Angels: Logan O’Hoppe
After breaking onto the Major Leagues in 2023-2024 with exciting power and defensive upside, Logan O’Hoppe took a significant step back in 2025, failing to retain his strong offense while his defense was among the league’s worst.
O’Hoppe’s raw power was one of the few tools that remained, as his elite 13.3% barrel rate gave him a decent floor outside of his abysmal 30.8% strikeout rate to just a 5.3% walk rate. O’Hoppe’s framing also took a step back as his fWAR fell to -0.8 in 119 games.
A lot of O’Hoppe’s offensive value comes from hard-hit balls at ideal launch angles, as his LA Sweet-Spot% was in the 100th percentile in 2024 before falling below average in 2025. Finding this sweet spot a little more consistently, while hopefully making more contact, will be huge for the Angels’ backstop to return to productivity.
These struggles mostly began in the second half, as O’Hoppe’s strong start (.264/.299/.517, 122 wRC+ through May 31st) was not enough to elevate his full-season numbers. O’Hoppe enters 2026 looking to recapture this success while acclimating better with a largely new Angels coaching staff.
Astros: Cristian Javier
Cristian Javier had a brief 2025 season, returning in mid-August and making eight starts for the Astros after missing most of the last two seasons to Tommy John surgery recovery. These eight starts saw Javier’s strikeout rate continue to fall and stuff continue to take small steps back.
Before Javier’s TJS, he had a down 2023 where home runs were up, strikeouts were down, and his elite fastball was far more hittable. This led me to place him in my rebound picks for the 2024 season, before Javier went down with injury after seven starts.
Entering 2026, Javier once again appears healthy and looks to recapture the mechanics that led to his pitching in two combined no-hitters in 2022. Some signs appeared in 2025, as his velocity was better than in 2024 and his changeup looked better than ever.
There were other signs of adjustment beyond regaining old form, too; Javier introduced a sinker, which he used almost 20% of the time against righties, and consistently utilized a deep five-pitch mix, far cry from his 60% four-seam usage in 2022. Regardless of approach changes, health will be the first key to Javier regaining his place as a top-of-the-rotation starter for the Astros in 2026.
Athletics: Lawrence Butler
Lawrence Butler took a step back offensively in 2025, yet remained an effective baserunner and defender as an everyday outfielder for the Athletics. After showing flashes of stardom in 2024, Butler’s elite batted ball tendencies took a step back while he struggled to make consistent contact.
Butler was still a valuable player, reaching the 20-20 mark for the first time and posting a career-best 9.4% walk rate. Getting back to pulling fly balls a little more consistently might allow some of his deep fly outs or doubles to turn into home runs more often.
Butler is expected to miss the majority of Spring Training in recovery from an offseason knee surgery, but is expected to return in mid-March for an on-time return to regular season play.
In 2026, look for Butler to make slightly more contact while getting back to doing damage in-zone, particularly against breaking pitches (.588 SLG against in 2024, .386 in 2025). A year of adjusting to Sacramento under his belt could be key, so look for Butler to get his name back in star territory as part of a strong Athletics offense in 2026.
Mariners: Bryce Miller
After an excellent 2024, Bryce Miller had a nightmare 2025 season, missing time throughout the season with elbow inflammation and struggling to produce results when healthy. Miller ended up making 18 starts with mixed results.
Miller’s biggest strength, his elite four-seam, got absolutely crushed while his secondaries failed to carry the load. His deep arsenal certainly provides many advantages when healthy, but could’ve hurt his consistency as he worked through elbow injury throughout the season.
Unfortunately, Miller is already working through side inflammation this Spring Training, and is shut down from throwing for five days. He’ll return to throwing shortly after that and isn’t expected to miss too much time.
Still, because of this injury risk, it’s difficult to project how Miller will play in 2026. Objectively, while Miller’s command took a step back in 2025, his results were unlucky and his stuff remained above average. Look for Miller to find some more consistency in 2026 and return to above-average run prevention.
Rangers: Jordan Montgomery
Jordan Montgomery did not appear in professional baseball in 2025, recovering from a preseason Tommy John surgery that is expected to keep him out of action until second-half 2026. Still, I believe he’s worth consideration as a bounce back candidate upon his return.
Montgomery last pitched in 2024, struggling mightily in his first season with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Brewers then acquired Montgomery alongside Shelby Miller for a player to be named later, before Montgomery declared free agency and signed with the Rangers this February.
Montgomery returns to the Rangers after a trade deadline deal from the Cardinals sent him to Texas in 2023, where he thrived en route to a World Series title. Montgomery tossed a career-high 188.2 innings in 32 starts that season, tallying 4.2 fWAR before struggling in Arizona.
If healthy, Montgomery will look to rediscover the magic he found in a half-season with Texas in 2023. Some keys will be velocity (~93 on SI?), command (needs ~6% walk rate or lower), and more confidence in his changeup. If these signs return closer to 2023 level, Montgomery could be key to sustaining a somewhat volatile Rangers pitching staff down the stretch in 2026.
