very least.

What’s Ahead

The Rockies’ future obviously won’t come to fruition in the 2026 season alone. There are too many holes to fill after years of roster churn and failed prospects.

After clearing house of several early round draft picks, the new leadership has made it clear that they are looking to identify which players are worth building around.

Colorado won’t be securing its first divisional crown anytime soon, but if the Rox can leave the season with fewer positional question marks, clearer pathways for prospects and their development, and a few emerging everyday players, it will feel like the franchise’s prolonged rebuild will have a meaningful direction.

Colorado Rockies News

Yankees claim OF Yanquiel Fernandez off waivers from Rockies | Yahoo! Sports

Continuing a trend of bringing in former Rockies, New York claimed Fernandez off waivers. The 23-year-old Fernandez will look to turn the page in a new setting after slashing .225/.265/.348 in 52 game appearances with Colorado. The Yankees designated pitcher Dom Hamel for assignment to clear space for Fernandez on the 40-man roster.

Former MLB catcher Cancel to manage Double-A Hartford | MLB.com  

Down on the farm, the Yard Goats are getting a new skipper. Former New York Mets catcher Robinson Cancel was announced as the team’s manager, taking over for Bobby Meacham (2024-2025). Cancel has been a coach within the Rockies system for almost a decade, including as manager for the High-A Spokane Indians (2023-2025) and for the Single-A Fresno Grizzlies (2021-2022).

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