Nov 9, 2026, 10:31 AM ET

Catcher Bo Naylor, a former teammate of Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, testified last Thursday at their sports-betting trial that he did not know gamblers could place bets on individual pitches until the criminal case arose, according to Larry Neumeister of The Associated Press. Clase and Ortiz pleaded not guilty to conspiracy charges after they were filed a year ago. Prosecutors said the two pitchers accepted several thousand dollars in payments so sports gamblers could place bets on individual pitches, enabling the gamblers to pocket at least $460,000. Prosecutors say that Clase began giving information about his pitches to bettors in 2023 and recruited Ortiz into the scheme in 2025. Clase and Ortiz are both free on bail and are on non-disciplinary leave from the Guardians without pay while facing prosecution. Naylor testified that he was not close friends with either pitcher, and that he would frequently see Clase on his cellular phone in the locker room. Prosecutors have alleged that Clase sometimes broke MLB rules by communicating with gamblers during games.--Keith Hernandez
Source: The Associated Press - Larry Neumeister

Nov 4, 2026, 10:30 PM ET

Future Hall of Fame first baseman Albert Pujols will interview for the Houston Astros' managerial vacancy on Thursday, sources told Alden Gonzalez of ESPN. The Astros named former St. Louis Cardinals executive Randy Flores as their new general manager five days ago. Flores spent eight years in the big leagues before joining St. Louis' front office, with five of those years spent as Pujols' teammate in St. Louis, including a World Series championship in 2006. Pujols has made it clear that he has a desire to manage in the big leagues, and he won a championship in the Dominican winter league in his first season leading the Leones del Escogido in January of 2025 while also serving as the skipper for the Dominican Republic in this year's World Baseball Classic, where his squad lost to the United States in the semifinals. Pujols was a finalist for the managerial openings in the last hiring cycle with the Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres. New York Yankees bench coach Brad Ausmus is also among those being considered by the Astros for their managerial position.--Keith Hernandez
Source: ESPN.com - Alden Gonzalez

Nov 4, 2026, 9:47 PM ET

Catcher Ryan Jeffers received a one-year, $23.15 million qualifying offer from the Minnesota Twins, according to Dan Hayes of The Athletic. Jeffers has until Nov. 17 to accept it or decline it. Jeffers, who is about to enter his age-30 campaign, has been one of the more productive catchers in baseball in the last few seasons. The former second-rounder in 2018 from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington played in only 92 games due to injuries in the first half of the year in his seventh season with the Twins in 2026, but he was still very productive, slashing .256/.353/.461 with an .814 OPS, 14 home runs, 56 RBI, 49 runs scored, and a stolen base in 369 plate appearances. Most players who are extended a qualifying offer end up rejecting it to seek more riches on the open market, but it could be hard for Jeffers to turn this one-year deal down. If Jeffers turns the offer down and goes to the open market, he will be one of the most sought-after offensive-minded catchers of the offseason. Jeffers had a career-high 21 home runs and 64 RBI a couple of seasons ago in 2024, but he also hit just .226 that year with a .300 on-base percentage.--Keith Hernandez
Source: The Athletic - Dan Hayes

Nov 3, 2026, 8:26 PM ET

Major League Baseball proposed postponing the implementation of a salary cap until the 2028 season on Tuesday, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan, as the current collective bargaining agreement approaches its Dec. 1 expiration. The league has pressed forward with its pursuit of a cap and floor despite the Players Association voicing its objection to any cap. The $258.2 million cap and $180.2 million floor that MLB projected for 2028 were higher than the $245.3 million and $171.2 million numbers that the league proposed as its original cap-and-floor offer for 2027. MLB also proposed giving $282 million in competitive balance tax proceeds to players in cash payments, according to sources. Union officials have said that players would lose more than $1 billion over the life of the league's proposal if they agreed to a cap. The last time MLB formally proposed a cap-and-floor system in 1994, players went on strike for 232 days, and the World Series was canceled. Under the 2028 cap-and-floor projections, 12 teams, including the World Series champion Milwaukee Brewers, would need to increase their payrolls to reach the floor. Eight teams carried payrolls that would have been in excess of the ceiling. The MLBPA has proposed maintaining the current framework of the league's financial system while increasing spending, and the union has also asked for a surge in the minimum salary from $780,000 to $1.5 million and free agency for players 30 and older after five years of major-league service, not six.--Keith Hernandez
Source: ESPN.com - Jeff Passan

Nov 3, 2026, 2:10 PM ET

The Seattle Mariners are hiring former Chicago Cubs' director of player development Jason Kanzler as their new manager, a source told Alden Gonzalez of ESPN. Houston Astros manager Joe Espada had been among the finalists to land the job in Seattle, but it will instead go to Kanzler in an unconventional move by the Mariners. Kanzler, 36, will be replacing Dan Wilson after he was fired following the team's disappointing 2026 season. Kanzler has never managed at any level, but he will be inheriting one of the league's deepest, most talented rosters. Seattle has stars in outfielder Julio Rodriguez and catcher Cal Raleigh, not to mention some of the best starting-pitching depth in baseball. Kanzler is a former outfielder who was drafted in the 20th round in 2013. He previously spent five years with the Houston Astros, serving as a major-league coach in 2022 and 2023. He was hired by the Cubs as their director of player development at the start of the 2024 campaign. Kanzler will be the third skipper to serve under general manager Jerry Dipoto, who was brought in near the end of the 2015 season.--Keith Hernandez
Source: ESPN.com - Alden Gonzalez

Nov 2, 2026, 9:19 PM ET

The Milwaukee Brewers announced on Monday that they exercised their $15.5 million 2027 club option on All-Star catcher William Contreras, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. It was a no-brainer for the World Series champions after Contreras was named World Series MVP for both his offensive and defensive contributions in the win over the Tampa Bay Rays in the Fall Classic. The Venezuelan backstop was one of the best all-around catchers in both the regular season and the playoffs, and he went 8-for-21 with four RBI and two runs scored in the five-game series against the Rays in the World Series. Overall against Tampa, he slashed .373/.448/.588 with three home runs, two doubles, nine RBI, seven runs scored, and even a stolen base in 51 plate appearances. The 28-year-old will be one of the first catchers off the board in 2027 fantasy drafts after also hitting .270/.341/.417 with a .758 OPS, 18 homers, 94 RBI, and 82 runs scored in 147 regular-season games in his fourth year in Milwaukee. Contreras has hit at least 17 home runs since the start of his 2022 season, his last in Atlanta.--Keith Hernandez
Source: MLB.com - Adam McCalvy

Oct 29, 2026, 3:42 PM ET

Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras was named the World Series MVP after helping the Brewers win their first-ever championship over the Tampa Bay Rays in five games, according to MLB. The 28-year-old Venezuelan backstop became the eighth catcher to be voted World Series MVP after hitting .381 while throwing out four attempted base-stealers and winning 10 of his 13 appeals in the first World Series with the automated ball-strike system. Contreras capped it off with an RBI double in the 4-1 win to clinch the series on Wednesday night in Tampa. "He's our pit bull. You don't just walk up and pet him. There's a chance you get nipped," manager Pat Murphy said. During the regular season, Contreras, a three-time All-Star, hit .270 with 18 home runs and a career-best 94 RBI to help Milwaukee win their fourth straight National League Central title. He also led the league with 185 challenges and 105 overturns during the regular season. Contreras won 22 of 33 ABC challenges in the playoffs. Going into his eighth year in the big leagues next year, Contreras will continue to be one of the better upside options offensively at the catcher position in fantasy baseball.--Keith Hernandez
Source: MLB

Oct 28, 2026, 3:10 PM ET

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Liam Hicks had two of the team's nine hits in their 4-3 12-inning victory over the visiting Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night in Game 4 of the World Series. Hicks went 2-for-5 at the plate to help the Rays avoid a four-game sweep in the best-of-seven series and force a Game 5 in Tampa on Wednesday evening. It was the second straight World Series game with a hit for Hicks, who hit a two-run homer in the Game 2 loss in Milwaukee on Saturday. The left-handed hitting backstop did not play in the 10-1 Game 3 loss on Monday night with left-hander Robert Gasser on the mound for the Brewers. Hicks is now hitting .237 (9-for-38) with a homer, a double, eight RBI, and two runs scored in his first 12 postseason games this October after hitting a combined .284/.367/.434 with an .801 OPS, 18 home runs, 82 RBI, 66 runs scored, and three stolen bases in 479 at-bats in the regular season with the Rays and Miami Marlins. The Canadian catcher will have a tough matchup in Game 5 of the Fall Classic on Wednesday night against Brewers flamethrower Jacob Misiorowski.--Keith Hernandez
Source: MLB.com

Oct 27, 2026, 9:30 PM ET

Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic writes that the Boston Red Sox failing to come to a long-term extension with catcher Adley Rutschman after giving up a prospect haul to acquire him at the 2026 trade deadline would be "pretty rough." McCaffrey also speculates that Rutschman would likely ask for somewhere around five years and $100 million from Boston. The 28-year-old is set to hit free agency after 2027. Across 410 plate appearances split between the Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles in 2026, Rutschman hit .242/.315/.426 with 13 home runs, 60 RBI, and 44 runs scored. Rutschman could significantly improve his market if he can stay healthy for a full season and get his offensive numbers up closer to where they were in his peak season in 2023, when he posted an .809 OPS and 20 home runs across 687 plate appearances. Still, he may want the security of a long-term extension, and Boston could be looking to secure its catcher of the future.--Will Brady
Source: The Athletic - Jen McCaffrey

Oct 27, 2026, 1:15 PM ET

Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras has been the team's MVP throughout the postseason, and he had another big game offensively in the 10-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 3 of the World Series on Monday night to put the Brewers one win away from their first-ever World Series title. Contreras went 3-for-5 at the plate with an RBI, a run scored, and a strikeout. The 28-year-old Venezuelan has been a tough out at the plate while also providing stellar defense behind the plate for the Brew Crew in October. He hit .270/.341/.417 with a .758 OPS, 18 home runs, 94 RBI, 82 runs scored, and a stolen base in 566 at-bats during the regular season, but he has taken it to another level in the playoffs. After Contreras' three-hit game in Tampa in Game 3 of the Fall Classic, he is now hitting an absurd .419 (18-for-43) with three home runs, one double, eight RBI, six runs scored, and one stolen base in 49 plate appearances across 11 games played. He continues to be Milwaukee's heart and soul on offense and defense.--Keith Hernandez
Source: MLB.com

Oct 26, 2026, 9:37 PM ET

Major League Baseball is experimenting with restricting the positioning of outfielders on every at-bat in the Arizona Fall League, according to ESPN.com. The goal is to boost the game's sluggish offense by making outfielders play straight up, instead of adjusting for individual hitters' tendencies, which will in theory lead to more doubles and triples. Outfielders will look up at a small video board that can tell a player where they are in the field and will either generate an "X" if he is incorrectly positioned or an "O" if he is in a defensively acceptable spot. "The hardest part is cutting off doubles in the gap, and they're even turning into triples," Minnesota Twins prospect Kyle DeBarge said. "That's what they told us they wanted in the beginning. So it works." A recent game saw Scottsdale beat Salt River 15-8 in a game that featured five triples, which was an AFL record.--Keith Hernandez
Source: ESPN.com

Oct 26, 2026, 10:27 AM ET

Former Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo is interviewing for the vacant Houston Astros general manager role, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. As general manager of the Nationals, Rizzo built up the franchise and led Washington to its first-ever World Series title in 2019, defeating the Houston Astros. Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez were fired in 2025, ending Rizzo's 19-year tenure with the franchise. Rizzo was considered for the Athletics job in a similar role this offseason, but withdrew his name from consideration to focus on the Astros position, according to Nightengale.--Brian Buckey - RotoBaller
Source: Bob Nightengale, USA Today

Oct 26, 2026, 10:12 AM ET

Los Angeles Dodgers special assistant Rocco Baldelli has withdrawn from the search for a new Seattle Mariners manager, according to a report from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal. Rosenthal reports that Baldelli has cited "family considerations" in withdrawing his name from consideration for the Mariners' open position. Baldelli currently serves as a special assistant to the president of baseball operations with the Dodgers. He was previously the manager of the Minnesota Twins from 2019 to 2025 and was the American League Manager of the Year in 2019 and won three AL Central division titles.--Brian Buckey - RotoBaller
Source: The Athletic, Ken Rosenthal

Oct 25, 2026, 8:29 PM ET

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Liam Hicks was part of the team's offensive explosion in the top of the first inning in Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday night against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. In the Rays' four-run outburst out of the gate on Saturday against right-hander Logan Henderson, Hicks hit a two-run home run. It would be his only hit of the night, and the last time the Rays crossed home plate. The 27-year-old left-handed hitter now has three RBI in the first two games of this year's Fall Classic, but he has gone just 7-for-33 (.212) with a homer, a double, eight RBI, two runs scored, three walks, and six strikeouts in 11 games played. The Canadian native was one of the more attractive backstops in fantasy baseball during the regular season, hitting .284/.367/.434 with an .801 OPS, 18 home runs, 82 RBI, 66 runs scored, and three stolen bases in 142 games with the Rays and Miami Marlins in a breakout campaign in just his sophomore season in the big leagues. Hicks has swung a hotter bat in the last few games, and the Rays are going to need that to continue to get back into this series.--Keith Hernandez
Source: MLB.com