Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

A tenth-round pick for the Astros in the 2019 draft, Stubbs was cut loose by Houston in May 2024, and he then quickly inked a new minor league deal with the Nationals. This stint in the Nats organization resulted in Stubbs' first taste of Major League action, albeit a small one - Stubbs' MLB resume consists of a single game, as he went 0-for-3 while starting behind the plate in Washington's 2-0 win over the Marlins on September 1.

Wallach, 34, has spent most of the past four years in the Angels' organization. He has been the third or fourth catcher on the depth chart. The Halos called him up last September while they were navigating injuries to Travis d'Arnaud and Logan O'Hoppe. Wallach played in one game and caught two innings in a loss in Seattle. The Angels outrighted him off the roster when O'Hoppe returned.

It's a relatively thin group after MLB's best pitcher. Olson missed most of the second half with a shoulder injury. Mize had an All-Star first half but was up-and-down later in the season. While Flaherty's strikeout and walk profile remained strong, he's coming off his second upper-4.00s ERA in three seasons. Anderson has started two MLB games and hasn't pitched in the majors in five years. Melton has mid-rotation upside but worked mostly out of the bullpen as a rookie.

Clayton Kershaw officially retired after 18 seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he will pitch at least one more time in a competitive setting. The left-hander was named to the Team USA roster for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, marking the first time he will participate in the event. Kershaw was primed to be part of the United States roster for the 2023 tournament, but had to back out due to not being able to secure an insurance policy.

Taylor, 27, has a small and unimpressive big league track record. He has appeared in 83 games over the past three seasons, split between the Royals and Mariners. He has stepped to the plate 83 times and produced a .205/.272/.260 line. However, he stole eight bases in that time without getting caught and has lined up defensively at second base, third base and all three outfield slots.

In 2017, starters averaged five and a half innings per start. Now, there's no such thing as half an inning, but that's the beauty of math. That number dipped slightly in 2018, to 5.4 innings per start. Even ignoring 2020, where teams felt more comfortable and/or harried into just getting through the 60-game season, the innings-per-start value bottomed out at exactly five in 2021.

Julks, 30 next month, has seen big league time in three consecutive seasons - albeit just 13 plate appearances with the White Sox this past season. He's played roughly the equivalent of one full major league season, appearing in 165 games and tallying 565 plate appearances as a big leaguer. In that time, he's slashed .234/.288/.337 with nine homers, 23 doubles, 20 steals (in 25 tries), a 7% walk rate and a 24.4% strikeout rate.

Signed a minor league deal shortly after the end of the 2024 Winter Meetings, Lauer's signing was a fairly insignificant one at the time. Sure, he had shown promise in the past, as he was drafted 25th overall in 2016 and even had a 3.47 ERA from 2021 until 2022. However, Lauer's final season in the big leagues before joining the Jays saw him post a 6.56 ERA with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2023, and he eventually pitched in the minor leagues and Korea in 2024.

It is the most unique contract in MLB history as all but $20 million of the total value will be paid out from 2034-2043, giving the Dodgers massive payroll flexibility. The deal also benefits Ohtani as he gets long-term security and tax savings. As a result, the two-way star only earns a $2 million salary each season. However, his total earnings was around $102 million in 2025 because of an array of endorsements with global companies.

The Mets and veteran right-handed reliever Luis García are in agreement on a contract, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. It's a one-year, $1.75MM major league deal that can be worth up to $3MM after incentives, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. García, a client of agents Larry Reynolds and Rosie Lopez-Herrera, still needs to complete a physical before the contract becomes official.

Thornton, a Wasserman client, has pitched in parts of seven big league seasons, all coming between the Blue Jays and Mariners. The 32-year-old had more success with the latter, pitching to a combined 3.65 ERA in 140 2/3 frames from 2023-25. Thornton was sitting on a 4.68 ERA in 42 1/3 innings this past season, his numbers still recovering from a five-run meltdown early in the season, when he suffered a torn Achilles that ended his season.

Anyway, Santander's 2025 wasn't great. A natural slow starter, Santander struggled in the first month or so, before getting hot for just under two weeks. Then, the injuries started, as he played through a hip and shoulder injury in May, ending up on the injured list. He stayed there until the final four games of the season, and was removed from their American League Championship Series roster due to a back injury.

Sborz, 32, returns to the team he has spent the past five years with. The highlight of that tenure was 2023. Sborz had an unimpressive 5.50 earned run average that season but the underlying marks were better. His 7.9% walk rate was a bit better than average and his 30.7% strikeout rate was very strong. A small 56% strand rate seemed to push some extra runs across, which is why his 3.75 FIP and 3.05 SIERA were much more optimistic.

Miami only claimed Bido off waivers from the Rays four days ago. They're already the 30-year-old righty's fourth organization of the offseason. Bido spent the 2024-25 seasons with the A's and finished the season on their roster. He's since bounced to the Braves, Rays and Marlins. Today's DFA could mean he lands with a fifth different club in what would be a span of under two months.

With their starting rotation problems still unresolved, the Mets are still in on free-agent starting pitcher Framber Valdez, even if more penalties come with it. Will Sammon of The Athletic first reported that New York maintained its interest in the southpaw ace, who rose to stardom with the Houston Astros, even if that means that they would lose their third and sixth-highest selections in the 2026 MLB Draft.