Baseball

Manny Machado admitted Saturday he is "disappointed" the San Diego Padres haven't made any significant moves after losing players like Ha-Seong Kim and Tanner Scott to free agency this offseason.

"Are we disappointed we haven't made any moves? Yeah," Machado said (h/t Marty Caswell.) "I think as a team, you look up there, and you're a little disappointed that we let some of the guys that were a core group here go elsewhere."

The Padres were reportedly a frontrunner to sign star Japanese free agent Rōki Sasaki this offseason. Like Scott, Sasaki ultimately decided to sign with the divisional rival Los Angeles Dodgers.

Kim left to sign with the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Padres lost another part of the 2024 team when Jurickson Profar left to join the Atlanta Braves.

Part of the reason the Padres have suffered so much roster turnover this offseason may be the highly-publicized legal dispute over the team's ownership.

Player agent Scott Boras told USA Today's Bob Nightengale in October he believed the death of late Padres owner Peter Seidler in 2023 contributed to the franchise's decision to trade Juan Soto. Seidler's passing also led to an ongoing legal dispute regarding ownership of the team.

Profar cited the Padres' "issue with the ownership" when talking about his decision to sign in Tampa, per Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Sasaki's agent meanwhile mentioned the dispute when discussing Sasaki's signing with the Dodgers, per The Athletic's Dennis Lin.

The Padres were one win away from eliminating the Dodgers and advancing to the NLCS when the team claimed a 6-5 win in Game 3 of the 2024 division series.

San Diego failed to score a run in Game 4 or in Game 5, during which the Dodgers came back to continue advancing toward an eventual World Series win.

The Padres' path to getting another chance to eliminate the Dodgers has gotten steeper this season, not just because of the quiet season in San Diego but because of the Dodgers brought not only Sasaki but Scott and Blake Snell into their pitching lineup.

Combined the pending pitching return of Shohei Ohtani, those offseason moves made the Dodgers the team to beat in the NL West. The Padres could consider turning to the trade market in an effort to raise Machado's confidence his team can contend with the defending World Series champions next fall.

Cincinnati Reds legend and Baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin joined the Orlando Dreamers in an attempt to help bring an MLB franchise to the city.

Larkin expressed his belief that Orlando should receive a team in an announcement on Wednesday (h/t Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors).

"It became immediately apparent that Orlando has the most compelling market in the country to be the next MLB franchise location," Larkin said, per the announcement.

The former 12-time All-Star is expected to serve as the MLB Ambassador for the Dreamers.

He'll also lead relationships and communications with MLB and provide strategic guidance to Orlando's baseball initiative.

Larkin revealed that he's already held discussions with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred.

"I spent considerable time talking to key people in Major League Baseball, including Commissioner Manfred, before committing to join the Orlando Dreamers' effort," Larkin said, per the announcement. "There were many phone calls to Jim, asking detailed questions concerning the approach, the accomplishments to date, and the strategies moving forward."

While Larkin was born in Cincinnati and spent his entire 19-year career with the Reds, he moved to Orlando and raised his family there following his retirement.

The late Pat Williams, who co-founded the Orlando Magic, also co-founded the Dreamers alongside Jim Schnorf in 2019 with the objective of bringing an MLB team to the city. Schnorf confirmed that Larkin's addition to the organization has already fueled commitments from potential investors.

"Just in the last few days, I have obtained verbal commitments from local investors in excess of $200 million dollars towards minority ownership in our prospective MLB franchise," Schnorf said as part of Wednesday's announcement. "Further, I just received verbal confirmation from an institutional investor group prepared to commit $250 million dollars to become a minority owner in our future team."

Manfred has previously expressed his support for the league's expansion, wanting the location of the two new franchises to be decided before he retires from his position in 2029 (via Sports Business Journal's Mike Mazzeo). He also wants at least one of the new teams to be located within the eastern time zone, which Orlando fits into.

Larkin made 12 All-Star appearances and earned 1995 National League MVP honors during his career, winning a World Series in 1990. He ranks No. 2 on the Reds' all-time hits list and recorded the seventh-most RBIs in franchise history.

Now, Larkin is focused on helping to bring an MLB team to Orlando.

Shohei Ohtani could be just four months away from his Los Angeles Dodgers pitching debut.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that Ohtani returning to the mound in May "sounds about right," per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

According to Ardaya, Ohtani said his recovery from offseason surgery on his non-throwing left shoulder remains on schedule.

The Dodgers indicated after the November procedure that Ohtani would be ready for Spring Training, but potentially only as a hitter.

Ohtani has not pitched since he was playing for the Los Angeles Angels in August 2023. He underwent surgery on a UCL tear in his right elbow the following September.

He threw off the mound for the first time undergoing the procedure last August, per CBS Sports' Mike Axisa.

According to the Los Angeles Times' Jack Harris, Ohtani had progressed to "throwing bullpen sessions regularly," but was waiting until the winter to face live batters, when he suffered the shoulder injury while sliding into a stolen base attempt in Game 2 of the World Series.

Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes told reporters on Dec. 9 during MLB Winter Meetings that Ohtani had resumed throwing again (h/t MLB.com's Sonja Chen.)

When asked how much the shoulder surgery had delayed Ohtani's return to the mound, Gomes answered, "Not that much, seemingly."

Gomes emphasized, however, that the Dodgers did not want to rush Ohtani's return, per Chen. Roberts meanwhile said it was "very unlikely" Ohtani would be ready to join the rotation by the time the Dodgers open the season in Tokyo on March 18.

Getting Ohtani on the mound for the first two months of the season won't be a priority for the defending World Series champions, who spent the offseason building the most star-studded rotation in MLB.

In addition to Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers are anticipating the return of Clayton Kershaw alongside the additions of Blake Snell and highly-anticipated Japanese rookie Rōki Sasaki.

That rotation depth means the Dodgers can afford to take their time and make sure Ohtani is as ready as possible to pitch by the 2025 postseason.

Ohtani is expected to also play as designated hitter on his pitching days, per Chen. Dodgers fans could expect to see him take on that double workload as soon as the second month of the 2025 season.

Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer will look to rebound in 2025 after reportedly agreeing to a new one-year, $15.5 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

The 40-year-old is coming off the worst season of his career.

He didn't make his 2024 debut until mid-June thanks to offseason surgery on a herniated disc and then a nerve problem in his right arm. Then he was sidelined in August due to right shoulder fatigue.

Scherzer wound up logging just 43.1 innings, going 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA and a 4.18 FIP.

The right-hander has nothing to prove at this point. An eight-time All-Star and a two-time World Series champion, he's in all likelihood headed for the Hall of Fame and could go in on the first ballot.

But Scherzer made it clear to the Dallas Morning News' Evan Grant in August he wanted to keep going for another year.

"When I'm out there, I've been able to compete," he said. "I can still pitch at a high level. I look at things like my slider, which I went into the season wanting to fix, and it's been really good. I still see myself as able to compete and win."

If anything, having such a disappointing campaign might've motivated him to stick around and end his time on the mound on a relative high point rather than walk away now.

As you'd expect, the advanced numbers from 2024 aren't kind to Scherzer.

According to Baseball Savant, his .248 expected batting average and .408 expected slugging percentage were both his second-highest dating back to 2015. He also had his lowest strikeout rate (22.6 percent) and had a whiff rate (29.2 percent) below his career average. His four-seam fastball averaged just 92.5 mph as well.

Those numbers require plenty of caveats thanks to Scherzer having his offseason preparations disrupted and putting together such a small sample before another arm issue arose.

Injuries haven't been a common theme across his MLB run, either. Excluding the pandemic-shortened season in 2020, he threw at least 140 innings every year between 2009 and 2023.

There was little doubt about Scherzer's ability to land on his feet with the Rangers or another team this winter. He has earned the benefit of the doubt to prove he remains an effective starting pitcher.

The Blue Jays being the one to give him a chance is a little surprising, though, when they aren't shaping up to be a major contender in the American League East. They lost 88 games in 2024 and haven't made any significant upgrades after trying and failing to sign Juan Soto, Rōki Sasaki and Corbin Burnes.

But this might be the last season Toronto has a playoff window of any kind with stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette becoming free agents next winter. In that sense, signing Scherzer is a gambit that aligns with the franchise's priorities now and carries no long-term commitments.

Even though the San Diego Padres already have Dylan Cease under contract for 2025 after the two sides avoided arbitration, the veteran right-hander is a hot topic in trade talks with spring training on the horizon.

Per MLB Network's Jon Morosi (starts at :45 mark), the Chicago Cubs were cited as a team to watch in the Cease market because of the depth of high-end talent in their farm system that is in the upper-levels of the minors right now.

Cease agreed to a $13.75 million contract with the Padres on Jan. 9. He will be eligible for free agency after the 2025 season, which is one reason San Diego is at least exploring his value right now.

Another reason, as Morosi pointed out, is the Padres are "bumping up against" their payroll limit being imposed by ownership. It's unclear exactly what the figure is, but their current payroll for the upcoming season sits at $197.5 million.

By comparison, the Padres ran a $170.9 million payroll in 2024. There is also an ongoing dispute about control of the franchise in the wake of Peter Seidler's death in November 2023.

Sheel Seidler, Peter's widow, filed a lawsuit earlier this month against two of her late husband's brothers to become the control person for the Padres. The lawsuit accuses Robert and Matthew Seidler of "fiduciary breaches of trust, fraud, conversion and egregious acts of self-dealing" in their roles as trustees and executors of Peter's estate.

Even though the Cubs haven't been playing in the deep end of the free-agent pool this offseason, their front office has kept busy by making trades. Most of their moves so far have been with the Houston Astros, landing Kyle Tucker and Ryan Pressly in separate trades.

Playing for the Cubs would be something of a full-circle moment for Cease. He was originally drafted by the club in 2014 before being dealt to the Chicago White Sox three years later in a midseason trade as part of a package for José Quintana.

Cease has been an inconsistent player since making his MLB debut in 2019, but his ceiling is as high as any pitcher in the big leagues. He has two top-five finishes in Cy Young voting in the past three years, including a second-place showing in 2022.

The Padres acquired Cease from the White Sox in March 2024. He posted a 3.47 ERA with 224 strikeouts in 189.1 innings last season. His durability is also a huge asset, as he leads all pitchers with 130 starts since 2021.

Adding Cease would give the Cubs a proven frontline starter to pair with Shōta Imanaga as they look to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

San Diego's pitching depth isn't as strong going into 2025 with Joe Musgrove out for the year after having Tommy John surgery in October. Trading Cease would create even more problems for the rotation, leaving Michael King and Yu Darvish as the only reliable options.

While that would be a dilemma for the big-league club, trading Cease would allow the Padres to restock a farm system that The Athletic's Keith Law ranked as the sixth-worst in MLB going into this season.

The Cincinnati Reds have increased their activity in recent days, but they reportedly fell short of making a major trade.

According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon, the Reds were "working on" a trade for Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. until Sunday, but the teams "could not find a middle ground on players or dollars."

Robert is set to earn $15 million for the 2025 season and has $20 million club options for 2026 and 2027 with $2 million buyouts in both years, so trading for him would require a commitment of at least $17 million. The 27-year-old is coming off another injury-riddled season in 2024 in which he was limited to 100 games and hit a career-worst .224 with just 14 home runs and 35 RBI.

Sources told Rosenthal and Sammon that Cincinnati and Chicago "did not resolve how much of Robert's salary the White Sox would have paid." The Reds reportedly included infield prospect Edwin Arroyo in discussions with the White Sox, but "ultimately, the Reds could not get comfortable with the total cost."

After failing to land Robert, the Reds pivoted by reaching an agreement with free-agent outfielder Austin Hays on a one-year, $5 million contract, pending a physical. Cincinnati also signed veteran left-hander Wade Miley to a minor-league deal and acquired lefty reliever Taylor Rogers in a trade with the San Francisco Giants.

The Reds went 77-85 in 2024 and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight year. Cincinnati is certainly hoping its recent additions will help turn things around next season, and it can be expected that the franchise will continue seeking improvements to its roster this winter.

The Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly very interested in signing a veteran starting pitcher in free agency.

Per MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, the Blue Jays "appear to be the most serious about signing" Max Scherzer.

"Toronto has been hot for him for about two months," one source said. "[The Blue Jays] certainly feel like the favorites to get him."

Scherzer, 40, has been with the Texas Rangers since 2023 after he was traded midseason from the New York Mets.

His time in Texas saw him deal with a handful of injuries. He suffered a teres major strain in September of 2023, ending his regular season prematurely. He managed to get back on the field for the postseason and appeared in three games as the Rangers won the World Series.

After an offseason back surgery ahead of last season, Scherzer managed a handful of injuries that limited him to just nine games. He posted a 3.95 ERA and 1.15 WHIP, picking up 40 strikeouts across 43.1 innings.

While the three-time Cy Young Award winner hasn't been at his best recently, a source told Feinsand that he looked good when he threw in front of an unspecified number of teams recently.

"He looked like Max Scherzer," a source said. "His Cy Young days are definitely behind him, but he's still good enough to be an effective starter."

It's hard to say whether Scherzer would turn Toronto into a contender after the Blue Jays missed out on stars such as Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes and Roki Sasaki, but he could certainly bolster a rotation that consists of Kevin Gausman, José Berríos and Chris Bassitt, among others.

Feindsand noted that veteran pitchers Alex Cobb and Justin Verlander signing one-year deals worth $15 million is a good measuring block for what kind of contract Scherzer could get. A price like that seems to be a figure the Blue Jays are willing to pay to improve the roster further after signing Anthony Santander, Jeff Hoffman, Yimi García for more than $140 million.