This past week there haven't been too many new updates this MLB offseason. The top free agents still remain with Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, Anthony Santander, and Kirby Yates. There have been rumors of Bregman joining either the Red Sox or Yankees, but there seems to be a money issue with Bregman asking for too much money.
One of the more interesting moves this offseason is the DFA of Diego Cartaya. The Dodgers essentially released Cartaya to free up a roster spot. Cartaya is only 23 years old and was a former top prospect just a year ago. This move is definitely one of the more confusing ones just because Cartaya has had so much hype coming up and just never really got a shot with the Dodgers. I would think he would have been kept as a backup or even be part of a trade package for a middle infielder. I’d assume the trade market would have been good for the young catcher so it’s just weird for him to get DFA’d. The Minnesota Twins did trade for Cartaya. Teams are allowed to offer on a player before they get officially released so he technically didn't get cut. If the Twins didn't offer Cartaya would have been a free agent. The Dodgers received right handed pitcher Jose Vasquez who is only 20 but hasn't had too much success in the minors. The Dodgers didn't get much and that’s only due to Cartaya getting DFA’d.
One minor move of recent is the Toronto Blue Jays signing Jeff Hoffman to a 3 year 33 million dollar deal. Hoffman was one of the top reliever options this offseason. It’s nice to see that the Blue Jays are making moves and trying to compete. Vlad Guerrero is a free agent after the 2025 season and if the Blue Jays are not competitive it’s going to be very difficult to bring him back. Guerrero is the one all star in this lineup and the Blue will need to continue to make moves to be competitive. The Blue Jays could possibly add a Pete Alonso or Anthony Santander just to add another bat to give Guerrero some protection in this lineup.
The most major move as of late is Justin Verlander signing a one year 15 million dollar deal with the San Francisco Giants. Verlander has gotten very injury prone as of late. He didn't pitch much during his tenure with the Mets. Verlander is a very good pitcher when healthy. If the Giants can have a healthy season with Verlander it’s a huge success, 15 million is pretty cheap for this kind of arm so this is a low risk high reward contract. The Giants continue to make moves after the big signing of Willy Adames. The Giants lost Blake Snell this offseason to their division rival Dodgers. The Giants ranked last in starting pitching innings last season so this move was definitely needed for the Giants. The rotation is solid with Webb, Harrison, Hicks, and Ray. There just isn't much depth so either they make more moves or bank no one gets hurt.
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