ARLINGTON, Texas — Carter Baumler thought he was coming out of the game. Instead, he’ll be sticking around a while.
The mound visit Baumler received from Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker wasn’t to remove the rookie right-hander from his last spring training outing, but rather to let him know he made the opening day roster.
Schumaker emerged from the dugout after Baumler retired the first two Kansas City Royals batters in the fifth inning. Texas catcher Danny Jansen and all four infielders also were on the mound when the new Rangers skipper told the 24-year-old reliever he will start the season in the Texas bullpen.
“I wasn’t expecting it. I was like, why is he coming out here? And he got on the mound and told me I made the team,” Baumler said during an in-game TV interview on the Rangers Sports Network. “I mean, honestly, I thought I was like getting taken out of the game. ... Obviously, whenever the manager comes out, you’re usually done.”
Jansen patted his catcher’s mitt on Baumler’s chest and the infielders offered their congratulations. Baumler, looking to make his major league debut after never pitching above Double-A, had a big smile on his face but composed himself enough to strike out Isaac Collins swinging on a 96.8 mph fastball to end the inning.
In his eight spring training games, Baumler allowed one earned run and struck out 10 over 9 1/3 innings.
Baumler hugged Schumaker when he got back to the dugout after the third out, then was greeted by high-fives from teammates.
Baumler was selected by Baltimore in the fifth round of the 2020 amateur draft out of high school in Iowa and had Tommy John surgery soon after that. He pitched in the Orioles organization from 2022-25, but was left off their 40-man roster last fall. He was scooped up by Pittsburgh in the first round of the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings in December and traded to Texas the same day.
“A few years ago I never would have expected this,” Baumler said. “Looking back ... I’m glad I kept my head down and kept hammering away.”
After an eventful spring training for the Mets, who saw tons of prospects get playing time on the field and in the batter's box, it's time to answer some of your questions regarding players who will start the season in the minor leagues.
How disheartening was Jonah Tong’s spring? On a scale of “no big deal” to “should’ve kept Sproat”, where should I be? - @_Biergan
This is squarely in the no big deal category for me. I’d even lean closer to being more encouraged than disheartened.
Tong did not possess any realistic pathway to breaking camp with the big league team. The most important thing for him this spring was development, not results. He knows that he has the fastball and the Vulcan changeup to lean on, but development of the third and fourth pitch is paramount.
The focus has been on pitches that give him some glove-side movement to prevent him from being essentially an entirely north-south pitcher. Those pitches have been a cutter and attempting a harder version of his curveball, with a little more horizontal movement.
In his two spring training starts, Tong threw 34 cutters, according to Statcast -- roughly 26 percent of his pitches thrown. He did not throw the curveball as much in-game, but it’s something he’s thrown a lot on the backfields.
It should not be forgotten that Tong was called up to the major leagues before he was truly ready, due to a dire need. The positive of his up-and-down big-league stint is he learned what he had to work on.
He will head back to Triple-A and continue to work on those two pitches as well as refining some command. The internal feeling about Tong in the organization has not dampened. He just needs innings in Triple-A.
I never hear much about Jacob Reimer’s defense at 3rd, what are his pros and cons at the position and is it parallel to Mark Vientos orBrett Baty? - @KickinitwithKeef
Reimer told me explicitly in spring training that his big focus was improving defensively at third base.
The main pros is he has the actions and plenty of arm for the position. He continues to work on his pre-pitch setup and first step with infield coaches Tucker Frawley and David Adams.
The main con is his lateral quickness is below average, so it is important his first step is right, and he is in the proper positioning pre-pitch.
The organization believes his third base defense under the hood was better in 2025 than what it appeared surface level. However, scouts I spoke to outside of the organization believe he is more likely to fit at first base long-term, considering his third base defense at this time grades as just passable.
I believe Reimer’s bat will play at the next level. In 2026 I will be keeping a close eye on his defensive development and how much of a split the Mets deploy him between third base and first base. To compare him to Vientos and Baty defensively at third base, I’d say Reimer sits in the middle of the two.
Will Elian Peña fly through Low-A and High-A ball to Double-A this season? - @TonyHvacGod
The excitement surrounding Peña is real. The No. 7 prospect in the organization has stood out since reporting to Port St. Lucie in January. In the Spring Breakout game last week, the 18-year-old looked mature beyond his years and like the most talented player on the field. It wasn’t much of an offensive game for either side, but Peña went 1-for-2 with a walk. The hit was a single on a 1-2 pitch that he roped into right field at 102 mph off the bat.
The Mets will decide in the coming days if Peña will start with Low-A St. Lucie or the Florida Complex League, though this is the type of player who is ready for the slightly more aggressive starting point with St. Lucie, in my opinion.
It is a lofty expectation for an 18-year-old to go through three levels in his first season stateside. Despite the Mets being aggressive in promoting prospects within the farm system, I will predict he does not reach Double-A in 2026. However, I won’t completely rule out the possibility.
The more comfortable projection would be him performing well enough to reach High-A Brooklyn before the year is done.
Peña could be poised for a breakout year, and it should not shock anyone if he is on all top 100 prospect lists and competing to be the top ranked prospect in the Mets organization by the end of the season.
Feb 28, 2026; Dunedin, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) hits a RBI single in the third inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during spring training at TD Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images | Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
It’s hard to shake the memories of the Phils’ failures against the Dodgers in last year’s postseason.
A .212 batting average in four games. A .299 on-base percentage. They slugged .358, for an OPS of .657. If a player posted an OPS of .657, that would have put them 139th out of 145 qualified hitters in baseball last season. They hit just three home runs in the series, all of them in their lone victory, 8-2 in Game 3.
It’s hard to shake those memories. It’s difficult to shake the ghosts of the 2024 NLDS against the Mets, when the offense was even worse, posting a .186/.295/.302 slash line and a .598 OPS. The futility of Games 6 and 7 of the 2023 NLCS against the Diamondbacks left an indelible mark, too.
It’s understandable fans are down on the offense heading into 2026, a lineup that mirrors the ones we’ve watched come up short in October each of the last three seasons.
Everyone is another year older, and time is undefeated. There are worries the bats simply are not good enough to win a championship.
Let me posit a counter-argument. That the offense might actually be… good?
It’s understandable that we fixate on the October failures, but perhaps we should reflect on how they performed in the regular season last year. They scored the 8th-most runs in the Majors, 5th-most in the NL. Their 212 home runs were 9th-most, and their .759 OPS ranked 4th.
Yes, that’s right. The Phillies had the 4th-highest OPS in Major League Baseball in 2025. And for the first time in the last few seasons, everything was humming beautifully heading into October.
Their .797 OPS after the All-Star Game was 2nd-highest, behind only the Yankees’ .799. They slugged .471, which was the best mark in MLB in the second half. Their 110 homers were 2nd-most, their 340 runs scored were tied for 4th and they were tied for 3rd in wRC+. Every regular except for J.T. Realmuto and Nick Castellanos posted an above average wRC+, with Kyle Schwarber (152), Trea Turner (144), Brandon Marsh (140), Bryson Stott (135), Bryce Harper (133), Harrison Bader (129) and Edmundo Sosa (120) all at least 20% better than league average. All seven of those players had an OPS over .800.
Essentially, the vast majority of the lineup played like All Stars over the final two months of the season.
The Phillies enter 2026 without a major anchor around their necks, Castellanos, sucking up playing time. It’s no coincidence the offense performed better once his role was reduced. While I remain skeptical his replacement, Adolis Garcia, can improve upon Castellanos’ offense performance, there were encouraging signs late in spring training for the 33-year-old.
After a slow start, Garcia smoked the ball over the final two weeks, finishing with a .275 batting average, two home runs, and a .408 OBP in 40 spring at-bats. Most impressive was newfound plate discipline displayed by Garcia this spring, walking 8 times and striking out in only 5 plate appearances.
There is hope Harper will have a more impactful, “elite” season, in 2026. His late home run at the World Baseball Classic inspires hope. Bryson Stott’s mechanical adjustments that spurred on an .855 second half OPS last year appear to be taking hold. No one should expect a 1.072 OPS from him in the regular season, but it’s encouraging to see him picking up where he left off last season.
Yes, there will still be platoons in some spots. Despite Stott’s improvement, he’ll likely continue to share time with Sosa, and Otto Kemp will split duties in left field with Marsh. And center field remains a question mark. Bader was a breath of fresh air and an offensive injection for a lineup that had gone stale by last year’s trade deadline. Justin Crawford’s solid spring (.250/.291/.346, with 10 runs scored in 18 games) earned him the everyday nod in center, and as the No. 9 hitter, he is not expected to carry the lineup.
On Monday, the Phillies posted what will most likely be their starting lineup on Opening Day against the Texas Rangers.
Everyone knows Alec Bohm, who also had an outstanding spring down in Clearwater, is miscast as a traditional cleanup hitter. It is a spot in the batting order in which the Phillies received below league average production a season ago, with a .720 OPS that ranked 20th. But they were 9th out of the No. 5 spot, 1st in the No. 6, 13th at No. 7, and 3rd at No. 8.
The top and bottom of the Phillies lineup was one of the best in baseball. That cleanup spot, an admittedly important role, was the only one that was below league average. Maybe they can survive that. Maybe it’ll get better.
I’m not going to sit here and tell you this offense isn’t going to frustrate us this year. It absolutely will. Here’s the thing; if we zoom out, we’ll realize every other offense and every other fanbase goes through similar frustrations.
Yep, even the Dodgers.
Nationally, analysts are more bullish on the offense. MLB.com recently ranked every lineup and put the Phillies at No. 8. I think everyone would take that. The dream would be a repeat performance of 2025. It was the best year this group has ever had together. They just couldn’t carry it through into October.
I know you’re down on the Phillies’ lineup, but it’s probably going to be better than you think, and may actually be pretty darn good.
Check out my latest Hittin’ Season podcast, powered by WHYY, where we discussed the lineup, Cristopher Sanchez’ contract extension, and a disastrous start to the season for the Atlanta Braves!
TODAY’S ROSTER CUTS: Kevin Alcántara and Javier Assad have been optioned to Triple-A Iowa. That leaves 36 players in camp, to be cut to the 26-man active roster by Thursday. The 36 include 19 pitchers (two non-roster invitees), four catchers (one non-roster invitee), seven infielders (one non-roster invitee) and six outfielders (three non-roster invitees).
AT LAST: Today’s game is the last Cubs game this year that will not be televised.
Here are today’s particulars.
For the third straight day, neither team’s lineup was available at posting time. I assure you that will change starting Thursday.
Edward Cabrera will start for the Cubs.
Gerrit Cole will start for the Yankees.
As noted above, there’s no TV today. There will be a radio broadcast on the Yankees radio flagship, WFAN 660 AM.
Please visit our SB Nation Yankees site Pinstripe Alley. If you do go there to interact with Yankees fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.
As we have done in the past, we’ll have a first pitch thread at five minutes to game time and one overflow thread, 90 minutes after game time. For today, that will be 2 p.m. CT and 3:35 p.m. CT.
These threads will not post individually onto the front page; instead, there will also be a StoryStream on the front page with all the game thread links, as well as the recap after the game is over. The pitcher photos and regular-season stats will return on Opening Day.
LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki had another rough spring training start.
Sasaki issued six walks while allowing five runs in two-plus innings against the Los Angeles Angels at Dodger Stadium. He threw 66 pitches, 32 for strikes.
The Japanese right-hander has a 15.58 ERA over four exhibition starts for the defending World Series champions. He has walked 15 in 8 2/3 innings, raising questions about his preparedness for the beginning of the regular season.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto starts for the Dodgers when they host Arizona in their opener.
Sasaki failed to get an out in the first. He hit Zach Neto with a 3-0 fastball before Mike Trout reached on a fielder’s choice. Sasaki then walked three consecutive batters before he was replaced by Ronan Kopp.
The 24-year-old Sasaki returned for the start of the second. He hit Neto again and walked Trout before escaping the jam on a pair of grounders.
He issued a leadoff walk to Yoán Moncada in the third before striking out Jo Adell and Josh Lowe. Logan O’Hoppe then lined to second for the final out of the inning.
Sasaki was replaced by Ben Casparius after he walked Adam Frazier leading off the fourth. Frazier ended up scoring on Nolan Schanuel’s sacrifice fly.
Sasaki signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in January 2025, receiving a $6.5 million signing bonus because he was under age 25 and subject to international signing bonus pool rules. He had spent the previous four seasons in the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan.
Sidelined for much of last season because of a right shoulder impingement, Sasaki went 1-1 with a 4.46 ERA in eight starts and two relief appearances.
He returned in September and became a key piece of the bullpen during the postseason, giving up just one earned run over 10 2/3 innings and earning three saves to help the Dodgers win their second straight championship.
At long last, we've reached the final day of spring training.
With regular-season games set to start on Wednesday, I've got one last batch of spring training MLB picks for you, including the Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers, and Chicago Cubs on their respective moneylines on Tuesday, March 24.
Spring Training predictions for March 24
Pick
Odds
CLE moneyline
+105
Tigers moneyline
-160
Cubs moneyline
-115
Pick #1: Guardians moneyline
Cleveland Guardians left-hander Parker Messick is a popular breakout candidate this year, and it's easy to see why. He boasted a 2.72 ERA across seven starts while limiting the walks and home runs in his first cup of coffee at the MLB level.
The uptick in long balls this spring isn't a concern, and I like him more than Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Mike Soroka in this matchup.
Obviously, spring bullpens can strike (as they did for two of my three picks yesterday), and even with Jose Ramirez and Chase DeLauter on the bench, I like these odds, which have shifted from -110 to +105 since the Cleveland lineup was announced.
Pick #2: Tigers moneyline
At -160, this is a lot of juice, but I expect the Detroit Tigers to deploy something very similar to their Opening Day lineup against Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano.
Sugano has thrown just three innings this spring and is coming off his debut MLB season where he posted a 4.64 ERA, allowed 33 home runs, and recorded a paltry 15.7% strikeout rate over 157 innings.
He doesn't miss bats, and even though Justin Verlander hasn't looked his best this spring, the old goat still has something left in the tank, as evidenced by his 3.85 ERA in 152 innings with the Giants last season. The talent disparity on the whole is worth paying the elevated price.
Pick #3: Cubs moneyline
Gerrit Cole makes his second spring start for the New York Yankees in his road back from elbow surgery. He pitched just one inning in his last outing, and I don't see them pushing him much more than that today, as his regular-season debut isn't expected to come until May or June.
The Chicago Cubs haven't seen the best from Edward Cabrera yet, but most of his 6.35 ERA came from his last outing when he allowed seven earned runs over three awful innings.
So, small sample sizes aside, with the Yankees likely going to the pen early, the Cubs are in a better position to do damage against the relievers.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
For once, Shohei Ohtani’s left-handed swing wasn’t the smoothest thing at Dodger Stadium.
On Monday night, as Kirsten Watson was delivering a live shot from the Dodgers’ dugout just ahead of the team’s exhibition matchup with the Angels, she pulled off a slick move that had social media buzzing.
The Spectrum SportsNet reporter was breaking down Santiago Espinal’s positional versatility, when suddenly, a Dodgers staffer asked for a fist bump right in the middle of one of her sentences.
Without missing a beat, Watson casually dapped up the guy without looking, and went on with her analysis as if nothing had happened.
Los Angeles Dodgers reporter Kirsten Watson went viral after she delivered a no-look fist bump while live on-air on Monday night.
Quickly, X users clipped the video and praised her for the clean maneuver.
“That’s a championship reporter right there,” one wrote.
“Peripheral vision off the charts,” another added.
At least one of the X videos had nearly half a million views as of Tuesday morning.
It won’t be long until Dodgers fans can get another up-close look at Watson’s work — the reigning World Series champions play the Angels again on Spectrum SportsNet later Tuesday, before they officially open their regular season against the Diamondbacks on Thursday.
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ARLINGTON, Texas — Andrew McCutchen will be on the opening day roster for the Texas Rangers, who expect the 39-year-old former MVP outfielder to split some time at designated hitter, maybe play a few games in the field and be a mentor to their young, talented outfielders.
Chris Young, the team’s president of baseball operations, said McCutchen, who joined the team on a minor league contract less than three weeks ago, will be part of the 26-man squad when the Rangers begin the season at Philadelphia. The 2013 National League MVP and five-time All-Star more than a decade ago with Pittsburgh won a roster spot over Mark Canha, another veteran outfielder also in camp on a minor league deal.
“I was wrote off in a lot of places, honestly told to retire. But I knew deep down there was something in me that told me that there was still more in the tank and that I could continue to keep playing,” McCutchen said. “For them giving me the opportunity ... I’m going to make sure that it’s worth it from both of our ends.”
The right-handed-hitting McCutchen, who will make $1.5 million playing in the majors this season, batted .444 (8 for 18) in seven spring training games, with three doubles, a home run and seven RBIs.
“There were a number of factors that went into it, but ultimately we felt like Cutch earned it just with his performance,” Young said.
McCutchen is a .271 career hitter with 332 homers and 1,152 RBIs in 2,262 games over 17 big league seasons, all but five of those with the Pirates. He spent the past three seasons back in Pittsburgh, batting .239 with 13 homers and 57 RBIs last year when 120 of his 135 games were as the DH.
“This is the beginning of for me to continue to keep doing what I’ve been doing since I got here. And understanding that just because I’m here doesn’t mean that I’m here to stay,” McCutchen said. “I have to remind myself of that every single day that I’m out here and that I am on the field. Even the days that I’m not starting, always knowing that there’s a way to improve, and for my peers and teammates, there’s something that I can do to be able to help them.”
The Rangers have rising standouts Wyatt Langford in left field and Evan Carter in center, with veteran newcomer Brandon Nimmo in right after they acquired him from the Mets in a trade that sent second baseman Marcus Semien to New York.
Carter was limited to 63 games last season because of injuries. Left-handed-hitting DH Joc Pederson missed about two months because of a broken hand after getting hit by a pitch.
Pittsburgh drafted McCutchen in the first round in 2005 and promoted him in 2009 for his major league debut. McCutchen played his first nine years with the Pirates, making five straight All-Star teams from 2011-15. He played for San Francisco, the New York Yankees, Philadelphia and Milwaukee from 2018-22 before reuniting with the Pirates.
“He came in and performed well right away. He fit right in in the clubhouse, can still play the outfield at times,” new Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “I don’t think you’ll see him all the time out there, but if we need him, he’ll play out there. But just a really valuable piece to either come off the bench in a high-leverage spot or also potentially start against left-handed pitching.”
On this episode of The Dodgers Post, Jack Harris and Dylan Hernández look ahead to the start of the regular season, and debate whether the Dodgers made the right Opening Day roster decisions.
They talk about the team’s most difficult roster choice, keeping Alex Freeland with the big-league club while sending Hyeseong Kim to the minors to begin the year. They also discuss Roki Sasaki’s challenging spring, and the pros and cons of starting him in the opening day rotation.
Later, the duo breaks down their expectations for Shohei Ohtani in 2026 as he returns to a full-time two-way role. And they make predictions about the upcoming season, revealing their expected Dodgers win totals and whether the team can complete a World Series three-peat.
All that and more, as the regular season finally arrives.
At Citi Field, there are the usual heavy hitters when it comes to food choices — not to mention on-field stars — but new additions make this year’s options a well-rounded food lineup with plenty of depth.
The food is just part of what goes into the decision-making for the partners the Mets bring in each season, as there are unique stories and backgrounds all across the diamond that they hope satisfy hungry fans.
This year will see a wide array of additions, such as 1986 World Series hero Mookie Wilson bringing his take on barbecue and Bronx-born chef Zina Bunch taking her brand of Puerto Rican empanadas to the major leagues.
Mets legend Mookie Wilson is bringing his sliders to Citi Field this season. Brian Zak/NY Post
“I think that those stories are really great, and that’s what I mean when literally everywhere you look in the ballpark, there’s a cool story, there’s a cool food item, and there’s just something amazing,” Jason Eksterowicz, Aramark senior executive chef for Citi Field, told The Post.
“When you look around here, and you talk to all of these different partners, it literally is like a food family that we’ve built here.”
Ahead of the Mets’ home opener on Thursday, March 26, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, here are some of The Post’s favorite dishes for this season after sampling items at the team’s annual tasting event.
Twenty-seven vendors will be featured at the Mets’ home this year. Aristide Economopoulos
Eat in the Cave
The Puerto Rican soul-food kitchen brings its delectable empanadas to Citi Field, with its veggie nadas being the star of the show. Described as a savory blend of rice, cilantro, sweet pumpkin, chickpeas and potato, they pair with the aptly named Cave sauce that bolsters the flavor of the dish.
Husband-and-wife team Eddie and Zina’s Eat in the Cave offers savory veggie nadas. Brian Zak/NY PostThe veggie nadas are a treat for vegetarian Citi Field visitors. Brian Zak/NY Post
Chef Bunch told The Post that the veggie nadas are one of the best-selling items for their New Jersey-based food truck, and the inclusion of the vegan-friendly option — the Cave sauce, however, is not — was because she “wanted to touch the crowd of vegans and vegetarians, and Citi Field thought it would be a great touch.”
Eat in the Cave will also offer beef and cheese nadas, and fans looking to try them can find the empanadas in the Hudson Whiskey NY or Clover Home Plate clubs.
Pig Beach BBQ
A fan favorite at Citi Field the past few seasons, this barbecue joint is throwing a change-up with a new menu item — loaded cornbread with decadent cheddar cheese sauce, BBQ sauce and, the pièce de résistance, pulled pork. The cornbread is moist and sweet and balances out nicely with the pork.
Because this isn’t exactly your garden-variety cornbread, Pig Beach founding partner and chef Shane McBride recommends to The Post that fans use a fork to enjoy this indulgent item, which he considers a main attraction and no mere side dish.
“The pulled pork just naturally goes with it — it’s just juicy, succulent,” McBride said. “There’s a little bit of sweet and sour from the vinegar sauce, and it pairs really well with the cornbread. It’s quick and easy … This is probably the fastest dish we’ve ever done here.”
Shane McBride proudly shows off his loaded cornbread. Brian Zak/NY Post
Taqueria Ramirez
Brooklyn residents have become acutely aware of this Greenpoint eatery’s fresh tacos over the past few years, and now the world’s borough will experience some of that at the Coca-Cola Food Truck in Section 302 from opening day through July 12.
The stand will offer a nopales (cactus) taco, and with the depth of flavor, even carnivores will have a hard time turning up their noses.
The nopales (cactus) tacos from Taqueria Ramirez are full of flavor — and plenty of heat. Brian Zak/NY Post
Chef and co-owner Giovanni Cervantes is bringing his best fastball with this one because it definitely doesn’t lack heat. There’s a crunch and je ne sais quoi quality to the flavor profile that Cervantes believes foodies will crave.
“We always like to create a little bit of contrast with a little bit of fat, a little bit of acidity that we create with the salsas, a little bit of spiciness that comes with that as well,” Cervantes, who hails from Mexico City, told The Post. “But I feel, particularly, this taco is really rich in textures you don’t expect.”
Giovanni Cervantes’ tacos are full of crunch and “rich in textures.” Brian Zak/NY Post
Legacy Catering by Mookie Wilson and family
During his playing days, Wilson used to cook up pork chops and yams for himself and some of his teammates. Now, the Mets legend is showing off his culinary skills for everyone.
The smoked pulled-chicken sliders — available at the Hudson Whiskey NY Club — feature a classic golden BBQ sauce, bread and butter pickles on a Martin’s slider bun. One could argue that the sandwich is as enjoyable as watching Wilson hit a groundball through a certain first baseman’s legs.
Mookie Wilson’s cooking skills shine through in his smoked pulled-chicken sliders. Brian Zak/NY Post
Wilson enjoys the idea that his food will help people see the many layers that baseball players have.
“I think that it kind of opened people’s eyes a little bit,” he told The Post. “There’s another side to many, many ball players.”
Willets Point Brewery
The 9-9-9 challenge — nine beers and nine hot dogs over nine innings — has taken over a subset of baseball culture over the past few years, and Citi Field is now offering fans a more formal way to do it, albeit in a scaled-down variation. Chowhounds can pig out on nine mini Nathan’s hot dogs that come with nine 4-ounce beers (either Coors Light or Heineken).
Willets Point Brewery’s backyard BBQ burger is a home run. Brian Zak/NY Post
But Willets Point is also selling a backyard BBQ burger that is loaded with two 4-ounce Pat LaFrieda patties, New York cheddar, BBQ pulled pork, onion rings, whiskey BBQ sauce, shredded lettuce and pickles on a brioche bun.
This was one of The Post’s new favorite bites, so if you’re looking for an elevated burger, this should be a go-to.
The rest
If any of those items don’t catch your fancy, there are plenty of other options when you’re at the ballpark.
The Queensboro — an eatery from Jackson Heights — will have a kimchi reuben at the Taste of Queens from March 26 to July 12, while former “Man v. Food” host Adam Richman’s Burger Hall of Fame will now offer a caprese burger at its stand. Amazin’ Deli added a chopped Italian sausage sandwich that’s a new spin on a ballpark staple.
Jackson Heights chef Tony Liu doesn’t have to travel far to bring his kimchi reuben from The Queensboro to Mets fans. Brian Zak/NY PostPat LaFrieda’s Chop House’s apple pie cheesecake channels Citi Field’s quirky home run apple. Brian Zak/NY Post
Those looking for a sweet treat have a few choices, with Long Island-based Hildebrandt Ice Cream bringing a Mets-inspired Blue & Orange Skies flavor, along with Pat LaFrieda’s Chop House adding an apple pie cheesecake that bears a striking resemblance to the ballpark’s iconic home run apple.
MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee’s Brandon Woodruff will be ready to start the season on time, a welcome development for a Brewers rotation lacking experience.
The Brewers announced the two-time All-Star right-hander would start their fifth game of the season, March 31 against the Tampa Bay Rays. Woodruff had spent spring training working his way back after missing the postseason with a lat strain, raising the possibility he might open the year with at least a brief stint on the injured list.
“I felt like personally I was in a good spot,” Woodruff said before the Brewers’ night exhibition game with the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field. “I was recovering. My pitch count is probably obviously a little less than some of the guys coming out of camp, but I felt like I was recovering. I felt like the stuff was there and coming along. I didn’t feel like I necessarily wanted to go pitch in minor league games, pretty much is the way I felt about it.”
Woodruff’s availability boosts a rotation that will open the season without Quinn Priester, who had a breakthrough season last year with a 13-3 record and 3.32 ERA. Brewers manager Pat Murphy said, “I think you’ll see (Priester) in early May if all goes well” as the right-hander deals with a nerve issue.
Priester had been dealing with an apparent wrist problem for much of the preseason and eventually received a diagnosis indicating it was at least partially related to thoracic outlet syndrome.
That leaves Milwaukee opening with a rotation that’s long on talent but short on veterans beyond the 33-year-old Woodruff, who is back with the Brewers after accepting their $22.025 million qualifying offer during the offseason.
Flame-throwing right-hander Jacob Misiorowski, who made 15 appearances as a rookie last season, will start the season opener against the Chicago White Sox. Right-handers Chad Patrick and Brandon Sproat will start the final two games of the White Sox series, while lefty Kyle Harrison starts the series opener with the Rays.
This will be the fifth career start for the 25-year-old Sproat, one of the players acquired in the trade that sent two-time All-Star right-hander Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets. Patrick, 27, went 3-8 with a 3.53 ERA in 27 appearances as a rookie last season. Harrison, who came to Milwaukee in the deal that sent third baseman Caleb Durbin to Boston, has made 42 appearances but is only 23 years old.
That makes the Brewers particularly grateful to have Woodruff’s veteran presence available for the start of the season as they begin their pursuit of a fourth straight NL Central title.
“I think it’s an encouraging sign, right?” Murphy said. “We weren’t thinking that he was going to be on the team early, but the way it was going, it went so well in terms of he feels great, and he feels like he’s ready. And you’ve got to trust the player.”
The winningest manager in Mets history (595-417), Johnson was at the helm for the Mets from 1984 to 1990, leading the 1986 team to a World Series win over the Boston Red Sox.
He had a winning record in all six of his full seasons (including five straight 90-win seasons), with the team moving on from him after a 20-22 start to the 1990 season.
Johnson was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 2010.
DUNEDIN, Fla. — Kevin Gausman got 709 called strikes over the past decade on pitches out of the strike zone, tied for the third highest total in the major leagues.
“I would have thought maybe I was top 20 maybe but top five is kind of kind of crazy,” the Toronto Blue Jays right-hander said. “I guess the book is kind of still out. We’ll see what happens and how we have to adjust.”
There will be winners and losers under the Automated Ball-Strike System, which makes its regular-season debut when the New York Yankees play at the San Francisco Giants. Using Hawk-Eye technology, 12 cameras measure whether a pitch crosses the strike zone with accuracy of about one-sixth of an inch.
Kyle Hendricks led the majors with 777 called strikes over the past decade on pitches that should have been balls, according to MLB Statcast. He was followed by Aaron Nola (747), Gausman and Zach Davies (709 each), Kyle Gibson (697), Patrick Corbin (694), Marcus Stroman (671), Zack Greinke (667), Martín Pérez (647) and Kyle Freeland (631).
“I guess that’s a good thing because you make balls look like strikes,” Nola said. “There’s going to be some maybe good and bad to it, but I think the good parts and the big situations and big games, I that’s going to help out a lot. We’ve seen over the years our side lose games on a bad call.”
Conversely, Corbin topped the major leagues on balls that should have been called strikes with 470. He was followed by Chris Sale (461), Nola (460), Carlos Rodón (450), Yu Darvish (442), Sonny Gray (439), José Berríos (438), Steven Matz (436), and Jon Gray and Justin Verlander (435 apiece).
“All umpires always had like — they give a little bit here, they’re a little tight there. You know this as a hitter and a pitcher,” said Verlander, a three-time Cy Young Award winner back with Detroit for the start of his 21st big league season. “But it’s all because of the way they set up and they see certain areas better than others. And now I think they’re put in a situation where they have to call this like theoretical zone, instead of creating their own strike zone that they’re probably much more consistent at.”
Mookie Betts led batters on called strikes that should have been balls at 714.
“He knows the strike zone as well as anyone and it does seem that he gets the short end of a lot of calls,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s a guy I certainly would trust to challenge a call.”
Betts was followed by Eugenio Suárez (684), José Ramírez (657), Paul Goldschmidt (656), Aaron Judge (653), Marcus Semien (631), Xander Bogaerts (625), Alex Bregman (603) and Christian Yelich (594).
“When we didn’t have a challenge system, you just try to do the best you could and understand that there’s stuff that’s out of your control,” Goldschmidt said. “Definitely the guys that are a little bit more patient are always going to have that. We just understand that’s kind of the nature of it.”
Giancarlo Stanton had 440 called strikes on pitches out of the strike zone and 351 balls on pitches that should have been strikes.
“The challenge, you could change the whole game right there,” the New York Yankees designated hitter said. “If you overturn one call, it could grow 15, 20 more pitches on a pitcher.”
Carlos Santana received the most balls that should have been called strikes with 636. He was followed by Mike Trout (612), Suárez (558), Ramírez (554), George Springer (539), Andrew McCutchen (513), Cody Bellinger (487), Freddie Freeman (471), and Ryan McMahon (466).
Statcast has been calculating based on the rule book strike zone at the front of home plate and using a batter’s stance. Starting this year, it will compute with the ABS strike zone measured at the middle of the plate and based on a batter’s height.
Teams tried to prepare players by using ABS for batting practice and having the scoreboard signal ball/strike decisions.
A 1-1 pitch often can swing a plate appearance. Nola saw ABS in use last August when he made three injury rehabilitation starts at Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
“We’re just going to have to see what the umpires do,” he said, “if they’re really going to be that tight as they were down there.”
Statcast showed 1.6% of pitches out of the zone were called strikes last year, down from 2.1% in 2024 and the most accurate since 4.2% when tracking started in 2008.
Only 2.1% of pitches in the zone were ruled balls, up slightly from 1.7% in 2024 but well below 4.3% in 2008.
Pitchers who thrived on getting calls just beyond the black can lose those strikes, and memorable blown calls can be reversed — like Mark Langston’s 2-2 fastball to Tino Martinez in the 1998 World Series opener that was over the plate and above the knees but ruled a ball by since-retired umpire Richie Garcia. One pitch later, Martinez hit a tiebreaking grand slam, sparking the Yankees to a 9-6 win and four-game sweep.
Garcia doesn’t wish that there had been ABS back then.
UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 09: Baseball: NLDS Playoffs, Houston Astros Morgan Ensberg (14) and Raul Chavez (46) victorious after Chris Burke hit game winning 18th inning home run vs Atlanta Braves, Game 4, Longest postseason game, Astros win series, Houston, TX 10/9/2005 (Photo by David E. Klutho/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (SetNumber: X74405 TK4)
A week after the All-Star Break in 2005, the Houston Astros were swept in St. Louis. The loss dropped them two under .500 and for all intents and purposes, left them dead in the water. Some fourteen weeks later, they’d shock the baseball world, appearing in their first World Series.
Tim Purpura was at the helm as GM and sat down for an extensive interview with The Crawfish Boxes.
Andy & Roger in 2005. What did they bring to the clubhouse each day?
They brought legitimacy to Houston baseball. They were great teammates, and set the standard in different ways. As you know, we signed Andy first to help us win games in the post-season.
But we hoped he would also help us develop some of our good young pitchers (Oswalt, Lidge, etc.) He was the guy to who was teaching the young pitchers mound presence, hyped up their competitiveness, etc. It seemed like whenever I saw Andy in the clubhouse or dugout, he always had a young pitcher by his side.
Roger brought a competitiveness that we never had in recent times. Roger was also ultimately prepared. During spring training in 2005, the head groundskeeper came running into my office from the pouring rain to tell me that the crew couldn’t get Roger off one of the mounds. Afraid that he might get hurt, I ran down there to talk to him. When I got outside (in the rain) I asked him if he could bring it inside and finish his bullpen on an indoor mound. After I made my request he said, “but Boss, when else am I going to be able to practice throwing from the mound in the rain.”
When he first came on board, on Opening Day, he had hundreds of Under Armor fleece sweatshirts with his personal logo and his number 22 embroidered. He had the clubhouse team distribute them not only to the players, but every single full-time employee at Minute Maid Park. He’s a very thoughtful person.
How tough is it to deal away aging vets and stars when the organization and fans have such an attachment? The Astros recently have endured that with the Tucker, Bregman departures.
Unfortunately, we didn’t do a good job doing that. Our fans, our owner, etc. put a great deal of pressure on us to stay the course, particularly after the World Series in 05.
I believe that the budgets for free agents, player development, and scouting as well as foreign signings and operations must be robust enough to be able to create the next star players to satisfy.
Have you ever seen anything like Ohtani?
Generational talent. In a word: No.
The ones that are high on the list for me are Barry Bonds, Nolan Ryan, and. Roger Clemens. I still cannot believe that Nolan never won a Cy Young Award, let alone multiple awards. Nolan started the movement towards weight training which was the match that set Major League teams starting strength and conditioning programs.
As for Ohtani, I would pay to see him. When he came into the League with the Angels, my daughter and I would always try the see him in Arlington, when the club was in town. He can do it all and has already.
What’s a typical day life now for you?
Busy…for the recent year or so I have been developing a negotiation, mediation and arbitration practice.
Even though Purpura’s tenure as GM was brief, his impact was historic, delivering the first pennant in franchise history.
Ask Jerry Dipoto in Seattle or A.J. Preller in San Diego if they wouldn’t change places. In combination, they’ve been working as GM’s for a combined twenty five years and are still chasing a Series appearance.
Mar 23, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (left) taking pitcher Roki Sasaki (middle) out from the game during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
LOS ANGELES — Spring training was a disaster for Roki Sasaki, but the Dodgers are showing incredible faith in the phenom to find some semblance of command once the games count for real.
In three of his four Cactus League starts, Sasaki was removed in the middle of an inning that got away from him, earlier than his originally planned length, then re-entered the game to open the next inning, which is allowed during spring training. Prior to Monday night’s start at Dodger Stadium against the Angels, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts talked about expectations for Sasaki, who will start the Dodgers’ fourth game of the season, next Monday against the Cleveland Guardians at home.
“Tonight we need to see him in compete mode. There’s a time to work on your mechanics, and a time to go out and compete,” Roberts said. “Once the game starts, it’s about getting hitters out, because this is his last tuneup for the fourth game of the regular season. And he’s got to be ready to go.
“You’re not always going to feel perfect, physically, mentally, emotionally, whatever it is. But certainly for a starting pitcher, when it’s your day, you still got to find a way to take down a good amount of outs.”
Sasaki had his worst command to date against the Angels, and was removed five batters into the first inning with no outs. In fairness, one of those was a groundball that should have been an out, but Miguel Rojas threw errantly to second base. And it didn’t get much better once Sasaki resumed pitching in the second inning.
The only target Sasaki consistently hit on Monday was Angels shortstop Zach Neto, clipped on the right elbow on a 3-0 pitch the first inning and plunked by an errant 0-2 splitter in the second. Sasaki walked six Angels and struck out two.
“The results weren’t good today,” Sasaki said through his interpreter. “My mechanics were a little off, but I’ll keep improving.”
His spring training stats are gruesome. Sasaki threw more balls (110) than strikes (108), and half of his batters faced reached base by hit (nine), walk (15), or hit by pitch (two). All that to complete 8 2/3 innings, during which he allowed 15 runs.
Sasaki this spring has been trying to add a new pitch to his repertoire, classified as a cutter at Baseball Savant. But he mostly scrapped the pitch on Monday, throwing the cutter only six times in his 66 pitches, and still had a devil of a time against the Angels with mostly his fastball and splitter.
Roberts after the game reiterated that Sasaki would start Monday against Cleveland, and will be in the rotation to open the season.
“He’s got to go out there and attack hitters. It’s just one of those things that it’s tough to pitch when you’re working behind in counts, running deep counts, and getting your pitch count up there,” Roberts said. “If it’s mechanical, if it’s mental, if it’s emotional, all that we’ve got to sift through and find some clarity when he takes the mound. Because at the end of the day, he’s got to get outs.
“We’re still trying to learn and get better, and acclimate. I believe in him, I really do. I told him that in the dugout. For me, I’m going to keep pouring into him like our staff is, and expect it to get better.”
The Dodgers made a long-term investment into Sasaki, the most coveted pitcher in baseball last offseason who is still only 24 years old. Ideally he’s going to be around for at least five more years, and they are calculating that it’s worth a little short-term rough patch now, dealing with these growing pains to potentially reap a considerable payoff in the long run.
We’ll see how long that rope lasts, however. It’s one thing to struggle in games that don’t count. Going forward, the stakes are real, and the Dodgers are hoping Sasaki will finally turn a corner.
“We’re going to run him out there. I don’t think that for me, to put my head in a space that there’s another alternative right now, that’s not helpful. I don’t think so,” Roberts said. “I think that we’re gonna support him as much as we can, and then give him some runway, and then, once the season starts, then you gotta it’s about production.”
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