As January comes to a close, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world headed into the weekend:
1. Moniak, Angels await arb decision:
The Angels and outfielder Mickey Moniak went to an arbitration hearing yesterday, as noted by the Associated Press. Moniak filed for a $2MM salary in 2025 while the Angels countered at $1.5MM. Moniak appeared to break out with the Angels in 2023 when he hit a strong .280/.307/.495 (114 wRC+) in 85 games, but the former No. 1 pick fell back to Earth in 2024 with a meager .219/.266/.380 (79 wRC+) line in 124 games as his BABIP cratered from an unsustainable .397 to just .272 year-over-year. Moniak is the first position player to go to a hearing this year. Pirates righties Johan Oviedo and Dennis Santana were the first two players to do so. Oviedo lost his case against Pittsburgh, while Santana’s decision is still pending.
2. Yates press conference:
The Dodgers officially signed right-hander Kirby Yates to a one-year deal yesterday, adding him to the 40-man roster at the expense of veteran righty Ryan Brasier. The club will be holding an introductory press conference at 11am local time this morning where Yates and (presumably) members of the Dodgers front office will be available to answer questions. The presser could shed some light on the closer situation in L.A. given that both Yates and fellow offseason signee Tanner Scott are established closers coming off excellent seasons. There’s been no indication which one the Dodgers plan on using in the ninth inning to this point, though one would imagine that the larger contract for Scott signifies that he’ll get the nod most days. Both pitchers have thrived in setup and closing roles, however, so manager Dave Roberts could also opt to use them interchangeably, as the situation dictates.
3. Will Cease’s market heat up?
The Padres have long been expected to make a trade or two this winter in order to free up space in the budget to address the club’s holes around the roster, and yesterday brought some increased chatter in that corner of the market. Specifically, right-hander Dylan Cease has reportedly been the subject of inquiries from both the Cubs and Mets. The Cubs have long been known to be on the hunt for rotation upgrades, even after adding southpaw Matthew Boyd in early December, but their only other addition has been veteran swingman Colin Rea. The Mets, meanwhile, have signed a number of starters this winter but lack impact at the front of their rotation and are already planning on using a six-man staff for 2025 that could make fitting Cease into the mix fairly easy (especially if a starter like David Peterson went the other way — speculatively speaking). A recent poll of MLBTR readers suggested that a slim majority of fans believe that San Diego should trade Cease, whether that be on his own or in addition to fellow rental starter Michael King. Could a deal get done before spring training?
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