The Baseball Buffet for 12/20/2025

PIT acquires 2B Brandon Lowe, OF Jake Mangum, and RP Mason Montgomery from TBR

HOU acquires SP Mike Burrows from PIT

TBR acquires prospects OF Jacob Melton and pitcher Anderson Brito from HOU

This is big news for Pirates fans, as they leveraged their abundance of starting pitching to bring in some much needed offense. You can read more about this trade from the Pirates’ perspective in an article by Alex Stumpf at MLB.

Brandon Lowe had 31 HR and a .256 average last year, and was an All-Star for the second time in his career. He immediately becomes the Pirates’ starting 2B, and will get some at-bats at DH too.

After four seasons rising up through the minors with solid batting averages and speed on the bases, 29-year old rookie OF Jake Mangum hit .296 with 27 SB in 118 games for the Rays last year. I assume he’ll be the Bucs’ primary LF, and could play some CF and RF to spell Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds at times. This allows recently acquired OF prospect Jhostnxon Garcia more time to develop, and takes pressure off Jack Suwinski as he is given one more season to figure things out.

Lastly, lefty reliever Mason Montgomery had 63 K in 46 IP during his age-25 rookie season for the Rays, but had a 5.67 ERA and 1.652. If he can reduce his walk-rate, he could be an important member of Pittsburgh’s bullpen (and he was a starter in the minors, so we’ll see how things develop for him.)

RHP Mike Burrows will presumably be competing for one of the 3/4/5 spots in the Astros’ rotation, following frontline starters Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier. Burrows is 26 years old and did well overall as a rookie in 2025 with a 3.94 ERA and 97 K in 96 IP. The Astros will also have Lance McCullers Jr., Ryan Weiss, Spencer Arrighetti, Jason Alexander, and others in the rotation mix this spring.

As for the Rays’ return in this deal, 25-year old OF Jacob Melton was a top prospect for the Astros who had 30 SB and 15 HR in 105 games at AA/AAA in 2024, but then struggled in his first stint with Houston last year (.157 average, 0 HR, and 7 SB in 32 games). Anderson Brito was also a touted prospect of the Astros, but at 21-years old was still in the low minors in 2025.

TBR traded SP Shane Baz to BAL for prospects. 26-year old RHP Shane Baz was the first-round draft pick (12th overall) in 2017 by the Pirates. He was later traded to the Rays, pitched for them briefly in 2021 and 2022, then had Tommy John surgery. in 2024 he had a 3.06 ERA over 14 major league starts, and in 2025 posted 176 K in 166.1 IP though with a higher 4.87 ERA and 1.335 WHIP.

The Orioles are clearly optimistic he can be a strong part of their rotation, effectively taking the spot that would have gone to Grayson Rodriguez who they traded to the Angels to get OF Taylor Ward. Baltimore’s rotation currently looks like (order TBD) Trevor Rogers, Shane Baz, Kyle Bradish, and Dean Kremer, with several guys competing for the fifth spot.

To get Baz, the Orioles had to give up several prospects in OF Slater de Brun, C Caden Bodine, RHP Michael Forret, OF Austin Overn, and Competitive Balance Round A Draft pick. You can read more about this trade at the article by Jake Rill at MLB.

PHI traded RP Matt Strahm to KCR for RP Jonathan Bowlan. Having recently signed RP Brad Keller, the Phillies had bullpen flexibility and so traded RP Matt Strahm and his $7.5 million salary to the Royals for RP Jonathan Bowlan. I’m assuming this was in part to free up money for other moves still to come this offseason. The 34-year old Strahm was an All-Star in 2024 when he had a 1.87 ERA and 79 K in 62.2 IP, and did well again in 2025 with a 2.74 ERA and 70 K in 62.1 IP.

The 29-year old rookie Bowlan had a 3.86 ERA with 46 K in 44.1 IP, but won’t be eligible for arbitration until 2029, so joins the Phillies’ bullpen at a much lower cost than Strahm.

Robert Alomar - Padres (1988-90), Blue Jays (1991-95), Orioles (1996-98), Indians (1999-2001), Mets (2002-03), White Sox (2003-04), Diamondbacks (2004)

Francisco Lindor - Indians (2015-20), Mets (2021-25)

Kyle Schwarber - Cubs (2015-20), Nationals (2021), Phillies (2022-25)

Mark Langston - Mariners (1984-89), Expos (1989), Angels (1990-97)

Steve Finley - Astros (1991-94), Padres (1995-98), Diamondbacks (1999-2004), and four other clubs

Gil McDougald Yankees (1951-60)

Bill White Cardinals (1959-65)

Dusty Baker Braves (1968-75), Dodgers (1976-83), Giants (1984), Athletics (1985-86)

Alfonso Soriano Yankees (2002-03, 13-14), Rangers (2004-05), Nationals (2006), Cubs (2007-13)

César Tovar - Twins (1965-72), Phillies (1973), Rangers (1974-75)

Tommy Davis - Dodgers (1959-66) and five other clubs

1921: The Yankees and Red Sox make a big trade. “The Yankees raid Boston again, and come away with P Bullet Joe Bush, SS Everett Scott, and P Sad Sam Jones in exchange for SS Roger Peckinpaugh (who goes on to Washington), pitchers Jack Quinn, Rip Collins, and Bill Piercy, and $50,000.”

1926: Two future Hall of Fame 2B are traded for each other. “In a swap of top second basemen, the World Champion Cardinals trade Rogers Hornsby to the Giants for Frankie Frisch and P Jimmy Ring. The trade gets complicated when the "Rajah" refuses to sell his 1,167 shares of the team stock back to the Redbirds at the asking price.”

1990: Pitcher Charlie Hough joins the third team of his long career. “The Chicago White Sox sign veteran knuckler Charlie Hough, a free agent. Hough spent every year of the 1970s with the Dodgers and every year of the 1980s with Texas.”

1996: The Mets trade for John Olerud. “The Blue Jays send 1B John Olerud and his $5 million contract to the Mets for pitcher Robert Person. The move leaves 1B open for Joe Carter.”

Hall of Famer

20-year major league career, spanning from 1922-1941, almost all with the Chicago Cubs

Six-time All-Star, including in 1935 when he won the NL MVP Award after batting .344 with 13 HR and 91 RBI

Best offensive numbers came a few years earlier in 1930 when he hit .339 with career highs of 37 HR and 122 RBI

A good defensive catcher, he was frequently amongst NL leaders in several fielding statistics

Overall had 236 HR, 1,179 RBI, a .297/.370/.489 slash line, and a 126 OPS+

14-year major league career, spanning from 2004-2016 with a brief 2-game season in 2018, all spent with the New York Mets

Seven-time All-Star, and won two NL Gold Glove Awards at 3B

Had five seasons with 25+ HR and 100+ RBI

Had some speed on the bases too, with 15+ SB eight times, and a high of 34 SB in 2007

Overall had 242 HR, 196 SB, a .296/.376/.491 slash line, and a 133 OPS+

17-year major league career, spanning from 1971-1987, all with the Red Sox and Brewers

Five-time All-Star, and won two Gold Glove Awards at 1B

Had 20+ HR five times and 100+ RBI four times, including leading the AL with 122 RBI in 1980 and 126 RBI in 1983

Led the AL with 44 doubles in 1979 and 35 doubles in strike-shortened 1981

Often hit over .300, with a career high .352 average and 219 hits in 1980

Overall had 241 HR, 1,125 RBI, a .298/.337/.466 slash line, and a 121 OPS+

14-year major league career, spanning from 1880-1893, playing for six different teams mostly in the AA and NL

Played a mix of 1B and all three OF positions

Was an early power hitter of the 19th century, leading his league in HR four times, and triples four times including a career high of 23 triples in 1884

Was a prolific run-scorer, leading his league in runs four times, with 100+ runs in nine consecutive seasons, and a high of 152 runs in 1889

Was also very capable on the bases, leading his league at least twice (data from 1880-1885 is not available), with highs of 87 SB in 1888 and 97 SB in 1890. He had 509 SB from 1886-1893.

Overall had 122 HR, 176 triples, 1,495 runs, a .288/.361/.462 slash line, and a 144 OPS+

13-year major league pitching career, spanning from 2006-2018, with the first half with the Rays, and the second half with the Royals, Padres, and White Sox

All-Star in 2011 and had a 16-12 record, 2.82 ERA and AL-leading 11 complete games and 4 shutouts

Had 200+ K three times, and 180+ K another four times

Was a workhorse who started 33-34 games nine years in a row, from 2008-2016

Overall had a 145-139 record, 2,234 K, a 4.01 ERA, and a 102 ERA+

13-year major league career, spanning from 2000-2012, with the first half spent with the Rays, and the second half with the Astros, Orioles, Tigers, and Giants

Had 20+ HR seven times, and 100+ RBI three times

His two most impressive seasons came in 2003 when he had 34 HR, 47 doubles, 107 RBI, and a .311 average, and then in 2008 when he had similar numbers with 32 HR, 48 doubles, 108 RBI and a .304 average.

Played a mix of positions including 1B, 3B, RF, and DH

Overall had 242 HR, a .278/.342/.464 slash line, and a 114 OPS+

17-year major league career, spanning from 1969-1984, with seven years for the Yankees and the rest spread across six different clubs

Had some power, with 15+ HR seven times, and career highs of 31 HR and 83 RBI in 1977 for the White Sox

Played a mix of RF, LF, and DH, but was often a part-time player, with 120+ games played only four times in his career. His batting average against LHP was nearly the same as against RHP, but he had far less power vs. southpaws with a .371 SLG vs. a .468 SLG vs. righties

Overall had 200 HR, a .265/.356/.454 slash line, and a 127 OPS+

16-year major league career, spanning from 1928-1945, mostly with the Phillies, Cardinals, and Pirates

Was a good defensive catcher for much of his career, frequently amongst league leaders in several fielding stats

Also was a capable batsman, with 14 HR in both 1930 and 1932, and a career high .349 average in 1933

Nicknamed "Spud" by an uncle during his childhood because of his fondness for potatoes

Overall had a .308/.369/.430 slash line and a 110 OPS+

16-year major league career, spanning from 1907-1920, with brief stints again in 1925-1926. Played primarily 1B with New York, Brooklyn, and Chicago in the National League.

Had highs of 12 HR and 84 RBI in 1911 and then 11 HR and 88 RBI in 1912

Had speed on the bases with 20+ SB eight times, with a high of 49 SB in 1911

Committed an infamous baserunning mistake as a 19-year old rookie in 1908 during a tight NL pennant race. This became known as "Merkle's Boner", with the game ending in a 1-1 tie, leading to a later makeup game in which Merkle's team (New York) lost to Chicago, and ultimately lost the pennant by one game (see Wikipedia).

Overall had 272 SB, a .273/.331/.383 slash line, and a 109 OPS+

Mike Piazza - 427 HR, .308 average

Iván Rodríguez - 311 HR, .296 average

Gabby Hartnett - 236 HR, .297 average

Bill Dickey - 202 HR, .313 average

These 3 pitchers could step up big for Dodgers in 2026, by Theo DeRosa at MLB, 12/18/2025

Do Catchers on MVP Ballot Merit Extra Credit?, by Paul Semendinger at Here's the Pitch: the IBWAA Newsletter, 12/20/2025