Weekly Scorecard: Jan. 13 - 19, 2026

I'll get straight to the point this week, because we all know why we're here.

The Scoreboard

The Dodgers did WHAT???

Just kidding, this is a completely unsurprising move. By "this", of course, I'm referring to their signing of Kyle Tucker for $240MM over 4 years, right on the heels of the Mets offering him $220MM over the same duration. From where I'm sitting, it looks like they waited for the Blue Jays and Mets to drive up his market and were simply going to outbid whoever made the highest offer, knowing that he'd choose them because they're the Dodgers—eerily similar to the Edwin Díaz deal earlier this winter. The Blue Jays offered a significantly longer-term contract at 10 years and $350MM, but much like moving to L.A., high-AAV short-term deals are all the rage these days.

Yes, I'm pissed at what seems to be an obvious snipe job by the Dodgers. No, I don't think it inherently guarantees them another World Series title, because that's not how anything works. I don't think it automatically tanks the Mets' or Blue Jays' 2026 seasons. And I certainly don't think it means we're getting a salary cap when the current bargaining agreement expires—primarily because the players will never agree to it, which I discussed with someone from the MLBPA a couple months ago. I don't have a lot more to say here, because my thoughts and feelings on the subject were pretty rapidly eclipsed by the news that broke the following day.

Pending the results of a physical, Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette is heading to the Mets on a 3-year, $126MM contract. The contract structure is, quite frankly, kind of nuts, and I have no idea why the Mets would set it up that way unless they really thought he wouldn't sign otherwise. Which was probably the case, given the offer the Phillies were reportedly very close to sealing the deal on. Rumors are swirling that Philadelphia media and the front office are irate, corroborated by former Phillies GM Rubén Amaro Jr. on Twitter. (Yes, the one all the fans loathe a truly staggering amount.)

Do I have thoughts on the Bichette signing? Yes. Probably too many, in fact. Given how ridiculous some people both within and outside of Mets fandom have been about him, I'm writing up an in-depth analysis of his player profile and history, where I'm also planning to talk a bit about how signing him—and missing out on Tucker—are likely shaping up to affect our roster plans going forward. Spoiler: no, I don't think we're trading for noted homophobe and Trump supporter Jarren Duran, especially not after we booted homegrown veterans allegedly in part because of clubhouse issues. And yes, I do actually think Bo is a great addition (on paper), and it's doubly sweet that we snatched him out of the jaws of Philadelphian evil.

My parting thoughts here on Bo: I became fond of his story and his friendship with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. from what I learned watching the World Series, and for that reason, I'm both excited to have him with us and sad that he's not returning to Toronto. I told a lot of people during the offseason how much I wanted them to get him back. He and Vladdy have played together for years—evidently every season since High-A Lansing in 2017—and Toronto fans are understandably hurt. MLB is officially trying their hardest to make us feel like shit about it, and personally, it's working.

It's no secret at this point that I'm a romantic. So I hope that New York is nothing but good to Bo Bichette, because it's a long, long season, and home is playing first base 347 miles away.

With that out of my system, here's the other biggest news of the week:

• With Bo off the table, in the stead of literally anyone else who would have been good at all, the Phillies opted to re-sign noted antivaxxer J.T. Realmuto, an already-poor catcher on the wrong side of 35. He's getting a 3-year, $45MM deal. I, for one, really love this signing for them.
• Nolan Arenado has finally been traded, and he's heading to Arizona. The Cardinals are still covering the majority of his remaining contract money, but third base is now potentially up for grabs and could be a landing spot for much-lauded prospect JJ Wetherholt.
• The Red Sox have made yet another addition to their rotation by signing top free agent Ranger Suárez, offering him $130MM over 5 years. Their depth chart now lists nine (!) starting pitchers, so you have to suspect that some of them will be getting dealt in order to address their current infield crisis. I've talked about this a bit elsewhere, but I think the Mets are well-positioned to offer them something they want and get something we really need in return. Unfortunately, besides this signing, their front office has mostly stood around twiddling their thumbs, so I have no idea what they're going to do.
• The Braves have signed Jorge Mateo in the wake of Ha-Seong Kim's injury, which will likely take out their prospective starting shortstop for at least four months. This is bad news for a Braves team that had a poor 2025 campaign, even with Ronald Acuña Jr. coming back; it is therefore great news for the Mets (though obviously seeing players get injured like this sucks).
• The Nationals are formally turning over their broadcast rights to MLB, following the lead of several other teams.
• Kauffman Stadium is shrinking. Specifically, the Royals are moving in the outfield fences and lowering the height of the wall in order to improve home run hitting, where it punishes lefties harder than any other park; this was particularly bad for a roster that featured Vinnie Pasquantino and several left-handed prospects. How this ultimately impacts their pitchers' numbers will be a question for the future.

Some less major news in the worlds of New York and Seattle:

• There are continued reports of Mets interest in a reunion with Griffin Canning, which I am still trying to manifest because I liked him and hope he rehabs well.
• Trent Thornton (of Seattle Mariners fame) has been signed by the Cubs while he rehabs from his torn Achilles. We will remember him fondly for scootering around the bases to celebrate the Mariners' playoff clinch.

• The Guardians acquired LHP Franklin Gomez from the Mets in exchange for some more international bonus pool space at the start of the international signing period.
• The Mets claimed INF Tsung-Che Cheng off of waivers from the Rays, following his (unfortunately underwhelming) major league debut with the Pirates in 2025.
• The Reds DFAed reliever Yosver Zulueta, after which he was promptly acquired by the Mariners. Seattle DFAed utilityman Samad Taylor in a corresponding roster move, to the disappointment of some fans; I would expect him to get picked up rather quickly, since he definitely has promising stuff at the AAA level.

And finally, some smaller bits and pieces from around the league:

• The Marlins have moved another starting pitcher: Ryan Weathers is heading to the Yankees in exchange for four prospects.
• The Rockies have signed utilityman Willi Castro to a two-year, $12.8MM deal. Castro was a victim of last year's deadline clearance sale that turned the Minnesota Twins into the Minnesota Only Children. It's good to see the Rox making some more moves, and hopefully some of them are enough to stop the 2025 season from repeating.
• Cade Cavalli and the Nationals have reached an arbitration agreement, avoiding the hearing process.
• Big Christmas has officially cleared waivers and made it to Norfolk. Start the countdown to July!
• The Padres have made some staff acquisitions, including hiring Bud Black as a senior advisor to baseball operations. You know, the same Bud Black that they fired from managing the team in 2015 after quite a number of losing seasons, and that the Rockies fired in May 2025. I'll let you guess why the Rockies let him go.
• Veteran reliever Ryan Pressly announced his retirement after a 13-year career... and pretty much immediately joined the Twins in a player development role.

Home Plate

As with the general news, there isn't too much to say this week. My classes are now officially underway, which means I will have less free time, but also means that I will be getting started with some actual serious baseball research for my capstone project. If I'm allowed to share any of that as it progresses, you'll likely see updates here!

On a somewhat related note: I will get around to setting up donations/subscriptions/options for financial support relatively soon, since I received some disappointing job-related news last week and don't necessarily have anything lined up in the immediate short term. It's not a dire financial situation by any means, but it would be nice to have the possibility of some financial support via my writing, so keep an eye out for that announcement (if you're interested).

The Backstop

The Bills lost their playoff game, which made me sad, and they also fired Sean McDermott today. I moved on pretty fast, but as a Mets fan who had to watch this happen, I certainly know the pain of game officials choosing not to review a call that only they have the power to review.

But then the Seahawks game happened, and if you haven't seen the opening kickoff, you really, really should:

That's all for now. Have a Rashid Shaheed week, everyone.