Category: MLB

Series Preview

Michigan State Spartans (3-8) at Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-5)

Location: Hawks Field at Haymarket Park, Lincoln, NE

Dates: March 6th-8th

Times (all CT): Friday @ 2pm, Saturday @ 1pm, Sunday @ 12pm

Head Coaches: Jake Boss Jr. (18th season, 496-450) & Will Bolt (7th season, 177-131-1)

TV/Stream: B1G+

Radio: All Nebraska games on Huskers Radio Network, Huskers.com, Huskers App

Nebraska baseball goes into conference play having won both of its mid-week games since returning home to Haymarket Park. It’s riding the hot bats of Dylan Carey, and Mac Moyer. Carey is fresh off a 5 for 5 game, the first 5 hit game for a Husker since Gunner Hellstrom in 2018. Carey is leading all Big Ten batters in both hits (28) and doubles (8) and is 2nd in avg. (.509). He is piling up the RBIs with Moyer reaching base at a .592 clip. He is tied for the Big Ten lead with 13 walks.

Nebraska should also be getting Will Jesske back after a week off due to feeling a twing in his hamstring Friday night at Auburn. Husker coach Will Bolt said he was going to pinch hit if needed the last inning against South Dakota State, but didn’t want him playing the field yet with the cold weather. Jesske has 3 home runs on the year, but with the amount of hits on the barrel he has had at some giant ballparks, he could be close to the Big Ten lead if he played all his games at a place like Haymarket Park.

The Spartans had the biggest upset of the first week of the season, taking the series from then #8 Louisville by winning the first 2 games 4-3 and 13-4. They have struggled mightily since, going 1-8 against a pretty rough schedule. They went from Louisville to #3 Texas and were swept by a combined score of 15-2 in 3 games.

They have a yearly “residency” as they call it, in Greenville, South Carolina early every year, thanks to a big alumni base in the area. They struggled to put up runs in those 2 weeks, never putting up more than 4. Their lone win was a 4-1 victory over Albany, and they ended the residency on a sour note, with a 7 inning run rule loss to #10 Clemson, 12-1. Husker pitchers will need to limit walks and hit batters, and should be able to manage the lineup if they can.

Pitching Probables

Rotation vs the Spartans. 🔒 pic.twitter.com/mTBujChTs8

— Nebraska Baseball (@HuskerBaseball) March 5, 2026

Game 1: RHP Ty Horn (0-0, 4.05 ERA) vs. RHP Aidan Donovan (0-1, 3.95 ERA)

Game 2: RHP Carson Jasa (1-1, 7.71 ERA) vs. RHP Carter Monke (1-1, 2.35 ERA)

Game 3: RHP Gavin Blachowicz (1-1, 2.31 ERA) vs. RHP Logan Pikur (0-2, 7.30 ERA)

It was a rough weekend for Husker starting pitching. In fact, in 2026 no weekend starter has turned in a quality start. Ty Horn started strong, piling up strikeouts in the first couple innings before a couple hits and an error jump started the Tigers’ offense. Still looking for him to work on getting through the order a couple times in a more efficient fashion. It would really behoove Friday starters to go longer so the bullpen is more available the next two days. That is just as big of a deal as being dominant for 5 innings.

Really nothing went right on Saturday for Carson Jasa. Well, he could locate his fastball for strikes, but that was about it, and Auburn quickly realized it. 2 walks and a hit batter went a long way to giving up 4 earned runs in his lone inning of work, but Auburn learned to just sit and hunt his fastball, and when you connect with a 97 mph fastball, it tends to go a long way. Regaining a feel for his cutter/change and slider is really all he can do.

Even the most steady of the starters for the first 2 weeks had a rough go. Gavin Blachowicz seemed to get out of an issue with minimal damage in the 2nd inning against Auburn in which an error led to a run being scored, but a wild pitch and then giving up a no doubter 3 run home run, opened the game up. Rather than let him work out of it, Nebraska had a couple strong options in the bullpen to turn to, so they let Kevin Mannell come out and get some work in to try and regain his confidence. Blachowicz needs to work on not letting a mistake turn into a big inning, and he should regain his form.

MSU had 2 starting pitcher and kinda filled in the Sunday position last season. They lost Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Joseph Dzierwa, and their Saturday guy was moved to a long relief role. Aidan Donovan was mostly a mid-week starter last season, but has moved into the Friday role. He showed a lot of promise as a freshman in 2025, with a 2-3 record and 4.70 ERA. He pitched well against Louisville and Texas, but struggled in his last outing against Illinois. Don’t look for him to pile up strike outs or go deep into the game, his season high is 5 innings and he has 10 strikeouts in his 13.2 innings so far.

Carter Monke is a grad transfer from Illinois State. He started 14 games in his 2 years at ISU, and had a 6.16 ERA, striking out 67 in 83 innings of work. Despite those numbers, he has pitched very well to start 2026. He started 2 of their 3 wins, and in his loss only gave up 1 earned run in 6.1 innings against Texas. Logan Pikur led the team in appearances the past 2 seasons, but has really struggled moving into the starting rotation. He has a career ERA over 7.00 and career batting average against of .315. Nebraska’s offense should be ready to roll Sunday.

Scouting Report

The Spartans returned a lot of position players, but from an offense that really struggled in 2025. They have far and away the fewest hits of any Big Ten team currently, a combo of their offensive struggles and their incredible strength of schedule. They have only 62 hits on the year. The next lowest is 83, and Nebraska by contrast, has 132. They have scored only 33 runs on the season. Nebraska is below average in the B1G, but still has scored 78 runs.

Everything starts with returning 2nd Team All-Big Ten second baseman Ryan McKay. Like everyone, he’s had a rough start to the year. A .250 average and only 1 double from a guy that hit .306 with 20 home runs a season ago. He epitomizes the team’s philosophy of working deep into counts, but not striking out. He has as many walks in his career as strikeouts. He also likes to run, already with 4 stolen bases despite the limited opportunities.

Spartan Ryan McKay is on @d1baseball's Top 50 Second Basemen list!!#GoGreen | @Ryanmckay51pic.twitter.com/fyFumuLvLH

— Michigan State Baseball (@MSUBaseball) February 2, 2026

Sliding over from short stop to first base, senior Randy Seymour is leading the team in most hitting categories so far, batting .256, with 2 home runs and 3 doubles. He is a very free swinger though, striking out 11 and only walking once. The team was also expecting big things out of outfielder Parker Picot, and in the second game of the season, he delivered, hitting 2 home runs and driving in 8 RBIs in the 13-4 win over Louisville. Other than that game, he is 1 for 25 with 1 RBI.

The Spartans landed a huge recruit in 3B/OF CJ Decking. They beat out a long list of Big Ten and SEC programs to get him out of Illinois. Needless to say, a freshman starting his career playing against a top 10 team in 6 out of 8 games has been a rough go. He’s batting .100 with 7 strikeouts, but he will explode eventually.

The MIchigan State bullpen is solid. They don’t strike a ton out as a group, but keep guys off the basepaths, only walking 40 in 93+ innings. Last season’s Saturday starter, Gannon Grundman has transitioned into a bullpen role. He leads the team with 6 appearances, He’s had 2 terrible outings, allowing 4 runs against Texas and 6 against Clemson, ballooning his ERA to 14.04

One of their better arms is Tommy Szczepanski. He stands 6’5 and 235 lbs, and will appear in late game situations. He has 13 strikeouts in 8.2 innings, but also has 8 walks already on the year. He has 1 of the team’s 2 saves on the year.

Per usual, Michigan State is solid on defense. Something to be expected with a SS moving over to first baseman. They currently sit at a 98.2 fielding percentage.

Series History

Nebraska leads the all time series 21-11 against Michigan State. They last met in the opening game of the Big Ten Tournament last year. Nebraska won 5-4 in 10 innings in a game that will long be remembered. The Spartan right fielder dropped the final out in the 9th in what due to the setup of the tournament was essentially an elimination game. That allowing Nebraska to start their improbable run to be Big Ten Champions.

HUSKERS TIE IT UP ‼️ @HuskerBaseball#B1GBaseball on @BigTenNetwork 📺 pic.twitter.com/WRAU7WbQcd

— Big Ten Baseball (@B1Gbaseball) May 21, 2025

On Deck

Dylan Carey is 2 doubles shy of owning the career record at Nebraska, currently held by head coach Will Bolt. With the tear he is on, and how up and down the Spartan pitching staff is, a new record by the end of the weekend is not out of the question.

Today the World Baseball Classic’s group stage enters full swing as pool play games kick off in Houston, Miami, and San Juan. Not counting the 3:00 AM MST match between Japan and Chinese Taipei—which was included in yesterday’s game thread—and including tomorrow’s 3:00 AM match, there are eight World Baseball Classic games today!

Game No. 1: Cuba (República de Cuba) at Panama (República de Panamá)

Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico

First Pitch: 9:00 AM MST

TV: FS2

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 2: The Netherlands (Nederland) at Venezuela (República Bolivariana de Venezuela)

Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA

First Pitch: 10:00 AM MST

TV: Tubi

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 3: Mexico (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) at Great Britain

Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA

First Pitch: 11:00 AM MST

TV: FS1

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 4: Puerto Rico at Colombia (República de Colombia)

Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico

First Pitch: 4:00 PM MST

TV: FS1

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 5: Nicaragua (República de Nicaragua) at Dominican Republic (República Dominicana)

Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA

First Pitch: 5:00 PM MST

TV: FS2

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 6: United States at Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil)

Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA

First Pitch: 6:00 PM MST

TV: Fox

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 7: Chinese Taipei ( 中華臺北) at Czechia (Česká)

Venue: Tokyo Dome — Tokyo, Japan

First Pitch: 8:00 PM MST

TV: FS2

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

Game No. 8: Korea (대한민국) at Japan (日本)

Venue: Tokyo Dome — Tokyo, Japan

First Pitch: 3:00 AM MST (March 7th, 2026)

TV: FS1

Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM

Lineups:

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Do you know the last time the Red Sox finished a season without a single player hitting at least 20 home runs? If we’re not counting 2020 — which we shouldn’t, pretty much ever, for pretty much anything — then the answer is a loooooong time ago: 1945, to be exact. But, frankly, we shouldn’t even count the World War II years, either. Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio and the rest of the actual Red Sox were fighting overseas, leaving the lineup to be filled with 34-year-old infielders named Skeeter. Everyone knows that it’s impossible to be a power hitter if your name is Skeeter.

Discounting the war years, we have to go all the way back to 1935 — the year before Jimmie Foxx joined the team — to find a season in which no Red Sox player hit at least 20 homers. Suffice it to say, the game was very, very different 91 years ago. Only 14 players across the entire sport hit 20 or more homers. Only 5 hit more than 30. The only thing that the baseball players of 1935 were better at than the players of 2026 was having cool, old timey names (and not just Skeeter, either; let’s hear it for Ripper Collins, Pinky Higgins, Dolph Camili, and Zeke Bonura, all of whom did hit 20 or more homers that year).

Could 2026 be the season that the Red Sox break their 91-year 20-homer streak? It’s not a totally ridiculous question to ask, as FanGraphs currently doesn’t project a single Red Sox player to hit 20 bombs, the only MLB team with that dishonorable distinction. But, nevertheless, the answer is no. Someone on the Red Sox (likely multiple someones) will hit 20 homers in 2026.

This isn’t to say that the FanGraphs’ projections are “wrong.” Rather, this is an acknowledgment that projections are not predictions. Projections are conservative by nature, favoring mean outcomes rather than outlier outcomes because, well, outlier outcomes are outliers for a reason. The projections also don’t take into account the real-world human factors that influence statistical outcomes. E.g., the projections only know that Trevor Story hit 16, 2, and 3 home runs from 2022-2024; they do not know that he his home runs totals were that low because he was injured for most of that time.

So, starting with the assumption that someone will hit 20 homers, our question of the day is: how many will do so and who will they be?

There’s one easy answer on this roster:

Roman Anthony is a generationally talented player with monster power. It didn’t always show up in his partial rookie year in 2025, but it’s there, and it’s going to be unleashed sooner rather than later. If he plays at least 130 games, it’s hard for me to see him not getting to at least 20, if not 30.

But, admittedly, it’s hard to say with any certainty that anyone else on the roster will likely hit 20 homers. Trevor Story blasted 25 last year. But no one would be shocked if he has yet another injury set-back this year, and he’s a 33-year-old with a rapidly slowing bat who struggles to make contact. Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela both hit 16 last year, but both have obvious flaws in their offensive profiles (for Druan, it’s hitting against lefties, for Rafaela, it’s his swing decisions) and both of them find themselves in a crowded outfield rotation that will almost certainly result in them playing fewer than the 157 and 156 games they played in last year. Like Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu is also a young player with some offensive flaws who has yet to totally establish himself in the bigs. And while Willson Contreras hit exactly 20 last year, like Trevor Story, he is battling not just opposing pitchers but the relentless march of time.

For me, I’ll set the over/under on Red Sox players who hit 20 or more home runs at 3. I believe Anthony and Abreu are likely to get there, and someone from that Duran/Ceddy/Contreras/Story group will join them. Hell, we can’t even rule out Triston Casas.

What say you? Talk about home runs and whatever else you want and, as always, be good to one another.

As you certainly know, the Cubs are televising very few games this spring.

The good news, such as it is, is that going forward there are just two spring games remaining that will have no TV or radio coverage — Tuesday, March 10 at the Rangers, and Wednesday, March 11 vs. the Royals at Sloan Park. Of the other 17 remaining games (including the minor league Spring Breakout game), 10 will be televised, 15 will have a radio broadcast, and eight will have both.

For a generation of baseball fans who have grown up expecting their team’s games to be broadcast on TV and radio, this obviously isn’t an acceptable state, even for Spring Training games. The Cubs and Marquee Sports Network got Cubs fans used to seeing nearly every spring game over the last five years, and so not having them this year has been kind of a shock.

The Cubs aren’t the only team that has cut back on spring TV. The Angels, for example, aren’t televising any of their Spring Training games. That’s largely because Angels TV broadcasts were part of the FanDuel Sports Networks, which collapsed this past offseason, with nine teams involved. The Angels didn’t get their TV broadcasts for the regular season organized until late February, and I suppose given that, it’s understandable that they didn’t do spring games.

The Brewers were in a similar situation, retaining their TV rights and creating “Brewers TV,” which will carry their regular-season games. You saw one of their broadcasts Wednesday, when the Cubs played them and Marquee carried that broadcast. Going forward, though, only five other Brewers spring games will be on TV, and two of those are the Spring Breakout games and one other is on MLB Network.

I’m not writing this to give the Cubs or MLB teams an excuse. They’ve created an expectation that their fans will be able to see all their games on TV. The last Cubs regular-season game that was not televised at all was more than 30 years ago, Monday, July 25, 1994. That was because MLB had created the “Baseball Network,” which carried a national game on Mondays and if your team wasn’t involved in those games, they were blacked out.

But that’s not the world we live in now. Fans want to see their team. MLB and its teams should consider Spring Training games as a “loss leader” of sorts. Yes, it’s relatively expensive to staff spring games with a camera crew and announcers, and there aren’t that many viewers on weekday afternoons in February and March.

Nevertheless, I believe MLB teams — part of an industry that had over $12 billion in revenue last year! — could afford some sort of simple bare-bones broadcast, something, anything that would get fans to tune in.

For example, take a look at Dansby Swanson’s two-run homer in Thursday’s game [VIDEO].

Thursday’s game at Sloan Park wasn’t televised — anywhere. But as you can see, there were two live cameras at Sloan Park, yes, not with camera operators and with what folks in the TV biz call “natural sound.” It’s not easy to follow the action that way.

But you know… people would watch that! There’s a graphic, as you can see, which shows the score, the count and the outs. Why couldn’t the Cubs just stream that? Absolutely people would watch — they could even sell between-inning ads on that feed to defray any streaming costs.

That’s what I would do. I don’t think Cubs management or MLB moguls realize how much their fans want to consume their Spring Training product. They should make it as accessible as possible.

Tonight, at least, there will be TV and radio coverage of the Cubs game vs. the Padres. It’ll be the Padres TV crew, available through MLB.TV and on MLB Network — no blackouts. There’s also a radio broadcast with the Padres radio announcers. That all starts at 8 p.m. CT.

And soon enough, the 2026 regular season will begin and every Cubs game (and every other MLB game) will be on TV and radio. MLB and its teams need to figure out a way to get every Spring Training game on TV and radio to fans who really do want to watch and listen.

Luis Perales made his Nationals Spring Training debut in the 4th inning versus the New York Mets yesterday, recording a scoreless inning with one walk allowed. He allowed 3 hard hit balls, but none found grass, with 2 flyouts and a lineout to center allowed.

During his 24-pitch outing, Perales threw 33% fastballs and 67% cutters, another example of the anti-fastball revolution the Nationals pitching staff has embarked upon under the new regime. Interestingly enough, MLB recorded Perales as throwing 16 cutters during his outing, but others, such as Thomas Nestico of TJStats on X, tracked him as throwing 12 sliders and 4 cutters, with the sliders having just a little more break and a little less velocity. Nevertheless, Perales’ arsenal looked very impressive in the short outing.

Luis Perales made his Nationals debut!

It's no surprise that Washington was interested in Perales from the Red Sox this winter. His fastball sat at 100 MPH with elite ride which pairs with a strong pair of cutters and sliders. There is some relief risk, but the stuff is nasty! pic.twitter.com/ljj3LlPia2

— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) March 5, 2026

While all 3 pitches looked sharp, the one that stands out the most is his 4-seam fastball, which he sat 99.6 MPH with and ran up to 100.5 MPH in his outing. Triple-digit fastballs aren’t exactly rare in today’s game, but what is is the movement he gets on the pitch. Perales’ fastball averaged 18.1 inches of vertical break in his outing yesterday, ranking in the top 60 in that category among all pitchers in the majors. Of pitchers who average at least 99 MPH on their heater, like Perales, only Brewers closer Trevor Megill had more IVB on average with his fastball.

It’s no wonder with the velocity and movement that Perales’ 4-seam has that his stuff+ rating on the pitch was a whopping 124, meaning it is 24% better than the average 4-seam fastball in baseball. Not only that, but according to Thomas Nestico’s stuff+ rankings on fastballs, Perales’ heater would have been the highest rated fastball in the bigs in 2025, eclipsing the aforementioned Megill at 119, Mason Miller at 118, and Ryan Helsley, Chase Burns, and Aroldis Chapman at 117. Pretty good company for your fastball to be in.

The fastball is ridiculously good, but the slider is extremely impressive as well, sitting low 90s with tight spin. It graded out with a 116 stuff+ according to Nestico’s formula, which would’ve ranked in the top 10 in the majors in 2025, just under Mason Miller’s slider and just above Jacob deGrom’s.

There are still issues to iron out for Perales, such as command issues and adding another pitch to his arsenal, but the stuff to be a high-end starter, or an elite reliever at least, is all there. The other key for him will be continued health, as he builds back further and further from his Tommy John Surgery. He will likely start the season in Rochester, where I am excited to see how he progresses throughout the year.

This wasn’t something most of us ever thought we’d see again. When long-time ace and future Hall of Famer, Justin Verlander, was traded away on August 31, 2017, an eventual reunion seemed a lot more likely. With the Tigers going into rebuild mode, the hope at the time was that they might re-renter a competitive cycle again by 2021-2022 as Verlander neared 40 years old. With his track record that didn’t seem too far fetched, but if you’d told most of us he would return in 2026 at age 43, well that would’ve been very hard to believe back in 2017. Instead, through his miraculous longevity and the Tigers finally getting it going over the past two seasons, a most improbable reunion at 43 years old is about to begin on Friday.

Verlander is slated to make his spring debut at Publix Field against the Boston Red Sox and a good young pitching prospect in lefty Connelly Early at 1:05 p.m. ET today. Annoyingly, the game won’t be broadcast other than on radio, but you can expect quite a welcome from the crowd as Verlander takes the mound in a Tigers’ jersey for the first time in eight and a half years.

It’s been interesting how spring camp has unfolded for him. Verlander threw a long bullpen session with media in attendance early in camp, but has otherwise laid low, leaving the limelight to Tarik Skubal and the Tigers’ top prospects in camp. Reports have indicated him topping out at 95 mph, which is exactly what the Tigers want to see, so all systems appear to be go for him heading into his first start. Still, it wouldn’t be surprisingly to see him cruising at less than full velocity the first time out either.

Veteran pitchers often need less time in camp to ramp up and stretch out, but this is still a pretty late debut. Verlander has been doing this for 20 years, and there aren’t many precedents for this kind of longevity, so presumably the Tigers have basically let him map out his own plan for spring camp. We wouldn’t expect him to throw more than two innings in his first start, but without having seen him on the mound already, it’s impossible to know quite where his timeline is as he builds up to the regular season. There are only three weeks left of camp, and he’ll need to be up to 80 or so pitches by the time the regular season starts, so it’s probably up to him to set his pitch counts at a progression that will have him ready on time.

While it’s going to be great to see him out there again, It’s worth holding a note of caution and keeping expectations in check. Verlander pitched really well in August and September last year. After some nagging injuries early in the season, the velocity returned after he was able to string together a bunch of starts in succession. He was sitting 94-95 mph consistently after being more in the 93-94 mph range earlier in the season. At times down the stretch he was reaching back for 97 and even 98 at one point when he wanted it. We might not see him really turn it loose to that level for a few more weeks at least.

So this is all pretty exciting, but we have to remember that he’s 43 years old and hasn’t put together a 3 WAR season since 2023. We all have hopes of late period Nolan Ryan, or something like Kenny Rogers leading the Tigers’ rotation to the World Series back in ‘06, but we shouldn’t be too greedy here either. Verlander is here to eat innings and be a steady presence after the big dogs, Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez, who will lead the rotation on the mound.

The spectre of an aging Hall of Famer, the greatest pitcher in franchise history, struggling to a 5+ ERA with diminished stuff and racked by injury, is presumably part of the reason the Tigers weren’t keen on signing for him last offseason. Scott Harris does not want to be the guy who has to potentially end Verlander’s career by cutting him during the season. There’s a lot of psychological weight in Verlander’s presence, but of course it goes both ways in this final stage of his storied career. We can’t necessarily assume he’s going to have a good, healthy season at this point in the story.

If Justin Verlander can give the Tigers 150 innings with an ERA under 4.50, that would be a win. They shouldn’t need more than that and expecting too much more is asking for trouble. Putting on a Tigers’ uniform again isn’t going to roll back the clock. There’s nothing wrong with hoping for a dream season. There will be something wrong if Verlander is just solid depth in a starting role and it isn’t enough for some fans.

Right now, it just feels incredibly fitting to have Justin Verlander a Tiger again. He no longer has to lead the way, but his presence on a team with postseason aspirations certainly means a lot of most of us. Let’s just enjoy the ride as long as it lasts.

Hello friends and happy Friday!

The Mariners took a generational spring training drubbing at the hands of the Padres yesterday, losing 27-6. It’s a bad day to be a reliever on the fringes of the big league roster.

Are there any high-scoring games in either spring training or the regular season that you most fondly recall? For me, I immediately think of the Mariners’ 21-8 blowout win over the Rangers in 2012 or the M’s improbable 16-13 comeback victory over the Padres in 2016. Good times.

In Mariners news…

• Bryce Miller has cleared another key step in his recovery from an oblique issue. Ryan Divish at The Seattle Times has the report.
• This crop of Mariners prospect is bringing a different kind of energy to spring training, and the club’s veterans are taking notice.
• Tyler Kepner at The Athletic spoke to Mariners brass about why it was so important to them to bring back first baseman Josh Naylor. ($)

In the World Baseball Classic…

• Australia notched another win yesterday in a 5-1 victory over Czechia, advancing to 2-0 in pool play.
• In their first contest of the tournament, Japan rocked Chinese Taipei 13-0 in a seven-inning mercy-rule contest.
• Thanks to Meet at the Mitt podcast listener Josh for providing this helpful link: WBC for Me, which enables you find when and where Mariners are going to be playing in WBC games.

Around the league…

• Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña will sit out for the remainder of the World Baseball Classic with a finger fracture. He will be re-evaluated in two weeks.
• If star Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray ever decides he’s done making boatloads of cash in the NFL, the A’s want it to be known they’re open to giving him another shot at professional baseball.
• Mike Petriello placed each MLB team into tiers by how competitive they’re expected to be in 2026.
• Young Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki is off to a tough start to spring training, and Michael Baumann at Fangraphs is beginning to worry.
• Dan Szymborski at Fangraphs made the case for Tigers infield phenom Kevin McGonigle to make the team’s Opening Day roster.

During 2025 spring training, pitching coach Jeremy Hefner has said some positive things about New Jersey native Justin Hagenman. Hefner was impressed with some additional velocity that his pitches had and his ability to command them, but he ultimately did not make the big league club. The right-hander began the 2025 season in Triple-A Syracuse but was recalled to the Mets in mid-April. The 28-year-old made his MLB debut on April 16, pitching 3.1 innings against the Minnesota Twins, allowing a run on three hits and no walks while striking out 4. Hagenman would spend the rest of the season bouncing up and down from Triple-A Syracuse to Queens and back again, pitching a handful of middle relief innings here and there. The team had intended on using Hagenman as a starter to begin their late-June series against the Philadelphia Phillies in Philly, giving him a chance to pitch in a major league uniform in front of his friends and family, but his services were needed the night before, removing him from consideration from the start. The organization made it right, having Hagenman start at home on July 4th against the Yankees.

All in all, Justin Hagenman appeared in 9 games, making one start, and posted a 4.56 ERA in 23.2 innings, allowing 24 hits, walking 2, and striking out 23. In Syracuse, he appeared in 21 games and made 13 starts, posting a 5.58 ERA in 69.1 innings, with 76 hits allowed, 13 walks, and 73 strikeouts.

When Hagenman is on, he does have strikeout stuff, which is why he was initially signed to a split MLB/MiLB contract in November 2024 and has been on the 40-man roster ever since. His cutter had a 25.7% Whiff rate, his sinker a 32.4% rate, his changeup a 13.6% rate, and his slider a 34.1% rate.  He gave up a lot of hard contact with the first two offerings, and a lot of soft contact with the third, but therein lies the difficulty of being a fringe Triple-A/MLB player.

Hagenman was far down the starting pitching depth chart in 2025, and with the rotation not just fully healthy, but improved as compared to this time last season, it is unlikely that he makes any starts. Relief innings are the most likely avenue for the right-hander to appear in major league games in 2026, but like the starting rotation, the bullpen too has been improved. With the addition of more established relievers and less room for “bullpen churn”, Hagenman will really need to impress during spring training to potentially head north with the team when camp finishes up. He has options left on his contract, which may potentially hurt him in a bid to make the Opening Day roster if he does not particularly stand out, but almost guarantees that at some point in the season, he will see MLB playing time.

Morning everyone and happy Friday!

This year’s Spring Breakout Game for the Athletics is quickly approaching. In just over two weeks we’ll see some of the Athletics’ top prospects take on the Milwaukee Brewers’ top prospects in some head-to-head action of what could be and ultimately is a peak into the future of both organizations.

The A’s announced a few of their players that will be participating in this year’s contest. In no surprise to any A’s fan, top farmhand Leo De Vries is set to don the Green & Gold against the Brew Crew. The 19-year-old shortstop is seemingly on the cusp of the majors after crushing the ball last year between Double and Triple-A. It’s important to remember he’s still extremely young for his age but that hasn’t seemed to faze him during his first camp with the A’s. So far he’s 6-for-16 this spring, though all singles. Encouragingly he’s also avoided the punchout with just three so far, which could be one of the things he’s been working on during camp.

Joining De Vries in the Breakout will be outfielder Henry Bolte, currently ranked #5 according to MLB Pipeline but #6 according to A’s fans. A top high school draft choice by the A’s in 2022, he was young when he joined the organization but has steadily climbed the minor league ladder over the past few seasons and is now also on the cusp of the big leagues. He’ll be joining De Vries in the Breakout Game, Triple-A, and before long they’ll be teammates on the Athletics hoping to lead us to the Promised Land. He’s also had a good camp so far with the A’s, going 7-for-20 (but also worryingly with six strikeouts).

Another notable prospect, but one that is much further away from The Show than the previously mentioned two, is two-way player Shotaro Morii. The 2025 international signee last year decided to skip the regular career path of Japanese players and decided to come directly over stateside at just 18 years of age. There was a lot of excitement when the A’s nabbed him, not only because he’s a two-way player but because he’s legitimately talented on both sides of the ball. The A’s promised to develop him as both a shortstop and a pitcher and that seemed to have been the deciding factor for him joining up with us last year. The club decided to slow-roll his development on the pitching side of things but plan to “unleash” him this coming season.

On the pitching side of things for the A’s in the Breakout Game, it should come as no surprise that left-hander Jamie Arnold will be getting the ball at some point in that contest. The Athletics’ first-round pick during the most recent draft looks like the real deal here in camp. It’s just spring and he’s likely to start on the lower end of the minor league ladder but he’s looked good in camp so far in short relief bursts. He won’t be the only top lefty though as he’ll be joined by Gage Jump on the roster. Like Arnold, the 22-year-old Jump has a high ceiling of a #2 or #3 starter on a contending team. Unlike Arnold however Jump is further along in his development and could be an option for the big league squad as soon as this summer. Exciting times to be a left-hander in the A’s system!

Here’s how the full preliminary roster for the Breakout Game looks:

PITCHERS (19)
Jamie Arnold, LHP, No. 2/MLB No. 41
Corey Avant, RHP, NR
Henry Baez, RHP, No. 14
Mason Barnett, RHP, No. 17
Samuel Dutton, RHP, NR
Steven Echavarria, RHP, No. 16
Jackson Finley, RHP, NR
Gunnar Hoglund, RHP, No. 18
Kenya Huggins, RHP, No. 24
Gage Jump, LHP, No. 3/MLB No. 57
Wei-En Lin, LHP, No. 4
Cole Miller, RHP, No. 25
Kade Morris, RHP, No. 12
Braden Nett, RHP, No. 6
Eduarniel Núñez, RHP, No. 22
Grant Richardson, LHP, NR
Tzu-Chen Sha, RHP, NR
Zane Taylor, RHP, No. 19
Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, RHP, No. 27

TWO-WAY PLAYERS (1)
Shotaro Morii, SS/RHP, No. 13

CATCHERS (3)
Cole Conn, C, NR
Davis Diaz, C, NR
Dylan Fien, C, NR

INFIELDERS (8)
Bobby Boser, 3B/SS, No. 30
Leo De Vries, SS, No. 1/MLB No. 4
Colby Halter, , INF, NR
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, SS, No. 10
Luke Mann, INF, NR
Edgar Montero, SS, No. 11
Drew Swift, INF, NR
Tommy White, 3B, No. 9

OUTFIELDERS (9)
Henry Bolte, OF, No. 5
Rodney Green, OF, NR
Breyson Guedez, OF, No. 23
Nate Nankil, OF, No. 26
Ryan Lasko, OF, No. 21
Cameron Leary, OF, No. 29
Junior Perez, OF, No. 20
Devin Taylor, OF, No. 8
Gavin Turley, OF, No. 15

Lots of other interesting and exciting prospects will be available for that game and it truly is a sneak-peak at the future. Just think: current Athletics Nick Kurtz, Luis Morales, Max Muncy, Denzel Clarke, and Gunnar Hoglund were all featured in last year’s Breakout game and finished the year with the big league squad. Which prospects from this year’s contest will be in the majors by season’s end?

In other news, the World Baseball Classic is officially underway! The A’s have six players participating in the tournament but so far none have gotten into official games. In the two exhibition games for Canada we saw Denzel Clarke go 1-for-5 with a walk and three strikeouts. In two Puerto Rico games outfielder Carlos Cortes has gone 3-for-3 and 0-for-2, respectively, while his teammate Darell Hernaiz has gone just 0-for-5 across the two contests.

The three A’s pitchers participating in the tournament meanwhile have been quiet. Starting pitcher and staff leader Luis Severino got two innings of work in for the Dominican Republic in an exhibition against the Detroit Tigers, getting touched up for three runs (including a solo homer to top prospect Kevin McGonigle). Teammate and fellow Athletic Elvis Alvarado made a scoreless appearance the next day with two strikeouts against those same Tigers in their team’s final tune-up. And righty prospect Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, on the Chinese Taipei National Team, has yet to make an appearance but likely will today.

Have a good weekend A’s fans. And enjoy the World Baseball Classic!

A’s Coverage:

• A’s Beat Angels 16-11 In Wild One!
• Athletics Community Prospect List: Yunior Tur
• A’s have best ABS challenge success rates so far this spring
• Still Need To Put The “Fun” In Fundamentals
• A’s matchup with Padres a homecoming for No. 1 prospect De Vries
• Young, talented Athletics need veterans to show the way
• Athletics coaching staff enthusiastic about Bolte’s pathway to Majors
• Medina eager to get back on track after nearly 2-year absence
• A’s to follow casinos’ playbook on how to treat Las Vegas season ticket holders
• Price to Watch A’s Baseball in Las Vegas this year revealed
• Where Does Tommy White Fit in the A’s Mix at Third Base?
• Only a little polish needed before Jump could be ready for The Show
• Butler ramps up recovery efforts, eyes mid-Spring Training return
• Why are A’s using personal seat licenses for Las Vegas stadium?
• Circa Las Vegas bringing in A’s legend for baseball opening day festitivies
• A’s spending on $2B Vegas stadium passes $300m mark, is Fisher’s folly really happening?
• Bob Melvin opens up: A Giants firing, an A’s hiring, and what comes next

MLB News and Interest:

• Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena breaks finger, out for WBC; Opening Day in jeopardy
• Reds right-hander Hunter Greene undergoes MRI on elbow
• Dave Roberts: “Hard to imagine” infielder Santiago Espinal not making Dodgers’ roster
• Ex-Pirate Andrew McCutchen joins Texas Rangers on minor league deal
• There’s a new #1 in farm system rankings
• Dodgers outright outfielder Jack Suwinski
• Jesus Luzardo promised he wouldn’t use a challenge all year. One inning later…
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

Box score from yesterday’s barrage:

A’S TODAY (3/5)
C Wynns: 2-3, HR, 2B
RF Rooker: 2-3, HR, 2B
LF Soderstrom: 1-2, Grand Slam, BB
CF Perez: 1-1, HR, BB, 2 RBI
RF Elliott: 1-3, HR, 3 RBI
RHP Morales: 3.2 IP/4 H/2 ER/3 BB/4 K/Win
LHP Basso: 1.1 IP/4 H/2 ER/0 BB/0 K
LHP Arnold: 2 IP/2 H/1 ER/1 BB/2 K
A’s win 16-11

— Bill Moriarity – A's Farm (@AthleticsFarm) March 6, 2026

If Buster Olney says it, it will come true:

Judge. Ohtani. Schwarber… Kurtz? 🤯@Buster_ESPN with a bold prediction for Nick Kurtz this season pic.twitter.com/gf76rJkAy9

— SleeperAthletics (@SleeperAth) March 5, 2026

When pigs fly…

Athletics GM David Forst shared the team is open to reuniting with former MLB draft pick Kyler Murray 🤝https://t.co/T4NxmsyCWm

— Athletics on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) March 5, 2026

Kotsay on De Vries:

Kotsay on Leo De Vries (No. 4) in 2026@MLBNetwork👇
pic.twitter.com/3s5teunOSKhttps://t.co/0LiUVn6d56

— SleeperAthletics (@SleeperAth) March 5, 2026

In 2025, Colorado Rockies starters had a combined 6.65 ERA, more than a full run higher than the next-worst Washington Nationals. It would be difficult to exaggerate how poorly this group performed over the past few seasons.

But it’s a new day.

The rotation enters 2026 having taken steps designed, not only to stop the bleeding, but also to foster experimentation in order to build a long-term identity.

The Locks

The Rockies spent more money on free agent starting pitchers this offseason than they had in any other since signing Jorge De La Rosa to a two-year deal (with a couple of option years) in 2010.

With that money, they secured the services of three veteran arms that are expected to — alongside rotation stalwart Kyle Freeland — provide the bulk of innings for the major league club in 2026. While the context that brought them here differs, Tomoyuki Sugano, José Quintana, and Michael Lorenzen enter the organization sharing a striking number of similarities as pitchers:

• They have been consistently available to take the mound; as a trio the past two seasons they have averaged 26 ⅓ starts a year.
• Each has a wide pitch arsenal ranging from Quintana’s five pitches to Lorenzen’s whopping eight.
• They’ve all had playoff experience (Sugano’s coming in NPB where he was a three-time MVP).
• None of them collects many strikeouts or even throws particularly hard (Lorenzen’s 8.07 K/9 and 93.5 mph fastball are both the high marks for the group).

All of this is also true of the only rotation lock that was present on the team last year: Kyle Freeland.

Now the franchise leader in career games started and bWAR, Freeland has managed to remain a major league quality pitcher for nearly a decade. It’s been years since hope of regaining his near Cy Young form from 2018 seemed reasonable, but the club clearly valued the sort of stability he provides enough to go get three more arms just like his.

There is one other thing everyone in this category has in common: They are in their mid-30’s, and their futures with the organization past 2026 is murky.

Sugano (36) and Quintana (37) are on one-year deals. Lorenzen (34) has a not-insubstantial $9 million club option for 2027. Freeland (32), has an option for 2027 that will vest if he reaches at least 170 innings pitched this year (a number he hasn’t reached in any of the past three seasons).

For this season, though, they will not be expected to shut down the competition, but simply to remain reliably competent.

Under consideration

Beyond those veteran arms that, barring injuries, will provide the bulk of starts for the club is an eclectic group of pitchers vying for the final rotation spot (or two) to start the year.

The front runners are Ryan Feltner, whose 2024 success is clouded by a 2025 lost to injury, and Chase Dollander, one of the most well-regarded pitching prospects in franchise history, who struggled mightily when at Coors in his rookie season.

They both spent their offseasons attempting to overcome the factors that kept them from succeeding last year: For Feltner, that meant gaining strength, whereas for Dollander, it took the form of making mechanical adjustments to be “more direct to the plate.” They both have at least five pitches in their arsenal, like the veterans at the top of the rotation, but they haven’t been able to harness them with consistency. What upside exists with this year’s rotation primarily comes from these two.

Tanner Gordon and McCade Brown (No. 18 PuRP) are in their mid 20’s (28 and 25, respectively), and both have gotten some chances with the major league squad over the past couple years (109.2 and 25.2 innings respectively). Neither is viewed as a future ace (though Brown has seen his stock rise after remaking his delivery last year), but both are arguably major league ready.

The likeliest outcome for Gordon, a finesse pitcher who had a 93rd percentile walk rate last year, is that he’s pushed into a long man/spot starting role. If Brown — who hasn’t pitched more than 102 ⅓ innings in a season — doesn’t make the rotation right out of the gate, he’ll likely see time back in the minors so he can build up to a starter’s workload.

Finally, we get to the two biggest question marks in this equation.

Jimmy Herget, with his funky side arm delivery, had a phenomenal 2025 season but has pitched from the bullpen his whole career. The same cannot be said for Antonio Senzatela who, having been a rotation mainstay when healthy since 2017, lost his spot last August. This was due, in large part, to an overreliance on his fastball, despite it being the worst in the league according to Statcast’s wFA (Fastball Runs above Average).

Both have, somewhat surprisingly, come into the spring being given a genuine chance to win a starting spot. For either to earn a spot in the rotation — and then perform well in it — would be a major win for the new coaching staff.

Regardless of who from this group ends up in the major league rotation on opening day, it’s likely that all of them (with the exception of Herget) will make starts for the Rockies at some point during the season. Injuries, regression, and/or trades will open up opportunities for them, the question is just which of them forces the team to keep them in that spot.

On the Farm

While the new front office made it a priority to bring in veteran reinforcements for the major league rotation, they have yet to put their stamp on the minor league side of things. They’ve inherited a system that has quite a few realistic back-of-the-rotation-type arms that could be ready to make their big league debuts over the next couple years.

• Already Debuted: RHP McCade Brown (No. 18 PuRP), LHP Carson Palmquist (No. 19 PuRP)
• 2026 ETA: LHP Sean Sullivan (No. 8 PuRP), RHP Gabriel Hughes (No. 12 PuRP), LHP Michael Prosecky (No. 25 PuRP)
• 2027 ETA: LHP Griffin Herring (No. 10 PuRP), RHP Jackson Cox (No. 16 PuRP), RHP Jordy Vargas (No. 21 PuRP), LHP Konnor Eaton (No. 28 PuRP)
• 2028 ETA: RHP Brody Brecht (No. 3 PuRP), RHP JB Middleton (No. 7 PuRP)
• 2029 ETA: RHP Riley Kelly (No. 27 PuRP)

It is, however, sparse when it comes to potential impact talent. The one arm within this group that has true top of the rotation potential is Brecht, but he hasn’t pitched above Low-A and has legitimate command concerns to work on.

That’s not to say this group is without future big leaguers — far from it. Guys like Sullivan, Hughes, and Brown are likely going to be in the majors soon and could end up as solid options for the foreseeable future. It remains to be seen, however, whether or not the new pitching development staff can find ways to pull something more than is currently projected out of anyone already in the system.

If not, this may be an area of the organization that sees quite a few new names added over the next year or two.

Closing thoughts

The main theme that has emerged with this group over the course of the offseason is this: depth.

That means depth in the number of arms Warren Schaeffer can feel comfortable turning to for any given game; depth in the number of pitch types that opposing batters have to think about when digging in against each of those arms; depth in experience with other organizations to pull from; and, finally, depth in the potential young replacements for when the veterans depart.

As things stand, there is no one in this group that a playoff-bound team would feel confident in handing the ball to in an elimination game. However, the Rockies are no longer counting on anyone to start for them that wouldn’t get a major league job with another team.

There is still a long way to go before anyone would call the Rockies rotation good, but it should no longer perform so poorly that it’s historically significant.

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Good morning, LSB.

The Rangers are adding on former MVP and longtime Pittsburgh Pirate, Andrew McCutchen.

Jeff Wilson says McCutchen will get a shot at securing a part-time role on the opening day roster.

Evan Grant has observations from the Rangers’ first spring training night game where Jake Burger homered off Cole Ragans.

The DMN’s prospect countdown continues with No. 19 Jacob Johnson. His name is my name, too.

Caden Scarborough and Jose Corniell are among those in the Rangers’ player pool for the annual spring breakout.

And Shawn McFarland names his spring training superlatives including the biggest eye opener, best dressed, cutest couple, etc.

That’s all for this morning. Happy Friday. (:

Shohei Ohtani had three hits, including a grand slam and double to drive in five runs and Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings in Japan’s 13-0 drubbing of Chinese Taipei on Friday morning to open pool play in the World Baseball Classic.

Ohtani doubled to open the game in the first, then hit a grand slam and an RBI single in a 10-run second inning that put the opener to bed for Japan, the favorite to come out of Pool C in Tokyo.

SHOHEI OHTANI GRAND SLAM! #WORLDBASEBALLCLASSICpic.twitter.com/z0BXjlYInF

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 6, 2026

Ohtani’s five RBI in one inning are the most in World Baseball Classic history, per Sarah Langs of MLB.com.

That provided a great deal of run support for Yamamoto, who was slated to pitch three innings in the WBC opener, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters at Camelback Ranch on Thursday. Yamamoto would have gotten there were it not for an error and bout of wildness in the third.

After a perfect first inning, Yamamoto walked the leadoff batter in the second but immediately erased him on a double play. He got a groundout to open the third, followed by a throwing error by third baseman Kazuma Okamoto. That meant the strikeout by Yamamoto that followed didn’t end the third but rather was the second out.

He then walked the next two batters on 12 pitches to load the bases and was replaced on the mound by Shoma Fujihara, who earned a strikeout to escape the inning.

In all, Yamamoto threw 55 pitches in 2 2/3 innings in his third start this spring. He threw three innings and 52 pitches for the Dodgers last Friday against the San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale before leaving to join Japan.

Japan’s next game is Saturday morning at 2 a.m. PT against Korea, who is also 1-0 in Pool C. That game will be televised by FS1.

Walker Buehler made his first start as a member of the San Diego Padres organization against the Seattle Mariners at the Peoria Sports Complex on Thursday. That was supposed to be the lead story of the game as Buehler, JP Sears and Triston McKenzie, who are all battling for the final spot in the San Diego rotation pitched in the game. Instead, the Padres offense exploded with 27 runs and 28 hits in a 27-6 drubbing of the Mariners.

The entire lineup contributed to the end result with one of the top offensive performances coming from Freddy Fermin. The catcher recorded a single, a double and a home run. He also had six RBI and three runs scored. Sung-Mun Song hit his first home run as a Padres with a 430-foot blast. Other San Diego players to homer in the game were Jake Cronenworth, Jackson Merrill, Miguel Andijar, Tirso Ornelas, Bryce Johnson and Nick Schnell.

Buehler completed three innings in his Padres debut. He allowed two runs on two hits and recorded four strikeouts and allowed one walk. Sears also completed three innings and allowed two runs on two hits with three strikeouts, three walks and two home runs allowed. McKenzie completed 1.2 innings and allowed a run on four hits with two strikeouts three walks and one home run allowed.

Padres News:

• Song started the game against the Mariners as the Padres shortstop but left earlier than expected and it was revealed that he may not have been fully over an oblique injury he suffered during the offseason. The decision to take him out of the game was described as precautionary.

• San Diego released its roster for Spring Breakout and the top players from the minor league system are Ethan Salas, Kruz Schoolcraft and Miguel Mendez.

• With his breakout performance against the Mariners, Fermin who joined the Padres at the 2025 trade deadline, appears ready to be the primary catcher for San Diego handling all the duties and responsibilities that entails heading into the 2026 season.

Baseball News:

• Lincoln Zdunich of Gaslamp Ball looks at the fall of former Padre and first overall pick Jurickson Profar who received a 162-game ban earlier this week.

• Australia improved to 2-0 in World Baseball Classic play with a win over Czechia.

• The Milwaukee Brewers take over as the top farm system in MLB.

• The Atlanta Braves walked off the Toronto Blue Jays with an ABS challenge that ruled a called ball on an 0-2 pitch was a strike, ending the game and securing the win for the Braves.

• USA takes on Brazil in their WBC opener at Daiken Park in Houston today at 5 PM.

• Nicaragua and Dominican Republic play today at 4 p.m.

The last time the Orioles were in need of a closer in free agency before this past offseason, they signed Craig Kimbrel, who was once quite good but had his most recent season before that end in a memorable disaster. It didn’t work out. Needing a closer heading into 2026, the Orioles signed Ryan Helsley, who was once quite good but had his most recent season end in a memorable disaster. Maybe it’ll go better this time around.

One thing working in Helsley’s favor is that he’s not as old as Kimbrel was. This is his age 31 season and up to this point he’s maintained a fastball in the 99mph range. The Orioles signed him for $14 million this year and the same amount next year, although if he’s good, he can opt out of the contract. This kind of contract structure didn’t pay off for the Orioles when they signed Tyler O’Neill before last season. Maybe it’ll go better this time around.

Here’s what two of the big projection systems see on average from Helsley this season:

• ZiPS: 64 IP, 3.28 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 3.4 K/BB, 26 saves
• PECOTA: 55.1 IP, 3.56 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 2.8 K/BB, 34 saves

Neither system expects a return to the elite results Helsley was getting in the 2022-24 range. That’s not too surprising. Although a lot of attention is paid to his repeated meltdown games after being traded to the Mets, Helsley wasn’t that same elite guy prior to being traded by the Cardinals either. He had an ERA of exactly 3, with batters hitting him better than they’d ever done before.

If Helsley is around the above projected results, he’ll get some clutch saves where you were sure the Orioles were going to lose, and he’ll have some blown saves that make you wish Mike Elias signed someone better. With the chaos in the bullpen behind him, the Orioles could sure use some ninth inning stability.

What are you expecting from Helsley this year? Do you think he’ll still be around for 2027?

The last time Shohei Ohtani was seen wearing a World Baseball Classic uniform with "Japan" across his chest, he was striking out Mike Trout of the United States on a ninth-inning, full-count slider to give his country a victory in the championship game three years ago.

So much has happened in Ohtani's life between then and now. He has a wife and a daughter, a new interpreter, a new Major League team, two World Series championships and three more Most Valuable Player awards.

Yet unforgettable WBC memories continue. This time, he delivered from the batter's box instead of the pitcher's mound.

In the second inning of Japan's WBC opener against Chinese Taipei on Friday at the Tokyo Dome, Ohtani smacked a hanging curve a few feet over the right-field wall for a grand slam, triggering an offensive onslaught that resulted in a 13-0 victory.

"I thought it might land as an out, so above all, I really wanted to get the first run on the board," Ohtani told reporters afterward.

Read more:Dodgers work with Andrew Toles' family to continue supporting former outfielder

Ohtani led off the game with a double and singled in his second at-bat of the second inning, when Japan put up a WBC-record 10 runs. He added a run-scoring single in the third inning, giving him five runs batted in.

In 2023, Ohtani hit and pitched Japan to the WBC title, batting .435 with eight RBIs and allowing only two earned runs in 9 2/3 innings on the mound. This year, he will only bat, saving his pitching for the Dodgers, who begin their quest for a third consecutive World Series title in three weeks.

Japan's starting pitcher Friday was a decorated Dodger nevertheless. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, MVP of the 2025 World Series, threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings, walking three and striking out two while giving up no hits.

His command wasn't pinpoint — he threw 53 pitches, 33 for strikes — but it is still spring training, even though the atmosphere was electric for Japanese players competing in front of a crowd of 42,314 that included actor Timothy Chalamet and superstar Bad Bunny.

"I know there will be some tough battles ahead, but if the fans and the team can unite and everyone can help build the excitement together, it will really encourage us," Ohtani said.

Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.