TAMPA, Fla. — Gerrit Cole reached 96.9 mph in his first session against hitters since the New York Yankees ace underwent Tommy John elbow surgery last March.
The right-hander threw about 20 pitches of batting practice Friday, facing Trent Grisham, Aaron Judge and Jasson Domínguez at the Yankees’ spring training facility. He threw his first bullpen session a week earlier.
New York expects Cole to be ready at some point from May to September, which would fit the recovery range of 14 to 18 months that the 2023 AL Cy Young Award winner has said was the target all along.
“It sounds like it was really good,” manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees’ exhibition opener against the Baltimore Orioles in Sarasota.
The 35-year-old Cole has altered his windup, putting his hands over his head. Before he was hurt, he stopped at his chest.
Cole’s last official outing was in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series that Oct. 30. He pitched in two spring training games in 2025, the last on March 6. Surgery was five days later.
SARASOTA, Fla. — Pete Alonso homered in his spring training debut for the Baltimore Orioles, providing the only runs in a 2-0 exhibition victory over the New York Yankees on Friday.
In his third plate appearance in a big league uniform other than the New York Mets, Alonso pulled a first-pitch curveball over the fence in left-center field against right-hander Bradley Hanner in the sixth inning.
Most of the regulars had exited the spring training opener, but Alonso wanted another trip to the plate and some more work at first base.
“He wanted it, and he made the most of it,” first-year manager Craig Albernaz said. “It speaks a lot. Pete just wants to play.”
Alonso spent his first seven major league seasons with the Mets before signing a five-year, $155 million contract with the Orioles in December. The 31-year-old was a fan favorite in New York.
“Obviously, hitting homers feels amazing, doesn’t matter what time of year. Happy to break the seal,” Alonso said. “I feel honored to wear (this uniform). I feel great in it, I feel like I look good in it. So, it’s fantastic. I honestly couldn’t feel any better.”
Alonso’s parents attended the game a short drive from the five-time All-Star’s home in Tampa. His youth travel baseball team was the Sarasota Salty Dogs, and they played games at the Cal Ripken Complex across the street from Ed Smith Stadium, the Orioles’ spring home.
“As a kid, I remember riding shotgun, just getting ready, getting dressed,” Alonso said. “It’s really cool kind of driving by because I had many, many, many games and weekends over just right across the street at that complex. So it’s really special.”
SCOTTSDALE, AZ - FEBRUARY 19: Infielder, Kyle Karros, top left, and Infielder/Outfielder, Chad Stevens, top right, point to the next field they need to go to during spring training for the Colorado Rockies at Salt River Field at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona on February 19, 2026. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images) | Denver Post via Getty Images
The Colorado Rockies lost their spring training opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-2. For more details, go here.
We’re not yet to the point in the season where we’re doing game recaps, but we wanted to share manager Warren Schaeffer’s postgame comments.
Elmer Rodriguez throws a pitch during his Grapefruit League opener Feb. 20.
SARASOTA, Fla. — Watching the Yankees’ veteran pitchers in his first week of big league camp, Elmer Rodriguez noticed their presence on the mound and how calm they looked.
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Tasked with a notable assignment of his own Friday — starting the Grapefruit League opener against an Orioles lineup full of regulars — the 22-year-old Rodriguez took a page out of their books and continued to show why the Yankees are so high on his future as one of their top pitching prospects.
Rodriguez tossed three shutout innings against the Orioles, flashing his six-pitch arsenal and navigating a nearly full-strength lineup without much issue.
“First inning, the adrenaline was high in the moment,” said Rodriguez, who scattered three singles, struck out one and recorded seven of his nine outs on the ground. “But I was able to channel it and use it to my advantage. I felt like I was executing well and felt good.”
Elmer Rodriguez throws a pitch during his Grapefruit League opener Feb. 20. Charles Wenzelberg
Rodriguez, acquired from the Red Sox last winter in exchange for catcher Carlos Narváez, broke out last season while posting a 2.58 ERA across three levels, with 176 strikeouts in 150 innings.
Depending on which scout you talk to, Rodriguez and Carlos Lagrange are, in some order, the organization’s top minor league arms — Rodriguez with a higher floor as a starter but Lagrange perhaps with a higher ceiling, both with plenty of potential.
And while the stakes are about to get higher for Rodriguez when he goes to pitch for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, the Yankees were still interested to see how he handled Friday’s environment.
“That was pleasantly surprising for Elmer, just because you never know what it’s going to look like the first time you get on the major league mound with a major league lineup up there,” pitching coach Matt Blake said. “That’s borderline their ‘A’ lineup there, minus one or two pieces. But to have some poise out there, to control the strike zone, to move some different shapes around and just see that his stuff’s going to play in the zone versus these types of hitters, that was really encouraging.”
Blake described Rodriguez as having “a good, crafty arsenal” that he could use on all hitters.
The right-hander used his sinker most often, sitting 94-97 mph, but also mixed in a changeup, cutter, curveball, slider and four-seam fastball.
“I thought he was great,” catcher Austin Wells said. “He mixed it really well, hit the spots when he needed to and got some big ground balls. … He’s got a lot of really good pitches, got the talent and he’s just got to go do it.”
Rodriguez, who is likely to start the year at Triple-A as long as the Yankees get through camp relatively healthy, indicated that it was at least a somewhat difficult decision whether to leave his first big league spring training for the WBC.
Elmer Rodriguez reacts during the second inning of his Feb. 20 Grapefruit League start for the Yankees. Charles Wenzelberg
But he has always wanted to represent his country, which he will do in a starting role, and believes he can continue to show the Yankees what he is capable of on an even bigger stage than he would be facing in the Grapefruit League.
“Just trying to use everything to my advantage,” he said. “Get some experience there, learn from guys here, learn from guys there. Having the experience to play there against good competition, just trying to learn as much as I can and get the most experience.
“I feel like it’s probably going to be higher-intensity games. Everybody says it’s like playing in the playoffs.”
It will only add to it that Puerto Rico is serving as a host for pool play, allowing Rodriguez to pitch in his native country.
Before then, Rodriguez passed his first test in big league camp.
“Very much under control,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Obviously running up against a pretty real lineup there. The poise that we continue to see is something you like, even though it’s not that big a deal, but first time in a big league spring training game, kicking off the spring, handled it well.
“I really think he’s got a bright future,” Boone added. “So he’s going to get some run down here.”
So that’s good. That came after Austin Hays homered off Jameson Taillon in the top of the first. Taillon also served up another homer, a two-run job, in the second. I’m not concerned about that sort of thing this early; often, pitchers work on various things in spring outings and sometimes throw nothing but fastballs.
Of a bit of concern: Porter Hodge looked awful in facing six batters in the fourth inning. He walked four of them and allowed a two-run double to new Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami. It might have been more runs, but Grant Kipp induced an inning-ending double play.
Hopefully this was just Hodge “working on something” because he wasn’t anywhere near the strike zone most of the time, throwing only eight strikes in 25 pitches.
Gavin Hollowell, who also might be in the bullpen mix because he has options, struck out all three batters he faced in the sixth. Two of them (Hays and Murakami) are MLB hitters and the third is top Sox prospect Braden Montgomery. So Hollowell might be someone to watch going forward.
There were three ABS challenges in the game. If you didn’t see it, here are all of them.
These calls were all made seamlessly, quickly by the players, announced at the park by the plate umpire and all completed within just a few seconds. This is exactly how the ABS challenge system is supposed to work and once it’s in place for regular-season games you probably won’t even notice. I would imagine there will be more challenges in Spring Training games than you’ll see in the regular season so that players get used to doing it.
It was a gorgeous, though a bit coolish (60 degrees at game time) afternoon in Sloan Park, with the berm getting a bit crowded as folks from seats in the shade came to get some sunshine. Announced attendance was 14,419, about 1,000 short of a sellout. It’s still very early, many people aren’t on spring break or taking vacations yet, and I’d expect the crowds to get larger as the spring goes by.
Matthew Boyd will start Saturday afternoon at Sloan Park against the Rangers. Kumar Rocker will take the mound for Texas. Game time is again 2:05 p.m. CT. TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network and there will also be radio broadcasts via The Score as well as the Rangers radio network.
PHOENIX –– When it comes to the new ball-strike challenge system being implemented in Major League Baseball this year, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts doesn’t yet have any hard-and-fast rules for his players.
But on Friday, he offered a few general guidelines.
“I think right now, I feel comfortable with the catchers doing the challenges versus the pitchers,” Roberts said on the eve of the Dodgers’ Cactus League opener –– in which they will get to test the new automated ball-strike system (ABS for short) for the first time.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts doesn’t yet have any hard-and-fast rules for the new ball-strike challenge system. Jason Szenes for CA Post“I think right now, I feel comfortable with the catchers doing the challenges versus the pitchers,” Roberts said on the eve of the Dodgers’ Cactus League opener MLB Photos via Getty Images
And what if a pitcher decides to challenge a call?
“He’d better be right,” Roberts said, laughing.
Such is the new dynamic players will face with the advent of ABS. Starting this year, the automated reviews will give each team the opportunity to challenge at least two ball-strike calls per game. And unlike normal manager challenges on all other types of play, an ABS review can only be initiated by a hitter, catcher or pitcher –– who may do so by tapping their head within two seconds of each pitch.
Once a team loses two challenges, its players won’t be able to dispute any further calls in a game (unless there are extra innings, in which case teams will be awarded another challenge opportunity).
“I think it’s good that we’re practicing it in spring,” Roberts said. “We’re having conversations about leverage and how to use it to our advantage.”
The ABS system, which relies on Hawk-Eye ball tracking cameras within ballparks to determine whether a pitch was in the strike zone, has been a long time coming.
The ABS system, which relies on Hawk-Eye ball tracking cameras within ballparks to determine whether a pitch was in the strike zone, has been a long time coming MLB Photos via Getty Images
Since 2022, it has been tested in the minor leagues, where players and teams came to prefer having a limited number of challenges per game over allowing the system to make every pitch call, no matter what.
Last spring, MLB gave it a trial run in big-league spring training games, gathering feedback that was used to craft the specifics for its regular-season rollout now.
“I think it should benefit baseball,” Roberts said.
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One of the big points of previous dispute regarding ABS usage: the strike zone itself.
Veteran third baseman Max Muncy noted that, in early versions of ABS that he experienced while on minor-league rehab assignments in recent years, the top of the zone seemed atypically high –– differing significantly from the way many human umpires called the game.
“There were some pitches that, I’d go back and look at the iPad just to see (if they would be called strikes),” he recalled. “And there were ones literally at my eyes that it would say is a strike, just because of how the zone is measured.”
Veteran third baseman Max Muncy noted that, in early versions of ABS that he experienced while on minor-league rehab assignments in recent years, the top of the zone seemed atypically high. Jason Szenes for CA Post
Now, however, MLB has made some tweaks.
Compared with data compiled from actual umpires’ calls, the top and bottom of the ABS zone have been made slightly tighter (“That stinks a little bit,” Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow joked). The league has also been measuring players’ heights this spring for ABS purposes, so each batter will have a zone proportional to their size.
“They’re doing things to make it better, I think,” Muncy said. “But there’s no way to tell until we actually get it.”
For the Dodgers, that process will start Saturday, providing a new subplot to follow over the course of the season.
Now, just like batting average and on-base percentage, players will undoubtedly have their challenge success rate tracked –– by media, coaches and front office analysts most of all.
Their ability to judge the right time in a game to challenge calls will also be scrutinized, introducing a new strategic element to every at-bat.
“You really have to know when you should challenge and when you can’t,” Muncy said. “Like, if it’s the third inning, 0-2 count, two outs and there’s no one on, and there’s a pitch that’s called on you that’s maybe borderline –– even if you’re right, is that really gonna change that much? And if it’s the eighth inning, full count, bases loaded and a pitch is borderline, even if you’re wrong, to me that’s an OK time to challenge.”
And for pitchers like Glasnow, it means leaving the responsibility largely up to the catchers Jason Szenes for CA Post
To Roberts, it means that “some hitters have to be honest with themselves” in the heat of the moment and avoid risking challenges at the wrong time simply out of frustration with borderline calls.
“That goes with baseball IQ,” he said. “Understanding when you challenge, when you don’t.”
And for pitchers like Glasnow, it means leaving the responsibility largely up to the catchers, who have the best view of the zone from right behind the plate.
“Now, if it’s super obvious, I might (still challenge a call),” Glasnow added with a chuckle.
If he does, as Roberts cautioned, he just better be right.
Arizona Diamondbacks Jordan Lawlar catches a fly ball during spring training workouts at Salt River Fields on Feb. 13, 2026, in Scottsdale. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Record: 1-0. Change on 2025: +1. 5-inning record 0-1.
The Diamondbacks got off to a winning start this afternoon, coming from behind with a two-run eighth inning to prevail over their SRF-mates from Colorado. It was a day for the new guys, with all three Arizona runs being driven in by players who weren’t part of the organization at the end of last season. Nolan Arenado got the team on the board with the D-backs’ first home-run (below), giving them a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Then, trailing 2-1 in the eighth, shortstop Jacob Amaya singled home A.J. Vukovich with the tying run. Catcher Matt O’Neill then double home Amaya, with what proved to be the winning run for Arizona.
On the pitching side, the D-backs used eight different pitchers, seven of whom put up zeroes. The exception was Isaiah Campbell, who allowed both Rockies’ runs in the fourth, on a pair of hits. However, the defense didn’t help him on either of those. The first was an infield single to former D-backs Jake McCarthy, though Arenado’s attempt to get him at first… was not great. Playing left, Ryan Waldschmidt then got all turned around, with a very poor first step on a ball which ended up whistling over his head for an RBI triple. But otherwise, decent results, with Thomas Hatch and Andrew Hoffmann each getting two K’s in the first and second innings.
They were helped considerably by Gabriel Moreno using his ball-strike challenges effectively behind the plate. He got three reversals in a row, turning balls into strikes, before the end of the second. It was not a good day for home-plate umpire Alex McKay. All told six of seven challenges by the players ended up being successful. Also, in kneejerk reactions, Waldschmidt didn’t look great at the plate overall, though did scald the day’s hardest-hit ball at an impressive 115.6 mph. Nor did Druw Jones impress the SnakePit, but Tommy Troy had some decent at-bats. Alek Thomas reached base safely in both of his at-bats, on a walk and a hit.
We’ll be back tomorrow, facing the same opposition, with the Diamondbacks the home-team this time! It will be another 1:10 pm start at Salt River Fields, with Mitch Bratt making his Diamondbacks debut.
NORTH PORT, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 20: Ronald Acuña Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves poses for a photo during Spring Training photo day at CoolToday Park on February 20, 2026 in North Port, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
By this time tomorrow, the Braves will have gotten done with their first spring training game of the season. That’s pretty exciting, even if all that means is that the countdown to the Opening Day will officially be underway. Anyways, here’s hoping tomorrow goes well. The floor is now yours and here’s a random clip:
In his second at-bat (above), Munetaka Murakami slapped a 108 mph single. The next inning, he did even more damage. | (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
It’s rare that a Cactus League opener is better welcomed for its final score than for the mere notion that baseball is back. But with an 8-1 walloping of the Cubs at their Sloan Park home field — and against a true Cubs rotation piece in Jameson Taillon, at that — the White Sox managed to make this opener more about the result.
Not to say it isn’t wonderful to have baseball back, even facing a club wearing those cuddly pinstriped PJs. But the South Siders made hay all day, pounding Cubs pitching for 12 hits, six of them for extra bases.
Right off, it was Austin Hays homering in his first White Sox appearance. (If memory serves, Austin Slater homered in his first regular season PA for the club, and his flip at the trade deadline last summer eventually netted Chicago a potential fifth starter, so start shopping again in the Bronx Bombers Gift Book, Chris Getz.)
(OK, well MLB had the Hays homer footage up earlier, but now it’s gone. It was a sweet, 105.6 mph smash to left field, chasing a Kyle Teel ground out off the bat at 107.4.)
Crisp contact would quickly become a theme of the day. After White Sox starter Jonathan Cannon (an OK first start despite 41 pitches to get five outs, three Ks, a walk and a homer) lost the lead to a Seiya Suzuki long ball in the Cubs half of the first, the Good Guys really went to work.
Derek Hill started off his 1-for-1, two-walks afternoon with a free pass, and on an 0-2 count next Sam Antonacci crushed a room-service fastball deep and out to right field. With this bat chuck from Sam, you would have thought he struck out, but the paisan announced his Spring Training presence with authority either way:
The White Sox picked up another off of Taillon right away, as Korey Lee singled and stole second, driven home by a Tristan Peters single.
Two innings later, three walks sandwiched around a single out packed the sacks for Munetaka Murakami. What happened next could be characterized as a gift double courtesy of Suzuki or a ball that would have been a grand slam in 16 of 30 MLB parks, depending on which side of town in which you reside:
By the way, Munetaka swung through a 95 mph fastball on the first pitch of the at-bat, but when Cubs reliever Porter Hodge cited the pregame skinnies and dipped right back into the well for a nearly identical pitch, Mune crushed it 408 feet off the center field wall. Take your scouting report and shove it, MLB.
Munetaka’s two hits on the day cracked off the bat at 108.3 (second-inning single) and 105.5 (fourth-inning double).
After Antonacci eventually ended the fourth inning with a GIDP, the game shifted to let’s-finish mode, with a parade of outs and just three more extra-base hits for either side.
Two of the XBHs was from “singles hitter” William Bergolla Jr., with a double in the sixth and two-bagger in the eighth that would lead him home as the South Siders’ final run.
And the other one, well, get on the Braden Montgomery hype train, because he clocked a first-pitch, two-out triple to drive in Darren Baker from first:
CHECK OUT THAT SPEED. It’s a standup triple on a screaming liner to the wall. Montgomery is at or past second base by the time the ball is fielded and is nearly standing on third by the time the cutoff man has the pill. Whoa.
All in all, a splendid opener for the White Sox. Shed a tiny tear for those ivy bumblers.
The undefeated Chicago Nine will lace ’em back up tomorrow for the Camelback Ranch opener against the A’s, which will be a CHSN broadcast to boot.
The Dodgers‘ iconic uniform has looked off the last few seasons.
When Nike rolled out its Vapor Premier template across Major League Baseball in 2024, the backlash was swift. Players around the league grumbled about thinner fabric, awkward fits and pants that felt better suited for a beach volleyball tournament than a pennant race.
The Dodgers‘ iconic uniform has looked off the last few seasons. Getty ImagesFor 2026, Nike finally listened to the fans and made changes. Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The backlash was felt in Los Angeles as well, but it wasn’t just the breathability of the uniforms. Fans noticed instantly that the script was off.
The second “d” in “Dodgers” was sliced in half by the jersey placket, as if someone had taken scissors to the logo at the wrong time. A tiny detail, some said. Tell that to a fan who’s worn that script across his chest since childhood.
For 2026, Nike finally listened to the fans and made changes.
The font is larger. The spacing is cleaner. Most importantly, the lowercase “d” no longer awkwardly straddles both sides of the jersey opening.
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There’s a clean, traditional break between the “o” and the “d,” restoring the classic flow of the Dodgers’ iconic chest script. The material has also been upgraded — thicker, more durable, less transparent — a nod to the chorus of player complaints that began in spring 2024.
Nike fixes #Dodgers jerseys for 2026 feature including a corrected script logo where the letter "d" is no longer split by the placket. The redesign restores a more traditional, larger font for lettering & Numbers A return to more durable, higher-quality fabric. pic.twitter.com/YJV1OIQYfl
In the post above, you can see the differences in the uniform from last season to this season.
The Dodgers open their Cactus League season on Saturday at Tempe Diablo Stadium against the Angels. They will open their 2026 campaign on March 26 at Dodger Stadium against the Diamondbacks.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts watches a spring training workout at Camelback Ranch on Monday. (Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Flashing bleached hair under his cap as he settles in with his new team, Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz threw his first pitch of Thursday's live bating practice session to Freddie Freeman. It was called a strike. As Díaz got set for his next pitch, Freeman tapped on his helmet in a playful attempt to challenge the call.
In response, Díaz tapped his cap twice.
These gestures will become the norm in major league baseball this season, starting this weekend, thanks to the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System.
Each team will begin games with two challenges, initiated by a pitcher, hitter or catcher tapping their head within seconds of the call — no dugout consultation allowed. The moment it's challenged, a graphic will show the result of the challenge on the video board and once the call is confirmed or overturned, the game will go on.
Teams retain challenges when they're successful and lose them when they're not.
The added layer of strategy intrigues Stephen Nelson, the Dodgers’ radio play-by-play voice.
“As humans we are naturally resistant to change, especially baseball fans, and I say that as a baseball fan,” Nelson said this week at the team's Camelback Ranch training facility. “So there's definitely going to be that early period where everybody's probably going to hate it, but you got to get through that.”
In recent years, MLB has tweaked the game — implementing a replay system to challenge calls on the field, placing a runner on second base to start extra innings, using a pitch clock. The ABS system has been tested in the minor leagues since 2022, and major leaguers got a taste of it during spring training last year and also in the All-Star Game.
In 288 spring games last year, there was an average of 4.1 challenges per game, adding an average of 57 seconds to it. Pitchers and catchers successfully overturned calls more often than hitters.
So who will be in charge of making challenges during at-bats?
“I will let the catcher dictate if he [wants] to challenge or not,” Díaz said this week. “I won’t do it … he’s been there all day long, they know the strike zone for the umpire.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was hesitant to say the club will have a hard rule on who can call for challenges. He feels more comfortable with his catcher doing it than a hitter or pitcher, but if a catcher decides to challenge, he expects them to be right.
“He better be right,” Roberts said Friday.
“It’s good that we're practicing in spring, but we're having conversations about leverage and how to use it to our advantage,” he added.
Roberts said if hitters want to make a call, they need to be honest with themselves about their personal knowledge of the strike zone and their baseball IQ and understand when to challenge a call and when not to.
“There's no perfect science to it, but we're just going to keep talking about it, trying to educate our guys,” he said.
Luis Cruz, a former player and now a Spanish-language announcer for the Dodgers, said hitters don’t need to be thinking about challenging a call.
“I don’t want to have another thing in my mind … then you lose your focus on your at-bat,” he said.
Jackson Ferris to start Sunday's game
Left-hander Jackson Ferris, the Dodgers' minor league pitcher of the year in 2024, will start Sunday's game against the San Diego Padres at the Peoria Sports Complex.
Ferris, acquired along with outfield prospect Zyhir Hope from the Chicago Cubs for Michael Busch two years ago, logged a 3.86 ERA and 1.46 walks plus hits per inning pitched across 26 games and 126 innings at double-A Tulsa last season.
“I like Jackson,” Roberts said. “I like the player. He’s a good kid. A lot of talent. I think for me, it’s just trying to harness his arsenal. It’s a good fastball. He needs to continue to get ahead, be able to put hitters away with the secondary pitches, be efficient with his pitches per inning, but I like Jackson. He’s really talented. He’s scratching the surface, but he’s gotta go out there and perform, so I’m excited to see him on Sunday, and throughout the spring.”
TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 18: New York Yankees Outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) warms up during the spring training workout on February 18, 2026 at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, FL. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Good afternoon everyone, it’s time to dive back into the mailbag and answer some of your questions. Remember to send in your questions for our weekly call by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.
ReadingYankee asks:I am starting to worry about the production of Stanton. He is aging and proved less effective in the postseason last year, although it would be foolish to expect his 2024 production again. He has another year or two, and he has not been trusted in the outfield more than a game or two in the last couple seasons. At what point do the Yankees pull the plug on an oft-injured, DH-only type player? And when that happens, what will be their plan for the DH spot?
Much like the offense at large, I’m willing to give some grace to Giancarlo Stanton’s performance in the postseason because of the heater he was on in the regular season, especially given the strong performances he’s shown in nearly every other October run. The team isn’t going to cut bait on one of the veterans of this clubhouse while he still has some juice left in his bat, and his absences aren’t that big of a hit because they free up space for the rest of the team to cycle through quasi-rest days as a DH. Between getting their superstar Aaron Judge some half-days, flexing Ben Rice’s spot in the lineup around, and working in playing time for Jasson Domínguez should he be on the major league roster, there’s plenty of options to fill the gap.
The concern going forward, however, is just how much mileage is actually left on those legs. Stanton’s been a notorious slow-returner from his injuries (which makes the run he put on in 2025 even more incredible), so if he has a season where he’s a frequent flier on the IL instead of going through one big injury, that could spell disaster for his productivity. There’s also the concern that Stanton’s good year was a product of how little he actually had to play, and while there’s a running assumption that he’s going to miss time in every season going forward the goal is to still field the best team possible — if Stanton is gassed from the rigors of a 162-game season by the end of it all, he may not find himself penciled in when the chips are down.
jmack1775 asks:Why did we get Goldy to platoon with Rice when Rice should be an everyday player and learn to be at least passable against lefties? And if the plan is for Rice to catch a significant amount of games and Goldy to fill in at 1b, isn’t Rice’s value diminished at catcher?
Paul Goldschmidt’s place on the team this year is more of a mentor figure for Rice to learn the position, as the Yankees likely see him as their everyday first baseman of the future. He’ll get the lion’s share of starts at the position, and then for the games where Goldschmidt takes over against lefties that frees Rice up to see time behind the plate and still get in the lineup for the experience (and hopefully, improvement). It shouldn’t be a significant amount of games where Rice is catching, since J.C. Escarra is still the backup catcher and Rice will be going in as the defined starter at first as opposed to bouncing around looking for playing time. Was it the ideal fit? No, and the Yankees outright acknowledged this when Aaron Boone discussed the signing, but there are ways that it can work out quite well for New York.
Shoducky asks:What would it take to pry Mason Miller away from the Friars? Would a package of Dominguez and Gil do it?
Trade packages are generally a tricky thing to speculate on considering the strengths of one system aren’t going to be the same as another, and organizations have internal scouting on prospects that differ from the outside publications — that being said, the Padres traded the No. 3 prospect in baseball at the time to acquire Miller as the headliner of a four-player package at last year’s deadline. The Yankees don’t have a prospect anywhere close to that ranking on any board, and even considering that the cost would be lowered with one less year of control on Miller’s contract it’d be a tough pitch for the Padres to listen in on. New York has also shied away from the flashier bullpen additions as of late, both in terms of free agent deals and in trades, with their deal for David Bednar being an exception that still only cost the team their eighth-best prospect. If they wanted to change direction on that they certainly could, but that’s likely a discussion for the summer when there’s a clearer field of targets to acquire.
Minnesota Twins' Pablo López works from the mound against the Cleveland Guardians in the first inning of a baseball game, Sept. 19, 2025, in Minneapolis.
Pablo Lopez will miss the 2026 season.
The Twins right-hander is set to undergo Tommy John Surgery next week after it was discovered that he had a torn ulnar collateral ligament earlier this week.
Lopez, who turns 30 next month, had felt something in his elbow during a bullpen session on Monday.
The injury also takes Lopez out of the World Baseball Classic, during which he was set to take the mound for Venezuela.
Minnesota Twins pitcher Pablo Lopez throws during a spring training baseball workout in Fort Myers, Fla., Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. AP
The typical recovery timeline for Tommy John is roughly 12-to-18 months, meaning Lopez could be back on a big league mound by early next season.
It’s the second time in Lopez’s professional career that he will undergo Tommy John, having previously done the surgery in 2014 while he was in the Mariners’ organization.
Lopez has been Minnesota’s starter in each of their last three Opening Days since being traded over by the Marlins before the 2023 season.
In three seasons with the Twins, Lopez has posted a 3.68 ERA across 78 starts.
During his debut season with the team in 2023, Lopez had the best season of his career, making his first and only All-Star team and finishing 7th in the AL Cy Young voting with a 3.66 ERA across 194 innings.
Last season, Lopez dominated with a 2.74 ERA, although he was limited to just 14 starts with a shoulder and forearm strain.
After finishing 70-92 last season, Twins management cleaned house this offseason.
Feb 20, 2026; Sarasota, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Elmer Rodriguez (76) throws a pitch in the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles during spring training at Ed Smith Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images | Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
The Yankees’ first Grapefruit League game is in the books. For those hoping for some offense, that was always going to be a tough ask for a lineup that had just four major leaguers, especially when they’ve all been subbed out by the middle of the sixth. Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled in the first, but they managed just two more singles in the final 8.1 innings of the game, Orioles pitchers tallying 13 strikeouts on the afternoon. By far, the bright spot of the game was the performance of top pitching prospect Elmer Rodríguez, who pitched three scoreless innings after earning the start in the spring training opener. Pete Alonso crushed a two-run bomb in the sixth to account for all of the scoring in this game as the Yankees drop the spring opener to the Orioles, 2-0.
The Orioles had their ace Trevor Rogers on the mound coming off 18 impressive starts in 2025 when he posted a 1.81 ERA. His velocity was already at mid-season form, but that didn’t prevent Chisholm from logging the first hit in all of spring training, the second baseman dumping a two-out single to right on a 1-1 slider at the bottom of the zone.
In the bottom half, we got our first look at the Yankees’ top overall pitching prospect, Elmer Rodríguez. The 22-year-old righty was named Baseball America’s Yankees Minor League Player of the Year in 2025 after posting a 2.58 ERA across Double-A and Triple-A and the second-most strikeouts in the minors (176). He looked impressively sharp in his first taste of pitching against major league hitters, getting Gunnar Henderson and Pete Alonso to roll over a pair of soft grounders before striking out the Orioles’ top overall prospect Samual Basallo on an elevated heater, Rodríguez’s sinker touching as high as 97 in the first.
Rodríguez had his first brush with traffic on the bases in the second and passed that test as well. Baltimore had runners on the corners following a Tyler O’Neill leadoff single and Adley Rutschman one-out single, but Rodríguez worked himself out of the jam by getting Heston Kjerstad to bounce into the inning-ending double play on a perfectly located 1-2 changeup on the corner low and away. We also got our first ABS challenge earlier in the frame, Rodríguez having a strike two call confirmed after Colton Cowser challenged.
Rogers departed after two innings, replaced by reliever Keegan Akin, while Rodríguez was allowed to pitch the third. The Orioles started to barrel up the baseball the second time the top of the order faced Rodríguez, Henderson lining a two-out single to center and Alonso clubbing what looked like a sure-thing RBI double into the gap in left center, but non-roster invitee and former minor league Gold Glove winner Kenedy Corona made a fabulous diving catch to save a run and end the inning for the first web gem of spring.
Despite the harder hit balls to end his outing, Rodríguez was nothing short of impressive in his spring debut. His sinker had decent velocity, averaging 94, while the changeup and slider look like his go-to weapons to induce whiffs. Overall, he posted a very good 29-percent called-strike-plus-whiff rate and an even better 70-percent groundball rate. Most notably, Rodríguez exhibited sharp command of four different pitches, able to find the edges of the zone with the sinker, cutter, changeup, and slider. He departed after three scoreless innings having allowed three hits and no walks with one strikeout on 42 total pitches.
Jake Bird was the first reliever out of the bullpen for the Yankees, and he maneuvered around an O’Neill one-out single by inducing the inning-ending double play from Cowser. Austin Wells unsuccessfully challenged a pair of called balls that weren’t particularly close in the fourth and fifth innings, meaning the Yankees were out of challenges for the rest of the game. New York subbed out all their starters shortly thereafter, but not before Alonso provided the only offense of the contest, a booming two-run blast to left off a hanging first-pitch curveball from career minor-leaguer Bradley Hanner.
The Yankees offense went hitless for a six-inning stretch, their two other singles coming from substitutes Jackson Castillo in the seventh and Jonathan Ornelas in the ninth. Outside of Hanner in the sixth, you have to admire the job done by the Yankees pitchers, Rodríguez, Bird, Kervin Castro, Carson Coleman, and Dylan Coleman combining to toss seven scoreless frames. I also reckon there will be more excitement on offense as more lineup regulars are worked into spring games.
The Yankees return to Tampa to host the Tigers in the spring home opener at George M. Streinbrenner Field. Aaron Judge is penciled in to right field, while Rodríguez’s fellow top pitching prospect Carlos Lagrange draws the start against Keider Montero. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 pm ET with the broadcast moving to YES.
