Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Cubs Rumors

Cubs, Tigers Have Renewed Interest In Alex Bregman

By | at

The Cubs are again showing interest in Alex Bregman, report Sahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. Meanwhile, Jon Heyman of The New York Post writes that the Tigers are back in the mix, along with the incumbent Red Sox.

Those three teams were the final suitors for Bregman last offseason. Detroit reportedly put forth a six-year, $171.5MM offer — albeit with deferred money that would have reduced the net present value — with an opt-out after the second season. The Cubs offered a four-year contract which various reports put at either $115MM or $120MM that included opt-out chances after the second and third season.

Bregman opted for the shortest deal to get back to the market, accepting a three-year guarantee from Boston with outs after the first two years. He made $40MM (half of it deferred) and triggered the opt-out after one season with the Sox. His market won’t be impacted by the qualifying offer this time around. He’ll turn 32 just after Opening Day and could take aim at another six-year deal.

Detroit’s continued interest is expected. They’re still managed by A.J. Hinch, his longtime skipper with the Astros. Zach McKinstry was a surprise All-Star this year, but his numbers tanked in the second half. The Tigers would be better off with him in a utility role, perhaps taking the majority of the shortstop reps from Javier Báez until top prospect Kevin McGonigle arrives. They could use Colt Keith as a left-handed complement to Spencer Torkelson and Gleyber Torres on the right side of the infield, while mixing him in at designated hitter when Kerry Carpenter plays right field.

The fit is a little more difficult on the Cubs, especially if Bregman commands a long-term deal. That’d squeeze out former first-round pick Matt Shaw, who is coming off a reasonably impressive rookie season. Shaw’s overall .226/.295/.394 line is subpar, but he settled in after struggling in his initial looks at big league pitching. Shaw got out to a horrible start but was a league average hitter after being recalled from Triple-A in the middle of May. That includes a .258/.317/.522 showing in the second half, although he slumped a bit in the final month after a huge August.

Shaw impressed defensively, especially later in the season. The Cubs could justify giving him the third base job and hoping for continued improvements at the plate. It wasn’t such an overwhelming debut that it takes them completely out of the running on Bregman, however. Shaw ranked in the bottom 10 percent of qualified hitters in average exit velocity and hard contact rate. He doesn’t have huge bat speed, so there’s no guarantee he’ll be the 20-25 homer threat that Bregman has been over his career.

It still seems likely the Cubs will prioritize adding a mid-rotation or better starter. They reportedly made a run at Dylan Cease and are involved in the bidding for NPB pitcher Tatsuya Imai. A pursuit of Framber Valdez or Ranger Suárez would be logical. RosterResource calculates their luxury tax number around $197MM, which puts them $35MM shy of this past season’s mark. They’re nearly $50MM below the base tax threshold.

Signing Bregman and a #2 starter would probably put them into tax territory, and it’s not clear if ownership would approve that kind of spending. They could address the rotation on the trade market, though, and Shaw would be a quality piece to dangle in talks if they upgrade at third base. They could also use him off the bench in a utility role with the long-term plan of moving him to second base once Nico Hoerner reaches free agency next offseason.

Cubs, Phillies, Yankees Among Teams Interested In Tatsuya Imai

By | at

The Seibu Lions of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball posted ace Tatsuya Imai for major league teams back on Nov. 19. The flamethrowing 27-year-old has until Jan. 2 to negotiate a deal with interested MLB clubs. The Mets, Cubs and Orioles have each been linked to the right-hander so far. The Cubs, in particular, are expected to be a “strong” player in Imai’s market, per Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. They also made an offer to Dylan Cease before the former Cy Young runner-up (and former Cubs draftee) signed with the Blue Jays last week, according to Levine.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post adds the Phillies and Yankees as another pair of teams in the running for Imai. He adds that Imai’s camp could schedule in-person visits with interested teams following next week’s Winter Meetings — if he hasn’t already agreed to a deal by that point.

The Cubs make a sensible fit for Imai, even after countryman Shota Imanaga accepted Chicago’s $22.025MM qualifying offer, opting to forgo free agency in the process. Manager Craig Counsell’s rotation currently includes Imanaga, Cade Horton, Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon and Colin Rea. Ace Justin Steele is still on the mend from UCL surgery performed last April. He won’t be ready for Opening Day. Javier Assad and Ben Brown could both factor in, too, but both have bullpen experience and minor league options remaining.

Chicago’s interest in bolstering the rotation is well-known. Even after Imanaga opted to return, the Cubs have reportedly been seeking a playoff-caliber starter to add to the top portion of their staff. Imai isn’t necessarily a slam-dunk to fit that description, but his electric stuff and recent performance in NPB suggest he has that ceiling.

Imai, who’ll turn 28 next May, has posted a sub-3.00 ERA in each of the past four NPB seasons — headlined by a career-low 1.92 mark in 163 innings in 2025. Along the way, he’s steadily increased his strikeout rate while at the same time lowering his walk rate. Those improvements culminated in last year’s dominant season, wherein Imai punched out 27.8% of the batters he faced and cut his walk rate to a tidy 7%. He’s one of NPB’s hardest throwers, topping out around 99 mph and sitting more comfortably in the mid-90s. Imai complements that pitch with a slider, splitter and changeup.

Signing Imai would push Rea back into his familiar swingman role and could even create a logjam if everyone is healthy once Steele finishes off his rehab from surgery. That’s wishful thinking, however, given the proliferation of pitching injuries throughout the sport. And if the Cubs do manage to have a full contingent of healthy rotation arms at that point, it’d fall under the “good problem to have” cliche. A playoff rotation including a healthy Steele, Horton and Imai could be formidable.

The Phillies, meanwhile, haven’t been big players in free agency for pitchers — at least not to the extent they have with hitters — outside of retaining homegrown Aaron Nola on a seven-year contract. However, that decision is now one of many contributing to a far shakier outlook than we’re used to seeing with the Philadelphia rotation.

Left-hander Cristopher Sanchez broke out as a top-tier arm with this year’s runner-up finish in Cy Young voting, but the rest of the staff has more questions and/or dwindling club control. Ranger Suarez is already a free agent. Zack Wheeler underwent thoracic outlet surgery late in the season. He’s owed $84MM over the next two seasons. Nola struggled to the worst extent of his career, posting an ERA north of 6.00 in 2025. Jesus Luzardo is a quality mid-rotation arm but will be a free agent next winter. Taijuan Walker is also entering the final season of a four-year deal. He rebounded to an extent in 2025, but the first two seasons of that $72MM pact were a disaster. Andrew Painter has long been one of the game’s top pitching prospects, but he was hit hard in Triple-A during his return from 2024 Tommy John surgery.

Obviously, the Phillies already have a lot of money on the long-term books — but perhaps not to the extent some might think. Nola, Trea Turner and Bryce Harper are the only players signed beyond the 2027 season. A backloaded deal for Imai — likely one including at least one opt-out opportunity — could make his salary more manageable in years one and two. Those seasons would dovetail with the remaining years on the contracts of Wheeler (through 2027) as well as Walker (through 2026), Nick Castellanos (through ’26), Jose Alvarado (through ’26) and Matt Strahm (through ’26).

Signing Imai would give the Phillies another large contract on the books but also offers protection against a potentially thinned-out starting group come 2027. Luzardo and Walker are free agents at that point. Painter hasn’t pitched in the majors yet. It’s hard to know what to expect from Wheeler and Nola in 2026 — let alone 2027. Imai (or another multi-year rotation acquisition) could provide some protection, although he’s obviously an untested commodity himself (at least against MLB opposition).

On paper, the Yankees’ rotation need is the least acute of this group. Gerrit Cole could be back relatively early in 2026. Max Fried was dominant in his first season in Yankee Pinstripes. Carlos Rodon was outstanding in 33 starts. Luis Gil, Cam Schlittler and Will Warren are all impressive-looking young starters. Clarke Schmidt could be back late in the season after July Tommy John surgery.

The Yankees already have three pitchers on contracts valued at $162MM or more. Imai would very likely require a fourth commitment of over $100MM and do so at a time when the team is facing questions in the infield and in the outfield. If the Yankees believe Imai can pitch at or near the top of a major league rotation, however, they could sign him and use some of their young pitching and/or prospect depth to make compelling offers for bats on the trade market. It’s a thing offseason with regard to free-agent hitters, after all.

Whoever signs Imai will need to do so within the next four weeks. His posting window closes Jan. 2. The team to sign him will also owe a separate release fee to the Lions in NPB. That fee will equal 20% of the contract’s first $25MM, plus 17.5% of the next $25MM and 15% of any guaranteed money thereafter. Additional earnings unlocked via incentives, escalators and club option years would also be subject to that 15% rate once they become guaranteed.

Latest On Mariners’ Bullpen Targets

By | at

Mariners general manager Justin Hollander publicly admitted a few weeks back that the club would be looking for bullpen upgrades. Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reports that Seattle plans to add two relievers and hopes to have one locked down by the end of the Winter Meetings next week. Adding a lefty is a priority and Jude lists five names they are considering, with four of them being southpaws. They are Matt Strahm of the Phillies, JoJo Romero of the Cardinals, Jose A. Ferrer of the Nationals, as well as free agents Tyler Rogers and Hoby Milner. Rogers is the lone right-hander in that group. Jude also mentions that the Mariners had interest in right-hander Phil Maton before he signed with the Cubs.

Seattle had a decent bullpen group in 2025. Their relievers had a collective 3.72 earned run average, which was ninth in the majors. Andrés Muñoz is one of the better closers in the game. But just about any club can add an extra leverage arm or two and bump other guys down a peg. That’s particularly true for the Mariners from the left side, as Gabe Speier is their only established southpaw reliever at the moment. Robinson Ortiz is the other lefty reliever on the 40-man but he hasn’t yet made his major league debut.

It’s unlikely that the club will spend a lot on the relief group. President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto suggested that the M’s will likely begin 2026 with a similar payroll to where they were at the end of 2025. RosterResource estimates that they are currently about $15MM shy of that target. They already re-signed Josh Naylor but could look to further bolster the infield by re-signing Jorge Polanco or Eugenio Suárez. Jude unsurprisingly suggests the M’s aren’t likely to go after a big name reliever like Edwin Díaz or Robert Suarez.

Strahm, 34, is the most established of the bunch. He now has ten big league seasons under his belt. Though he has pushed into his mid-30s, he has remained effective. He just tossed 62 1/3 innings for the Phils this year, allowing 2.74 earned runs per nine. His 7.8% walk rate was a bit better than average and his 27.3% strikeout rate was quite strong. He triggered a vesting option in his contract and will make $7.5MM next year.

All that makes him attractive for the Mariners but also valuable for the Phillies. It’s possible the Phils may be willing to move a lefty due to a relative surplus. They have reportedly received some trade interest since they have Strahm, José Alvarado and Tanner Banks. The Phils have a lot they want to accomplish this winter, including re-signing Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto while also remaking their outfield and perhaps bolstering the rotation. They have some money to spend but perhaps trading one of their lefties could leave them less reliant on spending their cash.

Romero, 29, is a much more straightforward trade candidate. The Cardinals are rebuilding and he is just one year away from free agency. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a salary of $4.4MM next year. Over the past three years, he has tossed 156 2/3 innings for the Cards with a 2.93 ERA, 22.9% strikeout rate, 8.5% walk rate and 53.3% ground ball rate.

Ferrer, 26 in March, is also on a rebuilding club. However, he’s under club control for four more years and hasn’t yet qualified for arbitration, so the Nats don’t really need to trade him anytime soon. They are surely hoping to return to contention within his window of control but they may be open to a trade anyway, given that a pitcher can get hurt at any time and reliever performance tends to be volatile.

In Ferrer’s career, he has an unimpressive 4.36 ERA but that might mask his true skills. He is a ground ball guy and the Nats have been one of the worst defensive clubs in recent years, so perhaps a change of scenery would help him unlock a new gear in terms of run prevention. In 76 1/3 innings for the Nats this year, his 21.9% strikeout rate was just shy of league average. His 4.9% walk rate and 62.6% ground ball rate were both excellent. His 4.48 ERA doesn’t look great but his 3.03 FIP and 2.85 SIERA provide more optimism about him thriving in a different environment.

Milner, 35 in January, has a somewhat similar grounder-heavy profile to Ferrer. He has logged at least 64 innings in four straight seasons now. Over that 2022-25 span, he has thrown 264 frames with a 3.55 ERA, 22.6% strikeout rate, 5.8% walk rate and 51.1% ground ball rate. Despite the solid track record, he was only able to secure a one-year, $2.5MM deal from Texas last winter. Perhaps he’ll have some extra earning power after finishing another solid season but he’s also a year older.

Rogers, 35 this month, is one of the most unique pitchers in the game. Not to be confused with his lefty brother Taylor, Tyler is the submarining righty. He doesn’t rack up strikeouts but he is one of the best in the game when it comes to staying healthy, avoiding walks and inducing grounders as well as soft contact. He has logged at least 70 innings in five straight campaigns. Dating back to the start of 2021, he has 378 1/3 innings with a 2.71 ERA, 17% strikeout rate, 4.4% walk rate, 56.3% ground ball rate and consistently strong numbers in terms of exit velocity allowed. He is a free agent for the first time and should be in high demand but some teams may be scared off by his age and lack of velocity, as he can barely even get into the 80s with his fastballs.

Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin, Oncea-Imagn Images

Cubs Sign Scott Kingery To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Cubs signed utility player Scott Kingery to a minor league contract, the team informed reporters (including Maddie Lee of The Chicago Sun-Times). He’ll be in MLB camp as a non-roster invitee.

Kingery returned to the majors this past season, getting into 19 games with the Angels. It marked his first MLB action in three years. His 29 MLB plate appearances were the most he logged in a season dating back to 2020. The former top Phillies prospect recored four hits with two walks and 11 strikeouts. He has a lifetime .227/.278/.382 batting line in nearly 1200 career plate appearances, almost all of which came in Philadelphia from 2018-19.

Now 31, Kingery spent most of this year at Triple-A Salt Lake. He batted .228/.284/.402 while striking out in a quarter of his trips to the plate. It was a step back from his more impressive ’24 season with the Phillies’ top affiliate, when Kingery had a 25-25 season in the minors.

The Cubs won’t expect much offensively from the right-handed hitter. Kingery provides defensive versatility and plays anywhere on the diamond aside from first base and catcher. He’s an above-average runner who’ll compete for a spot on Craig Counsell’s bench during Spring Training.

Nationals To Hire Corey Ray As First Base Coach

By | at

The Nationals are going to hire Corey Ray as first base coach, reports Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post. He had previously been working for the Cubs in the minor leagues. He will replace Gerardo Parra as the first base coach in Washington.

Ray, 31, was once a high profile prospect. The Brewers selected him fifth overall in the 2016 draft and signed him with a $4.125MM bonus. He clearly had incredible tools in terms of power and speed but he had trouble recognizing breaking pitches. This led to a lot of swing-and-miss, especially as he climbed the minor league ladder and faced better pitching. When he first reached Triple-A in 2019, he struck out in 38.7% of his plate appearances. He would lower than number in future seasons but still ended up walking back to the dugout about a third of the time.

His prospect stock dimmed but the Brewers still didn’t want to lose him in the 2019 Rule 5 draft, so they added him to the 40-man roster. He stuck on the 40-man for a while but only got into one major league game, on April 24th of 2021, going 0-2 with one walk, one strikeout and one run scored. He was sent through waivers unclaimed in June of 2022. He became a minor league free agent at season’s end and didn’t sign anywhere else.

In the spring of 2023, the Cubs hired Ray to serve as a bench coach for their Single-A Myrtle Beach affiliate. Going into 2024, he was named manager of the club’s Arizona Complex League team. Nusbaum notes that Ray has also been serving as the organization’s baserunning coordinator.

The Nats are undergoing a major overhaul of their organization. Their ongoing rebuild has failed to show much progress and so just about everything is on the chopping block. President of baseball operations Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez were fired midseason. In September, Paul Toboni was hired as the club’s new president of baseball operations.

In October, it was reported that interim manager Miguel Cairo wouldn’t be continuing in that role while six coaches would only be brought back if the new manager wanted them on the staff. Those six were pitching coach Jim Hickey, hitting coach Darnell Coles, third base coach Ricky Gutierrez, bullpen coach Ricky Bones, catching/strategy coach Henry Blanco and Parra. Blake Butera was hired as the new manager a couple of days after that reporting. Since then, the Nats have hired Michael Johns as bench coach, Simon Mathews as pitching coach and now Ray as first base coach.

Fresh blood seems to be the name of the game. Johns is 50 years old but Toboni is 35, Butera 33 and Mathews 30. As mentioned, Ray is just 31 and not too far removed from his playing days. Younger doesn’t necessarily mean better and the Nats are presumably looking at attributes other than just age but it is perhaps an interesting symbol of how the organization felt it was falling behind the times and needed to quickly modernize.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

Poll: Will The Cubs Sign A Big Bat This Winter?

By | at

It’s not often that the top free agent doesn’t get much attention from the team they’re departing but that might end up being the case this winter. Even amid an up-and-down season where he was dogged by injuries, Kyle Tucker was a key piece of the team that got the Cubs back into the NLDS for the first time since 2017. While Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer praised Tucker and suggested he’d be in contact with the outfielder’s camp this winter, virtually all reporting on the subject suggests the Cubs aren’t going to pursue a reunion in a serious manner.

The team’s focus appears to be on pitching, at least for the time being. They’ve already signed right-hander Phil Maton to help bolster their bullpen. After bringing southpaw Shota Imanaga back on a qualifying offer, they still figure to explore the market for top-of-the-rotation pitching options. A deal for someone like Michael King, Ranger Suarez, or Tatsuya Imai would certainly make sense for a team that ran out of pitching in October due to injuries to Cade Horton and Justin Steele. A trade also can’t be ruled out, with players like Edward Cabrera, Sandy Alcantara, Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez, and MacKenzie Gore all expected to be at least somewhat available this winter.

Even as the focus appears to be on the top of the rotation, however, the void Tucker figures to leave in the lineup is undeniable. The superstar delivered his fifth consecutive season worth at least 4.0 fWAR in 2025 as he slashed .266/.377/.464 with a 136 wRC+ in 136 games. That sort of production would be very difficult to replace internally, even with talented youngsters like Moises Ballesteros, Owen Caissie, and Kevin Alcantara knocking on the door of the majors. Ballesteros looked the best of the bunch in his cup of coffee with the big league club last year, hitting an impressive .298/.394/.474 across 66 trips to the plate in 20 games. Strong as that production was, however, it would be unreasonable to expect a 22-year-old rookie to replicate that over a full season.

Perhaps it would be understandable to roll the dice on those internal options if the Cubs had more certainty around the rest of the diamond, but the question marks are undeniable. Carson Kelly seems unlikely to recreate his career year at the plate (115 wRC+) from 2025 headed into his age-31 campaign. Matt Shaw began to show signs of life in the second half but his 93 wRC+ on the season was subpar. Dansby Swanson (99 wRC+) delivered his second consecutive below-average offensive season last year.

One big x-factor is Pete Crow-Armstrong. The budding superstar delivered a 30-30 season in 2025 and finished 9th in NL MVP voting off the back of a brilliant campaign, but his OPS dropped more than 200 points between the first half and the second half. Counting on the 23-year-old to lead the Cubs’ offense in place of Tucker next year would be a risky gamble. Also, Hoerner, Happ and Seiya Suzuki are slated for free agency next winter. Adding a reliable bat to the lineup could go a long way to preventing a step back headed into the 2027 season while also providing reinforcements for a 2026 team that will face lots of questions without Tucker in the fold.

The question, of course, becomes the team’s budget. The Cubs have been very hesitant to spend beyond the competitive balance tax for the past several years, treating it as a soft cap on spending. RosterResource projects them for a $197MM CBT figure in 2026 as things stand. The base threshold of the tax will be $244MM next year, giving them a bit more than $45MM of wiggle room.

With needs in the bullpen and the rotation, that could dry up in a hurry. Signing someone like Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman, or Kyle Schwarber wouldn’t leave a ton of room for pitching additions. Even a less expensive addition like Kazuma Okamoto or Eugenio Suarez might be challenge to make work if the team is unwilling to spend beyond the first threshold of the luxury tax.

How do MLBTR readers think the Cubs will proceed with their offense headed into 2026? Will they hope an offensive nucleus of Crow-Armstrong, Suzuki, and Michael Busch will be enough to weather the loss of Tucker? Or will they bring in an impact hitter to improve the lineup? Have your say in the poll below:

Cubs Among Various Teams With Interest In Ryan Helsley

By | at

The Cubs are among the teams with interest in Ryan Helsley, reports Patrick Mooney of The Athletic. Chicago joins the Tigers as known suitors, but it seems Helsley has heard from half the league. The Athletic’s Katie Woo writes that around 15 clubs have been in contact with the righty’s camp to express interest.

Detroit has pursued Helsley as a starting pitcher. That’s a surprise even in a league that has become more willing to gamble on reliever to starter conversions over the past couple years. Helsley has never started a game in the majors and has not been a full-time starting pitcher since the 2018 season divided between Double-A and Triple-A. It doesn’t seem that Helsley is demanding a rotation role. The 31-year-old told Woo that while he’s open to starting, he’s quite comfortable pitching at the end of games.

“I missed starting probably the first half of my career, but once I really started closing, I didn’t think about it as much,” Helsley said. “Learning a new pitch would be something I could pick up, obviously, but it’d be a learning curve throughout this first year to figure out how to be a major league starting pitcher.” Helsley said he “(knows what he’s) capable of as a reliever,” even as he expressed confidence that he could be a starter.

As he pointed out, he’d certainly need to expand his repertoire to start. Helsley has been almost exclusively fastball-slider against hitters of either handedness. He sporadically mixes in a curveball but has never thrown a changeup or cutter with regularity. He’d probably need to add one of those offerings to keep left-handed hitters off balance. Helsley has done a good job against lefties over the course of his career, but that’d be a lot more challenging if needs to navigate a lineup multiple times with lesser stuff than he can throw when he’s only working one inning.

The quality of the stuff is a big selling point for Helsley, who hit free agency coming off one of the worst stretches of his career. Opposing hitters tattooed him for a 7.20 earned run average while batting .301/.379/.554 in 95 plate appearances after a deadline trade from St. Louis to the Mets. The raw stuff was as impressive as ever. Helsley’s fastball sat in the 99-100 MPH range and his upper-80s slider remained an excellent pitch. The heater played well below its velocity, though, as opponents turned it around for four home runs and five doubles in the final two months of the season.

Helsley said he has identified a pitch-tipping issue with his hand positioning that explains why hitters were so comfortable against him down the stretch. Based on the seemingly robust interest, it appears teams agree he can at least get back to being an All-Star caliber reliever (if not expanding his role). From the start of 2022 through the time of the trade, Helsley pitched to a 2.03 ERA while striking out 32.9% of batters faced in 203 2/3 innings. He’s seventh in MLB with 103 saves over the past four seasons — despite not collecting any saves for a Mets team that already had Edwin Díaz in the ninth inning.

Mooney doesn’t specify whether the Cubs’ interest in Helsley is as a starter or in relief. The Cubs need help in both areas, though they’ve already brought in his former St. Louis teammate Phil Maton on a two-year deal. It’d make more sense for Chicago to pursue Helsley as a reliever and aim for an established rotation upgrade. Shota Imanaga is back after accepting a qualifying offer. He slots behind Cade Horton and alongside Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon and eventually Justin Steele in the rotation. Colin Rea and Javier Assad are in the mix at the back of the rotation or long relief. The Cubs need another starter, but they should be after someone who can pitch alongside Horton in the upper half of the rotation.

MLBTR predicted Helsley to receive a two-year, $24MM contract. Woo writes that he has discussed multi-year arrangements with more than one team, so it seems he’s on track to at least command two years.

Cubs Sign Phil Maton

By | at

The Cubs’ first addition of the offseason will come in the bullpen, as Chicago has agreed to terms with right-hander Phil Maton on a two-year, $14.5MM contract with a club option for a third season. The Paragon Sports International client can pick up another $250K worth of incentives based on innings pitched in each of the two guaranteed seasons on the contract.

Maton receives a $5.5MM salary next season, $6MM in 2027, and is guaranteed a $3MM buyout on the ’28 option — which is valued at $8.5MM. He’d also receive a $250K assignment bonus in the event of a trade and would unlock $125K bonuses at 40 and 50 games apiece in the first two seasons of the deal. Those would climb to $250K at 40 and 50 appearances in 2028 if the option is exercised.

Maton split last season between the Cardinals and Rangers. He joined St. Louis on a one-year, $2MM deal and pitched well for the first half of the season. After 38 1/3 innings of a 2.35 ERA, the Cardinals shipped him to Texas at the trade deadline for minor league pitchers Mason Molina and Skylar Hales. Maton’s ERA rose to 3.52 with his new team, but he upped his strikeout rate to 36.7% and picked up three saves over 23 appearances.

Chicago will be Maton’s eighth team in 10 big-league seasons. He was drafted by the Padres in 2015. Eye-popping strikeout numbers helped the righty zoom through San Diego’s system, and he reached the big leagues by 2017. Maton delivered decent contributions with the Padres in his first two seasons, though he missed time with a lat strain in 2018. After a half-season spent bouncing between the Padres and Triple-A El Paso the following year, Maton was dealt to Cleveland for cash.

Maton flashed the swing-and-miss upside he had shown in the minors for the first time at the big-league level with Cleveland. He posted a 33.3% strikeout rate across 23 games in the shortened 2020 season, then pushed it to 34.3% in the first half of 2021. Maton was on the move again at the 2021 trade deadline, heading with Yainer Diaz to Houston for Myles Straw. The deal turned out to be a big win for the Astros, even before factoring in Diaz’s contributions. Maton compiled a 3.67 ERA across 157 innings with Houston through 2023. He was phenomenal during the 2021 playoffs, allowing just one earned run in 12 games. Maton secured three holds in the postseason that year, including two in the World Series.

Maton hit the open market following the 2023 season and landed in Tampa Bay on a one-year, $6.5MM deal. He struggled with the Rays and ended up getting dealt to the Mets in early July. Maton put together 28 2/3 innings of a 2.51 ERA in New York, but stumbled in the postseason. The veteran was knocked around for six earned runs in 6 1/3 innings in the playoffs, including four home runs.

Velocity isn’t Maton’s strong suit, as his fastball barely cracks 90 mph. The veteran has found success by leading with his curveball and mixing in cutters and sinkers. Maton has used the hook as his primary pitch in two of the last three seasons. He threw it 38.2% of the time last year, and it recorded a healthy +10 run value. Maton’s cutter, curveball, and sweeper all had whiff rates above 32% last season.

Maton has excelled at limiting hard contact at every stop. He’s limited hitters to a 29.9% hard-hit rate for his career. Maton ranked in the 98th percentile or better in hard-hit rate, barrel rate, and average exit velocity last season.

With Brad Keller hitting free agency and Andrew Kittredge traded to Baltimore, Chicago had a clear need for a righty at the backend of the bullpen. Daniel Palencia will likely resume closer duties after battling injuries at the end of last season, but Maton should factor into the late-inning mix alongside Porter Hodge. FanGraphs’ RosterResource tool has the Cubs’ payroll at around $177MM for 2026. The club has been above $200MM the past two seasons, so there could be more room to add in the bullpen. Luke Little and Jordan Wicks don’t have a ton of big-league experience between them, so pursuing a veteran southpaw might make sense.

Bleacher Nation’s Michael Cerami first reported that Maton was signing with the Cubs. Will Sammon of The Athletic reported the length of the deal, and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman first broke the financial terms. The Associated Press reported the salary structure.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/21/25

By | at

Every National League team has officially announced their non-tender decisions. It was a quiet evening in terms of subtractions, with only the Rangers parting with any marquee players. All players who were non-tendered are free agents without going on waivers. A few teams dropped pre-arbitration players from the back of the 40-man roster. It’s possible they preferred not to expose them to waivers and are hopeful of re-signing them to non-roster deals.

Here’s a full list of today’s activity in the NL, while the American League moves are available here. All projected salaries are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

  • The Braves announced that right-handers Alek Manoah and Carson Ragsdale were not tendered contracts. Both had been acquired earlier in the offseason via waivers, and both are now free agents. Manoah was projected to earn $2.2MM. Ragsdale was not arb-eligible.
  • The Brewers tendered contracts to their entire arbitration class, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.
  • The Cardinals chose not to tender contracts to lefty John King, catcher Yohel Pozo and righty Sem Robberse, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Jorge Alcala, who was designated for assignment earlier this week, was also non-tendered, John Denton of MLB.com adds. King and Alcala were both projected for a $2.1MM salary. The others were not arb-eligible.
  • The Cubs non-tendered catcher Reese McGuire, per ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. He hit .226/.245/.444 through 140 plate appearances in a backup catcher role and was arb-eligible for the final time. He’d been projected to earn $1.9MM. Right-hander Eli Morgan, who was projected to earn $1.1MM, was also non-tendered, according to MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian.
  • The D-backs non-tendered left-hander Tommy Henry, who’d already been designated for assignment, and right-hander Taylor Rashi. Neither was eligible for arbitration. They tendered contracts to their entire arb class.
  • The Dodgers did not tender a contract to closer Evan Phillips, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. He was only under club control for one more season and projected for a $6.1MM salary but underwent Tommy John surgery in June. Dodgers righty Nick Frasso, who was not arb-eligible and finished the season on the 60-day IL, was also non-tendered, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.
  • The Giants non-tendered left-hander Joey Lucchesi, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Lucchesi pitched to a solid 3.76 ERA with a below-average 18.8% strikeout rate and strong 7.3% walk rate in 38 1/3 innings and had been projected for a $2MM salary. San Francisco also non-tendered catcher Andrew Knizner, who was designated for assignment this afternoon when the Giants acquired Joey Wiemer from Miami.
  • The Marlins tendered contracts to all of their eligible players, per Isaac Azout of Fish On First.
  • The Mets are non-tendering right-hander Max Kranick, according to Will Sammon of The Athletic. Kranick, 28, posted a 3.65 ERA in 37 innings with the Mets this year. It was his first big league opportunity since a five-inning cameo with the Pirates back in 2022. Kranick’s season came to an abrupt end back in July due to flexor tendon repair surgery. Southpaws Jose Castillo and Danny Young were also non-tendered, Sammon adds. Young had Tommy John surgery back in May. Castillo was a waiver claim who pitched for four different teams in 2025.
  • The Nationals tendered contracts to their entire roster, per a team announcement.
  • The Padres announced that lefty Omar Cruz and righty Sean Reynolds were non-tendered. Neither was arbitration-eligible. They tendered contracts to every member of their arbitration class.
  • The Phillies non-tendered righties Michael Mercado and Daniel Robert, neither of whom was arbitration-eligible. They’re both free agents. The Phils tendered contracts to all of their arb-eligible players otherwise.
  • The Pirates non-tendered outfielders Alexander Canario and Ronny Simon, as well as righties Colin Holderman and Dauri Moreta. All four were designated for assignment earlier in the week. Holderman was projected for a $1.7MM salary and Moreta for $800K. The others weren’t arb-eligible.
  • The Reds announced that catcher Will Banfield and right-handers Carson Spiers and Roddery Munoz were not tendered contracts. They’re all free agents. None of the three were arbitration-eligible, but by non-tendering them rather than designating them for assignment, Cincinnati bypasses the need to place them on waivers and can try to quickly re-sign any of the bunch to minor league deals, if the Reds are so inclined.
  • The Rockies non-tendered first baseman Michael Toglia, the team announced. He’d been designated for assignment earlier in the week, making today’s non-tender all but a formality.

Latest On Kyle Tucker’s Market

By | at

We’re still in the nascent stages of the MLB offseason, with only a handful of notable free-agent signings and trades thus far. Still, with the GM Meetings now in the rearview mirror, teams have laid a fair bit of groundwork for the weeks and months ahead, both on the free agent and trade markets. Kyle Tucker stands as the offseason’s top free agent, and while there’s no indication he’s close to signing, there are also some hints falling into place about his potential market.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote this week that some rival teams feel the Blue Jays are the likeliest landing spot for the four-time All-Star. They’ve been a popular speculative pick early on after a deep World Series run and with only one other major long-term commitment (Vladimir Guerrero Jr.) on the books. Of course, Bo Bichette could be the priority, and it’s rare for any team to sign two free agents of that magnitude in a single offseason.

Tucker is a prominent enough star that some unexpected suitors figure to jump into the fray. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote this morning that while the Orioles are prioritizing pitching this winter, they haven’t ruled out a run at Tucker. Having already acquired Taylor Ward from the Angels, the addition of Tucker would free Baltimore to dangle young outfielders Colton Cowser and Dylan Beavers on the trade market in hopes of securing some controllable arms. There are quite a few pitchers of note who could be on the block this winter, and both Cowser and Beavers would intrigue clubs looking to move arms. Both are former first-round picks. Cowser has four more seasons of club control, while Beavers only debuted late in 2025 and thus has a full slate of six years of club control remaining.

Baltimore stands as a fascinating fit. President of baseball operations Mike Elias was the Astros’ scouting director when Tucker was selected with the No. 5 overall pick. The O’s don’t have anything on the books long-term, other than Samuel Basallo’s eight-year, $67MM extension. That $8.375MM annual value isn’t going to be stand in the way of any other long-term deals. Beyond Basallo, Tyler O’Neill is the only other player signed to a guaranteed deal beyond the 2026 season. His three-year, $49.5MM contract runs through 2027.

The Orioles’ long-term financial outlook is so clean that there’s no true impediment to them signing Tucker and a notable a free agent starter. That’s not to say such a scenario is likely, of course, but Baltimore’s 2026 payroll currently projects for about $105MM, per RosterResource, and that’s before potential non-tenders or trades of Ryan Mountcastle ($7.8MM projected salary), Keegan Akin ($3MM projection), Yennier Cano ($1.8MM projection) and/or Alex Jackson ($1.8MM projection) prior to tomorrow’s 5pm ET non-tender deadline.

Depending on what happens with the Orioles’ arbitration class, they could realistically see next year’s projected payroll drop into the $93-100MM range by tomorrow evening. The opened the 2025 season with a payroll around $164.5MM. We’re certainly not accustomed to seeing Baltimore spend like this, but this is also only the second offseason under new owner David Rubenstein. Elias has already publicly stated that he is “fully prepared” to sacrifice draft picks by signing free agents who rejected qualifying offers, and for all the focus on pitching, it was reported more than a month ago that the O’s also covet an impact bat — likely in the outfield.

None of this is intended to frame the Orioles as any sort of favorite to sign Tucker, to be clear. Far from it. However, the fit and logic behind it are probably more sensible than one might think at first glance.

Other clubs will still loom in the market. Passan cites the Phillies as a possible landing spot, should Kyle Schwarber sign elsewhere. The Yankees have been linked to both Tucker and a Cody Bellinger reunion. GM Brian Cashman indicated this week that Trent Grisham’s decision to accept his qualifying offer will not impact the team’s pursuit of Bellinger. Presumably, then, that thinking extends to Tucker as well. The Dodgers have also been linked to Tucker, though Passan doubles down on his prior reporting that their interest would “likely” be on a shorter-term but high-AAV deal — the type we rarely see taken by the consensus top free agent in a given offseason.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top