What we’re hearing about the MLB offseason: Pete Fairbanks, Cody Ponce and more – The Athletic
With Ryan Helsley off the market, Pete Fairbanks might be the next closer to sign. The Toronto Blue Jays and Miami Marlins are among the teams interested in him, according to industry sources briefed on his market.
The Jays, who are in agreement with free-agent right-hander Dylan Cease on a seven-year contract, continue to pursue late-inning relievers, and were in the mix for three who already signed – Helsley, Raisel Iglesias and Phil Maton. Fairbanks, as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, faced the AL East rival Jays often. In 27 career innings against them, he held Toronto hitters to a .130 batting average and .468 OPS.
Fairbanks, who turns 32 next month, also is familiar to Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix, who was with the Rays from 2009 to ’21. Other teams also are in the mix. Most contenders have at least touched base, sources say.
In his third season as the Rays’ full-time closer, Fairbanks finished with a 2.83 ERA over 60 innings and posted a career-high 27 saves. The Rays declined his $11 million club option at the end of the season, paying him a $1 million buyout instead to help make their limited offseason budget more flexible.
As the markets develop for Edwin Díaz, Devin Williams and Robert Suarez, Fairbanks looms as a viable under-the-radar alternative. Helsley agreed Saturday to a two-year, $28 million deal with the Baltimore Orioles, pending a physical. A similar deal is believed to be in range for Fairbanks.
Returning from Korea: A $30M-$40M man?
When The Athletic’s Eno Sarris wrote last week about four potential bargains in free agency, his list included right-hander Cody Ponce, who spent last season in Korea and hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2021.
Turns out Ponce might not be quite the bargain teams anticipated. Industry sources briefed on his market expect he will command a three-year deal of at least $30 million, and possibly in excess of $40 million. The previous high for a pitcher returning from Korea was the two-year, $15 million deal that Erick Fedde signed with the Chicago White Sox prior to the 2024 season.
Sarris wrote, “After sitting 93 with the Pirates in 2020-21, Ponce was up two ticks with the Hanwha Eagles. Those ticks also made his breaking balls better, as they were unimpressive by shape when he was last in MLB. (His) new pitch was a plus splitter that he threw more than any other secondary. The result was a strikeout percentage that was better than any of the other pitchers who have come over from KBO.”
Ponce, listed at 6-feet-6 and 255 pounds, went 17-1 with Hanwha with a 1.89 ERA and 252 strikeouts in 180 2/3 innings. He spent the previous three seasons in Japan, and did not enjoy that level of success.
Astros’ Meyers drawing interest
Few quality center fielders are available in either free agency or trade, triggering interest in players who might be pried loose from other clubs. The Houston Astros’ Jake Meyers, coming off a modest offensive breakout last season, is one such player.
MLB Trade Rumors projects Meyers to earn $3.5 million in the first of his two remaining years of club control. The Astros are open to moving him for a controllable major-league starter, according to people briefed on their discussions. And the interest in Meyers entering his age-30 campaign is considerable, other clubs say.
The Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets and Rays are among the teams exploring upgrades in center field, along with the Orioles, Arizona Diamondbacks and Kansas City Royals. Meyers is an excellent defender. But if the Astros are skeptical of him replicating his offensive performance, they perhaps could get similar production from Zach Cole and/or Jacob Melton.
Meyers appeared in only 104 games last season due to right calf issues. His .292 batting average and .727 OPS were significant improvements over his four seasons, even if only slightly above average when adjusted to his park and league. In nearly 1,200 prior career plate appearances, he batted .228 with a .662 OPS.
Clock ticking on Brandon Lowe with the Rays?
The Rays have spent years pondering the possibility of trading second baseman Brandon Lowe. Now, with Lowe set to earn $11.5 million in the final year of his contract, the possibility might finally become real.
Lowe, 31, would seem an ideal fit for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are casting a wide net for left-handed hitters and might be more successful acquiring them in trade than free agency. The Athletics and San Francisco Giants are among the other clubs seeking to upgrade at second base.
Lowe’s $11.5 million salary and expiring contract after 2026 have made him a potential trade candidate this offseason. (Patrick Gorski / Imagn Images)
For the Rays, a trade of Lowe would create an opening at second without an obvious internal solution. A double-play combination of Carson Williams and Taylor Walls might be too offensively challenged, if Williams even starts the season in the majors. Jonathan Aranda barely has played second in the majors. Chandler Simpson hasn’t played the infield regularly since he was at Georgia Tech in 2022.
A trade for a second baseman might be necessary, but even then the Rays would be hard-pressed to replace Lowe, who when healthy has been one of their best hitters.
Lowe last season hit 31 home runs, the second-highest total of his career. His career OPS+ is 23 percent above league average, and his 157 homers rank third on the Rays’ all-time list. Evan Longoria is first at 261, followed by Carlos Pena at 163.
Coaching defections a sign of Marlins’ progress
One way to measure whether the industry is impressed by an organization’s evolution is by counting the number of major-league coaches that organization loses to other clubs.
The Miami Marlins, after improving from 62 wins in 2024 to 79 in 2025, lost three coaches: Assistant hitting coach Derek Shomon, whom the Chicago White Sox hired as their hitting coach; first base coach Tyler Smarslok, who became the Washington Nationals’ field coordinator; and catching coach Joe Singley, who went to the Baltimore Orioles as field coordinator and catching coach.
The continued turnover in staffs, not just in the majors but also the minor-league levels, is one reason the free-agent and trade markets tend to be relatively quiet in November. Teams are too busy filling positions to focus on upgrading their major-league rosters.
-The Athletic’s Chandler Rome contributed to this story
