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Free agency is officially underway, and over the coming weeks, the Minnesota Twins will have several decisions to make as they look to build a roster capable of competing in 2027. There are some obvious needs for the club, starting with a bullpen that struggled for much of the 2026 season. The Twins could also have a need behind the plate, depending on what Ryan Jeffers decides to do with the qualifying offer he received. However, another position that deserves some attention this offseason is first base. As things currently stand, Royce Lewis is the de facto first baseman on the Twins' roster. While Lewis certainly has the offensive potential to be an impact player, his struggles have made it difficult to envision him as the everyday answer at the position. If the Twins head into 2027 with Lewis as their starting first baseman, it would be difficult to consider the offseason a success. Minnesota could pursue a traditional first baseman in free agency, or, as Cody Pirkl discussed in his recent article, the Twins could move Kody Clemens to first base and pursue an upgrade at second base instead. If the latter approach is something Minnesota considers, there is one familiar name who could make a lot of sense: Luis Arraez. Everyone remembers Luis Arraez's tenure in Minnesota, he was a true fan favorite. He quickly established himself as one of the best contact hitters in baseball and became an excellent leadoff hitter for the Twins over his four seasons in Minnesota. His time in Minnesota culminated in winning the American League batting title in 2022 before the Twins traded him to the Miami Marlins in exchange for Pablo López following that season. Arraez didn't slow down after leaving Minnesota, winning two more consecutive batting titles in 2023 and 2024 while playing for Miami and San Diego. After spending time with the Padres and Giants, he eventually landed with the Philadelphia Phillies. In many ways, Arraez remains the same player Twins fans remember. He hits for a high average, rarely strikes out, doesn't offer much power, and consistently produces an above-average offensive season. His 110 OPS+ in 2026 is a good representation of what teams can expect from him at the plate. However, there is one significant difference between the player who left Minnesota and the one who could potentially return. Arraez has completely transformed his defensive game. During his time with the Twins, Arraez initially played second base before his defensive struggles prompted the organization to move him to first base full time. After being traded to Miami, he moved back to second base, where his defensive limitations continued to be an issue. That remained the case during his time with the Padres, but something changed in 2026. Under the tutelage of infield guru Ron Washington, Arraez seemingly figured things out defensively and became a legitimate strength at second base. The numbers tell an incredible story. From 2019 through 2025, Arraez posted negative Outs Above Average numbers at second base every season, routinely finishing with marks of -8, -10, or even -11. In 2026, he flipped that narrative entirely, recording 12 Outs Above Average. That was the fifth-best mark among all second basemen in baseball. Going from one of the worst defensive second basemen in the league to one of its best is a remarkable transformation, and it completely changes the conversation about what Arraez could bring to a team. Offensively, Arraez would give the Twins something they could use more of: consistency. Minnesota actually had a pretty productive offense in 2026, finishing ninth in baseball in runs scored. However, there were too many stretches when the lineup went cold, struggling to string together quality at-bats and going multiple games without generating much offense. Arraez is the type of hitter who can help prevent those prolonged slumps. He consistently puts the ball in play, works quality at-bats, and finds ways to get on base. He isn't going to provide much power or drive in a ton of runs, but he would give the Twins a dependable presence near the top of the lineup who can help set the table for the hitters behind him. His defensive improvement might actually be an even bigger selling point. The Twins finished the 2026 season ranked 22nd in baseball in infield Outs Above Average. Second base was a particular problem, with Minnesota ranking 26th in baseball at the position with -6 OAA. Arraez's 2026 performance of 12 OAA would represent an 18-out swing compared to what the Twins received from their second basemen this past season. That is a substantial improvement at a position where Minnesota could desperately use one. Pairing that defensive production with his consistent offensive output would give the Twins an upgrade on both sides of the ball. There is also a financial component that makes this potential reunion intriguing. Arraez doesn't necessarily carry the same name recognition as some of the other notable offensive players who could be available this offseason, such as Randy Arozarena or Seiya Suzuki. That could make him a more affordable option for a Twins organization that will need to be smart about how it allocates its resources. ESPN currently projects Arraez to receive a three-year, $54 million contract. For a 29-year-old coming off a season in which he contributed 4.1 WAR, that seems like a pretty reasonable contract. Of course, Arraez isn't going to solve every problem on the Twins' roster. He isn't a power hitter, and adding him wouldn't eliminate the need to address the bullpen or potentially find another catcher. However, if Minnesota decides that moving Clemens to first base is the best path forward, Arraez would be an incredibly logical addition. He would fill a position of need, provide a consistent offensive presence, and bring defensive value that Twins fans probably never expected to see from him again. The Twins have an opportunity to bring back a player who already knows the organization, is still an above-average hitter, and has developed into a completely different defensive player since leaving Minnesota. Would you like to see the Twins bring Luis Arraez back this offseason? Would a three-year, $54 million investment make sense for Minnesota, or would you prefer to see the Twins pursue a different option at second base? View the full article

The offseason has arrived. After option decisions were made, free agency has officially begun and the Padres need a lot of help in the rotation and perhaps some offensively. Randy Holt and Steve Drumwright go through their top hitter candidates they would add to the Padres’ lineup and then try to figure out what they can do to get the rotation to contender status for 2027 and perhaps beyond. Who would you like to see the Padres add? Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/padres-mission-podcast/id1896922834 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033xclmydmbLmEp0exYuYz Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1333-padres-mission-podcast-336930560 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@padresmission View the full article

The offseason has arrived. After option decisions were made, free agency has officially begun and the Padres need a lot of help in the rotation and perhaps some offensively. Randy Holt and Steve Drumwright go through their top hitter candidates they would add to the Padres’ lineup and then try to figure out what they can do to get the rotation to contender status for 2027 and perhaps beyond. Who would you like to see the Padres add? Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/padres-mission-podcast/id1896922834 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033xclmydmbLmEp0exYuYz Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1333-padres-mission-podcast-336930560 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@padresmission View the full article

"The Chicago Cubs should sign the best player on the market" feels like a pretty obvious statement. "Yeah, no [duh], Sherlock" may go through your head when you read that, and it's a fair thought, On the surface, it isn't really much of a hot take. But give me a little space here, because I think there will be a lot of people who will find reasons to push back on me saying that about Skubal. They'll point to the cost of the contract (Skubal will set the record for AAV for a starting pitcher this offseason), the agent (Skubal is represented by Scott Boras, which really just reinforces the first point), or starting pitchers and their injuries (the Cubs had the fourth-most days missed due to time spent on the IL in 2026, so we're well acquainted with how things can go belly-up) to argue why the money should be spent elsewhere. I'm here to tell you this: the Cubs should ignore that noise and just sign the best damn pitcher on the market. Tarik Skubal is Awesome, and the Cubs' Rotation Isn't Let's start with the stuff we all agree upon: Skubal is awesome. From 2024 through 2026, Skubal led the world in starting pitcher fWAR, at 18.0. That's more than Cristopher Sánchez, Chris Sale, Paul Skenes, or Zach Wheeler (or anyone else, but you get my point). In the same span, he ranks second in ERA, second in expected ERA, second in xFIP, and fourth in strikeout rate, and he has the second-lowest walk rate among qualifying hurlers. It doesn't matter what statistic you look at; he's awesome. And one more thing: Skubal has the fourth-most innings pitched over those three seasons; he's available. It's one thing to have all the talent in the world, it's another to be able to use it. Outside of a small blip this season, Skubal has been a better combination of dominant and durable than anyone. The Cubs' starting rotation is decidedly not awesome. The team has a massive need for starting pitching, making the initial fit an easy argument. Last season, the Cubs were a bottom-10 team in almost any category you can name, including fWAR (28th), xERA (24th), K% (23rd), and homers (29th). The team attempted to address this issue at the deadline, but due to the prices of controllable pitching, they were left trading for Clay Holmes, David Peterson and Kevin Gausman, all of whom are free agents. To make that happen, the team had to once again unload useful prospects. This time, that meant Jefferson Rojas, Cole Mathis and Mason McGwire. As of this writing, the Cubs' 2027 rotation is quite murky, too. It's a mixed bag of injured pitchers who have massive question marks surrounding their future (Justin Steele, Cade Horton and Ben Brown) and players who have talent but have been ineffective (Edward Cabrera). Behind them in the farm system, there are no clear-cut candidates to step into a top-of-the-rotation role. The team hopes first-round pick Cade Townsend will be "that guy", but he hasn't thrown a professional pitch yet, so it's best to hold off on the coronation. Jaxon Wiggins has flashed the stuff, but last year was a year, he dealt with his own issues of ineffectiveness and injury. Solving the issue internally doesn't feel like a very likely scenario in the interim, so the help has to come from outside. Starting Pitchers Get Hurt Sometimes, But They Age Better Than Hitters If you're feeling snakebitten by starting pitchers, I wouldn't blame you. Last year was a particularly rough season for the Cubs on this front. Horton and Steele combined for under eight innings. Brown looked like a possible rotation anchor for a short time, but spent the second half on the injured list. Matthew Boyd had knee issues stemming from playing basketball with his kid. The Cubs weren't alone in this regard, of course. Pitchers get hurt all the time, and more often recently than ever before. Major League Baseball has looked into it themselves. Stints on the shelf for pitchers rose sharply from 2017-2024, with the vast majority of them happening early in the year. There is an injury crisis affecting pitchers right now, and we'd be fools to ignore it. Obviously, though, keeping it in mind can't mean allowing it to dissuade you from all investment in hurlers. Yes, pitchers are getting hurt more often, and yes, teams are more cautious than ever with starting pitchers. As a result, however, pitchers who don't break age better than their position-playing counterparts. Hitters, not pitchers, decline earlier. Hitters over the age of 35 are becoming vanishingly rare. In 2024, just 4.1% of all plate appearances in the majors went to hitters in the back half of their 30s. We have plenty of data that shows that by the age of 32, bat speed begins a fairly rapid decline. This year, only three hitters aged 35 or older had a wRC+ over 105: Freddie Freeman, Nolan Arenado and Max Muncy. They're also the only three players to hit 2.0 fWAR at that age. Not one player aged 37 even got enough playing time to qualify for the batting title. Compare that to pitchers aged 35 and up. The number of 35+-year-olds who got to the 2.0-WAR bench mark was more than double that of their hitting counterparts, with seven. One of those was Nick Martinez. Two pitchers over the age of 37 posted 4+ fWAR, and but for Jacob Misiorwski's unbelievable season, Chris Sale would have had a good argument for the NL Cy Young Award. It's not a one year thing either. There were eight pitchers who had more than 2.0 fWAR in 2025 over the age of 35, compared to just three hitters. Pitchers age better, in every sense except that their careers are more likely to be permanently and substantially diminished (or even ended) by injuries. Signing a starting pitcher to the kind of deal Skubal will require probably means absorbing a year lost to injury at some point. But you can make up for that. While a hitter signed to a 10-year deal can become a multi-year albatross, pitchers have a better aging curve. Zack Wheeler, who had a deep-vein thrombosis in August 2025, proved this year that you can come back from a nasty surgery and thrive again even in your late 30s. The best pitchers tend to last, and Skubal is that kind of pitcher. Repeating History; The Jon Lester Story Jed Hoyer has been around the Cubs organization since he was brought on by Theo Epstein upon Epstein's arrival in 2011. He was there when the Cubs made a massive statement in the winter of 2014-15, bringing in proven winner Jon Lester. He saw the fruits of that contract, as Lester helped lead the Cubs to a 2016 World Series title and was worth 16.8 fWAR during his time on the North Side, being useful through his age-35 season. Lester brought a winning mentality. He was an absolute bulldog on the mound, who already had a playoff starter's résumé. Jon Lester was a dude in the World Series. You may remember him in Game 7, but let's not forget what he did just two games earlier. Game 5 of the 2016 World Series is sometimes overshadowed by the more climactic games that followed in Cleveland, but it was the pivot point in that series. Down 3-1 to Cleveland, the Cubs were on life support at home. The offense had gone cold, and Cleveland smelled blood, looking to finish things off at Wrigley Field. Lester shut down that Cleveland team, limiting the visitors to just two runs over six innings as the team held on after a three-run offensive outburst early in the game. Lester was able to hold out long enough for Aroldis Chapman to get the save. The Cubs haven't had a Lester-caliber stopper in the last two years, and it's showed. In 2025, they got knocked out by the Milwaukee Brewers because they didn't have the horses to match up in the rotation. In 2026, when the Cubs went against the San Diego Padres, they got knocked around early in Game-1 and couldn't match Nick Pivetta in Game 2. Their vaunted offense went cold, and they didn't have a strong enough starter to keep them breathing until the bats could wake up. To make the Lester deal happen, the Cubs had to go well above their normal spending pattern. Before the lefty agreed to a 6-year, $155-million deal, the team had only eclipsed the $100-million mark once—way back in 2007, with outfielder Alfonso Soriano. We're now over a decade beyond the ink drying on that contract, and the Cubs have yet to go above $200 million. While the deal that Skubal will eventually sign should dwarf (as in more than double) the size of Lester's, that cannot be the excuse for not making that leap. No Time is Perfect, But Now is Close Enough The Cubs can't allow imperfections in timing or in a player's profile to be the reason they never make the big move. It's easy to think there will be a "next" or a "better" time, but there's never a better time than "now". When the Cubs signed Lester, they were fresh off a season wherein they won 73 games and finished dead last in the NL Central. That didn't stop them from breaking from their decades-long spending pattern. The current iteration of the Cubs has won more games than they lost four years running and has made the playoffs in the last two. They have the best position player on the planet, and another top-10 fWAR player on the roster. Alex Bregman and Dansby Swanson are marching into their mid-30s, and while I'd love to believe Pete Crow-Armstrong is going to remain one of the best position players on the planet, the odds are that 2026 will be his peak season, and that 2027 will be his second-best. The Cubs are better positioned to add a special pitcher than they were in 2015, and they're certainly better positioned to benefit from that kind of addition than they'll be a year or two from now. The market is shaping up for the Cubs to be a massive player here. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the equivalent of MLB's bogeyman, seem to be in an odd place financially. Mark Walter, the Dodgers' owner, is in some legal hot water at the moment. Reports are that the Dodgers may only want Skubal on a Kyle Tucker-style short-term, high-AAV deal. Walter is also currently looking to get out of his backing of a Cadillac F1 team, just one year into the project. There will be other big bidders, but if the Dodgers are less aggressive than they'd otherwise be, the Cubs have to seize the rare opportunity. To be good next year, the Cubs have to spend more than they've ever spent before, and they can't by any means stop with Skubal. But it also won't require them to become the Dodgers or the Mets. In 2019, the Cubs had the third-highest payroll in baseball at around $191 million. In 2026, the fifth-highest payroll was the Blue Jays, at $270 million. The CBA is going to play a part in this, but if recent history shows us anything, there is likely to be an increase in the luxury tax again. The last CBA saw the lowest tax threshold increase $20 million in one offseason. Another, similar bump from $244 million would put that bottom threshold around $265 million. That would give the Cubs well over $100 million to spend on 2027 alone, leaving $55-$60 million after Skubal signed—enough to fill out a good roster. As mentioned above, Skubal's agent is Scott Boras. Not everyone has a great relationship with the super agent. He can be corny and grating. He really strings things out. But the Cubs and Boras have a working relationship, which should grease the wheels. Some teams can be turned off with Boras's involvement, but the Cubs aren't one of those teams. They brought in Bregman via Boras last offseason. These two sides know each other and that gets your foot in the door. In Summary: Just Do It There are a lot of hurdles to make this happen. It's going to require the Cubs to first accept that their spending model needs an update. When the Cubs signed Lester, it was the 19th-largest contract ever; it is now not even in the top-70. FanGraphs recently put out an article looking at free-agent predictions for contract sizes. Their crowdsourced data put the predicted contract for Skubal at $335 million, which would make it a top-10 all-time contract. FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens was higher, at $380 million—the highest ever for a pitcher and fifth place all-time. But young pitchers like Cam Schlittler, Misiorowski, and Skenes will easily eclipse that deal in the future, much like others eclipsed Lester's. It doesn't feel like an impossible ask in that context. Secondly, it's going to require the Cubs to accept that this is a unique opportunity. How many times are you going to have the best position player in baseball on a nice contract? How many more good years do Bregman and Swanson have left? How often will you have a need this glaring on a team with this good a chance to be good? How much more perfect does it have to be? If this isn't the guy you're going to be irrational about, who the hell is? The good news is there is some smoke here. They looked into him at the trade deadline, but clearly that didn't go far. Jeff Passan has mentioned they "want him badly". The bad news is that in that same article, Passan mentions the Cubs may be unwilling to spend what he'd need. I'm begging them to give in and pay up, this one time. Ultimately, I have the easy task of spending someone else's money here. I'm not shelling out $380 million of my own dollars (granted, I also am not sitting on a franchise with an estimated net worth of $5 billion) to get this over the finish line. But if the Cubs want to get to a point where they don't have to trade good prospects for rentals (like they did at this deadline); if they want to get to a point where they are getting back into the conversation of a bye in the first round of the playoffs; and if they want to avoid another year "slipping away", no other player in this market seems as stable as Skubal or fits the organization's needs more neatly. What do you think the Cubs should do regarding Tarik Skubal? Should this be the player they break the bank for? Let us know in the comment section below. View the full article

"The Chicago Cubs should sign the best player on the market" feels like a pretty obvious statement. "Yeah, no [duh], Sherlock" may go through your head when you read that, and it's a fair thought, On the surface, it isn't really much of a hot take. But give me a little space here, because I think there will be a lot of people who will find reasons to push back on me saying that about Skubal. They'll point to the cost of the contract (Skubal will set the record for AAV for a starting pitcher this offseason), the agent (Skubal is represented by Scott Boras, which really just reinforces the first point), or starting pitchers and their injuries (the Cubs had the fourth-most days missed due to time spent on the IL in 2026, so we're well acquainted with how things can go belly-up) to argue why the money should be spent elsewhere. I'm here to tell you this: the Cubs should ignore that noise and just sign the best damn pitcher on the market. Tarik Skubal is Awesome, and the Cubs' Rotation Isn't Let's start with the stuff we all agree upon: Skubal is awesome. From 2024 through 2026, Skubal led the world in starting pitcher fWAR, at 18.0. That's more than Cristopher Sánchez, Chris Sale, Paul Skenes, or Zach Wheeler (or anyone else, but you get my point). In the same span, he ranks second in ERA, second in expected ERA, second in xFIP, and fourth in strikeout rate, and he has the second-lowest walk rate among qualifying hurlers. It doesn't matter what statistic you look at; he's awesome. And one more thing: Skubal has the fourth-most innings pitched over those three seasons; he's available. It's one thing to have all the talent in the world, it's another to be able to use it. Outside of a small blip this season, Skubal has been a better combination of dominant and durable than anyone. The Cubs' starting rotation is decidedly not awesome. The team has a massive need for starting pitching, making the initial fit an easy argument. Last season, the Cubs were a bottom-10 team in almost any category you can name, including fWAR (28th), xERA (24th), K% (23rd), and homers (29th). The team attempted to address this issue at the deadline, but due to the prices of controllable pitching, they were left trading for Clay Holmes, David Peterson and Kevin Gausman, all of whom are free agents. To make that happen, the team had to once again unload useful prospects. This time, that meant Jefferson Rojas, Cole Mathis and Mason McGwire. As of this writing, the Cubs' 2027 rotation is quite murky, too. It's a mixed bag of injured pitchers who have massive question marks surrounding their future (Justin Steele, Cade Horton and Ben Brown) and players who have talent but have been ineffective (Edward Cabrera). Behind them in the farm system, there are no clear-cut candidates to step into a top-of-the-rotation role. The team hopes first-round pick Cade Townsend will be "that guy", but he hasn't thrown a professional pitch yet, so it's best to hold off on the coronation. Jaxon Wiggins has flashed the stuff, but last year was a year, he dealt with his own issues of ineffectiveness and injury. Solving the issue internally doesn't feel like a very likely scenario in the interim, so the help has to come from outside. Starting Pitchers Get Hurt Sometimes, But They Age Better Than Hitters If you're feeling snakebitten by starting pitchers, I wouldn't blame you. Last year was a particularly rough season for the Cubs on this front. Horton and Steele combined for under eight innings. Brown looked like a possible rotation anchor for a short time, but spent the second half on the injured list. Matthew Boyd had knee issues stemming from playing basketball with his kid. The Cubs weren't alone in this regard, of course. Pitchers get hurt all the time, and more often recently than ever before. Major League Baseball has looked into it themselves. Stints on the shelf for pitchers rose sharply from 2017-2024, with the vast majority of them happening early in the year. There is an injury crisis affecting pitchers right now, and we'd be fools to ignore it. Obviously, though, keeping it in mind can't mean allowing it to dissuade you from all investment in hurlers. Yes, pitchers are getting hurt more often, and yes, teams are more cautious than ever with starting pitchers. As a result, however, pitchers who don't break age better than their position-playing counterparts. Hitters, not pitchers, decline earlier. Hitters over the age of 35 are becoming vanishingly rare. In 2024, just 4.1% of all plate appearances in the majors went to hitters in the back half of their 30s. We have plenty of data that shows that by the age of 32, bat speed begins a fairly rapid decline. This year, only three hitters aged 35 or older had a wRC+ over 105: Freddie Freeman, Nolan Arenado and Max Muncy. They're also the only three players to hit 2.0 fWAR at that age. Not one player aged 37 even got enough playing time to qualify for the batting title. Compare that to pitchers aged 35 and up. The number of 35+-year-olds who got to the 2.0-WAR bench mark was more than double that of their hitting counterparts, with seven. One of those was Nick Martinez. Two pitchers over the age of 37 posted 4+ fWAR, and but for Jacob Misiorwski's unbelievable season, Chris Sale would have had a good argument for the NL Cy Young Award. It's not a one year thing either. There were eight pitchers who had more than 2.0 fWAR in 2025 over the age of 35, compared to just three hitters. Pitchers age better, in every sense except that their careers are more likely to be permanently and substantially diminished (or even ended) by injuries. Signing a starting pitcher to the kind of deal Skubal will require probably means absorbing a year lost to injury at some point. But you can make up for that. While a hitter signed to a 10-year deal can become a multi-year albatross, pitchers have a better aging curve. Zack Wheeler, who had a deep-vein thrombosis in August 2025, proved this year that you can come back from a nasty surgery and thrive again even in your late 30s. The best pitchers tend to last, and Skubal is that kind of pitcher. Repeating History; The Jon Lester Story Jed Hoyer has been around the Cubs organization since he was brought on by Theo Epstein upon Epstein's arrival in 2011. He was there when the Cubs made a massive statement in the winter of 2014-15, bringing in proven winner Jon Lester. He saw the fruits of that contract, as Lester helped lead the Cubs to a 2016 World Series title and was worth 16.8 fWAR during his time on the North Side, being useful through his age-35 season. Lester brought a winning mentality. He was an absolute bulldog on the mound, who already had a playoff starter's résumé. Jon Lester was a dude in the World Series. You may remember him in Game 7, but let's not forget what he did just two games earlier. Game 5 of the 2016 World Series is sometimes overshadowed by the more climactic games that followed in Cleveland, but it was the pivot point in that series. Down 3-1 to Cleveland, the Cubs were on life support at home. The offense had gone cold, and Cleveland smelled blood, looking to finish things off at Wrigley Field. Lester shut down that Cleveland team, limiting the visitors to just two runs over six innings as the team held on after a three-run offensive outburst early in the game. Lester was able to hold out long enough for Aroldis Chapman to get the save. The Cubs haven't had a Lester-caliber stopper in the last two years, and it's showed. In 2025, they got knocked out by the Milwaukee Brewers because they didn't have the horses to match up in the rotation. In 2026, when the Cubs went against the San Diego Padres, they got knocked around early in Game-1 and couldn't match Nick Pivetta in Game 2. Their vaunted offense went cold, and they didn't have a strong enough starter to keep them breathing until the bats could wake up. To make the Lester deal happen, the Cubs had to go well above their normal spending pattern. Before the lefty agreed to a 6-year, $155-million deal, the team had only eclipsed the $100-million mark once—way back in 2007, with outfielder Alfonso Soriano. We're now over a decade beyond the ink drying on that contract, and the Cubs have yet to go above $200 million. While the deal that Skubal will eventually sign should dwarf (as in more than double) the size of Lester's, that cannot be the excuse for not making that leap. No Time is Perfect, But Now is Close Enough The Cubs can't allow imperfections in timing or in a player's profile to be the reason they never make the big move. It's easy to think there will be a "next" or a "better" time, but there's never a better time than "now". When the Cubs signed Lester, they were fresh off a season wherein they won 73 games and finished dead last in the NL Central. That didn't stop them from breaking from their decades-long spending pattern. The current iteration of the Cubs has won more games than they lost four years running and has made the playoffs in the last two. They have the best position player on the planet, and another top-10 fWAR player on the roster. Alex Bregman and Dansby Swanson are marching into their mid-30s, and while I'd love to believe Pete Crow-Armstrong is going to remain one of the best position players on the planet, the odds are that 2026 will be his peak season, and that 2027 will be his second-best. The Cubs are better positioned to add a special pitcher than they were in 2015, and they're certainly better positioned to benefit from that kind of addition than they'll be a year or two from now. The market is shaping up for the Cubs to be a massive player here. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the equivalent of MLB's bogeyman, seem to be in an odd place financially. Mark Walter, the Dodgers' owner, is in some legal hot water at the moment. Reports are that the Dodgers may only want Skubal on a Kyle Tucker-style short-term, high-AAV deal. Walter is also currently looking to get out of his backing of a Cadillac F1 team, just one year into the project. There will be other big bidders, but if the Dodgers are less aggressive than they'd otherwise be, the Cubs have to seize the rare opportunity. To be good next year, the Cubs have to spend more than they've ever spent before, and they can't by any means stop with Skubal. But it also won't require them to become the Dodgers or the Mets. In 2019, the Cubs had the third-highest payroll in baseball at around $191 million. In 2026, the fifth-highest payroll was the Blue Jays, at $270 million. The CBA is going to play a part in this, but if recent history shows us anything, there is likely to be an increase in the luxury tax again. The last CBA saw the lowest tax threshold increase $20 million in one offseason. Another, similar bump from $244 million would put that bottom threshold around $265 million. That would give the Cubs well over $100 million to spend on 2027 alone, leaving $55-$60 million after Skubal signed—enough to fill out a good roster. As mentioned above, Skubal's agent is Scott Boras. Not everyone has a great relationship with the super agent. He can be corny and grating. He really strings things out. But the Cubs and Boras have a working relationship, which should grease the wheels. Some teams can be turned off with Boras's involvement, but the Cubs aren't one of those teams. They brought in Bregman via Boras last offseason. These two sides know each other and that gets your foot in the door. In Summary: Just Do It There are a lot of hurdles to make this happen. It's going to require the Cubs to first accept that their spending model needs an update. When the Cubs signed Lester, it was the 19th-largest contract ever; it is now not even in the top-70. FanGraphs recently put out an article looking at free-agent predictions for contract sizes. Their crowdsourced data put the predicted contract for Skubal at $335 million, which would make it a top-10 all-time contract. FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens was higher, at $380 million—the highest ever for a pitcher and fifth place all-time. But young pitchers like Cam Schlittler, Misiorowski, and Skenes will easily eclipse that deal in the future, much like others eclipsed Lester's. It doesn't feel like an impossible ask in that context. Secondly, it's going to require the Cubs to accept that this is a unique opportunity. How many times are you going to have the best position player in baseball on a nice contract? How many more good years do Bregman and Swanson have left? How often will you have a need this glaring on a team with this good a chance to be good? How much more perfect does it have to be? If this isn't the guy you're going to be irrational about, who the hell is? The good news is there is some smoke here. They looked into him at the trade deadline, but clearly that didn't go far. Jeff Passan has mentioned they "want him badly". The bad news is that in that same article, Passan mentions the Cubs may be unwilling to spend what he'd need. I'm begging them to give in and pay up, this one time. Ultimately, I have the easy task of spending someone else's money here. I'm not shelling out $380 million of my own dollars (granted, I also am not sitting on a franchise with an estimated net worth of $5 billion) to get this over the finish line. But if the Cubs want to get to a point where they don't have to trade good prospects for rentals (like they did at this deadline); if they want to get to a point where they are getting back into the conversation of a bye in the first round of the playoffs; and if they want to avoid another year "slipping away", no other player in this market seems as stable as Skubal or fits the organization's needs more neatly. What do you think the Cubs should do regarding Tarik Skubal? Should this be the player they break the bank for? Let us know in the comment section below. View the full article

The Blue Jays forums remained active as fans turned their attention to the future. This week's Forum Friday highlights three threads: one looking ahead to the 2027 payroll and roster, another discussing potential free agent moves including Randal Grichuk, and a third analyzing FanGraphs' 2027 free-agent projections with players like Luis Arraez at the center of the conversation. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Jays Centre forums, where you can talk Blue Jays baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. OFFSEASON THREAD, '27... focused on the Blue Jays' 2027 payroll and roster outlook, citing figures for players like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Dylan Cease, and José Berríos, along with free agents and contract details. Posts discussed potential trades, lineup configurations, and concerns over depth in outfield and pitching. Most posters agreed the team needs upgrades, particularly in the outfield and starting pitching, with some suggesting trades for position players and others emphasizing the challenges of the free-agent market. There was also discussion about non-tendering players like Jonatan Clase. Blue Jays Roundup, Oct 29: Rule 5 Protection, Award Candidates, Grichuk Target Members debated the Blue Jays' potential free-agent moves, focusing on Randal Grichuk as a platoon option and alternatives like Lane Thomas. Grichuk was discussed as a possible two-year deal worth $18–24 million AAV, though many questioned the value given his age and inconsistent performance. Some suggested pairing him with Addison Barger or Nathan Lukes in a platoon, while others argued for cheaper, more versatile options like Thomas. FanGraphs' 2027 Top 50 Free Agents Fans debated FanGraphs' 2027 free agent projections, focusing on potential targets like Luis Arraez and Brandon Lowe, with varying opinions on their value and fit for the Jays. Some argued for Lowe over Arraez due to his higher ceiling, while others saw Arraez as a safer, more cost-effective option. There was also discussion about Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s potential, though concerns about his attitude limited his appeal. It's another great day to be a Blue Jays fan at Jays Centre! View the full article

The Blue Jays forums remained active as fans turned their attention to the future. This week's Forum Friday highlights three threads: one looking ahead to the 2027 payroll and roster, another discussing potential free agent moves including Randal Grichuk, and a third analyzing FanGraphs' 2027 free-agent projections with players like Luis Arraez at the center of the conversation. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Jays Centre forums, where you can talk Blue Jays baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. OFFSEASON THREAD, '27... focused on the Blue Jays' 2027 payroll and roster outlook, citing figures for players like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Dylan Cease, and José Berríos, along with free agents and contract details. Posts discussed potential trades, lineup configurations, and concerns over depth in outfield and pitching. Most posters agreed the team needs upgrades, particularly in the outfield and starting pitching, with some suggesting trades for position players and others emphasizing the challenges of the free-agent market. There was also discussion about non-tendering players like Jonatan Clase. Blue Jays Roundup, Oct 29: Rule 5 Protection, Award Candidates, Grichuk Target Members debated the Blue Jays' potential free-agent moves, focusing on Randal Grichuk as a platoon option and alternatives like Lane Thomas. Grichuk was discussed as a possible two-year deal worth $18–24 million AAV, though many questioned the value given his age and inconsistent performance. Some suggested pairing him with Addison Barger or Nathan Lukes in a platoon, while others argued for cheaper, more versatile options like Thomas. FanGraphs' 2027 Top 50 Free Agents Fans debated FanGraphs' 2027 free agent projections, focusing on potential targets like Luis Arraez and Brandon Lowe, with varying opinions on their value and fit for the Jays. Some argued for Lowe over Arraez due to his higher ceiling, while others saw Arraez as a safer, more cost-effective option. There was also discussion about Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s potential, though concerns about his attitude limited his appeal. It's another great day to be a Blue Jays fan at Jays Centre! View the full article

This week, the Red Sox fan forums remained active, with this week's Forum Friday highlighting four major threads. The first discussed the role of analytics in baseball and its impact on player performance and pressure. Another thread explored realistic 2027 roster possibilities, including potential free agent additions and player decisions. The third thread focused on the Red Sox's offseason moves, particularly Sonny Gray's departure and the team's pitching needs. Lastly, a post titled "notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint" sparked debate over its accuracy and the projected roster. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Talk Sox forums, where you can talk Red Sox baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Red Sox Pre-Offseason Mega Thread Centered on the Red Sox's recent performance and the role of analytics in baseball. Posts discussed whether batting order position affects player pressure, with some arguing analytics focus on data rather than human factors, while others claimed it devalues players' roles. There was debate over whether analytics help or harm players financially, with some citing Alex Cora as an example of successful integration. A Realistic View at the 2027 Red Sox Part I Members discussed the 2027 Red Sox roster, focusing on potential free agent additions, injured players, and roster decisions. The conversation centered on whether the team would add a top-tier hitter or pitcher, with some suggesting players like Sato, Arozarena, or Suzuki, while others felt the team would likely make smaller, more affordable moves. There was debate over whether the Red Sox would retain players like Gray or replace him with Garrett Crochet, and whether prospects like Franklin Arias or Duran would be traded. Red Sox Offseason Mega Thread The Red Sox offseason discussion focused on Sonny Gray's departure and the team's potential moves. Fans debated whether the Sox would retain Gray, with some believing they'd pay a high price, while others thought he'd sign with a Midwest or Southern team. The thread also covered the mutual option between Gray and the Sox, noting its rarity and the $10 million buyout. Most agreed the Sox would prioritize adding starting pitching, with some suggesting a right-handed starter for the rotation. notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint: Notin’s Wildly (In)Accurate 2027 Sox Roster Prediction A post titled "notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint" sparked discussion with a projected 2027 roster featuring players like Ketel Marte, Willson Contreras, Adley Rutschman, and Trevor Story, along with significant payroll savings. Replies questioned the accuracy of the list, noting some players had left the team and others like Dustin Pedroia and Vaughn Grissom were absent. It's another great day to be a Red Sox fan at Talk Sox! View the full article

This week, the Red Sox fan forums remained active, with this week's Forum Friday highlighting four major threads. The first discussed the role of analytics in baseball and its impact on player performance and pressure. Another thread explored realistic 2027 roster possibilities, including potential free agent additions and player decisions. The third thread focused on the Red Sox's offseason moves, particularly Sonny Gray's departure and the team's pitching needs. Lastly, a post titled "notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint" sparked debate over its accuracy and the projected roster. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Talk Sox forums, where you can talk Red Sox baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Red Sox Pre-Offseason Mega Thread Centered on the Red Sox's recent performance and the role of analytics in baseball. Posts discussed whether batting order position affects player pressure, with some arguing analytics focus on data rather than human factors, while others claimed it devalues players' roles. There was debate over whether analytics help or harm players financially, with some citing Alex Cora as an example of successful integration. A Realistic View at the 2027 Red Sox Part I Members discussed the 2027 Red Sox roster, focusing on potential free agent additions, injured players, and roster decisions. The conversation centered on whether the team would add a top-tier hitter or pitcher, with some suggesting players like Sato, Arozarena, or Suzuki, while others felt the team would likely make smaller, more affordable moves. There was debate over whether the Red Sox would retain players like Gray or replace him with Garrett Crochet, and whether prospects like Franklin Arias or Duran would be traded. Red Sox Offseason Mega Thread The Red Sox offseason discussion focused on Sonny Gray's departure and the team's potential moves. Fans debated whether the Sox would retain Gray, with some believing they'd pay a high price, while others thought he'd sign with a Midwest or Southern team. The thread also covered the mutual option between Gray and the Sox, noting its rarity and the $10 million buyout. Most agreed the Sox would prioritize adding starting pitching, with some suggesting a right-handed starter for the rotation. notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint: Notin’s Wildly (In)Accurate 2027 Sox Roster Prediction A post titled "notin’s 2027 Payroll Blueprint" sparked discussion with a projected 2027 roster featuring players like Ketel Marte, Willson Contreras, Adley Rutschman, and Trevor Story, along with significant payroll savings. Replies questioned the accuracy of the list, noting some players had left the team and others like Dustin Pedroia and Vaughn Grissom were absent. It's another great day to be a Red Sox fan at Talk Sox! View the full article

The Twins Daily forums remained active as fans discussed key offseason developments. This week’s Forum Friday highlights five threads, including debates on Kyle DeBarge’s prospect status, the Twins declining options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell, Matt Wallner’s demotion, Byron Jeffers receiving a qualifying offer, and the release of a new 2027 "You’re The GM!" tool. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Twins Daily forums, where you can talk Twins baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Has Kyle DeBarge Put Himself Back on the Twins' Prospect Map? Minnesota Twins prospect Kyle DeBarge's recent performance in the Arizona Fall League has reignited discussion about his future with the organization. Posts highlighted his improved contact skills and defensive abilities, though many questioned whether his AFL success translates to higher levels. Some posters suggested he could develop into a utility player with speed and defensive versatility, while others remained skeptical, citing his struggles against Double-A pitching and lack of power. Twins Decline Options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell The Minnesota Twins declined their options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell as the offseason began, with Ryan remaining under team control and Bell becoming a free agent. Members discussed Ryan’s potential arbitration earnings and his value as a reliable starter, while Bell’s .255 batting average and 106 OPS+ were noted, with some praising his consistency and leadership. There was debate over Bell’s future with the team, with some questioning his fit as a DH-only player. Matt Wallner: A Powerful Assessment A discussion on Matt Wallner's abrupt demotion from Twins' opening day RF to being sent down to AAA, despite earlier organizational commitment, prompted the thread. Fans noted Wallner's lack of range, poor hitting performance, and the front office's decision to keep him in the field despite his struggles. Some argued the Twins' decision was harsh but questioned the lack of a contingency plan, while others suggested Wallner might need a complete approach change to return to MLB. Jeffers was given the QO by the Twins The Twins gave Ryan Jeffers a qualifying offer, sparking discussion about the team's strategy and potential moves. Posts noted the Twins' decision to invest in Jeffers as a sign of increased payroll commitment, with some hoping he would decline the offer to give the Twins a high draft pick. Others questioned the value of players like Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ian Happ not receiving offers. Our 2027 "You’re The Twins GM!" Offseason Tool Has Been Released! A new "You’re The GM!" tool for building a 2027 Twins roster sparked discussion. Some questioned the $135 million payroll budget, pointing out discrepancies and expressing skepticism about Twins ownership’s spending intentions. Most agreed the tool offered engaging, realistic scenarios, though opinions split on whether the budget was sufficient for meaningful upgrades. It's another great day to be a Twins fan at Twins Daily! View the full article

The Twins Daily forums remained active as fans discussed key offseason developments. This week’s Forum Friday highlights five threads, including debates on Kyle DeBarge’s prospect status, the Twins declining options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell, Matt Wallner’s demotion, Byron Jeffers receiving a qualifying offer, and the release of a new 2027 "You’re The GM!" tool. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Twins Daily forums, where you can talk Twins baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Has Kyle DeBarge Put Himself Back on the Twins' Prospect Map? Minnesota Twins prospect Kyle DeBarge's recent performance in the Arizona Fall League has reignited discussion about his future with the organization. Posts highlighted his improved contact skills and defensive abilities, though many questioned whether his AFL success translates to higher levels. Some posters suggested he could develop into a utility player with speed and defensive versatility, while others remained skeptical, citing his struggles against Double-A pitching and lack of power. Twins Decline Options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell The Minnesota Twins declined their options on Joe Ryan and Josh Bell as the offseason began, with Ryan remaining under team control and Bell becoming a free agent. Members discussed Ryan’s potential arbitration earnings and his value as a reliable starter, while Bell’s .255 batting average and 106 OPS+ were noted, with some praising his consistency and leadership. There was debate over Bell’s future with the team, with some questioning his fit as a DH-only player. Matt Wallner: A Powerful Assessment A discussion on Matt Wallner's abrupt demotion from Twins' opening day RF to being sent down to AAA, despite earlier organizational commitment, prompted the thread. Fans noted Wallner's lack of range, poor hitting performance, and the front office's decision to keep him in the field despite his struggles. Some argued the Twins' decision was harsh but questioned the lack of a contingency plan, while others suggested Wallner might need a complete approach change to return to MLB. Jeffers was given the QO by the Twins The Twins gave Ryan Jeffers a qualifying offer, sparking discussion about the team's strategy and potential moves. Posts noted the Twins' decision to invest in Jeffers as a sign of increased payroll commitment, with some hoping he would decline the offer to give the Twins a high draft pick. Others questioned the value of players like Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ian Happ not receiving offers. Our 2027 "You’re The Twins GM!" Offseason Tool Has Been Released! A new "You’re The GM!" tool for building a 2027 Twins roster sparked discussion. Some questioned the $135 million payroll budget, pointing out discrepancies and expressing skepticism about Twins ownership’s spending intentions. Most agreed the tool offered engaging, realistic scenarios, though opinions split on whether the budget was sufficient for meaningful upgrades. It's another great day to be a Twins fan at Twins Daily! View the full article

The Brewers' action was quiet after this brilliant World Series win, but the forums were lively. This week's Forum Friday highlights five threads, including debates over Jake Bauers' qualifying offer, Brice Turang's NL MVP recognition, recent roster moves, a 2027 payroll blueprint, and discussions on the new CBA agreement. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Brewer Fanatic forums, where you can talk Brewers baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Bauers Qualifying Offer The Brewers extended a $23 million qualifying offer to Jake Bauers, sparking debate over whether he would accept. Posts highlighted concerns about the financial commitment, with some suggesting the team should prioritize using the money on extensions for prospects like William Contreras or Jesús Made, or retaining Andrew Vaughn at first base. Others argued Bauers’ one-year deal would be a low-risk move, offering stability at a weak position while preserving draft pick value if he declines. Brewers' Brice Turang Finishes Among Top 3 In NL MVP Voting Brice Turang finished among the top three in NL MVP voting, joining Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong. Members noted Turang's strong defensive play at second base and his 100 RBI, comparing his WAR to Yelich and highlighting his value. Others believed Turang's performance was overlooked. Roster moves today (11-2) The Brewers' roster moves, including exercising Contreras' club option and declining Sanchez's mutual option, sparked discussion. Fans noted the $14.6 million option for Contreras and the $8.5 million figure for Sanchez, with some arguing the Brewers made smart financial decisions by avoiding arbitration and opting for cheaper in-house alternatives. Others expressed hope for Sanchez's return, though most agreed declining his option was the right move. The thread also touched on the team's spending on Bauers and protecting the 40-man roster ahead of the deadline. Wallus's 2027 Payroll Blueprint (Part 1) A thread on a Brewers fan forum discussed a hypothetical 2027 payroll plan, including trades and signings like sending Contreras to the Yankees for Lagrange and Dietz, signing Adrian Morejon for $100 million, and offering Tyler Stephenson and Gary Sanchez multiyear deals. The board debated the value of Morejon as a starter, questioned the Contreras trade, and criticized the lack of veteran depth in the rotation. New CBA Agreement Talks Discussed the latest MLB CBA proposal, noting increased cap and floor figures, a 2028 target, and potential impacts on the Brewers, including concerns about the international draft and revenue sharing. Posts highlighted skepticism about the salary cap, with members arguing the MLBPA would reject any cap tied to the agreement and emphasizing that draft bonuses affect the floor. Regulars questioned whether the Brewers could sign William Contreras with the proposed floor, noting the team may not have that much actual spending power. It's another great day to be a Brewers fan at Brewer Fanatic! View the full article

The Brewers' action was quiet after this brilliant World Series win, but the forums were lively. This week's Forum Friday highlights five threads, including debates over Jake Bauers' qualifying offer, Brice Turang's NL MVP recognition, recent roster moves, a 2027 payroll blueprint, and discussions on the new CBA agreement. Are you exhausted by algorithmic internet "discussion"? Tired of seeing posts that are meant only to anger you, bait you into a response, or find yet another way to extract your personal data? Come join the conversation on the human-moderated Brewer Fanatic forums, where you can talk Brewers baseball without the constant barrage of misinformation, hot takes, and loudmouths. Joining is free: create an account at diamondcentric.net, then use that same login here to comment. Bauers Qualifying Offer The Brewers extended a $23 million qualifying offer to Jake Bauers, sparking debate over whether he would accept. Posts highlighted concerns about the financial commitment, with some suggesting the team should prioritize using the money on extensions for prospects like William Contreras or Jesús Made, or retaining Andrew Vaughn at first base. Others argued Bauers’ one-year deal would be a low-risk move, offering stability at a weak position while preserving draft pick value if he declines. Brewers' Brice Turang Finishes Among Top 3 In NL MVP Voting Brice Turang finished among the top three in NL MVP voting, joining Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong. Members noted Turang's strong defensive play at second base and his 100 RBI, comparing his WAR to Yelich and highlighting his value. Others believed Turang's performance was overlooked. Roster moves today (11-2) The Brewers' roster moves, including exercising Contreras' club option and declining Sanchez's mutual option, sparked discussion. Fans noted the $14.6 million option for Contreras and the $8.5 million figure for Sanchez, with some arguing the Brewers made smart financial decisions by avoiding arbitration and opting for cheaper in-house alternatives. Others expressed hope for Sanchez's return, though most agreed declining his option was the right move. The thread also touched on the team's spending on Bauers and protecting the 40-man roster ahead of the deadline. Wallus's 2027 Payroll Blueprint (Part 1) A thread on a Brewers fan forum discussed a hypothetical 2027 payroll plan, including trades and signings like sending Contreras to the Yankees for Lagrange and Dietz, signing Adrian Morejon for $100 million, and offering Tyler Stephenson and Gary Sanchez multiyear deals. The board debated the value of Morejon as a starter, questioned the Contreras trade, and criticized the lack of veteran depth in the rotation. New CBA Agreement Talks Discussed the latest MLB CBA proposal, noting increased cap and floor figures, a 2028 target, and potential impacts on the Brewers, including concerns about the international draft and revenue sharing. Posts highlighted skepticism about the salary cap, with members arguing the MLBPA would reject any cap tied to the agreement and emphasizing that draft bonuses affect the floor. Regulars questioned whether the Brewers could sign William Contreras with the proposed floor, noting the team may not have that much actual spending power. It's another great day to be a Brewers fan at Brewer Fanatic! View the full article

Rebuilding the San Diego Padres’ starting rotation will be one of A.J. Preller’s major tasks this winter. Now that Michael King, Nick Pivetta, Walker Buehler, Robbie Ray, and Casey Mize have headed into free agency, Randy Vasquez is the only piece remaining from the starting rotation the Friars regularly used in 2026. In that context, high-upside arms available on the free-agent market, such as right-hander Dustin May, could become interesting alternatives for Preller and company. May’s season wasn't great, but he did the most important thing a starter can do: show up. He finished 2026 with 31 starts, 145⅔ innings—a career-high—144 strikeouts, and a 4.70 ERA, starting with the St. Louis Cardinals before moving to the Milwaukee Brewers at the trade deadline. His health was one of the main reasons that brought him to Milwaukee, to reinforce a rotation that needed arms capable of providing deep starts that could help avoid overloading the bullpen. The Padres also went through a similar problem, but Mize and Ray were unable to solve it. After a first half in which he posted a 4.38 ERA over 109 innings with St. Louis, May allowed a 5.65 ERA over 36⅔ innings with the Brewers, seeing his K/BB rate drop from 3.18 to 2.50. He also wasn't able to solve his limitations against left-handed hitters. In any case, despite that evident decline after changing teams, his advanced indicators reflected progress compared to 2025. The first point to consider is that May returned to pitching more than 130 innings and, despite the workload, lowered his xERA from 5.20 to 4.45, slightly increased his strikeout rate, and reduced his walk rate from 9.6% to 8.1%. With the Brewers, he had the opportunity to pitch in the postseason again for the first time since 2020, and one of his most important games came precisely in the NLDS against the Padres, allowing two runs over three innings as a starter. He also worked out of the bullpen, demonstrating versatility that could be considered an additional resource for San Diego. There are also two interesting points that stand out from May’s season: his recovery in velocity and the adjustments he made to seek more command in his repertoire. The four-seam fastball went from averaging 95.4 mph in 2025 to 96.9 mph in 2026, the sinker increased from 94.5 to 96.6 mph, and the cutter from 91.4 to 93.3 mph, an increase that led May to readjust his pitch distribution. After using the sweeper on 39.3% of his pitches and the sinker on 33.5% during 2025, he altered the frequency of his pitches in 2026; the four-seam fastball (24.8%), the cutter (23.7%), the sinker (20.1%), and the sweeper (17.7%) all got their time in the spotlight, instead of being so dependent on two options. The adjustments gave him some interesting results, as May held opponents to just a .219 average when throwing his four-seam fastball, while the cutter posted a .384 expected slugging percentage, down from the .460 it allowed last year. Both pitches took advantage of a very consistent release point, and the sinker was not far behind. If you remember from last year, that specific pitch caused May major problems, yielding 11 home runs. This year? He allowed only three home runs on it, and posted run value of +2. We also cannot say that May abandoned his sweeper, as his change in usage focused more on decisive counts, producing solid results with a 27.7% whiff rate that drove a 37.6% strikeout rate in the 125 plate appearances that ended against that pitch. Even so, his Run Value was -5, which tells us that the decisions he won did not come in the same number of high-pressure situations as in 2025. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2021 and another elbow procedure in 2023, May missed the entire 2024 season, so his recovery in 2025 seemed like the first test season to find out whether he could overcome the challenge of returning to performing as a full-time starter. He has managed to make that jump with 54 starts and 278 innings pitched over these last two campaigns with four different organizations and, although he's produced a 4.82 ERA and -0.3 bWAR, the most recent version of the right-hander has shown interesting progress that deserves attention. Perhaps he is not the ideal option to start the rebuild of the Padres' rotation with, but given the need to add several starters capable of handling a big volume of innings, adding May now could prove to be a wise move regardless of what happens throughout the remainder of the offseason. View the full article

Rebuilding the San Diego Padres’ starting rotation will be one of A.J. Preller’s major tasks this winter. Now that Michael King, Nick Pivetta, Walker Buehler, Robbie Ray, and Casey Mize have headed into free agency, Randy Vasquez is the only piece remaining from the starting rotation the Friars regularly used in 2026. In that context, high-upside arms available on the free-agent market, such as right-hander Dustin May, could become interesting alternatives for Preller and company. May’s season wasn't great, but he did the most important thing a starter can do: show up. He finished 2026 with 31 starts, 145⅔ innings—a career-high—144 strikeouts, and a 4.70 ERA, starting with the St. Louis Cardinals before moving to the Milwaukee Brewers at the trade deadline. His health was one of the main reasons that brought him to Milwaukee, to reinforce a rotation that needed arms capable of providing deep starts that could help avoid overloading the bullpen. The Padres also went through a similar problem, but Mize and Ray were unable to solve it. After a first half in which he posted a 4.38 ERA over 109 innings with St. Louis, May allowed a 5.65 ERA over 36⅔ innings with the Brewers, seeing his K/BB rate drop from 3.18 to 2.50. He also wasn't able to solve his limitations against left-handed hitters. In any case, despite that evident decline after changing teams, his advanced indicators reflected progress compared to 2025. The first point to consider is that May returned to pitching more than 130 innings and, despite the workload, lowered his xERA from 5.20 to 4.45, slightly increased his strikeout rate, and reduced his walk rate from 9.6% to 8.1%. With the Brewers, he had the opportunity to pitch in the postseason again for the first time since 2020, and one of his most important games came precisely in the NLDS against the Padres, allowing two runs over three innings as a starter. He also worked out of the bullpen, demonstrating versatility that could be considered an additional resource for San Diego. There are also two interesting points that stand out from May’s season: his recovery in velocity and the adjustments he made to seek more command in his repertoire. The four-seam fastball went from averaging 95.4 mph in 2025 to 96.9 mph in 2026, the sinker increased from 94.5 to 96.6 mph, and the cutter from 91.4 to 93.3 mph, an increase that led May to readjust his pitch distribution. After using the sweeper on 39.3% of his pitches and the sinker on 33.5% during 2025, he altered the frequency of his pitches in 2026; the four-seam fastball (24.8%), the cutter (23.7%), the sinker (20.1%), and the sweeper (17.7%) all got their time in the spotlight, instead of being so dependent on two options. The adjustments gave him some interesting results, as May held opponents to just a .219 average when throwing his four-seam fastball, while the cutter posted a .384 expected slugging percentage, down from the .460 it allowed last year. Both pitches took advantage of a very consistent release point, and the sinker was not far behind. If you remember from last year, that specific pitch caused May major problems, yielding 11 home runs. This year? He allowed only three home runs on it, and posted run value of +2. We also cannot say that May abandoned his sweeper, as his change in usage focused more on decisive counts, producing solid results with a 27.7% whiff rate that drove a 37.6% strikeout rate in the 125 plate appearances that ended against that pitch. Even so, his Run Value was -5, which tells us that the decisions he won did not come in the same number of high-pressure situations as in 2025. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2021 and another elbow procedure in 2023, May missed the entire 2024 season, so his recovery in 2025 seemed like the first test season to find out whether he could overcome the challenge of returning to performing as a full-time starter. He has managed to make that jump with 54 starts and 278 innings pitched over these last two campaigns with four different organizations and, although he's produced a 4.82 ERA and -0.3 bWAR, the most recent version of the right-hander has shown interesting progress that deserves attention. Perhaps he is not the ideal option to start the rebuild of the Padres' rotation with, but given the need to add several starters capable of handling a big volume of innings, adding May now could prove to be a wise move regardless of what happens throughout the remainder of the offseason. View the full article

What is Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez really worth? As we stare down year one of three possible years of arbitration, his value currently lies at $4.1 million per year. In this video, we use Alvarez’s prior performance and an MLB salary comp to contextualize his worth, and ultimately, we answer the question of whether or not he should be a Met long-term. View the full article

What is Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez really worth? As we stare down year one of three possible years of arbitration, his value currently lies at $4.1 million per year. In this video, we use Alvarez’s prior performance and an MLB salary comp to contextualize his worth, and ultimately, we answer the question of whether or not he should be a Met long-term. View the full article

Nate O’Riordan is rightfully proud of his Twins memorabilia room. A patch of teflon from the Metrodome roof. A metal bench from Met Stadium. A bat signed by Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew, and Tony Oliva. Baseball cards, gloves, jerseys, and promotional swag, all in his climate-controlled basement rec room. Still, sometimes he goes overboard. “I have 15 powder blue Tristan Gray jerseys," O'Riordan, 53, told Twins Daily. "I don’t know what to do. Help me.” Gray, a journeyman infielder who played for the 2026 Twins after stints with the Rays, Marlins, and Athletics, was removed from Minnesota’s 40-man roster this week, along with Eric Orze, Jack Anderson, Aaron Sabato, and Anthony Banda. “I like to scour eBay and other sites for rare Twins stuff, hard-to-find items, that kinda thing,” said the Woodbury-based IT professional. “I also enjoy a tumbler of good bourbon. I think I maybe poured myself a second finger of some Elijah Craig Barrel Proof and got online instead of just watching Master and Commander again. That was a mistake.” When O’Riordan woke up the next day, a message in his inbox let him know that his $235 bid on 15 Tristan Gray jerseys in Minnesota’s throwback powder-blue colorway was successful. “I think maybe I thought it was Sonny Gray,” speculated O’Riordan. “I know he probably isn’t a Hall of Famer, but he had a couple solid years with the Twins. I don’t know if that’s worth $235, but it’s damn sure a better value than all these Grays I’m sitting on.” O’Riordan says he’s already tried to move some of the jerseys, with suboptimal results. “I put one on eBay for $25, just to test the market,” said O’Riordan. “All I got were DMs asking me if I was kidding, or if I was actually Tristan Gray. To be very clear, I am not Tristan Gray. But if anyone knows him, please let him know I have 15 of his jerseys, and I’d be happy to make a deal with him.” View the full article

Nate O’Riordan is rightfully proud of his Twins memorabilia room. A patch of teflon from the Metrodome roof. A metal bench from Met Stadium. A bat signed by Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew, and Tony Oliva. Baseball cards, gloves, jerseys, and promotional swag, all in his climate-controlled basement rec room. Still, sometimes he goes overboard. “I have 15 powder blue Tristan Gray jerseys," O'Riordan, 53, told Twins Daily. "I don’t know what to do. Help me.” Gray, a journeyman infielder who played for the 2026 Twins after stints with the Rays, Marlins, and Athletics, was removed from Minnesota’s 40-man roster this week, along with Eric Orze, Jack Anderson, Aaron Sabato, and Anthony Banda. “I like to scour eBay and other sites for rare Twins stuff, hard-to-find items, that kinda thing,” said the Woodbury-based IT professional. “I also enjoy a tumbler of good bourbon. I think I maybe poured myself a second finger of some Elijah Craig Barrel Proof and got online instead of just watching Master and Commander again. That was a mistake.” When O’Riordan woke up the next day, a message in his inbox let him know that his $235 bid on 15 Tristan Gray jerseys in Minnesota’s throwback powder-blue colorway was successful. “I think maybe I thought it was Sonny Gray,” speculated O’Riordan. “I know he probably isn’t a Hall of Famer, but he had a couple solid years with the Twins. I don’t know if that’s worth $235, but it’s damn sure a better value than all these Grays I’m sitting on.” O’Riordan says he’s already tried to move some of the jerseys, with suboptimal results. “I put one on eBay for $25, just to test the market,” said O’Riordan. “All I got were DMs asking me if I was kidding, or if I was actually Tristan Gray. To be very clear, I am not Tristan Gray. But if anyone knows him, please let him know I have 15 of his jerseys, and I’d be happy to make a deal with him.” View the full article

In hindsight, the move looks like a stroke of genius on the part of the Brewers. Caleb Durbin is a fine player—he ended up being a catalyst of the Red Sox's run to the American League Wild Card Series in 2026—but the Brewers sold him at the peak of his value. He had just finished third in Rookie of the Year balloting, and they flipped him for three solid pieces who each had roughly as much team control remaining as Durbin himself. Yes, Milwaukee had to throw in Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler, but they got back David Hamilton (a player much in the mold of those two, but better) and added two high-upside left-handed pitchers. Even if Kyle Harrison and Shane Drohan hadn't been as good as they each were at times this year, that would have been a good gamble. In the afterglow of winning the World Series, the move feels like a huge part of the greatest story in franchise history. It could have really blown up on them, though. By making the move, they were expressing their faith in their own infield depth, but they also immediately supplemented it by signing Luis Rengifo. One of the key players on whom they were betting was Jett Williams, whom they had just acquired in the Freddy Peralta trade. Williams never got out of the minor leagues in 2026. Rengifo busted, for the Brewers, though he subsequently found success in San Diego. Third base briefly became a scar on their depth chart. Only when their Plan C—calling up Cooper Pratt and sliding Joey Ortiz over to third, to share time with Hamilton—panned out did they turn the corner from good to great as a team. They got mildly lucky that the trade didn't derail their season by creating a hole in a lineup that thrived because it didn't have any. The important thing to remember is that that move really wasn't Milwaukee's idea. They were in the market for more pitching depth, but they weren't actively shopping Durbin. When the Red Sox lost out in their bid to re-sign Alex Bregman, they pivoted to the trade market, and the offer they made was too good to refuse. The value-focused front office reacted to what came their way, and in the end, it worked out perfectly. That could happen again this winter—though, as with the Durbin deal, it's much more likely to happen near the beginning of next year (in this case, after the looming lockout) than at the front end of the offseason. The team doesn't need to trade Ortiz or Garrett Mitchell, and they won't go hunting for suitors on either of them. However, when the music stops, some team will be left without a satisfactory solution either on the left side of the infield or in center field. If that team comes to the Brewers with a package akin to what the Red Sox offered them for Durbin, the Brewers will probably accept it again. Though Ortiz and Mitchell proved their value throughout this season, each is now arbitration-eligible. That makes them slightly different from Durbin, and could mean that they fetch slightly less in trade. However, each is still under team control for multiple seasons (two for Mitchell, three for Ortiz) and each will come at a relatively low financial cost, compared to similarly talented players at similar stages of their careers. As a result, the Brewers can afford to keep both. They can also afford to trade either, or both. Luis Lara, Sal Frelick and Jackson Chourio can each play center field, if needed. Brandon Lockridge's injury compromised what had a chance to be a breakthrough season, but he's a fine fourth or fifth outfielder, and the Brewers have more help on the way in the outfield, too. For one thing, Williams might fit there, given his great speed. For another, 2024 first-round pick Braylon Payne made some loud noises this season. For a third (and perhaps the most important), Josh Adamczewski looks like a plus hitter with pop who's nearly ready, and though he would need to play left field, Chourio's versatility means that's no problem. On the dirt, the team is just as deep. In addtion to Hamilton and Cooper, Williams could be in the mix at third base if he has a strong spring, and Andrew Fischer isn't far from the majors—though his best fit might be at first base, instead. Most importantly, 2027 should see the debut of Jesús Made, on about the same timeline as Pratt's June arrival in 2026. That means that any trade of Ortiz would only leave the team needing to patch a short-term hole on the infield, and (in Hamilton) they already have a player they like and trust to do so. None of those options, with the reconfigurations they would require or the slight gaps they would leave while young players matriculate, are ineluctably preferable to keeping Mitchell and Ortiz. However, a team in a pinch might come to them with an offer for one of those players that fixes one of those drawbacks or that improves their depth so much that it becomes a positive proposition, in terms of expected value. If that happens, count on the Twins making the move. It won't happen imminently, but between now and Opening Day, it's possible the team makes another Durbin-style trade—perhaps paving the road to their second straight World Series win. View the full article

In hindsight, the move looks like a stroke of genius on the part of the Brewers. Caleb Durbin is a fine player—he ended up being a catalyst of the Red Sox's run to the American League Wild Card Series in 2026—but the Brewers sold him at the peak of his value. He had just finished third in Rookie of the Year balloting, and they flipped him for three solid pieces who each had roughly as much team control remaining as Durbin himself. Yes, Milwaukee had to throw in Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler, but they got back David Hamilton (a player much in the mold of those two, but better) and added two high-upside left-handed pitchers. Even if Kyle Harrison and Shane Drohan hadn't been as good as they each were at times this year, that would have been a good gamble. In the afterglow of winning the World Series, the move feels like a huge part of the greatest story in franchise history. It could have really blown up on them, though. By making the move, they were expressing their faith in their own infield depth, but they also immediately supplemented it by signing Luis Rengifo. One of the key players on whom they were betting was Jett Williams, whom they had just acquired in the Freddy Peralta trade. Williams never got out of the minor leagues in 2026. Rengifo busted, for the Brewers, though he subsequently found success in San Diego. Third base briefly became a scar on their depth chart. Only when their Plan C—calling up Cooper Pratt and sliding Joey Ortiz over to third, to share time with Hamilton—panned out did they turn the corner from good to great as a team. They got mildly lucky that the trade didn't derail their season by creating a hole in a lineup that thrived because it didn't have any. The important thing to remember is that that move really wasn't Milwaukee's idea. They were in the market for more pitching depth, but they weren't actively shopping Durbin. When the Red Sox lost out in their bid to re-sign Alex Bregman, they pivoted to the trade market, and the offer they made was too good to refuse. The value-focused front office reacted to what came their way, and in the end, it worked out perfectly. That could happen again this winter—though, as with the Durbin deal, it's much more likely to happen near the beginning of next year (in this case, after the looming lockout) than at the front end of the offseason. The team doesn't need to trade Ortiz or Garrett Mitchell, and they won't go hunting for suitors on either of them. However, when the music stops, some team will be left without a satisfactory solution either on the left side of the infield or in center field. If that team comes to the Brewers with a package akin to what the Red Sox offered them for Durbin, the Brewers will probably accept it again. Though Ortiz and Mitchell proved their value throughout this season, each is now arbitration-eligible. That makes them slightly different from Durbin, and could mean that they fetch slightly less in trade. However, each is still under team control for multiple seasons (two for Mitchell, three for Ortiz) and each will come at a relatively low financial cost, compared to similarly talented players at similar stages of their careers. As a result, the Brewers can afford to keep both. They can also afford to trade either, or both. Luis Lara, Sal Frelick and Jackson Chourio can each play center field, if needed. Brandon Lockridge's injury compromised what had a chance to be a breakthrough season, but he's a fine fourth or fifth outfielder, and the Brewers have more help on the way in the outfield, too. For one thing, Williams might fit there, given his great speed. For another, 2024 first-round pick Braylon Payne made some loud noises this season. For a third (and perhaps the most important), Josh Adamczewski looks like a plus hitter with pop who's nearly ready, and though he would need to play left field, Chourio's versatility means that's no problem. On the dirt, the team is just as deep. In addtion to Hamilton and Cooper, Williams could be in the mix at third base if he has a strong spring, and Andrew Fischer isn't far from the majors—though his best fit might be at first base, instead. Most importantly, 2027 should see the debut of Jesús Made, on about the same timeline as Pratt's June arrival in 2026. That means that any trade of Ortiz would only leave the team needing to patch a short-term hole on the infield, and (in Hamilton) they already have a player they like and trust to do so. None of those options, with the reconfigurations they would require or the slight gaps they would leave while young players matriculate, are ineluctably preferable to keeping Mitchell and Ortiz. However, a team in a pinch might come to them with an offer for one of those players that fixes one of those drawbacks or that improves their depth so much that it becomes a positive proposition, in terms of expected value. If that happens, count on the Brewers making the move. It won't happen imminently, but between now and Opening Day, it's possible the team makes another Durbin-style trade—perhaps paving the road to their second straight World Series win. View the full article

Left field and center field were two glaring weaknesses in the Royals' lineup. Left field was mostly patrolled by Isaac Collins, who was acquired last offseason for his on-base skills. However, he was not able to repeat his marks set during his rookie season in Milwaukee, posting a slash line of .213/.320/.321. Kyle Isbel is the team’s primary center fielder, though he missed an extended stretch in 2026 with plantar fasciitis. He has never been known for his bat, but he greatly underperformed at the plate in 2026, especially against left-handed pitching. Unfortunately, his excellent defense may no longer be enough to offset his liability at the plate. In J.J. Picollo’s end-of-season press conference, he mentioned: “Upgrading left field and center field, along with adding right-handed offense, is a major priority for us this offseason.” It is very rare for a GM to explicitly state which positions are needed, but this statement indicates a clear intent to aggressively pursue upgrades in these positions. Which players could the Royals be calling this offseason to improve their outfield? Reasonably-Priced Free Agent Outfielders Daulton Varsho Age: 30 | 2026 Stats: .221/.281/.355, 78 wRC+, 0.8 fWAR Varsho is a Gold Glove-winning center fielder who has had up-and-down seasons at the plate. He ranks 45th on DiamondCentric's list of the top free agents. 2026 was more down than up, especially after joining Houston around the trade deadline. His wRC+ dropped from 91 to 48 after the trade. As a left-handed hitter, he would certainly displace Isbel from the roster since there would be little reason to carry two left-handed defensive center fielders. Signing Varsho would be hoping that his time in Houston was a fluke and that he can return to his form from Toronto. He could be a good bounce-back candidate for next season and could likely be signed to a one-year pillow contract to see if he can improve his value and get a larger contract next offseason. The Royals' signing of Lane Thomas to a one-year deal last offseason is proof that the Royals are willing to explore these types of deals. With a projected contract around $8 or $10 million, he will fall close to the Royals' budget. Taylor Ward Age: 33 | 2026 Stats: .225/.359/.311, 102 wRC+, 1.0 fWAR Ward is another player who took a major step back in production after being traded and is the 67th-ranked free agent. Ward posted an 117 wRC+ in Baltimore, which fell to 23 with the Mariners after the trade. Even before his disastrous trade, Ward’s power had evaporated. After hitting 36 home runs in 663 plate appearances in 2025 with the Angels, Ward hit only seven homers in 506 PAs with Baltimore (and at a more homer-friendly ballpark) and zero homers in Seattle. Interestingly, despite his dip in home runs, his .336 wOBA in Baltimore was roughly the same as his .339 wOBA in 2025. This was largely due to his increase in walk rate from 11.3% to 16.3% and a decrease in strikeout rate from 26.4% to 20.4%. If Ward can combine his increased plate discipline with a revival of his power, he could be a valuable addition to the Royals, especially as a right-handed batter. He would likely also be willing to sign a one-year prove-it deal to increase his value, and the Royals could be beneficiaries of this opportunity. Tyrone Taylor Age: 33 | 2026 Stats: .279/.325/.502, 127 wRC+, 1.5 fWAR Taylor is another right-handed option, but his situation differs from the other candidates so far. Taylor, the 47th-ranked free agent, put together a career year at the plate, and he actually improved after being traded at the deadline in 2026. After his trade to the Cubs, Taylor had a 146 wRC+ in 82 plate appearances. Despite his success in 2026, he was often deployed in a platoon role. He played a full game in only 32 of his 97 appearances. The Royals want to boost their offense rather than look for a short-side platoon partner for Isbel or Collins. Taylor is a strong outfielder who has positive run value in each of his MLB seasons. He is also capable of playing all three outfield positions to offer extra versatility depending on which other outfielder the Royals potentially acquire. However, his versatility could be due to his inability to lock down a starting role in previous seasons. He is also a good baserunner with a sprint speed in the 92nd percentile. Taylor only made $3.8 million last season and could probably be signed to a modest deal for around $5 million per year. The Royals will have to determine if Taylor can realistically repeat his 2026 production for all 162 games. Trent Grisham Age: 30 | 2026 Stats: .211/.308/.395, 98 wRC+, 0.7 fWAR Grisham is the 55th-ranked outfielder available and is coming off a poor season at the plate. His 2025 season was excellent, and he decided to accept a qualifying offer from the Yankees instead of testing the free agent market, a decision that did not pan out. Grisham would likely be willing to also take a one-year deal to recover some of his value. However, his 128 wRC+ is his only season above average since 2021, and his 2025 season may prove to be the exception to the norm. His defense has also taken a hit in the past couple of seasons, with negative run value after being an above-average fielder to start his career. Grisham may be available for around $12 million, and that is a price the Royals could potentially entertain, especially if they get the 2025 version of him. Ramon Laureano Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .203/.286/.374, 86 wRC+, 0.2 fWAR Laureano is the 64th-ranked free agent in this class and missed a lot of the 2026 season, playing only 53 games. His 2023 season was a career high with a 138 wRC+ and 3.0 fWAR. He hasn’t played since the end of May, but his track record of being able to hit above average and for power could make him an intriguing option as a reclamation project, similar to Lane Thomas. His salary, however, will likely be a little higher than the $5.25 million that Thomas received last offseason. Likely Out Of The Royals' Price Range Randy Arozarena Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .281/.381/.484, 151 wRC+, 5.5 fWAR Arozarena had a career year in 2026 and is the fifth-ranked free agent. He will likely command one of the highest contracts for batters, and the Royals will almost certainly be outbid when other teams make their offers. He is likely not going to sustain his 2026 levels of production, but even his worst year as a starter generated 2.0 fWAR with a 114 wRC+. He would be an elite bat to add with above-average baserunning skills. The clearest downside to Arozarena's skill set is that he is a defensive liability in left field, but that can be forgiven to an extent if he is able to continue to do damage at the plate. Arozarena’s predicted salary is expected to be around $25 million. Given the history of Royals free agent signings, there is little expectation that he will be a realistic option. Seiya Suzuki Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .270/.368/.473, 134 wRC+, 4.5 fWAR Suzuki posted career-high stats in 2026 and is the fourth-ranked free agent. His fWAR ranked 20th among all major league batters. In addition to his career-best offensive production, he greatly improved his defensive output in 2026, worth +7 fielding runs. Every other year of his career, Suzuki’s fielding run value had been below zero. Much like Arozarena, Suzuki has been consistent at the plate in his career, with his lowest fWAR of 2.0 being back in 2022. That consistency will come at a high price with a similar expected contract of around $25 million per year. Both players would also satisfy the desire to add a right-handed bat to the lineup. If the Royals were able to sign either, that would certainly be a statement of intent to compete with the current core. The Royals will still need to prove that they are willing and able to spend the money necessary to do so. Ian Happ Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .218/.326/.412, 107 wRC+, 2.6 fWAR Happ is the 27th-ranked free agent and is coming off his worst season in wRC+ since 2021, and his .218 batting average is his lowest career mark. Despite the drop in average, his power numbers have remained close to his career averages with 28 doubles and 24 home runs. His strikeouts have noticeably increased to 29.7%. While his offensive production took a hit in 2026, Happ’s fielding remained elite. He has won four consecutive Gold Glove awards and is a finalist for the award again this season. At a slightly lower expected contract of $20 or $22 million per year, Happ will be a little more affordable for the Royals but not by much. The Royals will need to use caution and determine if Happ’s offensive regression is just a blip or age beginning to get to him. View the full article

Left field and center field were two glaring weaknesses in the Royals' lineup. Left field was mostly patrolled by Isaac Collins, who was acquired last offseason for his on-base skills. However, he was not able to repeat his marks set during his rookie season in Milwaukee, posting a slash line of .213/.320/.321. Kyle Isbel is the team’s primary center fielder, though he missed an extended stretch in 2026 with plantar fasciitis. He has never been known for his bat, but he greatly underperformed at the plate in 2026, especially against left-handed pitching. Unfortunately, his excellent defense may no longer be enough to offset his liability at the plate. In J.J. Picollo’s end-of-season press conference, he mentioned: “Upgrading left field and center field, along with adding right-handed offense, is a major priority for us this offseason.” It is very rare for a GM to explicitly state which positions are needed, but this statement indicates a clear intent to aggressively pursue upgrades in these positions. Which players could the Royals be calling this offseason to improve their outfield? Reasonably-Priced Free Agent Outfielders Daulton Varsho Age: 30 | 2026 Stats: .221/.281/.355, 78 wRC+, 0.8 fWAR Varsho is a Gold Glove-winning center fielder who has had up-and-down seasons at the plate. He ranks 45th on DiamondCentric's list of the top free agents. 2026 was more down than up, especially after joining Houston around the trade deadline. His wRC+ dropped from 91 to 48 after the trade. As a left-handed hitter, he would certainly displace Isbel from the roster since there would be little reason to carry two left-handed defensive center fielders. Signing Varsho would be hoping that his time in Houston was a fluke and that he can return to his form from Toronto. He could be a good bounce-back candidate for next season and could likely be signed to a one-year pillow contract to see if he can improve his value and get a larger contract next offseason. The Royals' signing of Lane Thomas to a one-year deal last offseason is proof that the Royals are willing to explore these types of deals. With a projected contract around $8 or $10 million, he will fall close to the Royals' budget. Taylor Ward Age: 33 | 2026 Stats: .225/.359/.311, 102 wRC+, 1.0 fWAR Ward is another player who took a major step back in production after being traded and is the 67th-ranked free agent. Ward posted an 117 wRC+ in Baltimore, which fell to 23 with the Mariners after the trade. Even before his disastrous trade, Ward’s power had evaporated. After hitting 36 home runs in 663 plate appearances in 2025 with the Angels, Ward hit only seven homers in 506 PAs with Baltimore (and at a more homer-friendly ballpark) and zero homers in Seattle. Interestingly, despite his dip in home runs, his .336 wOBA in Baltimore was roughly the same as his .339 wOBA in 2025. This was largely due to his increase in walk rate from 11.3% to 16.3% and a decrease in strikeout rate from 26.4% to 20.4%. If Ward can combine his increased plate discipline with a revival of his power, he could be a valuable addition to the Royals, especially as a right-handed batter. He would likely also be willing to sign a one-year prove-it deal to increase his value, and the Royals could be beneficiaries of this opportunity. Tyrone Taylor Age: 33 | 2026 Stats: .279/.325/.502, 127 wRC+, 1.5 fWAR Taylor is another right-handed option, but his situation differs from the other candidates so far. Taylor, the 47th-ranked free agent, put together a career year at the plate, and he actually improved after being traded at the deadline in 2026. After his trade to the Cubs, Taylor had a 146 wRC+ in 82 plate appearances. Despite his success in 2026, he was often deployed in a platoon role. He played a full game in only 32 of his 97 appearances. The Royals want to boost their offense rather than look for a short-side platoon partner for Isbel or Collins. Taylor is a strong outfielder who has positive run value in each of his MLB seasons. He is also capable of playing all three outfield positions to offer extra versatility depending on which other outfielder the Royals potentially acquire. However, his versatility could be due to his inability to lock down a starting role in previous seasons. He is also a good baserunner with a sprint speed in the 92nd percentile. Taylor only made $3.8 million last season and could probably be signed to a modest deal for around $5 million per year. The Royals will have to determine if Taylor can realistically repeat his 2026 production for all 162 games. Trent Grisham Age: 30 | 2026 Stats: .211/.308/.395, 98 wRC+, 0.7 fWAR Grisham is the 55th-ranked outfielder available and is coming off a poor season at the plate. His 2025 season was excellent, and he decided to accept a qualifying offer from the Yankees instead of testing the free agent market, a decision that did not pan out. Grisham would likely be willing to also take a one-year deal to recover some of his value. However, his 128 wRC+ is his only season above average since 2021, and his 2025 season may prove to be the exception to the norm. His defense has also taken a hit in the past couple of seasons, with negative run value after being an above-average fielder to start his career. Grisham may be available for around $12 million, and that is a price the Royals could potentially entertain, especially if they get the 2025 version of him. Ramon Laureano Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .203/.286/.374, 86 wRC+, 0.2 fWAR Laureano is the 64th-ranked free agent in this class and missed a lot of the 2026 season, playing only 53 games. His 2023 season was a career high with a 138 wRC+ and 3.0 fWAR. He hasn’t played since the end of May, but his track record of being able to hit above average and for power could make him an intriguing option as a reclamation project, similar to Lane Thomas. His salary, however, will likely be a little higher than the $5.25 million that Thomas received last offseason. Likely Out Of The Royals' Price Range Randy Arozarena Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .281/.381/.484, 151 wRC+, 5.5 fWAR Arozarena had a career year in 2026 and is the fifth-ranked free agent. He will likely command one of the highest contracts for batters, and the Royals will almost certainly be outbid when other teams make their offers. He is likely not going to sustain his 2026 levels of production, but even his worst year as a starter generated 2.0 fWAR with a 114 wRC+. He would be an elite bat to add with above-average baserunning skills. The clearest downside to Arozarena's skill set is that he is a defensive liability in left field, but that can be forgiven to an extent if he is able to continue to do damage at the plate. Arozarena’s predicted salary is expected to be around $25 million. Given the history of Royals free agent signings, there is little expectation that he will be a realistic option. Seiya Suzuki Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .270/.368/.473, 134 wRC+, 4.5 fWAR Suzuki posted career-high stats in 2026 and is the fourth-ranked free agent. His fWAR ranked 20th among all major league batters. In addition to his career-best offensive production, he greatly improved his defensive output in 2026, worth +7 fielding runs. Every other year of his career, Suzuki’s fielding run value had been below zero. Much like Arozarena, Suzuki has been consistent at the plate in his career, with his lowest fWAR of 2.0 being back in 2022. That consistency will come at a high price with a similar expected contract of around $25 million per year. Both players would also satisfy the desire to add a right-handed bat to the lineup. If the Royals were able to sign either, that would certainly be a statement of intent to compete with the current core. The Royals will still need to prove that they are willing and able to spend the money necessary to do so. Ian Happ Age: 32 | 2026 Stats: .218/.326/.412, 107 wRC+, 2.6 fWAR Happ is the 27th-ranked free agent and is coming off his worst season in wRC+ since 2021, and his .218 batting average is his lowest career mark. Despite the drop in average, his power numbers have remained close to his career averages with 28 doubles and 24 home runs. His strikeouts have noticeably increased to 29.7%. While his offensive production took a hit in 2026, Happ’s fielding remained elite. He has won four consecutive Gold Glove awards and is a finalist for the award again this season. At a slightly lower expected contract of $20 or $22 million per year, Happ will be a little more affordable for the Royals but not by much. The Royals will need to use caution and determine if Happ’s offensive regression is just a blip or age beginning to get to him. View the full article

As far as relief pitchers go, Adrian Morejon represents the best the free-agent market has to offer. It isn't difficult to see why the Chicago Cubs could have interest here during the offseason. An actual pursuit of the former San Diego Padres set-up man in a way that's considered legitimate, however, is a bit more of a head-scratcher. There isn't any denying the ability that Morejon offers. Working in San Diego as the primary set-up man to Mason Miller, the two formed an absolutely dynamite 1-2 punch at the back end of games. For his part, Morejon's work in 2026 was, in many respects, the best of his career. By fWAR (2.8), Morejon was fourth in reliever value this past season. His 30.4 percent strikeout rate ranked 18th among qualifying relief pitchers, while he posted a gaudy 58.0 groundball rate and a 2.83 ERA. And then there's the matter of his percentile distribution, which is comprised almost exclusively of deep reds: Strong whiff and strikeout numbers, exceptional ability to work around quality contact, and getting the majority of that contact driven into the ground? Yeah, that's going to play virtually anywhere. His performance this season was such that it isn't a stretch to think that a team could pay him a handsome sum and plant him in the ninth inning as a closer (the Cubs included). Of course, role is one thing, and we'll circle back on that. Instead, let's talk caveats. For one, Morejon has a bit of a checkered injury history (which is an understatement), including a previous Tommy John surgery and various scattered elbow & shoulder issues. Since 2024, he's remained healthy and progressively increased his workload to totals of 63.2, 73.2, and 86.0 innings across three seasons. That's heavy volume for a reliever, especially one who primarily works in high-leverage situations. There were also some slight bumps late in the year, as well as the matter of an apparent shoulder issue that held him out at the end of their NLDS loss to Milwaukee, but nothing that warrants long-term fears. Caveat No. 2 is a little more prevalent. The Padres extended Morejon a qualifying offer, which means that if the luxury tax-paying Cubs sign him, they're on the hook for the contract itself, their second- and fifth-highest picks in the draft, and a forfeiture of $1 million in international bonus pool money. That aspect alone makes it feel unlikely that an actual, earnest pursuit of Morejon is in the cards for the North Siders. But the question of Morejon's role does keep the door open at least slightly. For one, there's the simple idea that this is one of the game's best leverage arms. Eighth inning? Sure. Ninth inning? You could see it. An arm like Morejon is such a dynamic presence that even the forfeiture of all of the above isn't completely enough to dissuade a team like the Cubs from trying to add him. At the same time, there's also the possibility that the Cubs could address the starting staff by signing the 28-year-old. He began his career as a starter, has progressively increased his workload, and has a starter's arsenal (sinker, slider, change, four-seam). It's been floated out there by a few different outlets, so it's not an idea that sits entirely outside of the realm of possibility. Would that idea, though, make the Cubs more inclined to pursue given the ultimate cost? It feels at least possible, since the fallback option of planting him back in relief always exists. In any case, it's not an easy situation to navigate (for the Cubs or any team). Adrian Morejon is a genuinely elite reliever who is coming off some heavy volume, a questionable injury history, and is in line for a major contract. But the prospect of the upside, wherein the late innings become far more secure than the Cubs are used to, is tantalizing. The idea of a conversion back to starting adds another layer of intrigue. Given the Cubs' needs, this is a connection that we'll see quite regularly until he does sign elsewhere (or accepts the qualifying offer). Whether or not they're willing to pay the price is another matter entirely. View the full article

As far as relief pitchers go, Adrian Morejon represents the best the free-agent market has to offer. It isn't difficult to see why the Chicago Cubs could have interest here during the offseason. An actual pursuit of the former San Diego Padres set-up man in a way that's considered legitimate, however, is a bit more of a head-scratcher. There isn't any denying the ability that Morejon offers. Working in San Diego as the primary set-up man to Mason Miller, the two formed an absolutely dynamite 1-2 punch at the back end of games. For his part, Morejon's work in 2026 was, in many respects, the best of his career. By fWAR (2.8), Morejon was fourth in reliever value this past season. His 30.4 percent strikeout rate ranked 18th among qualifying relief pitchers, while he posted a gaudy 58.0 groundball rate and a 2.83 ERA. And then there's the matter of his percentile distribution, which is comprised almost exclusively of deep reds: Strong whiff and strikeout numbers, exceptional ability to work around quality contact, and getting the majority of that contact driven into the ground? Yeah, that's going to play virtually anywhere. His performance this season was such that it isn't a stretch to think that a team could pay him a handsome sum and plant him in the ninth inning as a closer (the Cubs included). Of course, role is one thing, and we'll circle back on that. Instead, let's talk caveats. For one, Morejon has a bit of a checkered injury history (which is an understatement), including a previous Tommy John surgery and various scattered elbow & shoulder issues. Since 2024, he's remained healthy and progressively increased his workload to totals of 63.2, 73.2, and 86.0 innings across three seasons. That's heavy volume for a reliever, especially one who primarily works in high-leverage situations. There were also some slight bumps late in the year, as well as the matter of an apparent shoulder issue that held him out at the end of their NLDS loss to Milwaukee, but nothing that warrants long-term fears. Caveat No. 2 is a little more prevalent. The Padres extended Morejon a qualifying offer, which means that if the luxury tax-paying Cubs sign him, they're on the hook for the contract itself, their second- and fifth-highest picks in the draft, and a forfeiture of $1 million in international bonus pool money. That aspect alone makes it feel unlikely that an actual, earnest pursuit of Morejon is in the cards for the North Siders. But the question of Morejon's role does keep the door open at least slightly. For one, there's the simple idea that this is one of the game's best leverage arms. Eighth inning? Sure. Ninth inning? You could see it. An arm like Morejon is such a dynamic presence that even the forfeiture of all of the above isn't completely enough to dissuade a team like the Cubs from trying to add him. At the same time, there's also the possibility that the Cubs could address the starting staff by signing the 28-year-old. He began his career as a starter, has progressively increased his workload, and has a starter's arsenal (sinker, slider, change, four-seam). It's been floated out there by a few different outlets, so it's not an idea that sits entirely outside of the realm of possibility. Would that idea, though, make the Cubs more inclined to pursue given the ultimate cost? It feels at least possible, since the fallback option of planting him back in relief always exists. In any case, it's not an easy situation to navigate (for the Cubs or any team). Adrian Morejon is a genuinely elite reliever who is coming off some heavy volume, a questionable injury history, and is in line for a major contract. But the prospect of the upside, wherein the late innings become far more secure than the Cubs are used to, is tantalizing. The idea of a conversion back to starting adds another layer of intrigue. Given the Cubs' needs, this is a connection that we'll see quite regularly until he does sign elsewhere (or accepts the qualifying offer). Whether or not they're willing to pay the price is another matter entirely. View the full article