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The MLB winter meetings began Monday in Dallas and it figures to be an action-packed week of rumors, signings and trades.

We’ve got it all covered right here, from our predictions heading into the meetings to the latest updates, analysis and daily takeaways as the moves go down.

Now that Juan Soto has made his decision, what big free agency moves will follow? Who will be the big names mentioned in trade talks? And what rumors will dominate the week? Check out our predictions now and refresh often for the latest as the week unfolds.

Winter meetings news and rumors

Dec. 10 buzz

How Fried’s record deal helps another free agent ace

With the signing of Max Fried, the path has been cleared for Corbin Burnes to ink the highest offseason contract for a pitcher this winter. The Giants remain the favorites for his services which will likely come at a cost closer to $300 million than $200 million. Fried’s deal for $218 million for eight years sets the bar for Burnes who should blow by that number. — Jesse Rogers


Guardians and Blue Jays complete trade

BREAKING: The Toronto Blue Jays are finalizing a trade to acquire three-time Gold Glove-winning second baseman Andrés Giménez from the Cleveland Guardians, sources tell ESPN. — Jeff Passan


Yankees land Fried on $218 million contract

BREAKING: Left-hander Max Fried and the New York Yankees are in agreement on a eight-year, $218 million contract, pending physical, sources tell ESPN. It is the largest guarantee in baseball history for a left-handed pitcher. — Jeff Passan


Rangers, Yankees among teams showing interest in reliever Martin

Veteran right-hander Chris Martin, who is at the winter meetings, has so far met with the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers, a source tells ESPN. Martin, 38, recorded a 3.45 ERA in 45 games for the Boston Red Sox last season after posting a 1.05 ERA in 55 appearances for the club in 2023. — Jorge Castillo


Yankees could look to add new closer

Luke Weaver thrived as the New York Yankees‘ closer after replacing Clay Holmes in September, but manager Aaron Boone said that doesn’t mean Weaver will be the team’s closer next season. Boone said Weaver’s role will depend on where the Yankees “go this offseason.” One possibility is they sign free agent left-hander Tanner Scott to be their closer. The Yankees had interest in acquiring him from the Miami Marlins at the trade deadline before he was traded to the San Diego Padres. When asked about Scott, Boone complimented his stuff and his command improvement. Scott, 30, has a 2.04 ERA in 146 appearances over the past two seasons. — Jorge Castillo


What does Guerrero’s future in Toronto look like?

The Toronto Blue Jays made an aggressive run at Juan Soto and lost out, just one offseason after losing out on Shohei Ohtani. Now, many in the industry believe the course of their franchise could be directed by one player: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the star first baseman who is only a season away from free agency. The Blue Jays have been in talks with Guerrero about an extension but are not considered to be close to one — a type of uncertainty that could impact their ability to attract free agents, many of whom will wonder about the direction of the franchise if Guerrero leaves in a year.

If the two sides can’t agree to a deal, many in the industry believe the Blue Jays will have little choice but to trade Guerrero and begin a rebuilding process. It doesn’t seem as if that is at the forefront of their minds, however; Toronto can easily play out the 2025 season and hope to bring Guerrero back as a free agent. But he’ll hit the open market at just 26 years old, the same age that catapulted Juan Soto to a $765 million guarantee. And the Blue Jays would obviously risk Guerrero’s price elevating further if he has another MVP-caliber season. — Alden Gonzalez


Latest on Arenado’s trade status with Cardinals

With Nolan Arenado being mentioned in trade talks, his agent, Joel Wolfe, spoke about the Cardinals infielder’s status on Tuesday. Wolfe said Arenado would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to go to a winning team and would be open to moving to first base if it makes sense.


Sasaki’s agent speaks at winter meetings

Now that star Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki has officially been posted as an MLB free agent, his agent, Joel Wolfe, spoke to the media at the winter meetings on Tuesday.

Here are a few of Wolfe’s quotes from the media session.

On what Sasaki values: “He has paid attention to how teams have done as far as overall success, both this year and in the past. He does watch a lot of MLB. He has paid attention to what his [World Baseball Classic] teammates have done. He asks about weather, comfortability, pitching development. He has been watching what other Japanese players in the major leagues are doing and how they are doing.”

On market size: “I think that there’s an argument to be made that a smaller, mid-market team might be more beneficial for him as a soft landing. Might be, I’m not saying it will be — but I really don’t know how he looks at it yet.”

On geography: “He’s never brought that up as an issue. When we supply information to our players, our Japanese players, long before they come over here, one of the things that we provide for them is direct flights from Japan, and the amount of time it takes for your family to come and visit you. And I think about five or 10 years ago, that was something that maybe they weighed a little bit more, but now you can fly direct from Japan to most of the major cities in the U.S. It’s not really that much of an issue anymore.”


Who could land Arenado, Tucker?

With Nolan Arenado and Kyle Tucker being mentioned in winter meetings trade speculation, David Schoenfield identifies potential landing spots for both sluggers — including the New York Yankees. Arenado, Tucker trade fits (ESPN+) »


Why Astros’ Tucker is coming up in trade speculation

Houston Astros owner Jim Crane has not gone beyond six years in his offers to players, and it’s pretty clear that if Kyle Tucker stays healthy, he is going to be offered big money/big years as a free agent next fall. So Houston has a choice similar to Boston’s in the offseason after 2019 with Mookie Betts: trade him for value this winter or next July, or, watch him walk away.

The Astros have indicated to other teams that, as a rule, they’ll listen to offers for anyone on their roster. But rival execs note that while trading Tucker now might help them recoup more value, the Astros — who’ve been in win-now mode since 2015 — have a long history of allowing their impending free agents walk out the door, rather than flipping them in pre-emptive trades. Gerrit Cole, George Springer and Carlos Correa are three of the most prominent examples of this philosophy. “And they’re trying to win (in 2025),” said one rival evaluator. “I have a hard time seeing them trade Tucker or Framber (Valdez).”— Buster Olney


Dec. 9 buzz

White Sox in trade talks on Crochet, Robert

The Chicago White Sox continue to field calls for pitcher Garrett Crochet and OF Luis Robert Jr., though a deal for either doesn’t sound imminent, according to general manager Chris Getz. At least 10 teams have inquired about Crochet as Chicago begins to whittle down potential trade candidates.

“There are some teams that are more sincere than others,” Getz said. “We’re still kind of learning. Those conversations will be ongoing. While we’re here, we’re going to the best we can do for the White Sox, and if that means we make a move, we make a move. But it’s OK if we don’t.”

As for Robert, the front office is hoping prospective trade partners look back to 2023, when he posted a .957 OPS, rather than a 2024 season in which he was hurt and his OPS fell 200 points. When asked if his desired return for Robert is too high based on that recent campaign, Getz said: “It’s an appropriate price tag based on the talent that he brings to the table.” — Jesse Rogers


Padres confident in chances of landing Sasaki

If there’s one team outside of the Los Angeles Dodgers that is widely considered favorites to land Roki Sasaki, it’s the Dodgers’ biggest rivals at the moment, the San Diego Padres. Speaking at the winter meetings on Monday, Padres manager Mike Shildt expressed confidence in his team’s ability to land the 23-year-old Japanese phenom who will be posted Tuesday afternoon and will pick his new team shortly after next year’s international signing period opens on Jan. 15. Shildt brought up the appeal of San Diego, the atmosphere at Petco Park, the opportunity to win the city’s first World Series and A.J. Preller’s prowess in the Japanese market as factors playing in the Padres’ favor.

“I feel like the organization is in a really good place with Sasaki,” Shildt said. “If there’s an open-market competition to be had, I feel like we’re in a good spot for a multitude of reasons.”

Another, perhaps even bigger factor is the presence of fellow Japanese starter Yu Darvish, a close friend and mentor to Sasaki. Asked how much Darvish is willing to help in the recruitment, Shildt said, “Yu will be involved. To what degree, that will be up to Darvish, and of course A.J. will help shepherd that. But I do feel comfortable and confident that Darvish will take his rightful spot in doing what he can.”


Could Soto’s megadeal help Astros’ Tucker?

In the aftermath of Juan Soto’s massive contract, I’m hearing some evaluators talking about the huge payday ahead for Kyle Tucker, who will be a free agent next offseason. Since the start of 2019: an adjusted OPS+ of 142, .882 OPS, 125 homers, 93 steals in 105 attempts, a Gold Glove Award. He’ll be 29 at the outset of the 2026 season. — Buster Olney


Dodgers planning to play Betts at shortstop

Los Angeles Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes confirmed at the winter meetings what has basically been known for a few weeks now: Mookie Betts is preparing to play shortstop next season, and that’s what they’re planning for. — Alden Gonzalez


Giants a team to watch for Fried

As we move forward in free agency, one possible fit worth watching: Max Fried and the San Francisco Giants. He’s being evaluated by contenders in the Northeast, too, but some execs wonder what his preference will be if it comes down to San Francisco vs. the two New York teams and the Red Sox. — Olney


Cardinals manager Marmol on Arenado trade rumors

St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol was asked about handling offseason trade buzz around his star third baseman Nolan Arenado and other veteran Cardinals players.

“You just continue to operate honestly as if they’re going to be there until they’re not. Those guys are doing a really nice job of that. Speaking to Nolan, he’s in a good spot, man. He’s doing what he does best because he’s working hard to make sure he has a good season.”


Red Sox manager Cora on Bregman

Red Sox manager Alex Cora was asked about free agent Alex Bregman, whom he coached during his time in Houston, at his winter meetings manager availability:

“Alex is a good player, man. He’s a complete player. He’s a player that’s been on winning teams, right, his whole career. Good defender. Offensively, he’s really good. He’s a guy that a lot of people are talking about, and I do believe he can impact a big league team, a championship-caliber team. He’s that type of player.”


Angels looking to add infield help

Los Angeles Angels general manager Perry Minasian — among the busiest executives this offseason, having already added Jorge Soler, Yusei Kikuchi and Travis d’Arnaud, among others — said Monday that he remains open-minded on a multitude of options to make his team significantly better in the wake of a 99-loss season. If there’s one clear target outside of the bullpen, though, it’s probably in the infield, specifically a second or third baseman.

The Angels feel set at shortstop (Zach Neto) and first base (Nolan Schanuel). They also have Luis Rengifo, an option at either second or third base. And then, of course, there’s Anthony Rendon, who’s still owed $76 million over the next two years but missed close to 70% of the Angels’ games from 2021 to 2024. The Angels can’t really count on Rendon at this point. They’ll explore free agency and the trade market for help there — likely on a short-term option, with Christian Moore, the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft, not far removed from the big leagues.

“We have to be open to at least looking at that spot and seeing if there are other alternatives that will make us better,” Minasian said of adding a third baseman. “Obviously a healthy Anthony Rendon makes us better, but with the last four years being the last four years, we need to take a look at what else is out there.” — Gonzalez


Cubs in the market for a closer

After an awful year trying to finish off games, the Chicago Cubs have expressed interest in free agent closer Kyle Finnegan. Finnegan was a surprise non-tender after making the All-Star team with the Washington Nationals in 2024. He saved a career-high 38 games with a 3.68 ERA before entering the free agent market. The Cubs have already bolstered their pitching and catching depth, acquiring catchers Matt Thaiss and Carson Kelly while adding pitchers Eli Morgan and Matthew Boyd. — Jesse Rogers


Will Teoscar Hernandez return to the Dodgers?

The Dodgers’ acquisition of Michael Conforto, who agreed to terms on a one-year, $17 million deal on Sunday night, doesn’t take them out of the running for Teoscar Hernandez, sources said. But it could complicate matters. The Dodgers have been in conversations with Hernandez’s reps for weeks but have been unable to bridge the gap on a new deal, at least part of the reason they pivoted to more of a sure thing in Conforto. In some ways, that signing can be viewed in a vacuum; the Dodgers needed a left-handed-hitting outfielder and could still use an everyday, right-handed bat like Hernandez, a clubhouse favorite amid their World Series run. But the Red Sox and Yankees are both expected to be aggressive after Hernandez now that they have missed out on Juan Soto. A Hernandez/Dodgers reunion that not long ago seemed inevitable is no longer as much of a sure thing. — Gonzalez


Who will land Jonathan Loáisiga?

Right-hander Jonathan Loáisiga is drawing heavy interest from several teams, including the New York Mets, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers and Blue Jays, a source told ESPN. The 30-year-old reliever is expected to land a big league contract after undergoing surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow in April. Injuries have held Loáisiga to 20 appearances over the past two seasons, including three in 2024 before undergoing the elbow procedure, but his electric stuff, headlined by a 98 mph sinker, makes him an attractive bullpen weapon for clubs expecting to contend. — Jorge Castillo


Buehler drawing interest

Walker Buehler is drawing varying amounts of interest from about 10 teams. The end to his postseason opened some eyes after he threw 10 scoreless innings split between the NLCS and World Series — including the final inning of the 2024 Fall Classic to close out the New York Yankees in Game 5. A deal for Buehler could look like a shorter-term bet on himself after he returned from his second Tommy John surgery in 2024 though some teams still see him as the guy who finished fourth in Cy Young voting as recently as 2021. That could mean a long-term deal of 3-4 years is still in the cards as he puts his injuries in the rearview mirror. — Rogers


Estevez a name to watch

Closer Carlos Estevez‘s market is heating up as the veteran reliever could come off the board by the end of the meetings. Now that the Yankees have cleared up some money, Estevez is a fit in New York, especially after the team lost Clay Holmes via free agency to the Mets. Toronto and Philadelphia — the latter is where he ended the season — remain possible destinations as well. — Rogers

Winter meetings predictions

Now that Soto is off the board, who will be the biggest name to sign (or get traded) in Dallas?

Castillo: Corbin Burnes will sign with one of the teams that missed out on Soto — but while he’s arguably the best player left in free agency, is he a bigger name than Alex Bregman, who also could sign in a flurry of moves this week? I say no. So, Bregman is my answer.

Gonzalez: Max Fried. The Yankees and Red Sox have been heavy on him for weeks now, and their pursuits aren’t necessarily tied to signing Soto. Now that the Dodgers, fresh off guaranteeing $182 million to Blake Snell, aren’t necessarily a factor, the path is cleared for one of those two teams to close things up with Fried.

Rogers: Soto signing with the Mets will trigger Cody Bellinger getting dealt. Teams that lost out on the best lefty hitter available this offseason will turn their attention to the Cubs, who have signaled they are open to trading the former National League MVP. The Cubs are keeping close track of their spending these days and will want to move some salary in order to fulfill their needs for the rest of the winter.

What is one move fans might not be expecting that you predict will go down this week?

Castillo: Garrett Crochet will get traded to the Yankees or Red Sox.

Gonzalez: My prediction — and that’s all it is at this point — is that Alec Bohm goes to the Mariners. Jerry Dipoto and Dave Dombrowski are two of the industry’s most aggressive executives, and this pairing makes too much sense.

Rogers: Christian Walker will sign with the Yankees after New York missed out on Soto.

What is the one rumor that will dominate the week?

Castillo: It’s not just one rumor, but the musical chairs played between the available front-line starters and the clubs seeking front-line pitching will dominate the week.

Gonzalez: The winter meetings are the perfect environment to stoke intrigue, and one name I expect to be bandied about in Dallas, whether he’s truly available or not, is Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who’s still without an extension that would keep him in Toronto beyond 2025.

Rogers: Corbin Burnes will be linked to a bunch of the big-market teams with San Francisco at the top of the heap. Will the Giants give him a Stephen Strasburg type deal? President of baseball operations Buster Posey has already spent big this offseason. Why stop now?

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Homestead-Miami to host ’26 NASCAR title races

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Homestead-Miami to host '26 NASCAR title races

NASCAR’s Championship Weekend is headed back to the racetrack it called home for nearly two decades, but it won’t stay long, as the sanctioning body moves to a new rotation scheduling model for its season finale.

On Tuesday, NASCAR announced that Homestead-Miami Speedway, which hosted the conclusion of the NASCAR postseason from 2002 to 2019, will do so once again in 2026, as NASCAR’s three national series – Craftsman Trucks, Xfinity and Cup — crown champions over a three-day weekend, Nov. 6-8.

But the return to South Florida will only be the first year of the annual rotation of NASCAR Championship Weekend, to be held at to-be-determined locations each fall. The move is inspired by so-called “stick-and-ball” title games such as the Super Bowl, College Football Playoff National Championship and NCAA Final Fours.

In recent years, NASCAR has experimented with moving around its two exhibition events, as the preseason Clash went from Daytona International Speedway, its home 1979-2021, to a short track constructed inside the Los Angeles Coliseum in 2022-23 and Bowman-Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, on Feb. 2 of this year. Since 2020, the NASCAR All-Star Race has also rotated, leaving its birthplace and longtime home track Charlotte Motor Speedway to race at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee, Texas Motor Speedway and the resurrected North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina.

Adding that to NASCAR’s frequent shuffling of its first nine playoff races, it all feels as if it were one big test session for this, an overhaul of the biggest weekend of NASCAR’s year, when its three national champions are crowned.

“Yes, mixing it up, and I think you are going to see different teams and different drivers as we move this championship around,” said Ben Kennedy in a phone conversation with ESPN. He is NASCAR EVP, chief venue & racing innovation officer, great-grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France, and a former racer in Trucks and Xfinity. “Some are going to rise to the occasion, and others aren’t. It’s going to be interesting to see how that plays out. We still want to keep the playoff schedule. We want to keep a lot of that intact. But you’ve seen over the past few years some small nuances and changes we’ve met, we’ve created in it, just to keep that level of unpredictability high.”

This marks a significant departure from NASCAR’s long-established regular-season stock car racing scheduling model. In 2020, the finale weekend was moved from 1.5-mile Homestead-Miami Speedway to the flat, quirky 1-mile Phoenix Raceway amid NASCAR’s fan-driven push toward shorter tracks. It has resided there ever since, slated for this year’s Championship Weekend Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

But before Homestead-Miami’s 18-year stint as Championship Weekend host, Atlanta Motor Speedway was home to the season’s last race for 14 years, the only exception being 2001, when New Hampshire Motor Speedway had its fall date pushed to the end of the Cup Series calendar due to the attacks of 9/11. From 1974 to 1986, the season always ended in Southern California, either on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway clone of Ontario or on the road course of Riverside two racetracks that no longer exist.

Kennedy explained that the details of how tracks will be selected to host Championship Weekend in the post-2026 rotation are being sorted out by a NASCAR industry working group. But he also listed criteria that included a warm weather climate in late fall, adjacency to a large metro area, updated facilities prepared to handle the sport’s crowning events and established racetracks instead of unfamiliar wild cards where teams don’t have at least some history. He also said he did not foresee the roulette wheel-style “plate racing” of Daytona International Speedway or Talladega Superspeedway having a place in the finale, even after they have had previous turns in the postseason, including crucial cutoff races.

There are 28 tracks that host Cup Series events. NASCAR wholly owns 11, including Homestead-Miami and Phoenix. Speedway Motorsports Incorporated owns a dozen facilities. The remaining five are independently owned or are operated by NASCAR in conjunction with other entities. Based on Kennedy’s description of what constitutes warm weather climate (“You could draw a line just a little bit north of the Rockingham [North Carolina] Speedway”) then roughly a quarter of those tracks would seem to be in play for a future Championship Weekend.

“A big part of this is also hearing feedback from the industry, be it teams, drivers, broadcast partners, industry partners and, importantly, the fans,” Kennedy said. “It was the fans who ranked Homestead-Miami Speedway as the No. 1 track that they would like to see the championship at.”

As for Phoenix Raceway, which Kennedy says received $100 million in capital improvements to bolster its role as the championship anchor, will continue to host two Cup Series events, as it has since 2005. It will be included in the Round of 8, essentially the semifinals, of the 2026 NASCAR playoffs, the specific date to be announced with the remainder of next year’s schedule at a later date.

“Phoenix set the bar really high since that weekend moved from here to there,” Homestead-Miami Speedway president Guillermo Santa Cruz said. “But now to kick off this rotation, to be the first one up in this in this new format and, you know, set the pace for it. It’s an honor for us to have it back and to kick it off.”

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Rangers recall Duran with Pillar on injured list

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Rangers recall Duran with Pillar on injured list

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Rangers recalled utility man Ezequiel Duran from Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday to fill the 26-man roster spot vacated by outfielder Kevin Pillar.

Pillar was placed on the 10-day injured list with lower back inflammation, retroactive to Sunday, before Wednesday’s game at Boston.

Duran will be in his third stint with the Rangers this season. He hit .345 with four home runs, six doubles, four RBIs and 13 runs scored in 14 games with Round Rock since being optioned by Texas on April 20. He has made 10 starts at shortstop and four starts at third base with Round Rock.

Duran was on Texas’ Opening Day roster for the third straight season and has played all four infield positions over seven games for the Rangers this year. He was 0-for-14 with one RBI. Duran is a .253 career hitter with 22 home runs and 92 RBIs in 279 games across four major league seasons, all with Texas.

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Pirates fire Shelton, say move is to ‘fix this now’

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Pirates fire Shelton, say move is to 'fix this now'

The Pirates have fired manager Derek Shelton following a rocky opening month to the season that saw Pittsburgh quickly slip into last place in the National League Central.

General manager Ben Cherington made the announcement Thursday. Bench coach Don Kelly will take over for Shelton, who is the first manager fired across Major League Baseball this season.

The decision comes with Pittsburgh riding a seven-game losing streak that saw its record fall to 12-26 and the team drop 10 games back of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. Shelton, hired by Cherington in November 2019 as part of a franchise-wide reset by owner Bob Nutting, went 306-440 in five-plus seasons with the Pirates.

“Derek worked incredibly hard and sacrificed a lot over five-plus years,” Cherington said in a statement. “His family became a big part of the Pirates family, and we will miss that. He’s an incredibly smart, curious, and driven baseball leader. I believe he was the right person for the job when he was hired. I also believe that a change is now necessary. I wish Derek and his family all the best in their next chapter.”

Noting there is “a lot of baseball left to be played,” Nutting said the team needed to “act with a sense of urgency and take the steps necessary to fix this now to get back on track as a team and organization.” He said the first quarter of the season had been “frustrating and painful for all of us.”

The Pirates, ranked 26th out of 30 MLB teams in Opening Day payroll, began the season hoping to contend behind reigning NL Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes. Though the 22-year-old Skenes has been solid and the starting rotation in general has been steady, Pittsburgh’s offense has languished near the bottom of the NL all season, sitting ahead of only the Colorado Rockies in batting average and runs scored.

Pittsburgh is in the middle of a difficult stretch that began with the team getting swept by both San Diego and St. Louis. Pittsburgh’s next nine games are against NL powers Atlanta, the New York Mets and Philadelphia.

Kelly, a former major league player who entered the big leagues with Pittsburgh and is a native of the city, had served in his previous role with the Pirates since 2020.

“Donnie is as respected as any person in our clubhouse and throughout our organization,” Nutting said. “He is a Pirate. He bleeds black and gold. No one is more committed, and no one loves this team or city more than Donnie. He is the right person to manage our team and help get us back on track.”

The Pirates haven’t made the postseason since 2015. That is the second-longest active postseason drought in baseball, ahead of only the Los Angeles Angels, who haven’t reached the playoffs since 2014.

The Pirates gave Shelton, a former minor league catcher, his first major league managing job after he served as a coach in various capacities in Tampa Bay, Toronto and Minnesota.

Cherington tasked him with setting a new foundation for a club that has been an also-ran for the past three decades, save for a brief three-year stretch from 2013 to 2015 in which the Pirates returned to prominence.

The consistently upbeat Shelton oversaw a clubhouse with an incredible amount of churn during his first four seasons as Cherington traded away most of the established major leaguers on the roster — Joe Musgrove, Josh Bell, Jameson Taillon to name a few — to restock the club’s prospect pool.

Pittsburgh won less than 40% of its games in Shelton’s first three seasons before taking a step forward in 2023 when it won 76 games. Skenes’ arrival last May gave the franchise another jolt, and the Pirates were in playoff contention until an August swoon.

The club’s lack of offense in 2024 was its biggest issue. Rather than invest in proven major league talent — the team’s biggest offseason pickups were acquiring first baseman Spencer Horwitz (who is still rehabbing from wrist surgery over the winter) and signing Tommy Pham and Adam Frazier — Cherington instead retooled parts of the coaching staff and scouting department, including firing hitting coach Andy Haines and replacing him with Matt Hague.

Results have not followed. Pittsburgh is near the bottom of the majors in runs (29th), OPS (29th), home runs (28th) and average (27th) with no signs of improvement. The Pirates have scored a total of five runs in their past five games while getting shut out twice.

They are even struggling when Skenes is on the hill. The top pick in the 2023 first-year player draft has a respectable 2.77 ERA in eight starts in 2025, but the Pirates are 3-5 in those games, including a 2-1 loss to St. Louis on Tuesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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