One of the Jays' prized trade deadline acquisitions this past summer, Ross Atkins sent rising outfielder Alan Roden and prospect Kendrys Rojas to the Minnesota Twins for Varland and his six years of control, with Varland slated for free agency in 2031. Possessing a four-seamer that can hit 100 MPH and a knuckle-curve that keeps hitters off balance, Varland has been called upon in a variety of scenarios for the Jays this postseason.
Medina pitched for the Mariners and Cubs from 2013-15, working 146 innings across an identical number of games. He posted a 3.08 career ERA with a 23.1% strikeout rate along with a 12.4% walk rate. Most of his success came in his first two seasons, as Medina pitched to a 2.81 ERA with a 24.3% strikeout rate and 12.6% walk rate in 125 innings for the Mariners from 2013-14.
The Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball have interest in acquiring veteran right-hander Kenta Maeda, according to a report from Yahoo Sports Japan. Maeda, 37, indicated back in August that he plans to leave MLB and return to Japan for the 2026 season, where he hopes to find a role in NPB. The veteran's decision to leave MLB behind isn't exactly a surprise given how difficult the past two seasons have been for him.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto closed the book on his sophomore MLB season with six shutout innings on Thursday to help the Los Angeles Dodgers clinch the National League West title. Yamamoto finished 2025 with a 2.49 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 201 strikeouts and 173.2 innings pitched across 30 starts. With 201 strikeouts, Yamamoto became the first Dodgers pitcher to reach 200 in a single season since Walker Buehler in 2021.
The complete game is all but dead -- no pitcher has more than one nine-inning complete game this season. One hundred pitches is now viewed as the top limit for a pitch count, with pitchers rarely exceeding 110 -- Randy Johnson had more 110-pitch outings just in 1993 than every starter combined in 2025. Pitchers get more days off between starts. And the list goes on.
He stuck around the Padres organization in the lower levels of the minors until he was plucked from San Diego by the Marlins in the minor league phase of the 2021 Rule 5 draft. He made his organizational debut in 2022 and mostly pitched well at the Single-A level before enjoying something of a breakout season in 2023 when he posted a 1.84 ERA in 58 2/3 innings of work between the High-A and Double-A levels.
Noah Davis was traded to the Minnesota Twins from the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations after being designated for assignment. He had previously been claimed off waivers by the Dodgers after being acquired from the Red Sox.