Category: Sports News

Manager Craig Stammen has made it clear since his first media scrum on the opening of spring camp that he sees Luis Campusano as the San Diego Padres’ No. 2 catcher. More than once, Stammen has cited Campusano’s hard work and success in Triple-A last season. In his media scrum Friday morning, Stammen remarked on Campusano’s haircut while giving a big vote of confidence.

“He cut the dreads, got a new haircut, looks good and I know he’s excited about the opportunity and probably the first time in his career that he has had a little bit of a runway to take control of that job and win it in Spring Training and be the number two when we leave camp.”

The professional journey that Campusano has traveled has been rocky, to say the least. Coming up to the Padres in 2020 at 21, Campusano played the most in 2024, where he appeared in 91 games with a .227/.281/.361 line and a -0.7 fWAR reflecting below average defense. His eight home runs and 40 RBI did not offset the difficulties he had behind the plate. Then manager, Mike Shildt, appeared to have seen enough and never gave Campusano an opportunity to catch during his 10 game appearances in 2025. All of his 21 at-bats were as a DH and he had no hits and six walks with 11 strikeouts.

Stammen played with Campusano when he was a pitcher in the Padres bullpen. From his first comments after getting the manager job, Stammen has expressed support and belief in Campusano. He indicated from the beginning that the now 27-year-old would get every opportunity to prove he can be a major league player.

When president of baseball operations A.J. Preller acquired Freddy Fermin during the trade deadline last season, it became clear that he would be the front-line catcher going forward. He learned the staff on the fly after coming to the team and was far superior offensively to the aging Elias Diaz and Martin Maldonado.

Fermin has never been the number one guy for a team and has never played more than 89 games, which was last season. He started 39 of the Padres 52 games after coming over from the Kansas City Royals and before that his previous high was 72 games as a backup to Salvador Perez.

“I think to not burn Freddy out, Campy, if he’s the No. 2, he’s got to catch a lot,” Stammen stated. “To get those guys off to a good start in the season, maybe not exactly equal playing time, we’ll see how it shakes out, but Campy will play a lot.”

Stammen also brought up the other catchers working with the Padres pitchers in camp. Both Blake Hunt and Rodolfo Duran are sharing catching duties with Fermin and Campusano. All four, as well as top prospect Ethan Salas, will catch Padres pitchers in spring games. Either Hunt or Duran will likely be Campusano’s backup and if he doesn’t perform well, it is likely one of them will be the No. 2 to begin with.

Another interesting topic to be discussed in the scrum was Stammen’s dislike of dedicated catchers for specific pitchers. “I think every catcher needs to catch every pitcher, and every pitcher needs to throw to every catcher. Now, will there be, ‘Hey, these guys are just way better together?’ That could definitely happen, but you never know. You can’t pigeonhole them, because say one guy gets hurt and then all of a sudden, the backup has to catch those guys too.”

The subject of Matt Waldron was also brought up and Stammen said all catchers will work with him and Campusano has already brought a glove for Waldron. He acknowledged not everyone can catch a knuckleball pitcher so the best one will get the job.

Campusano caught Dylan Cease’s no-hitter, the second one thrown by a Padre, on July 25, 2024. But his inconsistency behind the plate apparently cost him the trust of his manger. With Stammen as the new leader and Kevin Plawecki as the new catching coach, Campusano is going to get a fresh opportunity to show if he is capable of being a major league catcher. There has been no discussion of giving him time at first base, despite Stammen acknowledging that he played some first base last season. His job is to catch and earn the backup job. If he is not able to do so, he is out of options and will either be traded or have to pass through waivers to be sent to the minor leagues.

To make his job more challenging, the ABS system will be part of the major league game this year and both catchers will probably be primarily responsible for judging balls and strikes in order to challenge pitches. Fortunately, the system has been in place in the minor leagues for years and Campusano has lots of experience. Stammen said they will develop a strategy as spring progresses and games begin.

If instilling confidence and expressing belief in a player can make a difference in if they perform well, Campusano should thrive this spring. Stammen has gone out of his way to publicly support and express faith in the still-young catcher. This is definitely his last and best chance. Let’s hope he takes the opportunity and runs with it.

This is exactly the offense Husker head coach Will Bolt envisioned when he dipped into the portal with the main focus of bringing in bats that can turn around a game in a hurry. Nebraska hit .471 on the game, but when you look at the other metrics where the team really struggled last year, they were ever better. Hitting .571 with 2 outs, and .636 with runners in scoring position.

Connecticut actually got the scoring started in the top of the first against Husker ace Ty Horn. Horn sandwiched a pair of strike outs around a hit batter to start the game off. Two ground ball singles brought in the lone run against Horn, who would fall just shy of the goal Coach Bolt put out earlier in the week of getting the starters through 5 inning on about 100 pitches. Horn struck out 6 batters, and only gave up 3 hits in his 4.2 innings, but the 4 walks and 1 hits batter offer something for him to focus on going into his next outing.

Nebraska wasted little time in the bottom of the first, taking advantage of freshman catcher and leadoff hitter Jeter Worthley being hit by a pitch, and Josh Overbeek taking a 4 pitch walk with 2 outs. Dylan Carey drove in the first run, depositing a curve ball into left field to bring in Worthley. Max Buettenback worked a walk off a 3-2 count to load the bases, and the Bolt watched one of his new toys, DH Cole Kitchens, clear the bases by smashing a fastball into the right field corner for a 3 RBI double, and a 4-1 Husker lead.

Worthley reached again in the second, this time on a walk. He would eventually come around to score on a bases loaded fielders choice off the bat of Overbeek.

The teams would trade zeros through the next few innings, despite putting the pressure on the pitchers with numerous base runners. It looked like UConn might jump right back in the game in the 4th with 2 runners on and 2 outs as leadoff batter Rob Rispoli drove a ball deep seemingly to the gap, but Husker left fielder Will Jesske ran it down and made a sliding basket catch to preserve the 5-1 lead.

Nebraska opened it up in the 6th. After second baseman Jett Buck walked and first baseman Case Sanderson singled into right, Overbeek collected RBIs number 2 and 3 on the day with an opposite field shot to the right field corner for a stand up double. He would advance to 3rd on a wild throw home, and pound his chest, much to the delight of the third base dugout. He didn’t get to stay long, as Carey singled to left on the very next pitch, and made it 8-1 Big Red.

Nebraska reliever Caleb Clark had come in to finish the 5th inning with a strikeout, and struck out 2 more in the 6th, but had three straight long battles to start the 7th in which he gave up 2 walks. Tucker Timmerman, the man who took a 106 mph comebacker to his face the last time he was on the mound in Arizona, came in the get the Huskers out of the jam with the preseason Big East player of the year in Tyler Minick striding to the plate. Minick did get the best of “Tuck”, plating a run on an RBI single, but Timmerman responded by inducing a double play by the next batter and limiting the damage.

Just as they did previously, the Husker offense responded to the run by putting up 4 more of their own. Worthley doubled to lead off, his 4th time reaching base. (Not a bad debut for a freshman leadoff hitter.) Buck traded places with him on an RBI double of his own. Rhett Stokes came in to pinch run for Buck, and just as quick as he came out of the dugout, he ran right back in off a Sanderson RBI single. Josh Ovebeek stayed hot and singled on his first pitch, setting up Carey again, and again DC delivered. Carey who came back to NU because the pro scouts told him he needed more power, burned the center fielder hitting a ball to the wall, and getting a stand up, walk off, 2 RBI mercy rule triple. (I think thats enough adjectives to describe it.) Huskers win big, 12-2.

Carey led the way on offense with 4 RBIs and had three hits. (And see below for an outstanding play by the Husky third baseman that kept those numbers as low as they were.) Sanderson and Kitchens had 3 hits of their own, with Kitchens adding the 3 RBIS.

The Huskers will be back at it again Saturday night at 7:30pm CST in Arizona against another team of Huskies, this time of the Northeastern variety.

Yahoo! Sports | The Associated Press: All aboard the Cole Train! Yankees ace Gerrit Cole took the mound yesterday for his first bullpen of the spring, marking the next major milestone in his return from last March’s Tommy John surgery. Speaking to reporters, Cole reiterated that his elbow feels better than it has in two seasons – remember, he missed the first half of 2024 with an elbow injury – and remains on track for a late spring/early summer return.

SNY | John Flanigan: Yankees general manager Brian Cashman addressed a number of topics yesterday, including the roster status of Jasson Domínguez. Despite the team’s decision to re-sign Cody Bellinger this spring, the Yankees still have high hopes for the former top prospect. This means, of course, that the team will have a decision to make: do they roster the Martian in the hopes that his athleticism and strong bat from the left side can be a weapon off the bench with the big league club, or do they send him down to Triple-A Scranton so that he plays every day and continues to develop? Time will tell — because let’s be honest, the baseball gods, not the manager and front office, are always the ones to make these decisions anyway.

The Athletic | Brendan Kuty: (subscription required) One of my favorite parts of spring training is getting to hear a bit about the dynamics between players, especially between former stars like Paul Goldschmidt and up-and-coming youngsters like Ben Rice. If you have access to The Athletic, I encourage you to take a look at this piece about the Rice/Goldy relationship from Brendan Kuty, especially if you’re a little unsure about the Yankees’ decision to re-sign Goldschmidt. While it’s clear the 2022 NL MVP’s best days are behind him, it’s clear that the organization — and Rice — are eager for their young first baseman to learn everything they can from him.

To bookend the week in the same vein as Monday’s Purple Row After Dark question, I have another one for you. Many folks have complained that last weekend’s Super Bowl was one of the most boring Super Bowls in recent memory, even though the final score was 29-13.

Baseball-wise, though, we had a great World Series this year (minus the champion). The Dodgers cakewalked through the National League, despite having a “down year” but then were taken to seven games by the Toronto Blue Jays, who had some stiff competition in the American League and nearly won the whole thing. Last year, the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in five games after an exciting run-up that almost saw them get bounced by the San Diego Padres.

So the question tonight is this: would you rather watch boring playoffs but exciting World Series, or exciting playoffs but a boring World Series?

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

TAMPA — When Jasson Domínguez was squeezed out of playing time late last season, the Yankees could have sent him to Triple-A.

But Brian Cashman “didn’t think that was right to do,” he acknowledged over the winter, because there was still a role for the outfielder to play off the bench in a playoff chase.

Now the Yankees are entering a spring in which they have another crowded outfield, with even more dollars committed to Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger, and Domínguez on the outside looking in.

Might the new year and new situation change the equation for whether Domínguez will be optioned to Triple-A once camp breaks?

“If everything stays the same, we’ll be forced to determine what’s our best course of action to help this team be impactful,” Cashman said Friday from Steinbrenner Field.

“I would concede it’s in his best interest to be getting everyday reps.”

Realistically, barring injuries, the only place for that to happen would appear to be at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Domínguez just turned 23 and the Yankees, through some of his growing pains last year, often pointed to the fact that he did not play a whole lot during his rise through the minors because of injuries and having a season wiped out by COVID.

So there is value in giving him a chance to go play every day in the minor leagues, even after spending all of last season in The Bronx and providing some production in 429 plate appearances.

That case is only bolstered by the fact that there is not a clear lane for Domínguez to play off the bench, other than pinch-running.

He is a switch-hitter who is stronger from the left side, but Grisham and Bellinger also hit left-handed.

The last spot on the Yankees’ bench — especially after they re-signed Paul Goldschmidt — may be better used for a right-handed hitting outfielder, and/or an above-average defensive left fielder, which Domínguez was not last season.

“Domínguez is an extremely talented player,” Cashman said. “He’s one of our best runners. So having him as a choice for our manager to use coming off the bench at times as a pinch-runner to steal a bag or first to third, second to home, what have you, definitely improves our chances of success because of his pure athleticism.

“We’ll just have to wait and see how the spring shakes out, who’s standing and then we’ll make the appropriate decisions when we have our meetings closer to the end of camp.”

It would only take one injury for Domínguez to jump back in the mix, though Spencer Jones — the center fielder with thunderous power but high strikeout rates — will also try to make his case to be the next man up this spring.

“Depth chart, in theory, you’d have him behind Domínguez going in because Domínguez has had more experience than he does,” Cashman said. “But that’s not going to stop him in competition.”

As first reported by Steve Gilbert, Zac Gallen is returning to the D-backs on a one-year deal. The amount involved is $22 million, which is basically the same amount as the qualifying offer Gallen declined at the start of the winter. However, Ken Rosenthal reports that approximately $14 million of that is deferred. It’s a stunning turnaround for both Gallen and the team. Zac was looking for a big payday, and MLB Trade Rumors projected a four year, $80 million contract for him. But coming off a poor year, with an 89 ERA+, the market for his services simply dried up.

For the Diamondbacks, even allowing for the deferred amount, this commits the team, one way or another, to more money that was expected to be available. The general belief was that Arizona would be looking to cut costs this winter, the team reportedly having run at a loss last year. But it looks like the payroll is going to be close to what it was in 2025. It also leaves the team with six starters, Gallen joining Merrill Kelly, Ryne Nelson, Brandon Pfaadt, Eduardo Rodriguez and Michael Soroka. It’s going to be very interesting to see how the team opts to fit all those pieces into their roster.

More to follow…

TAMPA — He is 35 now, another year older, with some more facial hair, a slightly different windup and a surgically reconstructed ulnar collateral ligament.

But Gerrit Cole stepped onto the bullpen mound Friday morning at Steinbrenner Field and, as much as one can over the course of two simulated innings without any hitters in the box, looked like Gerrit Cole.

There is still a long way to go — in a best-case scenario, three months, with more hurdles to clear along the way — before Cole might take the mound in a big league game.

But just over 11 months removed from undergoing Tommy John surgery and having the entirety of his 2025 season wiped out, the former AL Cy Young award winner gave the Yankees a tantalizing reminder of what could be waiting for them later this year.

“He looked like a Cy Young pitcher,” catcher Austin Wells said. “He looked smooth and in control. Looked confident in his ability.”

Of course, it was just a bullpen session in February, one that checked another box on the way to potentially facing hitters in another week or two and possibly getting into a Grapefruit League game before camp ends.

In his conversations with the Yankees and the surgeon who repaired his elbow, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, the target return date has always been 14-18 months, Cole said, and that remains on track.

He had the surgery last March 11, so 14 months would be May 11.

And exactly what version of Cole the Yankees get once he does return to game action remains to be seen.

For some pitchers coming back from Tommy John, it takes a full season to get their stuff back and feel like themselves.

For others, it comes quicker.

Cole knows this and is not getting ahead of himself for what to expect this season.

But to this point, every step of the rehab process that he described as “long and tedious” has gone well, giving him and the Yankees hope that there is some light at the end of the tunnel inching closer.

“I’m a confident guy. I have high expectations for my execution internally,” Cole said. “But overall, in terms of performance and expectations, I don’t really have any set goals or numbers or things like that. It’s been working really well to just stay day to day and execute the task at hand. So I think the challenge is to continue to do that as things become more exciting and things start to get rolling more and more.”

In his throwing session Friday, Cole’s fastball hit 94-96 mph, the pop of Wells’ glove ringing throughout the bullpen with a crowd of interested Yankees personnel watching.

At this point in the rehab process, Cole acknowledged that it is important for him to pay close attention to the velocity, making sure he is staying within the suggested ranges to “load the new [elbow] tissue strategically.”

“When I’m told to push, I push,” he said. “When I’m told not to, I don’t. I really haven’t deviated hardly at all from our targets.”

Along those lines, the Yankees will not push Cole back too soon, regardless of how encouraged they may be at each next step.

There is no sense in bringing him back quickly just to have him pitch in early-season games at the expense of having him available later in the year when the stakes are higher.

“We want to make sure we give him the proper time to make sure he is good and ready to come back, built up in a smart way,” manager Aaron Boone said. “So we won’t rush that with him, even if it continues to go incredibly well.”

Cole, too, expressed a cautious optimism about how he was feeling.

His old elbow got him 2,000-plus innings in the big leagues, and the new one is feeling “different than it has been in quite some time,” he said.

Whether that could mean throwing harder when he returns, Cole pumped the brakes and said with a smile, “We’ll see.”

More than anything, Cole just seemed to be longing for things to get back to normal, for the day when he can finally rejoin what has the potential to be a high-end rotation with him a key part of it.

“I just miss playing,” he said. “I miss that outlet of working hard and feeling exhausted every five days.”

There has been a big media presence around the Atlanta Braves during this first week of Spring Training which means lots of player availability. Earlier today, Alex Anthopoulos met with the media, and you can read those highlights here.

Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale made the media rounds as well, discussion a number of topics, two of which were most notable.

First, Sale said he will never challenge a pitch with MLB’s ABS system. Saying that he doesn’t want to take away a challenge and has dealt with missed pitched all his career, Sale stated he would leave it up to his catcher if the backstop wants to challenge a pitch. The full video of his answer is embedded below.

Second, and maybe more notable, was Sale discussing his pending free agency, noting that he hasn’t previously been in the position before of having uncertainty as to where he will play next season during his 15-year big league career.

When asked in a follow-up question if he’d like to retire as a Braves, he said that he would like to do so noting that Atlanta gave him a chance and helped get his career back on track.

You can watch his full comment in the embed below.

When on the mound, Sale has been arguably the best pitcher in the National League while with the Braves. Although he will pitch most of the 2026 season at age 37, Sale has compiled more than 10 fWAR across his two season with Atlanta, striking out more than 32-percent of the batters he has faced.

He won the 2024 National League Cy Young and if not for the freak broken rib suffered diving for a ball mid-season, he would have likely been at least a top five finisher for the 2025 award.

The Braves need Chris Sale to stay healthy and keep pitching like the future Hall of Famer that is likely is to contend this season. Whether the Braves offer him an extension prior to free agency or not will be an interesting item to watch as the year progresses.