If we were to do a Sporcle of the Diamondbacks current 40-man roster, I strongly suspect that Fernandez would come bottom of the list, in terms of name recognition. Jose is the youngest player there, having turned just 22 in September – beating Mitch Bratt by a couple of months. He was added to the 40-man in November, in order to keep him from being picked in the Rule 5 draft. As that implies, he has been in the organization for some time, signing to a $275,000 bonus in February 2021. However, he has moved through the ranks quite quickly, spending all of 2025 with the Double-A Amarillo Sod Poodles, in his age 21 season.

Bar Manuel Pena, Fernandez was the youngest player on the Sod Poodles’ Opening Day roster, and close to three years younger than the average player in the Texas League. In addition to his youth, Jose also had to handle a change in role this year. He switched to shortstop, having played mostly at third-base to that point. The position adjustment does appear to be a work in progress, Fernandez making 22 errors at SS over 104 games – though the play below was certainly nice. But with LuJames Groover likely embedded as the Diamondbacks prospect of choice at the hot corner (and recently named the #6 prospect in baseball there), changing direction might represent a clearer long-term path to the majors for Jose.

Looking at the raw stats, you would be forgiven for thinking that Fernandez enjoyed a break-out campaign with the bat. He had never posted a .700 OPS at any minor-league level, putting up a slash of .256/.292/.344 (.636 OPS) with High-A Hillsboro in 2024. So it might seem that batting .272 with 17 home-runs, for a .775 OPS, was a great improvement. However, Amarillo, which sits 3,600 feet above sea-level, is a total launching-pad. You think Reno is bad? And it is, in the 93rd percentile as a hitter-friendly environment. But Amarillo is more extreme still: #1 among all 120 minor-league parks. Fernandez’s OPS in 2025 was almost exactly at the Sod Poodles’ team average (.777).

Still, there weren’t many 21-year-olds playing a full season of Double-A baseball. The decision of the team to add Jose to the 40-man roster speaks to their interest in ensuring he remained within the Arizona farm system, and was seen as a credible selection onto another major-league roster. While he has yet to make an appearance on the MLB Pipeline top thirty, Fangraphs ranked him in December as the team’s #42 prospect, saying “He has the kind of wiry frame to make you think there could still be a little more pop coming even at his age, and you can dream on a utility guy with enough power to be dangerous. More likely, he’s a depth middle infielder.”

His presence on the roster was likely a decision made for protection, rather than any immediate expectation that Fernandez will reach the major leagues. Obviously, the team has its literal everyday shortstop in Geraldo Perdomo, who skipped only 19 innings there all last season. Should need arise – and I imagine we all fervently hope it doesn’t – Arizona has reasonably experienced backup options, already on the 40-man roster (or NRIs, such as Ildemaro Vargas). With no immediate rush for 40-man spots, I imagine Fernandez may well start the year again in Double-A. If we see him in the majors this year, that suggests something has gone rather wrong.

When I evaluate the St. Louis Cardinals actions during the offseason so far, there’s only one thing I’m certain of and that’s the fact that President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom and his team are smarter than I am. That realization gives me peace because otherwise I would have to wonder if the Cardinals are the kings of the waiting game or if the team is once again overvaluing players.

As of this moment, the St. Louis Cardinals have yet to deal arguably two of their most valuable players. All-star Brendan Donovan and lefty JoJo Romero are still on the St. Louis Cardinals roster despite the assessment by many that their value will never be higher than it is right now. I saw a conversation on the St. Louis Cardinals sub-Reddit which made me think. One commenter mentioned that he believed Brendan Donovan was comparable to Tommy Edman who the Cardinals traded away too late according to some opinions and didn’t receive the return they would have gotten if John Mozeliak had been willing to trade him at the height of his value. The general theme was to learn from mistakes of the previous administration.

Last time I checked, I am still not a mind-reader which is a shame because I would love to know what Chaim Bloom is really thinking when it comes to Brendan Donovan and JoJo Romero. That means we’ll have to settle for hearsay for now. A report from Sodo Mojo claimed that the St. Louis Cardinals asks for prospects with the Seattle Mariners were treating him as a cornerstone player “while other clubs view him more like a high-end supporting piece”. A report by Ken Rosenthal The Athletic inferred that the Cardinals prospect demands for Brendan Donovan were on the same level as Nico Hoerner and Ketel Marte who are both WAR rated about 1.5 higher than Brendan.

There is hope that Chaim Bloom’s patience might still be rewarded as many believe the New York Mets traded prospects they shouldn’t have for Freddy Peralta. The same can be said for the Chicago Cubs who traded their #1 prospect and two other players for Edward Cabrera. Could it be that Chaim Bloom really does have the winning hand that he’s betting on? The “experts” at ESPN still believe that the San Francisco Giants will eventually give the Cardinals the prospects they want for Brendan Donovan. Buster Olney says that the Seattle Mariners will end up with JoJo Romero. I’m frankly surprised that JoJo hasn’t been traded already, but that makes me wonder if a blockbuster deal that includes Brendan Donovan and JoJo Romero to the Seattle Mariners is a real possibility. If the Giants aren’t willing to let go of their #1 prospect Bryce Eldridge, I prefer many players the Mariners reportedly are willing to make available.

I’ve seen the last few weeks of this offseason before Spring Training begins described as a game of chicken. Will Chaim Bloom blink before his competitors do? If the Cardinals are found guilty of overvaluing their players again like many of us believe they have done in the past, we risk of passing the opportunity to turn this rebuild into a supercharged juggernaut instead of a tepid work in progress. I’m gonna fall back to my first thought. Chaim Bloom and his team are smarter than me and that’s a fact that gives me hope that we’ll be the benefactors of the perfect waiting game and not a what could have been.

Out of the five players the Nats received in the MacKenzie Gore trade, RHP Alejandro Rosario is the most complicated case. He has the highest upside of anyone in the package, but also has the lowest floor. The case of Alejandro Rosario is strange and mysterious, but if things break the right way, the Nationals are getting a top of the rotation arm.

While Rosario has massive upside, there is a lot of weirdness involved too. After a dominant 2024 season which we will get into, Rosario blew out his elbow last February. In the modern game, this is not unusual at all. Pitchers go down with major injuries all the time.

However, this is just where the weirdness starts. In July, it was reported that Rosario had yet to undergo surgery. Apparently, Rosario was dealing with something that made him unable to get surgery. A couple weeks ago though, it was reported that Rosario had finally undergone surgery. However, after the trade, Paul Toboni refuted that, saying he had not had surgery yet, but will in the next few weeks.

This is such a weird situation, and we are still awaiting clarity. Assuming Rosario actually has surgery in the next few weeks, he will be out for all of this season as well. At that point, Rosario will have missed the last two seasons due to this elbow injury. With all the time off, it is very hard to say if he will be the same pitcher. If he is the pitcher he was in 2024 though, the wait will be worth it.

The last time we saw Alejandro Rosario on the mound, he was one of the best pitching prospects in the sport. Despite an underwhelming career at the University of Miami, the Rangers still took Rosario in the 5th round of the 2023 draft due to his stuff. That bet paid off in a big way in his first pro season.

Rosario put up video game like numbers between Low-A and High-A. He posted a 2.24 ERA in 88.1 innings with 129 strikeouts to just 13 walks. That is just an absurd level of dominance and it made him a consensus top 100 prospect after the 2024 season.

It was not just the production that excited people about Rosario, it was also the stuff. He showcased three potential plus pitches with plus command in 2024. His fastball averaged 97 MPH on his fastball and it had good carry at the top of the zone. He also has a hard splitter that absolutely devastates hitters. To round out the arsenal, he also has a mid-80’s slider that is a potentially plus pitch too.

The craziest part of all is that he commands all of these weapons at a very high level. Rosario walked just 3.7% of hitters in 2024, which is nuts. He was pounding the zone with his premium stuff and hitters could not cope.

He will be out for two years, but the guy from 2024 is a top of the rotation arm. On the radio, Paul Toboni said the Nats would have had absolutely no shot at getting a player like this without the injuries. He acknowledged the risk he was taking, but felt like it was worth it.

In a five player package, taking a swing on Rosario makes a lot of sense. With players like Gavin Fien and Devin Fitz-Gerald in the deal, you are not relying on Rosario to make the haul worth it. He is just a high end lottery ticket with the chance to become a star.

There was a post that said Nats fans should think of this a little bit like the Cade Cavalli situation. I think there is a lot of truth in that. Rosario just turned 24 earlier this month, so we probably are not going to see the best of him until he is 26 or 27 years old, like Cavalli. However, if that stuff comes back, the Nats are getting a real piece, just like Cavalli.

With how strange the Rosario saga has already been, I would not be shocked if he never throws a pitch in the MLB. I also would not be shocked if he has a top 10 finish in Cy Young voting one day. There is such a wide range of outcomes here. As a second or third piece of a five player deal, I am fine with accepting the massive variance.

We are going to have to make sure that Rosario actually gets the surgery, but if he does, he will be tracking for an early 2027 return. Hopefully the potential lockout does not provide yet another complication. 

Even if he does come back fully healthy in early 2027 and games are being played, we are probably not going to see the best of Alejandro Rosario until 2028 and beyond. He will likely be pretty rusty after all that time off. This is a long term bet, but there is a chance the Nationals hit the jackpot here.

The NBA has postponed Sunday’s Denver Nuggets at Memphis Grizzlies game due to weather conditions, as large swaths of the United States face inclement winter weather. The high in Memphis on Sunday was 18 degrees Faranheit.

This weekend’s winter storm has shifted the schedules of NBA games and college sports across the country.

The NBA also postponed the Mavericks at Bucks game on Sunday. The Mavericks were stuck on the tarmac in Dallas for hours because of icy conditions before the game was postponed.

NBA games on Monday have also undergone scheduling changes. Indiana Pacers at Atlanta Hawks game tip off at 1:30 p.m. ET. The Philadelphia 76ers at Charlotte Hornets game will start at 3 p.m. ET.

The Washington Wizards and Charlotte Hornets game in Charlotte was played on Saturday at noon ET, moved up three hours from its scheduled 3 p.m. start.

In women’s college basketball, No. 14 Baylor’s home contest against Houston will be played on Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET instead of Sunday.

North Carolina Central postponed two men’s and two women’s basketball games on its schedule, which featured games from Thursday to Monday.

The NFL has not made scheduling changes for Sunday’s conference championship games, as the storm will primarily affect regions east of the Rocky Mountains, away from both games. For the AFC championship in Denver, the high will be 23 degrees on Sunday with chances of snow flurries, according to AccuWeather. For the NFC championship in Seattle, the high will be 44 degrees, with no rain or snow expected.

It’s Sunday, and you know what that means — it’s time for our weekly social media roundup! For the second straight Sunday, New York City is getting hit by a wintry weather, although this time, it’s a storm expected to be so bad that many schools had already cancelled classes on Monday before the weekend even started. Now, the temperature may be chilly, but fortunately for us, the hot stove was piping hot for the Bombers this week. And since I know the anticipation is killing you, let’s get started!

The Inevitable Occurred

All winter, the Yankees and Cody Bellinger acted like a pair of high school kids that clearly were interested in each other but were afraid to make the first move. As soon as the offseason began, Bellinger changed his Instagram profile picture, ditching a shot of him in a Yankee jersey in favor of a generic animated shot with a blank hat.

Then, early last week, Bellinger and Austin Wells broke the Yankees portion of the Internet. The outfielder posted pictures of himself working out to prepare for the season, and the catcher posted a sad emoji in response. Immediately, fans began to wonder if he knew something we didn’t.

Then, Wednesday afternoon, the news finally broke: the Yankees and Bellinger had agreed to a five-year deal that kept the popular outfielder in the Bronx. While Belli himself did not post on social media about the deal, he immediately changed his profile picture back to a picture of him in a Yankees uniform. Meanwhile, his wife, Chase, and mother, Jennifer, posted the following:

Yeah, I think they’re excited.

MVP

Last night was the 101st New York Baseball Writers’ Gala, where the winner of the BBWAA’s major awards each officially received their honors. That included Aaron Judge, who took home his third career AL MVP and second in a row. Should be four! But it was a nice moment.

Congrats, Carlos and Andruw

This week, the Baseball Hall of Fame announced its two newest members, Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones. While the two players are known more for their time with the Mets and Braves, respectively, they both did suit up for the Yankees: Jones donned the pinstripes in 2011 and 2012, while Beltrán was a part of the 2014, 2015, and 2016 teams before he was traded to the Texas Rangers. In addition to a collection of statements from key members of the organization, the Yankees made individuals posts celebrating both players.

CC Sabathia, RobinsonCanó, and Derek Jeter also took to social media to celebrate their former teammates, among others.

Bernie at Carnegie Hall

Former Yankees center fielder/current professional guitarist performed at Carnegie Hall earlier this month, and unsurprisingly, Suzyn Waldman made sure that she was in attendance.

The Player’s Cup

CC Sabathia posted some photos from “The Player’s Cup” this week. Honestly, I’m not 100% sure what event he is referring to — a quick Google search reveals an MLB Open, but that was an event that was supposed to occur in November — but it still seems like they all had a fun time.

2016

The last two weeks have seen people posting photos from 2016, as they reminisce about the glory days when the Villanova Wildcats defeated the UNC in the NCAA National Championship (at least, that’s what comes to mind when I think of 2016). And naturally, now that this trend is two weeks old, we’ve got celebrities and corporate accounts joining in. First, we have Anthony Rizzo recalling one of the greatest World Series of all time, as the Cubs finally overcame their curse and proved that nothing is impossible, except maybe a Pope that roots for the Cubs.

Then, the George M. Steinbrenner Field account joined in, which honestly wasn’t nearly as fun as the excitement in Chicago from the historic parade.

A Fond Farewell

Jonathan Loáisiga had been part of the Yankees’ organization since joining them as a minor leaguer in February 2016 following a failed stint with the Giants. Injuries ravaged his career, but he was a bullpen staple in 2021 in particular, posting one of the better relief seasons you’ll see in the modern era, recording a 2.17 ERA, a 2.58 FIP, and a 1.019 WHIP across 70.2 innings. Alas, those aforementioned injuries were a constant issue for him, and he and the Yankees finally went their separate ways, making it official when Loáisiga signed a minor-league deal with the Diamondbacks earlier this month.

Loáisiga took to Instagram to thank both the Yankees and their fans, in both Spanish and English. Best of luck to him in Arizona!

Winter Wonderland

And so, let’s wrap up this weekend’s social media roundup with a nice shot of last weekend’s snow, courtesy of Suzyn Waldman.

Aaron Judge’s biggest supporter was by his side for a celebratory Saturday night.

Over the weekend, the Yankees superstar was joined by his wife, Samantha, at the 2026 BBWAA [Baseball Writers’ Association of America] dinner in New York, where he was honored with his second consecutive AL MVP award.

Dressed in a beautiful burgundy gown, Samantha smiled as she posed next to Judge, 33, who looked dapper in a black tux.

Judge, a seven-time MLB All-Star, made history in November when he became the fourth player in Yankees history to clinch a third AL MVP title with the club, joining the esteemed company of Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and Joe DiMaggio. He won his first AL MVP prize in 2022.

“I never came into this game chasing awards or chasing anything but getting a chance to win and leaving the game better than I found it,” Judge said in a conference call at the time. “If I won by one vote or 20 votes, it really didn’t matter in my eyes.”

Before Judge delivered his acceptance speech Saturday, his close friend and former teammate, Anthony Rizzo, took the mic and gushed over Samantha’s presence in Judge’s life.

“Sam, without you — and getting to know you over all these years — without you, Aaron is not a three-time MVP, and I mean that sincerely. You are such a rock for him, and what you bring, your steady presence, is amazing,” Rizzo said, according to Yankees Source.

Judge and Samantha tied the knot in a lavish destination wedding in Hawaii in December 2021.

The couple became first-time parents in January 2025 with the birth of their daughter, Nora Rose.

“What an incredible week it’s been, can’t wait for the memories the three of us make,” Judge said in an Instagram post announcing his daughter’s birth.

Judge hit 53 home runs in 2025. He also earned the first batting title of his career with an average of .331.