The Opener: Bauers, Ausmus, Kopech

Former Padres owner Peter Seidler passed away at age 63 on this day in 2023. Seidler was part of the Ron Fowler-led ownership group that bought the Padres in 2012, and then became club chairman in 2020 after buying out enough of Fowler’s stake of the team to become the majority shareholder. In his three years of running the team, Seidler turned the Padres into one of the league’s biggest spenders in an all-out push to try and bring San Diego its first World Series title. While the Padres only made it as far as the 2022 NLCS during Seidler’s brief tenure, Seidler became a beloved figure in baseball, and his legacy has carried forward as the team has remained in contention. 1. Bauers heads to Boston The Red Sox made an early and somewhat unexpected splash in the free agent market yesterday, agreeing with Jake Bauers on a four-year, $52MM deal. The plan is to have Bauers share the first base and DH duties with Willson Contreras, and with the designated hitter spot now essentially covered on a daily basis, it only increases the likelihood that odd men out Masataka Yoshida and Jarren Duran might not be back with the Sox in 2027. With the November 20th non-tender deadline looming, Duran could simply be let go, given his projected $11.1MM salary. Of the eight free agents who were issued qualifying offers, Bauers was perhaps the best candidate to accept the one-year, $23.15MM contract, so it seems likely that we won’t see anyone accepting the QO before Tuesday’s deadline. 2. Bagwell discusses Ausmus hiring The Astros hired Brad Ausmus as their new manager earlier this week, and team senior advisor Jeff Bagwell provided some context on the decision in an interview with MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Bagwell pointed to Ausmus’ varied resume on and off the field, and Ausmus’ experience as a catcher was of particular note. “When you’re a catcher, you control so much with your team because you control your pitching staff,” Bagwell said. “You cannot win without pitching. We, for the last few years, have really worn our bullpen down and have gotten a lot of injuries. I’m not saying it’s because of our coaching staff, but we have to have somebody that understands pitchers, and nobody does that better than catchers.” While Ausmus and Bagwell are longtime friends dating back to their time as teammates in Houston, Bagwell dismissed the idea that he was “banging the table for Brad,” saying that owner Jim Crane and GM Randy Flores had to approve the hiring. “Most people who get jobs in the game are friends with somebody. That’s how it works. How do you think you find people? They just don’t show up. You’ve got to find people, and generally, they’re acquaintances you have throughout the game,” Bagwell said. 3. Kopech set for showcase Michael Kopech didn’t pitch in 2026, but the right-hander will throw for evaluators from multiple teams today, as reported by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Will Sammon, and Katie Woo earlier this week. A veteran of six MLB seasons, Kopech has found success as both a starter and a reliever, but was used only out of the bullpen in 2024-25 in the wake of a rough season in the White Sox rotation in 2023. Injuries have been a major subplot of Kopech’s career, and shoulder and knee problems limited him to just 11 relief innings for the Dodgers in 2025. The Giants and Yankees were linked to Kopech’s market last winter, but no deal was reached. Kopech figures to have to settle for a minor league pact this winter, and if has solved his control problems and can stay healthy, he could offer plenty of upside to a team’s bullpen.