The Rundown: Cubs Sign Kingery, Ponce Gets Paid, Reds Still Circling Schwarber, More Notes

The Cubs made their second big move of the offseason on Tuesday, signing former second-round draft pick Scott Kingery to a minor-league deal. In all seriousness, adding a guy who’s only logged 48 MLB plate appearances since 2020 is simply a matter of creating a little organizational depth at Triple-A. The 31-year-old Kingery saw action in 19 games with the Angels last season, his first big league action in three years.

He looked like a potential everyday Swiss Army knife of a player during his sophomore campaign with the Phillies, slugging 19 homers over 500 plate appearances while playing second, third, short, and all three outfield positions. That’s when the fuel ran out for the man known as Jetpax, with injuries playing a role in his decline. Back spasms limited him in 2020, then he suffered a concussion in mid-May of ’21, followed by a torn labrum that required surgery in July of that same year.

Kingery ended up going just over four years between MLB at-bats, which probably has as much to do with the Cubs signing him as anything else. It would be foolish to even hope he can return to something approaching that early performance, but I’m all about having a veteran presence who’s been willing to grind through all of those struggles. The Cubs have always sought players who’ve battled through adversity, and this Kingery signing feels like adding a de facto coach.

As a reminder to those who probably won’t read it anyway, this does not cost a roster spot and will not prevent the Cubs from signing other players.

Ponce to Jays

When it comes to guys who are looking for another shot after a disappointing run with a team from Pennsylvania, Cody Ponce leads the pack this winter. The righty last pitched in MLB with the Pirates in 2021, putting up a 7.04 ERA over 38.1 innings thrown mainly as a reliever. He then headed to Asia, pitching for a pair of NPB teams before significantly upping his stock in the KBO.

Ponce won league MVP honors thanks to a 17-1 record and 1.89 ERA while striking out six times as many batters as he walked. I really liked him as a Cubs target, assuming they aren’t actually going to sign a big-money starter, but he’s heading north of the border instead of the North Side of Chicago. The Blue Jays signed Ponce to a three-year, $30 million deal that was right in line with what folks had been hearing about his potential.

It’s also around 50% higher than what had initially been projected, which says something about the state of the starting pitching market. It might say more about the health of Toronto’s Shane Bieber, who shockingly exercised his $16 million player option to return rather than getting a $4 million buyout and hitting the market. That decision may make a lot more sense in light of the Jays paying Ponce after giving Dylan Cease a seven-year deal.

Both Bieber and the Blue Jays probably understood that he wasn’t going to pass a physical, so he got a bigger payday and they made sure to purchase a significant insurance policy.

This doesn’t portend good things if you’re hoping the Cubs are going after an impact arm in free agency, but it may reinforce the idea that they’ll seek a big trade. Of course, the folks at ESPN don’t see the Cubs as fits for any of the top 25 trade candidates this winter. We could get a better idea of their machinations once the Winter Meetings crank up next week.

Mutual Interest Between Reds, Schwarber

In what could very well turn out to be a situation Cubs fans are all too familiar with, the Reds will probably end up falling short in their pursuit of Kyle Schwarber despite mutual interest between the parties. Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reported that the Reds “remain among the teams trying to sign Schwarber,” and Ken Rosenthal likewise characterized their pursuit as “serious.” The Middletown, OH native grew up a Reds fan and is reportedly intrigued by the idea of a homecoming.

He should also be interested in the pursuit of 500 home runs, a milestone that is only 160 jacks away. That’s easily possible for the lefty-batting masher, and could even happen over the course of his next deal. Schwarber has hit 187 homers over the last four seasons, making an average of 40 through his age-37 season at least mildly reasonable. That would certainly be the case at Great American Ball Park, which favors lefties to a great degree.

Statcast says Schwarber would have 380 homers if he played every game at GABC, 27 more than at any other park in MLB. That second-place venue: Philly’s Citizens Bank Park. Between familiarity and the likelihood that they will offer much more money, it’s hard to see Schwarber heading back home. Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall told reporters that payroll “will be about the same” in 2026, which gives them about $21 million as things currently stand.

Even if they were to invest all of that in Schwarber, we’re looking at something like four years and $85 million or five at $105-ish million. His contract projections range from four years and $128 million to as much as $145 million over five years, so the Reds would be coming in about 50% lower. Unless the draw to his childhood team and the chance to play for the man whose team he beat in the 2016 World Series is worth several tens of millions, Schwarber ain’t going to Cincy.

Of course, the Reds could somehow end up stretching in a big way to go beyond anyone’s expectations. They’ll have to beat out the Phillies, Red Sox, and Giants, among others, though they could try to jettison some players through trades to clear payroll room.

Other News and Notes

• The Brewers may be “cracking the door open” for Freddy Peralta inquiries, according to Rosenthal.
• Righty Alek Manoah, who fell apart after a third-place Cy Young finish in 2022, has signed a minors deal with the Angels.
• Anaheim is also working on a contract buyout with Anthony Rendon, who is then expected to retire; he has one year and $38 million left on an incredibly ill-fated seven-year, $245 million deal.
• Gary Sheffield provided Justin Bieber with some life advice when they met at the World Series.
• The A’s have unveiled an architectural model of their $2+ billion ballpark in Las Vegas. That roof sure is something.

Full architectural model of the $2+ billion Las Vegas #Athletics ballpark. Drink it in. pic.twitter.com/rmwv7VqQ5u

— Las Vegas Locally ? (@LasVegasLocally) December 3, 2025