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    TJ Friedl becomes minor league free agent

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    FA Center Fielder #29
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    Reds OF TJ Friedl elected free agency.

    Friedl may be the most prominent minor-league free agent on the open market this offseason after passing through waivers unclaimed last month. The 31-year-old hit just .172/.255/.255 with four homers and five steals across 272 plate appearances for Cincinnati this past season, a steep decline from the 18-homer, 27-steal campaign he put together back in 2023. He should still be able to latch on somewhere as a quality fourth outfielder, with a chance to compete for a more significant role in spring training.
'Something has to change' with Yankees' leadership
Dan Le Batard shares why noise surrounding the Yankees' leadership will only continue to grow following New York's sweep out of the ALDS at the hand of its division rival, with Jason Benetti adding his thoughts.

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  • CIN Center Fielder #29
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    Friedl would have lost a few bucks by declining the assignment, so he’ll remain in the Reds organization for the rest of the week. Barring a surprising decision to put him back on the 40-man, he’ll become a minor league free agent.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    A disappointing season for Friedl gets even worse on Sunday as he gets booted from the Reds’ 40-man roster to clear a spot for the return of Carson Spiers. The 31-year-old outfielder should pass through waivers unclaimed, at which point he may opt to hit the open market.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    Friedl has been demoted to make room for recent waiver wire additional Oswaldo Cabrera on Cincinnati’s roster. The 31-year-old outfielder has hit just .172/.255/.255 with four homers and five steals in 272 plate appearances.
  • CIN Designated Hitter #28
    Suárez being claimed by the Diamondbacks or Mariners would have made for a fun story, but instead he’ll finish out the regular season with the Reds. Neither club was willing to pick up approximately $3 million in salary for the 35-year-old slugger.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    Friedl, formerly the Reds’ starting center fielder, is batting just .158/.242/.234 in 253 plate appearances this season. He’s owed only about $750,000 for the rest of this season, with no commitment beyond that (though a team could keep him in arbitration). That might entice some team to pick him up as a bench guy. If that happens, the Reds could recall Noelvi Marte to help out in the outfield.
  • CIN Left Fielder #43
    Cincinnati failed to resolve their crowded outfield situation at the trade deadline earlier this week, but made the decision to promote Rodríguez anyway. The dynamic 22-year-old went 0-for-2 with a walk and scored a run against the Athletics in his big-league debut on Tuesday night. He possesses a fantasy-relevant skillset and is worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper mixed leagues. The big question is whether he’s able to carve out an everyday role over the next few weeks with JJ Bleday, Noelvi Marte, Dane Myers and TJ Friedl still in the mix.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    At this point, it’s pretty clear that Friedl has been supplanted by Noelvi Marte in the team’s starting lineup, as Friedl has started just once in the team’s last six games despite facing five right-handers during that stretch. It’s Marte in right field once again and batting eighth for the Reds on Friday evening against Pirates’ ace Paul Skenes.
  • CIN 2nd Baseman #15
    Johnson went 0-for-5 in four games in his first MLB stint earlier this season. The 27-year-old is hitting .278/.373/.474 in 61 games at Triple-A with 10 home runs and 11 steals. He will be on the bench on Monday with TJ Friedl starting in left field and JJ Bleday moving over to right field. That could be the regular lineup against right-handed pitchers for the next few weeks.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    Freidl had been 0-for-7 since being recalled when Blake Dunn got hurt. It’d be for the best if Matt McLain proved to be strong enough in center to play over Friedl, but Friedl will likely continue to start against righties for now. He’s batting .181/.259/.271 in 51 major league games this season.
  • CIN Center Fielder #29
    Friedl was optioned out at the beginning of June after flailing to a miserable .179/.259/.256 slash line with just two homers and five steals through his first 178 plate appearances. He appears to have gotten back on track at the Triple-A level where he hit .271/.370/.471 with three homers, five RBI and a pair of stolen bases over 81 plate appearances in 18 games. He’ll have a chance to see every day at-bats against right-handers with Blake Dunn (elbow) landing on the injured list on Sunday. He’s starting in center and batting eighth against Mitch Keller and the Pirates on Sunday afternoon.

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    Patrick Bailey went 2-for-3 with a homer, two runs scored and two RBI on Thursday, leading the Guardians to a 9-5 victory over the White Sox in Game 4 of the ALDS.

    Bailey didn’t start the game behind the dish but came on as a pinch-hitter for Austin Hedges in the fifth inning. There, he tagged Erick Fedde for a 376-foot (110.0-mph EV) solo shot that got the Guardians on the board. That was the hardest hit ball in Bailey’s career. He then delivered a go-ahead RBI single as part of a six-run uprising in the sixth inning to help the Guardians take control of the game before scoring on a fielding error by Chase Meidroth. Expect Bailey to be behind the dish in another must-win game for the Guardians in Game 5 back at home on Saturday.
  • CLE 3rd Baseman #11
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    José Ramírez went 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBI on Thursday as the Guardians rallied to beat the White Sox in Game 4 of the ALDS on Thursday evening in Chicago.

    Ramírez clobbered a go-ahead 378-foot (103.1-mph EV) two-run homer off of Jordan Hicks in the fifth inning that briefly gave the Guardians a 3-2 lead. He then added an RBI single as part of a six-run rally in the sixth inning. He’ll need more heroics like that if the Guardians are going to complete their massive comeback from being down 0-2 in the series when they play in a critical Game 5 at home on Saturday.
  • CLE Right Fielder #7
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    Jo Adell went 1-for-4 with a walk and two RBI on Thursday evening, helping to propel the Guardians to a victory over the White Sox in Game 4 of the ALDS.

    Adell came through with a two-run single off of Grant Taylor during a six-run uprising in the sixth inning, pushing the Guardians’ lead to 9-4. The 27-year-old slugger is now 4-for-15 (.267) with six RBI in his first four postseason contests for the Guardians.
  • CLE Starting Pitcher #32
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    Gavin Williams was called upon to bail Cade Smith out of a jam in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the ALDS on Thursday, allowing one hit while recording the final three outs.

    The Guardians entered the ninth with a comfortable five-run advantage, but after a home run from Miguel Vargas and a walk to Munetaka Murakami, manager Stephen Vogt turned to Williams — his presumed Game 5 starter — to close it out. Williams allowed a single to Sam Antonacci before retiring Andrew Benintendi on strikes for the first out of the inning. He then got Kyle Teel to ground into a fielder’s choice before retiring Braden Montgomery on a fly ball to left to end it. Williams needed 18 pitches to get through the ninth which could put his availability to start on Saturday into question.
  • CLE Starting Pitcher #77
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    Parker Messick struggled in a no-decision against the White Sox in Game 4 of the ALDS on Thursday night, giving up two runs on two hits in just 2 1/3 innings of work.

    Messick struck out five batters in the abbreviated outing but also issued four free passes which led to the quick hook in the third inning. Messick walked Munetaka Murakami with the bases loaded to force in a run, then exited with the bases loaded with one out — and one of the inherited runners scored against the Guardians’ bullpen as well. The 25-year-old southpaw got 12 whiffs on 65 pitches in the contest, posting a CSW of 28 percent. It’s unclear if he’ll be available to work out of the Guardians’ bullpen in a must-win Game 5 back in Cleveland on Saturday.
  • CWS 2nd Baseman #17
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    Sam Antonacci went 1-for-2 and drove in a pair of runs in a losing effort against the Guardians in Game 4 of the ALDS on Thursday evening in Chicago.

    Antonacci entered the game as a pinch-hitter with the bases loaded in the third inning where he delivered a sacrifice fly to increase the White Sox’ early lead to 2-0. He then strolled to the dish with the bases loaded in the fifth inning and was plunked to force in another run, tying the game at 3-3. He also singled off of Gavin Williams in the ninth inning. The versatile 23-year-old will need more of that magic in Game 5 on Saturday as the White Sox will be fighting to keep their World Series dream alive.
  • CWS 3rd Baseman #20
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    Miguel Vargas did his part as the White Sox dropped Game 4 of the ALDS to the Guardians on Thursday, going 1-for-2 with a solo homer, three walks, a stolen base and two runs scored.

    Vargas tagged Guardians’ closer Cade Smith for a 386-foot solo shot to lead off the ninth inning, but all that did was pull the White Sox to within four runs at 9-5. Vargas also walked and stole a base during a two-run rally in the third inning, then walked and scored on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning. The ninth-inning blast was Vargas’ first home run — and first RBI — of the postseason.
  • CWS Starting Pitcher #47
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    Erick Fedde pitched decently in a bulk role against the Guardians in Game 4 of the ALDS on Thursday, giving up two runs on three hits across 3 2/3 innings of work.

    Fedde came on with the bases loaded and two outs in the opening inning and struck out Angel Martinez to get out of a major jam. He then cruised through the next three innings unscathed until serving up a solo homer to Patrick Bailey in the fifth inning. He then exited after allowing a one-out single to Steven Kwan. Fedde got three whiffs on 61 pitches on the night, posting a CSW of 25 percent. It remains to be seen if he’ll be available out of the White Sox’ bullpen in a pivotal Game 5 on Saturday.
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    Jeimer Candelario has elected free agency.

    Candelario surprisingly cracked the Angels’ Opening Day roster in 2026, but was designated for assignment in early April after starting out 2-for-18 (.111) in his first seven games. He went on to have a solid season at Triple-A Salt Lake though, slashing .281/.377/.509 with 15 homers and 56 RBI in 387 plate appearances.
  • FA Relief Pitcher #35
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    Max Kranick has elected free agency.

    The 29-year-old right-hander made 17 forgettable appearances at the MLB level for the Nationals during the 2026 campaign, compiling a 9.33 ERA, 2.18 WHIP and an 11/13 K/BB ratio over 18 1/3 innings of work. He’s now free to start peddling his wares on the open market.