RosterResource Chat – 2/26/26

Jason Martinez: Welcome to the RosterResource Live Chat! Spring Training has arrived. Our focus has mostly shifted from free agency/trades/team needs to position battles/injuries/lineups. Please feel free to ask about any of that fun stuff.

Here we go …

Drew Carey: How does Cleveland’s middle infield shake out? Are they really going to stick with Arias and Rocchio, or will guys like Bazzana and Angel Genao make a push?

Jon Becker: I’d be surprised if it wasn’t Arias and Rocchio on day one, since they’re both out of options, young, and settled in really nicely defensively last year. But this time of year is a good time to remind that our Opening Day projections are (a) just projections and (b) only about Opening Day, not about what we think a team’s going to do all season. We’ve got Brito projected for 91 MLB PA coming off an injury-plagued season and Bazzana for 238, and seeing either or both of them top those PA totals wouldn’t surprise me.

queen’s gambit: Howdy Jason and Jon:  how many PAs can you see for Isaac Paredes getting this upcoming season?  I know Correa will probably end up on the IL—as he usually does—but is it possible that Paredes can get lots of time at 1B?  Thx for the chat!

Jason Martinez: You can see my current playing time breakdown here … https://www.fangraphs.com/depthcharts.aspx?position=ALL&teamid=21

Takes several possibilities into account — less PA than normal for Christian Walker, Correa’s injury history, etc — in order to get Paredes 475 PA. I gave Yordan 150 PA in LF, which might be too high. But this also doesn’t assume any long-term injuries, which would easily get Paredes into the 500-600 PA range. A trade is still possible, but he should still get a lot of PAs on this current Astros roster.

Doc Estes: Any rumblings on where Zack Littell may sign, and when?

Jon Becker: Things have been really quiet on him (and Giolito for that matter). The Rays are the only team with publicly-reported interest in Littell but that was months ago, before they signed Matz and Martinez, so they’re probably out of the market for starting pitching. Could see him signing with the Twins with López out or the Braves with Schwellenbach out, or wait around for another injury. Doesn’t seem like there are many teams publicly panicking about lack of SP depth just yet.

Thomas Nestico: Hey! Wanted to thank you for your work on RosterResource. One of the best baseball tools around!

How do you think the Cardinals rotation shakes up? RR has Richard Fitts on the outside, looking in, but I would consider him one of their Top 5 SP. Is his multiple options playing into his current depth chart placement under guys like Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante?

Jason Martinez: Thank you! I think it’s mostly dependent on Fitts and when the Cardinals decide he’ll be part of their rotation (probably for good). There’s still enough uncertainty with McGreevy and Pallante that the Cardinals want to see if they can be more than just back-of-the-rotation guys who can give them innings. But they’re also not guys who are going to block Fitts once the Cardinals decide he’s ready. They do need innings, though, and it makes sense to allow McGreevy/Pallante to do that early in the season before turning to the higher upside guys.

Leahy is more interesting than McGreevy/Pallante so I think he’ll get a longer look. But all 3 could end up in the bullpen with Fitts/Dobbins in the rotation and a few other prospects competing for a spot later in the season.

Brian Cashman: I see you have Randal Grichuk making the opening day roster with Oswaldo Cabrera on the IL. Who’s the backup shortstop in that scenario? Wouldn’t Max Schuemann be a better fit?

Jon Becker: They wouldn’t have a true backup SS, but they’re giving McMahon some time there in the Spring and Rosario can stand there and hopefully won’t have too many balls hit to him. It’s a pretty short-term issue with Volpe back sometime in May (maybe sooner!) and the Yankees having to consider losing Grichuk to another team if they don’t roster him. Of course, if Grichuk looks cooked and/or Cabrera gets back to sliding sooner than later, that decision is a lot easier.

Jon: Is there a trade for the Royals from their pitching depth still to be made?

Jason Martinez: I’m sure there will be teams interested in trading for starting pitching before Opening Day. And the Royals have SP depth. But they also probably feel pretty good about their SP1-SP8 and all 8 of those guys will be counted on thru 162/playoffs. And Stephen Kolek already has an oblique injury. My guess is that they don’t trade any SP unless they feel really good about their depth beyond the top 8 guys. Not sure they do.

Oaktown Blues: In theory, could a wealthy team sign an arb or pre-arb player to a larger contract than they are worth and then DFA them, with the idea that they are more likely to pass through waivers and stay in the org with their inflated salary? Effectively trading money for a 40 man spot

Jon Becker: Sure, a team certainly could do that — we’ve seen teams give fully-guaranteed or split contracts to fringe 40-man guys they like to try to pass them through waivers later, even if it doesn’t always work (Cooper Criswell got claimed twice, Lovelady once, etc.). But the amount you’d “overpay” a player isn’t necessarily enough to completely deter other teams unless you were to give a multi-year contract (knowing it’s too much money, not just a deal that ends up going bad) to deter claiming that much more, which I’ve never seen happen.

Nick: Dylan Crews is having a rough early showing in ST both offensively and defensively. What’s the probability that he ends up in AAA to start the season?

Jason Martinez: Nats are clearly looking ahead to 2027 and beyond so it would make sense to allow Crews to develop in the big leagues. Keeping him in AAA for close to 2 months would push his service time back and give them an extra season of control but that would be obvious manipulation. He’s too talented for that. My guess is he’s have to look completely lost during the regular season before he gets optioned.

Big Christmas: Is CJ Abrams staying put until the deadline? Or could an infield injury force a team’s hand?

Jon Becker: If it’s a really significant injury to a really significant player, I suppose, but it felt like the Giants talks that they couldn’t agree on were the last real chance to move him this offseason. But I’m sure there’ll be a more acute need somewhere around the league at the deadline and at that point it’s just a matter of lining up on a deal.

War2D2: Hi guys! Thanks for all the work you do! The Cubs have Conforto in camp, even though last season he looked like Trump-steaks level of cooked. I realize there’s not a huge downside, but is there really any benefit to giving an old dude a 40-man spot to see if he can recover his 60%-of-Ian Happ peak? Their two closest prospects are a corner OF and a lefty DH, they gotta be hoping one of them takes the opportunity and runs with it so they don’t have to roster Conforto.

Jason Martinez: While any veteran signing a MiLB deal this late in the offseason isn’t particularly focused on how they fit on that roster — they can opt out before rosters are set so they can look for a better fit later on — I think Conforto and the Cubs both see the potential opportunity. I think Moises Ballesteros will be a good MLB hitter, but a 22-year-old getting most of his at-bats as the DH is going to be a challenge. If Conforto has a strong camp, I can see him getting those at-bats (DH/RF) and the Cubs will give him at least a few weeks to see if they have the good version.

Insert Witty Name Here: Which team has a set up man who would be their regular closer (and not by committee) if their current closer gets hurt? Thinking like Suarez in ATL.

Jon Becker: Not necessarily an exhaustive list here, but some teams that come to mind:

Mets (Weaver)
Phillies (Keller)
Reds (Santillan)
Brewers (whichever of Uribe/Megill is healthy)
Orioles (Kittredge)
Royals (Erceg)
Astros (Abreu)

DB: thoughts on the Rockies 1b situation?

Jason Martinez: Seems like a wide open competition with Johnston, Rumfield, Crim, and Julien all in the mix. Crim seems like a lock as the platoon vs LHP but he’s questionable for Opening Day with an oblique injury. Julien winning the job would mean that someone emerged as the starting 2B (Ritter, Amador, Freeman) or Karros wins the starting 3B job and Castro plays 2B. A lot can happen on that roster. Probably a very bad team but some fun camp battles.

FYI – I think Condon will be the starting 1B by August or September.

cavebird: If Giancarlo Stanton spent time on the IL, do you think Jasson Dominguez would get a chance to get a good chunk of playing time, or would that require an injury to one of the Yankees’ outfielders?

Jon Becker: Yeah, I think he certainly would, at least against RHP. Stanton being hurt would let them give Judge et. al DH days, so it’s not as if Jasson would be called up to be the everyday DH, though I’d think with their current roster construction he’d probably DH more often than not in this scenario.

Dodgers Blue: Are you guys sleeping on Matt Svanson out of the Cardinal pen?  Good FB, great GB% rates, suppressed HR and BB rates in minors, and has been used as a closer in the minors.  I get the Cards first going to Riley – but seems that would be more to build up trade value to me.  And JoJo is one of only two lefties in the pen and may be needed for more lefty-lefty situations removing him from potential saves.

Jason Martinez: I am not. Kind of under the radar but he was great last season. O’Brien and Romero had all the saves in September, although Svanson and Leahy were also very good. Therefore, I have O’Brien/Romero as co-closers. Leahy gets a much-deserved shot in the rotation. I have Svanson as the top setup man but I can see him in the mix if they go beyond O’Brien/Romero. Stanek is also there so they might rely on him because he’s the veteran of the group.

But, yes, Romero being the only lefty is why I think it’s going to be more than one guy. We’ll see if it’s more than 2.

rays: how do you think the back of the tampa bay bullpen shakes out? saying they will give everybody chances, but is that just spring training coachspeak? given fairbanks had the role locked down, how likely is it jax just runs away with it?

Jon Becker: It’s coachspeak in that what Cash is saying can always change at some point in the season, but I think it’s mostly just how they like to do things. I get that pitchers like having established roles but if you get them used to/bought in on pitching at different points, my guess is that they get more used to it anyhow. If Jax is their best-performing reliever and happens to close more often than not I don’t think they want to anoint him the closer because it might be that the best spot for him the next game is in the seventh inning to get out of a jam. I think part of Fairbanks having the role locked down is that all the health issues made him a pretty rigidly single-inning guy, and that’s not the case for Jax, Uceta, Cleavinger, etc.

Oaktown Blues: Do you think Zack Gelof gets one more shot with the big league club to start the year, or starts in AAA?

Jason Martinez: I don’t think he’s out of chances but it’s probably not going to happen early in 2026. He’s coming back from shoulder surgery so they’ll ease him back into action in AAA (maybe a rehab assignment). And then it sounds like he’ll focus on defensive versatility. Maybe some OF. Maybe some 3B.

McNeil is the starting 2B this season so, barring injury, Gelof won’t get a chance there. And my assumption is that Leo De Vries will be in the middle infield with Jacob Wilson by 2027. So Gelof’s path, as long as he’s with the A’s, could be as a super-utilityman.

Doc Estes: Are you feeling good about Sasaki as the Dodger #5 starter? Odds that Wrobleski, Stone or River Ryan take that spot by opening day?

Jon Becker: I… do not feel great about it. He’s still throwing harder but the shape of his fastball just isn’t conducive to whiffs even at 97, and the new sinker is very hittable-looking, too. The splitter is still excellent but you just can’t be a starter with one viable pitch and not enough command on a badly shaped fastball. At the same time we’re not going to overreact to one rough outing, but it’s a competition I’m definitely keeping my eye on. Very real chance he loses the spot since he can be optioned to the minors.

Not Tommy Troy: What is Tommy Troy’s path to playing time this year?

Jason Martinez: Doesn’t seem to be much of a path, at least not in 2026. He’s primarily a 2B/SS and there is no clear path to playing time there unless Marte or Perdomo get hurt. He can also play CF so there is some value between the bat, speed, and defensive versatility. But guys like Tawa and Ildemaro Vargas are better fits on the MLB bench than a rookie who could be playing everyday in AAA. We’ll see how the “Jordan Lawlar in CF” experiment goes but I don’t think that will affect Troy’s path to the big leagues either way.

minwage: Paredes to the outfield?

Jon Becker: No chance. Coming off a strained hamstring, I can’t see them putting him somewhere he’s never played. Altuve will play a little bit of LF to ease the infield logjam, and Paredes will bounce around between 3B/2B/1B as things are currently constructed. Otherwise, it’s pretty rigid with Correa at 3B, Peña SS, Walker 1B

Nick: With Hoskins off the board, who do you think gets the majority of playing time at 1B for the Nats? Chaparro/Mervis/Bernabel/Ortiz/Morales is not exactly an inspiring group, but I’m not sure Garcia 1B/Nunez 2B is really any better

Jason Martinez: Yohandy Morales is a late-season candidate. Chaparro seems like a good bet to play vs LHP. I think it really comes down to Abilemec Ortiz vs Nasim Nuñez. Having Ortiz on the roster keeps Luis Garcia at 2B. But if Garcia plays 1B vs RHP, that opens up a starting spot for Nuñez. And then the Nats would have to decide whether Nuñez and Abrams should flip 2B/SS.

Here’s my current playing time projections … https://www.fangraphs.com/depthcharts.aspx?position=ALL&teamid=24

KC Pain: What is the Rays aversion to using Boyle+Seymour? They signed guys that seemingly block them, and they both are old for prospects/AAA. Is it a money move? Don’t believe in them? Team mindset?

Jon Becker: I think of the three options it’s closest to team mindset, in that the Rays always like having SP depth and they also know they can’t rely on McClanahan for a full season. I also thought making Matz and Martinez the two SP adds were very intentional, in that either or both can move to the bullpen at any point if Boyle, Seymour, Rock, etc. force the issue.

DB: The Padres projected lineup has 7 of the 9 hitters over 30 or almost 30. Plus 3/4 of their bench.      Guys like France and Solak just off the roster.   With such an old group of hitters… do you see the bench being used more frequently than other benches to give guys days off?     Seems like alot of At Bats will be seen by the bench, even if not a lot of obvious platoons

Jason Martinez: The player to watch is Sung-Mun Song. If he can hold his own at the plate, I think he ends up playing a lot of 3B, which would give Manny Machado a lot of DH at-bats. It’s an older team but not full of guys way past their prime. And Merrill/Tatis are the focus of that lineup and they’re young. Machado is probably the guy that they’ll start to be very careful with in order to keep him healthy for 162. It’s an older roster but bench depth seems like it’s in much better shape than past years.

Jason Martinez: That will do it for today. Thanks for joining us. Have a great weekend!