MLB Player News

Ever seen that GIF of Grandpa Simpson going in and out of a door after putting his hat on the hat rack? Well, that’s basically Segura here, though he didn’t even have enough time to get a Guardians hat. Segura signed a two-year, $17 million deal with the Marlins this offseason, but he’s disappointed with a .219/.277/.279 batting line over 325 plate appearances. Now he’ll head back into free agency and can sign with a team at the major league minimum.

With veteran closer Kirby Yates hitting free agency, Sborz would’ve been among the candidates vying for closing duties in Texas, but he’s going to wind up missing most of, if not all, of the first half of next season after undergoing a debridement procedure earlier this month to address a lingering right shoulder issue.

Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young told reporters Seager, who underwent core muscle surgery back in mid-September to address a sports hernia, is expected to be ready for spring training without any limitations. It’s an extremely positive development for fantasy managers as the 30-year-old four-category stalwart should enter 2025 as a slam-dunk top eight shortstop following three consecutive 30-homer campaigns.

Great news. Jung appears on track to enter spring training without any limitations after being limited to just 46 contests last season due to persistent right wrist issues that ultimately led to early October surgery. The 26-year-old former top prospect offers tantalizing over-the-fence power upside, and is a borderline top 12 third baseman for fantasy purposes heading into next year.

García appears to have resumed baseball activities, and should have a normal offseason, after suffering a left patella tendon strain during the late stages of last season. The 31-year-old slugger managed to play through the lingering issue for most of last season and it clearly had an impact on his performance at the dish. He’s a surefire 30-homer performer, if he’s back at 100 percent, and looks like a clear-cut top 30 outfielder for fantasy purposes heading into 2025.

Carter was limited to just 45 games last season due to a stress reaction in his back, but managed to avoid undergoing surgery. The positive news here from a fantasy perspective is that the 22-year-old former top prospect should be a full-go once spring training rolls around. He looked like a potential five-category impact fantasy contributor during his 2023 rookie debut before last year’s injury-marred campaign. There’s an argument for putting him in the top 40 range among outfielders heading into 2025 based on his raw talent and a clean bill of health.

Avans heads to the Athletics after spending the last seven years with the Dodgers organization. The 28-year-old outfielder posted a respectable .762 OPS with eight homers and 35 stolen bases across 625 plate appearances over 133 games last year for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Bumgarner hasn’t officially announced his retirement, but he also hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since a disastrous four-start stretch to open the 2023 season, which led to the Diamondbacks releasing him and eating the final $37 million left on his contract. The 35-year-old lefty cemented his legacy with the Giants earlier in his career as one of the legendary postseason performers of his era and appears likely to head back to the Bay Area in a limited role either as a guest instructor at spring training or front office consultant.

Ingram bolsters Atlanta’s left-handed relief depth heading into spring training following stops with five different organizations last year where he compiled a respectable 3.59 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 52/36 K/BB ratio across 52 2/3 innings (46 appearances) in the upper minors. The 28-year-old southpaw made five appearances during the 2023 campaign for the Angels.

Banfield was a second-round pick of the Marlins back in 2018 and never wound up reaching the big leagues. The 25-year-old backstop will presumably head to Triple-A Louisville to open next season as extra organizational catching depth after batting .247/.297/.379 with nine homers in 371 plate appearances last year for Triple-A Jacksonville.

Woo adds some important context noting that Arenado has not demanded a trade, but he’s been open to the idea since the Cardinals approached him at the end of last season about exploring the trade market. It’s an interesting wrinkle for Arenado, who is coming off arguably the worst offensive season of his 12-year career, entering the hot stove season, especially given the lack of quality options from a fantasy standpoint outside the consensus top-six sluggers at the cold corner heading into 2025. A change of scenery could help Arenado revert to form and make him a mixed league-relevant fantasy contributor again.