Steven Cruz picks up fifth save in win Monday

The contract includes a $4 million club option for 2028 ($500K buyout). Webb’s last deal had a $2.5 million club option for 2027 with no buyout, so the Cubs get to keep Webb at the same salary but add another year of potential team control. Webb had a 3.36 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and a 73/25 K/BB ratio in 67 innings out of the bullpen in 2026.

Bodine is the 46th-ranked prospect in baseball. He hit .342/.410/.517 in 468 at-bats across four levels this season with 17 home runs and 10 steals. He threw out 19 percent of all potential basestealers and could be an option for the Rays at some point in 2027.

Another feather in the cap for MLB Pipeline’s 2nd-ranked prospect. Arias hit .323/.400/.557 with 25 home runs, 91 RBI, and nine steals in 117 games across Double-A and Triple-A. He will turn 21 years old later this month, but Arias is making a real case to be in the mix as the Red Sox’s starting shortstop next season.

Before the 2021-22 lockout, Major League Baseball amended its previous agreement with Nippon Professional Baseball to allow Japanese players 45 days to sign with an MLB team once they’ve been posted. The league will not alter that deadline this season. That means NPB players who are posted, like Teruaki Sato, Hiromi Itoh, and Kaima Taira, have until December 15th to sign; however, with a potential lockout beginning on December 1st, that likely means that all NPB players will have to sign before the lockout or return to their teams in Japan.

Ausmus previously managed the Tigers and Angels and has a 386-422 (.478) record in his five seasons. His first season with the Tigers in 2014 was his best season, and the only one in which Ausmus made the playoffs as a manager.

This isn’t a big surprise, but it’s noteworthy to hear it reported so bluntly. The Yankees will need to find replacements both at second base and center field, and the internal options for both, as Castillo reports, are uncertain, so the team may be looking to free agency for both positions.

Hernández signed a three-year, $66 million contract last offseason and hit .267/.334/.425 in 125 games with 16 home runs, 64 RBI, and a 27.5 percent strikeout rate. His defense has also declined over the last three seasons, which makes it difficult for the Dodgers to field a lineup with him and Shohei Ohtani, who is also in the lineup as a strict DH.

Megill has one more year of team control under arbitration and then will be a free agent. Typically, that has been when the Brewers look to facilitate a trade if they don’t feel that they can afford to re-sign a player when they enter free agency. Since Abner Uribe is under team control through the 2030 season, the Brewers have a built-in replacement if the team does decide to make a deal.

This will be the case for many free agents, who will look to lock in multi-year contracts before a new collective bargaining agreement may change the financial landscape of the league. Skubal is likely the number one option on the market, and Passan reports that the Dodgers, Mets, and Cubs are all highly interested in the left-hander, but that the Cubs “are skeptical that they will be willing to compete at the sort of dollars Skubal is expected to get.”

Rea pitched 137 innings for the Cubs this season, making 19 starts. He posted a 4.34 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 101/47 K/BB ratio. He has been a reliable arm in a variety of roles over his career, so he is bound to get another shot somewhere as a depth option for a pitching staff.