The MLB off-season tends to follow a similar blueprint each winter. Once the World Series ends and free agency opens, teams retreat from the grind of an eight-month season to recover, reset and map out ways to improve for the following spring.
That usually leads to a quiet November, where a few moves will be made. But things generally heat up as most of the baseball world descends on the Winter Meetings in December.
Things have unfolded similarly this year, but it’s been the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Mets making some early splashes by completing the signings of Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce and Devin Williams, along with the Marcus Semien-Brandon Nimmo trade ahead of next week’s Meetings from Dec. 7-10 in Orlando, Fla.
With names like Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette and Kyle Schwarber still on the open market, and several players rumoured to be available via trade, the 2025 Winter Meetings are positioned to bring a wave of activity.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand wrote Wednesday that he expects Orlando to be “pretty active,” suggesting that he “could see the starting pitching market begin to move with pitchers like Michael King and Ranger Suárez.”
With that in mind, here is an update on some of the latest rumours and speculation from baseball’s hot stove.
Brewers considering ‘cracking the door’ for Peralta deal
Coming off a regular season in which they posted the best record in baseball and reached the NLCS, the Milwaukee Brewers may be open to moving Freddy Peralta.
After Brandon Woodruff accepted his $22.05-million qualifying offer in November, the club is “considering ‘cracking the door open’ for trade discussions,” The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported Wednesday.
Peralta is coming off a career-best season in which he racked up 204 strikeouts over 176.2 innings with a 2.70 ERA. For his efforts, the 29-year-old earned his second career all-star nod and finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting.
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MLB off-season: Signings and trades tracker
Keep up with the latest free-agent signings and trades throughout the MLB off-season as we track the biggest moves throughout the winter months.
With Peralta owed just $8 million in 2026 — his final season of team control — Rosenthal notes there has been “significant” interest in prying the right-hander away from Milwaukee.
While it would take a “high bar” to land Peralta, the Brewers have been proactive in trading away players before they can leave in free agency. In the past four seasons, we have seen Milwaukee deal all-star pitchers Corbin Burnes, Josh Hader and Devin Williams, so the precedent has been set for the reigning NL Central champs to move on from a pitcher of Peralta’s calibre.
Could the Reds land Schwarber?
In need of some offensive punch, the Cincinnati Reds are targeting one of baseball’s most consistent longball threats in Kyle Schwarber.
MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reported on Tuesday that the Reds are “among the teams trying to sign Schwarber” and that they are “still in contention” with some big-market clubs to land the 32-year-old’s services.
While it might not be the most logical fit from a financial perspective, Schwarber is from nearby Middletown, Ohio, and grew up attending games at Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park. He would also provide an immediate injection of power for a Reds team that snuck into the 2025 post-season with just three regulars who posted an OPS north of .750.
Schwarber is coming off an NL MVP runner-up campaign that saw him lead the league with 56 homers and 132 RBIs, and over his four seasons in Philadelphia, only Aaron Judge hit more than his 187 big flies.
The issue for Cincinnati will be out-bidding the Phillies, Mets, Red Sox, Giants and Orioles, all of whom are reportedly in the mix and have traditionally carried larger payrolls than the Reds.
Do the Twins blow it all the way up?
The Minnesota Twins were one of the most active teams at this year’s trade deadline, moving talent from all parts of their roster, with Jhoan Duran, Carlos Correa, Griffin Jax and Louis Varland among those dealt. Yet Minnesota still has several intriguing pieces it could shop this off-season if the Twins truly want to commit to a full rebuild.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel ranked this winter’s trade candidates, placing each of Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan and Pablo López within the top eight.
Most notably, Passan and McDaniel reported that Buxton is now willing to waive his no-trade clause — something he was unwilling to do in July.
Buxton has long been one of baseball’s most tantalizing talents: elite when on the field, but rarely healthy enough to fully realize his potential. 2025 marked just the second time in his career that the soon-to-be 32-year-old has played in more than 120 games, and the results spoke for themselves.
He slashed .264/.327/.551 with 35 homers, 83 RBIs and 24 stolen bases, earning a Silver Slugger award, his second career all-star nod and a spot on 14 AL MVP ballots.
For teams that miss out on Kyle Tucker, Kyle Schwarber and Cody Bellinger, a Buxton trade could represent a solid fallback if Minnesota is willing to move on from the 2012 first-overall pick.
On the pitching side, Ryan and López would fit atop most rotations in MLB and come with two more seasons of team control. Passan and McDaniel gave both a 50-per-cent chance of being traded.
Both are free agents following the 2027 season, which complicates their market given the impending expiration of the CBA, which teams are “pricing in” to trade discussions.
Quick hits
• The Seattle Mariners have expressed interest in St. Louis Cardinals all-star utility man Brendan Donovan, according to Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. The Mariners are looking to fill an infield spot this off-season, and while they remain interested in a reunion with Jorge Polanco, the two sides are not close to a deal.
• In search of pitching help, the Detroit Tigers are interested in starter Michael King and reliever Pete Fairbanks, the Detroit Free Press‘s Evan Petzold reported on Tuesday.
• The Arizona Diamondbacks continue to field phone calls on star second baseman Ketel Marte, USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale wrote on Tuesday. In return, Arizona wants “pitching, and lots of it,” with the Red Sox, Tigers and Rays “on the radar.”
