The Official 2025-26 MLB Hot Stove Thread

[Spidey Man]

For your viewing pleasure

 

[2ATMsYouSteppinOrWhat]

For your viewing pleasure

mets are ruining baseball

 

[Carolina Slim]

The biggest issue here is that football is a lot more accessible in America than baseball.

You’re not wrong.

It’s just that for football you basically just need what? A pair of cleats and a mouthguard?

Baseball these days requires a bat, gloves, batting gloves, cleats, baseballs, practice equipment like batting tees and cages.

Maybe it’s different now. When I played Pop Warner I just paid the league fee. That was it.

And people to play with... Baseball was by far my first love growing up, and in the projects where I lived, we had a baseball field. But trying to find 17 other niiggas (with equipment) to play a game was a fruitless endeavor. Had to resort to 1-1 baseball, where you and ya man would go to the schoolyard, draw a strike zone on the wall, and play that way. It was much easier to go get a basketball and shoot around and eventually enough heads show up for a half court or even full court run.

 

[god shamgod]

Marlins pobo is Peter bendix, former rays gm

He targeted two lower prospects in that Cabrera trade that will come back to haunt the cubs imo

Mainly Christian Hernandez smfh . Dude gonna breakout and be a top 100 prospect as soon as he develops power watch

 

[Trust Me]

Was it because of his age? Why wasn’t there a better market?

I just think Tucker is supremely overrated. And it kind of feels like I'm not the only one that feels that way.

For your viewing pleasure

That felt great to watch.

mets are ruining baseball

This poor guy tries so hard to troll.

 

[Da_Eggman]

 

[MikelArteta]

@MikelArteta @Soldier

Who cares dude is damaged goods anyways
That new Japanese player gonna tear it up

 

[Remote]

NY Media thinks Cody Bellinger winds up with the Mets.

If that happens, there is no free agent outfielder that is even remotely comparable.
So one theory is that the Yankees try to acquire an outfielder via trade -- and the name that came up was Harrison Bader.

Brian Cashman is a terrible, terrible GM.
Not only because he hasn't made any significant moves to improve the roster, but also because he somehow lacked the foresight to prevent this situation in the 1st place.

 

[god shamgod]

Last spring, the Reds made an offer to shortstop Elly De La Cruz that would have eclipsed Joey Votto’s club-record 10-year, $225 million contract extension that he signed in 2012. De La Cruz turned it down.

de la Cruz is not that good to be doing this

 

[Spidey Man]

de la Cruz is not that good to be doing this

Scott Boras strikes again.

 

[Remote]

de la Cruz is not that good to be doing this

He cut his strikeout rate from 33.7 to 31.3 to 25.9 last season.

If he can trim that a bit more and break out for real in 2026, he could set himself up for a better deal.
He's not a free agent until 2030 and with the lockout coming, maybe he does take an extension just to get some money if he begins the season really hot.

I want to say Cruz will be 29 when he hits free agency if he doesn't sign an extension. So that will be his only shot to get a big contract.

It's hard to ask a guy to commit to a 10 year deal at 20-25M per....when you're watching Bichette and Tucker get this money.

 

[Remote]

On the other hand, if I were advising Oneill Cruz, I might push him to take an extension at a below-market rate.
I have less confidence that he will ever have the bat skills to make enough contact to be an elite hitter.

Oneil is a guy who, when he catches the ball, it's gonna fly. But he whiffs considerably more than Elly does.

 

[god shamgod]

He cut his strikeout rate from 33.7 to 31.3 to 25.9 last season.

If he can trim that a bit more and break out for real in 2026, he could set himself up for a better deal.
He's not a free agent until 2030 and with the lockout coming, maybe he does take an extension just to get some money if he begins the season really hot.

I want to say Cruz will be 29 when he hits free agency if he doesn't sign an extension. So that will be his only shot to get a big contract.

It's hard to ask a guy to commit to a 10 year deal at 20-25M per....when you're watching Bichette and Tucker get this money.

I looked up Votto stats before he signed that extension , he led the league in ob% back to back and ops

De la Cruz led the league in stolen bases and k’s he shoulda took that money and ran.

 

[Remote]

2027's free agent pool is ugly.

Practically no outfielders worth a damn.

The only notable guys under 30 years of age will be Ronald Acuna (who is on a Club Option) and Luis Robert Jr...who is low key a trade candidate right now. And he's got a club option, too.

 

[ineedsleep212]