Category: MLB

Kevin Pillar is calling on Angels owner Arte Moreno to sell the team. 

Days after Moreno said fans care more about affordability than winning, Pillar joined a growing number of critics of the boss in Anaheim.

“He doesn’t realize what he has, because if he really cared about winning, it would be such a destination for players to want to come and play,” the former MLB outfielder said during an appearance on the “Foul Territory” podcast.

"He needs to get rid of the team, because he really doesn't care about the Angels."

If Arte Moreno truly prioritized winning, Anaheim would be a destination franchise, says @KPillar4. pic.twitter.com/7axAX8ywJc

— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) February 21, 2026

“He just needs to get rid of the team because he really doesn’t really care about, you know, the Angels and, obviously, franchise values are going way up again.

“[Moreno] said he wasn’t actively shopping [the Angels], but I think there’s a lot of people interested in buying. So hopefully someone just kind of blows them away with an offer here soon, and we could kind of move past the story.”

Moreno on Friday told reporters that the “number one thing fans want is affordability” and that “winning is not in their top five,” citing an internal team survey. 

The owner added that “moms” preferred the affordability aspects of events like baseball games. 

“Moms make about 80 percent of the decisions,” he said. “They want to be able to bring their kids and be affordable, and they want safety, and they want to have a good experience, so they get all the entertainment stuff or whatever. The purists, you know, it’s just straight winning.”

Pillar, who played 13 big league seasons before retiring last July, spent part of the 2024 season with the Angels.

Moreno’s comments didn’t sit well with new interim Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Bruce Meyer, either, telling The Athletic over the weekend that the union and players “took notice.”

“The bottom line is players are competitors. They grew up competing every day. They go out, and they try their hardest to win every game. And players want to see owners doing the same thing,” Meyer said. 

Despite an embarrassment of superstar talent over the years, Moreno’s Angels haven’t done much winning under his ownership. 

After Moreno bought the team in May 2003, just months after their 2002 World Series championship, the Angels made the playoffs in five of the next seven seasons, but have struggled since. 

Since 2010, the Angels have made just one postseason appearance, wasting a big chunk of the careers of MLB legends like Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and Albert Pujols. 

The Angels have finished below .500 in 10 straight seasons, and it doesn’t appear to be getting much brighter in Southern California. 

After years of big free agent contracts and one of the higher payrolls in the sport, Moreno slashed salary to around $155 million, which includes deferred payments to injured third baseman Anthony Rendon.

Moreno cited the loss of the team’s local TV deal as the reason for the money-saving moves. 

“Will [payroll] get back to $200 million? Probably,” Moreno said. “We’ve got to get our TV thing worked out, and we just have to improve our brand.”

In August 2022, Moreno announced that he was exploring selling the Angels, but ended that process just months later, citing “unfinished business.”

The San Diego Padres traveled to Mesa, Ariz. to play the Chicago Cubs in Cactus League action on Tuesday. Starter Marco Gonzales, who had issues with location after more than a year off the mound, lasted 1.2 innings and allowed three runs on five hits and hit a batter.

Ron Marinaccio followed with 1.1 scoreless innings pitched, further building on his long-relief bid by going an up-and-down over the first and second innings. He will leave soon for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic but has not allowed a hit so far.

Bradgley Rodriguez struck out two in his inning of relief and got a weak swing on a pop-up to first. Reliever Francis Peña continues to struggle with his command while allowing two walks, a home run and a double for three runs in his 0.2 innings pitched.

The rest of the pitchers held the Cubs in check but the Padres fell just short, scoring three runs over the last two innings but were unable to come all the way back and lost 6-5.

First baseman Romeo Sanabria had another good day at the plate, subbing for Nick Castellanos, getting a single and knocking in a run. Castellanos also had an 11-pitch at-bat in the fourth inning that resulted in a double off the center field wall and two RBI. Outfielder Bryce Johnson was 2-for-2 with two singles and a walk. He has had a great spring, currently 3-for-8 with a walk in his three games played.

New Padre Sung-Mun Song didn’t get a hit in his Padres debut as a starter but played a clean third base and worked a walk with a good at-bat in the third inning.

Although outfielder Tirso Ornelas was designated for assignment last week, he cleared waivers and returned to spring camp yesterday. He entered the game in the sixth inning for DH Miguel Andujar and got a single in his first at-bat.

Busy practice fields

With the game being a 40-minute drive to Mesa, the practice fields saw early action and then bullpens for Joe Musgrove, Nick Pivetta, Walker Buehler and Miguel Mendez.

Germán Márquez threw live BP on the backfields with Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill taking swings and multiple members of the pitching staff looking on.

The team bus left at 11 a.m. for Mesa and the players making the trip got their work in early and were then off the fields. The remainder of the team did infield and outfield work as well as batting practice. Ramon Laureano took a break while walking between fields to sign some autographs and take a pic or two.

Tomorrow’s game will be back in Peoria versus the Angels. Michael King will make his Cactus League debut.

With newly signed free agent Ramón Urías opting to report to Spring Training with St. Louis Cardinals, Mexico is replacing the veteran infielder with Atlanta Braves infielder Nacho Alvarez, Jr. for the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

Alvarez, Jr. will be the sixth Braves player in camp for Spring Training slated play in this year’s WBC with outfielder Ronald Acuña, Jr. playing for Venezuela, non-roster invitee pitcher Javy Guerra with Panama, and outfielder Jurickson Profar, catcher Chadwick Tromp and infielder Ozzie Albies playing for the Netherlands.

Alvarez, Jr., 22, is likely on the roster bubble for Atlanta’s 26-man roster for this season. After missing much of the 2025 season due to injury, he was pressed in to action with the big league team after Austin Riley was lost for the season. Alvarez, Jr. played in 58 games for Atlanta last year after making his MLB debut in 2024. He also played in the 2025 Arizona Fall League.

Early in this year’s Spring Training, Alvarez, Jr. was working with the catchers, and would likely benefit from getting regular playing time at Triple-A regardless to whether to will look to add another defensive position to his toolbox.

Alvarez, Jr. will join a Mexican team with a number of current and former big league players, including one-time Braves prospects Victor Vodnik and Joey Meneses.

The Athletics continued their terrible start to spring training, losing 10-0 to the Milwaukee Brewers. This afternoon, the Brewers took an early lead and never looked back on their way to the blowout victory. The A’s offense, full of regulars for the game’s first six innings, was once again asleep as the team only got five singles over nine innings. Good thing spring stats and records don’t matter!

Taking the mound for the first time this spring, Mason Barnett started strongly as he pitched a clean first inning. However, his second inning did not go as smoothly. Brewers center fielder Blake Perkins singled and then first baseman Tyler Black crushed Barnett’s hanging curveball over the right field fence. Barnett’s 29-pitch outing concluded after finishing that second inning, his lone blemish being Black’s home run.

While Barnett’s performance was not that bad, it came a day after fellow young pitcher J.T. Ginn looked electric in his spotless two-inning outing against multiple San Francisco Giants starting position players.

Black was not done being a thorn in the A’s side. An inning later, he came up with the bases loaded, two outs and A’s minor leaguer Blake Beers on the mound. Beers had just come into the game in relief of Justin Sterner, who left with two outs and two men on base. Sterner would have likely been given the chance to finish the inning had he not just completed a 14 pitch battle with Brice Turang that resulted in a walk.

Unfortunately for A’s fans, Beers pitching ability is not as awesome as his last name. Black lined a single to center that somehow cleared the bases. Black added an RBI double in the fifth inning. He finished his day 3-for-3, driving in six of the Brewers ten runs.

While the Brewers totaled hits and runs galore, the A’s had trouble getting anything going offensively. Twice, the A’s got two men on base with less than two outs, only for nothing to come from it. In the bottom of the third, facing a 5-0 deficit, Nick Kurtz and Brent Rooker came up with two of their teammates on base. A home run or rally extending hit from either or both of them would have put the A’s right back in this game, alas Kurtz lined out and Rooker popped out. Through four games, the A’s have yet to hit a home run, which is quite surprising considering the amount of sluggers on this team and the fact that the ball tends to fly further in the Cactus League.

The A’s have a much-needed off day tomorrow as they try to right the ship and shake off these rough early spring training performances. Hope the A’s return on Thursday ready to defeat the Texas Rangers and kickstart a winning streak.

Notes:

• A’s top prospect shortstop Leo De Vries drew a walk at the plate in addition to making two nice back-to-back defensive plays in the sixth inning. Following a leadoff triple, De Vries caught a line drive and then threw a grounder home to prevent the runner from scoring.
• Hogan Harris, one of the team’s closer candidates, worked a scoreless inning in his spring training debut. He worked around two walks, aided by left fielder Tyler Soderstrom throwing out a Brewer at second base.
• Left-handed reliever Matt Krook left with an injury after recording the first out of the eighth inning. Hope he is okay as the A’s need left-handed relief depth behind Harris.

PHOENIX –– Gavin Stone might be throwing with “a whole new shoulder” now, as he joked earlier this spring.

But to manager Dave Roberts, he’s the same “mini-bulldog” as the Dodgers remember from two years ago.

“This guy is gonna over-achieve and over-deliver,” Roberts said confidently Tuesday morning. “Gavin put in a lot of work to get back to being the pitcher he was.”

The pitcher Stone was in 2024, of course, looked destined to become the team’s next homegrown star.

He had a breakout rookie campaign that year, leading the Dodgers in innings pitched while going 11-5 with a 3.53 ERA in 25 starts.

He was also bestowed with the “mini-bulldog” nickname by Roberts –– who compared his efficient, pitch-to-contact, “throwback” approach to that of the franchise’s original “Bulldog,” Orel Hershiser. 

But then, just as Stone was putting the finishing touches on a Rookie of the Year-caliber performance that had him primed to be a frontline option in the Dodgers’ postseason rotation, adversity struck.

He gave up five runs in a five-inning start on Aug. 31 at the Arizona Diamondbacks. He found he “couldn’t pick up my shoulder” when he woke up the next morning. And after getting an MRI, his standout season was suddenly over, ultimately ending with a significant surgery to repair his shoulder capsule, labrum and rotator cuff.

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“I was surprised by the severity of the injury,” Roberts recalled. “But it speaks to how Gavin is such a tough, tough ballplayer. He was going through stuff, and still found a way to compete and be good.”

For the first time since that Arizona start almost 18 months ago, Stone returned to game action on Tuesday, and immediately impressed in a scoreless one-inning, two-strikeout, 15-pitch outing in the Dodgers’ Cactus League game against the Cleveland Guardians at Camelback Ranch.

He flashed natural feel for his trademark changeup, using it for both his punchouts. He was also around 94-95 mph with his fastball, already back to his pre-injury velocity.

Mostly, though, he was able to enjoy a moment that was just as cathartic as it was celebratory.

His “grind” of a recovery process might’ve forced him to miss the Dodgers’ 2024 World Series run, and all of their 2025 title defense. But it hasn’t diminished his confidence in getting back to being the pitcher he was before.

“That’s the goal, getting back to that mold of myself,” Stone said with a smile after his Tuesday outing. “And today was a great start.”

Entering camp, that goal seemed very much in question.

Shoulder injuries can often be the most difficult for pitchers to seamlessly come back from. And the extent of Stone’s shoulder damage came as a “shock” even to him.

“If you would’ve seen the MRI, it was horrible,” he said earlier this spring. “It’s still gonna be a long process, fine-tuning some things, getting the timing down.”

Yet, Stone’s steady progress through the early stage of camp has come as a pleasant surprise to Dodgers personnel –– putting him in competition with River Ryan, Justin Wrobelski and others for a potential opening day rotation spot with Blake Snell unlikely to be ready for the start of the season.

Roberts said Stone is further along in his ramp-up than Ryan, a fellow 2024 rookie standout who missed the last year and a half recovering from Tommy John surgery. And on Tuesday, Stone’s premier changeup looked sharp as ever, getting a whiff five out of the six times batters tried to swing at it.

“That’s my bread and butter, so if I don’t have that, I’m screwed,” Stone joked. “But it was the easiest pitch on my shoulder to throw. It never really hurt, so I got to practice it a lot, just getting the feel for it. Seeing the results today is really uplifting.”

The changeup sets up the rest of Stone’s arsenal, which also includes a slider, cutter and sinker. When mixing those weapons, he can induce soft contact, collect quick outs and pitch deep into games as he showed two years ago, when he logged more than 140 innings and threw the Dodgers’ most recent complete game shutout.

“I think it’s gonna be a good year (for him),” Roberts said when asked about his expectations for Stone in 2026. “I don’t know how many innings he’s gonna throw. But I do know that he will be impactful for us.”

Indeed, the Dodgers will still be mindful of Stone’s workload. Roberts and Andrew Friedman have both acknowledged debating how hard to push him early in the season. Coming out of Tuesday’s auspicious return, however, Stone was singularly focused on only one thing moving forward:

Getting back into the Dodgers’ rotation as soon as possible, and picking up where he left off before his shoulder surgery.

“My goal is to make the team out of camp,” Stone said. “So I’m doing everything I can to make that happen.”

Diane. It’s February 24th, 12:10 pm, mountain time. My investigation, in all it’s twists, turns, detours, and non-sequiturs has led me to the Peoria Sports Complex in the northwest corner of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Along the way, I stopped at the Whataburger just across the New River. And I have to say, it lived up to its name. What. A. Burger!

The purpose of my visit to Peoria is to investigate the Seattle Mariners. They’ve created quite a stir up in the Northwest, nearly earning a trip to the World Series! Can you believe it? But — as I’m sure you know, Diane —they didn’t quite make it, losing in heartbreaking fashion. So heartbreaking, in fact, that one is forced to wonder if nefarious spirits might not be at work. Bob, we have learned, feeds off of pain, and that loss caused enough of that.

The big name in this game is a fella they call George Kirby. No relation to the little pink guy, but I may have to look into that. Remind me to ask him, Diane. He had a tough 2025 campaign, and is looking to get his moxy back. From what I can see, he reminds me of myself after that incident in Pittsburgh. He’s on the mound now, battling his way through the Chicago White Stockings.

Oh man would you look at that, he got the first two batters out but he beaned the third guy up, the left fielder Austin Hays. George may be a little rattled by that. Everything I’ve seen tells me he has a strong preference to work within the strike zone. And to make matters worth Lenyn Sosa just hit a double to score Hays. Not a good start for Mr. Kirby. Ah, well, he did get a strikeout to end the inning. That should help.

Diane, it looks like George’s fellow Mariners have his back. Good to see comraderie among teammates. The Mariners actually loaded the bases up before getting a run on a double play off the bat of one Joshua Naylor. It’s not a pretty way to do it but the game is tied nonetheless. But in the meantime, I’m hungry. I’m going to find some concessions.

Diane, I’ve acquired a box of stadium popcorn. The texture is somewhat papery and it could use a little more butter flavoring, but regardless, it’s the perfect snack for a day like today. Since I left you, Diane, the White Sox took the lead once again on a two-run home run by Tanner Murray. George Kirby had been removed from the game. It a was poor soul by the name of Stefan Raeth that threw the errant pitch. A shame, but now I’m going to find a soda to wash down this popcorn.

While I was in line for my drink I had a tremendous revelation. A mariner is a sailor, one who lives on the seas. Yet they take their practice every year in the middle of the desert. One wonders if it is merely an irony or something that is emblematic of human nature. Perhaps by building strength and endurance in the arid heat, they are more prepared for baseball in the humid cold of the Northwest. We shall see.

Oh, I forgot to mention. That catcher fellow Sheriff Truman likes so much, Caleb Raleigh, hit a two-run home run.

Diane I’ve retaken my seat in between the two halves of the fourth inning. A series of miscues and misfortunes has returned the lead to Chicago, this time by a margin of 6-3. Spring Training has a way of bringing out the silliness inherent in baseball, as players shake of the rust. Perhaps the baseball gods themselves are more like to intervene, as they too have been desperate for the game all winter. If you asked me before this investigation, I would have said that I don’t believe in gods of any kind. But after what I’ve seen, I’m not so sure anymore.

Diane, the Mariners are fighting back. Those two kids that are playing today, Arroyo and Emerson, reached base and were subsequently doubled home by that star Julio Rodriguez I was telling you about the other day. That brought the score back within a single run.

Chicago stretched the lead back to 3-runs on a lackluster inning by trade acquisition Alex Hoppe. But the Mariners simply loaded the bases again and let Colt Emerson single in two runs with a rocket to right field. Boy that kid may be the real deal. The Mariners then tied the game on a play so captivatingly nonsensical that I am at a loss of words on how to describe it. Miles Mastrobuoni hit the ball to first base and Dominic Canzone attempted to score from third, only to be caught in a rundown. While he was returning to third base the White Sox catcher attempted to throw the baseball back to the third baseman. He failed, sending the ball sailing into left field. Canzone scored and the other two runners moved up to third and second. However they too failed to score.

Diane, I’m speaking to you now from the bottom of the 6th inning. For the first time today the Seattle Mariners are leading the baseball game. They took the lead off of a Spencer Packard single — remind me to ask if he has any relation to Catharine Packard and the sawmill — a wild pitch, a ground out by Lazaro Montes, and a solid single by Dominic Canzone. We’ll see if they can keep it.

It seems they could not. Nico Tellache pitched the 7th for Seattle, inheriting a runner on first. His second pitch went for a single, and a double steal moved those runners up to d and third. It was one of the greatest heists I’ve ever seen in all my time at the Bureau, Diane. It was a simple matter for Oliver Dunn to hit a double and score both runners. He eventually scored on a single, giving Chicago a two run lead. I feel for young Tellache. He did his best in a stressful situation. Hopefully he showed enough determination to his coaches for a second chance. We could all use one of those.

Diane, the Mariners are clawing back. Rhylan Thomas hit a ball all the way to the berm in right field and cut the Chicago lead in half. He could have tied it if it weren’t for Cal Raleigh getting thrown out attempting to steal second after a single. But that’s just the way the cookie crumbles. That’s a good idea. I’m going to try and rustle up a cookie.

Diane, I’ve been unable to find a physical cookie to eat. This disappointment has been compounded by the fact that the proverbial cookie of the baseball game continued to crumble until the very end. The Mariners were unable to score again and the Chicago team took the win. I can’t help but feel this has been some sort of distraction. A red herring, if you will, and you know that that is a fish I do not particularly care for. I’d love to stay and do some more digging, but I really should get back up to Sheriff Truman.

It is a long drive, however. Right now what I need a donut. And a damn good cup of coffee.

The Brewers and Athletics both entered Tuesday’s game seeking their first Cactus League win but it was the Brewers who were able to get it in very convincing fashion.

Tyler Black was the star of the show today, getting things started by following a single from Blake Perkins with a two run homer down the right field line in the 2nd inning.

Black then plated three more Brewers in the third inning by ripping a bases loaded, two out single to right-center. That’s right, a three run single. The count was full so the runners were off with the pitch and they just didn’t stop. Quickly, Black was 2-for-2 with 5 RBIs

That’s a great day already, but Black wasn’t done. When he came up again in the 5th inning, Black ripped a 2-0 fastball from Scott Barlow to right for a double to score Akil Baddoo. Black was 3-for-3 with 6 RBIs and finished a triple shy of the cycle. It’s only a spring training game, but for a player like Tyler Black who dealt with a hamate injury last year and faces a tough roster picture, it’s the kind of game he needs to get back on the Crew’s radar.

The Brewers finished with 10 runs but very easily could have had more if it wasn’t for the weird stadium design at Hohokam in Mesa. For whatever reason, the batter’s eye in centerfield is in play. The yellow line runs to the top of it so you have to hit it over for a home run to dead center. In the 5th, David Hamilton crushed a ball 425 feet to center, but it hit high off the batter’s eye and went for a double. Then in the 7th, Akil Baddoo hit one 434 feet to center and it still hit off the top of the batter’s eye and went for only a double. Two hits that went 425+ feet and no home runs to show for it.

Also, in the 9th inning, after the line change, #2 prospect Luis Pena ripped a double to left off the bat at 103.4 MPH. The Brewers added two runs in that 9th inning.

On the pitching side, it was domination from a laundry list of pitchers, starting with Rob Zastryzny and followed by Angel Zerpa, Sammy Peralta, and Coleman Crow from the 40 man roster. Crow was especially impressive, spinning 3,300 RPM curveballs with 20 inches of horizontal break. He also showcased a 3,000 RPM cutter with 21 inches of run.

Everyone covered one inning and they scattered five hits in the shutout. After Crow was Blake Holub, Will Childers, Mark Manfredi, Jack Seppings, and Miles Langhorne.

The now 1-4 Cactus Crew will look to make it two wins in a row tomorrow when they take on the San Francisco Giants at American Family Fields of Phoenix. That game will be available on the Brewers Radio Network.

Today, the Colorado Rockies defeated the Los Angeles Angels, 7-5.

For more details, go here.

Yes, we would be getting taco’s if this were doing the regular season, and the Rockies now have a 3-2 record.

Please take a moment to appreciate this Charlie Condon bomb:

I feel compelled to share this:

Here are manager Warren’s Schaeffer’s thoughts:

Turns out, Seth Halvorsen was working on a new pitch.

Now to today’s starting pitcher, Chase Dollander:

And, finally, here’s Charlie Condon:

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MESA, Arizona — The Cubs defeated the Padres 6-5 on a very warm February afternoon at Sloan Park, thanks to some timely hitting by Cubs catcher Carson Kelly.

Shōta Imanaga made his first start of the spring and it was a good one. He allowed three hits, one of which was an infield grounder and another a bloop to left, and struck out one. Here’s the pitch sequencing on the strikeout, and you can see Imanaga’s velocity was up several ticks from late last year:

This appears to support the theory that Shōta was never fully recovered from the hamstring injury he suffered last May, through the end of the season. He probably couldn’t get any power out of his legs late last year, thus all the home runs. If he can throw 93-94 this year, that’s significant.

The Cubs took a 1-0 lead in the first. Michael Busch led off with a double, took third on a ground out, and scored on a single by Carson Kelly. Two more Cubs runs crossed the plate in the second. B.J. Murray and Justin Dean singled and Scott Kingery was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Busch then was also hit, forcing in a run. A sac fly by Matt Shaw scord the second run.

The Cubs maintained the 3-0 lead until the fourth, when Jacob Webb was touched up for a pair of runs. He walked two after retiring the first two Padres on routine fly balls. A double by former Cub Nick Castellanos plated the two runs.

Kelly homered with one out in the fifth:

As you can see, that was a well-placed high fastball (well-placed for the hitter, that is), and Kelly hit it a long way [VIDEO].

After that Dylan Carlson walked, and one out later James Triantos also walked. Murray doubled in both runners. There doesn’t seem to be any place for Murray with the Cubs, but he will be leaving soon to play for Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic. Perhaps the Cubs can trade him to a team that will give him a chance.

After Webb’s rough inning, Ethan Roberts, Hoby Milner and Gavin Hollowell all threw scoreless frames. Hollowell struck out all three Padres minor leaguers he faced.

In the top of the eighth with a Padres runner on first, a ground ball was hit to third. The throw to first was late, and the runner on first headed to third but was thrown out. The umpires immediately ruled obstruction — and made an announcement to that effect. That’s a good thing and I hope announcements on unusual plays like that are made during regular season games. It’s a big help. The runner on third scored on a ground out, and in case you were wondering, since there were no further hits in the inning, that run was unearned off Jeff Brigham.

Minor leaguer Grant Kipp threw the ninth and was touched up for a single and two-run homer, making it a one-run game, but after the homer Kipp induced two ground balls to short to end things.

The game felt slow — and no wonder, as there were 299 pitches thrown, more than the MLB average of about 250, and there was no bottom of the ninth.

Attendance watch: Not surprisingly for a Tuesday in February, the crowd at Sloan Park was under 10,000, just 9,411. That makes the season total so far for three dates 35,903, or 11,968 per date.

We still have not seen Ian Happ, Nico Hoerner or Dansby Swanson in a game. I’m assuming we will see them all on Wednesday. Also, Cade Horton and Edward Cabrera have yet to start, and I’d guess we will see one of them on Friday.

The Cubs will host the Rockies Wednesday afternoon at Sloan Park. Jameson Taillon will start for the Cubs and old friend José Quintana goes for the Rockies. Game time is again 2:05 p.m. CT. No TV or radio Wednesday.

Busy day, eh? I hope y’all are having a good evening out there. No random clip tonight, the floor is now yours.

Observations from Mets’ spring training on Tuesday:

Good hands

Bo Bichette looked like a natural at third base when he charged in and made a smooth bare-handed play and strong throw to get Zach Dezenzo at first to end the top of the third.

There have been questions about Bichette’s arm as he makes the move from shortstop to third. 

Baker’s dozen

Ten Mets pitchers combined to walk 13 batters Tuesday. Afterward, Carlos Mendoza was asked if it was too soon to start worrying about that number.

The manager said: “Way too early, but it’s not ideal, either. The message is we have to attack the zone.”

Caught my eye

Juan Soto, never known for his glove, made a shoestring catch in his new home in left field on Zach Cole’s sinking liner in the first inning. 

Wednesday’s schedule

The Mets host the Cardinals at Clover Park at 1:10 p.m. with Jonah Tong set to make his first start of the spring. 

The moment hit Mets prospect Jack Wenninger after he threw his final warm-up pitch and looked around the field ahead of Tuesday’s Grapefruit League game against the Houston Astros: This is big-league camp.

“I finished my warm-ups, catching the ball from Bo [Bichette], and then looked around the defense,” Wenninger said. “Got Juan [Soto] out in left field, [Marcus] Semien at second, Ronny [Mauricio] at short. It was just great. It was cool.”

On his first pitch of the afternoon, Houston's Jeremy Peña, a World Series MVP from a few years back, coolly took the 96 mph fastball at the knees on the outside corner into center for a basehit.

After getting a loud out, Wenninger put himself into a bit of trouble with a walk, but got Joey Loperfido to chase a 1-2 letter-high 97 mph fastball for a big strikeout. Unfortunately, a second non-competitive walk loaded the bases. Wenninger escaped getting Shay Whitcomb to swing through a splitter below the zone. 

“Execution wasn’t great in the first,” the right-hander said. “I thought I was trying to be a little too fine.”

Was it a case of having a bit of butterflies? “I don’t know about butterflies, but kind of like trying to be where my feet attack the hitters, but just trying to be a little too fine and getting in trouble a little bit,”  said Wenninger, the Mets’ No. 11 prospect in Joe DeMayo’s offseason rankings.

The second frame was much less precarious as he pitched around a one-out double with another strikeout swinging on the splitter. 

Manager Carlos Mendoza praised Wenninger for battling through the early jam and finishing strong.

“Continues to execute, make pitches,” the skipper said, adding that the righty was “live on the fastball, but the splitter is as advertised.”

“It’s a pitch that when you see it in real competition, and the way he executed it to put hitters away was pretty impressive,” Mendoza continued about the splitter. “He was good overall.”

In his two innings of work, he got seven whiffs on 17 swings, with the splitter responsible for three on six offerings. The fastball, which averaged 95.3 mph on eight balls, was swung through twice on five swings.

For the youngster, it was “just good to get my feet wet, get out there and pitch.”

But the first taste of big-league camp was a great opportunity to get to know guys and “pick their brains.”

“The more I talked to people, and finding out what makes other people better, I can help myself become a better player,” he said, adding Sean Manaea has been the one he’s spoken to the most. “He’s a real friendly guy and just easy to talk to.”

The 23-year-old has also relied on Jonah Tong and Nolan McLean for advice on their experience after making their MLB debuts last season.  

Wenninger pitched to a 2.92 ERA and 1.150 WHIP in 135.2 innings over 26 starts last season at Double-A Binghampton. The tall righty had 147 strikeouts 9.8 strikeouts per nine innings) with 42 walks.

Michael Toglia smashed a grounder down the 1B line to plate Leo Balcazar in the Bottom of the 9th inning in Goodyear Ballpark on Tuesday afternoon, and doing so pushed the Cincinnati Reds to a 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

It marked the first win of Cactus League play for the Reds, who now sit 1-2 after a day off on Monday.

Here’s how things shook down:

The Good

Elly De La Cruz and Eugenio Suarez went back to back in the Bottom of the 5th inning, with each’s homer being their respective first of the spring.

Elly’s traveled 432 feet through the thin Arizona air.

No data from the Reds on Geno’s blast, but it sure sounded good.

Sal Stewart and Edwin Arroyo helped level the score in the Bottom of the 9th, as each singled (sandwiched around Balcazar’s single) with the latter scoring Sal from 3B. I have very high hopes for this trio this season.

Also, the Cincinnati bullpen looked a far cry better than their disastrous performance on Sunday, with the crew cobbling together five consecutive scoreless frames to finish the game, with the likes of Pierce Johnson and Sam Moll firing scoreless frames.

The Bad

Let’s preface it with this – Brandon Williamson returned to a mound in a competitive game, and that’s way more good than bad. If anything, I pulled him out for this section to highlight what went well for him despite the fact that he was tagged for a pair of ER on 3 hits in 2.0 IP.

He didn’t walk anyone, which kicks tail. He also struck out 4 in his pair of frames, and the stuff that’s reportedly looked so good early in camp definitely had its perks.

Williamson wasn’t bad, truly. The only thing that was ‘bad’ was that Jac Caglianone tagged him for a 460 foot moonshot, and that kinda stings.

The Ugly

Only that it ended, really. I suppose Andrew Abbott, who allowed 2 ER on a dinger in his second frame of the day, would’ve liked to have been a bit better, though he did look excellent in the Top of the 1st in his first inning of the season.

What’s Next

Nick Lodolo will start tomorrow as the Reds hit the road for Camelback Ranch to face the Chicago White Sox. First pitch is once again set for 3:05 PM ET, and it once again won’t be televised anywhere.

You’ll be able to follow along the Reds radio feed via 700 WLW, however.

Record: 2-3. Change on 2025: +1. 5-inning record: 1-4.

That was satisfactory – and it didn’t look like it would be initially. Michael Soroka, in his debut for Arizona, pitched his team into a deficit before he recorded an out, opening up by allowing a triple and RBI single. But he gave up just a walk thereafter, getting through two innings while allowing the one run, with three strikeouts. The middle innings were solid, with scoreless frames from Brandyn Garcia, Andrew Hoffmann, Philip Abner and Isiaiah Campbell. Texas did chip away down the stretch, getting single runs off Taylor Rashi, Bryce Jarvis and John Curtiss, but all of them avoided giving up a crooked number, to close out the win. Three ABS challenges, but in a win for home-plate umpire Sean Sparling, all three were confirmed!

Meanwhile, a three-run fifth inning saw Arizona take the lead for good. A Jorge Barrosa single was followed by A.J. Vukovich’s first home-run of spring, and Ketel Marte following him in going deep later in the inning. Two more runs followed in the seventh, on an Alek Thomas triple and Ben McLaughlin single. Both those men had two hits on the day, as did Carlos Santana and LuJames Groover, although nobody on the team drew a walk this afternoon. Small sample size, plus the usual meaningless nature of spring training – but Alek is 4-for-7 with three extra-base hits, and has also walked more than he has struck out. Given he has changed his swing, perhaps this is meaningful.

We’ll get to see tomorrow. No, we’ll really get to see, with the game against the Dodgers being available for free on a dbacks.com live-stream. That will be our first chance to see Zac Gallen, with Dylan Ray and Drew Jameson among those scheduled to pitch out of the bullpen. 1:10 pm start at Salt River Fields for that.

PORT ST. LUCIE — Carson Benge could be the Mets right fielder this year, and on Tuesday, he shook hands with the best right fielder in franchise history. Darryl Strawberry greeted him before the Mets played Houston at Clover Park.

“It was cool to meet him,’’ Benge said. “I know what he means to this org. I know what a great player he was and all the home runs he hit.”

The two also have an unlikely connection.

“He said he almost went to Oklahoma State,’’ Benge said.

Strawberry signed a letter of intent to play at the school before he was drafted first overall by the Mets in 1980.

“I don’t know much about the young man, but I hear great things about him,’’ Strawberry said. “I think this organization has really done a great job developing the younger players again, as you will see, a lot of them are starting to really click.”

Strawberry made his MLB debut with the Mets just after he turned 21 in 1983.

Benge turned 23 in January.

“I think looking at him, he’s probably a kid that’s got a chance to flourish here,” Strawberry said of Benge. “Sometimes you’ve got to put the young players out there. You’ve got to let them learn. It’s hard lessons, but they’ll figure it out, just like I did.”

Jack Wenninger made the first Grapefruit League start of his career and the sixth-round pick out of the University of Illinois in 2023 made an immediate realization.

“I finished my warmups and caught the ball from Bo [Bichette] and saw Juan [Soto] in right and Ronny [Mauricio at shortstop] and [Marcus] Semien [at second],” said Wenninger, who spent all of 2025 at Double-A Binghamton. “It was pretty cool.”

Wenninger, who turns 24 next month, pitched two scoreless innings as he tries to become one of the next wave of starting pitchers to make it to Queens in the near future.

Carlos Mendoza said Wenninger’s splitter was “as advertised.”

For now, he’s soaking up as much knowledge as possible at major league camp, leaning heavily on Sean Manaea.

Kodai Senga threw live batting practice on a back field Tuesday and Mendoza has been encouraged by his increased velocity this spring. 

“In my experience with him, we haven’t seen that kind of intensity this early in camp,’’ Mendoza said. “He’s healthy. We’ve got to keep it that way.’’ 

After it appeared Mauricio might have forgotten the number of outs in the top of the third — when he didn’t play a ground ball aggressively at shortstop — Mendoza said Mauricio just sat back on the ball more than he should have.

Luis Torrens challenged two pitches behind the plate and lost both, a day after Hayden Senger successfully challenged a called ball with Clay Holmes on the mound… Nolan McLean is slated to start Thursday, with Freddy Peralta going Friday, according to Mendoza.