November 21, 2025
Right-hander
Alek Manoah became a free agent on Friday after the Atlanta Braves did not tender him a contract for the 2026 season, according to the team. Manoah was an All-Star in 2022 with the Toronto Blue Jays and finished third in the American League Cy Young voting that year, but things quickly fell apart for him the following season, and now he's a free agent this winter. The 27-year-old had UCL surgery on his right elbow in June of 2024 and spent most of this year rehabbing. Manoah had a 3.96 ERA and 1.53 WHIP with 35 strikeouts and 23 walks in 10 starts over 38 2/3 innings at four minor-league levels in the Blue Jays organization in 2025 before he was cut in late September. The former first-rounder will likely have to settle for a minor-league deal somewhere as he looks to work his way back to the big leagues.
--Keith HernandezSource: Atlanta Braves
November 21, 2025
The Baltimore Sun reports that the Baltimore Orioles tendered a contract offer to first baseman
Ryan Mountcastle for the 2026 season. Mountcastle was a non-tender candidate after hitting just seven home runs in 2025. The 28-year-old is projected to make more than $8 million in salary arbitration in 2026, but it looks like he's going to stick around in Baltimore for at least one more season. The former 36th overall pick in the 2015 draft hit .250/.286/.367 with a career-worst .653 OPS, 35 RBI, and 34 runs scored in 89 games played in his sixth year in the majors this past season. Since clubbing a career-high 33 long balls and driving in 89 RBI in his first full season in 2021, Mountcastle has regressed at the plate, especially in the power department. 2026 will be a make-or-break year for him, and he could be a trade candidate before the regular season even begins.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Baltimore Sun
November 21, 2025
Right-handed reliever
Felix Bautista and the Baltimore Orioles avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $2.25 million contract for next season, a source told Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Bautista will return to Baltimore for the 2026 campaign, but he's not expected to be available to pitch again until after the All-Star break after he had surgery to fix a torn labrum and torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder back in August. The 30-year-old Dominican reliever also missed the entire 2024 season due to injury. The good news is that Bautista looked strong again in 35 appearances out of the O's bullpen in 2025 before his shoulder injury, posting a 2.60 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 19 saves, 50 strikeouts, and 23 walks in 34 2/3 frames. He had a career-high 33 saves in 56 appearances in his All-Star season in 2023.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Mark Feinsand
November 21, 2025
Right-hander
Clarke Schmidt and the New York Yankees avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $4.5 million deal for the 2026 season, a source told Robert Murray of FanSided. Schmidt probably won't pitch again for the Yankees until the second half of next season after he had an internal-brace procedure on his right elbow in mid-July. The 29-year-old former 16th overall pick in 2017 out of South Carolina was solid in 14 starts for the Yanks before his elbow injury this year, going 4-4 with a 3.32 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 73:30 K:BB over 78 2/3 innings pitched. Schmidt was even better in 2024 before another injury ended his season early, as he posted a career-best 2.85 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 16 starts in pinstripes. In his six MLB seasons, Schmidt has a 3.82 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 23% strikeout rate, and 8.3% walk rate.
--Keith HernandezSource: FanSided - Robert Murray
November 21, 2025
The Milwaukee Brewers signed first baseman/outfielder
Jake Bauers to a one-year, $2.7 million deal on Friday to avoid salary arbitration, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Bauers will return to the Brewers for the 2026 season as a left-handed-platoon bat at first base, designated hitter, and left field. The 30-year-old hit .235/.353/.399 with a career-best .752 OPS, seven home runs, 28 RBI, 28 runs scored, and eight stolen bases in 85 regular-season games in his first year with the Brew Crew. Bauers made $1.4 million in 2025. He entered the month of September with a .653 OPS but had a 1.018 OPS in the final month of the regular season before posting a .973 OPS with a home run in six playoff games. If not for that strong final month of the year, Bauers' overall numbers would not have looked nearly as good, although he did make strides to drop his strikeout rate and increase his walk rate in 2025.
--Keith HernandezSource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
November 21, 2025
Outfielder
Adolis Garcia is being non-tendered by the Texas Rangers on Friday, sources told Jesse Rogers of ESPN. Garcia will now become a free agent this offseason after hitting .227 with 19 home runs and a .665 OPS for the Rangers in 2025. The 32-year-old has battled through injuries in recent seasons, but plenty of teams should be interested after he had a ridiculous 1.108 OPS in the 2023 postseason on his way to helping Texas win its first World Series championship that year. The Rangers didn't want to have to pay the right-handed slugger around $12 million in salary arbitration for next season. In addition to Garcia, the Rangers also non-tendered catcher
Jonah Heim. In the last two years, Garcia's .675 OPS ranks 117th among 123 qualified hitters. In the 2023 postseason, he hit .323/.382/.726 in 15 games, including a walk-off homer in Game 1 of the World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN Chicago - Jesse Rogers
November 21, 2025
The San Francisco Giants are acquiring outfielder
Joey Wiemer from the Miami Marlins on Friday in exchange for cash considerations, according to MLB.com's AJ Cassavell. The Giants designated catcher
Andrew Knizner for assignment to clear space on the 40-man roster for Wiemer, who will give San Fran extra outfield depth going into next season. The 26-year-old hit .236 with a .715 OPS in 27 games for the Fish in 2025 before being DFA'd by the Marlins earlier this week. The soon-to-be 27-year-old is out of options and can't be sent to the minors without clearing waivers. Wiemer is considered an above-average defender and can play all three outfield spots, but at best, he's likely to operate as a platoon bat in the Bay Area. He has a .779 career OPS against left-handers and a .559 mark against righties. He won't move the needle in standard-sized fantasy baseball leagues in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - AJ Cassavell
November 20, 2025
New York Mets outfielder
Brandon Nimmo has seen his name thrown about in trade rumors early on this offseason. However, Andy Martino of SNY reports that the Mets have not "asked (Nimmo) or his representatives if he'd be willing to waive" his full no-trade clause. While that does not mean the team won't approach Nimmo at a later date to gauge his interest, Martino's report highlights that any trade talks are still in the preliminary stages. Across 652 plate appearances in 2025, Nimmo slashed .262/.324/.436 with 25 home runs, 92 RBI, 81 runs scored, and 13 stolen bases. The 32-year-old Nimmo has spent his entire 10-year MLB career with the Mets. Still, with five years and over $100 million remaining on his current contract, New York may be looking to move off Nimmo before he hits his mid-30s.
--Will BradySource: SNY - Andy Martino
November 20, 2025
Free-agent infielder
Jorge Polanco "remains a priority" for the Seattle Mariners front office, according to Adam Jude of The Seattle Times. Polanco had a resurgent 2025 season in Seattle, slashing .265/.326/.495 with 26 home runs, 78 RBI, 64 runs scored, and six stolen bases across 524 plate appearances. The 32-year-old is more of a designated hitter than a defender at any position at this point in his career, but he can still log a few innings at any infield position other than shortstop. Polanco is also a switch-hitter who has logged double-digit barrel rates in four out of the last five seasons and cut his strikeout rate to 15.6% in 2025, his lowest full-season mark since 2017. If he does re-sign with the Mariners, Polanco would likely slot in as the team's opening-day designated hitter.
--Will BradySource: The Seattle Times - Adam Jude
November 20, 2025
Japanese infielder Kazuma Okamoto of the Yomiuri Giants has been posted for MLB teams, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Heyman reports that Okamoto's negotiating window will run from November 21 through January 4. The 29-year-old Okamoto is a corner infielder who slashed .327/.416/.598 with 15 home runs, 38 runs scored, 49 RBI, and one stolen base across 293 plate appearances in the NPB last season. He missed over three months of the 2025 season due to a left elbow injury, but has largely stayed healthy over the course of his career to this point. Okamoto has run double-digit walk rates in each of the last three seasons and has kept his whiffs in check as well, striking out at an 11.3% clip in 2025. There's always risk for MLB teams when bringing in players from Japan, but it seems likely that the team that signs Okamoto will do so with the intent of playing him every day.
--Will BradySource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
November 20, 2025
In a media appearance on Wednesday night, Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall said that shortstop
Elly De La Cruz (quad) played through a"partial torn quad" from late July onwards, per Doug Gray of Redleg Nation. Krall later attempted to clarify his statements by calling the injury "more nagging than serious," but Krall also said that De La Cruz has been "rehabbing this whole offseason." It certainly sounds as though De La Cruz was playing through a significant leg injury for the final two-plus months of the 2025 season. Overall, De La Cruz slashed .264/.336/.440 with 22 home runs, 86 RBI, 102 runs scored, and 38 stolen bases across 699 plate appearances. However, the 23-year-old hit just .221 with three home runs and eight stolen bases from August onwards. If De La Cruz can get fully healthy heading into the 2026 season, he could push closer towards the 67 stolen bases he racked up in 2024 than the 38 he collected in 2025. The health of De La Cruz's quad is something for fantasy managers to monitor over the course of the winter.
--Will BradySource: Redleg Nation - Doug Gray
November 20, 2025
The New York Post's Jon Heyman said that the idea of the Detroit Tigers trading left-hander
Tarik Skubal is "doubtful." The Tigers offered Skubal less than $80 million for four years at this time a year ago, but it wasn't a realistic offer, and left-hander
Garrett Crochet got double that from the Boston Red Sox. Heyman thinks the Tigers will gauge the trade market for Skubal this offseason, and while he won't rule out any trade, he considers it unlikely. The 29-year-old has won the American League Cy Young in back-to-back seasons while going a combined 31-10 with a 2.30 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and a 469:68 K:BB in 62 starts during the regular season. He had career-highs in 2025 in ERA (2.21), WHIP (0.89), strikeouts (241), and innings pitched (195 1/3). The Tigers are likely to hang onto him in the final year of his contract as they look to make the playoffs for the third straight year.
--Keith HernandezSource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
November 19, 2025
The Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros pulled off a trade on Wednesday, with the Braves acquiring infielder/outfielder
Mauricio Dubon from the Astros in exchange for infielder
Nick Allen, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. The Braves have a glaring need at shortstop going into next season, but it's unclear if Dubon, a two-time Gold Glover, will play at the 6 primarily or be used as more of a utility man. The 31-year-old has played seven different positions in his seven big-league seasons, including 107 games at short and 214 at second base. Both Dubon and Allen are glove-first players, which doesn't make them as attractive in fantasy baseball. Dubon has had a .677 OPS the last three years in Houston, while Allen had just a .535 OPS while serving as the Braves' primary shortstop for much of 2025. Dubon has only 39 homers with a .257/.295/.374 slash line in his seven seasons in the majors.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Jeff Passan
November 19, 2025
After designating him for assignment on Tuesday, the New York Mets officially released right-hander
Frankie Montas (elbow) on Wednesday, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Montas will go down as a huge bust signing for the Mets, as he ended up making only nine appearances (seven starts) for New York in 2025 while posting an ugly 6.28 ERA (5.33 FIP) and 1.60 WHIP with 32 strikeouts and 14 walks in 38 2/3 innings pitched. The 32-year-old veteran needed Tommy John surgery on his right elbow and will now miss the entire 2026 season. The Mets will owe him $17 million while he rehabs next year. The Dominican hurler teased fantasy managers back in 2021 with a 3.37 ERA and a career-high 207 strikeouts, but things began to fall apart health-wise shortly after he was acquired by the New York Yankees the following season. Montas did manage to make 30 starts in 2024 with the Reds and Brewers, but he was unable to rediscover the form he showed in Oakland.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Anthony DiComo
November 19, 2025
The Boston Red Sox announced on Tuesday that they designated first baseman
Nathaniel Lowe for assignment after acquiring infielder
Tristan Gray from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor-league right-hander
Luis Guerrero. Lowe began the 2025 campaign playing for the Washington Nationals, where he hit just .216/.292/.373 with a career-low .665 OPS, 16 home runs, 68 RBI, 50 runs scored, and a 130:47 K:BB in 119 games played. The 30-year-old left-handed slugger finished up the year in Boston, where he went 28-for-100 (.280) with two bombs, 16 RBI, and 14 runs scored in 34 regular-season contests. Lowe should attract some interest on the free-agent market this winter as a left-handed power bat, but in a best-case scenario, he'll probably be a platoon power bat at first base/designated hitter wherever he ends up. Lowe's best season came in Texas in 2022, when he hit 27 homers and drove in 76 in 157 games.
--Keith HernandezSource: Boston Red Sox
RADIO
