MLB Player News

With the returns of both Yimi Garcia and Erik Swanson to the Jays’ bullpen on Friday, someone had to go to create a spot and unfortunately Pop was the odd man out this time around. The 27-year-old hurler will continue to refine his craft at the Triple-A level until another opportunity arises in Toronto.

De Vries connected for an absolute no-doubter to left field -- his second round-tripper of the AFL season -- which traveled 418 feet and carried a 104 mph exit velocity. The switch-hitting 18-year-old prodigy, who has recorded some elite batted ball data this fall, is arguably a top five dynasty prospect already, and projects as a potential fantasy superstar down the road, if everything comes together. He’s a hyperspace jump or two away from the majors entering the 2025 season, but he’s going to move extremely quickly towards San Diego.

The fact that McLain is consistently hitting for power in the AFL is a phenomenal sign considering he missed all of last season recovering from shoulder surgery. The 25-year-old second baseman, who posted a 16-homer, 14-steal rookie campaign in just 89 contests back in 2023, will be one of the more polarizing players in fantasy drafts next spring, but his power/speed combo might push him into the top 10 at the keystone in short order.

Briceño walloped his AFL-leading ninth round-tripper in the opening frame as he continues to build a compelling resume for AFL MVP honors. The 20-year-old backstop was limited to just 40 games this past season at Low-A Lakeland due to injury, but has certainly made up for lost time in the fall circuit. He’s a long ways off from the big leagues, but the over-the-fence pop is real and it’s spectacular.

Paredes represents an intriguing gamble for the Braves after compiling a strong 1.66 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 16/10 K/BB ratio across 21 2/3 innings (18 appearances) last season between the Brewers and Cubs. The 29-year-old righty, who has made 55 appearances in the big leagues dating back to 2020, will compete in spring training for a spot in Atlanta’s season-opening bullpen.

Thompson provides Atlanta with some additional relief depth heading into next season after not pitching in affiliated ball this past season. The 31-year-old righty made 55 appearances (36 starts) between the Marlins and Pirates from 2021 to 2022 and hasn’t appeared in the big leagues ever since. He’s merely extra organizational relief depth for the Braves.

Ohtani, who is currently recovering from offseason shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum, helped lead Los Angeles to a World Series title in his Dodgers debut where he finished with a surreal 1.036 OPS along with 54 homers and 130 RBI. Lindor turned in his finest season in the Big Apple to date, helping guide the Mets back to the postseason by posting a stellar .844 OPS with 33 homers and 29 steals over 152 games. Marte was limited to just 136 contests due to an untimely late-season ankle injury, but still managed to club a career-high 36 round-trippers for an Arizona squad that just narrowly missed out on a playoff berth.

It might finally be happening for Sale, who finally managed to stay healthy last year in his Braves debut, compiling a league-best 2.38 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 225/39 K/BB ratio across 177 2/3 innings (29 starts). The eight-time All-Star selection has six top-five finishes in Cy Young Award balloting, but has never taken home the hardware. Skenes, who is also a finalist for the NL Rookie of the Year Award, seems like a bit of a long shot here. Wheeler remains the model of consistency as Philadelphia’s ace after wrapping up last season with a career-best 2.57 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 224/52 K/BB ratio across 200 innings (32 starts).

This is going to be the closest race of any as there are compelling cases to be made for Chourio, Skenes and Merrill here. Chourio caught fire over the final few months of the year, finishing an extraordinary 21-homer, 22-steal rookie campaign by helping propel Milwaukee back to the playoffs. Skenes wrapped up a historic rookie campaign in which he also started the Midsummer Classic for the senior circuit with a sublime 1.96 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 170/32 K/BB ratio across 133 innings (23 starts). Merrill made San Diego’s season-opening roster out of spring training as their starting centerfielder and never looked back, delivering a series of clutch hits over the course of the year, finishing with a robust .826 OPS to go along with 24 homers and 16 steals over 593 plate appearances.

No surprises here as Judge is considered the heavy favorite to take home the hardware, which would be his second in the last three seasons, on the heels of a stellar 58-homer, 144-RBI campaign where he led the majors in both on-base percentage (.458) and slugging percentage (.701). Meanwhile, Soto is on the precipice of landing a lucrative multi-year contract on the open market after a stellar New York debut where he slugged a career-best 41 round-trippers. It’ll be the first top-three finish for Kansas City’s franchise cornerstone after Witt led the majors last season with an astonishing 211 hits, leading to a stratospheric .332 batting average.

Clase and Lugo are deserving finalists, but Skubal is a near-lock to take home his first Cy Young Award after a dominant 2024 campaign where he led the American League in ERA (2.39) and strikeouts (228) over 192 innings (31 starts). The 27-year-old southpaw figures to be the first starting pitcher off the board next spring in all fantasy drafts. Clase melted down in the postseason, but was other-worldly during the regular season, converting a career-high 47 saves to go with a sparkling 0.61 ERA across 74 1/3 innings (74 appearances). He’s the first reliever since Francisco Rodríguez back in 2008 to be named a Cy Young Award finalist. Lugo was an unexpected revelation in his Kansas City debut, finishing with a solid 3.00 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 181/48 K/BB ratio across 206 2/3 innings (33 starts).