February 13, 2026
St. Louis Cardinals catcher
Yohel Pozo announced on his X account that he has dropped 33 pounds since last season. The 28-year-old Venezuelan will be battling for a big-league roster spot in spring training after he hit .231/.262/.375 with a .637 OPS, five home runs, 19 RBI, and 16 runs scored in 67 games in his first year with the Cardinals last season. St. Louis non-tendered him in the offseason before he re-signed with the club on a split contract. Pozo is obviously in much better shape this year, but he still has plenty of work to do with
Ivan Herrera (elbow) and
Pedro Pages ahead of him on the catching depth chart. He'll also have to beat out
Jimmy Crooks to avoid starting the year at Triple-A Memphis. Pozo's 2025 campaign started well with a .312 average and four homers in his first 38 games, but he went 8-for-67 in the second half and also missed time with a concussion. For now, fantasy managers can avoid Pozo in all formats.
--Keith HernandezSource: Yohel Pozo on X
February 13, 2026
Miami Marlins right-hander
Sandy Alcantara is adding a sweeper to his arsenal, which already consists of a four-seam fastball, sinker, cutter, slider, and changeup, according to Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. In his first year back from Tommy John surgery in 2025, Alcantara went 11-12 with a career-worst 5.36 ERA (4.28 FIP), 1.27 WHIP, and 142:57 K:BB in 174 2/3 innings over 31 starts. The 30-year-old former Cy Young winner and two-time All-Star looked much better down the stretch, though, recording a 2.68 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and 52:10 K:BB in 53 2/3 innings over his final eight starts. Alcantara was also able to return to his pre-injury velocity, a good sign going into his eighth year in the big leagues. He's not in the greatest situation in Miami to rack up wins, but Alcantara's finish to the 2025 campaign should inspire confidence that he can bounce back as a fantasy ace in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: Miami Herald - Jordan McPherson
February 13, 2026
Houston Astros right-hander
Nate Pearson (elbow) had a cleanup surgery on his right elbow in the offseason, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Pearson was scheduled to throw a bullpen session in camp on Friday, though, and appears to be just fine for the start of the 2026 season with his new team. The 29-year-old signed a one-year, $1.35 million contract with Houston in the offseason. Pearson has primarily been a reliever since 2021, but the Astros are going to stretch him out as a starter this spring. The former first-rounder by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017 out of the College of Central Florida has a career ERA over 5.00 in five major-league seasons, and he allowed 15 earned runs with 10 walks and seven strikeouts in just 14 2/3 relief frames for the Cubbies in 2025. The hard-throwing right-hander was once one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, but he just has not lived up to expectations. Fantasy managers will want to take a wait-and-see approach with Pearson in his return to a starting role.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Brian McTaggart
February 13, 2026
New York Yankees right-hander
Clarke Schmidt (elbow), who is on the 60-day injured list as he works his way back from Tommy John surgery last July, was seen throwing in the outfield in camp on Friday, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Schmidt won't be an option for the Yankees' starting rotation until some point after the All-Star break in mid-July. The 29-year-old also opened last year on the IL due to a shoulder injury that he suffered in spring training. He struck out only 73 batters in 78 2/3 total innings over 14 starts in 2025, but Schmidt held a solid 3.32 ERA (3.95 FIP) and 1.09 WHIP in his sixth year in the big leagues with the Bombers. Schmidt does a great job of keeping hitters off balance and inducing weak contact, but durability has been a concern, and he's only gone over 100 innings pitched in one of his five MLB seasons. Fantasy managers should have better stash candidates in single-year leagues in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Chris Kirschner
February 13, 2026
Cincinnati Reds infielder/outfielder
Spencer Steer (quadriceps) played through a sore right quadriceps that bothered him for most of last season, and he finished with a .238/.312/.411 slash line, 21 home runs, and 75 RBI in 146 games. Steer also dealt with a sore right shoulder that lingered after the 2024 campaign. To avoid re-injuring his quad this year, Steer said he cleaned up some of his sprinting mechanics. The 28-year-old will see time at first base in 2026 and could occasionally spell Matt McClain at second base, but most of his playing time is expected to come in either left or right field. Steer's drop in stolen bases from 25 in 2024 to just seven last year likely had a lot to do with his quad issue. Steer will be more of a super-utility player in 2026, and his stolen base numbers could bounce back with better help, giving fantasy managers some hope that he can post another 20-20 season. He's hit at least 20 homers in each of the last three seasons, being propped up by a very hitter-friendly home ballpark.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Mark Sheldon
February 13, 2026
The Kansas City Royals announced on Friday that they agreed to a two-year minor-league deal with left-hander
John Means (Achilles). It feels like ages ago when Means was an All-Star with the Baltimore Orioles in 2019 in his second major-league season. The 32-year-old veteran southpaw didn't see the mound in the big leagues at all in 2025 and has made just 10 starts since the beginning of the 2022 season due to various injuries. Means was recovering from his second Tommy John surgery last year and will miss all of the 2026 campaign as well due to a torn Achilles that he suffered in the offseason. The Royals will keep Means around going into next season in hopes that he can put his injury woes behind him for good. Fantasy managers in all formats should take a wait-and-see approach with Means in 2027.
--Keith HernandezSource: Kansas City Royals
February 13, 2026
Detroit Tigers second baseman
Gleyber Torres (groin) should be ready to go on Opening Day this year after the Detroit Free Press' Evan Petzold reported in December that Torres had been cleared for all baseball activities. The 29-year-old had sports-hernia surgery in October after playing injured in the final month of the regular season and into the playoffs. He accepted the team's one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer for the 2026 campaign and will reprise his role as the team's starting second baseman as they look to get back to the postseason. In his first year in Motown, the Venezuelan infielder was named an All-Star for the third time in his career while hitting .256/.358/.387 with a .745 OPS, 16 home runs, 74 RBI, 79 runs, and four stolen bases in 145 regular-season contests. Torres doesn't have a high ceiling in fantasy, but he should have a stable floor in an improved Tigers lineup. RotoBaller has him ranked as the No. 22 fantasy second baseman.
--Keith HernandezSource: Detroit Free Press - Evan Petzold
February 13, 2026
The Athletic's Zack Meisel wrote in December that Cleveland Guardians first baseman
Kyle Manzardo added 14 pounds of muscle since the end of the 2025 season. The Guardians want him to hold up better physically and be a candidate for more reps at first base in 2026. The 25-year-old former second-rounder by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2021 out of Washington State played in 142 regular-season games last year in his first full year in the big leagues, hitting .234/.313/.455 with a .768 OPS, 27 home runs, 70 RBI, 47 runs scored, and two stolen bases in 531 plate appearances. Manzardo appeared in 84 games as the designated hitter while manning first base 55 times. He'll be a legitimate late-round source of power and should start at first base more often with
Carlos Santana no longer around. If Manzardo can improve against lefties -- he hit just .186/.253/.419 against them -- he'll have true breakout potential in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Zack Meisel
February 13, 2026
Seattle Mariners right-hander
Bryan Woo said he turned down an invitation to pitch for Team USA in this year's World Baseball Classic as he looks to reach the 200-inning mark in 2026, according to Daniel Kramer of MLB.com. The former sixth-round pick out of Cal Poly in 2021 had a breakout 2025 campaign with Seattle, going 15-7 with a 2.94 ERA (3.47 FIP) and 0.93 WHIP with a career-high 198 strikeouts and 36 walks in 186 2/3 innings pitched over 30 starts. It was nice to see Woo make 30 starts after some of his early career injury woes, and even though he's healthy this spring, the Mariners might ease him into Cactus League action. Woo led Seattle's rotation in innings, K's, WHIP, and ERA while posting a 128 ERA+, putting him in the running to start on Opening Day in 2026. He's a starting pitcher on the rise in a very favorable pitching environment at T-Mobile Park. Consider him a top-15 fantasy starting pitcher.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Daniel Kramer
February 13, 2026
The San Francisco Giants announced on Friday that they agreed with free-agent reliever
Rowan Wick (elbow) on an undisclosed one-year deal with a club option for the 2027 season, according to Justice delos Santos of MLB.com. Wick will miss the entire 2026 season after having Tommy John surgery in November of last year. The 33-year-old right-hander has not appeared in the major leagues since 2022 with the Chicago Cubs, and he last pitched in the U.S. in 2023 at Triple-A Iowa. Wick has pitched in Japan in Nippon Professional Baseball the last two years and had a sharp 1.13 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, and 58:13 K:BB in 47 2/3 innings in 2025 before having TJ surgery. The Canadian reliever made his big-league debut in 2018 with the San Diego Padres, and he holds a career 3.82 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 20 saves, 160 K's, and 66 walks in 146 relief outings in his five MLB seasons.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Justice delos Santos
February 13, 2026
Free-agent infielder
Luis Rengifo agreed to an undisclosed one-year major-league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday, a source told Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Rengifo, 28, will give the Brewers a super-utility option in 2026 with the ability to play multiple positions on the infield and in the outfield. The Venezuelan struggled in his seventh and final season with the Los Angeles Angels last year, batting .238/.287/.335 with a .622 OPS, nine home runs, 43 RBI, 55 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases in 147 games over a career-high 541 plate appearances. Rengifo has never been much of a power hitter at 5-foot-10, 195 pounds (his career high in homers is 17), but he did hit .300 with 24 stolen bases in Anaheim in 2024. The switch-hitter has dual eligibility at second and third base and could bounce back with Milwaukee as a utility man, although he can probably be ignored in mixed fantasy leagues.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Mark Feinsand
February 13, 2026
New York Mets catcher
Francisco Alvarez said that he lost around eight or 10 pounds in the offseason by focusing on his nutrition, according to Laura Albanese of Newsday. Alvarez also worked with director of hitting Jeff Albert and will be keeping the batting stance he re-adopted after returning from his demotion to Triple-A Syracuse in 2025. The 24-year-old Venezuelan backstop was sent to the minors to work on his swing last year, and after he returned, he hit .276/.360/.561 with eight home runs in his final 40 games. The Mets are hoping that he can pick up where he left off this year. Alvarez finished 2025 with a .256/.339/.447 slash line, .787 OPS, 11 home runs, 32 RBI, and 32 runs scored in 76 games with the Mets. He suffered a torn UCL in his right thumb in August and also missed the first few weeks with a left-hand fracture. Durability concerns are obvious, but he's a starting catcher with plenty of pop in a strong Mets' lineup. Alvarez will be a low-cost No. 2 fantasy catcher with plenty of bounce-back appeal.
--Keith HernandezSource: Newsday - Laura Albanese
February 13, 2026
Federal prosecutors said that Cleveland Guardians right-handed reliever
Emmanuel Clase and co-conspirators used coded language to discuss pitch-rigging plans, according to The Athletic's Mike Vorkunov and Zack Meisel. Clase received a text message hours before a game against the Reds on May 18 of last year that read, "Throw a rock at the first rooster in today's fight." Unsealed court documents on Friday also allege that Clase engaged in an illegal sports gambling scheme during the 2024 postseason. It was all part of an alleged effort by Clase and others to rig pitches during Guardians games for over two years. Co-conspirators netted winnings of at least $450,000, and Clase and teammate
Luis L. Ortiz allegedly received kickbacks for their involvement. Clase and Ortiz were placed on non-disciplinary leave last July amid allegations of sports gambling, and they remain on leave and are not permitted to report to spring training.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Mike Vorkunov and Zack Meisel
February 13, 2026
It sounds like the Chicago White Sox view catcher
Kyle Teel as their everyday catcher. "We do view Teel as an everyday guy. But at the catching position, we know that doesn't mean you're actually in there every day. It's a demanding role. And Edgar is a guy that we like the bat against lefties, so there's DH opportunities for him. He's going to be able to catch, too, so there should be plenty of at-bats for those guys," manager Will Venable said when asked about splitting at-bats for Teel and
Edgar Quero in 2026. Teel, a 23-year-old left-handed-hitting backstop, made his major-league debut last year and held his own with a .273/.375/.411 slash line, .786 OPS, eight home runs, 35 RBI, 38 runs scored, and even three steals in 78 games played in Chicago. Teel didn't look great against left-handed pitchers, but he's clearly the team's preferred catcher, and the rest of his profile makes him an attractive low-end starting catching target with upside.
--Keith HernandezSource: Sox Showdown - Noah Phalen
February 13, 2026
Miami Marlins manager Clayton McCullough confirmed that right-hander
Chris Paddack will be part of the team's Opening Day starting rotation, according to Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. The first three spots in Miami's rotation are locked down with
Sandy Alcantara,
Eury Perez, and Paddack. The 30-year-old veteran joined the Marlins last week to little fanfare after going 5-12 with a 5.35 ERA (5.03 FIP) and 1.28 WHIP with 112 strikeouts and 37 walks in 158 innings over 33 appearances (28 starts) with the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers. Paddack allowed a league-high 94 earned runs on 166 hits. He wasn't much better the two previous seasons with the Twins, and if he continues to pitch poorly in 2026 with the Fish, a move to the bullpen won't be far off. Opposing hitters continue to tee off against Paddack, as he's allowed 45 long balls the last two years. Fantasy managers should look elsewhere, even in NL-only formats.
--Keith HernandezSource: Miami Herald - Jordan McPherson
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