Category: MLB

By the technical definition of a “rookie”, as outlined by Major League Baseball’s eligibility requirements, Nolan McLean enters 2026 as a rookie, in so far as he’s thrown fewer than 50 major league innings in his career (48 innings, to be exact). By way of his performance, composure, and talent level, McLean is anything but a rookie.

McLean’s rise from top prospect to top of the 2025 rotation was something to behold. The right-hander entered last season ranked No. 5 on the Amazin’ Avenue top prospects list (No. 6 on MLB Pipeline’s list), but he was ranked behind both Brandon Sproat (the consensus top pick on both lists) and Jonah Tong (No. 4 on Amazin’ Avenue, No. 5 on MLB Pipeline). A combination of injuries and poor performance ravaged the Mets’ rotation and became the clear weak spot on a collapsing club, making starting pitching an obvious area in need of a fix. While the team was clearly desperate for an injection of new talent and some hope, no one could have predicted that McLean would be the first man up at the start of the season.

McLean dominated from the jump, tearing through Double-A Binghamton with a 1.37 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings pitched. He was promoted to Triple-A in early May and didn’t skip a beat. In 87 1/3 innings for Syracuse, including 13 starts and three relief outings, he posted a 2.78 ERA with 97 strikeouts. As the season progressed, the calls grew louder for the Mets to bring him up to the majors, including from this site. McLean finally got promoted to make his big league debut in August, taking Frankie Montas’ spot in the rotation—Montas, remember him?

From there, the 24-year-old gave the Mets arguably their most electric start to a career from a starting pitcher this side of Jacob deGrom. For a rotation in need of stabilization, McLean became a force and captivated fans and analysts across the sport. He put forth a terrific debut performance against the Mariners, limiting Seattle to two hits while striking out eight over 5 1/3 frames. He picked up a win in his first four starts, something not even Tom Seaver or Dwight Gooden did with the franchise, and put up numbers few, if any, had put up, and he enjoyed a scintillating 1.37 ERA with 28 strikeouts across his first four starts.. He struck out seven over seven innings of two-run ball against Atlanta, and then followed that up with his most eye-popping start of his young career, hurling eight shutout frames at Citi Field against the Phillies in the middle of the team’s four-game sweep of their bitter rivals—perhaps the last time people would be forgiven for thinking the Mets could make the postseason.

Through six starts, he posted a 1.19 ERA and ended his eight-start run with an 11-strikeout performance in a win against the Cubs. He concluded his not-quite-rookie campaign a 2.06 ERA and a 2.97 FIP, with 57 strikeouts and 16 walks in 48 innings. His ERA was the fourth-best among starting pitchers from his August debut onward, behind Paul Skenes, Tarik Skubal, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (how’s that for some good company?) His 30.3% K% was the ninth-best among starters during that stretch, his FIP was 11th best, and his 0.75 HR/9 was 12th best.

Across the board, he went toe-to-toe with the best in the sport and quickly took the mantle as the de facto ace. His numbers across his first eight starts compare quite favorably to Skenes, who put up a 2.14 ERA with 61 strikeouts over 46 1/3 innings. If you want to compare him to Matt Harvey’s terrific 10 starts in 2012, Harvey had McLean beat on strikeouts (70 to 57), but McLean bested him in ERA (2.06 to 2.73), ERA+ (196 to 140), K% (30.3 to 28.6), BB% (8.5 to 10.6) and bWAR (1.8 to 1.6). In his season review for McLean, Michael Drago called attention to his sweeper and his curveball, the latter of which generated a 50% whiff rate, along with his sinker as the right-hander’s most lethal weapons, and his overall pitch mix led to him making major league batters look quite foolish.

While McLean, Sproat (who was eventually traded for now-ace Freddy Peralta) and Jonah Tong all enjoyed some action in the majors, McLean was the one who was definitively viewed as a lock for the Mets’ 2026 rotation. His poise on the mound and his fearlessness should help him slot comfortably behind Peralta in the rotation. To add another feather in his cap at a young age, he was selected to represent Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, and he is slated to make the start against Team Italy in the final game of pool play on Tuesday. Because he remains a rookie, he enters the year as the consensus top prospect on the Amazin’ Avenue and MLB Pipeline list, and he is listed as the sixth-best prospect in all of baseball.

Probably because of his youth and his anticipated growing pains (which he never quite experienced last year), as well as teams having a more detailed scouting report on him following his breakout, the projection models are a bit reserved on his season outlook. ZiPS has the righty posting a 3.94 ERA and a 3.95 FIP in 144 innings pitched, with a 22.9% K% and a 9.2 K% in his 26 starts. His projected 1.9 fWAR ranks fourth among Mets’ starters, behind Peralta, David Peterson, and Clay Holmes. PECOTA similarly sees McLean throwing just 150 innings and posting a 100 DRA- with less than a 2 WARP. Baseball Reference, meanwhile, has McLean posting a 3.34 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 84 innings.

Projections aside, the Mets have high hopes for McLean in 2026 and beyond, and there’s every chance he could become the natural successor for the homegrown ace that was vacated with deGrom bolted for Texas back in 2022. Because he retained his rookie status, and because he’s already shown glimpses of greatness in the majors, there’s every possibility McLean could win NL Rookie of the Year and get Cy Young votes. At the very least, he could get votes for both awards, which would be a rare and exciting feat to behold.

There’s every reason to believe last year’s performance was far from an aberration. While it’s not entirely fair to expect that level of performance across a full 162-game schedule, McLean should figure to give the team a strong performance as he acclimates to the majors, and he should help stabilize a rotation that really struggled for large portions of the previous season. For a team with postseason, and even World Series aspirations, McLean remains one of the most exciting players to watch.

A surprise pitcher of the spring so far hasn’t been any of the known starters, or even a member of the Padres dominant bullpen. Left-handed starter Jackson Wolf, who pitched for El Paso and San Antonio in 2025 with a combined ERA of 5.04, has appeared in five games and seven innings pitched with a 2.57 ERA and four strikeouts. The 26-year-old had a cameo appearance with the Padres in 2023 with five innings pitched in his start. He was traded that season to Pittsburgh and was DFA’d in March of the 2024 season. The Padres traded for Wolf in April of 2024, and he has been in the minor league system, between Double-A and Triple-A.

As one of the NRI this spring, Wolf has not started but has been a reliever for all his appearances and has shown that a funky delivery with a fastball that tops out in the low 90s, with a non-traditional changeup and a slider, can be effective and could be a surprise arm during the season.

Logan Gillaspie

Coming into camp, manager Craig Stammen detailed the role of NRI Logan Gillaspie. He would be stretched out and used as the ‘jack-of-all-trades pitcher for the Friars. The birth of his child interrupted his spring the second week of camp, but he is back to developing in his role. Starter Nick Pivetta has some arm fatigue and is working in the bullpen so his start will be skipped and Gillaspie made the start in his place. In his two games and 3.2 innings before his start, Gillaspie had no runs and one hit allowed.

In his Sunday start, Gillaspie pitched four innings with two hits and no runs, keeping his ERA at 0.00 over 7.2 IP with eight strikeouts. His fastball velocity sat mid-90s with a sinker, slider, sweeper, changeup, curveball and cutter mixed in.

A spot for Gillaspie could be in the mix for a starter if things don’t work out with the options currently competing or if Bryan Hoeing has a significant injury. The reported elbow soreness that he has experienced has motivated him to go outside the organization for more opinions. That is never a good sign and surgery could be an option. If Hoeing is on the IL to start the season, someone else will get a shot at the spot-starter/long-man role. Most likely that would be Gillaspie, Kyle Hart or Ron Marinaccio.

Matt Waldron

Knuckleball pitcher Matt Waldron had a great start to his camp with a back field appearance that showed increased velocity per reports. He appeared in one Cactus League game with a two-inning start on Feb. 21 against the Kansas City Royals. Waldron allowed one hit, one walk and had two strikeouts. Then, after his live BP, manager Craig Stammen reported an “infection in his back side” which was later explained to be surgical treatment for infected hemorrhoids.

Waldron threw a bullpen last week and will be built back up slowly, most likely starting the season on the IL for a second consecutive season. He is out of options so will have to be put on the roster when ready to return or pass through waivers.

Song-Mun Song

Pulled from the 27-6 wind-aided blowout on March 5, Song felt soreness in his previously injured right oblique that slowed his start to learning new positions as well as his adjustment to MLB pitching. Listed day-to-day by the Padres, Song will be slow-played in his return to practice and game action. That might open the door for a player like Ty France or Jose Miranda to make the team, at least until Song is completely able to return.

In past seasons, Mason McCoy would have the best chance to be the infielder off the bench for the Padres but it seems they are entertaining a different option this year. Searching for improved offensive production from the bench seems to be the theme for 2026 and McCoy might not be able to fill that role.

Giving Song a roster spot as well as signing Miranda and France shows that the bat might be just as, or more important for this team.

Yuki Matsui

Another victim of injury, Matsui had to withdraw from the WBC after straining his adductor. Groin strains are notoriously unpredictable and he might start the season on the IL, which could open an opportunity for another reliever to break in with the Friars dominant arms in the ‘pen.

Bradgley Rodriquez, Ron Marinaccio, Alek Jacob and Kyle Hart could be the pitchers on the borderline for the bullpen. Marinaccio has no minor options for 2026.

Jake Cronenworth

AJ Cassavell highlighted this past week the changes that Cronenworth has made during the offseason and during this spring. The opposite field home run he hit in the blowout on March 4 was his first one in his career. Although he drives the ball all over the field, his power has always been on the pull-side.

New hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. sees a road to changing that and we have seen Cronenworth hit with authority this spring. In his 21 at-bats he is hitting .381 with a home run, a double, a triple, two walks and three RBI for a 1.102 OPS.

Griffin Canning

It has become obvious that Canning is being slow-played and will not be available until after the start of the season. He has been seen doing drills in the outfield with coaches and is throwing bullpens on a regular schedule. He will not be doing active fielding drills until cleared by the medical staff. The current thinking will be a return in late April or May, depending on how his achilles responds when he starts working on movement and agility.

Jason Adam

Adam, on the other hand, has repeatedly stated he wants to be available for Opening Day. His manager has been much more coy, refusing to commit to any goal other than to make sure Adam is healthy and strong when he pitches.

To the goal of playing from day one, Adam took part in pitcher-fielding drills this weekend. He had already done all his backfield agility and running work before his PFP was okayed by the staff. This seems to point, with two-and-half-weeks until the season opens, to Adam being a part of the bullpen on March 26.

Owner update

After the report from local sports media that corrected the error made regarding the duo of Joe Kudla and Drew Brees submitting a bid for the Padres, there has been no further information coming out about the ownership change. The bids from the five bidders were in more than a week ago and there could be a second round after some eliminations are made. It still remains possible for the team to be sold by April or May. There was a hypothesis that the rumor regarding Kudla and Brees was due to them expressing an interest in joining one of the other bids for the team.

The Seidler family has shown to be adverse to information being leaked out and we might not know anything else until the deal is done. All Friar Faithful continue to hope that Chairman John Seidler spoke the truth and the Padres will be sold to the party best suited to keep the team competitive and invested in San Diego.

Alex Verdugo

Former Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo was signed by the Padres to a minor league deal after spring camp began. He did not receive an invite to big league camp and is working on the backfields with Padres coaching staff. In 2025, Verdugo played 56 games for the Braves with 197 at-bats and a .239 average and .585 OPS. He will not be 30 until May and still has a lot of baseball left after being DFA’d by Atlanta in July last year. He has not played in any MLB or MiLB lineup since July of last season.

Minor League camp

Minor league camp officially started on March 3 after multiple mini-camps were held over January and February. After camp opened, many of the NRI’s with the Padres were optioned to minor league camp, as well as several Padres prospects.

Padres prospects LHP Jagger Haynes, RHP Ryan Och, RHP Manuel Castro, 1B Romeo Sanabria and RHP Miguel Mendez were also optioned to minor camp. There remain 67 players in Padres camp. Many of the players now seen in later innings of Padres games are minor league players invited to join the team as later inning subs.

We’re about two and a half weeks into the Dodgers’ Cactus League schedule, with another roughly two and a half weeks of exhibition games to go. It’s the first year that an automated ball-strike challenge system will be used in real, actual major league games, and thus far the Dodgers have been quite unsuccessful in using their challenges.

The latest example came in the eighth inning on Sunday against the A’s in Mesa. Eliézer Alfonzo while batting challenged a strike call, and the call was upheld upon review.

MLB teams are allowed two ABS challenges per game, and they exhaust those challenges only by losing them. If a team successfully challenges a call and it is overturned, the team retains the same number of challenges it had at that point.

Using challenges in a case study in strategy, with teams using spring training to figure out the best time to use their challenges.

In February, Maxfield Lane and Owen Riley at the Down on the Farm newsletter wrote about ABS challenge efficiency, with a few key points. Among them:

• Deep counts are where it’s worth taking risks
• Be cautious when runs seem a long way off, aggressive when they’re knocking on the door
• Be willing to take risks in high-leverage situations, particularly late in games

In similar fashion, Tom Tango developed a statistical model based on the ideal times and situations to challenge pitch calls, which serves as the basis for metrics used by Baseball Savant to measure the efficiency of teams’ choices.

Through Sunday, the Dodgers have challenged 22 pitch calls this spring, and have only won five of those challenges (22.7 percent). MLB-wide this spring, 52.4 percent of all calls have been overturned.

Per Baseball Savant, the Dodgers have gotten 9.6 fewer overturned calls than expected based on the pitch calls they’ve challenged, second-worst in the majors

Here are all of their challenges to date.

One interesting trend thus far for the Dodgers is that, of their challenges while batting, five of the 11 have come from catchers, which I guess stands to reason given the position having such an intimate knowledge of the strike zone. To date, Dodgers position players to challenge calls at the plate are Freddie Freeman (unsuccessful), Alex Call (successful), Andy Pages (unsuccessful), Zach Ehrhard (unsuccessful), James Tibbs III (unsuccessful), and Miguel Rojas (successful).

Dodgers catchers have challenged 11 calls and gotten three overturned (27.2 percent), while Los Angeles batters have challenged 11 calls and gotten two overturned (18.2 percent). Through Sunday, MLB batters league-wide have been successful on 46.2 percent of challenges, with pitchers/catchers at 58.1 percent. To date, no Dodgers pitcher has initiated a challenge.

Spring training is for figuring things out for the regular season. And with a little more than two weeks left of practice games, the Dodgers need to get better at using their ABS challenges.

This is the second installment in analyzing team trends as we move towards the regular season. It’s still early and the exact numbers matter less than the trends they point toward – especially when compared to the same measurements from the 2025 season. The underlying data from Rays outfielders has stood out the most so far in Spring Training, which isn’t surprising given the moves the front office made this offseason.

If these early trends hold, the Rays’ outfield could shift from a weakness in 2025 to a legitimate strength in 2026.

49.2%

is the line drive plus fly ball rate for Rays outfielders so far this spring. This is up significantly from the 42.1% mark during the 2025 regular season, when they were dead last in the league by a wide margin. They’re sitting closer to the middle of the pack this spring, and even a jump from worst to average should translate to significantly better run production, especially when coupled with the next data point.

104.6mph

is the 90th percentile exit velocity from Rays outfielders so far this spring. This is an increase from 102.7mph during the 2025 regular season. While it’s still slightly below average, the front office took clear steps to address the lack of impact from the Rays outfield last season – particularly adding Jacob Melton and Ryan Vilade. After being near the bottom of the league in 2025, the group now looks closer to 45-grade raw power rather than the 30-grade impact they showed last season.

-7.9%

is how much Rays outfielders have collectively decreased their chase rate compared to the 2025 offense. Disciplined hitters like Jake Fraley and Cedric Mullins were brought in to raise the floor of the group, while guys like Ryan Vilade and Richie Palacios are looking to settle into their offensive identities and be more selective. Going from a league-worst 33.9% to a better-than-average 26.0% is a major shift, and this improvement outpaces the roughly 3% reduction in overall swing rate so we know they’re being selective rather than just passive.

Three, maybe two

is the number of players we expect to begin the season on the Injured List. Relievers Steven Wilson and Manuel Rodriguez will begin the season on the 15-day and 60-day ILs respectively. Edwin Uceta may also begin the year on the IL, but he is progressing nicely after a slow start this spring due to shoulder inflammation.

Cedric Mullins and Richie Palacios are dealing with lower back tightness that may keep them out of game action for a little bit. Mullins worked out on Friday in Port Charlotte and felt better, so there doesn’t appear to be much concern about him being ready for Opening Day. Palacios is still a bit of a question mark given his injury history, but there’s plenty of time for him to rest – and he may be slated for AAA anyways. Chandler Simpson is dealing with some hamstring soreness, but the team is being overly cautious and he doesn’t appear to be in danger of beginning on the IL at the moment.

The San Diego Padres posted another football score against the Cincinnati Reds in their meeting at the Peoria Sports Complex on Sunday. Logan Gillaspie made the start in place of Nick Pivetta and he was able to do so without the pressure of a tight game. Gavin Sheets connected on a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning to put the Padres in front and they never looked back. San Diego won the Cactus League matchup 14-3. Gillaspie completed four innings of shutout baseball and allowed just two hits over that span. He also walked two and had two strikeouts. Kyle Hart picked up where Gillaspie left off and threw 2.2 innings without allowing a run or a hit while striking out three.

Padres pitchers held the Reds off the board through 6.2 innings and in that span the offense posted four runs with the home run by sheets and an RBI-triple by Jake Cronenworth in the bottom of the second inning. The San Diego offense added a run in the seventh inning but erupted for nine runs in the eighth thanks to poor Cincinnati pitching and some timely hits.

The Padres will be back in action against the Texas Rangers at the Peoria Sports Complex at 1:10 p.m. today.

Padres News:

• Lincoln Zdunich of Gaslamp Ball believes Ty France may find his way onto the San Diego roster thanks in large part to his defense and his ability to hit left-handed pitching. France is competing for roster spots with multiple position players, but he is competing for first base reps with Sheets, Nick Castellanos, Miguel Andujar and Jose Miranda. AJ Cassavell of Padres.com posted a similar report, but he believes Sheets’ power sets him apart and above the other first base and designated hitter options.

• Sung-Mun Song was the player who the fans believed could benefit the most from Padres regulars playing in the World Baseball Classic. However, his health has been an issue early in his tenure in San Diego and without the additional reps and swings at the plate he may find himself competing for a roster spot and playing time like so many others.

• Jake Cronenworth has had some success in his couple of opportunities to hit leadoff in spring. If he can continue to find success at the plate and can play solid in the field, he could be poised for a career season in 2026.

• Dennis Lin of The Athletic provided his second roster projection for the 2026 Padres and his focus was on Fernando Tatis Jr. and where the best hitter on the team will bat in the lineup.

Baseball News:

• Free agency for Zack Littell came to an end Sunday when the right-hander agreed to a deal with the Washington Nationals.

WBC News:

• Juan Soto helped the Dominican Republic walk-off the Netherlands in a 12-1 mercy rule win.

• Cuba added another win to its WBC record and is poised to take on Puerto Rico as two 2-0 teams.

• Italy notched another WBC win, showing they are not going to concede Pool B to the US and Mexico.

• Israel topped Nicaragua with solid pitching that only allowed two hits.

• Japan moved to the top of Pool C with a win over Australia.

• Mexico battered Brazil and won their contest 16-0 on Sunday.

We finally get to the end of the positions on the hitting side of the equation. Keep in mind, we are trying to include all of the relevant candidates to be on the opening day roster. Fans and analysts alike sometimes forget the dimension of time. In other words, what the roster looks like on March 26th will not be what it looks like on June 26th and August 26th. It is a fair expectation that every profiled player will get a crack at the big league level at some point in 2026.

For our purposes, we will profile only two right fielders even though multiple players can fit in right field at some point. It would be inaccurate to call right field the most important position on the diamond for the Astros, but it may come with more question marks than any other position. Cam Smith got off to a promising start last start but faded horribly down the stretch. Maybe the peripheral numbers can give us a clue as to who the real Cam Smith is.

The Astros gambled a bit when they dealt Jesus Sanchez for Joey Loperfido. Loperfido has looked good in short bursts on the big league level, but has yet to play an entire season in the big leagues. He has an option left, so he still might spend time in Sugar Land. We are using the same numbers we have used for the other articles and we will use the same for pitchers as well.

• Chase rate: This is the percentage of balls a player swings at outside of the zone. The league average normally lives around 30 percent, but we will be looking at three year intervals and we should notice trends more than where a player is in relationship to the league average.

• Hard hit percentage: This is simply the percentage of balls that a player hits hard. Hard hit balls become hits and extra base hits more often than softer contact. Typically 35 percent is around the league average in this category.

• BABIP: This is batting average on balls in play. Home runs are obviously excluded since they are not in play. The league average tends to hover around .300 but it will largely depend on hard hit percentages and breakdowns between groundballs, flyballs, and line drives.

• Contact percentage: This is the percentage of swings that turn into contact. Typically 75 percent is around league average.

• HR/FB percentage: This is the percentage of flyballs that result in home runs. Ten percent is typically around the league average.

Cam Smith

If we take the 2025 numbers at face value then we would surmise that Smith should be pretty close to a league average hitter because he is essentially average in almost every indicator. He is slightly above average in hard contact and slightly below in contact. Everything else is drop dead average. He produced a 90 wRC+ last season and that is a similar stat to OPS+. but it includes a base running element. So, I would expect growth even if there is no improvement in the underlying numbers.

The question is how much growth. He demonstrated more power and more contact in the minors, so maybe he finds his way to the aggregate numbers. If that is the case then he would be an above average hitter. We would be looking at gains in contact rates and power production. That might bump him up to .250/.325/.400. Couple that with his strong defensive potential and you are looking at maybe a three win player in 2026.

If there is one player that could be a huge growth candidate it is Smith. He was a first round pick, so he showed impressive skills at some point and with the limited exposure in the minors, he never had the opportunity to develop those tools. So, we might be looking at those tools develop at the big league level, so he is the hardest player to predict.

Joey Loperfido

I know it is tempting to get excited over potential. I remember watching Loperfido in Spring Training of 2024 and thinking I liked the cut of gib. As an analyst I have to look at the total information available and make a dispassionate assessment. Most of these numbers are at the minor league level. They are virtually average across the board with some a little higher or little lower. Yet, all of them are pretty close to average.

When you are average across the board in all of the indicators then you are likely average overall. There is nothing wrong with average. Some of my favorite Astros were historically mediocre. Loperfido could end up being one of those guys. He can play a multitude of positions and that will help him stick at the big league level eventually.

Over at Battle Red Blog I write a feature called “The Value of Things.” The general idea is that every player has an appropriate value. Loperfido is probably best cast as a fourth outfielder and occasional first baseman. If you have a fourth outfielder that can play all three spots and produce a 100 OPS+ you are probably going to be pretty happy. If that is one of your starting corner outfielders you probably won’t be happy. So, the key to enjoying Loperfido is understanding who he is and who he is likely to be. Expect a star and you will be disappointed. Expect a useful bench guy and you will probably be pretty happy.

The 2026 World Baseball Classic is well underway.

Early mornings, extra innings, slaughter rules, ludicrous dingers from Kyle Schwarber, and walkoffs—so far, this tourney has had it all. With pool play set to wrap up in a few days, I thought now would be a good time to take stock into how the Red Sox’s best representatives have been.

That’s a fool’s errand, though, isn’t it?

With all due respect to Nate Eaton and company, one man in particular has been setting the world (baseball classic) on fire, as you may know already.

His name is Masataka Yoshida.

In a trio of pool play games, the lefty outfielder/DH option for Boston has logged an OPS nearly reaching 1.800. He’s driven in six runs thanks to three extra base hits, most notably the clutch two-run home run he notched to put Japan on the board against Australia on Sunday. The go-ahead blast with two outs in the seventh gave the Japanese the lead, one that they didn’t surrender afterwards.

At this rate, Yoshida could break the record for the most RBI in a single World Baseball Classic. That high water mark of 13 was set by…well, Masataka Yoshida in 2023’s iteration of the tournament! Masa’s hot start in 2026 has added onto his impressive resume in this tournament; last time around, he went 9 for 22 at the dish en route to Japan’s third WBC title.

Now granted, I’ve still got some reservations about Yoshida heading into the new MLB season. His tenure in Boston hasn’t exactly been consistent, to put it charitably, and his spot in the everyday lineup isn’t clear. I can only tolerate so many grounders to second. To boot, there’s only so much we can deduce from his performance against—respectfully—teams like Australia. It’s not like he’s doing this against prime Pedro right now.

He doesn’t pick the opponents he faces, though, and the pair of teams he’s already faced aren’t exactly full of scrubs. Even if he were consistently playing against a bunch of slapdick prospects (to use a baseball quote), perhaps the most notable thing with Yoshida’s play so far is that there hasn’t been any sign of his shoulder bothering him—and if it is bothering him, he’s doing a damn good job of hiding that fact. The shoulder issue kept him on the injured list for a big part of 2025; if he’s put that trouble behind him, maybe he can turn a corner for the Red Sox in the final years of his contract.

But let’s just break down what we’ve seen in the (albeit limited) sample size this month into the most simple terms possible: Masataka Yoshida—a guy who literally has a ground ball rate over 50% over his major league career—is not not hitting into ground balls half of the time during the WBC after major issues with his shoulder. As a matter of fact, he’s hitting piss missiles into the power alley. Yoshida is at his best when he’s hitting piss missiles into the power alley.

Is this smoke and mirrors? I don’t think that’s an unfair a fair question to ask.

Is this a run that can set him up for some sort of success in 2026? Again, I think it’s very fair to ask that.

Keep on keepin’ on, Macho Man.

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The top two teams in Pool A square off today as Cuba and Puerto Rico each look to move to 3-0.

Puerto Rico has been remarkably stingy thus far, and my Cuba vs. Puerto Rico predictions expect its run-prevention skills to play a big part in another winning effort.

Let’s take a closer look at my World Baseball Classic best bets for Monday, March 9.

Cuba vs Puerto Rico prediction

Cuba vs Puerto Rico best bet: Puerto Rico -2.5 (-115 at DraftKings)

It’s been feast or famine for Cuba in this tournament. The Cubans have struck out as many times as they’ve reached base through two games (18), with four homers helping mask a sub-.300 on-base percentage.

Puerto Rico has done a great job of keeping the ball in the park, giving up zero homers through two games. It's also allowed the lowest batting average and ranks first in team ERA.

The Puerto Ricans should neutralize Cuba’s lineup while generating enough offense to separate, capitalizing on Cuba’s high team WHIP.

Cuba vs Puerto Rico same-game parlay (SGP)

Puerto Rico has conceded three runs in this tournament. It's keeping the ball in the park and limiting walks, making it tough for opponents to score.

Cuba’s profile isn’t as spotless as Puerto Rico’s, but it's only allowed five runs over two games. We’re unlikely to see fireworks.

Heliot Ramos has yet to pick up a hit at the World Baseball Classic, but he is in a good spot. He has historically performed much better against left-handed pitching, and he’ll face a lefty starter in Julio Robaina.

Heliot Ramos star player prop

Heliot Ramos best bet: Hit a home run (+500 at DraftKings)

Robaina relies on location rather than overpowering batters with elite stuff. If he misses his spot, Ramos is certainly capable of taking him yard. He owns a career OPS of .849 against lefties and excels against the fastball, which he should see plenty of.

Cuba vs Puerto Rico opening odds

• Moneyline: Cuba +285 | Puerto Rico -370
• Run line: Cuba +2.5 (-105) | Puerto Rico -2.5 (-115)
• Over/Under: Over 10 (-110) | Under 10 (-110)

How to watch Cuba vs Puerto Rico and game info

Cuba vs Puerto Rico weather

81 degrees F, 14 mph winds, mostly cloudy. 

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Good morning.

Shawn McFarland has observations from camp for the Texas Rangers as manager Skip Schumaker has tough decisions to make.

Evan Grant checks out how the Rangers fared in a messy game against the Angels yesterday in Cactus League action.

Grant writes that Schumaker injected a dose of perspective into camp by bringing brain tumor survivor Cade Spinello in as a guest over the weekend.

Fred Zinkie offers up an AL West preview ahead of the 2026 season, as does Matt Snyder at CBS Sports.

Grant writes about roster hopeful Peyton Gray having a standout spring for Texas as the 31-year-old longshot hopes to grab a spot in the bullpen

Grant notes that the Rangers moved Jordan Montgomery to the 60-day IL and claimed the speedy Dairon Blanco from KC.

Kennedi Landry writes that the No. 5 spot in the rotation is still up for grabs in a battle that has been between Jacob Latz and Kumar Rocker this spring.

Grant writes that, after throwing live batting practice on Saturday, Marc Church is nearing the end of a long string of injuries.

And, McFarland names infield prospect Jack Wheeler as a powerful No. 16 on the DMN top 30 Rangers prospects list.

Have a nice day!

This offseason, the Orioles acted like a team focused on the present. They gave out a big contract to a slugger on the “wrong side” of thirty. They traded a pitcher with four years of control for an outfielder that will be gone in a year. And they swapped a package of four prospects and one pick for a pitcher they hope will work out. It was a lot of movement, and much of it was done with 2026 in mind.

But as the team’s president of baseball operations Mike Elias has explained throughout his tenure, he doesn’t make moves without considering the ripple effects. Trading away too many young players at once in pursuit of a short-term advantage will weaken the future. And Elias has told the fanbase that the full teardown and rebuild of the organization we experienced from 2019-21 was a one-time thing. Moving forward, he wants to win at the big league level while maintaining a “pipeline” of talent that constantly replenishes the roster in Baltimore.

The degree to which all of that has panned out to this point can be argued. The Orioles organization certainly feels stronger now than it was when Elias entered the fold. But the team’s lack of a playoff win and their steep dropoff in 2025 may have left a sour taste in the mouth of those that are tired of Elias’ theory of team building. A bounce back in the season ahead, including a deep-ish playoff run, could win him back some supporters.

On paper (which is all we have until games start), the Orioles are a solid major league squad entering the 2026 campaign. Most outlets project them for 85-87 wins, which would represent at least a 10-win improvement from 2025. If they are competitive, you would imagine Elias will supplement them with a few in-season additions that could add to that total. So in Elias’ mind, he has checked the box of building a competitive big league roster.

As the O’s have improved in the majors, the focus locally has understandably shifted away from the minors. But the talent level down on the farm is just as crucial to Elias’ philosophy. They don’t need to have the absolute top-ranked prospects, as they did when the likes of Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman were coming up, but the organization does need to churn out worthwhile youngsters in order to avoid any of those lengthy dips in form up in Baltimore.

So, how does the future look? Not bad!

Samuel Basallo and Dylan Beavers are widely considered Top 100 prospects. Basallo has already signed a long-term deal to be a slugger in the middle of the Orioles lineup for years to come. He’s got a solid .333/.455/444 line this spring. Beavers had a huge season in Triple-A last year, forcing those in the industry to take notice. Both of them are among the favorites to win Rookie of the Year, which would net the Orioles a draft pick in the process.

Don’t forget about Coby Mayo, a former top prospect in his own right, has plenty of years of team control remaining. Suddenly, the 24-year-old looks like one of the most important players on the team. He is going to get lots of playing time with Jordan Westburg on the shelf. So far this spring he is 8-for-19 with only one strikeout.

Outfielder Nate George and pitcher Trey Gibson won’t make as immediate of an impact, but they have both made it onto radars around the league in the last year. Some outlets have them listed among their “Top 100” prospects, or thereabouts. The Orioles have given each a taste of big league camp this year and they are viewed as future impact players for the club

Some newer faces are also flashing. Ike Irish, the O’s top pick in last year’s draft, is 4-for-4 in big league camp. Wehiwa Aloy, another high pick from 2025, is 2-for-3 with a walk and has gotten rave reviews out of camp. And there is, of course, the crazy line from Vance Honeycutt; 5-for-6 with four home runs.

On top of that, we are still waiting for the wave of talent to come from the Orioles, led by Elias, finally getting involved in Latin America. Basallo is the first major arrival, but more are coming. Lefty Luis De León could make it to Baltimore this summer. Infielder Aron Estrada could be here the year after. And big righty Esteban Mejia is one to watch with his big fastball. Oh, and the Orioles just signed one of the best classes of international free agents back in January.

Although it is an imperfect measure (and a few months out of date at this point), FanGraphs attempts to quantify the value of each minor league system. It is based on their perceived quality of each prospect. The Orioles have the most players that FG actually considers to be prospects, and they have the seventh-most valuable farm system in all of baseball. The average value of those prospects is below average, indicating that the Orioles are loaded up on fringier talents, but those sorts of players can be useful depth or packaged together for an impact player.

The main goal of Elias and the Orioles has to be to win games at the major league level. They didn’t do that enough in 2025, which forced them to adjust their approach to this past offseason. We saw a more aggressive version of the team’s front office. But they did it without abandoning the future. In fact, the players coming down the pike are pretty exciting. Hopefully they will be supplementing a contending team in the years to come.

Hello and happy Monday, folks. It’s amazing that we can finally see grass again. I was going to make “How happy are you that the snow is melting?” my question of the day, but there are more pressing matters for the Boston Red Sox to attend to.

What in the world is up with Romy Gonzalez, man? As our fearless leader Dan Secatore wrote in his news and links story this weekend, the infielder is exploring the possibility of surgery to remedy the issue with his shoulder that’s been present since September. That sucks, man. Obviously we wish him nothing but good health, but is anybody here a doctor? Can someone clue me into what the hell is going on here? Fingers crossed, I suppose.

Talk about what you want, be good to each other, and go Sox.

Meet the Mets

In the televised Spring Subway Series, Freddy Peralta and the Mets defeated Ryan Weathers and the Yankees by the score of 10-4.

Freddy Peralta isn’t just an incredibly good pitcher, he’s also a pretty solid hang in the clubhouse.

In International Met News, Juan Soto hit a mercy rule walk off home run for the Dominican Republic in the seventh inning of their win over the Netherlands.

Around the National League East

Coming off 186.2 innings of above average ball, starting pitcher Zack Littell and the Nationals came to terms on a one-year deal for a currently unknown amount of money.

Though serious enough to get him carted off the field, initial tests by the Braves on Joey Wentz haven’t showed any catastrophic injury to his leg.

For Justin Crawford and Don Mattingly, crossing paths on the Phillies is an encounter nearly 14 years in the making.

Around Major League Baseball

In the World Baseball Classic, Japan defeated Australia, undefeated Cuba took down Columbia, Italy moved to 2-0 with a win over Great Britain, Israel beat Nicaragua, Panama edged out Canada, and Mexico absolutely pummeled Brazil.

Tonight, Paul Skenes and the United States will face off against equally-undefeated Mexico at 8:00 PM eastern on Fox.

Not only is World Baseball Classic glory up for grabs for the Central American countries, but Olympic dreams hinge on these games too.

Presenting the ultimate National Anthem Standoff: Logan Allen vs. Logan Allen.

Now 44 years old and playing for the same Cuban team he represented in the inaugural WBC in 2006, Alexei Ramirez just can’t quit baseball.

It’s easy to say that you’re only going to make one start for Team USA, but for Tarik Skubal, actually committing to that is a bit harder.

The Texas Rangers moved Jordan Montgomery to the 60-day injured list and picked up Dairon Blanco off of waivers from the Royals.

This Date in Mets History

On this date in 2013, Captain America hit a go-ahead grand slam to put the United States ahead of Team Italy.

Louis Varland is a 28-year-old, right-handed reliever. He was a 15th round draft pick by the Twins, in 2019.

Louis has one option year left. He will likely be arbitration eligible after this season (Super 2) and he would be free agent eligible after the 2030 season. He could be a Blue Jay for a long time

He made it to the majors with the Twins in 2022, making 5 starts, with a 3.81 ERA. In 2023, he pitched in 17 games, 10 starts with a 4.63 ERA. Then, in 2024, 16 more games, 7 starts, with a 7.61 ERA.

We traded Alan Roden and Kendry Rojas to the Twins to get Varland and Ty France. Roden played in 12 games for the Twins with a .158/.200/.263 average. Rojas finished last year in Triple-A St. Paul, with a 6.59 ERA in 8 games, 23 walks and 28 strikeouts in 27.1 innings.

Last year, he became a full-time reliever, pitching in 74 games, 1 start (as the opener). with a 2.97 ERA and 22 holds. Batters hit .244/.304/.383 against him. He doesn’t have much for left/right splits, against right-handed batters he had a .662 OPS, .716 vs left-handed batters.

And, of course, he pitched a lot in the playoffs. He threw in 15 of our 18 playoff games. I’m sure he warmed up at least once in the other three. Louis had a 3.94 ERA with 17 strikeouts, 3 walks and 4 home runs, in the 16 innings. Once you get your manager’s confidence, he’s going to use you until your arms falls off in the playoffs.

He throws a lot of pitches, for a reliever. A Four Seamer (45.3% of the time, averaging 98.1 mph), a Knuckle curve (37.4%), a Slider (7.1%) Sinker (5.5%) and Changeup (4.6%). If I could throw a ball 98 mph, I don’t think I’d do anything else. The slider got hit hard, .677 slugging average against.

Baseball Savant tells us that Varland was very good in:

• Fastball Velocity: 95th percentile.
• Chase %: 86th percentile.
• Strikeout %: 65th percentile.
• Groundball %: 90th percentile.
• Extension: 92nd percentile.

But he wasn’t good at:

• Hard Hit %: 23rd percentile.
• Barrell %: 36th percentile.
• Average Exit velocity: 26th percentile.

Steamer thinks he’ll pitch in 67 games, 67 innings, with a 3.38 ERA.

Japan winning Pool C puts them in the final eight of the World Baseball Classic, and locks them into a quarterfinal matchup on Saturday night in Miami against the Pool D runner-up, likely either the Venezuela or the Dominican Republic.

Though nothing has yet been announced regarding Japan’s pitching plans for the next round, Saturday would presumably be when Yoshinobu Yamamoto makes his next start, after throwing 55 pitches in 2 2/3 innings in Friday’s tournament opener.

In other potential Dodgers rotation forecasting, Roki Sasaki threw a bullpen session on Sunday at Camelback Ranch and will make his next start on the backfields rather than in a Cactus League game, per Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic.

Sasaki’s spring thus far has been a mixed bag, incorporating new pitches into his repertoire. He has as many walks (five) as strikeouts in his two games, during which he allowed seven runs in 3 1/3 innings. Sasaki last pitched last Tuesday, which would likely line him up for his next outing, wherever it is, to come on Monday or Tuesday.

Andrew Toles last played professional in 2018, his third season with the Dodgers. In the next seven seasons since then, the Dodgers renewed Toles’ contract and placed him on the restricted list. Toles did not earn a salary in those years nor did he count against the 40-man roster, but was able to receive health insurance, as he dealt with various mental health issues.

This year the Dodgers cannot similarly renew Toles’ contract and place him on the restricted list according to major league rules, per Ed Guzman at the Los Angeles Times, to whom the Dodgers released his statement:

“We’ve been in contact with the Toles family and have worked together on how to best move forward,” the Dodgers said in a statement to The Times. “Continuing with the previous setup was no longer possible due to eligibility. The Toles family has asked that Andrew’s privacy be respected. Out of respect to the Toles family, we will not comment any further.”

Walker Buehler, who pitched last season for the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies, is in San Diego Padres camp this year as a non-roster invitee. I found this note from last week illuminating regarding the length of recovery time after Tommy John surgery, and the general taxing nature of pitching. From Dennis Lin at The Athletic:

It’s hard to believe it, but the San Francisco Giants are already more than halfway through their Cactus League schedule. They’ve played 15 games, with 14 remaining. They’ve also played an exhibition against Team USA, while the future has four more exhibitions: a Spring Breakout prospect game with the Cincinnati Reds, one game against their own AAA affiliate, and two games against Sultanes of the Mexican League.

And then it’s on to the good stuff!

Critically, the Giants have played enough games that we can start to get a feel for how each player’s spring is going, though Carson Whisenhunt on Saturday offered a very strong reminder that a spring can flip — for better or for worse — in a moment’s notice.

With that said, which player has, to this point, stood out to you the most, both positively and negatively?

While I think that Victor Bericoto’s spring has been the most surprising, I’m instead picking Bryce Eldridge as my spring standout to this point. There have been endless discussions over the last month as to Eldridge’s roster status — does he have to hit his way onto the roster, or does he have to hit his way off of it? But I’m just going to parrot something that Alex Pavlovic said on Thursday’s Giants Talk podcast: I don’t see how you can watch the at-bat he had against Paul Skenes and conclude that he shouldn’t be on the Opening Day roster.

Eldridge’s at-bats have been competitive, poised, and most impressively, loud. And his defense has even been very impressive. There will no doubt be bumps and bruises — he’s still striking out quite a lot — but that’s going to occur at the Major League level whether he’s called up on March 25 or on July 25. Ultimately, Eldridge has looked like he is without a doubt one of the team’s best bats, and that’s a happy sight in my eyes.

As for the biggest disappointment, the easy choice is certainly Hayden Birdsong. There’s unfortunately not too much to say there.

Who have been your biggest Spring Training standouts and disappointments so far?