MLB Player News
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Lucas Giolito SP | BOS
Red Sox's Lucas Giolito: Declines mutual option
Giolito (elbow) declined the player side of his $19 mutual option for 2026 on Monday, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports.
He'll be paid a $1.5 million buyout instead. It's possible the Red Sox will extend Giolito a one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer, and if that happens, there's a non-zero chance the right-hander accepts it. After missing the 2024 season following internal brace surgery, Giolito had a nice bounce-back 2025 campaign, posting a 3.41 ERA and 121:56 K:BB over 145 frames. However, his season ended in late September with elbow soreness, and while he was cleared of structural damage, the injury could affect his earnings potential this offseason.
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Alex Faedo SP | TB
Rays' Alex Faedo: Designated for assignment
The Rays activated Faedo (shoulder) from the 60-day injured list and designated him for assignment Monday.
Faedo never made an appearance at the major-league level for the Rays in 2025, having dealt with shoulder issues before eventually having thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in August. He's eligible for salary arbitration but could be non-tendered if he passes through waivers unclaimed.
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Michael Lorenzen SP | KC
Michael Lorenzen: Hits open market
Lorenzen will become a free agent after the Royals declined the mutual option in his contract Sunday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Lorenzen will receive a $1.5 million buyout ahead of free agency. The right-hander appeared in 27 games, including 26 starts, with Kansas City in 2025, compiling a 4.64 ERA with 127 strikeouts over 141.2 innings. The 33-year-old owns a career 4.08 ERA and 7.5 K/9 over 11 major-league seasons, and he'll likely have plenty of interested suitors ahead of the 2026 campaign.
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Michael King SP | SD
Michael King: Bound for free agency
King declined his side of a $15 million mutual option for the 2026 season Sunday, making him an unrestricted free agent, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Though he endured an injury-plagued 2025 campaign in which he compiled a 3.44 ERA over 73.1 innings and 15 starts before being moved to the bullpen for the Padres' postseason run, King will head to the open market for the first time in search of a multi-year contract. Despite a somewhat concerning health record, King shouldn't have too much trouble securing a big payday in free agency after submitting stellar ratios (3.10 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 18.2 K-BB%) over the past two seasons with San Diego while making the full-time transition to the rotation.
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Max Scherzer SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Max Scherzer: Puts forth strong effort in Game 7
Scherzer logged a no-decision in Game 7 of the World Series against the Dodgers on Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and one walk while striking out three batters over 4.1 innings.
Scherzer got the start and was able to give Toronto 4.1 innings and 54 pitches (34 strikes). He retired nine of the first 10 batters he faced before fading a bit in the fourth, when the Dodgers touched him up for a run on a double, a single, a walk and a sacrifice fly. Scherzer retired the first batter he faced in the fifth but was pulled after allowing a Miguel Rojas single. Overall, it was a noble effort by the 41-year-old hurler, who departed with his team holding a 3-1 lead. Over two World Series starts, he allowed four runs while posting a 6:1 K:BB across 8.2 frames.
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Yoshinobu Yamamoto SP | LAD
Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto: Picks up third WS win, named MVP
Yamamoto earned the win in Game 7 of the World Series on Saturday, allowing one hit and issuing one walk while striking out one batter over 2.2 scoreless innings.
It was a heroic effort by Yamamoto, who threw 34 pitches one night after tossing 96 pitches as the starting (and winning) pitcher in Game 6. The Japanese right-hander was called upon Saturday in the bottom of the ninth inning to put out a major fire with the game tied 4-4 after the Blue Jays put runners on first and second with one out. Yamamoto hit the first batter he faced to load the bases, but he was able to get out of the jam by getting a force out at home plate on a grounder followed by a deep flyball out. He returned to toss a clean 10th inning, and after Los Angeles plated the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th, Yamamoto finished things off in dramatic fashion in the bottom of that frame by getting Alejandro Kirk to ground into a double play with the tying run on third. Yamamoto was named the World Series MVP after putting together a dominant series during which he won three games and allowed just two runs while posting a 15:1 K:BB over 17.2 innings.
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Tyler Glasnow SP | LAD
Dodgers' Tyler Glasnow: Managing sore side
Glasnow was dealing with side soreness during Friday's Game 6 of the World Series, Fabian Ardaya of The Athleticreports.
Glasnow was called upon to close Friday's contest after Roki Sasaki opened the frame and allowed runners to reach second and third base without getting an out. Glasnow got the job done, getting two outs on three pitches thanks in part to a game-ending double play on a lineout to left field. Glasnow is expected to pitch in Game 7 on Saturday, but the side issue could impact how many pitches he throws. Shohei Ohtani is starting the contest for Los Angeles but probably won't log a full workload given that he'll be working on three days of rest.
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Kevin Gausman SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Kevin Gausman: Tough loss in Game 6
Gausman took the loss in Game 6 of the World Series against the Dodgers on Friday, allowing three earned runs on three hits and two walks while striking out eight batters over six innings.
Gausman appeared to be on his way toward a historic performance after two innings, using his splitter to record five swinging strikeouts against the first six batters he faced. His fortunes shifted quickly in the third, however, as an RBI double from Will Smith began the scoring for Los Angeles, and Mookie Betts' two-RBI single extended the Dodgers' lead to 3-0. Gausman didn't allow another batter to reach base for the remainder of his start, but with Toronto's offense unable to get going against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, three runs proved to be all the Dodgers needed to force a Game 7. It's unlikely that Gausman will be available to pitch in Saturday's finale, so he'll finish the 2025 postseason with a 2.93 ERA and 0.91 WHIP to go with a 26:11 K:BB across 30.2 innings.
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Yoshinobu Yamamoto SP | LAD
Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto: Quality start in Game 6 win
Yamamoto picked up the win Friday in Game 6 of the World Series against the Blue Jays, allowing one earned run on five hits and a walk while striking out six batters over six innings.
Although Yamamoto wasn't able to record a third straight complete game, he still proved to be as dominant as ever in Game 6, allowing just one run on a George Springer RBI single in the third. Yamamoto seemed to be at risk of allowing a few more runs in the sixth after giving up a two-out double to Vladimir Guerrero and walking Bo Bichette, but a well-timed strikeout of Daulton Varsho allowed the right-hander to escape the inning unscathed. The Japanese All-Star will almost certainly be unavailable for Saturday's series finale after throwing 96 pitches Friday, so he'll likely finish his second MLB postseason with a 1.56 ERA and 0.78 WHIP alongside a 32:5 K:BB after 34.2 innings.
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Max Scherzer SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Max Scherzer: Would start potential Game 7
Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Friday that Scherzer would start a potential Game 7 of the World Series on Saturday versus the Dodgers, Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun reports.
The Blue Jays are hoping to close things out with a win Friday in Game 6, but if that doesn't happen, they'll turn to the 41-year-old Saturday. Scherzer was charged with three runs over 4.1 frames in Game 3, taking a no-decision in Toronto's extra-innings loss. It would be an all-hands-on-deck situation for the Blue Jays if there is a Game 7, so Scherzer's leash would be short.