Baseball Wiretap

The San Francisco Giants have begun testing the trade market on several players, signaling they may move toward selling ahead of the deadline, according to people briefed on the discussions.

The Giants have not fully committed to becoming sellers, but they are inching closer to that decision. The trade deadline remains more than seven weeks away, leaving time for the team to push toward contention.

San Francisco currently holds a 29-43 record, the second-worst in the National League ahead of only the Colorado Rockies. Their playoff odds sit at 2.5 percent, according to FanGraphs, with the team trailing by 16 games in the NL West and nine games back in the wild-card race.

Second baseman Luis Arraez and left-hander Robbie Ray, both potential free agents, are viewed as the most likely players to be moved. The Giants have no plans to trade ace right-hander Logan Webb, one source said, and quality offers for veterans Rafael Devers and Willy Adames are considered unlikely given their contracts and recent performance.

Third baseman Matt Chapman is another possible trade candidate, though he holds a full no-trade clause and is in the second year of a six-year, $151 million contract. Chapman, 33, has rebounded from a slow start to lead the team with 3.2 bWAR. Moving him would create payroll flexibility and clear a path for Casey Schmitt at third base.

Arraez, 29, has been the Giants' top performer this season, hitting .319 with a .787 OPS. He ranks second in Outs Above Average among second basemen, behind only the St. Louis Cardinals' JJ Wetherholt. Any acquiring team would owe him the remainder of his $12 million salary.

Ray, 34, projects more as a back-end rotation arm than a postseason starter at this stage. He has averaged just over five innings per start, and his 5.16 expected ERA exceeds his actual 4.42 mark. He is owed the balance of his $25 million salary, limiting his potential trade return.

San Francisco entered the season with a $197.1 million payroll, the 11th highest in MLB and third highest in franchise history, according to Cot's Baseball Contracts. The team hired manager Tony Vitello from the University of Tennessee aiming to produce just its second winning season since 2016, but has fallen well short of that goal so far.

The Atlanta Braves have shut down right-hander Spencer Strider for four weeks due to inflammation in his right elbow, the team announced Monday.

Strider visited with Dr. Keith Meister on Monday to determine next steps after having an MRI and was placed on the injured list Saturday. Strider will undergo a follow-up MRI after the four weeks of rest and -- if the scan is clear -- he'll begin throwing again.

Cleveland Guardians star third baseman Jose Ramirez fractured his left hamate bone on a swing Saturday and will be sidelined indefinitely, a major setback for the two-time defending AL Central champions.

Ramirez was injured leading off the fifth inning of Cleveland's 3-1 win over the Detroit Tigers. Manager Stephen Vogt confirmed the break after the game, following imaging tests on the 33-year-old.

"He had a similar injury I think to his right hand a few years ago," said Vogt. "He tried to go back out. He knew the position we were in, grabbed his glove and said 'Maybe I can still play defense,' but he couldn't squeeze his glove. Hosey wanted to get back out there to help us win that game. He just couldn't."

Ramirez, a seven-time All-Star and the face of the Guardians' franchise, previously fractured his right hamate bone in 2019, the only other injured list stint of his career. He missed roughly one month following surgery after an initial timeline of up to seven weeks.

The switch-hitter entered Saturday batting .238 with 10 home runs and 33 RBIs this season. A career .274 hitter, Ramirez has finished in the top four of MVP voting five times and holds numerous franchise records.

Cleveland also lost outfielders Chase DeLauter and Angel Martinez to injuries in the first two innings. DeLauter suffered a bruised right rib cage colliding with the outfield wall, while Martinez sustained a foot bruise after fouling a ball off it.

With Ramirez out, Vogt shifted Rhys Hoskins from first base to left field, a position the veteran had not played since 2018 with the Philadelphia Phillies.

"We're working through the logistics and what the next steps are so we'll know more tomorrow or the next day," said Vogt. "These things can get complicated."

It remains unclear whether DeLauter and Martinez will also require injured list placements.

The Guardians are in first place in the AL Central with a 39-33 record.

In an interview on WEEI on Thursday, Boston Red Sox president Sam Kennedy called the team's play this season "embarrassing and unacceptable," but said there's been no consideration of removing Craig Breslow from his role as chief baseball officer.

The Red Sox have been mired in a season-long slump. They fired Alex Cora on April 25 but that's done little to jolt the team, which entered Thursday 27-39, in last place in the AL East and 5.5 games out of the final wild card spot.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto carried a no-hit bid into the ninth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Chicago White Sox 7-1 on Saturday, snapping Chicago's eight-game home winning streak.

Yamamoto retired his first 23 batters before Chase Meidroth reached base on a two-out error by shortstop Mookie Betts in the eighth inning. Jacob Gonzalez followed with a groundout to second to end the frame.

Tristan Peters broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff home run in the ninth, driving a 96.6 mph fastball deep to right field for his third career homer. After Edgar Quero flied out to center, Yamamoto exited to a standing ovation from the sellout crowd of 37,832 and was replaced by Alex Vesia.

Yamamoto improved to 7-4, striking out seven over 109 pitches, 74 for strikes, in his fourth consecutive victory.

Shohei Ohtani returned to the lineup after sitting out Friday with left knee inflammation and delivered a leadoff home run, his fifth of the season and 29th of his career. The 409-foot drive to right field left the bat at 109.6 mph.

Max Muncy homered twice and drove in four runs for Los Angeles. Betts singled in the first inning ahead of Muncy's two-run shot to right-center, his 15th homer of the season, and Muncy added another two-run blast in the eighth.

The Dodgers bounced back after an 8-2 loss in Friday's series opener. White Sox starter Sean Burke fell to 3-4, allowing four runs on six hits over four innings.

Spencer Strider's MRI revealed inflammation in his ailing right elbow, and the Atlanta Braves won't know the next step for their right-handed pitcher until the results are viewed by Dr. Keith Meister.

Strider was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday, less than 24 hours after he left his start against the New York Mets.

"You always expect to see inflammation when somebody's hurting," Braves manager Walt Weiss said before Sunday's series finale against the Mets. "So we just want to let Dr. Meister get a look at it and get his diagnosis."

The White Sox traded veteran outfielder Derek Hill to the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday in a swap between contending teams.

The White Sox also sent $250,000 in international bonus pool money to the Phillies for minor league outfielder Dylan Campbell and minor league infielder José Colmenares.

Hill, 30, is batting .213 with four homers, eight RBIs and seven steals in 50 games this season. He was claimed off waivers by the White Sox in September.

Aroldis Chapman and the Boston Red Sox are on opposite paths this season, making it easy to predict that the veteran Cuban reliever could end the summer wearing another uniform after the Aug. 3 trade deadline.

Among the teams that would greatly improve their postseason chances by acquiring Chapman are the New York Yankees, where he saved 146 games and was a three-time All-Star from 2016 to 2022.

If the Red Sox decide to trade Chapman, it's unlikely they'll send him within their own division, especially to the rival Yankees. But if it were to happen, Chapman knows what would have to happen for him to feel comfortable returning to New York.

Two-time American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal will return from the injured list Saturday against the Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch announced Thursday. Skubal has not pitched in the majors since April 29.

The left-hander underwent surgery on May 6 to remove a loose body from his left elbow. Initial projections called for a two-to-three month absence, but Dr. Neal ElAttrache employed the NanoNeedle Scope 2.0, a smaller arthroscope never previously used on a major league pitcher. The less invasive procedure allowed Skubal to resume throwing within days and advance rapidly to full bullpen sessions.

"I don't know if it will be a normal start or if it will be abbreviated," said Hinch. "But just getting him back into the routine and into the fold is a tremendous boost for this team and this rotation and our organization."

Skubal tuned up Sunday on a rehab assignment at High-A West Michigan, throwing five scoreless innings on 54 pitches. His fastball reached 99 mph, and he threw an estimated 15 additional pitches in the bullpen afterward.

"If anything, we're being conservative," said Skubal. "Four weeks after surgery was four or five days ago. Technically, if we wanted to, I could have been back then. I think we've taken this with the right approach. Not aggressive. If anything, we're being conservative."

Skubal's return carries significant implications beyond the mound. The Tigers sit 12 games below .500 following a 6-22 May, though Detroit has won six of its past eight. If the club cannot climb back into contention, Skubal could emerge as the top available asset ahead of the August 3 trade deadline. He is also in a contract year and widely expected to command a record-setting payday this offseason.

"I'm obviously happy with modern technology, modern medicine and the ability for him to do his work step by step," said Hinch. "I'm thrilled this was on the best-case scenario side of things, getting him back so quickly."

MLB's salary cap proposal shares elements with all three major North American sports leagues but mirrors the NHL most closely, while introducing an escrow system that has become a central point of conflict in ongoing collective bargaining negotiations with the MLB Players Association.

Here is how the existing cap structures in the NFL, NBA and NHL currently operate.

The NFL operates under a hard cap tied directly to league revenue, with players receiving between 48.5% and 48.8% of gross revenue. Teams must stay under the ceiling at all times, with no escrow system. The floor requires each team to spend at least 90% of the cap over rolling multi-year periods. The 2026 cap stands at $301.2 million per team.

The NBA uses a soft cap with a 51/49 revenue split favoring players. Teams can exceed the cap but face escalating luxury tax penalties and roster-building restrictions at the first and second apron thresholds. There is no hard ceiling, though the apron system limits flexibility for the highest-spending clubs. The NBA withholds 10% of player salaries in escrow annually, a mechanism that cost players $480 million last season.

The NHL operates under a hard cap set at $104 million for 2026-27, with players and owners splitting hockey-related revenue 50/50. The salary floor sits at $76.9 million. Teams must be cap-compliant at the season's start, though long-term injured reserve exceptions provide limited flexibility. There is also an escrow system in place.

MLB's proposal features a $243.5 million ceiling and a $171.2 million floor with a 50/50 revenue split, a hard cap structure and an escrow holdback of up to 10%. The MLBPA has resisted all three elements, arguing the combination produces the least favorable cap arrangement of any major professional sport.

With the first round of proposals exchanged, the MLBPA is seeking a competitive-integrity tax targeting low-spending teams, a rise in the base competitive-balance tax threshold from $244 million to $300 million, and hundreds of millions more directed toward players through the pre-arbitration bonus pool and higher minimum salaries. Talks are expected to continue over the coming months, with neither side showing signs of movement from its current stance.