New York

Mets

That’s at least the third team that has had a face-to-face meeting with Sasaki, as he met with the Yankees and Mets on Thursday. The Mariners and Padres are known to be making a big push to sign him, while the Dodgers and Tigers are among the many other clubs known to have expressed interest already. Sasaki plans to meet with all interested parties in Los Angeles and has until January 23 to come to an agreement with a big league club.

Ortiz is expected to miss most or all of the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last July. The 29-year-old will get a chance to rehab with the Mets, and if things go well, could be back with the club in 2026 as a bullpen option.

The 28-year-old hurler passed his physical on Thursday and the Mets officially announced the deal, which had been agreed to on Wednesday. While he has shown glimpses of greatness in the past, Canning struggled to a pedestrian 5.19 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and a 130/66 K/BB ratio over 171 2/3 innings for the Angels during the 2024 campaign. Perhaps a change of scenery and being able to pitch for a contender for the first time are what Canning needs to get his career back on track.

Canning becomes the latest low-risk reclamation project for New York’s pitching apparatus to tinker with heading into next season. The 28-year-old righty was non-tendered last month by the Braves after coming over a few weeks prior in the Jorge Soler trade. He’s shown flashes of fantasy potential in the past, but his velocity was down across the board last season as he struggled to a bloated 5.19 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 130/66 K/BB ratio across 171 2/3 innings (32 appearances, 31 starts) for the Angels. He can be safely ignored for fantasy purposes at the moment, but it’ll be interesting to see how he looks in Grapefruit League starts.

Williams, 28, had spent his entire career in the Twins’ system and hit .222/.335/.468 with 48 homers over 885 plate appearances in Triple-A the last 2 1/2 seasons. He isn’t strong enough with the glove to be a No. 2 catcher in the majors or with the bat to earn more of a hybrid role, but he is a fine Triple-A player.

Holmes added that he’s been working out this offseason with fellow converted reliever Garrett Crochet as he prepares to make the jump into the Mets’ starting rotation after signing a three-year, $38 million contract earlier this month. The 31-year-old’s power sinker gives him a real shot at success as a traditional starter, something he hasn’t done since he broke into the big leagues back in 2018, thanks to his ability to consistently generate ground balls and weak contact. The “sleeper” label has become a bit nebulous in recent years, but Holmes represents an intriguing late-round gamble for fantasy managers heading into next season.

Waddell is back stateside after spending the previous three seasons split between the Korea Baseball Organization and Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League. The 30-year-old righty made 11 relief appearances between four different organizations from 2020-2021. He’ll provide the Mets with some extra organizational relief depth heading into next spring.

Young, 29, spent the first half of last year hitting .285/.411/.506 for the Cardinals’ Triple-A team before taking off for a brief stint in Korea and batting .326/.420/.660 in 38 games for Doosan. He’s come in at .210/.290/.435 in 69 major league plate appearances, all with the Cubs between 2022 and ’23. Young is limited defensively and works best at first base, though he has experience at third and in the outfield corners. He’s a nice fallback option as a first baseman or DH against righties, but the Mets should be able to do better on the Opening Day roster.

Castillo, 32, has been the subject of trade rumors as of late, with the Red Sox and Cubs being mentioned as the top suitors for the right-hander. Rosenthal note that the Mariners won’t just dump Castillo and will only move him if it makes the team better, and both New York and Baltimore — among others — have players that could make Seattle’s lineup better. It won’t be a big surprise if Castillo plays elsewhere before the start of 2025.

Ari Alexander of KPRC2 in Houston notes that the Yankees, Mets and Red Sox are all involved in the bidding, while the Tigers and Blue Jays are believed to be in the mix as well. With that much interest — including from some of the biggest market clubs in all of baseball — it looks increasingly likely that Bregman will wind up with a deal in the neighborhood of $200 million. The Astros are known to have offered a six-year pact worth around $156 million and may wind up getting priced out here if things get too crazy.