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Yesterday β€” 13 December 2025Main stream

Mets reach 2-year deal with infielder Jorge Polanco after losing Pete Alonso

The New York Mets have agreed to a two-year deal with veteran infielder Jorge Polanco, a person with knowledge of the agreement told The Associated Press on Saturday.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a physical and had not been announced.

Polanco hit .265 with 26 home runs and 78 RBIs this year for the Seattle Mariners. It was the 32-year-old’s second season with Seattle after a decade with the Minnesota Twins.

Polanco’s arrival comes after the departures of outfielder Brandon Nimmo, closer Edwin DΓ­az and first baseman Pete Alonso left New York without three of its fan favorites. Polanco’s deal is worth a reported $40 million.

Last year, Polanco was mostly a designated hitter and also played second base, but New York’s biggest current need in the infield may be at first after Alonso’s exit. The Mets acquired second baseman Marcus Semien in a trade for Nimmo, and Francisco Lindor is a fixture at shortstop.

Polanco was an All-Star in 2019 for Minnesota, and he hit a career-high 33 home runs in 2021. He had surgery in October 2024 to repair his left patellar tendon, and the Mariners declined his $12 million option for the 2025 season. But they brought him back for $7 million, and he produced one of his best offensive seasons.

Royals and All-Star 3B Maikel Garcia agree to 5-year, $57.5M contract

KANSAS CITY, Mo. β€” All-Star third baseman Maikel Garcia and the Kansas City Royals have agreed to a five-year, $57.5 million contract that includes a club option for a sixth season, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Friday.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the contract is pending a physical. Garcia was arbitration-eligible for the first time in 2026, so the deal essentially buys out his arbitration years and potentially his first two years of free agency.

The 25-year-old Garcia is coming off a breakout season both in the field, where he won his first Gold Glove playing alongside All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., and at the plate, where he hit .286 with a career-high 16 homers and 74 RBIs.

While the Royals have prioritized landing outfield help in the offseason β€” they agreed to a $5.25 million deal with Lane Thomas on Thursday β€” they also wanted to ensure they maintained their franchise cornerstones. That began with re-signing catcher Salvador Perez to a $25 million, two-year contract in November, and it continued by keeping Garcia through at least the 2030 season.

He also is capable of playing shortstop and second base, and Garcia even dabbled with playing in the outfield last season.

By keeping him in the fold, the Royals also solidified what has been one of the better infields in baseball. Witt is coming off a second consecutive All-Star appearance and Gold Glove, Perez is a nine-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove-winner, and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino just had the best season of his four-year big league career, hitting .264 with 32 homers and 113 RBIs.

It also follows a trend of the Royals keeping their own. Each of those four players was signed and developed by Kansas City.

The Royals failed to make the playoffs last season, but they did finish 82-80, the first time they have had consecutive winning years since going to back-to-back World Series in 2014 and ’15. And with a talented pitching staff set to return, and young position players on the upswing, there is optimism that Kansas City can get back to the postseason in 2026.

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