MLB Player News

Blanco had sought a second opinion on his injured elbow last week, and now we know the result of that visit. The 31-year-old will miss the remainder of the 2025 season and likely at least the first half of the 2026 season. By then, the Astros will likely have Spencer Arrighetti, Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia and J.P. France all back in their rotation, so Blanco’s future role in Houston is a bit up in the air after this latest development.

The deal is pending a physical, but the two sides have been circling each other for months now. Bader is coming off one of his best seasons, hitting .277/.347/.449 with 17 homers in 501 plate appearances for the Twins and Phillies. That came with career-bests in barrel rate and hard-hit rate. Bader also remains a strong defender, so he should man center field for the Giants, which would push Jung Hoo Lee to right field, where he would likely be on the strong side of a platoon with Jerar Encarnacion.

Mancini was in the Diamondbacks organization last season and hit .308/.373/.522 with 16 homers in 335 plate appearances over 75 games. When the Diamondbacks didn’t give him any MLB at-bats, he opted out of his contract on July 1st. Production like that could net him some opportunities with the Angels, but the 33-year-old has not had an MLB at-bat since hitting .234/.299/.336 with four home runs in 79 games for the Cubs in 2023.

The 32-year-old southpaw made 12 starts for the Rockies in 2025, compiling a cringe-inducing 7.49 ERA, 1.72 WHIP and a 34/17 K/BB ratio across 57 2/3 innings. He’ll add organizational pitching depth for the Rangers and should continue to be ignored for fantasy purposes.

Steele has been throwing since October, but this was the first time that he was able to get up on the mound and do so. Barring any setbacks, he remains on track to return at some point during the first half of the 2026 season.

The 26-year-old hurler spent the first seven years of his minor league career in the Royals’ organization. He missed the entire 2025 campaign while recovering from Tommy John surgery but is now back to full health and has looked very sharp in bullpen sessions. He makes for a nice depth addition for the White Sox.

The 27-year-old former top prospect elected free agency from the Orioles back in November after slashing a meager .203/.278/.336 with six home runs and three stolen bases in 265 plate appearances. While another change of scenery may be just what he needs to get his career back on track, Carlson can be ignored for fantasy purposes at this stage.

The 39-year-old franchise staple took to social media on Saturday to express his frustration with the Pirates, noting that if this is going to be his last season, he would have liked to participate in Fanfest and go out on his terms with a proper farewell tour. It sounds like the radio silence from the Pirates could mean that they’re ready to move on, though an invite to the team’s FanFest still would have been a nice way for him to say goodbye to the fans one final time.

The 33-year-old infielder hasn’t played in the big leagues since the 2023 season and spent the 2025 campaign in the Mexican League. Over parts of eight major league seasons, Alberto slashed .269/.292/.381 with 22 homers, 137 RBI, 12 stolen bases and a 182/36 K/BB ratio across 1477 plate appearances. Best of luck to Alberto in the next stage of his life.

We thought Kimbrel might sign with one of the closer-less teams if he opted to continue his career, but that’s not the case here. The 37-year-old showed especially diminished velocity at the beginning of last year after signing with the Braves, but he did get it back some later on and wound up a 2.45 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 11 innings with the Astros at the end of the year. One of the most successful relievers of all-time, Kimbrel has racked up 440 saves, putting him fifth on the career list. His 159 ERA+ is the 10th-best figure for anyone with 500 career innings since 1900.

It didn’t take Taylor long to find a new home after being removed from Seattle’s 40-man roster earlier this week. The 27-year-old’s defensive versatility and speed make it easy to envision a super utility bench role with the Padres but he’ll have to beat out in-house alternatives like Mason McCoy and Bryce Johnson in spring training to have any shot at cracking the Opening Day roster.