Here’s the latest Mets free agency and trade buzz during the 2025-26 MLB offseason…

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Jan. 9, 11:20 a.m.

Another potential Mets trade target is off the board. 

According to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic, the Diamondbacks will hold onto INF Ketel Marte.

Marte has been one of the more popular names on the trade market, and the Mets reportedly showed interest earlier this offseason.

While Marte presented an intriguing option to boost New York’s offense, his fit was always a bit uncertain with Marcus Semien locked in as the everyday second baseman. 

Dec. 30, 10:12 a.m.

Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai‘s posting window closes on Jan. 2, which means his potential deal with an MLB club must be official by then.

With the clock ticking, Imai is expected to continue having meetings with interested teams this week, per Will Sammon and Katie Woo of The Athletic. 

SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino reported earlier this offseason that the Mets would be in on Imai, but did not expect it to be a “full-tilt pursuit” as was the case with Yoshinobu Yamamoto two offseasons ago. 

Imai, 27, has been outspoken about his desire to beat the Dodgers — not join them. His market remains a bit of a mystery, though Jack Curry of YES reported last week that the Yankees were not expected to sign him.

In 163.2 innings over 24 starts last season for the Seibu Lions, the right-hander had a 1.92 ERA and 0.89 WHIP while allowing just 101 hits and striking out 178 — a strikeout rate of 9.8 per nine.

Over eight seasons pitching for Nippon Professional Baseball, Imai has a 3.15 ERA and 1.26 WHIP. But he has reached another level over the last four seasons, posting earned run averages of 2.04, 2.45, 2.34, and 1.92.

Imai’s stuff is considered plus. It includes a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and can reach 99 mph. He also has a splitter, slider, and cutter. 

Dec. 27, 11:30 p.m.

The Mets may’ve lost one competitor in the Luis Robert Jr. trade sweepstakes. 

The Reds could potentially be out of the mix on the White Sox outfielder after signing JJ Bleday to a one-year deal and acquiring Dane Myers from the Marlins on Saturday. 

Cincy, of course, was the other team rumored to be in talks with Chicago for the 28-year-old. 

The Mets have long shown interest in Robert, who is coming off another up-and-down campaign but is viewed as a potential change of scenery candidate. 

He hit .293 with a 124 wRC+ in the second half before a hamstring issue ended his season. 

Dec. 26, 8:45 a.m.

Count the Mets – along with the San Francisco Giants and Baltimore Orioles – among the teams that have reportedly met with free-agent starter Framber Valdez, according to The New York Post’s Jon Heyman.

New York’s interest in the left-hander has been a topic of much speculation this winter. Earlier this month, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com said the Mets were “among the favorites” to sign Valdez. However, it has also been reported that the Mets are “reluctant to hand out long-term offers” to the top free agent starting pitchers left on the market.

Valdez, 32 as of November, pitched to a 3.66 ERA and 1.245 WHIP over 31 starts and 192 innings last year. Over the past four seasons, the lefty has been quite a dependable starter for the Houston Astros, tossing 767.2 innings over 121 starts (with eight complete games) while posting a 3.21 ERA.

Dec. 23, 3:00 p.m.

Ketel Marte has been one of the buzzier names on the trade market this winter. 

Numerous teams have expressed interest in the three-time All-Star, and according to reports, the Mets threw their name into the mix after trading Jeff McNeil to the A’s. 

How Marte would fit on New York’s roster is a big question, but whether Arizona would actually move him is another. 

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic said Tuesday on Foul Territory that the team likely won’t deal him unless they receive young pitching in return. 

With that being said, they do seem motivated to find a partner with his 10-and-5 rights looming. 

If that is indeed the case, the Mets certainly would be a fit with so many talented young arms in their system. 

Reports have indicated all winter that Nolan McLean is unavailable, but they’ve been open to listening on Jonah Tong or Brandon Sproat in the right deal.

You’d have to figure the two-time Silver Slugger award winner would be that type of player. 

The big question again, though, is where Marte would fit with Marcus Semien penciled in as the everyday 2B. 

The 31-year-old does have experience in center, but he has mainly played second the past two seasons. 

Dec. 23, 10:41 a.m.

With the Mets reportedly prioritizing a right-handed bat, one option is free agent outfielder Austin Hays.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Mets have discussed Hays internally, and the team “has some interest” in adding him. 

Hays, 30, had a nice season with Cincinnati in 2025, posting a 105 OPS+ with 15 homers and 64 RBI.

An eight-year MLB veteran, Hays has feasted on left-handed pitching throughout his career, posting an .819 OPS with 25 home runs and 88 RBI against southpaws.

Dec. 22, 8:35 p.m.

The Cincinnati Reds are in trade talks with the Chicago White Sox for slugger Luis Robert Jr., reports the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Gordon Wittenmyer.

The Mets and Chicago have also been “engaged in trade talks” for Robert, Bob Nightengale of USA Today previously reported on Dec. 21.

Robert is under contract for $20 million in 2026 and has a club option worth the same amount for 2027.

The White Sox “are said to be willing to eat maybe half of the 2026 salary” for the center fielder, Wittenmyer notes. 

Robert played just 110 games in 2025 and struggled at the plate when healthy, hitting .223 with 14 home runs, 12 doubles, and 53 RBI. He did steal a career-high 33 bases and had a career-high 40 walks.

Dec. 21, 8:44 p.m.

Any level of interest the Mets expressed in Willson Contreras this winter is now irrelevant, as the St. Louis Cardinals dealt the first baseman to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for three pitchers, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

While rumors linking the Mets to Contreras picked up some speed earlier in the month, The Athletic reported last week that kicking the tires on the three-time All-Star took the back seat amid their free-agent deal with infielder Jorge Polanco, who’s expected to see more work at first base in 2026.

Dec. 21, 11:34 a.m.

The Mets and Reds are engaged in trade talks for White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. and pitching depth would likely be the asking price, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

It’s unclear if a deal will occur, but the White Sox made a big free-agent splash Sunday morning, signing Japanese star and Mets target Munetaka Murakami to a two-year, $34 million deal.

Robert, who turns 29 next season, has yet to flourish as a star slugger. While he produced a career-high 38 home runs across 145 games in 2023, he hit a measly .224 with just 28 homers between 2024 and 2025 (210 total games).

Robert owns a career .259/.313/.455 slash line, however, and offers above-average defense in center field — a position of need for the Mets. He also stole a career-best 33 bags on 41 attempts in 2025.

Slated to earn $20 million this coming season, Robert also has a 2027 club option worth the same amount before he becomes a free agent.

Dec. 21, 10:23 a.m.

Third baseman Munetaka Murakami is in agreement with the Chicago White Sox on a two-year, $34 million contract, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan. 

With Pete Alonso signing in Baltimore, Murakami had become an intriguing corner infield option, given his monster power numbers. Murakami hit 265 career home runs in eight pro seasons in Japan, including 56 big flies in 2022, when he was just 22 years old. 

Murakami has had his issues with strikeouts, though, an issue he’ll look to improve on as he joins a White Sox team that has not won more than 61 games in a season since 2022.

Dec. 16, 12:16 p.m.

The Mets are “very in” on Cody Bellinger, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

In addition to the Mets, Bellinger has also been heavily linked to the Yankees.

Most projections have Bellinger getting a deal for five or six years.

For the Mets, Bellinger could fit in left field, center field, or at first base — where the newly-acquired Jorge Polanco could be in the mix. 

Bellinger had a strong season for the Yanks in 2025, slashing .272/.334/.480 with 28 homers, 25 doubles, 98 RBI, and 89 runs scored in 152 games.

His defense is viewed as above average in left field — something that would be welcomed following the trade of Brandon Nimmo, whose defense had been regressing. 

Dec. 14, 10:25 a.m.

Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras has been a hot name in Mets rumors of late, but it sounds like the club’s interest in Contreras may not have been as strong as previously thought. 

According to Katie Woo of The Athletic, while the Mets did in fact inquire about the catcher-turned-first-baseman, “their interest was secondary,” with the Jorge Polanco signing reinforcing that point. 

The expectation for the Mets is that Polanco will get most of his at-bats as a first baseman or as a DH, though he has the ability to play every position along the infield. With Polanco’s versatile background, the Mets could still look to add a full-time first baseman.

Dec. 12, 3:19 p.m.

The Red Sox, who recently missed out on both Kyle Schwarber in Pete Alonso, have interest in Mets trade target Willson Contreras, reports Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

Per Cotillo, the Sox also remain interested in free agent Alex Bregman as well as potential trades for Ketel Marte and Isaac Paredes. 

Contreras, who is entering his age-34 season, has two years and $36.5 million remaining on his contract — plus a club option for 2028. 

He was a plus offensive player (123 OPS+) and above average defender at first base (90th percentile, 6 OAA) in 2025. So he certainly fits the mold of what David Stearns is looking for.

As far as what the rebuilding Cardinals would want, it’s fair to believe that they would be seeking a controllable big league player and/or prospects.

Dec. 11, 9:21 p.m.

The Mets have inquired about Chicago White Sox centerfielder Luis Robert Jr. this offseason, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

However, a deal for Robert to join New York would require sending prospects to Chicago and for the Mets to surrender prospects, they want money in return to offset Robert’s $20 million salary, per Heyman. 

That could pose a problem, as White Sox owner, Jerry Reinsdorf isn’t seen as a likely candidate to send money to Steve Cohen and the Mets.

After this season, Robert has a club option for the 2027 season worth $20 million before he becomes a free agent. 

The 28-year-old finished the 2025 season with a .223/.297/.364 slash line with 14 home runs and 53 RBI in 110 games. He also added a career-high 33 steals in 41 attempts.

After a phenomenal 2023 season in which he had a .857 OPS and a career-high 38 home runs in 145 games, Robert has had back-to-back underwhelming seasons. Still, in his career, he owns a .259/.313/.455 slash line and is an above-average defender in center, a position of need for New York.

Dec. 10, 3:37 p.m.

The Mets are interested in a reunion with free agent right-hander Tyler Rogers, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

Rogers, 34, performed well for New York late last season after being acquired from the Giants via trade.

In 27.1 innings over 28 games, Rogers had a 2.30 ERA (3.32 FIP) and 1.09 WHIP.

Over seven big league seasons, Rogers — whose funky delivery throws hitters off — has a 2.76 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 420 games.

Dec. 10, 8:24 a.m.

After losing Edwin Diaz to the Dodgers, the Mets remain in need of a reliever who can pitch in the late innings.

To that end, they are one of the “most aggressive suitors” for hard-throwing free agent right-hander Robert Suarez, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, who notes that the Blue Jays and Braves are also after Suarez.

Per Feinsand, Suarez’s market started to heat up after Diaz signed with Los Angeles.

Suarez, who is entering his age-35 season, seems likely to receive a two-or three-year deal.

He had a terrific season in 2025 for San Diego, posting a 2.97 ERA and 0.90 WHIP while striking out 75 batters in 69.2 innings. 

An All-Star the last two years, Suarez’s 40 saves led the National League last season.

Dec. 9, 8:55 p.m.

The Miami Marlins are “progressing” in their efforts to find a trade partner for right-hander Edward Cabrera, The Athletic’s Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal reported on Tuesday.

According to the report, the Marlins are talking with the Baltimore Orioles and other clubs.

Cabrera, who turns 28 in April, pitched to a 3.53 ERA and 1.228 WHIP with 150 strikeouts and 48 walks in 137.2 innings over 26 starts last year. He has a career 4.07 ERA over 89 outings (87 starts) after breaking into the league during the 2021 season. 

The big selling point for the Mets and other interested clubs: He is under team control for three more seasons and is expected to earn a modest salary for the 2026 campaign. That means, of course, that Miami’s asking price is likely going to be so high that a trade may not come to fruition.

Dec. 8, 8:45 p.m.

As the Mets and Yankees continue to look to revamp their bullpen this offseason, they’ve both called the Brewers about reliever Trevor Megill, according to Joel Sherman of the NY Post.

Megill, of course, is the older brother of Mets starter Tylor Megill.

The 32-year-old would be a tremendous boost at the backend for either club, as he has developed into one of the top relievers in baseball over the past few seasons. 

Megill missed time to injury last year, but pitched to a stellar 2.49 ERA and 1.12 WHIP while locking down 30 saves.

Dec. 8, 6:55 p.m.

While baseball’s movers and shakers spend a few days in Orlando at the MLB Winter Meetings, the Mets were still taking meetings with people in absentia. 

The New York Post’s Joel Sherman reported that the club held a “video meeting” with free-agent starter Michael King. 

Sherman added that the Mets were not the only team the right-hander spoke with, but the meeting with the representatives from Queens exemplifies a level of seriousness between the parties.”

King, 30, enters the market after two seasons in San Diego. After a stellar 2024 campaign, last season was marked by two stints on the injured list and some solid pitching when healthy: a 3.44 ERA and 1.200 WHIP across 73.1 innings and 15 starts. King also struck out 76 batters to 26 walks, good for 9.3 strikeouts per nine innings.

Dec. 8, 8:51 a.m.

The Mets are “reluctant to hand out long-term offers” to the top free agent starting pitchers left on the market, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. 

The consensus top starting pitcher remaining is Framber Valdez, who is entering his age-32 season. 

Other free agent starters include Michael King, Ranger Suarez, Zac Gallen, and Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai.

Imai, whom the Mets have been connected to, is 27 years old, putting him in a different tier than the other available free agents. 

King is coming off an injury-riddled season and seems unlikely to get a long-term deal.

As far as Suarez, his fastball velocity has been steadily declining the last three seasons, making him a risky proposition.

If the Mets don’t add a potential impact starter via free agency, they could turn to a trade market that might include Freddy Peralta, Tarik Skubal, and Edward Cabrera. 

Dec. 5, 5:57 p.m.

The Marlins are reportedly in the market to trade one of their starting pitchers.

Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic report that there’s a “strong possibility” the Marlins end up moving one of their starters, and that Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera continue to attract “serious attention” from other teams. 

While the report doesn’t name teams, the Mets are obviously in the market for front-line starting pitching and have the major league ready arms and bats to facilitate a potential deal with Miami. Cabrera has three years of club control remaining, while Alcantara has a club option (worth $21 million) for 2027. 

The Athletic also reports that young lefty Ryan Weathers has received interest from multiple teams. Weathers, 25, was having a breakout year in 2025 before he missed most of the year with a lat strain. He returned in September and finished with a 3.99 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP across eight starts. The report adds that the Marlins are at least listening in on each of their starters not named Eury Perez.

Dec. 5, 3:10 p.m.

It appears you can scratch three potential Mets trade targets off the board. 

The Twins don’t anticipate trading star CF Byron Buxton, ace Joe Ryan, or right-hander Pablo Lopez this offseason, according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. 

Minnesota intends to hang on to and build around all three, as club officials believe that the team is talented enough to compete in the weak American League Central.

Ryan is someone whom the Mets have shown interest in, according to Jon Heyman of the NY Post, and Minnesota is said to like young right-hander Jonah Tong. 

Rosenthal indicated that the rebuilding Twins would obviously listen if teams continue calling about the trio, however, they’d likely have to be overwhelmed to accept a deal. 

Dec. 5, 11:33 a.m.

The Mets are among the teams “in the mix” for free agent left-hander Ranger Suarez, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

Feinsand lists the Astros, Cubs, and Orioles as the “most serious” threats to sign Suarez. 

Suarez has been one of the most reliable and effective pitchers in baseball over the last five seasons, posting a 3.25 ERA (3.44 FIP) and 1.24 WHIP in 694.1 innings over 143 games (116 starts).

For the Phillies this past season, he had a 3.20 ERA and 1.22 WHIP while tossing 157.1 innings across 26 starts.

Dec. 1, 7:05 p.m.

Tatsuya Imai, the 27-year-old Japanese right-hander, has reportedly lost at least one potential suitor.

The San Francisco Giants “do not anticipate making the nine-figure investment” required to sign the free-agent pitcher, according to a report Monday from The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly. 

The NL West club, which made big-money commitments to shortstop Willy Adames last year and took on the big contract of Rafael Devers in a June trade, is going to pass over getting involved in the market for big-money starters because of a “number of financial considerations” as they look at more “modestly priced alternatives,” Baggarly reported.

Imai, who was posted by his club (the Seibu Lions) in November, is seen as perhaps having the highest ceiling of the free-agent starters on the market. However, despite his fine season last year (1.92 ERA and 0.89 WHIP with 178 strikeouts in 163.2 innings over 24 starts), he isn’t seen as the same kind of can’t-miss prospect as Yoshinobu Yamamoto was a few years back.

SNY’s MLB Insider Andy Martino reported on Nov. 10 that the Mets “will be in on” the starter, but did not expect it to be a “full-tilt pursuit” as was the case with Yamamoto. 

“Why? Evaluators like Imai but suggest that he is no sure thing to succeed as an MLB starter. His mid-to-high ‘90s fastball might or might not play here; industry opinion on that is mixed,” Martino wrote at the time. “Imai is an interesting option and should prompt conversations with any club in search of pitching, the Mets included.”

Anthony Davis, or at least the in-a-vacuum, hypothetical idea of him, has fascinated many a front office for over a decade. 

A 6-foot-10 behemoth, equal parts force and finesse, with three-level shot-making ability and enough defensive prowess to construct an entire scheme around his skill set. A matchup nightmare at either power forward or center. A coaching staff’s dream. A general manager’s vision. 

In reality, however, what Davis was and what he currently is, are two very different things. For starters, the “floor spacing big” phenomenon that took the league by storm never truly caught on with Davis, a career 29% 3-point shooter attempting less than two treys a game today. And for all the obsession over what Davis brings when he’s on the floor, the when is more often the operative word. Outside of the 2023-24 season where Davis appeared in 76(!) games, his recent availability percentage by year is 45, 62, 68, 48 and 43. This week provided another reminder of his fragility: Davis reportedly suffered ligament damage in his left hand during Thursday night’s Mavericks loss and could miss ‘a number of months’ if surgery is required.

Still, Davis is a breathtaking player when he suits up, even languishing on a 14-24 Mavs team clearly pivoting in Cooper Flagg’s direction. Consider this: Over Davis’ last 11 starts in which he logged at least 30 minutes (dating back to Dec. 1), he averaged 24.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.6 blocks per game. 

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Players who put up 25 and 10, health be damned, aren’t just walking the NBA streets. Only Nikola Jokić and Giannis Antetokounmpo — two former MVPs and champions — are producing at those aforementioned benchmarks this season, per NBA.com tracking data. Juxtaposed with his rim protection — opponents are shooting just 54.1% at the rim when Davis is the nearest defender and nearly 10% better when he’s off the floor, a top-15 differential among players that defend at least five such shots per game — and you understand why the allure still exists. 

The Atlanta Hawks, according to rival executives and multiple agents, have been enamored with Davis for a while, even prior to trading Trae Young. And, following Young’s departure, they planned to keep him firmly on their radar before the Feb. 5 trade deadline in an attempt to pair him alongside breakout star Jalen Johnson in an uber-athletic, menacing two-way frontcourt. The severity of Davis’ latest injury could obviously chill his trade market.

Still, squint hard enough, and you can see etchings of what Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh is attempting to construct. The Hawks, according to conversations with rival executives, agents and former players, are unsure of the long-term prospects of Onyeka Okongwu and Mo Gueye at center from a contention standpoint. Atlanta is an average defensive team (16th in defensive rating, per Cleaning the Glass), but a core featuring Dyson Daniels, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Johnson and Davis has enough versatility and optionality to rewrite a narrative that would have been otherwise impossible with Young as the centerpiece. 

Even regardless of Davis’ health, some obstacles would still need to be cleared. The 32-year-old is earning $54 million this season, with an additional $120 million owed over the next two years (a whopping $62.8 million player option in 2027-28) when Davis will be 34 years old. His albatross AAV is enough of a hurdle to get past, but the bulk of conversations have centered around veteran Kristaps Porziņģis, a $30 million absence-prone player now relegated to reserve status in Atlanta. 

There’s also the question of what Davis’ leaguewide interest truly is, what the Mavericks are seeking in a potential return and any middle ground that exists. League sources have previously identified the Toronto Raptors as another team that would entertain a Davis addition — at the right price — but this isn’t the sweepstakes from a few years ago. The combination of price tag, injury history and age have watered down Davis’ market. Dallas is currently $1.3 million below the second apron and, with hopes of gaining more flexibility, is believed to be open to moving veterans ahead of the deadline. 

One must also ponder what Davis, still with three years left on his current deal, is hoping to achieve in the interim. Naturally, the 10-time All-Star will hope to secure at least one more multiyear deal in his career. In a similar vein to Young, Davis’ appeal increases if there is an openness to inking an extension at a much more palatable price.

There’s no need for the Hawks, for as much as they desire Davis, to drive their own price up for an asset with limited interest. Atlanta could mirror Houston’s strategy in securing forward Kevin Durant, standing firm in their offer and refusing to relent, ultimately forcing Dallas to meet it in the middle. 

It feels like just yesterday that much of the NBA-discussing world was wondering whether the Oklahoma City Thunder were not only about to smash the league’s all-time record for wins in a single season, but whether the defending NBA champions’ two-way dominance had become so all-consuming and so inescapable that it would lead even teams with title aspirations of their own to just punt on the pursuit.

It feels like just yesterday, but it wasn’t. It was in the ]

It’s a dramatic shift in tone from the “Are they going to win 75 games???” talk that some of us engaged in, but the man’s got some points. (And, to be fair: It’s not like he was the one putting the 2025-26 Thunder next to the 2015-16 Warriors.)

Since the start of the 2023-24 season, nobody has more wins (156) or a higher winning percentage (.772) than Oklahoma City. When a team wins more than three-fourths of the time, there aren’t exactly a whole lot of opportunities to get used to it losing consecutive games — which the Thunder have done twice in the last three weeks after doing it twice all of last season — let alone experiencing an extended stretch of malaise. When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression; when you’re accustomed to a 60- or 70-win pace, .500 ball feels like a crisis.

NBA Cup hangover?

The “physically and mentally tired” thing might have some legs. On this week’s episode of The Big Number, Tom Haberstroh and I looked into whether teams, like the Thunder, that make the semifinals of the NBA Cup experience a “hangover” in the weeks following their trips to Las Vegas …

… and while the sample size is still small, the number of games those Vegas teams have played lately isn’t. Wednesday’s win over the Jazz marked Oklahoma City’s 12th game in 21 days since the end of the tournament — a stretch that has included four back-to-backs. Nine NBA teams have played a dozen games in that three-week span, including all four semifinalists (the Knicks, Spurs, Thunder and Magic), with a combined record of 53-55 — a .491 winning percentage). By contrast, the 10 teams that have played either nine or 10 games in that same timeframe have gone 55-44 — a .556 winning percentage.

Your mileage may vary on just how much you think a couple of extra games’ worth of miles over a couple of weeks add up. It might show up, though, in the legs on your jumper, where a Thunder team that was splashing 38.1% of its 3-point shots through its 24-1 start, fifth-best in the NBA, has dropped down to 31.8% since its NBA Cup semifinal loss, fifth-worst in the league in that span.

It’s been a contagious cold snap for a Thunder offense that ranked fourth in offensive efficiency through 25 games and has dropped to 18th since, with rotation mainstays Cason Wallace, Luguentz Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe all shooting below 40% from the field over the past three weeks, and SGA, Wallace, Wiggins and Alex Caruso all under 30% from 3-point land.

Injury issues

The absence of starting center Isaiah Hartenstein, who’s missed the last six games with a right calf strain, hurts, too. With him on the floor, the Thunder grab offensive rebounds at a top-10 rate. With him on the sideline, they perform like the worst offensive rebounding team in the league — a particular bummer when there are more misses to corral than there used to be. (OKC dropping from a top-five defensive rebounding team through its 24-1 start to 16th in clearing the defensive boards during this lull hasn’t helped, either.)

Some of those misses have been coming off the right hand of Williams, who began his ascent as Gilgeous-Alexander’s running buddy two seasons ago and cemented himself as a cornerstone in his own right last season, earning All-Star, All-NBA and All-Defensive honors and authoring an iconic 40-point performance in the NBA Finals to help propel the Thunder to the championship. After missing the first 19 games of the season rehabilitating following offseason surgery on his right wrist, though, Williams has struggled to recover his shooting touch.

Williams’ accuracy is down everywhere but the free-throw line this season — most notably from midrange and beyond the arc — contributing to a true shooting percentage of .536, which would be the worst mark of his four-year NBA career. It’s also one of the worst among high-volume offensive players in the league thus far this season: Of the 53 players this season who’ve played at least 500 minutes and have a usage rate of 25% or higher, Williams’ TS% ranks 48th — ahead of only Brandon Miller, Jordan Poole, Russell Westbrook, Jeremiah Fears and Ja Morant.

It seems reasonable to give Williams a little bit of grace amid his shooting slump, considering it hasn’t even been six weeks since Williams came back from surgery to repair an injury that literally forced him to re-learn how to shoot the basketball, and that he’s trying to get back to full speed without the benefit of training camp or preseason. A player using that many possessions that inefficiently does have an impact on your offense, though: The Thunder are scoring like a league-average unit in J-Dub’s minutes, and at a league-worst rate in the minutes he’s played without Gilgeous-Alexander.

‘It’s a competitive privilege’

Another place that the additional post-Cup workload could show up? Execution in close-and-late situations.

Heading into the semifinal against San Antonio, the Thunder were 9-1 in “clutch” games — defined by the NBA as contests in which the score was within five points in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime — with a league-best 136.7 offensive rating and just three turnovers in 90 crunch-time minutes. Since? They’re 2-3 in the clutch with a 119 offensive rating, shooting just 20-for-55 (36.4%) from the field and 5-for-25 (20%) from 3-point range.

One of those losses — a 108-105 defeat at the hands of the better-than-anyone-outside-Phoenix-imagined-they-could-be Suns — came on an absolute honey of a game-winner by Devin Booker; sometimes, great offense beats even the best defense on the planet. That’s the thing, though. For two months, the only pathways to beating the Thunder seemed to be “get them to run out of gas on the second night of a back-to-back on the road” or “have a gigantic anomaly and three star guards, and play perfectly.” Now, it’s become clear that there’s more than one way to get them. Now, you know they bleed.

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“It’s a competitive privilege to be a team that other teams are up to play for,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said Monday, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. “And it forces you to rise to that. And if you can, you really can get better and stronger as a result of that. And if you don’t, you learn the lesson. We got to learn the lessons in these ones.”

One of the lessons Williams has taken from this uncommon glitch in Oklahoma City’s unnervingly efficient opponent-mashing machine? Life in the NBA isn’t always so smooth.

“Every team this year has lost a couple of games that they wish they could have back,” he said Wednesday. “We understand that it’s just like: How many of those can you limit during the season? And how much better can you get because of it?”

The prospect of the Thunder getting better — by getting Hartenstein (and backup big Jaylin Williams, who has missed the last 12 games with right heel bursitis) back in the fold, by thawing out those frosty jumpers, by doing a better job of finishing possessions — ought to be a scary one, considering they’re still, even in this somewhat diminished form, good enough to beat anyone on any night. (Well, maybe not anyone.)

What three weeks of hiccups have made clear, though, is that they’re not dominant enough to beat everyone on every night, irrespective of who’s in or out of the lineup. Especially when the price of wearing the crown is taking every team’s best shot, without a breather in sight or any quarter given.

“You can’t be at a playoff level every single night in the NBA,” Caruso recently told Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic. “You’ll burn out. There’s no way for you to play like that for 82 games.”

Combine that with the vicissitudes of 3-point variance and the injury gods, and sometimes — even multiple times — even Goliath can get got.

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If Tarik Skubal is playing for another team on Opening Day of 2027, the Detroit Tigers will at least be able to say they made him a record-setting offer. It just won’t be a good record.

Thursday saw MLB teams and players submit their filings for salary arbitration, a clerical move that sets up arbitration fights for further into the offseason. A player asks for one salary, his team asks for a different, lower salary, and then an arbitrator looks at the player’s accomplishments and decides which number to use for the season.

It’s not often the most thrilling day, but the numbers filed by Skubal and the Tigers were interesting for multiple reasons. Skubal asked for $32 million, while the Tigers offered $19 million, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

That $13 million gap is reportedly the widest in arbitration history by a large margin. And if Skubal wins, his $32 million salary would be the largest in arbitration history, besting Juan Soto’s $31 million with the New York Yankees in 2024.

There’s no telling who will win. It will be up to the arbitrator to decide if Skubal is worth more or less than $25.5 million, the midpoint between the two sides. These decisions are based primarily on precedent, using past players with similar stats, and normally value more old-school numbers than what you’d find on a Baseball Savant page. Teams and players often avoid these battles because of the awkwardness of arguing why a guy deserves less money in front of said guy.

If we look at pitchers only, here are some recent big names and what they got in their final years of arbitration, which Skubal is entering. You be the judge on whether he should get more than they did:

• Framber Valdez (2025): $18 million

• Dylan Cease (2025): $13.75 million

• Corbin Burnes (2024): $15.6 million

• Max Fried (2024): $15 million

• Julio Urías (2023): $14.25 million

Notably, all of those numbers were reached via agreement, not arb hearing. 

[Get more Tigers news: Detroit team feed]

Whichever side wins the Tigers’ hearing, Skubal will be receiving the largest arbitration salary for a pitcher in MLB history.

That, of course, makes sense, because no recent MLB pitcher has had Skubal’s résumé while still in arbitration. Skubal has been the easy pick for the best pitcher in baseball over the past two years, with two Cy Young Awards and a Triple Crown in 2024. Besides Skubal, six pitchers have won multiple Cy Youngs in the past 15 years — Clayton Kershaw, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Corey Kluber, Jacob deGrom and Blake Snell — and none of them entered arbitration after the second trophy.

That’s because teams usually do whatever they can to keep that kind of player, but that effort hasn’t been fruitful for the Tigers so far. Skubal is slated to enter free agency after 2026, and he and the Tigers have been reported to be so far apart in negotiations for an extension that a trade could be on the table. 

The fact that their arbitration filings exhibit a similar chasm between the two sides underscores how unlikely a deal appears to be.

The sport of baseball has changed a lot under MLB commissioner Rob Manfred, with the institution of the pitch clock, the infield shift ban, the ghost runner and, starting next year, the automatic ball-strike challenge system. But what he floated on Thursday might be the biggest change yet.

Speaking on WFAN’s “The Carton Show,” Manfred addressed the possibility of MLB expanding to 32 teams after nearly three decades with 30 teams. The commissioner sounded more than open to the idea, saying there are several cities that want an MLB team. 

“When people want your product, you ought to try to find a way to sell it to them,” Manfred said. “It’s kind of basic.”

That’s not too new. Manfred has been flirting with the idea of expansion for years and said just a few months ago that he intends to select two cities for expansion before his planned retirement in 2029. It got interesting, however, when Manfred made pretty clear that he intends to realign the league once the two new teams are aboard.

That seems to mean going from the American League and National League to something like an East and West league, much like the NBA and NHL currently use.

Among Manfred’s reasons for the change is making travel easier for the players:

“It does a ton for us from a format perspective. You would realign, you would do it along geographic lines, which could alleviate a ton of the travel burden that’s on players.

“Remember, we ask our players [to play] 162 times in 186 days. So most of the [time] between 162 and 186 [is] travel, right? So you can eliminate a lot of that travel, make it less burdensome, which would be a great thing in terms of player health and safety.”

MLB has been composed of the American League and National League for 125 years. They used to be very distinct leagues, with separate governing systems, rulebooks and umpire crews, but that line dissolved in 2000 under former commissioner Bud Selig to more closely resemble the rest of the sports industry.

Manfred’s other pitch is that some playoff series would align better time-wise for fan bases (i.e. East Coast fans not having to stay up late to watch an ALDS game on the West Coast):

“If you play geographically, we get in a postseason. You know, we have those four-window days that I love, right? You get four baseball games in a day. It’s awesome. But when you think about the fans in the individual markets, you always end up with, because of the way we’re set up, you know, you get Boston versus Anaheim in one of the early rounds. So you’re either going to be too late for the fans in Boston or too early.

“So if you realign geographically, you would look more like other sports, where you play up East into the World Series and West into the World Series. And that 10 o’clock game on the West Coast that sometimes is a problem for us becomes a prime-time game on the West Coast for the two teams that are playing. So there’s a lot of advantages to it.”

Manfred shared a vision of eight divisions of four teams and keeping teams in the same city in separate divisions.

How would that look? To throw out a quick mock-up, let’s just say the two expansion cities are Nashville and Portland. If we try to create eight geographically distinct divisions with no teams in the same city while trying to preserve some premier rivalries, we could get something like this:

• West: Seattle Mariners, Portland, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers

• Southwest: Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, Las Vegas Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks

• South: Texas Rangers, Houston Astros, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals

• Midwest1: Minnesota Twins, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals

• Midwest 2: Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds

• Northeast: New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates

• Mid-Atlantic: Washington Nationals, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies

• Southeast: Atlanta Braves, Nashville, Tampa Bay Rays, Miami Marlins

Please note: That is absolutely not a serious attempt to create permanent, harmonious divisions for MLB. There are some obvious problems. It’s just meant to show how different things could become if Manfred is serious. And condolences to the Pirates if those divisions actually do come to pass.

That might not be the only major change to the structure of MLB that Manfred is considering, as he was also asked about the NBA Cup in-season tournament. He didn’t deny that his office has discussed a sort of MLB Cup, but he seemed hesitant, given some obvious drawbacks:

“We’ve talked about split seasons, we’ve talked about in-season tournaments. We do understand that 162 [games] is a long pull. I think the difficulty to accomplish those sort of in-season events, you almost inevitably start talking about fewer regular-season games.

“It is a much more complicated thing in our sport than it is in other sports because of all of our season-long records. You’re playing around with something that people care a lot about.”

Manfred also confirmed that he still intends to retire at the end of his contract in January 2029. His successor could find themselves running a very different league.

We’re at the point where we can officially call this a slow MLB free agency. Pitchers and catchers are due to report to spring training in a little more than a month, yet six of Yahoo Sports’ top 10 free agents have yet to sign.

There have been slower offseasons and greater pitfalls for top free agents, but it now seems safe to say that certain players just aren’t having their asking prices met. And among the players who have signed, we’ve seen the most qualifying offers accepted in MLB history and some surprisingly small deals, such as the $34 million that Japanese star Munetaka Murakami got from the Chicago White Sox.

Here’s how the markets for those six top unsigned free agents seem to be shaping up and why teams might not be lining up to give them nine-figure deals.

Kyle Tucker

Red flags: Injury history, a ho-hum 2025

For the past few years, Tucker receiving MLB’s next eye-popping contract has been treated as an inevitability. However, judging from current reporting, no team save for the Toronto Blue Jays has emerged ready to give him that huge contract, and even the Jays — baseball’s biggest spenders so far this offseason — seem to be trying to keep the price down.

A month and a half ago, Toronto was reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan to be considered the favorite for Tucker’s services and to have hosted him at its Florida complex in December. However, the fact that no deal has been reported would imply the two sides still have ground to cover. If the Jays don’t want to give Tucker the long-term deal he seeks, the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets are reportedly looming as options.

However, the Dodgers and Mets are reportedly more interested in a short-term deal that would pay Tucker an extremely high average annual value and allow him to reenter the market while he still has star value. That has been done before (e.g. every major Scott Boras client in 2024) and would be a boon for either team’s lineup.

After losing the 2025 World Series in excruciating fashion, Toronto has committed a combined $337 million to the quartet of Dylan Cease, Kazuma Okamoto, Tyler Rogers and Cody Ponce. They do not appear to be finished and could make another major move with Tucker or …

Bo Bichette

Red flags: Injury history, defensive limitations, a miserable 2024

Had it not been for Miguel Rojas’ unlikely Game 7 home run, Bichette almost certainly would’ve entered free agency as an all-time hero for the Blue Jays, thanks to his go-ahead homer off Shohei Ohtani earlier in the game. He still presents an enticing package, but consider us skeptical that any team sees him as a long-term shortstop.

Second base is Bichette’s likely destination, especially after he played there in the World Series, and he has signaled to teams that he’s willing to move there, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. The Jays are obviously interested in bringing him back, particularly in the event they miss on Tucker, and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported last week that the Dodgers, New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs have all checked in on Bichette.

On Thursday, The Athletic reported that the Philadelphia Phillies had entered the fray and scheduled a meeting with him. Adding Bichette would likely result in the Phillies moving on from J.T. Realmuto, a free agent, and Alec Bohm, a trade candidate.

Of course, if Heyman’s claim that Bichette is “thought” to be seeking a contract of around $300 million is true, that might be a tough sell for any team.

Alex Bregman

Red flags: Age, one All-Star season since the COVID-19 pandemic

This is a familiar position for the Boston Red Sox’s third baseman. He entered free agency last offseason and encountered a similarly frosty market. He ended up signing a three-year, $120 million deal with the Red Sox that included two opt-outs, allowing him to reenter the market as soon as he posted a good season.

Did he do that in 2025? Well, he was definitely doing that until May 23, when he sustained a quad strain. Before that day, he was hitting .299/.355/.583. Then he came back in July and hit .250/.338/.386 for the rest of the season. That’s not exactly the final impression you want to make when you’re turning 32 at the start of the 2026 season. But Bregman still opted out.

The Red Sox are interested in a reunion, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney, and could offer something in the range of the six years, $171.5 million the Detroit Tigers offered Bregman last offseason. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand suggests the Tigers are still interested, too, and mentions the Arizona Diamondbacks are also a major player. The Blue Jays were in there, too, until the Okamoto deal.

Bregman waited until February to sign the deal he just opted out of, and we seem on track for a similar wait this winter.

Cody Bellinger

Red flags: Perhaps the most inconsistent star in baseball

It’s really not an MLB offseason if we know what’s happening with Cody Bellinger. The Dodgers non-tendered him after 2022. The Chicago Cubs swooped in and signed him on a one-year deal for 2023, then brought him back in free agency. A down 2024 season led to a trade to the New York Yankees, with whom he enjoyed a resurgent 2025. And now Bellinger is a free agent again, still looking for the nine-figure deal that has eluded him.

The Yankees have made pretty clear they want him back, with multiple contract offers reportedly on the table. Among the other reported teams to check in on Bellinger are the Cubs, Phillies (pre-Kyle Schwarber deal), San Francisco Giants, Mets, Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels.

As with Bregman, there doesn’t seem to be much movement as of now. Bellinger presents an enormously risky profile, but he can play all three outfield positions and is a true middle-of-the-order presence when healthy. Most teams aren’t eager for that sort of mystery box, as his previous forays into free agency have shown.

Framber Valdez

Red flags: Age, a rough end to 2025, a bizarre catcher incident

Cease landing a $210 million deal at the start of free agency was seen as a good sign for both Valdez and the next guy on this list, but it hasn’t amounted to much yet. Valdez seemed on track for a huge deal midway through 2025, but a 6.05 ERA in his final 10 starts and a fateful pitch to catcher Cesar Salazar underlined the concerns around the 32-year-old.

The Mets, a rich team desperate for rotation help, have loomed as interested, according to The Athletic, as have the Baltimore Orioles. The Giants also met with Valdez in November, per MLB Network’s Jon Morosi.

Ranger Suárez

Red flags: A 90 mph fastball

Suárez is coming off a career year and has a robust postseason track record, but his sinker going from an average of 92.3 mph in 2023 to 90.1 mph in 2025 could be limiting his market. Granted, that diminished velocity hasn’t stopped Suárez from getting outs, but it complicates the idea of signing him into his 30s.

The Orioles are in on him, according to the Baltimore Banner, as are the Astros and Cubs. A reunion with the Phillies could be in the cards, too, but it doesn’t look like we’re seeing a bidding war yet.

In the NBA, name recognition remains an active element in how a player is viewed and evaluated, from peers, fans and pundits.

Players with notable draft stock, such as former top selections, or players who used to be All-Stars will enjoy the fruits of that past by being placed — for the most part — ahead of players without those same accolades.

Jalen Johnson of the Atlanta Hawks remains one of those players who gets overlooked because of peers who have more accolades or had more hype coming into the league. But that could be changing now for the 20th selection of the 2021 NBA Draft out of Duke with the Hawks moving on from Trae Young.

Breaking out and comparing favorably to bigger names

The 6-foot-9 power forward, who appears likely to make his first All-Star team, is about as good as they come, yet he rarely features in the national discourse around the league.

Johnson is averaging 23.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.3 steals, and shooting 52% from the floor while playing quality defense. Yet he is rarely mentioned in the same breath as Orlando’s higher-profile Paolo Banchero, despite the fact that it’s become exceedingly difficult to find a real argument for ranking Banchero above Johnson.

This isn’t meant as a jab on Banchero, who is a formidable player shooting 45.9% from the floor and 26.5% from 3-point range, but rather to illustrate the level Johnson has reached and why we need to talk about him.

Kelsey Grant via Getty Images

With Young out of action earlier this season, Johnson was thrown into the primary creation role in Atlanta with head coach Quin Snyder showing full buy-in. The Hawks went a respectable 13-9 during that stretch without Young. But when the star guard returned in mid-December, they lost their next five games.

Johnson is converting over 70% of his shots within 5 feet of the basket, and he’s upped his 3-point conversion rate to 35.5% on the season, which used to be his biggest weakness. To some extent, it still is, but he’s at least making progress in that area and is fast approaching a territory where he can be viewed as reliable from that distance.

Taking the numbers aside for a minute and his visual play speaks volumes. The 24-year-old is far more determined in practically every action, even when he slows the game down for himself.

The ball-handling is more crisp, and his passes come more naturally now. He changes speeds to manipulate the defense far more effectively, and most importantly: He’s recognizing when he can utilize his height and strength more.

Johnson’s more calculated approach to basketball, combined with an organic sense of internal player development, has created one of the league’s best two-way forwards — and flat out one of the top players in the Eastern Conference.

What does the future hold for Johnson in Atlanta?

Can Johnson continue to carry the Hawks in this role as the face of the franchise? That remains to be seen. 

What can be concluded already is that Johnson can step up and fill a fairly large creation gap left by Young. Johnson is the focal point of the offense and has embraced the responsibility of setting up others and getting them shots within the right circumstances.

Given his age, skill set and production, it’s outright odd how the larger discourse isn’t focused on the inevitability of Johnson further improving.

Unlike players within a similar age group — and even those with more recognizable names — Johnson has routinely improved while others have either stagnated or just not matched his rate of development.

Now might be time to realize we’re all looking at a player who could make some real noise in this league, especially if the Hawks can build a sustainable product around him, one that should feature plenty of outside shooting to optimize Johnson’s shot creation.

The carte blanche approach with Young didn’t field the necessary results in Atlanta, and now the organization has stumbled upon a player who can do many of the same things as Young while offering legit size and being gifted defensively.

It remains odd how Johnson flies this much under the radar. His raw stat line alone should raise eyebrows, but his actual impact and fingerprints on a game should raise a question: How high up in the pool of NBA players should he rank?

Odds are good that most answers will come in way too low.