Major League teams are regularly asked to carry injured players on the 40-man roster all winter, with no hope of being healthy until late in the season.
In many ways, Major League Baseball revolves around not the 26-man active roster, but the 40-man roster. Since players on the active roster must be on the 40-man (COVID-19 replacements notwithstanding), being added to this roster is almost always the first step a minor leaguer takes when making the...