An old foe becomes an old friend, by becoming a new foe for the old foe. What?
- The big news of the week was the return of Jack Flaherty to the Detroit Tigers, a move that makes the battle for the Central a bit more interesting, especially if the Tigers start burning their miracle juice a little earlier into the season in 2025.
BREAKING: Right-hander Jack Flaherty and the Detroit Tigers are in agreement on a two-year, $35 million contract that includes an opt-out after the first season, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 3, 2025
- And for the time being, the Motor City Kitties are the biggest spenders in the division — although if Santa Claus is real, the new owners will be quick to change that.
Twins officially no longer have the largest payroll in the AL Central. Tigers just narrowly overtook them. https://t.co/6PWYAyo4lH
— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) February 3, 2025
- As the pendulum of consumption continues to swing, the Kansas City Royals announced that 10 of their regular season games will be simulcast on local KCTV5/KSMO networks, affiliates of CBS and MyNetwork, during the 2025 season. It take me back to when the Twins were still on then-FSN, and the weekly Sunday broadcasts on my29. (It will probably take some of our readership even further back to even more obscure over-the-air channels.)
- And speaking of networking, former Royal GM Dayton Moore will have to do a little networking of his own were he to make good on his own recent interest for running for governor of Kansas. Moore hopes to join a long list of Republican legislators with no prior qualifications.
- The Guardians have carved out a little depth, signing lefty Kolby Allard and righty Vince Velasquez to minor-league deals this week.
- We still haven’t quite made it to the “reveal” stage, where the baseball world learns whether or not the Detroit Tigers have actually had a shot at Alex Bregman, or if they’re being Blue Jay’d in order to facilitate a more lucrative deal from the Houston Astros. Jon Heyman’s reporting from this week could support either reality.
- Ownership disputes are all the rage this offseason; the Twins are for sale, as we know, but on the heels of the San Diego Padres kerfuffle comes the announcement that Illitch Holdings figurehead Chris Illitch is getting a divorce, which could have an effect on his ownership stake over more than one Detroit sports franchise.
Folks, we’re nearly there. Pitchers and catchers report in just six days, with the full squad due down south on February 17th. The Twins have even been making what some are coining “moves” in preparation for this momentous occasion. There’s still a bit of offseason to go, but with Cory Provus’ voice right around the corner, it feels like the cold, baseball-less stretch of the calendar is finally starting to wind down.
Til then, we’ll keep roundin’ til there ain’t no rivals left to round. See you next week!