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Rangers Promote Jose Corniell

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The Rangers made a few moves going into their final series in Cleveland. Texas selected infielder Donovan Solano onto the major league roster. He takes the spot of utilityman Josh Smith, who goes to the paternity list. Texas also shut down relievers Chris Martin (thoracic outlet syndrome) and Cole Winn (rotator cuff strain) for the season. Luis Curvelo and Jose Corniell were recalled to fill the two open spots on the pitching staff.

Solano signed a minor league deal with the Rangers three weeks ago. He’d been released by the Mariners after hitting .252/.295/.344 with three homers through 176 plate appearances. He hit .212 in 10 games with Triple-A Round Rock. The veteran infielder will return to free agency at the end of the season. He’ll provide a right-handed bat off Bruce Bochy’s bench against the Guardians in the interim.

It’s a more meaningful call for the 22-year-old Corniell. The Dominican-born righty reaches the big leagues for the first time. The move is technically a recall because Corniell has occupied a spot on the 40-man roster since the 2023-24 offseason.

Initially a Mariners signee, Corniell was traded to Texas for reliever Rafael Montero before the ’21 season. The 6’3″ righty had never thrown a minor league pitch. He’d signed with Seattle during the 2019-20 international period, then saw his first professional season canceled by the pandemic. Corniell struggled over the next two seasons but had a breakout year in the low minors in 2023. Texas put him on the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

Corniell blew out early last season. He underwent UCL surgery in June and was on the injured list until shortly after this year’s All-Star Break. He made six abbreviated starts at Double-A and dominated. Cornell turned in 20 innings of two-run ball (one earned) with 20 punchouts and one walk. Texas bumped him to Triple-A, where he recorded 12 1/3 frames with five runs allowed. He fanned 14 while issuing six free passes.

Jack Leiter is on the mound for tonight’s series opener. Texas hasn’t announced its starters for the final two games. They’d have Merrill Kelly and Patrick Corbin on their usual schedules. The Rangers aren’t playing for anything, but Cleveland is battling for a playoff spot and the AL Central title. It’d be a surprise if the Rangers scratched one of their veteran arms to give Corniell the ball in that context. He could get a chance to make his debut as a long reliever if one of the games is a blowout.

Martin’s season concludes with a thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosis. The 39-year-old from Arlington signed a one-year free agent deal to rejoin his hometown team last winter. He pitched well when healthy, working to a 2.98 ERA through 42 1/3 innings. This is his third injured list stint of the season. He missed time earlier in the year with shoulder fatigue and lost all of August to a calf strain.

The Rangers haven’t provided any specifics on the severity of the injury. Martin said last September that he expected 2025 to be his final season. If this is the end, he’ll finish his career with a 3.33 earned run average across 10 seasons in the big leagues. The highly respected righty recorded the 400th strikeout of his career last night, fanning Minnesota’s Austin Martin.

Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

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Anthony Franco

  • Good afternoon everyone, hope you're doing well!
  • It's been a couple weeks. Glad to be back

Unclemike1526

  • What is the total number of players for a Playoff rosters? Does it revert back to 26 or does it stay at 27? If so does Ballesteros even make the team if Tucker is back? Does it have to be 13-13? Thanks

Anthony Franco

  • It reverts to 26 with a 13-pitcher maximum. Doesn't necessity need to be 13-13 and maybe for the Wild Card round you'll see a team go with 12 pitchers because it's a short series, but most teams will want as many pitchers as they can carry as it goes along
  • Either way, they need to find room for Ballesteros. I'd probably drop Turner (and Santana, who's already out) but any of Turner, Castro or Alcantara seems plausible to me
  • Willi hasn't hit at all. Alcantara's only really on hand in case PCA gets hurt and they need someone to step into CF. Turner's been a little better lately and provides a right-handed bat off the bench but they don't have that many LHH for whom they'd pinch hit anyway (it's basically just Busch) so I don't know that they really need one

this little piggyback cried oui oui all the way

  • Most of the playoff contenders haven't even named their starters for Saturday and Sunday. Is this a new trend?

Anthony Franco

  • Probably? The borderline playoff teams don't know yet if Sunday will be a must-win and they'll need to bring their best pitchers back on short rest
  • Tigers would love to clinch by Saturday and have Skubal for Game 1 but they may not have that luxury. Astros are almost certainly going to need to bring Brown back on short rest as well

World Series Victor

  • Is anyone going to topple Seattle? Or will we finally get to hoist the trophy?

Anthony Franco

  • Obviously the odds are stacked heavily in favor of the field over any individual team but Seattle feels like the most complete team in the American League, at least. Tougher call when you pit them against Milwaukee and Philly but yeah, I'd probably have them as slight World Series favorites

The Knuder

  • Which free agents, if any, do you see the Padres bringing back?

Anthony Franco

  • Don't think it's all that likely they're keeping any of them besides Laureano, who has the easy yes on the club option
  • Beyond that, King's the only one that I really see a path for, but it probably requires his market not materializing as hoped and turning to an opt-out situation
  • Cease, Suarez, Arraez, ROH and Nestor all feel like they're gone. Diaz, Hart and Iglesias are minor league deal guys

Arise, Sir Loin of Beef

  • Mets make the playoffs, yes or no? I'm guessing no.

Anthony Franco

  • I still expect them to get in, though I'll admit that I'm kind of pulling for the Reds just to shake up the field

Dirt

  • Thanks for the chat! Despite the broken hamate, Ozzie's option with the Braves next season is a no-brainer, right? If so, where does that leave Nacho? Utility infielder or trade bait? Is Nick Allen the odd man out?

Anthony Franco

  • Agreed. $3M difference between the option price and the buyout gets you Kevin Newman or Luis Urías. Even with the downward trend and the injuries, Ozzie's better than those guys
  • I think they'll trade Alvarez in a deal for some kind of pitching help. Nacho's not going to get you Joe Ryan or MacKenzie Gore but there'll be teams that'd like him in return for a back-end starter. Allen's glove-only profile fits better in a utility capacity. Probably need to work out a multi-year deal with HSK to keep him from opting out at that point

pitching chaos for everyone

  • Will anyone pitch 7+ innings in one game this weekend?

Anthony Franco

  • Haha Logan Webb goes Sunday at home against the Rockies. Might set the O/U at 8.2

john

  • If Woodruff is out of the NLDS who takes the #3 start?  Quintana/Miz/Patrick all come with high risk.

Anthony Franco

  • I think it's Patrick, maybe after an opener. In any case, not extending that third "starter" to go more than 3-4 innings. Get to the bullpen at the first sign of trouble

TheBeatlesShow

  • Hey, Anthony.  Hope all is well.  Remind me, weren't the Tigers called 'the best team in baseball' around the middle of the season?  But the real questions:  If they do lose the division, where does that stack up against the greatest collapses of all time?  And, over the last month or so...or less than that, has Steven Vogt gotten himself a lot of votes for AL Mgr of the Year?

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Offseason Outlook: Athletics

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An awful May ensured the A's were headed for another losing season. They made arguably the biggest sell-side trade at the deadline, sending Mason Miller to San Diego for a prospect package headlined by potential franchise shortstop Leo De Vries. The A's have quietly been one of the best teams in the American League for the final two months of the season. They're in for a second straight offseason focused primarily on pitching. It's not an easy task while they're in a Triple-A home ballpark that plays as one of the most hitter-friendly venues in the game.

Guaranteed Contracts

  • Lawrence Butler, CF: $62.25MM through 2031 (including $2MM in yet to be paid signing bonuses and buyout of '32 club option)
  • Brent Rooker, DH: $48MM through 2029 (deal includes '30 club/vesting option)
  • Luis Severino, RHP: $47MM through 2027 (including $5MM signing bonus to be paid in January; can opt out after '26)
  • Jeffrey Springs, LHP: $11.25MM through 2026 (including buyout of '27 club option)

2026 financial commitments: $45.75MM
Total future commitments: $168.5MM

Option Decisions

  • None

Arbitration-Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projected salaries courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)

Non-tender candidates: Wynns, Waldichuk

Free Agents

For the second straight year, the A's go into the offseason with positive momentum despite finishing with a losing record. They've been a better second half team in both 2024 and '25. That alone probably doesn't hold a ton of predictive value, but it's fair to have more optimism next spring than it was last offseason.

It appears ownership is satisfied with the direction of the rebuild. The A's extended manager Mark Kotsay last offseason on a deal that runs at least through 2028. General manager David Forst is reportedly on an expiring deal. However, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported this morning that he's in talks with owner John Fisher about his future. Rosenthal suggests he could agree to at least a two-year extension that runs up to the team's expected opening of its Las Vegas ballpark.

They're on track to go into Vegas with a very good offense. Nick Kurtz has shredded major league pitching. Jacob Wilson is coming off the first of what should be multiple All-Star appearances at shortstop. Shea Langeliers and Tyler Soderstrom have taken steps forward offensively. Soderstrom also showed he's capable of playing better defense than expected in left field after being forced off first base by Kurtz's arrival. Even as Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler took steps back after fantastic 2024 seasons, this lineup runs six deep. The 18-year-old De Vries is a dynamic talent at the top of the farm system who has a good shot to pair with Wilson as an elite middle infield tandem down the line.

The A's don't have the same kind of young corps anchoring the pitching staff. Neither the Luis Severino signing nor the Jeffrey Springs trade stabilized the rotation as hoped (though Severino has been quite good down the stretch). Both pitchers have managed back-of-the-rotation results overall without missing a ton of bats. Neither has fared well at the A's temporary home park in Sacramento.

Severino blasted the arrangement when speaking with Brendan Kuty of The Athletic in June. Asked about his stark home/road splits, the righty said his road numbers were better "because we play in a big-league stadium on the road." He added that pitching in Sacramento is "not the same atmosphere. We don’t have a lot of fans. Our clubhouse is in left field. So, when we play day games, we have to just be in the sun."

The criticism was bizarre considering the A's went beyond general expectations to sign Severino to a three-year, $67MM contract last offseason. That price presumably baked in a cost for pitching in a minor league facility on a team without a true home city. Unsurprisingly, USA Today's Bob Nightengale suggested that Severino's comments were not well-received by A's brass. The team would've welcomed a chance to trade him at the deadline. Between the contract and Severino's lack of swing-and-miss stuff both at home and away, they were unable to find a taker.

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Netflix To Carry Opening Night, Home Run Derby Broadcasts In 2026

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Netflix will have exclusive streaming coverage of next season’s Opening Night matchup between the Yankees and Giants, reports Andrew Marchand of The Athletic. Those teams will kick off the season with a standalone game at Oracle Park on Wednesday, March 25. Everyone else’s season will begin the following day, aligning with MLB’s usual practice of opening on the final Thursday in March.

That’s not the only significant get for Netflix. Marchand reports that the streaming corporation will also get the Home Run Derby for the next three seasons and share broadcasts of a few special location games (e.g. Field of Dreams, Rickwood Field) with NBC. Netflix and MLB are signing a three-year deal which Marchand reports will pay the league roughly $225-250MM annually.

Opening Night and the Home Run Derby were previously part of MLB’s long-running deal with ESPN. That collapsed in February when both sides opted out of the contract for the 2026-28 seasons. ESPN sought to renegotiate at a lesser rights fee. MLB instead partitioned the package — which included the Derby, Sunday Night Baseball, and the Wild Card round — and has hammered out a few smaller deals with different companies.

Marchand reported last month that Netflix was making a bid for the Derby, and they’ve apparently reached that agreement. He adds today that NBC and its streaming service Peacock will pick up Sunday Night Baseball and the Wild Card round from 2026-28. (ESPN will still have next week’s first round as part of the final season of the previous agreement.) NBC is also expected to pay around $225-250MM per season on a three-year contract.

There’ll also be a change to the regular season games on Sunday mornings. Roku has carried those since early 2024. Rob Tornoe of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported last month that NBC, which had carried those games on Peacock from 2022-23, would reacquire those rights. Roku’s deal ran through the end of 2026. It’s not clear if Peacock will pick those broadcasts up a year early or wait until the ’27 season.

ESPN will also remain a partner of the league on a much bigger deal. Marchand reported in August that the broadcaster was nearing agreement with MLB to license the rights to teams’ out-of-market games, which have been part of the MLB.tv package. ESPN also gets in-market rights for the Rockies, Twins, Diamondbacks, Padres and Guardians — the five clubs whose broadcasts have been handled by the league since their regional TV deals collapsed. ESPN also gets 30 exclusive national games to replace what it lost on Sunday nights; those games will now be on weekdays.

That’s also a three-year arrangement. Marchand reports that ESPN will pay the league $1.65 billion in total — matching the $550MM annual sum it would have paid for Sunday nights, the Derby, and the Wild Card round had it not opted out.

It’s not a coincidence that all these deals run through 2028. MLB’s preexisting contracts with Fox (which carries the World Series, the ALCS, the ALDS, and the All-Star Game) and Turner (which has the NLDS and NLCS) also expire at the end of the ’28 season. Commissioner Rob Manfred has expressed a desire to acquire the local in-market rights for every team by that point. That would give MLB the opportunity to shop virtually everything going into 2029.

Pirates GM Ben Cherington’s Contract Runs Through 2027

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Pirates GM Ben Cherington’s contract runs through the 2027 season, according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. Cherington has been at the helm of Pittsburgh’s front office since November 2019. John Perrotto of The Associated Press wrote last week that Cherington was signed beyond this season, though it was previously unknown if his contract ran through 2026 or ’27. This latest update gives him at least two more years worth of guaranteed salary.

Dating back to Cherington’s first season at the helm – the COVID-shortened 2020 season – the Pirates have a record of 363-504 and have finished 4th or 5th in the NL Central in every season. The club’s last winning season was in 2018 under then-GM Neal Huntington. They lost 93 games the following season. Owner Bob Nutting fired Huntington and brought in Cherington after the following season, even though Huntington had multiple years remaining on his contract at the time.

That same offseason saw the Bucs fire manager Clint Hurdle, whom they replaced with Derek Shelton. Pittsburgh stuck with the Cherington-Shelton pairing for five full seasons, maxing out with 76-86 seasons in both 2023 and ’24. A 12-26 start to year six led them to fire Shelton in early May. They’ve been better under interim skipper Don Kelly, yet their 57-64 record in that time has them playing at the same 76-win pace of the previous two seasons. Some growing pains are always expected at the beginning of a rebuild, but the record has plateaued even as the Bucs have put together a talented collection of young arms.

Under Cherington, Pittsburgh has had much more success drafting and developing pitching than they’ve had on the position player side. The Pirates drafted Paul Skenes No. 1 overall in 2023, and the righty is now the favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award. He gives the club their first bona fide ace since Gerrit Cole and should anchor the rotation for the next few years.

Braxton Ashcraft and Mike Burrows were drafted before Cherington’s arrival but have developed into promising pitchers this season. Closer Dennis Santana has broken out since being claimed off waivers last June. There’s more pitching talent in the pipeline. Five of MLB.com’s Top 100 prospects are in the Pirates organization, and two of them – RHP Bubba Chandler (No. 7) and LHP Hunter Barco (No. 82) – have recently made their big-league debuts. They added another potential impact arm with RHP Seth Hernandez, the sixth overall pick this summer.

Impressive as the pitching group has been, they’ve had too many misses on offense. Henry Davis, the first overall pick in 2021, is a career .178/.260/.288 hitter. Nick Gonzales, selected seventh overall in 2020, has a .259/.302/.378 line in more than 900 plate appearances. While it’s too early to close the book on 2022 fourth overall pick Termarr Johnson, he’s not as highly regarded as he was at draft time because of questions about his power ceiling and defense at second base.

Last year’s first-round pick looks much more successful. Konnor Griffin, the #9 pick in 2024, had a phenomenal minor league season. He’s a potential franchise shortstop and arguably the #1 prospect in the game. Griffin has a chance to become the dynamic position player talent that the club has lacked, but they’ll need a lot more production throughout the lineup. Spencer Horwitz and Joey Bart are their only two hitters who have been even slightly above-average at the plate this season, as measured by wRC+. No team has scored fewer runs.

Cherington said over the weekend that he hasn’t received any indication from ownership that he won’t remain in the position going into 2026. If that proves to be the case, he’ll first need to decide whether to retain Kelly as the permanent manager. The focus will again be on building even a league average offense. Skenes, Chandler, and Mitch Keller form a strong front of the rotation, with all three under control through at least 2028. The team’s payroll annually ranks in the bottom 10 of the league, likely leaving the front office looking in the third or fourth tiers of free agency to acquire some complementary pieces to strengthen the lineup in hopes of getting above .500 and challenging for a Wild Card spot.

Diamondbacks Outright Jake Woodford

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The Diamondbacks sent right-hander Jake Woodford outright to Triple-A Reno, according to the MLB.com transaction tracker. He cleared waivers after being designated for assignment over the weekend.

Woodford joined the Snakes on a major league contract in the beginning of July. He’d been pitching in Triple-A with the Cubs when he triggered an out clause in that minor league deal. He took the ball 22 times and logged 36 1/3 innings of 6.44 ERA ball. It was his third consecutive season allowing more than six earned runs per nine innings. Woodford nevertheless found himself in a handful of high-leverage situations in an Arizona bullpen that was hit hard by injuries. He recorded his first three major league saves and picked up a pair of holds, but he also blew four leads.

That took on added importance as the D-Backs improbably stayed afloat in the playoff picture. Woodford had a decent stretch in early September but was tagged for multiple runs in each of his final three times out. That included blowing a two-run save opportunity and taking the loss in Minnesota on September 12, followed by allowing four earned runs in two innings against the Phillies a week later.

Woodford has appeared in parts of six major league seasons. He has done the majority of his work in long relief. He found some success as a ground-ball specialist with the Cardinals between 2021-22. The 28-year-old has had a tougher go in the past three seasons. He’s not getting as many grounders as he did earlier in his career and his stuff has never missed many bats.

As a player with over three years of MLB service, Woodford has the right to decline an outright assignment in favor of free agency. It’s likelier he’ll accept and remain with the Snakes in case injuries further up the depth chart open another opportunity. The D-Backs are within a game of the Mets for the National League’s final playoff spot. Woodford would qualify for minor league free agency at the end of the season if the D-Backs don’t reselect his contract.

Blue Jays Designate Alek Manoah For Assignment, Activate Anthony Santander

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The Blue Jays have designated former Cy Young finalist Alek Manoah for assignment. That clears a 40-man roster spot for Anthony Santander, who returns from the 60-day injured list. Toronto placed Ty France on the 10-day IL with oblique inflammation to clear space on the active roster.

It’s an abrupt end to Manoah’s time in Toronto. The Jays selected the big right-hander with the 11th overall pick in the 2019 draft. The West Virginia product reached the big leagues two seasons later. He fired 20 starts with a 3.22 earned run average to finish eighth in AL Rookie of the Year balloting. Manoah built off that promising debut with a fantastic first full season in the big leagues. He threw just under 200 innings with a 2.24 ERA across 31 starts.

Among qualified American League pitchers, only Justin Verlander and Dylan Cease had a lower earned run average that year. Manoah landed behind that duo with a third-place finish in Cy Young balloting. He earned an All-Star nod and received down ballot MVP votes. Even if Manoah’s underlying marks weren’t quite so dominant, he was one of the most promising young pitchers in the game.

At the time, it would’ve been impossible to imagine the Jays cutting him loose less than three years later. Manoah’s stock has tumbled since the end of 2022. He allowed almost six earned runs per nine across 19 big league starts the following year. His strikeout rate dropped nearly four percentage points while his walks doubled. The Jays optioned him to the minors twice as he fell out of favor with the team competing for a playoff spot.

Manoah was slated to return to the rotation to open the ’24 campaign. He battled shoulder soreness during Spring Training and was forced to begin the season on the injured list. The Jays activated him in May. Manoah pitched well over five starts, turning in a 3.70 ERA with much better command than he’d had in the preceding season. His elbow gave out in early June, however, sending him for season-ending UCL surgery.

That’ll very likely turn out to be his last MLB work in a Jays uniform. Manoah finished last season on the 60-day injured list. He’d been on the IL for most of this season completing his rehab. The Jays activated him a couple weeks ago but didn’t have room for him on the MLB pitching staff. They kept him at Triple-A Buffalo on optional assignment.

Manoah managed a 2.97 ERA across seven Triple-A starts, but that came in spite of an unimpressive set of underlying numbers. His strikeout (20.4%), walk (12.2%) and home run (1.62 per nine innings) marks were all worse than average. Perhaps even more concerning is that his fastball was sitting 91 MPH. His heater had been around 94 during his excellent first two seasons and was above 93 before his elbow surgery last year.

The Jays are evidently pessimistic about his chance of recapturing his pre-injury form. Manoah certainly wasn’t going to be in the mix for a spot on this year’s playoff roster. Keeping him would have been about the next two seasons. Manoah is under arbitration control through the end of 2027. He made $2.2MM this season and will be in line for a matching rate next year if he’s tendered a contract. Toronto’s front office decided they weren’t going to take that roll of the dice.

Manoah will be placed on waivers this week. That’s in reverse order of the standings and is not league specific. The Rockies will have the first opportunity to decide whether to take a flier. They’ll be followed by the White Sox, Nationals, Pirates, Twins and so on. There’s a good chance someone will place a claim and hope that a healthy offseason allows Manoah to rebuild arm strength.

He’d remain controllable for another two seasons with a new club and still has two minor league options, so a claiming team could have him begin next season in Triple-A. If he clears waivers, Manoah would likely accept an outright assignment and remain with the Jays for the remainder of the season, but he’d qualify for minor league free agency at the start of the offseason.

In the short term, the bigger news for Toronto is Santander’s return. Their big-ticket offseason signee has been out of action since the end of May with a left shoulder injury. Toronto has been the top team in the American League despite getting virtually nothing out of the switch-hitting slugger. Santander hit just six homers while batting .179/.273/.304 through 209 trips to the plate.

Santander is one season removed from hitting 44 home runs with the Orioles. He might head into the postseason as a high-upside bench bat. The Jays kept him mostly at designated hitter on his rehab assignment. He started seven games as a DH and played twice in left field. George Springer is having a huge year as the primary DH. Even if the Jays were comfortable using him as an everyday right fielder in the playoffs, it’s not clear if they’d have DH at-bats available for Santander. Bo Bichette is aiming for a postseason return from his sprained PCL, but he may not be ready to play shortstop. That’d force the Jays to play Bichette at DH with Springer in right.

Davis Schneider and Nathan Lukes have divided the corner outfield playing time. They’ve each had decent seasons overall but haven’t hit this month. Santander could push one of them out of the lineup if the Jays are comfortable with his arm. He’d otherwise be left to operate in a bench role, especially if Bichette returns as a DH for the start of the playoffs. Lukes and Schneider got the nod between left and right field tonight against Boston and Lucas Giolito.

Nationals Notes: Garcia, Parker, Gray

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Nationals infielder Luis García Jr. made his first career appearance at first base during Tuesday’s loss in Atlanta. García started the game and played all eight defensive innings. Nasim Nuñez played second base with CJ Abrams back in the lineup at shortstop.

García began taking pregame drills at first base a little over a month ago. The Nats got to a point where they felt comfortable playing the 25-year-old there in a game. García is a middling defender at the keystone. Washington doesn’t have an answer at first base for the 2026 season. García’s .253/.290/.399 slash line wouldn’t play as a regular there either, but there’s no downside in expanding his flexibility.

The former highly-regarded prospect could find himself on the roster bubble as he’d be due a raise on this year’s $4.5MM salary if tendered an arbitration contract. He may have a better chance of remaining on the roster if he’s not locked into the keystone. Teams generally prefer not to carry second base-only players on the bench. García’s inability to play shortstop still leaves him as an imperfect fit for a utility role.

Nuñez might be a better candidate for that job. He’s the team’s best defensive infielder. The 5’8″ switch-hitter has had a very light bat for most of his career, but he has connected for an out-of-nowhere four home runs in 12 games since being recalled from Triple-A at the start of September. He has picked up a few more starts down the stretch as he tries to stake a claim to an Opening Day roster spot.

The Nats also made a change to their pitching roles over the weekend. Lefty Mitchell Parker, who started his first 30 appearances, has been moved to the bullpen (link via Jessica Camerato of MLB.com). He worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings to lock down a 3-2 win over the Mets on Sunday, getting the save in his first career relief outing. It was an impressive performance from the second-year southpaw, who has struggled to a 5.85 ERA across 158 1/3 innings as a starter.

Parker had better numbers as a rookie. He turned in a 4.29 ERA over 29 starts a year ago. Both he and Jake Irvin took steps back this year, going from capable back-of-the-rotation arms to two of the least effective starters in MLB. Irvin has held his rotation spot despite allowing 5.69 earned runs per nine over his 32 starts. The Nats are finishing the season with a rotation of Cade Cavalli, Brad Lord, Andrew Alvarez and Irvin. They shut down MacKenzie Gore with an ankle injury this afternoon, so they may need to turn back to Parker for a final spot start to close the year.

Gore will be an offseason trade candidate as he enters his final two years of club control. Cavalli is probably the only other pitcher whom the club would be willing to pencil into next year’s rotation right now. Whomever takes over baseball operations will need to make multiple additions.

Josiah Gray will rejoin the rest of the aforementioned group in battling for spots at the back end. Gray has completed his rehab from last July’s UCL surgery. The Nats opted not to press him back into action for an MLB start and decided to shut him down this week, but he’ll go into what is expected to be an essentially typical offseason (link via Bobby Blanco of MASNsports.com).

Astros’ Brandon Walter Undergoes UCL Surgery

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Astros southpaw Brandon Walter underwent UCL reconstruction surgery yesterday, the team informed reporters (including Chandler Rome of The Athletic). Meanwhile, Ari Alexander reports that southpaw John Rooney had a procedure to remove bone spurs and address tennis elbow.

Houston had announced a couple weeks back that both pitchers were going under the knife. They didn’t provide specifics at the time beyond calling each a season-ending elbow procedure. The news is obviously much worse for Walter, who’ll miss all of next season. Rooney’s surgery is less significant and it doesn’t seem out of the question that he’ll be available for Spring Training.

Walter, 29, had proven a nice pickup on a minor league deal last August. Houston selected his contract at the end of May. Walter picked up nine starts for an injury-riddled rotation. He tossed a quality start in six of those outings, working to a 3.35 earned run average across 53 2/3 innings overall. The former Red Sox prospect punched out a quarter of batters faced against a pristine 1.9% walk rate. Walter overcame pedestrian velocity to get chases and whiffs at slightly above-average rates.

Unfortunately, the injury bug struck again for the 29-year-old. Walter missed the entire 2024 season after suffering a rotator cuff injury while pitching in minor league camp with Boston. That led the Red Sox to release him, paving the way for him to land in Houston. Walter probably showed enough for the Astros to keep him on the 40-man roster throughout the upcoming offseason. They’d be able to place him back on the 60-day injured list at the beginning of Spring Training.

Rooney may have a tougher time sticking on the roster. He was on a minor league deal with the Marlins when Houston acquired him at the beginning of August. Rooney came up for his big league debut in late August. He tossed 1 1/3 innings of one-run ball before suffering the season-ending injury. The 28-year-old reliever combined for a 2.56 ERA over 38 2/3 Triple-A frames this year.

Ozzie Albies Suffers Hamate Fracture

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Sept. 23: Atlanta placed Albies on the 10-day injured list this morning, formally ending his season. Infielder Brett Wisely, recently claimed off waivers from the Giants, was recalled from Triple-A  Gwinnett to take his spot on the roster. The Braves also formally added fellow waiver claim Joel Payamps to their bullpen and optioned righty Nathan Wiles in his place.

Sept. 22: The Braves have been hit with yet another significant injury. Ozzie Albies was diagnosed with a fractured hamate bone in his left hand/wrist (relayed by Mark Bowman of MLB.com). The second baseman appeared to suffer the injury on a swinging strike in the third inning of tonight’s game. He took the next pitch before calling for a trainer and exiting.

Albies fractured the same wrist on a tag play last July. He was out of action for two months, only managing a late-season return before Atlanta’s brief playoff run. This will obviously cost him the final five games of a losing season. The far greater concern is that he has suffered similar significant injuries in consecutive years. It’ll presumably have some effect on at least the early stages of his offseason.

Hamate fractures typically cost position players around two months. If Albies requires a similar timeline, that would give him plenty of time to be ready for Spring Training. It’s not uncommon for a hitter’s power production to drop after a broken wrist, though, raising more questions about what Atlanta can expect from a player whose numbers have declined over the past two seasons.

Albies finishes the season with a career-worst .240/.306/.365 batting line. He picked up 16 homers and went 14-17 on stolen base attempts. Albies leads second basemen with 667 plate appearances. He had been very durable this season, but he wasn’t hitting the ball with much authority until the past few weeks. He hit .220/.290/.316 in the first half. Albies had a better showing down the stretch, batting .270/.328/.439 after the All-Star Break. He’ll look to avoid a similarly slow start as he comes back from another late-season injury.

The Braves hold successive $7MM club options on Albies for the next two years. The first of those comes with a $4MM buyout. That should still be a very easy call for the front office to exercise. The $3MM difference is on par with what utility/depth players like Kyle Farmer, Thairo Estrada, Josh Rojas and Kevin Newman commanded as free agents last offseason.

Albies’ injury adds to a handful of questions among the Atlanta infield. Ha-Seong Kim appears to be playing his way toward opting out of his $16MM contract. If he does, the Braves would need to find an upgrade over Nick Allen at shortstop. They’d presumably make an effort to bring Kim back on a multi-year deal in that scenario. Austin Riley will be coming back from core surgery. Nacho Alvarez Jr. hasn’t shown much consistency in his first real run as an everyday third baseman in Riley’s absence.

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