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The Baltimore Orioles called up infielder Jackson Holliday, the No. 1 prospect in baseball, after a torrid start at Triple-A this season.

Holliday, 20, who was the top pick in the 2022 Major League Baseball draft, excelled in spring training but was sent to the minor leagues to begin the season. In 10 games with the Norfolk Tides, Holliday hit .333/.482/.595 with two home runs, nine RBIs, five doubles and 12 walks against eight strikeouts.

Holliday is expected to join the Orioles, who are 6-4 after a win against Boston on Tuesday, at Fenway Park on Wednesday.

Veteran infielder Tony Kemp was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

By calling up Holliday within the first two weeks of the season, Baltimore can reap an extra first-round draft pick through the Prospect Promotion Incentive, which awards teams with top prospects who attain a full year of service time and win the Rookie of the Year award. While there are 187 days on the baseball calendar, a full year of service is achieved at 172 days, which Holliday will reach if he remains with Baltimore for the remainder of the season.

The PPI has cut both ways for Baltimore. In 2022, the Orioles kept catcher Adley Rutschman in the minor leagues until May 21, only to see him finish second in American League Rookie of the Year and be granted a full year of service for it while the team did not receive an extra draft pick. Last season, Baltimore broke camp with infielder Gunnar Henderson, whose Rookie of the Year win earned the Orioles the 32nd overall draft pick and $2.84 million in bonus pool space in the July draft this year.

Holliday is expected to play second base and team with the 22-year-old Henderson, now playing shortstop, for one of the most dynamic young middle infielders in recent history. Considered a potential first-round pick entering the 2022 season, Holliday — the son of seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday — shot up draft boards in the spring after a bonanza season at Stillwater (Okla.) High.

He immediately proved worthy of the top pick, hitting .297/.489/.422 between rookie ball and Low-A, and followed that by excelling at four minor league levels last year, hitting .323/.442/.499 with 12 home runs, 75 RBIs, 24 stolen bases and 101 walks to 118 strikeouts in 581 plate appearances.

A left-handed hitter whose power stroke is expected to develop in the coming years, Holliday is nevertheless mature well beyond his age, having grown up in major league clubhouses and spent considerable time working with his father.

He joins an Orioles roster stacked with young position-playing talent, including Rutschman, Henderson, infielder Jordan Westburg and outfielder Colton Cowser, and comes from a Norfolk team likewise loaded with prospects, including third baseman Coby Mayo, outfielder Heston Kjerstad, super utility man Connor Norby and outfielder Kyle Stowers.

Baltimore’s decision to call up Holliday comes after a spring in which he wowed evaluators, hitting .311/.354/.600 and looking like one of the best players on the team. Baltimore entered the 2024 season as AL East favorites after adding 2021 National League Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes in a trade for two top prospects from its No. 1-ranked farm system, left-hander D.L. Hall and infielder Joey Ortiz.

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Sources: IF Kim, Rays agree to 2-year, $29M deal

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Sources: IF Kim, Rays agree to 2-year, M deal

Infielder Ha-Seong Kim and the Tampa Bay Rays are in agreement on a two-year, $29 million contract that includes an opt-out after the first season, sources told ESPN, adding a Gold Glove winner to a Rays team that places significant emphasis on defense.

Kim, 29, who is expected to return from shoulder surgery in May, likely will start at shortstop but also has played second and third base, with his Gold Glove coming in a utility role.

The deal, which will pay Kim $13 million this season, is the most Tampa Bay has guaranteed in free agency for a position player since signing outfielder Greg Vaughn for four years and $34 million in 1999.

Before the partial tear of his right labrum required surgery, Kim was expected to land a free agent deal in the nine-figure range. With his opt-out, he can join a free agent class next year that’s thin on infielders, with shortstop Bo Bichette and second baseman Luis Arraez the only players of Kim’s caliber.

He arrived from Korea in 2021, signing with the San Diego Padres as a bat-first middle infielder. While the power Kim displayed in Korea didn’t show up as frequently as it did with the Kiwoom Heroes, his glove was a revelation, and in four seasons with the Padres, he posted double-digit wins above replacement despite never slugging above .400.

Tampa Bay enters the 2025 season with playoff aspirations but had been relatively quiet over the winter, signing catcher Danny Jansen and trading left-hander Jeffrey Springs to Oakland. The Rays used Jose Caballero and Taylor Walls at shortstop last season and are expected to do the same this year before the return of Kim.

Their infield already was a strength, with first baseman Yandy Diaz, second baseman Brandon Lowe and star-in-the-making Junior Caminero at third, with Christopher Morel, Curtis Mead, Jonathan Aranda and Richie Palacios also capable to playing on the dirt.

Shortstop Wander Franco, who was expected to be the Rays’ long-term solution at the position after signing an 11-year deal, remains on the restricted list while facing charges in the Dominican Republic of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation against a minor and human trafficking.

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Fantasy baseball rankings, projections, strategy and cheat sheets

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Fantasy baseball rankings, projections, strategy and cheat sheets

All of your fantasy baseball draft preparation needs collected in one place! Here you’ll find rankings, projections, cheat sheets, analysis and strategy. Check back every day for new content through Opening Day of the 2025 season. If this is your first time playing fantasy baseball, might we recommend starting with the basics: The Playbook: How to play fantasy baseball.

Don’t have a team yet? Create or join a league and then dive into the latest draft-prep material tailored for whatever format you prefer.


The Playbook: Become an expert in 9 innings

Inning 1: How to play fantasy baseball

Inning 2: League Formats: Which is right for you?

Inning 3: Everything you need to know about salary-cap drafts

Inning 4: How to create the ultimate cheat sheet

Inning 5: Roster optimization

Inning 6: Nine must-follow tips

Inning 7: Staying ahead of league trends

Inning 8: Using advanced stats to get ahead

Inning 9: Mastering the 2025 player pool


Rankings and cheat sheets

Cockcroft: Points-league rankings

Karabell: Head-to-head categories/rotisserie rankings


Advice from our experts

Karabell: The top 10 fantasy baseball prospects for 2025 (1/29)

Karabell: News or Noise (1/24)

Zola: What to expect from Roki Sasaki and other Asian newcomers (1/15)

Cockcroft: Reaction to Juan Soto signing with the New York Mets (12/9)


Roster-building essentials

2025 Player Projections and Outlooks

“Hot stove” free agent and player movement tracker

Live Draft Results

Closer depth chart

MLB depth charts


For Dynasty Leaguers

Dynasty Top 300 (2025 edition coming soon!)

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Steinbrenner: ‘Difficult’ to spend like Dodgers

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Steinbrenner: 'Difficult' to spend like Dodgers

New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner weighed in on the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ offseason spending spree, saying it will be even more “difficult” to keep up with the reigning World Series champions.

The Dodgers have spent more than $450 million guaranteed this offseason, pushing their 2025 luxury tax payroll to approximately $390 million.

With the penalties for exceeding the $241 million threshold, the Dodgers’ total payroll for this year likely will be in excess of $500 million.

“It’s difficult for most of us owners to be able to do the kind of things that they’re doing,” Steinbrenner said during an interview with the YES Network that aired Tuesday. “We’ll see if it pays off.”

Despite losing superstar Juan Soto as a free agent to the crosstown rival Mets, the Yankees also have had an active offseason, headlined by Max Fried‘s eight-year, $218 million deal.

The Yankees currently have Major League Baseball’s third-highest luxury tax payroll at just under $303 million. The Phillies are second at just under $308 million, more than $80 million behind the Dodgers.

The Yankees were listed in March 2024 by Forbes as MLB’s most valuable franchise, worth an estimated $7.55 billion, while the Dodgers were the second-most valuable at approximately $5.45 billion.

Los Angeles’ latest free agent addition, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan, is reliever Kirby Yates, who agreed to a one-year deal worth $13 million.

The Dodgers also have signed free agents Blake Snell, Tanner Scott, Roki Sasaki, Michael Conforto and Hyeseong Kim; they re-signed Teoscar Hernandez and Blake Treinen; and they reached a multiyear extension with Tommy Edman.

Steinbrenner, whose Yankees lost to the Dodgers in last season’s World Series, added Tuesday that Los Angeles’ busy offseason does not guarantee another championship.

“They still have to have a season that’s relatively injury-free for it to work out for them,” Steinbrenner said. “It’s a long season as you know, and once you get to the postseason, anything can happen. We’ve seen that time and time again. We’ll see who’s there at the end.”

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