The New York Mets claimed right-hander Cooper Criswell off waivers from the Boston Red Sox on Friday, a source told Jorge Castillo of ESPN. The Red Sox had designated Criswell for assignment following their trade on Thursday night that landed them right-hander Johan Oviedo. Criswell has pitched in both a starting and relief role in Beantown each of the last two seasons, going 7-5 with a 4.00 ERA (4.31 FIP), 1.38 WHIP, one save, 82 strikeouts, and 36 walks in 117 innings pitched over 33 appearances (19 starts). The 29-year-old still has several more years of club control. He only made seven big-league appearances (one start) in Boston in 2025 and held a 3.57 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, and 9:5 K:BB ratio. Criswell will give New York some rotation insurance, but he won't really be on the fantasy radar, even in deeper leagues. He holds a career 4.48 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, and 16.7% strikeout rate in five MLB seasons.

The Boston Red Sox are acquiring right-hander Johan Oviedo, left-hander Tyler Samaniego, and catcher Adonys Guzman from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday night in exchange for outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia, sources tell Jeff Passan of ESPN. Boston is serious about adding starting pitching this offseason, having already traded for veteran right-hander Sonny Gray, and now they'll bring the 27-year-old Oviedo in for rotation depth. The Cuban hurler missed all of 2024 due to Tommy John surgery. He missed most of 2025 while recovering but managed to make nine starts for the Bucs, going 2-1 with a 3.57 ERA (4.92 FIP), 1.21 WHIP, and 42:23 K:BB ratio in 40 1/3 frames. Oviedo has limited fantasy upside given his career 20.2% strikeout rate and bloated 11% walk rate. He should be in play as a backend rotation option for the BoSox in 2026.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are acquiring outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia from the Boston Red Sox on Thursday in exchange for right-hander Johan Oviedo, left-hander Tyler Samaniego, and catcher Adonys Guzman, sources tell ESPN's Jeff Passan. The Pirates will receive another player in addition to Garcia, who should have a shot in spring training to win the starting left field job in Pittsburgh in 2026. The 22-year-old Venezuelan nicknamed The Password made his big-league debut in Boston this year and had a double in nine plate appearances with two walks and five strikeouts in just five games played. Garcia hit .267/.340/.470 with an .810 OPS, 21 home runs, 75 RBI, 79 runs scored, and seven steals in 114 games with Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester in the minors before his call-up. The 6-foot, 163-pounder is listed as Pittsburgh's No. 6 prospect on MLB Pipeline and is known for producing high exit velocities and has the raw power to produce 25 to 30 homers a year as a full-time player for the Bucs.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman reports that free-agent outfielder Cody Bellinger remains the New York Yankees' No. 1 target this offseason. The two sides are not close to a deal yet for him to return to the Bronx, but the Yankees are making a big effort to try and re-sign him. If the Yanks can't lure the left-handed slugger back, the Mets, Phillies, Dodgers, and Angels are teams that could make a run at the 30-year-old former National League MVP. He became a free agent after declining his $25 million player option for next season. In his first and possibly only year with the Yanks, Bellinger slashed .272/.334/.480 with an .813 OPS, 29 home runs, 98 RBI, 89 runs, and 13 stolen bases in 152 regular-season games. Bellinger hit much better at Yankee Stadium, which might play heavily into his decision on whether to re-sign. If he signs elsewhere, his less-than-stellar batted-ball metrics could catch up to him in 2026 and beyond, even though he struck out only 13.7% of the time in 2025.