Category: MLB

In 2025, 13 different Rockies made their MLB debuts. The list includes

• OF Zac Veen (No. 9 PuRP)
• LHP Ryan Rolison
• INF Ryan Ritter
• LHP Carson Palmquist (No. 19 PuRP)
• RHP Juan Mejia
• 3B Kyle Karros
• C Braxton Fulford
• RF/DH Yanquiel Fernández
• RHP Chase Dollander
• LHP Dougan Darnell
• RHP McCade Brown (No. 18 PuRP)
• 1B Warming Bernabel
• RHP Zach Agnos. 

Of the 13, eight were sent back down to Triple-A Albuquerque for performance issues or as part of rehab assignments for injuries or bereavement (Agnos). While it’s not unusual to yo-yo a bit in the course of an MLB player’s development, for the Rockies, some players were forced to come up before they were ready because of lack of depth.

Only seven of the 13 ended the season on the 26-man roster.

Of the 13, only nine remain with the team this spring.

• Rolison was traded to the Braves.
• Fernández was released and is now in the Yankees minor league system.
• Darnell was waived and is now in the Tigers farm syst…
• Bernabel elected free agency and is now in the farm system for the Washington Nationals. 

As spring training continues, the Rockies’ new front office and revamped coaching staff will be making hard decisions about who makes the roster, especially in terms of which prospects might be ready and who might need more time to develop. 

When to make the call

When it comes to deciding when a player is ready to be promoted to the Major League roster, Rockies new GM Josh Byrnes said there aren’t “hard and fast rules.” It’s just a matter of going back to the plan that the player has been tracking toward and making sure they are ready for the harsh reality of life in The Show.

He wants to make sure that players get a fair shake and at least 40 plate appearances at the MLB level.

“Hitting is so hard in the big leagues. It’s not easy … it’s turbo stuff, game planning, defense, everything, making it hard on you. There’s no soft spots. So it’s just even the mental game of baseball,” Brynes said. “It’s like, you’re going to go have 40 plate appearances, and there’s no soft underbelly. It’s just not how the Major Leagues is.” 

At Rockies Fest in January, new assistant pitching coach Gabe Ribas also talked about the importance of having a process to know when a player is ready. He, too, emphasized the value of communication and talking with the player and staff throughout the organization, so that the decision isn’t just based on a player’s recent Minor League performance.

“[We also look at] player playing goals, some work ethic things, routines, if they have enough chronic workload buildup. But you also do want to see him perform, right? So there is a process that needs to lead to winning and competitiveness and all of those things,” Ribas said, adding that there isn’t a computer screen that lights up green when a player is ready.

“There’s a human element. They’re taking into account their development path, their interaction with coaches, what their hard skills are, what their soft skills are.”

Brian Jones, Colorado’s director of research and development, believes it’s important to look at elements off the field as well. 

“There’s other things going on, right? Are they a good teammate? Are they doing the things in the weight room like they’re supposed to? So there’s a lot of factors we talk about, like, is this guy mature enough to handle these responsibilities?” Jones said at Rockies Fest.

“It’s not just having some success on the field and looking like he should be called up. So there’s a ton of things that go into being Major League ready. It’s not just looking at the stats.” 

Who to look for

When it comes to thinking about which prospects the Rockies have in their farm system, Ribas is encouraged — especially when it comes to pitchers.

He specifically said 23-year-old RHP Brody Brecht (No. 3 PuRP) — the Rockies’ No. 38 overall pick from the 2024 Draft, who played in Single-A Fresno in 2025 — and Sean Sullivan (No. 8 PuRP) — the Rockies’ second-round pick from 2023 who played for the Single-A Grizzlies and Double-A Yard Goats last season — stand out.

He also has high hopes for Gabriel Hughes (No. 12 PuRP), who has had a bumpy path with injuries, but still has the stuff that made him the No. 10 overall pick in the 2022 Draft.

“I have three years of experience of being in the draft room, and every year I walked away from our Tigers draft saying the Rockies had a great pitching class. Like, there are real arms coming out of here,” Ribas said.

“Everybody in this room should be really excited about some of the pitchers that are going to show up here in Denver this year because I think the draft strategy has been good. It will be refined. We’ll communicate and collaborate more frequently, but there has been a lot of exciting arms infused into this organization. So get to know their names. There’s a lot of good ones.”

Jones shares the same excitement.

“I think there’s a lot of unique guys that we have that are gonna be fun to see how they develop,” Jones said. “I mean, you have guys that are hard throwers and guys that are deceptive.”

Jones also highlighted Sullivan, who doesn’t have the velocity like some young arms, but has traits that don’t rely on movement as much — like a later release point — that are altitude-friendly. 

“The slot is unique and he’s left handed, so it’s coming from the A [slot], that you typically don’t see,” Jones said. “You saw Jimmy Herget last year. [He’s] not the hardest thrower, but has some weirdness to him. So weird is pretty good.” 

Jones also shouted out Welinton Herrera (No. 17 PuRP), the 21-year-old LHP who the Rockies signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2021.

“One guy you might see sooner than some others could be Welinton Herrera,” Jones said. “He throws really hard. He also has a slider that he’s been working on, so you will see that show up here.”

For a team that struggled with promoting young pitchers in 2025, hopefully, Rockies pitching prospects fare better in 2026.

Rockies 2026 Spring Breakout rosters announced | Purple Row

Charlie Condon (no. 1 PuRP), Ethan Holliday (no. 2 PuRP), and several other top prospects will be in action for the Spring Breakout game on March 21 vs. the top prospects from the Arizona Diamondbacks. This year’s showdown will be the third installment of the new spring training tradition that gives fans a glimpse into what their future rosters might look like.

Ranking all 30 teams by tiers, 1-9 | MLB.com

Rockies fans are accustomed to finding their team at the bottom of MLB lists — and for good reason. After all, the Rockies lost 119 games last year. Heading into the 2026 season, the Rockies aren’t at the bottom of Mike Petriello’s list. Instead, they are one of four teams in Tier 8, one that is dubbed “Lots of losses ahead, but finally headed in the right direction.”

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

Anne Rogers has the skinny on the Royals Spring Breakout roster:

What is Spring Breakout?

In 2026, MLB Spring Breakout will again be a four-day event showcasing baseball’s future — the current stars of Minor League Baseball – in 16 exhibition games played between teams composed of each MLB organization’s top prospects. The third edition will be held from March 19-22 at Grapefruit and Cactus League stadiums during Spring Training.

In 2027, Spring Breakout will be expanded into a single-elimination tournament format, with champions being crowned in both the Grapefruit and Cactus leagues.

I give Manfred a lot of grief for, well, the giant pile of stuff he’s earned it for. But I like the Spring Breakout game – it’s a cool idea. And I like that they’re tinkering with it to make it even better. Next year’s format will give something to half pay attention to during that time when Spring Training starts to drag on in the second half of March.

Lots of World Baseball Classic talk. At MLB.com, Mark Feinsand wrote: “There are lots of stars on Team Venezuela — and they all look up to Salvy” and it’s easy to understand why:

“When you play representing your country, it’s different,” Perez said. “It’s a unique feeling. It’s like a seventh game in a World Series; something that players have to be there and to get excited when they hear the fans or the people from Venezuela supporting you, when you hear the national anthem.”

At The Athletic ($), Jason Jones profiles Bobby Witt Jr ahead of the WBC:

In one of the true great American debates, Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. has taken his stance.

It’s Whataburger over In-N-Out. Regardless of what his West Coast teammates say.

“They’re always on me, like In-N-Out is better, this and that,” Witt said. “I don’t really give them time of day. I know in my heart what I taste.”

We’re going to talk about this for a second. Thankfully, this isn’t a California-based blog or I might get some hate mail. But I don’t get the love for In-N-Out. And I’m grading it against other fast-food burgers – I’m not expecting to find culinary nirvana here. But even on that scale, it’s a really generic hamburger. But, hey, if you speak some secret code language, you can make it slightly less generic. Slightly. Best I can tell is that it’s the local childhood comfort food for a lot of people on the West Coast. And they attach that sentimental value to a really mediocre food product.*

_{*I could link to all the silliness of us plebes dunking on CEOs awkwardly trying their own food. But it got Mickey D’s more publicity than if they had spent millions on a Super Bowl ad so who really is the sucker, here.}

It sounds highly unlikely to pass (as governments love handouts to billionaires), but a Missouri state senator is trying to pull back some of the state’s funding offer for the Royals:

Sen. Tracy McCreery, a St. Louis Democrat, introduced a bill repealing the “Show Me Sports Investment Act,” a bill passed during a special session last year offering state funding for up to 50% of stadium costs for professional sports teams.

The bill was the state’s largest effort to retain the teams after Jackson County voters rejected a proposal to renew a ⅜ cent sales tax from 2031 to 2071 to build a new Royals stadium and renovate Arrowhead.

“The Chiefs have announced they’re moving to Kansas, and as far as I can tell, the Royals have not indicated that this legislation is going to help them stay in the state,” McCreery said.

There were a couple of posts from the Royals about Royals.tv being available starting yesterday. Do with that what you will:

The Royals official Reddit account talked about it, too. (I think that’s the Royals official Reddit account – I guess I have no way of verifying that)

I don’t think anyone linked to this Davy Andews Fangraphs story from yesterday about the Royals signing Starling Marte:

Still, you can see what the Royals are doing here. Caglianone is young and exciting, and despite the ugly numbers, he ran a .321 xwOBA last year, miles above his .239 wOBA. If he learns some plate discipline and breaks out, he’ll break out in a big way, and his ugly outfield defense is likely to improve regardless. If Collins can play at something approaching his 2025 level, if Thomas can raise the meager offensive bar in center, if Marte can chip in some above-average hitting, this outfield could be good. Like, actually good. None of this is guaranteed. Some of it is unlikely. But it’s possible, and it creates a lot more margin for error than the Kansas City outfield has had in a long time.

It’s listicle season.

Also at Fangraphs, but in their fantasy section, Vlad Selder makes bold predictions:

First Base – Vinnie Pasquantino hits 40 home runs

It’s possible we have not yet seen the best of Pasquatch. Pasquantino is a popular player and an easy guy to root for. The big guy is friendly, active on social media, and has a love for baseball analytics. He is one of just eight hitters averaging 105 or more RBIs over the last two seasons, and that’s with missing 33 games. He maintained a BB/K over 1.00 in the minors, and though it’s 0.61 in the majors, that is still above big-league average, and he’s a tough guy to punch out (13.5% career strikeout rate). Pasquantino set a career high in homers with 32 last season. Models project a slight regression, around 27, which is a very reasonable expectation. Those doubting 40 is possible would point toward league-average power metrics, such as a 91 average EV, 9% barrel rate, 45% hard-hit rate, and .191 ISO.

Moreover, his bat speed (72.5) is mediocre, and his launch angle of 16.6 degrees over the last two seasons could use a slight increase. Pasquantino’s plate discipline has been slowly waning over these past few years, and with Kauffman Stadium’s outfield walls moving in, Vinnie P might be interested in selling out a bit of contact (85% career) for more power. Kauffman’s dimension shifts are a big deal. The left and right field fences are coming in by 9-10 feet, and the wall heights are reduced by up to 18 inches. There is no debate about more homers being hit there in 2026 than in past seasons. Vinnie P may not be a batting average stalwart like he was in the minors and his rookie season, but that’s ok because the HR/RBI numbers will be epic. I believe the Royals will win the AL Central, and that Pasquantino crushes 40 this year.

At CBS Sports, Dayn Perry with an AL Central preview. He asks one question about every team:

Biggest question: Will Jac Caglianone be the hitter they need?

There’s a lot to like about the Royals as they angle to notch a third straight winning season in 2026. There’s rotation depth, and ace Cole Ragans is a bounce-back candidate this season. The Matt Strahm signing was a nice targeted strike that improves the bullpen. Bobby Witt Jr. will likely be in the American League MVP race once again and Maikel Garcia is one of the most underrated players in the game. They could, however, use additional power to complement what’s provided by Witt, Salvador Perez, and Vinnie Pasquantino. That brings us to Caglianone. The University of Florida product and the No. 6 overall pick of the 2024 Draft has big-time power, but getting to that power against more advanced competition is an issue thanks to his occasional swing-and-miss problems. Across 232 plate appearances with KC last season as a rookie, Cags had an OPS+ of just 49 and chased pitches outside the zone way too often. None of this is overly concerning for a 22 year old who was facing big-league pitching for the first time, but the Royals need Caglianone to flip the switch in 2026. Last season, KC ranked 26th in MLB in home runs and 18th in slugging, and Caglianone could address those deficits in direct fashion if he finds something close to his expected level of production in 2026.

At MLB, Mike Petriello puts all 30 teams into tiers.

Tier 6: The “what if you have a top-5 pitcher and hitter” zone?

The rosters have questions, but having a pair of superstars would sure paper over a lot of issues.
Royals
Pirates

It’s now been more than a decade since either of these teams did anything of note; the 2015 season where the Pirates won 98 games and the Royals won 95 and a ring seems like it came a century ago. But nor are we in the darkest days of 100-loss rebuild seasons, either, and a big part of that is simple: Superstars…

The Royals already have the hitting superstar in Bobby Witt Jr., potentially a second in Jac Caglianone, who is impressing this spring, and possibly even a third, depending on how strongly you feel about Maikel Garcia’s breakout. What they’re missing is a true ace to lead a rotation that has pretty good depth, but no one you ideally want starting Game 1 of a playoff series. Unless, of course, they do. Two seasons ago, Cole Ragans looked like that ace. Last year, he missed time with a shoulder issue, but also seemingly took a big step back with a 4.67 ERA. But he also increased his strikeout rate by a lot, and the underlying metrics were excellent (2.67 xERA), and so far as the health goes – so far, so good this spring. A healthy, productive Ragans changes everything.

Blogs!

At Inside the Crown ($), David Lesky tries to project the pitching half of the roster:

Overall, I think the pitching will continue to be the number one strength of this club. There are regression candidates at both levels, but I also think there’s enough depth with this group that if someone does struggle or get hurt that there is an ability to cover the innings. I think the two guys who are absolutely needed, and Soren and I talked about this on a recent podcast, are Ragans and Erceg. Losing either is a bigger blow than losing any other pitcher on the staff. I’d argue Strahm could be in there as well, given that he’s the lefty who can get strikeouts, but I think they can figure out how to cover that too. And, truly, they’d cover Ragans or Erceg, but I don’t think anyone has the upside for the season of either of those two. Even with that, the Royals should find themselves in games because of this group, and if the offense can reach its potential, it’ll be enough to win a lot of games.

Cool to see that Mike Gillespie found a new home. They’re assembling quite a writing team over at Royals Keep. Today, Gillespie does roster projections:

No matter what happens in spring games, at least four things are certain about the outfield. Isbel will start in center, Caglianone will get a shot at right field redemption after his horrendous 2025 debut (so far, so good — he’s slashing .400/.550/.733 this spring), newcomer Isaac Collins is the left fielder, and Starling Marte is here to play. Isbel’s defense is too good to pass up, and Caglianone’s potential is too great to ignore. The club acquired Collins to boost its everyday outfield offense, not its bench depth, and newcomer Marte’s .270/.335/.410 line and nine homers in 98 games with the 2025 Mets prove he has something left to offer. Marte and Thomas won’t play every day, but expect Quatraro to get them in the lineup often.

Blog Roundup:

• Kevin O’Brien at Royals Keep: Carter Jensen, Kendry Chourio, David Shields, and Blake Mitchell Headline Royals’ Spring Breakout Player Pool
• Jacob Milham at KOK: Royals History: Every straight steal of home in franchise history
• Caleb Moody at KOK: Sports Illustrated ranking of Royals’ Cole Ragans among MLB aces feels disrespectful

We’re going to do a traditional Friday Rumblings OT down below. But if video games aren’t your jam, let’s throw something else out there.

We’re starting to get well clear of the holiday season and into Spring, even if the weather doesn’t feel like it

Do you have travel planning for the upcoming year that you want to share with everyone? Where are you going? Where would you like to go? Anything on that pesky bucket list that you’d like to mark off?

As mentioned above, we’re going to do an old school Friday OT and look at a video game we haven’t before.

Considering the franchise’s place in video game history, we haven’t looked at Super Mario Bros all that much:

• July 14, 2017: Super Mario Bros Theme
• December 8, 2017: Super Mario Bros 2
• May 11, 2018: Super Mario Bros 3
• February 7, 2020: Super Mario 3D Land

My son caught me playing Super Mario Bros 3 one day and he wanted to try. While it’s an amazing game, it’s relentlessly hard with the steep learning curve that many (most) NES games had.

After some frustration, he wanted to know if there was an easier Mario game. While he wanted to try SMB2, it’s not really a true Mario game (Doki Doki Panic reskin). So I suggested Super Mario World, which is (a little) more forgiving. Also, I’m always happy to introduce him to games that have appeared on “greatest games ever created” lists.

He’s had a lot of fun with it, particularly with dad’s help. I’ve caught him trying to grind levels without me, which makes “dad me” proud and “12-year-old me” give a nod of respect. We’re still barely halfway through the game and that’s not even counting the 96 exits. I’m just talking about the levels without the secret exits.

It changed the flying mechanic from SMB3’s raccoon tail to a feather that gives Mario a cape. The cape feather can first be found in Donut Plains 1, and it had a perfect tutorial area to practice flying and get extra lives.

Of course, this is the game that introduced the iconic Yoshi. I loved that different shells gave him four different powers. Then, when you get to Star World, you could get Yoshis of different colors.

Speaking of Star World, anyone who got there remembered what came after that. Yes, it was the Special Zone. Those were the hard levels with 90s names like Gnarly, Tubular, and Mondo.

Finally, there was World 7. There were multiple ways you could get to Bowser. You could go through the straightforward Front Door . Or take secret exits to the Back Door.

For our Song of the Day, you can just skip straight to the end of the game:

If you watch the Tigers during the regular season, you have likely grown to know and love the voice of Jason Benetti. He started with the club as the Tiger’s primary play-by-play announcer in the 2024 season, and while he hasn’t been around long—he was with the White Sox before coming to Detroit—he has become a beloved part of the Tigers home-viewing experience. He tempers his vast knowledge of the game with an enthusiastic sense of fun and whimsy, and brings out the best in whoever happens to be sharing a booth with him for the games. Even the stodgiest color commentator becomes a joyful co-conspirator when Benetti is seated alongside him.

Well, starting in the 2026 season, the Tigers are going to need to share Benetti with a national broadcast audience. He has been hired as the new lead play-by-play announcer for NBC’s Sunday Night Baseball. While this, thankfully, does not mean Benetti is bidding farewell to the Tigers, it does mean we’ll get a different voice for television broadcasts on Sundays while he works for the national crew. I, for one, won’t mind this if it means we get to steal the sonorous delights of Dan Dickerson on the TV broadcasts once a week, but the official slate of announers for those games remains to be seen (or heard).

This is wonderful news, indeed, for Benetti, who is perhaps one of the best announcers currently working in baseball, and deserves to be heard by a wider audience. As long as it doesn’t make him consider leaving Detroit, of course.

Here’s the statement from the Tigers on the announcement.

Detroit Tigers News

• Dan Szymborski cautions against waiting too long to bring top prospect Kevin McGonigle to the majors, suggesting his time isn’t soon… it’s now.
• Talk about one heck of a theme night, wow.

• Very cool!

• Paws is gearing up for the new season.

• Jahmai Jones making Team Korea proud!

MLB News

• The WBC is upon us, and here are some hasty judgements about the Team USA lineup.
• Roki Sasaki is having a rough Spring Training. Is it time to start worrying?
• If nerdy baseball math is your thing, then this FanGraphs article is for you.
• A cute moment with the Cubs and DBacks in Spring Training as two Counsells got to swap lineup cards.
• The Brewers currently have the hottest farm system in baseball. (The Tigers come in at number 5)
• Where do the Tigers rank in Mike Petriello’s new tier system? Pretty well, actually.
• A walk-off ABS challenge? Is this a precursor of things to come?
• It took Jesus Luzardo a whopping one inning to go back on his promise to never rely on the ABS challenge system.
• Creating an “All-Time” WBC team.
• What’s the story behind Team Korea’s unique home run celebration?
• Some bold predictions for the World Baseball Classic.
• One Astros player will miss the WBC after fracturing his finger.
• How will the exit of Tony Clark impact the union with a potential lockout on the line? ($)
• Ranking all the teams participating in the WBC. ($)
• Will the ABS kill managerial ejections?
• We do love a good themed baseball card.

• Someone check on the Pirates fans in your life.

• Kpop fans, this one is for you.

Meet the Mets

Jorge Polanco made his spring debut at first base, and Brett Baty hit a home run early in the Mets’ loss to the Nationals yesterday afternoon.

The Mets’ Spring Breakout roster pool has been announced, and plenty of the team’s top prospects will partake in that game against Rays prospects on March 19.

Mark Feinsand looks at which players on that list might have a chance of breaking out in 2026 like Nolan McLean did in 2025.

Sean Manaea is set to make his spring debut today, and Kodai Senga will get his tomorrow.

Francisco Lindor believes he’ll be ready for Opening Day after taking batting practice for the first time since his hand surgery.

Robert Stock, who’s done some impressive things on the mound in the early part of spring training, has been building his own pitching analytics website.

Mike Petriello ranked teams in tiers heading into the 2026 season, and the Mets are in his third tier alongside the Braves and Orioles as teams that missed the playoffs last year but seem likely to make them this year.

Speaking of rankings, the MLB Pipeline crew thinks the Mets have the 7th-best farm system in baseball.

Ballpark revenue increased for the Mets last year.

Around the National League East

Federal Baseball writes that a pitch usage tweak could take Cole Henry to the next level.

The Good Phight looked at which players were best at using the ABS challenge system in the Phillies’ system last year in Triple-A.

Battery Power continues to keep tabs on Spencer Strider’s velocity, a hot topic at Braves spring training this year.

Sandy Alcantara, who’s looking to put up much better numbers this year than he did after returning from injury last year, struck out four in a spring training game.

Around Major League Baseball

Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña will miss the WBC and potentially Opening Day because of a finger fracture.

Andrew McCutchen and the Rangers agreed to a minor league deal.

The Dodgers are continuing to work with the family of Andrew Toles, having provided support for the former outfielder through his mental health struggles over the past several years.

Buster Olney previewed the heavy hitters in the WBC.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Steve Sypa wrote up Jack Wenninger and Kevin Parada as we continue our season preview series.

This Date in Mets History

March 6 has provided plenty of big spring training days for various Mets in past years.

What a tremendous time to be a fan of baseball. We have Spring Training underway, getting an early look at how our beloved teams will shape up this season. And on top of that, the World Baseball Classic is officially underway. This means everywhere we look, there’s baseball to watch and talk about, and all before the regular season gets going at the end of this month.

We’ve got lots of little WBC tidbits in today’s news, plus some discussion of baseball’s top prospects, and one major league pitcher who might be starting to worry his team.

It’s Friday, so grab a coffee, kick back, and get your daily dose of baseball news in.

• Michael Baumann makes some hasty judgements about the Team USA lineup.
• Kevin McGonigle is one of the hottest prospects in baseball. How long should the Tigers wait before bringing him to the big leagues? Story by Dan Szymborski.
• Paul Casella shares that it didn’t take long for Jesus Luzardo to abandon his promise of not relying on the ABS challenge system.
• Mike Petriello ranks all 30 clubs into 9 tiers.
• Ryan Phillips makes some bold predictions for the World Baseball Classic.
• Evan Drellich wonders how the exit of Tony Clark is going to impact the union with a looming lockout coming. (The Athletic subscription required.)

• Michael McCarthy looks a bit deeper into the Benetti announcement.
• It might be a bit early to worry, but Roki Sasaki isn’t having a great Spring Training. Story by Michael Baumann.
• Ben Clemens gets deep into the nerdy baseball math.
• Keegan Matheston offers some fun storylines to follow with the Blue Jays this season.
• Speaking of the Jays, watch their recent Spring Training game end on an ABS challenge. Story by Theo DeRosa.
• Tim Capurso and Ryan Phillips put together an All-Time World Baseball Classic roster.
• Team USA narrowly edges out Team Japan as the odds-on favorite to win the WBC reports Doug Greenberg.
• Grant Brisbee ranks all the teams participating in the WBC. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Card collectors, get ready.

• Davy Andrews offers some WBC rooting options for Pool C and Pool D.
• The Brewers now have the hottest farm system in baseball. (MLB Staff)
• Kyle Koster explains Team Korea’s sweet but meaningful home run celebration.
• Astros’ Jeremy Pena will miss the WBC after fracturing his finger. (ESPN)
• Jayson Stark asking an important question: will the ABS kill managerial ejections? (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Cutch is leaving Pittsburgh!

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.

The Atlanta Braves continued trimming down the roster Thursday, announcing five more cuts. Jhancarlos Lara was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett, while Austin Pope, Jim Jarvis, Alex Lodise and Luke Waddell were reassigned to minor league camp. After these moves, there are 54 active players in camp. 

None of the moves come as much of a surprise as the Braves begin the gradual process of shaping their Opening Day roster. With several established players already locked into big-league roles, many of the early cuts were expected to come from the group of younger depth pieces and non-roster invites still getting their first looks in big-league camp.

More Braves News:

Spencer Strider and the Braves were victorious during Thursday’s 9-5 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

The full 40-man Spring Breakout Roster is here! Cam Caminiti, JR Ritchie, and John Gil headline the list.

Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ozzie Albies compete against each other in the World Baseball Classic this afternoon, and here’s everything you need to know. 

MLB News:

Boston Red Sox reliever Vinny Nittoli has been diagnosed with ligament damage in his elbow and is likely headed for a season-ending surgery. 

Yesterday, the Guardians crushed the White Sox 12-3 and Cade Smith made a great 2026 Cactus League debut.

Smith threw 9 pitches in a 1-2-3 fifth inning in his return from neck soreness. Tanner Bibee threw four scoreless, Erik Sabrowski struck out two in a scoreless frame, and Tim Herrin struck out three… but also allowed two hits, a walk and a run.

On the offensive side, CJ Kayfus hit a two-run homer, so did Milan Tolentino and Carter Kieboom hit a three-run bomb. Jaison Chourio had a triple, Angel Martinez had two BABIP hits including a double, Brayan Rocchio, Angel Genao, George Valera and Kody Huff added doubles. Oh, and Autin Hedges had two hits, so you know how bad a night it was for Rangers’ pitching.

Australia won again in the World Baseball Classic, beating Czechia 5-1, but Travis Bazzana went 0-4 with a walk and a strikeout. He did put on a defensive clinic at second base, though.

Travis Bazzana starts a BIG double play to help Team Australia hold the lead! #WorldBaseballClassicpic.twitter.com/vaASlNm62m

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

Stephen Vogt had some comments about Chase DeLauter. I’ll let you decide what they mean. Sounds like they are trying to build him up for Opening Day but it’s obviously not ideal.

"He's learning how to work. We're learning how to help Chase feels close to 100% every day"#Guardians Manager Stephen Vogt says Chase DeLauter is "day to day", but is happy with the way things have progressed this spring. #GuardsBall@WEWSpic.twitter.com/oirjWyMAA9

— Mason Horodyski (@MasonHorodyski) March 5, 2026

The Guardians return to afternoon baseball today at 3:05PM ET and to TV vs. The Angels.

Team USA's roster for the World Baseball Classic is stacked with MLB stars. So is the coaching staff, albeit with former stars.

Mark DeRosa is managing the squad, which includes MVP winners such as Aaron Judge and Bryce Harper, and the reigning Cy Young Award winners in Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes. DeRosa, a solid player across 16 MLB seasons, is joined by a who's who of assistants.

REQUIRED READING: Team USA stars ready to win WBC for the 'greatest country in the world'

Team USA was runner-up in the 2023 World Baseball Classic after falling to Japan in the championship. The U.S. has assembled a much more impressive roster on paper in 2026 but will face staunch competition from Japan again, as well as the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Venezuela, among others.

DeRosa, who's now an MLB Network analyst alongside his Team USA managing duties, has no shortage of experience among his coaching staff for the WBC. Here's a look at Team USA's full staff ahead of its first game against Brazil on March 6 in Houston:

Puerto Rico, one of just four countries to advance to the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals in the first five tournaments, will play on in the 2026 edition. Yet the Boricua may have already suffered their most significant losses weeks before the WBC began.

For the first time since 2013, Puerto Rico will be without its superstar infielders, Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor, who were ruled out of the tournament due to insurance concerns.

Lindor subsequently suffered a hamate bone injury that would have knocked him out, anyway. Yet Correa’s loss – along with valued catcher Victor Caratini and right-hander Jose Berríos – can be attributed to a risk management issue that girds the tournament’s capability to utilize major league stars in a full-go, competitive environment during spring training.

Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. Welcome to March, as Opening Day is now just three weeks away!

Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-baseball sports, the Brewers, you name it. As long as it’s appropriate and is allowed by our moderators, it’s fair game here.

You know the drill.

This is now an open thread:

The pool play for the WBC begins in earnest today, which means as I write this, Shohei Ohtani hits a grand slam to open the scoring for Samurai Japan.

Because of course he did.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• Aaron Nola has had much better stuff, much higher velocity this spring so far. Maybe we can thank the WBC for that ($).
• Kyle Backhus continues to have a solid spring in his audition for the Phillies. The manager certainly likes him.

MLB news:

• MLB Pipeline has a new #1 team in their organizational system rankings. For once, the Dodgers aren’t the best at something!
• Andrew McCutchen will try for one more season in the sun. This time, the sun will be much hotter as it will be in Texas.
• Well, maybe those Orioles were after more starting pitching after all as it’s now being reported that they made a nine-figure offer to Ranger Suarez.

The Hawk* signs a blank check, Kirby Puckett departs this vale,and other stories.

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow the various narrative paths.

“Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly, HoF Umpire.

Today in baseball history:

• 1906 – Rookie owner Charles W. Murphy puts the last pieces of a Chicago Cubs dynasty in place, trading rookie infielder Hans Lobert and pitcher Jake Weimer to the Cincinnati Reds for third baseman Harry Steinfeldt. Not a heavy hitter, Steinfeldt completes the Frank Chance–Johnny Evers–Joe Tinker infield with more than adequate defense. (1,2)
• 1907 – Philadelphia Phillies owners A.J. Reach and John Rogers are acquitted of damages resulting from the 1903 National League Park disaster. A balcony collapsed at the Broad Street and Lehigh Avenue ballpark, killing 12 and leaving 232 fans injured. (2)
• 1945 – Former Philadelphia Athletics catcher Harry O’Neill is killed in combat during the Battle of Iwo Jima. The 27-year-old O’Neill becomes the second former major leaguer to lose his life in the war. Elmer Gedeon, a one-time outfielder with the Washington Senators, was killed in 1944. (2)
• 1973 – Larry Hisle of the Minnesota Twins becomes the first designated hitter in major league history during an exhibition game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hisle makes the new American League rule look good by collecting two home runs and seven runs batted in. (1,2)
• 1987 – Free agent Andre Dawson* signs a one-year contract with the Cubs for the bargain-basement price of $650,000. Dawson had offered to sign a contract with the dollar amount left blank just so he could play on the natural grass at Wrigley Field and save his fragile knees. He will hit 49 home runs, lead the majors in RBIs, and win the 1987 N.L. MVP Award. (1,2)
• 2005 – Suzyn Waldman becomes the first woman to be a full-time color commentator in major league history, making her debut with John Sterling on WCBS-AM 880, the radio flagship of the New York Yankees. The former radio-talk host on WFAN, the first all-sports radio station in United States, was also the first female to broadcast on a national baseball telecast, as well as the first to provide local TV (Yankees) major league play-by-play. (2)
• 2006 – Hall of Fame outfielder Kirby Puckett dies in Scottsdale, Arizona, at age 45, a day after suffering a massive stroke. Puckett, who led the Minnesota Twins to World Series titles in 1987 and 1991, hit .318 with 207 home runs and 1085 RBI over 12 seasons. A 10-time All-Star and six-time Gold Glove winner, Puckett ended his career abruptly due to irreversible retina damage in his right eye. (2)
• 2016 – The Commissioner’s office overturns the two-game suspension handed to Dodgers IF Chase Utley for a dangerous slide that injured the Mets’ Ruben Tejada in last year’s NLDS. The decision is because the rules regarding sliding at the time were too vague; they have since been strengthened. (2)

Cubs Birthdays:Hal Mauck, Bill Sweeney, Ted Abernathy, Terry Adams, Jake Arrieta, Leonys Martín. Also notable: Lefty Grove HOF, Willie Stargell HOF.

Today in history:

• 1521 – Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan discovers Guam.
• 1788 – The British First Fleet arrives at Australian territory of Norfolk Island to found a convict settlement.
• 1831 – Edgar Allan Poe court-martialed and dismissed from West Point military academy for gross neglect of duty and disobedience of orders.
• 1836 – Battle of the Alamo: After 13 days of fighting, 1,500-3,000 Mexican soldiers overwhelm the Texan defenders, killing 182-257 Texans including William Travis, Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett.
• 1857 – Dred Scott Decision: US Supreme Court rules Africans cannot be US citizens.
• 1869 – Dmitri Mendeleev presents the first periodic table of the elements to the Russian Chemical Society.
• 1918 – US naval boat “Cyclops” disappears in Bermuda Triangle. The ship was traveling from Barbados to Baltimore — it has never been found.
• 1964 – Boxing legend Cassius Clay joins the Nation of Islam and changes his name to “Muhammad Ali”, calling his former title a “slave name.”

Common sources:

• (1) — Today in Baseball History.
• (2) — Baseball Reference.
• (3) — Society for American Baseball Research.
• (4) — Baseball Hall of Fame.
• (5) — This Day in Chicago Cubs history.
• (6) — Wikipedia.
• (7) — The British Museum
• (8) — For world history.

*pictured.

Some of these items spread from site to site without being fact-checked, and that is why we ask for verifiable sources, in order to help correct the record.

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

The Orioles were Grapefruit League winners yesterday with a 4-3 decision over the Rays in Port Charlotte. The Birds’ travel lineup included only two players guaranteed to make the team — Dylan Beavers and Samuel Basallo, who had a hit apiece — along with a couple of bubble guys in Leody Taveras and Jeremiah Jackson. The bulk of their offense came on homers by two minor league fillers, Jose Barrero and “Danger” Will Robertson.

But the pitching was the story for the Orioles — specifically, Zach Eflin, who made his spring debut and dazzled with two scoreless innings, striking out three. Reportedly, Eflin’s velocity yesterday was better than it ever was during his miserable 2025 season, when back soreness torpedoed his performance. His mechanics and pitch arsenal more resembled the Eflin who dominated in nine starts for the O’s in 2024. It’s hard not to be impressed at how sharp Eflin looked in his first mound action in eight months.

For much of the spring, it’s been assumed that Eflin will start the year on the injured list as he continues to ramp up his workload. But after yesterday’s performance, there’s reason to believe he could be full-go by Opening Day. And if he is, how exactly will the Orioles’ rotation shake out? The O’s have already announced that Tyler Wells will be in the bullpen, but that would still leave six starters — Eflin, Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers, Shane Baz, Chris Bassitt, and Dean Kremer — for five spots.

Bradish and Rogers are guaranteed to be atop the rotation, and Baz, for whom the O’s traded four prospects and have high expectations, is a lock for the starting staff as well. Unless the Orioles go with a six-man rotation, that leaves one of the other three out in the cold. Bassitt, a veteran known for his durability — with four straight seasons of 30+ starts — seems unlikely to be bumped to the bullpen, though he did pitch (quite well) in that role for the Blue Jays last postseason. Kremer, the Orioles’ 2025 leader in innings pitched with 171.2, also seems betted suited for starting than relieving, and Eflin hasn’t worked out of the bullpen since 2022.

There are three weeks until Opening Day, and chances are that the situation will resolve itself one way or the other. Just when you think you have more starting pitchers than you need, baseball has a way of, well, throwing a curveball. For now, the O’s should be happy they’ve got some pitching depth. They’re going to need it.

Links

With increased velo, Eflin surprises himself in 1st start since back surgery – MLB.com

More from Jake Rill on Eflin’s successful debut. If Eflin can approach his 2024 performance this year, it’ll certainly take some of the sting out of the Orioles’ not ponying up for an ace.

Kittredge on shoulder inflammation: “I really don’t think it’s all that serious” – School of Roch

Andrew Kittredge scoffs in the face of shoulder inflammation. Pshaw!, he says.

Brandon Hyde looks back on his last Orioles season: ‘I wish I could have done more’ – The Baltimore Banner

The former O’s manager talked to the Baltimore media for the first time since his firing. If you were expecting some lingering bitterness or saltiness toward the Orioles, sorry, his comments are all class.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Ex-Orioles born on this day include right-hander Anthony Telford (60) and Jake Arrieta (40), who spent four rocky years with the Birds before they dumped him off on the Cubs. I wonder what ever happened to him after that? Nothing much, I’m sure.

March 6 has been a slow day in Orioles history. The only time the O’s have made any roster moves on this date was in 2020, when they returned two Rule 5 picks — right-handers Michael Rucker and Brandon Bailey — to their original clubs. Had the O’s known that spring training would be canceled by the pandemic a week later and they’d end up playing only a 60-game season later that summer, maybe they could’ve tried to hold onto one or both of those guys for the shortened campaign. In any case, neither pitcher amounted to much, with Rucker posting a 4.96 ERA in three seasons for the Cubs and Bailey pitching just five major league games for the Astros in 2020.

The man who managed Shohei Ohtani in Japan dropped by the Dodgers’ training camp the other day, camera crew in tow. He was there to interview Andrew Friedman.

Friedman, quite naturally, assumed the questions would be about Ohtani.

Not at all. The questions were about Friedman, and what he had in common with the people who lead companies that make bullet trains and electron microscopes and Hello Kitty.

Hideki Kuriyama managed Ohtani on the Nippon Ham Fighters, the team that nurtured Ohtani’s ambition of pitching and hitting at an elite level. Today, in addition to serving as the Fighters’ chief baseball officer — the equivalent of Friedman’s role as the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations — Kuriyama hosts a prime-time television show in which he interviews the top executives of global corporations based in Japan.

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

These companies are household names in Japan, and often in the United States: Hitachi. Suzuki. Japan Airlines. Nippon Steel. Rakuten, the e-commerce giant. Sanrio, the Hello Kitty people.

The Dodgers are a household name in Japan.

The Dodgers are the brand. Nippon Ham is a brand too, but that brand is a food processing company.

Remember when Fox owned the Dodgers and Disney owned the Angels? That is baseball in Japan: teams owned by companies that can be more interested in their core business of financial services or transportation or media or whatever than in their team.

“The Japanese baseball market is stuck,” Kuriyama told me through interpreter Chinami Inaishi. “Ownership belongs to the owner-corporations. They really see the teams as part of their branding and marketing. Their efforts to focus on the team strength seems very different than that of Major League Baseball.”

That, really, was what Kuriyama wanted to talk about with Friedman: What could Japanese teams learn from how Friedman leads?

“One of the things that we talked about was patience,” Kuriyama said, “the ability to wait. I felt that. A lot of people have said that about him, so I’ll take that to heart.”

Beyond that? Friedman talked about integrating the work of different departments, no matter how unrelated those departments might appear from the outside.

“One of the things I learned is that an organization is not just the sum of people,” Kuriyama said. “To have a really good organization, everyone has to be united in what they want, and each person has to contribute. It’s kind of like multiplication rather than addition.”

To Friedman, championship math is about more than wins and losses.

“We spent time talking about the quest we are on to create a destination spot,” he said. “Obviously, the primary goal is to win championships. But that’s an outcome. We believe the process part of increasing your chances of getting there is by creating a destination spot where your really good players don’t want to leave, and where players on other teams are longingly looking at, like, ‘Oh man, I want to play for them.’

“We are way better at it today than we were five years ago, but it is like a living organism that we have to continue to nurture. It is not something where we will ever take our foot off the gas and say, ‘OK, we’ve got it.’”

Nothing beats winning — or, for the cynical, high salaries. But, when the Dodgers go beyond the scoreboard and payroll to provide innovative biomechanical and nutritional analysis to their players; expand the home clubhouse twice in barely a decade and take special care of player families; and add a second chartered team flight so the players can take their own plane, players take notice.

“We’re on a quest to get better at everything we do,” Friedman said. “If you listen to some of our internal meetings, and you listen to us challenge each other to get better in different areas, you would think we finished in last place last year.

Read more:How the Dodgers will look to fill out a once-crowded starting rotation

“We take a very critical look at what we’re doing and what things we do better and what things we are not doing as well, and how to enhance those parts of our operation. That is our mindset: figuring out a way to continuously get better at everything we do.”

Kuriyama brought up an interview Friedman did three years ago, after Friedman visited Japan and marveled at how many fans gathered to watch Team Japan workouts in advance of the World Baseball Classic.

“It also struck me how many different team hats were there,” Friedman said. “You’d see a Dodgers, and a Cubs, and a Yankees, and a Red Sox. You saw a smattering of different teams. And that’s what got us thinking like, ‘Man, if we could actually convert more fans here into loving Dodger baseball, the benefits that come with that.’”

In the ensuing 20 months, the Dodgers signed Ohtani. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki have followed, as have back-to-back World Series championships and a burgeoning Japanese fan club.

“They are, absolutely, bar none, the most popular team,” Kuriyama said.

The Dodgers are the favorite MLB team of 59% of Japanese sports fans, according to a YouGov poll released this week. The New York Yankees rank second at 14%; no other team polled at even 10%.

According to the poll, 78% say Ohtani is one of their favorite MLB players, 79% say Ohtani has increased their interest in MLB since he signed with the Dodgers, and 87% say they have a positive impression of him.

Ohtani made an estimated $100 million last year in sponsorships and endorsements, including the promotion of a skin care product that the 64-year-old Kuriyama said he has tried. I asked Kuriyama how far he could walk in Japan without seeing an advertisement for Ohtani.

“Less than 10 steps,” he said.

Kuriyama held firm that Ohtani could prosper as both a pitcher and hitter at a time that opinion was far from universal. Now that Ohtani is the game’s best player, and an international superstar that transcends sports, Kuriyama must feel like a proud father.

“He was incredibly talented,” Kuriyama said. “So, rather than being a proud dad, I feel like, ‘Thank you for not injuring yourself, and thank you for putting the work and effort into being where you are today.’ I am actually a little relieved.”

I asked Kuriyama if there was anything Ohtani could do that he has not already done.

For one, Kuriyama said, the Cy Young Award.

Read more:'Opportunity is present.' Alex Freeland trying to take advantage of reps at second base

“He’s actually more talented than people think he is,” Kuriyama said. “I firmly believe that he is going to surprise many of you.”

He only — and, yes, Kuriyama used the word “only” — hit 55 home runs last season. Does Kuriyama believe Ohtani could reach the single-season MLB record of 73?

“Yeah,” Kuriyama said.

If Ohtani does that this year, the Dodgers might well become the first team in National League history to win three consecutive World Series championships. If the Dodgers do that, flooded with cash from Japan and all over the world, the interview Friedman does next spring might be with the Harvard Business School.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The 2026 World Baseball Classic is officially underway and if you’re keeping track of things from an Atlanta Braves perspective, today is the day for you. It’s all going down today at high noon at loanDepot park in Miami, FL as Ronald Acuña Jr. and Venezuela get set to take on Ozzie Albies and Jurickson Profar Chadwick Tromp representing the Netherlands in the first game of Pool D in Miami. Andruw Jones will be in the dugout as the manager for the Netherlands, so there’s definitely going to be a Braves flavor to this particular ballgame.

It’ll surely be fun to see best pals Acuña and Albies turn into baseball enemies for a day and the good news for you is that we have information as to how you can watch. While the game may not be on a traditional TV channel like FOX, FS1 or FS2, the game will still be televised via streaming. You’ll have to catch this game on tubi (tubitv.com) if you want to see the international Braves stars in action during the WBC. If you can’t watch then you can listen on MLB Audio (via the MLB+ package which starts at $5.99 a month) or on Sirius XM if you’re subscribed to that as well.

Either way, you’re going to want to tune in for this one if you want to get your fix of Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ozzie Albies playing in meaningful baseball games about a month earlier than usual. No matter who you’re pulling for, Braves fans are going to come out on top in this one.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Friday, March 6, 12:00 p.m. ET

Location: loanDepot park, Miami, FL

TV: None

Streaming: tubi

Radio: MLB Audio, Sirius XM