Seattle Mariners executive vice president and general manager of baseball operations Justin Hollander announced on Thursday that the team declined their $6.075 million 2027 club option on right-hander Bryce Miller, but he remains under contract with the team through the 2029 season. Miller will receive a $15,000 buyout as part of a one-year deal that guaranteed $2.452 million. He is eligible for salary arbitration as well. He did not make his debut with the team in 2026 until May 13 due to a strained left oblique and went 4-10 with a 4.17 ERA in 21 starts and one relief appearance for Seattle in his fourth year in the big leagues. It was a second straight disappointing season for Miller after he had a career-worst 5.68 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, and 74:34 K:BB in 90 1/3 innings across 18 starts in his third year in 2025. He is trying to recapture the form that saw him post a career-best 2.94 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, and 171:45 K:BB in his 31 starts in 2024. Miller had his worst stretch in the majors in 2026 and was demoted back to the minors in August. With Emerson Hancock now a rotation member and young lefty Kade Anderson in the mix, Miller could be the odd man out for a rotation spot to begin next season.

The Seattle Mariners announced on Thursday that they exercised their $9 million 2027 club option on right-handed closer Andres Munoz. The 27-year-old agreed to a four-year, $7.5 million contract with the Mariners in December of 2021 that included three club options. He was an All-Star in both 2024 and 2025 and had a $7 million salary this year under the first option while going 5-6 with a career-worst 4.24 ERA, 28 saves in 38 chances, and 89 strikeouts in 57 1/3 innings pitched. Seattle has a $10 million option for 2028 that would increase by $250,000 each for 20, 30, 40, and 45 games finished in 2027. Despite Munoz's not-so-great 2026 campaign, he will open the 2027 season as Seattle's primary closer after saving 101 games for the team since the start of the 2023 campaign. Although Munoz had a career-high 4.24 ERA (3.35 FIP) in 2026, he still managed a strong 37.1% strikeout rate in his seventh year in the big leagues and should remain a coveted closing option in fantasy baseball leagues going into next season without much competition in the ninth inning.

The Atlanta Braves announced on Thursday that they exercised their $7 million 2027 option on second baseman Ozzie Albies. Albies agreed in 2019 to a seven-year, $35 million contract that included $7 million options in both 2026 and 2027. The 29-year-old four-time All-Star will now head into the final year of his deal with the team next season after hitting a career-low .237 with 22 home runs, 73 RBI, and 85 runs scored across 615 at-bats. He was a disappointment in the batting average department, but Albies still had plenty of value for the Braves up the middle at the keystone and played in all 162 of the team's regular season games in his 10th year in the big leagues. The 29-year-old switch-hitter and native of Curaao should find himself in an everyday role in Atlanta for one more season while providing fantasy managers with some pop at the second base position, but the days of Albies being a threat for 20 homers and 20 steals appear to be over. He will turn 30 in January and is the Braves' longest-tenured player. It is concerning for fantasy managers looking to roster Albies next year that he hit just .194 with a .575 OPS in the second half.

Boston Red Sox veteran right-hander Sonny Gray declined his side of a $30 million mutual option for the 2027 season on Friday to become a free agent, according to Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald. Gray will receive a $5 million buyout payable in five $1 million installments each Jan. 15 from 2027-31 as he looks for a multi-year deal on the open market after pitching extremely well in his lone season in Beantown. The 36-year-old three-time All-Star led the league with 18 wins while also posting a strong 2.72 ERA (3.47 FIP) and 1.15 WHIP with 149 strikeouts and 46 walks in 169 innings pitched across 29 regular-season starts. The soon-to-be 37-year-old signed a three-year, $75 million deal with the St. Louis Cardinals in November of 2023 and was traded to the Red Sox last November. Gray's 2.72 ERA was his best in a full season in the big leagues, and although he still has value to a starting rotation, it will be difficult for him to match his numbers from 2026 with whatever team he chooses to pitch for next season.