Diaz will make $4.5 million in 2026 after winning his arbitration hearing with the Astros on Tuesday, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.

Diaz slashed .256/.284/.417 in 2025 while tallying 20 homers, 70 RBI and 56 runs scored across 567 plate appearances. His success ultimately led to the arbitration panel choosing his $4.5 million figure over the $3 million that the Astros submitted. The 27-year-old backstop is expected to continue playing nearly every day in 2026 and has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining.

The White Sox designated Romo for assignment Sunday.

The 24-year-old catcher was claimed off waivers by Chicago in early January and will now go through the waiver process once again. Romo has also spent time on the rosters of the Rockies, Orioles and Mets this offseason. He spent most of 2025 at the Triple-A level and had a .738 OPS in 244 plate appearances.

Quero visited Driveline Baseball last week with a goal of increasing his bat speed and improving his launch angle, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com reports.

Quero had a healthy 46.3 percent hard-hit rate and 90.4 mph average exit velocity during his rookie season, but his bat speed ranked in the fourth percentile and his average launch angle ranked in the seventh percentile. An assessment determined Quero was lacking lower-body strength, so he was given drills to help increase his explosiveness and add more bat speed. He also had a pull-air rate of just 7.8 percent last season, and the instructors at Driveline worked with him on catching the ball in front of the plate in order to pull the ball with authority. Quero had a respectable .268/.333/.356 batting line in his rookie season and sported a 17.9 percent strikeout rate, but he swatted just five home runs. If the young switch hitter is able to boost his power while maintaining his quality eye at the dish, he could break through. Quero is set to share catching duties with Kyle Teel in 2026 and is also expected to see ample starts at designated hitter for the White Sox.

The Blue Jays signed Stubbs to a minor-league contract Friday that includes an invitation to spring training.

Stubbs made his major-league debut in 2025 with the Nationals, going hitless in three plate appearances. The 29-year-old will merely be organizational catching depth for the Blue Jays at Triple-A Buffalo.

Basallo said at the Orioles' recent Birdland Caravan fan event that he's lost around 15 pounds this offseason, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, Basallo could afford to slim down a bit without sacrificing the massive power that's helped propel him to being one of the most exciting young hitters in baseball. The 21-year-old is locked into an Opening Day roster spot after signing an eight-year, $67 million contract extension six days into his big-league career. Where the playing time will come from is less of a sure thing, as the Orioles have Adley Rutschman at catcher and Pete Alonso at first base. Settling in at designated hitter is Basallo's most likely path, but he will get starts in the field, as well.

The Twins traded Pereda to the Mariners on Tuesday in exchange for cash.

The Twins DFA'd Pereda on Friday after signing Victor Caratini, but the former will reclaim a 40-man roster spot now that he's been dealt to the M's. He won't take playing time away from Cal Raleigh, but Pereda could provide some quality organizational depth after slashing .308/.422/.465 across 192 Triple-A plate appearances last year.

Wallach signed a minor-league contract with the Athletics on Sunday.

Wallach spent time with the Rangers' and Angels' Triple-A affiliates in 2025 and slashed .248/.319/.430 with 43 RBI and 33 runs scored across 259 plate appearances. The 34-year-old backstop hasn't appeared in an MLB game since 2023, and he'll likely remain a depth piece at Triple-A Las Vegas in 2026.

The Twins designated Pereda for assignment Friday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.

The 29-year-old backstop will be replaced on Minnesota's 40-man roster by Victor Caratini, whose signing became official Friday. Pereda slashed .246/.325/.333 in 2025 across 78 MLB plate appearances split between the Athletics and Twins. However, he finished the minor-league season with an .887 OPS across 192 plate appearances at Triple-A, which could be enough for another team to pick him up off waivers.

Caratini signed a two-year, $14 million contract with the Twins on Friday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

Caratini played with the Astros in 2025 and slashed .259/.324/.404 across 386 plate appearances while racking up 12 homers, 46 RBI and 35 runs scored -- all of which represent career highs. Now in Minnesota, the 32-year-old switch hitter figures to share time with Ryan Jeffers behind the plate and could fill in occasionally for Trevor Larnach as the team's DH against southpaws.

The Athletics re-signed Lavastida to a minor-league contract Dec. 18.

Lavastida split the 2025 season between the Astros and Athletics minor-league systems, hitting .279/.362/.438 with 10 homers in 89 games. The 27-year-old's only major-league experience came back in 2022, and he is merely organizational depth for the A's.