With the first report date for pitchers and catchers just two days away, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world headed into the weekend:
1. Arbitration hearings continue:
According to the Associated Press, the Angels and Luis Rengifo had their arbitration hearing yesterday, with a decision expected to be handed down today. Rengifo filed at $5.95MM while the Angels countered at $5.8MM. Rengifo is coming off a strong but injury shortened season in 2024 where he slashed .300/.347/.417 in 78 games. The Cardinals and outfielder Lars Nootbaar have also had their hearing, with Nootbaar filing at $2.95MM and the Cardinals countering at $2.45MM. That decision is being withheld until Nootbaar’s teammate Brendan Donovan’s arbitration case is either settled or decided, however (as is common for comparable players in the same service class whose hearing results could be relevant to one another). So far, teams have won three out of four arbitration decisions with Angels outfielder Mickey Moniak being the only player to win his case this year.
2. Positional market continues to thin:
Both the outfield and infield markets thinned a bit further yesterday when the Pirates reached an agreement with veteran Tommy Pham while the Angels landed third baseman Yoan Moncada. Both came to terms on one-year deals.
Alex Bregman is the only top-tier free agent remaining on the positional market, but even the market for depth options and second-division starters has been begun to dry up. First base has a handful of notable veterans still available like Justin Turner, Anthony Rizzo, and Mark Canha, but the rest of the infield market is more dire. Paul DeJong is perhaps the best option remaining, with Luis Urias, Jose Iglesias, and Brendan Rodgers also available. In the outfield, Canha is capable of handling a corner alongside Alex Verdugo, David Peralta, Eddie Rosario, and Jason Heyward while Kevin Pillar and Michael A. Taylor are the best options available in center.
3. Marlins FanFest:
The Marlins are the latest team to host their annual FanFest, which is scheduled for tomorrow at loanDepot Park. The event will run from 4pm to 8pm and the festivities will include meet and greets with players, tours of the Marlins clubhouse, as well as live interviews with players in both English and Spanish. Newly hired Marlins manager Clayton McCullough figures to be in attendance for one of his first major events as the team’s skipper. The club is also expected to announce their new City Connect uniforms for the 2025 season at tomorrow’s event. Last year’s event saw president of baseball operations Peter Bendix field questions, though there’s no formal indication he’ll do so in 2025. The FanFest is a free, ticketed event, and interested fans can both claim a free ticket and find more information about the the event on the event’s MLB.com page here.
