February 3, 2026
The Los Angeles Dodgers announced on Tuesday that they designated infielder
Andy Ibanez for assignment. In a corresponding move, the team claimed outfielder
Michael Siani off waivers from the New York Yankees. Ibanez loses his spot on the 40-man roster after signing a one-year, $1.2 million deal with the Dodgers last month. The 32-year-old veteran from Cuba played in 91 games for the Detroit Tigers last year and slashed .239/.301/.352 with a .653 OPS, four home runs, 21 RBI, 24 runs scored, and a career-high four stolen bases in 193 plate appearances. Ibanez is a career .254/.305/.389 hitter with a .694 OPS in five major-league seasons with the Tigers and Texas Rangers. He has very little power and speed, although his success against left-handed pitching in 2025 could make him attractive as a bench option off waivers.
--Keith HernandezSource: Los Angeles Dodgers
February 3, 2026
The Los Angeles Dodgers announced on Tuesday that they claimed outfielder
Michael Siani off waivers from the New York Yankees. The Dodgers designated infielder
Andy Ibanez for assignment in a corresponding move. The Yankees claimed Siani off waivers from the Dodgers last month, but he'll be heading back to L.A. with a week until the start of spring training. The 26-year-old is a great defensive outfielder, but he doesn't bring much with his bat. Siani played in only 19 games for the St. Louis Cardinals last year and hit .228/.285/.285 with a .570 OPS, two home runs, 20 RBI, 42 runs scored, and 20 stolen bases in 124 games in St. Louis in 2024. With minor-league options remaining, Siani will most likely begin the 2026 season at Triple-A Oklahoma City while providing organizational outfield depth for the Blue.
--Keith HernandezSource: Los Angeles Dodgers
February 3, 2026
Free-agent outfielder
Jordyn Adams signed a minor-league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday, according to Chris Cotillo of Mass Live. Adams, the former 17th overall pick by the Los Angeles Angels in 2018, made his major-league debut with the Halos in 2023 and hit .128 (5-for-39) in 17 games. He only appeared in five games for the Baltimore Orioles last year and was hitless in five at-bats with two strikeouts. The 26-year-old right-handed-hitting outfielder will now head to the Brewers, where he'll most likely serve as organizational outfield depth at Triple-A Nashville to begin the 2026 campaign. In seven minor-league seasons, Adams has slashed .247/.328/.377 with a .705 OPS, 52 home runs, 288 RBI, and 158 stolen bases in 651 games played. He is off the fantasy radar in all leagues.
--Keith HernandezSource: MassLive.com - Chris Cotillo
February 3, 2026
Right-hander
Kyle Bradish won his salary arbitration hearing with the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday, a source told Jake Rill of MLB.com. Bradish will make $3.55 million during the 2026 season. The Orioles had submitted a figure of $2.875 million. In his return from Tommy John surgery last year, the 29-year-old went 1-1 with a 2.53 ERA (2.45 FIP) and 1.03 WHIP with 47 strikeouts and 10 walks in 32 innings pitched over just six starts in his fourth year in the big leagues. Although it was a small sample size, Bradish's 37.3% strikeout rate was extremely impressive. He also went five innings in four of his starts and struck out nine or more in three outings. Fantasy managers shouldn't expect Bradish to be that dominant in 2026, but it's hard to argue with his results from the last three seasons (2.78 ERA and 268 K's in 240 innings). Bradish should be a low-end No. 2 target as a starting pitcher in fantasy in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Jake Rill
February 3, 2026
Free-agent first baseman
Carlos Santana agreed to a one-year, $2 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday, a source told John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports. The 39-year-old veteran switch-hitter will join his ninth team as he enters his 17th season in the big leagues. Santana split last season with the Cleveland Guardians and Chicago Cubs and slashed a combined .219/.308/.325 with a career-low .633 OPS, 11 home runs, 54 RBI, 49 runs scored, and seven stolen bases in 124 games and 474 plate appearances. Santana's ability to switch hit will give him an advantage in a platoon situation at first base, but he'll still likely be on the short side of a platoon with
Pavin Smith at first in the desert in 2026. In his prime, Santana was an excellent source of on-base percentage due to his fantastic knowledge of the strike zone, but he's declined offensively in recent years and is likely in his final big-league season.
--Keith HernandezSource: Arizona Sports - John Gambadoro
February 3, 2026
Los Angeles Dodgers star closer
Edwin Diaz will pitch for Puerto Rico in this year's World Baseball Classic, three years after he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the tournament, according to Alden Gonzalez of ESPN. Diaz tore the patellar tendon in his right knee while celebrating a victory back in 2023 over the Dominican Republic. He signed a three-year, $69 million contract with the Dodgers as a free agent this offseason and will enter 2026 as one of the top closers off the board in fantasy baseball drafts. Since 2018, Diaz has 201 saves, which is fourth-most in the majors. The 31-year-old veteran converted 28 of his 31 save chances and had a sharp 1.63 ERA with 98 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings last year for the New York Mets. As one of the most dominant closers in the game with the back-to-back World Series-champion Dodgers, the sky is the limit for Diaz in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Alden Gonzalez
February 3, 2026
The Minnesota Twins announced on Tuesday that they claimed right-hander
Jackson Kowar off waivers from the Seattle Mariners. Kowar was designated for assignment by Seattle last week after the team acquired
Jhonny Pereda from the Twins. The 29-year-old former first-rounder by the Kansas City Royals in 2018 out of the University of Florida had his 2025 season cut short by a right-shoulder impingement. Before his injury, he had a 4.24 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 15 strikeouts, and seven walks in 17 innings for the M's out of the bullpen. Kowar will most likely begin the 2026 campaign in the minors as organizational relief depth for Minnesota. In his four major-league seasons (three with the Royals), Kowar has posted an ugly 8.21 ERA (5.96 FIP), 1.93 WHIP, 90 strikeouts, and 58 walks in 54 outings (eight starts) over 91 innings pitched.
--Keith HernandezSource: Minnesota Twins
February 3, 2026
Houston Astros manager Joe Espada said that outfielder
Cam Smith will play some center field in spring training, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Reports this offseason have suggested that Smith isn't a lock for an Opening Day roster spot, but adding versatility in center field definitely will help his cause. The 22-year-old former first-rounder played well defensively in right field in 2025 in his first year in the big leagues while also slashing .236/.312/.358 with a .671 OPS, nine home runs, 51 RBI, 55 runs scored, and eight stolen bases in 134 games played. The 22-year-old was brought up to the big leagues quickly, which makes his struggles less surprising. Smith carried a 27.8% strikeout rate, 90 wRC+, 6.9% barrel rate, and 45.1% ground-ball rate. Because of the possibility that Smith will start the 2026 season at Triple-A Sugar Land, he's a very risky investment in single-year fantasy leagues.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Brian McTaggart
February 3, 2026
The Miami Marlins announced that they claimed right-hander
Garrett Acton off waivers from the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday and designated outfielder
Victor Mesa Jr. for assignment in a corresponding move. Acton, 27, made his major-league debut with the Athletics in 2023 and only threw one inning in relief for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2025. He spent most of last year at Triple-A Durham, where he pitched to a 3.68 ERA with 71 strikeouts and 27 walks in 58 2/3 innings pitched. Acton will now compete for an Opening Day bullpen spot with the Marlins in spring training, but he'll likely open the year at Triple-A Jacksonville. Mesa made his big-league debut in 2025 with the Fish and went 6-for-32 (.188) with a homer in only 16 appearances. He was much better at Triple-A, though, slashing .303/.374/.513.
--Keith HernandezSource: Miami Marlins
February 3, 2026
St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said the team wants to get to know and understand switch-pitching prospect Jurrangelo Cijntje better before making any determinations about his switch-pitching future, according to Brenden Schaeffer of St. Louis Sports Central. However, the Cardinals see Cijntje's upside similar to how the Seattle Mariners did. Before the M's traded the 22-year-old to the Cardinals on Monday in the deal that sent
Brendan Donovan to Seattle, they were mainly going to have him focus on pitching from the right side in spring training. "Broadly speaking, we do think the course that they were going to take is a good one," Bloom said. Cijntje was much more effective as a righty than as a lefty in the minors in 2025. The Mississippi State product is likely to begin at Double-A Springfield in 2026, and he's projected as a mid-rotation talent whenever he reaches the big leagues.
--Keith HernandezSource: St. Louis Sports Central - Brenden Schaeffer
February 3, 2026
St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said on Tuesday that infielders
Thomas Saggese and
Freddy Fermin could play into the competition in the outfield during spring training, according to Brandon Kiley of 101 ESPN. Entering the mix in the outfield would give Saggese a better path to more playing time, but he hasn't spent any time in the outfield yet in his professional career. The 23-year-old former fifth-round pick by the Texas Rangers in 2020 debuted in the majors in 2024 but played in only 18 games. Last year in 82 games (295 plate appearances), Saggese hit .258/.299/.342 with a .641 OPS, two home runs, 25 RBI, 25 runs scored, and three stolen bases for the Red Birds. Saggese still has time to develop, but he has so far disappointed with an elevated strikeout rate and limited power. His 44.1% hard-hit rate and 90.2 average exit velocity give hope that he can build on his offensive performance in 2026, but consistent playing time could be hard to come by.
--Keith HernandezSource: 101 ESPN - Brandon Kiley
February 3, 2026
St. Louis Cardinals infielder
Nolan Gorman will have "plenty of opportunity" this year to make an impact, according to president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. "It's a big year for him... He should have plenty of opportunity this year. We've seen it (before). He has power everywhere. He can drive the baseball to any part of the field... He knows this is a big opportunity (for him)," Bloom said. The Cardinals have two openings on the infield going into spring training at third base and second base after they traded both
Nolan Arenado and
Brendan Donovan this offseason. The 25-year-old Gorman is expected to take over at the hot corner, with infield prospect
JJ Wetherholt having a clear path at the keystone. We know there is power in Gorman's bat after he hit a career-high 27 homers in 2023, but he has struck out 35% of the time the last two seasons while hitting 33 combined homers. If Gorman can lower his strikeout rate in 2026, he could be a nice sleeper source of power with regular playing time.
--Keith HernandezSource: 101 ESPN - Brandon Kiley
February 3, 2026
The Colorado Rockies signed former Athletics catcher
Kyle McCann to a minor-league deal on Tuesday with a non-roster invitation to spring training, major-league sources told Thomas Harding of MLB.com. McCann will head to Colorado to give the Rockies additional catching depth. The 28-year-old left-handed-hitting backstop did not play in the majors at all last year after making his MLB debut with the A's in 2024. In his first 54 big-league games that season, McCann hit .236/.318/.371 with a .690 OPS, five home runs, 15 RBI, and 13 runs scored in 157 plate appearances. He split last season between Triple-A Las Vegas and the Mexican League. McCann will not be on the fantasy baseball radar in 2026 and is fully expected to begin the season at Triple-A Albuquerque.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com - Thomas Harding
February 3, 2026
The Houston Astros and third baseman
Isaac Paredes avoided an arbitration hearing by settling on a one-year, $9.35 million deal on Tuesday, a source told Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Both sides met in the middle after exchanging figures last month. The 26-year-old's fantasy stock is down heading into the 2026 campaign, as he might not have a path to an everyday role in his second year in Houston. Paredes slashed .254/.352/.458 with 20 home runs, 53 RBI, and 53 runs scored in 438 plate appearances over 102 games played. A hamstring injury was the reason why he didn't play a full season, and he wasn't 100% percent when he returned in the final month. In addition to Paredes not having a clear path to a starting role in 2026, there's a chance he's not ready for Opening Day as the Astros bring him along slowly. A trade out of town would most likely be the best thing for Paredes' fantasy value.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Chandler Rome
February 3, 2026
Athletics pitching prospect Jamie Arnold, the 11th overall pick in 2025, added a cutter and a kick changeup to his arsenal this offseason while working at Driveline in the offseason, according to Jesus Cano of Baseball America. The 21-year-old southpaw also features a mid-90s fastball, slider, and splitter. Arnold stands at 6-foot-1, 188 pounds and has a strong track record in college from his time at Florida State, where he was a top-two ACC pitcher in consecutive seasons. His fastball-slider combination was already pretty devastating, but now with a more diverse arsenal, he's a name to monitor in dynasty/keeper leagues entering the 2026 campaign. Arnold has drawn comparisons to
Chris Sale due to his lower arm slot from the left side. Depending on how he performs in the minors this year, Arnold could make his big-league debut this summer.
--Keith HernandezSource: Baseball American - Jesus Cano
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