Morning Rundown: Teams interested in Miguel Andujar, Braves sign Jorge Mateo, top second base prospects
News around the league
According to Jon Heyman, there are several teams showing interest in free agent Miguel Andujar.
The Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, and the Athletics are all among the teams that may be looking to sign the outfielder.
Andujar, 31, hit .318/.352/.470 with 10 home runs and 44 RBI over 94 games with the Athletics and Reds in 2025.
He played 30 games with the Pirates back in 2023, posting a 105 wRC+ in 90 plate appearances.
After finding out they would be without Ha Seong Kim for an extended period of time, the Atlanta Braves added another infielder, signing Jorge Mateo to a one-year deal.
Mateo, 30, put up a 2.8 fWAR with the Baltimore Orioles back in 2022, but has struggled to find that same level of success. In the three years since, he’s collectively put together a 0.9 fWAR.
He hit .177/.217/.266 with a wRC+ of 33 with the Orioles in 2025.
MLB Pipeline released its top 10 second basemen for the 2026 season on Monday, continuing their countdown to their first top 100 list of the year, which will be released on Friday.
Here’s a look at the initial list, with no Pirates being included here:
Travis Bazzana - Cleveland Guardians
Michael Arroyo - Seattle Mariners
Brice Matthews - Houston Astros
Tommy Troy - Arizona Diamondbacks
Max Anderson - Detroit Tigers
Demetrio Crisantes - Arizona Diamondbacks
Aroon Escobar - Philadelphia Phillies
JD Nix - Arizona Diamondbacks
Roc Riggio - Colorado Rockies
Sam Antonacci - Chicago White Sox
As I indicated over the weekend, I’ll be unavailable for all of today, as my girlfriend is undergoing heart surgery.
We have features scheduled to post throughout the week at 11 am. The plan is to have no morning article on Tuesday, but pick back up on Wednesday. That may change, but we will still have some content on the site through the rest of the week.
Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes when I first mentioned the surgery.
By the time this posts in the morning, she’ll be back in surgery. I have a stack of comic books I’m taking for the week and may try working on the site’s rankings, if only to pass the time.
I’m still shooting for them to release the first week of February, but we will see.
Thanks for everything, you guys are truly the best.
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You can still order your copy of the 2026 Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League Guide over on Amazon.
The guide goes in-depth on some of the top prospects in the entire system, offering full scouting reports on the top 50. There will be some historical features on the Pirates’ minor leagues as well, as well as a look at some of the best players coming over from the Dominican Republic.
Order your copy with the link above.
She’s out of surgery. Everything went great. She’s resting now. Probably be a bit before I get to see her
Take care of your loved ones Murph. We'll be here when you get back.