Without much surprise, Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell were among the Penguins' players on Kypreos' trade board. It is understandable, as both players have been in the rumor mill for a while.
Yet, Kypreos also included a new Penguins forward on his trade board: Justin Brazeau.
"Big and strong with a set of hands, Pittsburgh will try to sell Brazeau off based on the production he had during the first half of last season. With so many prospects in the system, look for the Penguins to potentially use him as a trade chip, though he needs to get healthy first. Brazeau has not played a game this season," Kypreos wrote.
Brazeau has not been discussed very often as a trade candidate. Yet, with the Penguins having a surplus of NHL forwards and Brazeau being in the final year of his contract, it is fair to wonder about his future in Pittsburgh.
Brazeau was recently activated off injured reserve and assigned on a conditioning loan to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. With this, the big winger is inching closer to returning for the NHL club.
Brazeau could generate some interest from teams looking to boost their forward group. When playing at his best, he has shown that he can be a solid power forward. This was certainly the case last season, as he set career highs with 17 goals, 17 assists, and 34 points in 64 games for Pittsburgh.
Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see if the Penguins end up moving Brazeau at some point this season.
The White Sox hope some of Milwaukee’s winning formula follows Matt Roffe to the South Side. | (Elsa/Getty Images)
The White Sox are looking north for their next scouting leader.
Chicago is expected to hire Milwaukee Brewers assistant director of domestic scouting Matt Roffe to oversee its domestic draft operations, according to several league sources. The team has not formally announced the move, and Roffe’s specific title remains undetermined. He would fill the opening created by Mike Shirley’s resignation in September.
The move also continues an encouraging trend under general manager Chris Getz: looking outside the organization for fresh ideas and leadership. Roffe would arrive from the newly crowned World Series champion Brewers, whose ability to identify and develop talent has helped them succeed without a hefty payroll. That makes Milwaukee a sensible place for the White Sox to look as they work to build sustained success of their own.
An executive’s résumé doesn’t guarantee that his former organization’s success will follow him to Chicago. Still, bringing in someone who has worked within Milwaukee’s scouting operation is reason for optimism.
Roffe spent the past five seasons with Milwaukee, working his way through scouting operations before reaching his most recent position. The Brewers’ 2023 media guide listed him as their scouting operations coordinator.
His résumé includes experience across several areas of baseball operations. Before returning to Milwaukee, Roffe worked as an analyst in player personnel and pro scouting for the Arizona Diamondbacks from November 2019 through October 2021. That followed a baseball operations internship with the Brewers in 2019 and a baseball research and development internship with the San Diego Padres in 2018. While attending college, he also interned in MLB’s Statcast and labor relations departments.
Together, those stops give Roffe a background spanning research, technology and player evaluation. How he applies that experience to Chicago’s scouting department will be one of the more interesting parts of the eventual announcement.
Roffe graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2018, majoring in finance and minoring in sports analytics. He also spent time on the Bears’ baseball roster. His freshman season included one appearance and one at-bat, going hitless as a pinch hitter against the University of Chicago on May 9, 2015. WashU won, 13-1.
Now, his next Chicago connection would come with considerably more responsibility: helping the White Sox identify the players who will shape their future.
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Milwaukee Brewers are World Series Champions.
For the first time in franchise history, the Brewers stand atop the baseball world, thanks to a 4-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5 of the World Series. And you know somewhere, Bob Uecker is smiling.
But while Milwaukee is known as a small-market team, playing a small-ball brand of baseball, the Brewers just completed one of the most dominant runs in MLB playoff history.
We can start with how Milwaukee rolled through the postseason. After winning a league-best 103 games — three games ahead of the behemoth Los Angeles Dodgers — the Brewers finished the playoffs with a combined 11-2 record. Milwaukee lost just one game in the NLDS to the San Diego Padres, swept those Dodgers in the NLCS, and lost a single game to Tampa Bay in the World Series.
Since MLB expanded to the division series, only two teams posted a better record than these Brewers: The 2005 Chicago White Sox and the 1999 New York Yankees. Both of those teams posted an 11-1 mark, good for a winning percentage of .917.
The Brewers joined the 2022 Houston Astros and the 1998 Yankees with their 11-2 record, good for a winning percentage of .846.
Milwaukee joined another small group with the sweep of the Dodgers. As pointed out by Jayson Stark, the Brewers became just the fifth team in MLB history to win 100 games in the regular season and then knock off the defending World Series champions in the postseason. Also on that list? The 2018 Boston Red Sox, who won 108 games and then beat the Astros in the ALCS; the 2009 Yankees, who won 103 games and defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series; the 1968 Detroit Tigers, who won 103 games and beat the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series; and the 1942 Cardinals, who beat the Yankees in the World Series after winning 106 games.
And Milwaukee rode an impressive closing stretch to the title. The Brewers went 16-2 over their final 18 games, 19-3 over their final 22 games, 21-4 over their final 25, and 40-14 over their final 54 games.
They only lost five games — FIVE — since Labor Day.
That was back on September 7 if you do not have a calendar handy.
Pitching was certainly a key for the Brewers this October. As noted by the incomparable Sarah Langs, Milwaukee did not allow more than four runs in any of their 13 playoff games, joining the 1990 Cincinnati Reds and the 1983 Baltimore Orioles as the only teams to accomplish that feat over a run to a World Series title since the playoffs expanded back in 1969. And Milwaukee’s bullpen stood out as well, as that group threw 118 innings (55.1% of the available innings, fourth most in playoff history) but held opponents to a .173 batting average while posting an ERA of just 1.38. Those are the second-lowest numbers in a single playoffs since the 2022 Astros (0.83 ERA, .126 OBA).
While the Brewers posted a run differential of +26 over their playoff run, many of their games were close contests. (A 10-1 win over the Rays in Game 3 of the World Series skews that number).
But how Milwaukee responded in some of those games is another key indicator of how dominant — or perhaps how resilient — this group is. Stark found that according to STATS, seven times over these 13 games, the Brewers scored in the very next half-inning after allowing the opponent either tied the game, or took the lead against them.
Only three teams — the 2006 Cardinals, the 1997 Florida Marlins, and the 2002 Angels — did that more. But all three of those teams needed 16 games to do so.
However, perhaps the most eye-popping stat?
Four games to none, the sweep of the Dodgers in the NLCS.
After winning Game 1 2-1, Milwaukee dropped 19 runs on the Dodgers over the next three games, outscoring Los Angeles — the second-best team in the majors — by a combined 19-10.
“This group of guys right here, the 2026 team, will be remembered forever — and they deserve that because they were a team,” manager Pat Murphy said after the game. “They’re not worried about their own stats. No one cares about that. They care about coming together and winning tonight.”
The Brewers did not just win Wednesday night.
They have been winning all season, all fall, and all throughout the playoffs.
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - OCTOBER 28: De'aaron Fox #4 of the San Antonio Spurs drives past Josh Green #5 of the Utah Jazz during the second half of a game at Delta Center on October 28, 2026 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
“Are they going to put Wemby back in?”
It was an excellent question, and one that I had myself.
It was, in a way, the question of the season so far when it comes to a Spurs team that has scuffled quite a bit coming out of the gate.
The starting unit, forced into a new configuration by the ascension of the prodigious Dylan Harper, has looked disjointed and seems to do its scoring in fits and starts.
The bench, on the other hand, seems almost lost — unmoored without the steady hand of the rookie who led it for most of last season.
The one player holding everything together has been, somewhat predictably, Wembanyama, and the better part of almost every game has seemed to hinge on his presence and the antigravity of his occasional absence.
But, to paraphrase an episode of Cartoon Network’s Samurai Jack, even the gods must rest, and for all his gifts, Wemby is not a god.
With nine minutes left in a game that the shorthanded Utah Jazz had spent clawing for every point, Mitch Johnson had made the call to give Wemby a quick breather.
That seemed reasonable. Wemby would catch his breath and then jump right back in, right? Right?
The Spurs were clinging to a six point lead when Wemby headed for the sideline, and Spurs Twitter was awash with (understandable) anxiety.
The Spurs had trailed for most of the first half and had finally clawed their way to a lead, but it was a tenuous bargain with a scoreboard that seemed determined to forsake its oath to the Silver and Black. In fact, I was beginning to doubt its fealty altogether.
With every Wemby exit, betrayal was in the air, and San Antonio’s 2nd unit (and Luke Kornet in particular) were bearing the brunt of the Jazz’s unholy pact with the jumbotron.
Utah had shot nearly 60% from the field in the 3rd quarter, and it felt like they were heating up again.
Everything seemed to be going in. The post was a turnstile. The rim was actively thwarting San Antonio’s short-armed stabs at conversion. It was getting dramatic. Catastrophic, even.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that the atmosphere more closely resembled that of a postseason contest rather than game 5 of 82, on a Wednesday night in late October.
I’m not ashamed to say that I got caught up in it a little myself.
When you’re an avid fan of a sports team, there’s this bizarre and inexplicable fusion that occurs. It’s not quite empathy per se, but an identification that spans the gap between the professionals on the court and the plebeians on the couch.
You get to feel an echo of their joy and the spectre of their pain. Their wins make you hopeful for your own, but their losses can do the inverse.
It’s silly, and strange, and wonderfully human.
And somehow, it allows for a communion between disparate individuals that feels like alchemy — a group connection that pulls you into a maelstrom of emotion and connection.
It’s damn near irresistible, which is probably why I found myself loudly bemoaning the appearance of Kornet as Wemby trotted off, in spite of my long-standing fondness for The Big Elote.
And to be fair, Kornet’s been a shadow of his 2025-26 self, carrying with him the play that (unfortunately) defined San Antonio’s big-man deficit in the NBA Finals.
I’m not sure it’s a playoff hangover, or a crisis of confidence, or a small nagging injury of some sort, but the Kornet of the Western Conference Finals has yet to be seen, and, as a fellow Spurs fan pointed out, the Spurs have been hemorrhaging points during his limited stints.
Within a minute, the game was tied again.
Devin Vassell (who had been cold most of the night) and Stephon Castle were doing their best to keep things from getting ugly on the offensive end, keeping pace with a Jazz team that clearly smelled blood.
With six-and-a-half minutes left in the game, Will Hardy called a timeout.
Finally, a break! Mitch could substitute Wemby in without using a valuable timeout of his own.
And without hesitation, he subbed Keldon Johnson in for Julian Champagnie, the Spurs’ best three-point shooter.
What?? The confusion was widespread. What about Wemby? What about the lead?
“Are they going to put Wemby back in?” my daughter inquired from her end of the couch.
She really only recognizes three players: Devin (my name), Fox (a favorite animal), and Wemby, but having retired from her coloring book for the evening, she was now peppering me with questions as she crawled over to lean against my knees.
“Yeah, they’re gonna put Wemby in real soon.”
Ten seconds later San Antonio’s skipper called a timeout of his own.
Oh. I guess it was just a mistake. Not ideal, but not costly, I guess.
No substitution at all? I could hear the consternation as if I were within the confines of a fan section at the Frost Bank Center.
I had to bottle up any profanity for the sake of the five-year-old lounging against my knees, but I was silently livid.
And my daughter, attuned to adult emotion in that way that we don’t give children enough credit for, cheerily reassured me.
“It’s okay, I see Devin,” she said as she patted my leg consolingly.
Almost as if on cue, Vassell sunk a 20-footer in the face of the defense.
About time, I thought to myself. But Vassell had been shooting better for most of the quarter, even if I had failed to notice.
“See!” she said elatedly, displaying the kind of childlike credulity that gospels allude to.
Little did either of us know that her three favorite players were about to take us on a magic carpet ride out of danger and into the win column.
Vassell hit two more shots on passes from Wemby, which proved (along with a tip-in from Keldon and a buzzer-beating miss from Fox) to be just enough to get the Spurs to overtime.
And it was there that Vassell and Co. picked up right where they left off, with all but two of San Antonio’s points scored or assisted on by Devin, Fox, and Wemby.
The icing on the cake was a steal and a racing dunk from Fox with less than a minute left. Its parallel as an opposite to his endlessly replayed hesitation in the Finals wasn’t lost on me.
“I told you it would be okay.”
“You were right. I guess I should listen to you more.”
“Yeah, you should.”
I think Billy Joel has a song about women always being women at every phase of life, or something like that.
No argument here, though. I’ve got a lot of childlike believing to do if I want to enter the kingdom of heaven. How much do I have to have for another Finals win, though?
I guess we’ll find out.
It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a Nina Simone song.
I think I’ll take the win while I can.
Takeaways
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that both Kornet and Keldon have had such a rough/inconsistent start to the season, with Harper spending so much time with the starters. Yes, Mitch has made sure to keep at least one of the star guards on when the bench takes their turn, but that’s not the same thing as the consistency that the 2nd unit experienced with Harper running it. Hopefully, Harper will get more time with the bench once Tobias Harris returns from injury (though the starting unit will then have to adapt to that), as both Keldon and Kornet benefited greatly from his presence; if not, I think it would be ideal to at least use one of the guards consistently with the 2nd unit, so that they can build a rhythm and rapport.
Last year Kornet was the only real option as a backup for Wemby, but the San Antonio braintrust might want to consider giving Tarris Reed some run on nights that Kornet doesn’t seem to have it. Of course, it’s possible that the bench will continue having issues until the guard issue is somewhat resolved. But hey, why not give it the old college try? He might be a rookie, but Reed has a serious motor, and some considerable heft. If nothing else, the change of pace might come in handy when a team is making easy work of Kornet’s defensive efforts.
It’s early yet, but two things are beginning to stick out as minor trends: 1. The Spurs have really cracked down on sloppy mistakes, as they’re leading the league in fewest turnovers per game right now. 2. They just can’t seem to get to the line, as they’re the 4th-lowest team in free-throw attempts and have the 3rd-lowest free-throw rate. The first thing is really good, and evidence that the offensive flow feels a bit worse than it is. But the second thing might serve as proof that the lack of spacing is really hurting San Antonio’s ability to drive to the hoop, something that served as a meal ticket last season when shots weren’t falling. The three-guard experiment is a bit of a mixed bag so far, so let’s hope they either figure it out soon or make a change to loosen things up.
However, in spite of those issues, it’s important to note that the Spurs are still 5th in the NBA in points scored in the paint. That’s because, for the past two games (and most of the season), Wemby has been shoving the ball down the throats of anyone bold enough to meet him around the rim. And when his outside shot is on, as it was last night, he’s nigh unstoppable. Poor Jaxson Hayes looked like he didn’t know whether he was coming or going after two quarters of that. It seems like Wemby’s really dedicated himself to interior scoring this year, and frankly, it’s terrifying.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - APRIL 30: Jose Suarez #54 of the Atlanta Braves pitches during the ninth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Truist Park on April 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After a relatively topsy-turvy offseason, José Suárez somehow ended up back with the Atlanta Braves after getting DFA’d twice during the offseason by two different teams. He ended up doing well enough in Spring Training to make the Opening Day roster and even made a start for the Braves while he was here.
I think the fact that I am mentioning that he “made a start” for the Braves is an indicator that this wasn’t exactly a rip-roaring success for Suárez during his second go-around with Atlanta. Let’s talk about it, though.
How Acquired
After the Braves initially picked up Suárez in a trade with the Angels for Ian Anderson, he was DFA’d by Atlanta in January 2026 and subsequently claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. A few days later, the Braves claimed him back after the Orioles DFA’d him not long after claiming him. Ah, the life of being a fringe player in Major League Baseball, man.
What were the expectations?
Considering the offseason that he had with the Braves that I just described to you, it sure didn’t seem like Atlanta had many big plans for José Suárez in 2026. Sure, he was pretty good at accumulating whiffs, avoiding barrels and keeping the ball on the ground, but he wasn’t too successful with anything else — outside of a spot start in September where he absolutely dominated the Nationals (and then added on three more shutout innings against Washington a few days after that). He also didn’t really get much of an opportunity, as he only made seven appearances for the Braves in 2025.
With that said, Suárez did have some success as a starter and swingman in 2021-2022, though he fell apart afterwards. Projection systems didn’t seem to fully abandon that: Steamer saw him as a decent long man and fifth starter type, while ZiPS was a lot more optimistic with its central estimate of Suarez serving as a pretty bulky, 1 WAR-ish swing guy.
2026 Results
This time, José Suárez made eight appearances for the Braves in 2026. He ended up making the Opening Day roster out of Spring Training as a long relief pitcher and made his debut on March 31 in a start against the Athletics. It was, um, inauspicious to say the least; that was basically the end of any ideas of Suárez potentially being a starter for the Braves in 2026.
He then went on to pitch mostly low-leverage innings for the handful of appearances that he made from that point forward. Outside of his usual dominance against the Nationals, there wasn’t much to write home about for Suarez as the valleys ended up being deeper than his peaks. While his FIP- of 66 (2.73 FIP) suggests that he may have suffered from a little bit of bad luck compared to his lofty ERA- of 158 (6.60 ERA), he also benefited from a low HR/FB rate (93 xFIP-). The problem was that the José Suárez Experience made that FIP and xFIP nigh-unlivable, because he was walking batters at a 15.2 percent rate, and usually you’re asking for trouble with that much self-inflicted traffic on the basepaths. Sure, he struck out enough guys to not totally fall apart, and kept the ball on the ground-ish, but no one wants to insert the pitching equivalent of a rain delay into a game and hope he doesn’t blow up.
Either way, his appearance on April 30 (in the ninth inning, no less!) against the Tigers wound up being his final one for the Braves, as Atlanta DFA’d him on May 1 and the Mariners claimed him soon after that. He only made one appearance for Seattle before being DFA’d once again, but he ended up getting moved to the A’s for cash considerations. He actually got to spend a decent amount of time with the Athletics and made 36 total appearances before the A’s eventually DFA’d and released him in early-September.
His seasonal line was actually pretty good and right in line with projections: 0.6 fWAR on the back of a 134 ERA-, 89 FIP-, and 100 xFIP-. It was simultaneously a pretty good season for Suárez, but also kind of a miserable one in terms of the experience for the teams that employed him.
What went right?
Well, he ended up finishing the season with a Barrel percentage of 2.7 percent (99th percentile according to StatCast) and a Hard-Hit percentage of 32.3 percent (91st percentile) so he was pretty good at not getting hit hard. While he was with the Braves, he managed to deliver another strong performance against the Washington Nationals on April 21. He came in while the Braves were trailing 4-1 after a rough start from Reynaldo López and he proceeded to eat up nine outs while striking out four batters. He did give up four walks but none of them came around to score, so this was a solid effort for Suárez. (The Braves were blown out in the game… but not while Suarez was pitching.)
This was right after he pitched three scoreless innings against the Phillies on April 17 (and got credited with a save!), so there was a brief period where Suárez was looking pretty successful on the mound.
What went wrong?
Well, Suárez got a chance in high leverage on April 30 against the Tigers, where he got the ball in the ninth inning with the Braves down 3-2. Suárez struck out the first two batters and then it all went to pot from there, as he ended up going walk-single (with error)-walk-double to end up putting the Braves in a three-run hole in the bottom of the ninth.
Now granted, that single (and the subsequent error from Mike Yastrzemski) was comical and had to be seen to be believed but still, those two walks and that double basically put the Braves in a really tough position to bounce back and it ended up being Suárez’s swan song in the South. It absolutely wasn’t encouraging to see Suárez struggle with a particularly weak portion of Detroit’s lineup and it probably didn’t seem like things would get any better from there, so the DFA made sense.
It was also the second time he was present for an implosion in about a week: on April 25, he came into a tie game in the tenth against the Phillies, after Tyler Kinley had walked the first batter. Asked to face Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, and company, Suárez also issued a walk to load the bases with none out, and a couple of two-run singles doomed the Braves from there. He actually struck out the side in the inning, but as is the theme here: he did okay, the team did not have a good time.
It also didn’t help that he got dinged for four runs on five hits and three walks during his only start of the season (back on March 31 against the A’s) for Atlanta. First impressions are a real thing, y’all.
2027 Outlook
Suárez is currently a free agent but he’s also 28 and a lefty, so it’s not hard to imagine him finding work somewhere in the bigs next season. Plus, all in all, he was pretty much fine in 2026, just in a really painful, unpleasant to watch way. It probably won’t be for a contender but if there’s a rebuilding team that needs some depth and someone to eat some innings when needed, Suárez will certainly be an option for that. I do think it’s safe to say that his time with the Braves is over after two seasons of minimal production with few chances. He probably projects as a generic reliever/swingman going forward… it just depends on how much a team is willing to tolerate his walk-laden profile.
MIAMI, FLORIDA - MARCH 14: Hiromi Itoh #14 of Team Japan pitches in the sixth inning during the game between Venezuela and Japan at loanDepot park on March 14, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Gene Wang - Capture At Media/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In my last installment of “Playing Picollo,” I made a series of trades to reshape the Royals’ roster, leaving me with about $40 million to spend in free agency. The bullpen remains the biggest need, but there are still holes to fill in the outfield and rotation, and a couple of high-profile free agents have caught my eye. Unfortunately, I can’t have everyone, so I’ll have to make some tough choices. And before I’m done, I may have one more trade up my sleeve.
If you’ve listened to the Royals Rundown podcast much since the season ended, you know I desperately want to sign both Seiya Suzuki and Adrián Morejon. Unfortunately, they’re probably the two best players at their positions in free agency, so the bidding is going to be high on them. The Athletic predicts them at 5 years/$120 million and 3 years/$42 million, respectively. Technically, I could fit those two contracts into my roster, as their combined AAV comes to $40 million. But, realistically, I would guess that The Athletic is a bit low on at least one of them, and that would give me no wiggle room to do anything else. So I’m going to have to choose.
It’s a difficult choice. The bullpen needs help even more than the lineup does, but Suzuki would represent possible inroads into the Asian market that the Royals have thus far been unable to penetrate. It’s such a difficult choice that, instead of making it, I’m going to make one more trade first. I actually got both Jacob Milham and Max Rieper to sign off on this one.
Trade: Seth Lugo to Astros for Tatsuya Imai
This is a classic swap of dud contracts in the hopes that the players do better with a change of scenery. My favorite example will always be the time the Royals sent Jonathan Sanchez to the Rockies for Jeremy Guthrie. Imai is the clearly better pitcher, but he still wasn’t very good. And the real problem is that if he rebounds, he’s gone, because his contract is a series of player options. However, if he’s bad, you’ve got to pay him another $19 million in 2028. But I’m going to bet on Brian Sweeney getting him pitching well enough that he’ll decline to exercise that option.
Another benefit from the Royals’ perspective is that Imai has more recent bullpen experience. He finished the season in the Astros’ pen, so we can probably start him there and feel more comfortable about it than we would have with Lugo.
OK, time to make that choice.
Free agent signings
LHP Adrián Morejón, 3 years/$45 million
The Royals need depth more than they need a star, so I’m going to take the cheaper of my two preferred free agents and use the savings to bring in more guys. In case you’re unaware of how good Morejón was last year, he accrued almost 3 fWAR as a reliever. That’s nearly impossible to do. He had a 2.83 ERA and a 22.4% K-BB%. He’s going to be an exciting new closer and allow us to shift everyone else in the bullpen back a step, strengthening the whole unit.
I gave him a bit more than the projection because I think that’s what it would take to outbid everyone else. I’d probably even be willing to go as high as $50 million, but I’d want to start deferring some of that if possible.
LHP Steven Okert, 2 years/$16 million with a mutual option
I’m giving Okert a mutual option here with a $4 million buyout to push some of that money down the road. Okert doesn’t have a prediction on The Athletic’s article, so I looked at the reliever deals they have on there and knocked a couple million off because he’s comparable to at least some of those guys. Okert wasn’t great until two years ago, when he joined the Astros, but he’s been lights-out ever since, with good K-BB% figures and ERAs to match. I traded Daniel Lynch IV and baseball is chock full of left-handed hitters now, so I want to make sure my bullpen is stocked with them.
OF Taylor Ward, 1 year/$10 million
That’s the projected offer from The Athletic, and based on how poorly his season ended, I’ll do it. I think it’s worth the risk to see if he can rebound a bit. He can also platoon in left field with John Rave while Dylan Crews and Carson Roccaforte handle center field. I don’t plan for either position to be a strict platoon, of course. We need to play the hot hand regardless of the pitcher, but having the option to flip handedness and pinch-hit should give Matt Quatraro the flexibility to get the most out of his lineup.
RHP Hiromi Itoh, 3 years/$30 million
Since I didn’t get Suzuki but I did trade for Imai, and Kansas City isn’t known for its huge Asian population, I’d like to add Itoh here – coming from the Nippon Ham Fighters of the NPB – to give us a strong foothold in the Japanese market and hopefully to help both pitchers adjust to MLB. I don’t think Itoh is going to be in high demand because of his slight frame and lack of velocity despite his real NPB success, but that might mean he’s ripe to take a chance on a team that’s willing to take a chance on him.
As I’ve repeatedly written and spoken about, I simply don’t believe free agency is a good way to build a roster these days. So I did most of my work through the trade market, but I feel pretty good about these free agent signings to fill the remaining gaps. There are a number of relievers I’d offer minor league deals to for depth, including A.J. Minter, Evan Phillips, Derek Law, and Craig Kimbrel. They might get major league deals elsewhere, and good for them. I don’t think it’s smart to spend a ton of money on the bullpen, especially past the top guy or two. Guys surprise in both good and bad ways all the time and you don’t want to be locked in.
Final roster
Before I give you the 26-man roster, here are the guys I’m cutting from the 40-man to fit the four new free agents:
Alec Marsh
James McArthur
Steven Zobac
Ben Kudrna
I could have chosen Carlos Duran instead of any of them. And I really like McArthur, so actually, yeah, let’s make that switch.
Alec Marsh
Carlos Duran
Steven Zobac
Ben Kudrna
Anyway, here’s the new 26-man roster, first the position players (all new players in bold):
C Salvador Perez
C Carter Jensen
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Michael Massey
3B Maikel Garcia
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
OF Jac Caglianone
OF Carson Roccaforte
OF Dylan Crews
OF Taylor Ward
OF John Rave
UT Nick Loftin
UT Tyler Tolbert
And the pitchers:
SP Reid Detmers
SP Noah Cameron
SP Michael Wacha
SP George Kirby
SP Hiromi Itoh
RHP Ryan Feltner
RHP Lucas Erceg
RHP Nate Pearson
RHP Tatsuya Imai
LHP Adrián Morejón
LHP Anthony Gose
LHP Steven Okert
RHP Tony Gonsolin
Isaac Collins, Connor Thomas, Steven Cruz, and Nolan Hoffman all have options, so I can safely demote them to the minors. The relievers will all be up at some point. Collins probably will, too, assuming the entire outfield doesn’t stay healthy for the entire season.
While we’re at it, let’s imagine the lineups against left-handed and right-handed pitching.
Against right-handers:
C Carter Jensen
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
RF Jac Caglianone
3B Maikel Garcia
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Michael Massey
DH Salvador Perez
LF John Rave
CF Carson Roccaforte
Against left-handers:
3B Maikel Garcia
SS Bobby Witt Jr.
RF Jac Caglianone
DH Carter Jensen
LF Taylor Ward
1B Vinnie Pasquantino
2B Nick Loftin
C Salvador Perez
CF Dylan Crews
Again, you don’t have to do it strictly by handedness. If Crews is hot and Rocc isn’t, then let Crews hit righties for a bit, etc.
Overall, I think this is a pretty decent roster considering how much work there was to do to get it where it needed to be. That’s not a perfect lineup, but I think it would be better than last year’s. And my new starting rotation has a much better history of health than the one the Royals started 2026 with. The silver lining with all those guys going down with TJ surgery last year is that some of them should return in midseason to help fill in the gaps as this team accrues its own injuries.
I even came in under budget! I added $43 million in salary obligations, but dropped around $3 million by demoting players and saved myself $4 million in the Lugo/Imai swap. That brings me to approximately $162 million spent.
The 2028 season is a completely different problem, and maybe I should be more concerned about that. But as a GM who is focused on building my roster through trades as opposed to just promoting from within or signing a lot of free agents, I think if we need to make adjustments downward in spending for 2028, I’ll be able to find takers for some of my expensive players as the prospects I still have rise through the ranks to fill those gaps.
What do you think of this roster? Would you be excited if this is what the Royals actually did?
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 17: Garrett Mitchell #5 of the Milwaukee Brewers slides in safely to score a run past Henry Davis #32 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the eighth inning during the game at PNC Park on September 17, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Pittsburgh Pirates and the rest of Major League Baseball is officially in the offseason after the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5 of the World Series to clinch their first title in franchise history.
After two years of the Los Angeles Dodgers winning it all with a top-three payroll in the league, this was a stark difference. Both the Brewers and Rays finished in the bottom half of the league in terms of payroll, yet they were the two most successful teams in the league all season long.
Milwaukee finished the season with a payroll of $146.2 million, which ranked 19th in the league, while the Rays were at $95.6 million. Only the Miami Marlins and Cleveland Guardians, who lost in the American League Championship Series, had cheaper payrolls than the Rays.
The Pirates hovered right in the middle of the Brewers and Rays, with a payroll of $106.7 million, which ranked 23rd in the league. They finished the year with an 82-80 record, their best mark since the 2018 season. They snapped an eight-year streak of losing seasons this year, proving that they are making some strong decisions within the organization.
Last offseason, the Pirates made an effort to spend a little bit more than they have in the past. In 2025, the team had an $84.4 million payroll, which ranked 27th in the league, and that resulted in just 71 wins for the club. By signing players like Ryan O’Hearn and trading for Brandon Lowe in free agency, the Pirates were able to improve their win total by 11 games, which could be a sign of what’s to come.
If the Pirates spend a little bit more money this offseason to improve some of their weaker spots in the lineup, it could result in another jump in the record books. That could lead to their first playoff appearance since 2015, when they were in the National League Wild Card game.
A lot needs to go the right way for the Pirates, but the Brewers’ success in scouting and development, along with just a smidge more spending, could go a long way for them.
DENVER, CO - APRIL 04: Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort, left, during batting practice before the opening day game against the Athletics at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado on Friday, April 04, 2025. (Photo by Andy Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images) | Denver Post via Getty Images
As has been foreshadowed all year, the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) is set to expire on December 1, 2026.
Now that the offseason is imminent and the lockout still seems inevitable, it’s time to set expectations for how this all works and what will differ about this offseason from a standard one.
What is a lockout?
A lockout is, essentially, the league forbidding teams from engaging with players in any way until a new CBA is agreed to.
Importantly, a lockout is distinct from a strike. In the latter, the players would be the party initiating the work stoppage whereas it is the league’s decision whether or not to enact a lockout.
News: MLB sent a 34-page memo to owners and high-ranking officials across the league detailing what to expect — and how to act — during the lockout.
MLB’s official website and club websites will again be scrubbed of player images and videos.
A lockout is not required. The two sides could continue to operate normally while negotiating if they chose to. In 1994, the league did not enact a lockout, and the offseason operated normally as did the start of the season. It was not until mid-season that the players’ union authorized a strike after having seen no willingness from the owners to budge from their position about a salary cap. That mid-season strike and subsequent loss of the 1994 World Series was devastating for the owners and ultimately led to them dropping their demands for a salary cap.
Since then, the owners have not been willing to risk repeating a mid-season work stoppage.
Instead, if initial negotiations do not look like they will be easily resolved, MLB initiates a lockout the day the CBA expires. When that occurs, the following happens:
Major League games can not be played.
Teams are not allowed to contact players on their 40-man rosters.
Teams are not allowed to make any transactions (signings, trades, etc.) involving Major League players.
Players will not be paid their standard base salaries. The only money moving between teams and players during a lockout is from deferred contracts or signing bonuses that happen to be due during the lockout.
It is important to note, however, that the base salary of MLB players is only paid during the season even under normal circumstances. The players’ union will not feel the effect of a lockout on their wallet unless it drags into the start of the season.
Players are not allowed to use any team-affiliated facilities regardless of the purpose.
Any normal offseason activities that involve Major League players (notably the Major League portion of the Rule 5 Draft and spring raining games) will be delayed or cancelled depending on the length of the lockout.
MLB.com and all official team websites will have all references to specific active players removed.
Essentially, MLB as a whole must stop operating during a lockout for as long as it lasts.
Minor Leagues
The restrictions above only apply to active members of the MLBPA.
Players that are either not on a team’s 40-man roster or a Major League free agent are not subject to the same CBA as the others are. This means that a lockout does not apply to minor league players unless they are on their organization’s 40-man roster.
Teams will be able to continue communicating with their minor league players throughout the offseason as well as signing minor league free agents. Should the lockout extend into spring training, minor leaguers will be able to participate in team workouts. Should the lockout extend into the regular season, the minor league season will begin as normal, with the exception of any players on their organization’s 40-man roster being barred from participating.
Timeline
December 1 is the most important date to remember as it is the final day of the current CBA. At midnight EST, the league is expected to initiate a lockout, just as they did in 2021.
Major League Baseball has officially implemented a lockout, sources tell ESPN. The ninth work stoppage in the sport’s history has begun.
This means that, just like in 2021, once the mandatory five-day waiting period following the end of the World Series concludes on November 2, teams will be able to make normal offseason transactions for roughly a month. They will be able to sign free agents, make trades, designate players from their 40-man roster for assignment, etc. until the lockout begins on December 1.
This dynamic led to an extremely busy November in 2021. Teams rushed to get as much certainty about their rosters as they could before the lockout officially went into effect. It is very possible that a similar frenzied month of transactions will occur again this November.
The lockout will almost certainly last until both sides agree to a new CBA. There is no strict timeline on this process completing. It could happen before the end of the 2026 calendar year (unlikely) or continue well beyond March 24, the currently scheduled Opening Day.
During the last CBA negotiations, the lockout lasted until March 10. At that time, the two sides were able to agree to a deal that included a delay to Opening Day to allow for three weeks of spring training, but salvaged a full 162 game regular season by rescheduling the opening week games for later in the season in addition to some double-headers.
How does it end?
Essentially, once a lockout is initiated, everything MLB related comes to a halt until either the two sides agree to a new CBA.
The only other way that the lockout would end is if the league decides to end it without a new contract agreed to. In that unlikely scenario, the MLBPA would have the option of formally striking or returning to normal operations under the old agreement while negotiating the next one.
For a new CBA to be ratified requires the approval of both the MLB team owners as well as the MLBPA.
The league must pass a majority vote among the 30 team owners on a proposed CBA. With 30 total teams, the owners need a minimum of 16 yes votes on any proposal to ratify it.
The Players’ Association must pass a majority vote between the player representatives for each of the 30 teams and the eight-player Executive Subcommittee. This means that the total voting body for the MLBPA is 38 and requires 20 yes votes for a majority.
Until both sides vote to accept a CBA proposal, the lockout is expected to continue.
What it means for the Rockies
The above context about the impending lockout is equally relevant for all 30 teams in MLB. For the Rockies specifically, the lockout brings with it some interesting wrinkles and context.
Rockies owner Dick Monfort is on the negotiating committee for the owners and has been a vocal advocate for a salary cap. Whether he gets his wish or not, it will be very telling to see how the team operates in the wake of whatever eventual agreement is made.
Monfort was also on the negotiating committee during the last round of CBA negotiations in 2021-2022. The Rockies were not particularly active during the initial transaction frenzy in November before the lockout but after the deal was struck Monfort gave the green light to the largest free agent contract in franchise history. There is no guarantee a similar thing will occur this time around, however, it would be an understandable for Monfort to want to make a show of confidence in whatever deal is eventually agreed to.
In his post-season press conference, Rockies President of Baseball Operations Paul DePodesta said that in terms of a lockout the team just needs to be “prepared for any eventuality.” He mentioned specifically being ready to act aggressively in a way that the team was not in a position to early last offseason. Perhaps that portends to the Rockies being busy in November before the lockout is initiated.
For his part, team President Walker Monfort stated that while losing games due to an extended lockout “would have a negative impact” that the team would operate as if they were planning for a standard regular season. It is possible that the impact of losing games, while large for all teams, would be less dire for a team deep in a rebuild like the Rockies than for those teams that have pushed their chips in for 2027.
There was speculation all of last season that the Rockies were attempting to keep Charlie Condon (No. 2 PuRP) off the 40-man roster, despite a strong season at Triple-A, specifically so that he would not be subject to a lockout this offseason. Regardless of whether Condon was kept down in Albuquerque with this in mind or not, the net effect is that the third overall pick from the 2024 draft will be able to communicate with team personnel and participate in minor league games no matter how long the lockout lasts.
When all is said and done, the Rockies (and the rest of the league) are in for an unpredictable winter.
The basic framework of what’s coming is in place, but the specifics of how things play out will entirely depend on how negotiations progress once the threat of losing games becomes more immediate. Now we simply need to wait and see whether the two sides are able to find a compromise that both find acceptable.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 23: Jake Lamb #9 of the Sacramento River Cats waits for the pitch against the San Francisco Giants in the third inning at Sutter Health Park on March 23, 2025 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Scott Marshall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Once again we continue to trawl MLB coaching rosters for interesting names who might be available for the Mariners as they reshape their coaching staff. If you missed the methodology/justification/general precis of this series, start here with the setup; you can go on from there to review candidates from the AL Central, and then click here for the next installment, the NL East. Today we’re covering primarily the NL West with the AL West shoehorned in there because I’m skipping most of the AL West, as the Astros and Angels are both involved in their own coaching searches. I’m also skipping the Rangers, because my pick for them – Kyle Moore, who managed the Triple-A Round Rock Express this season, has apparently just taken a job as assistant field coordinator for the Cardinals, per his LinkedIn. Boo. Let’s start then with the lone candidate from the AL West:
Todd Takayoshi (A’s)
Current role: minor league hitting coordinator
Age: 56
Bonus points: Attended Kennedy Catholic in Burien (Go Lancers)
The WAC Player of the Year in 1991 out of University of Hawai’i at Monoa, Takayoshi’s playing career went from the independent leagues to the Angels; he then transitioned to coaching. Takayoshi boasts over 20 years of experience in coaching and player development, the last three of which have come in his current role with the A’s, where he’s overseen the hitting development of prospects like Nick Kurtz, Jacob Wilson, and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer. There are probably some of you reading this who have firsthand experience with “Coach Tak,” who runs off-season camps around the Seattle area.
On to the NL West!
First I must say I’m actually skipping the Dodgers. Current bench coach Danny Lehmann is a name I’ve actually seen connected to the Mariners – and before that the Braves – and I get it, because the 41-year old has been around for a bit after getting his start as a video scout with the Dodgers, so has a reputation for being all about data and analytics. As for on-the-field experience, he has a background as a strong defensive catcher in college at Rice before becoming a Twins farmhand. Also, his uncle is Dog the Bounty Hunter? Unsure if that’s a plus or not. But I don’t think anyone from the Dodgers is actually an under-the-radar candidate for any job, and nothing I could turn up about Lehmann made me particularly excited about him to add to that, so I’m utilizing my skip power in order to talk about people I’m more excited about, like…
Nic Wilson (Rockies)
Current role: Assistant hitting coach (MLB)
Age: 33
Bonus points: Grandmother Elizabeth Wilson was the first Black and female mayor of his hometown in Decatur, Georgia; once dreamed of being the governor of Georgia; values education and lifelong learning.
Wilson is the youngest candidate we’ll profile in this series but he is a rising star who the Mariners should get their hands on before his hometown Braves do. Go read this Medium post from the Rockies or the linked MLB dot com article above, I think you’ll be sold.
Relevant quote: “In a nutshell, his ability to communicate with everybody is over the top good. He’s just over the top really good with people.” – Mark Brewer, former Rockies pitching coach
“Man, I love baseball.” – Nic Wilson
Ryley Westman (Padres)
Current role: Director, player development
Age: 42
Bonus points: N/A
Despite having a solidly Gen Z name, Westman has almost two decades of coaching experience, the bulk of it coming with the Rangers and Padres, and at a variety of positions, from manager to bench coach to hitting coach to catching coordinator to player development.
Relevant quote: “If we’re truly going to impact these guys, the better that you can relate with them and understand how they’re going to receive your message and know who they are, because they’re all different…really spend time with them, know them, invest yourself in them, and when it’s time to deliver that message or ask something from them or motivate them to another level, the the relationship you have with them is really going to carry a lot of weight.”
I should note here that commenter OlyFan was hopeful for a Nick Punto shoutout; I also debated Triple-A manager Pete Zamora for this slot, but Westman won out mostly because there’s a lot of interview footage of him due to his long tenure with the Padres and I was very compelled by him; however, I am willing to hear arguments in the comments.
Ed Lucas (Giants)
Current role: Director of Player Development
Age: 44
Bonus points: former Mariner; Ivy League Player of the Year (Dartmouth, 2004); kickass wife who has built an empire so that Ed can coach For The Love of the Game (ask me more about Holly and how she took on Hugo Boss over their attempt to trademark the word “boss” and how awesome she is, please, I beg you). Also would he be the first Mariners coach to have tweeted at Jon Bois? Maybe!
Jake Lamb (Diamondbacks)
Current role: Assistant, Player Development
Age: 36
Bonus points: Former Mariner, UW alum, Seattle-born (shoutout Bishop Blanchet), actual big-league playing experience, also it’s JAKE LAMB
Do I know anything about Jake Lamb other than that he’s Seattle baseball royalty? I do not. Do I care? Also no. Bring him home.
CANADA - MARCH 01: Unlike previous Blue Jay spring camps, this one was much more relaxed, as demonstrated by right fielder Jesse Barfield below left, who turns the tables on news photographers. (Photo by Bernard Weil/Toronto Star via Getty Images) | Toronto Star via Getty Images
Celebrating Jesse Barfield’s 67th Birthday
Jesse Barfield has always been one of my favorite players.
Barfield was selected in the 9th round of the 1977 amateur draft, the inaugural year for the Blue Jays and Mariners. MLB granted them the final two picks of each round, showcasing their generosity.
Barfield debuted in the majors in 1981 and spent nine seasons with the Blue Jays. He ranks near the top of several franchise leaderboards:
4th in bWAR among position players, 29.5
2nd in defensive WAR, 9.5 (behind Tony Fernandez)
11th in slugging average, .483
11th in games played, 1032
7th in home runs, 179
9th in RBI, 527
Barfield was known for his powerful bat and exceptional defense, especially his strong, accurate arm in right field and remarkable range. Some even believed he could have excelled as a center fielder. There are countless legendary stories about his arm—like throwing a ball over the center-field fence from home plate. I remember watching him snare a line drive on a bounce and fire to first for the out. Barfield led the American League in outfield assists for three straight years (1985–87), largely because teams rarely risked running on his arm. In 1985 alone, he had eight outfield double plays, and from 1985–1987, he recorded 21—more than many teams tally in an entire season.
Barfield, Lloyd Moseby, and George Bell formed an outfield trio that remains the best in Blue Jays history. During his time in Toronto, Barfield won two Gold Gloves, one Silver Slugger, and earned an All-Star selection.
Many people contributed to my love of baseball, but the outfield of Bell, Moseby, and Barfield stands out. Watching them develop into the best outfield in baseball deepened my appreciation for the game. I often compared them to other legendary outfields—while not the greatest ever (the Tigers’ trio of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach likely holds that honor), I believe Bell, Moseby, and Barfield deserve a spot among the top ten outfields of all time.
In 1989, the Blue Jays traded Barfield to the Yankees for Al Leiter—a heartbreaking deal that ultimately did not work out in Toronto’s favor.
I once received a signed ball from Barfield in Cooperstown during Roy Halladay’s induction. Remarkably, he looked just as he did during his playing days. He was very friendly, but the thing i noticed most was his hands were twice the size of mine.
Barfield remains active on social media: @JesseBarfield29.
Happy birthday, Jesse! Wishing you a wonderful day.
Celebrating R.A. Dickey’s 52nd Birthday
R.A. Dickey joined the Blue Jays via trade from the Mets, along with catchers Mike Nickeas and Josh Thole. In exchange, Toronto sent Wuilmer Becerra, John Buck, Travis d’Arnaud, and Noah Syndergaard to New York.
General manager Alex Anthopoulos sought an ace to guide the Blue Jays to the playoffs, but things didn’t go as planned. Dickey spent four seasons in Toronto, posting a 49–52 record and a 4.03 ERA over 131 games (130 starts).
Dickey often started seasons slowly with the Jays. For example, in 2013 he posted a 4.80 ERA before the All-Star break and a 3.57 ERA afterward. In 2014, his ERA was 3.82 in the first half and 3.57 in the second. In 2016, he went from 5.28 in the first half to 3.56 in the second. The exception was 2015, when his ERA was 3.11 early and 4.83 after the break.
The Blue Jays reached the playoffs in 2015 and 2016. Dickey made two postseason starts in 2015: one was strong, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing just one run before being replaced by David Price; the other was rough, lasting only 1.2 innings and surrendering five runs in a loss to the Royals.
Dickey appears on several franchise pitching leaderboards:
Tied for 15th in wins.
13th in innings pitched.
18th in strikeouts
13th in starts.
Many fans were disappointed by Dickey’s performance, largely because expectations were set so high after his Cy Young-winning season with the Mets. We believed he would be the ace to take us to the World Series, but it was unfair to place all those hopes on him.
Dickey came across as a genuinely good person who appeared to enjoy his time in Toronto. He was far from the typical baseball player—he took pleasure in playful media interviews, using big words to keep reporters on their toes. For us fans who appreciated his intellect, it was refreshing to see a fellow ‘nerd’ on the team.
In 2017, Dickey pitched for the Braves, finishing 10–10 with a 4.26 ERA in 31 starts.
Over his 15-season career, Dickey posted a 120–118 record with a 4.04 ERA in 300 starts and 100 relief appearances. His best year was 2012, when he went 20–6 with a 2.73 ERA.
Happy birthday, R.A.! Hope you have a fantastic day.
It’s also Dana Eveland’s 43rd birthday. In 2010, Eveland made nine starts for the Blue Jays, posting a 6.45 ERA.
Eveland pitched in 11 MLB seasons, appearing in 187 games and making 61 starts. He compiled a 20–28 record with a 5.46 ERA.
After Game 4’s extra-inning victory to avoid the sweep, Walls was asked by The Athletic reporter Ken Rosenthal: “Was it important to win one just to show you’re on this level?”
Walls did not like the framing of that question.
Tampa Bay Rays’ Taylor Walls was not a fan of the questions being asked by Ken Rosenthal. Getty Images
“No,” Walls quickly responded after the 12-inning 4-3 win on Tuesday. “I think that’s pretty disrespectful, honestly. We’re a team that’s capable of winning four.”
Rosenthal quickly apologized for the question, saying, “Sorry for the wording,” in the locker room.
Ken Rosenthal: Was it important to win one just to show you’re on this level?
Taylor Walls: I think that’s pretty disrespectful honestly
“No team wants to get swept, but at the end of the day, we think we can win the whole thing,” Walls said. “So whether it starts with us down 0-3 and winning four in a row, or whether it started winning the first one or the second one, we have full confidence that we can do it.”
The Rays did not pull off the impossible of coming back from down 3-0, a feat only completed by the 2004 Red Sox against the Yankees in the ALCS.
Tampa Bay had a tough time scoring runs in the series, putting up only 11 runs in five games as their bats went quiet and looked largely overmatched with weak contact.
Walls responding to Rosenthal after Game 4. @TalkinBaseball_/X
Walls, who isn’t exactly a bopper in his own right as a defense-first player to begin with, hit just .103 in the postseason with four hits in 39 at-bats.
Rasmussen then had to pitch on short rest in a do-or-die Game 5 and lasted only four innings.
Ken Rosenthal interviews Aaron Ashby after a World Series win. Fox Sports via Getty Images
The Rays still had a successful season by all standards, even if Walls didn’t want to hear the underdog noise from reporters, considering they were able to make the World Series after coming into the year with some expecting them to be a lesser team in the AL East.
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and the Boston Red Sox will be busy over the next few days.
The MLB offseason officially began Wednesday night after the Milwaukee Brewers were crowned 2026 World Series champions. That means clubs must add players from the 60-day injured list back onto the 40-man roster by Monday.
The Red Sox have a full 40-man roster, plus seven players on the 60-day IL: Eli White, Triston Casas, Justin Slaten, Kutter Crawford, Zack Kelly, Johan Oviedo, and Eduardo Rivera. All seven must be reactivated, meaning seven spots have to be cleared.
Three were cleared on Thursday. Left-hander Patrick Sandoval and utility man Isiah Kiner-Falefa officially became free agents, and outfielder Nate Eaton was traded to the Athletics for 18-year-old minor-league pitcher Jareth Rayo. Plus, veteran right-hander Sonny Gray’s $30 million mutual option will almost certainly be declined, leaving the Red Sox with three more cuts to make via trade, release, waivers, or designating for assignment.
Who could be next on Boston’s chopping block? Here are the most likely cut candidates:
Raymond Burgos, LHP
Burgos provided bullpen depth in the final stretch of the 2026 season, posting a 4.22 ERA and 0.844 WHIP in nine appearances (21.1 innings pitched). The 28-year-old is a candidate to be waived, clear waivers, and land back in Triple-A.
Jovani Moran, LHP
Moran was an effective southpaw out of Boston’s bullpen in 2026, finishing with a 3.15 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 50 outings. He was left off the playoff roster, however, and is out of minor-league options.
Jahmai Jones, DH/OF
Jones stepped up as a lefty masher immediately after being acquired from the Detroit Tigers, but he struggled mightily throughout September. The Red Sox outfield remains crowded even after the Eaton trade, and with Romy Gonzalez presumably good to go for 2027, having both him and Jones on the roster as specialists against southpaws would be redundant.
Zack Kelly, RHP
Kelly notched a 3.31 ERA in 17 bullpen appearances last season before suffering a season-ending elbow injury. Injuries have been an issue throughout his career, making him an obvious cut candidate especially now that he’s out of minor-league options.
Tsung-Che Cheng, SS
Cheng played an important role as a fill-in shortstop during the Red Sox’ incredible midseason turnaround. He hit a modest .256 in his 14 games with the club, but his defense was a legitimate difference-maker. Still, he’s a fringe big-leaguer and a candidate to be traded or DFA’d before Monday.
Tyler Samaniego, LHP
Left-handed reliever Samaniego posted a 2.66 ERA across 20 outings (one as an opener) in his first MLB stint. Despite his effectiveness, he was sent down to Triple-A in early June and never called back up the majors. He’d still be a useful depth piece, but the 27-year-old could also bring back something of value in a trade if Boston opts to part ways.
Eduardo Rivera, LHP
Rivera made four appearances (three starts) with Boston in 2026. The 23-year-old had a 6.30 ERA and 1.40 WHIP over 10 innings. Like Samaniego, he’s expendable as a depth reliever with at least some trade value.
Alec Gamboa, LHP
Gamboa was a revelation for the Red Sox bullpen in 2026, posting a 1.91 ERA across 21 appearances (three as an opener) in his first big-league stint. The 29-year-old’s efforts earned him a spot on the postseason roster.
As great as Gamboa was, he’s a strong candidate to be moved. Boston has plenty of left-handed bullpen depth, and Gamboa’s value after an outstanding rookie season is undoubtedly at its peak.
The Chicago Blackhawks are already involved in trade rumors. 18 teams had scouting representatives at the United Center for Chicago’s match vs the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, and a total of 25 teams out of 32 have been there since Sunday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Frank Seravalli has reported that the Blackhawks are looking to add a big scoring winger during all of this as well, which has added to the rumor mill.
Kyle Davidson has been actively looking for "shoot-first, scoring wingers with size." If the Blackhawks slide continues, "count on something bigger perhaps in the works." pic.twitter.com/zIOZngJ5aS
The conversation around a trade like that includes centers like Frank Nazar and Oliver Moore. Teams around the league want centers, which is an area where the Blackhawks have a surplus. There is development left to go for most of Chicago's young centers, but the upside is there to intrigue teams.
Rumors of Teuvo Teravainen and Kevin Korchinski being moved have also swirled. With the Blackhawks being 4-8-0 through their first 12 games of the season, it isn’t surprising to hear these names in the rumor mill as the team looks to shake things up before going the route of firing anyone.
If Moore and Nazar both stick with Chicago in the long term, one of them is likely going to have to make a full-time transition to the wing, and neither would say that is their first choice of position.
In the case of Kevin Korchinski, he is a young defenseman who doesn't get the playing time he needs in order to further his development. Sending him to the AHL would require waivers, and the Blackhawks would almost certainly lose him for nothing.
As for Teravainen, it would depend on another team taking him at this stage of his career. He went from being a healthy scratch on opening night to running their top power-play unit in the absence of Bowen Byram, which does give him value. On a contender, he'd make a wonderful secondary playmaker in the middle of a lineup.
Anything can happen, as it is all just rumors right now, but there can be fire where there is smoke in the NHL. Connor Hellebuyck was already traded from the Winnipeg Jets to the New Jersey Devils. Next is almost certainly going to be Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings. After that, the trade market may open up in a big way.
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Los Angeles Clippers in-arena host Hannah Cormier reacting to a mishap during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. (X/@MattWallace888).
Hannah Cormier is entering her 11th season with the Clippers organization and her seventh as the in-arena host and MC. She was on camera during one point in the game, appearing to not realize they were rolling.
She seemed to notice a few seconds later, which sparked a terrified look on her face.
Los Angeles Clippers in-arena host Hannah Cormier reacting to a mishap during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. (X/@MattWallace888).
She gathered herself quickly before saying, “Clipper Nation, the ladies are back performing to ‘Gemstone’. Give it up for our Clippers spirit!”
As Cormier walked away, the microphone caught a sound that sounded conspicuously like a fart.
An X user posted a video of this entire debacle with the caption, “NBA reporter farts, stumbles over her words, walks off”. The clip has gone viral, amassing over 390,000 views in about 10 hours.
Baba Miller #18 of the LA Clippers looks on during the game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California, Wednesday, October 28, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
There is some debate about what the sound actually was. Some believe it was truly Cormier passing gas that was caught on the microphone, while others are claiming is was either microphone static or something else the microphone inadvertently picked up.
Like so many Milwaukee fans, Christian Yelich took a moment while celebrating the Brewers’ first World Series title to remember a man he wished had been around to see it.
“Uecky, I love you, man,” Yelich said in reference to beloved Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker, who died in January 2025 at the age of 90. “We did it.”
Yelich’s tribute after the Brewers’ 4-1 Game 5 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays recalled a dramatically different postgame setting two years earlier, when Milwaukee couldn’t hang on to a 2-0 ninth-inning lead and fell to the New York Mets in the decisive game of an NL Wild Card Series.
That would be the last game in the broadcasting career of Uecker, who had been calling games through the 2023 and 2024 seasons while battling small cell lung cancer. Uecker had kept that information private up until his death and shared it only with a select group of people, including Yelich.
Uecker capped his game broadcast that night by saying, “That one had some sting on it,” then went into a silent locker room and offered condolences to the Brewers players, a moment that was detailed in a documentary on Uecker that came out this year. Yelich struggled to contain his emotions that night as he discussed the hardest part of having a season end that way.
“For me, it was talking to Ueck,” Yelich said at the time. “That’s kind of a tough one. All the other stuff, it is what it is. It’s a tough way for your season to end, but talking to Uecky one on one, it was tough.”
Learning from the low moments
That made Wednesday’s moment all the more cathartic for Yelich, who has been with the Brewers through all their celebrations and commiserations over the last several years as the franchise had its greatest run of sustained success.
The guy who was named the first captain in franchise history last month accepted congratulations on the field from Hall of Fame shortstop Robin Yount, regarded as the Brewers’ greatest player ever. Yount had been an MVP in 1982 when the Brewers made their only previous World Series appearance. He praised Yelich for helping the Brewers finally get it done.
Yelich, 34, and pitcher Brandon Woodruff are the only players who have been with the Brewers since they began their run of eight playoff berths in nine seasons in 2018. They’d been through plenty of heartache as the Brewers struggled to translate their regular-season success into the postseason.
“All those low moments, you don’t realize at the time, but those low moments prepare you for this moment,” Yelich said. “Without those, this wouldn’t be possible. It doesn’t feel like it in the moment sometimes when it’s happening to you, when you’re in those lows. It can be tough at times, but it makes you tougher. There’s lessons to be learned from it, and it’s all geared towards moments like this. Man, is it worth it.”
The Brewers acquired Yelich before the 2018 season, and he went on to become the NL MVP that year as Milwaukee reached Game 7 of the NL Championship Series. He was contending for another MVP award the following year before fracturing his kneecap, the first in a series of injuries he would battle through over the last several years.
Even though Yelich is no longer the Brewers’ best player, he remains the face of the franchise in many respects.
“I don’t think all of them were clear enough on what it was going to take,” manager Pat Murphy said. “Yeli kept speaking it into existence. He kept saying, ‘Hey, you know, we’re going to win the World Series,’ and everybody kind of snapped their head like, ‘You believe that? Did you see us play last week?’ That type of thing.”
Producing in the postseason
Yelich wasn’t merely leading in the clubhouse. He also was delivering a postseason breakthrough on the field while bouncing back from a regular season in which he posted career lows in on-base percentage (.315) and OPS (.692).
He drove in two runs in Game 2 of the NLCS as the Brewers swept the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
In the World Series, Yelich hit a first-inning RBI triple to put Milwaukee ahead for good in a 3-2 Game 1 win, and he went 2 for 3 with a walk and an RBI in the Brewers’ 10-1 Game 3 blowout victory. He scored one of the Brewers’ four runs in the Game 5 clincher Wednesday.
Now he’s finally a World Series champion. He could only wonder what Uecker would have been thinking.
“He’s smiling, man,” Yelich said. “He’s smiling. I really wish he could have been here to see this. That would have meant everything to him. But like we said a bunch, he’s been with us a lot. We keep him close to our hearts. This one’s still for Bob.”
