WEST PALM BEACH, FL - MARCH 02: Ronald Acuña Jr. #21 of Team Venezuela poses for a photo during the Team Venezuela photo day at Cacti Park at the Palm Beaches on Monday, March 2, 2026 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Kevin Liles/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Later on this evening, the Atlanta Braves are going to be playing their first night game of spring training over in Fort Myers against the Twins. However, those won’t be the only Braves players taking part in a baseball game in Florida today. In fact, there will be a game that actually counts (and figures to be a lot louder and noisier) taking place down in Miami as Braves representatives Ronald Acuña Jr. and José Yépez will be playing for Venezuela as they take on teammates Ozzie Albies and Chadwick Tromp (and manager Andruw Jones) in Pool Play action in the World Baseball Classic.
While I wouldn’t say that Venezuela is one of the favorites as there’s a pretty big gap in quality between the top three teams (Japan, USA and the Dominican Republic) and the rest of the field, they’re certainly one of the best of the rest. The Netherlands figures to be a longshot contender in the WBC but hey, they have a pedigree in this tournament as they’ve made the semifinals twice before. The winner of this game could end up being the dark horse candidate to make a real deep run, so it’ll be fun to see what happens this afternoon — on top of the fact that we’re going to see Acuña and Albies become baseball foes for a day.
For information on how to watch, click here. Let us know who you’re rooting for below!
WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 17: Mike Burrows #50 of the Houston Astros throws a bullpen session during spring training workouts at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches on February 17, 2026 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Houston Astros/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Houston Astros (2-7-3) host the Washington Nationals (6-3-3) in Grapefruit League play.
RHP Mike Burrows will be on the mound for the Astros for the third time this Spring, RHP Cade Cavalli will start for the Nationals.
TODAY’S STARTER: RHP Mike Burrows has made two appearances in the Grapefruit League this Spring. He’s combined to record a 0.00 (0ER/5IP) with two walks and six strikeouts. The Astros acquired Burrows this offseason in a three-team, six-player trade from Pittsburgh. As part of the deal, the Astros traded OF Jacob Melton and minor leaguer RHP Anderson Brito to the Rays, and the Rays traded IF Brandon Lowe, OF Jake Mangum and LHP Mason Montgomery to the Pirates.
Burrows pitched most of the season with the Pirates, making 23 appearances (19 starts) and going 2-4 with a 3.94 ERA (42ER/96IP). He struck out 97 hitters in 96.0 IP.
ROSTER MOVES: This morning, the Astros reassigned C Garret Guillemette and OF Joseph Sullivan to minor league camp.
PEÑA INJURY UPDATE: Yesterday, the Astros announced that SS Jeremy Peña has a fracture in the tip of his right ring finger. He will be reevaluated in two weeks.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Friday, March 6, 12:05 p.m. CST
Location: CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach, FL.
PORT CHARLOTTE, FL - MARCH 03: Gregory Barrios (75) of the Tampa Bay Rays bats during a spring training game against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 03, 2026 at Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte, Florida. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
While most of the attention in camp has focused on players battling for the final spots on the major league roster, several prospects have quietly stood out in small samples. Spring Training results are noisy, but traits like strike throwing, approach, and batted-ball profile can still signal meaningful development – especially when viewed in the context of a player’s track record.
RHP Alex Cook
Cook was added to the Rays 40-man roster in December to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. Given his blend of plus strike throwing and above average stuff, it’s easy to see why the Rays wanted to allocate a valuable roster spot to him.
Cook has posted plus strike rates at every professional stop, but he’s taken it to another level this spring with a 71.1% strike rate (ML average sits around 63%). While it’s unrealistic to expect Cook to continue throwing strikes at over 70%, it’s another data point that suggests Cook is ready to face more difficult competition in AAA.
In addition to his solid control and command, Cook has above average stuff. His fastball is a clear plus pitch. It’s a cut-ride shape with solid velocity that plays up due to his low release height. His breaking ball is a two-plane slider in the mid 80s, and he’s got an average cutter in the upper 80s to keep hitters from sitting on either of his other two pitches. Cook can throw all three weapons to both sides of the plate.
He looks ready for a high-leverage role in Durham to begin the 2026 season, and I expect him to have an opportunity to pitch in the majors at some point despite all the quality depth ahead of him in the ML bullpen. Given his platoon-neutral arsenal and strike throwing ability, Cook could even be a candidate to stretch out as a starter later in his career – something the Rays have not been shy about experimenting with.
SS Gregory Barrios
On the position player side, Barrios has put together a nice camp so far, taking advantage of playing time opportunities with Taylor Walls having a slow start this spring.
Barrios has always been a guy with plus speed, contact ability, and defense at SS. He’s got pretty average plate discipline too. So, what’s the catch? Why is Barrios not considered a top prospect? He has nearly bottom of the scale power. His 90th percentile exit velocity (the industry’s preferred proxy for raw power) sits at just 101.1 mph this spring, well below the typical MLB average of roughly 105 mph.
Rather than chasing power, Barrios appears to be leaning fully into a contact-and-speed offensive identity. Below are his LD+GB rates for each of his domestic professional seasons, and what he has done so far this year in Spring Training:
2023: 58.1%
2024: 69.4%
2025: 77.2%
2026 Spring Training: 87.5%
It’s still early, so the exact numbers aren’t stable, but the trend is what matters. His glove and speed will give Barrios plenty of opportunity to stick in a lineup, and leaning into his offensive identity is what can help make him productive.
I expect him to return to Montgomery to begin the season, likely getting work at both middle infield spots with Adrian Santana. Barrios should have an opportunity to advance to AAA later in the year – an impressive trajectory for a 22-year-old whose value comes from defense, contact, and speed rather than power.
C Dom Keegan
Keegan’s 45.6% framing strike rate places him in the 71st percentile among catchers with 50 framing opportunities so far this spring. Keegan is regarded as an above average receiver, but he’s still working on the other defensive parts of his game.
Solid framing combined with his average hit and plus power combo should earn him a cup of coffee at some point this season if his blocking and throwing continue to improve, or at least not be a detriment to his overall profile.
Dominic Keegan worked a 14 pitch AB today and fouled off 8 straight pitches.
Keegan showed good quality of contact metrics in AAA last season (113.5 Max Exit Velocity + 48.0% Hard-Hit%) & can make an impact with the Rays this season.
A recent draftee acquired in the Baz trade, Bodine really hasn’t played much this spring, but he did hit a ball at 106.1mph, just below his collegiate max exit velocity of 106.6mph — which he did with a metal bat. There may not be plus power given his size and physicality, but a new professional max exit velocity is still noteworthy even if it is just spring training.
Bodine’s plus defensive skills and solid hit tool give him a chance to be an everyday ML catcher, and getting to even just average power could make him the franchise catcher the Rays have been searching for.
RHP Luis Guerrero*
*While he technically exceeded his prospect eligibility with the Red Sox last season with 17.1 IP, it’s hard to ignore what Guerrero is doing as someone who has yet to establish himself in the majors, so he’s getting a shout out here as well.
After going unclaimed through waivers in November, the Rays cleared a 40-man roster spot by trading INF Tristan Gray to Boston for the non-rostered Guerrero. Given his lack of a need to be on the 40-man, he will likely begin the year in AAA with a chance to impact the ML bullpen later this season.
Now under the Rays tutelage, LG is showing a harder, more cutter-ish breaking ball shape than last season. The new shape creates a more optimal tunnel with his fastball, which also might have a slightly different profile — with a little less run and a little more ride than what it had in 2025 thus far.
The change in both pitch shapes appear to be a result of Guerrero raising his arm slot just a bit. His ability to throw strikes will dictate whether he can crack the 40-man roster at some point this season, and so far it’s been roughly average this spring, which is good enough when you’ve got plus stuff like Guerrero does.
Spring Training numbers rarely tell the whole story, but developments like these often hint at what might be coming next in the Rays’ player development pipeline.
South Korea's Moon Bo-kyung (R) celebrates his grand slam with teammates in the first inning of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) Pool C first round game between South Korea and Czech Republic at the Tokyo Dome on March 5, 2026. (Photo by JIJI PRESS / AFP via Getty Images) / Japan OUT | JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images
Welcome to Pinstripe Alley’s coverage of the 2026 World Baseball Classic! We previewed Pool A, Pool B, Pool C, and Pool D in the linked articles. Since the first several days of the WBC feature a bevy of games, we’ll be recapping them in batches. Enjoy!
The WBC officially kicked off on Wednesday night (ET) with Australia winning a minor upset over Chinese Taipei, 3-0, aided by a homer from 2024 top draft pick Travis Bazzana. Kevin provided a direct recap of that game for Pinstripe Alley, but as the note above indicates, most of the recaps from now until the semifinals will feature multiple WBC contests from the previous 24 hours.
This marks the first of those, and it’s a little unusual given how the ol’ clock lines up for us in the Eastern Time Zone. The two games both featured teams in Pool C. Technically, the first from yesterday at the Tokyo Dome began at 5am ET and the second started at 10pm ET. Although that’s the same day for us, they respectively began on Thursday night and Friday afternoon in Tokyo. So you’ll see the Czechia twice because they had the tough draw of a day game after a night game. Ah, logistics!
Pool C: South Korea (1-0) 11, Czech Republic (0-1) 4
The Czechia club was one of the best stories of the 2023 WBC, with a scrappy team of players who don’t have the luxury of playing baseball full-time. They even won a game against China to earn instant qualification for this year’s WBC. During that previous WBC stint though, Korea jumped all over the Czechs in the first inning of their contest, batting around and plating five runs en route to a 7-3 victory.
The script evidently did not change all that much in their 2026 rematch.
Czechia starter Daniel Padysak immediately ran into trouble from the jump, as a couple walks and a Jung Hoo Lee single loaded the bases with one out for Bo Gyeong Moon, who has hit 46 homers across his last two season for the KBO’s LG Twins. Sure enough, he hit a moonshot (sorry) for a grand slam, and Korea had a 4-0 lead already. They kept the pressure on the Czechs, as Astros infielder Shay Whitcomb tallied two dingers against the arms that followed, Jeff Barto and Michal Kovala.
Former Orioles utiltyman Terrin Vavra, the lone Czechia player with MLB experience, had briefly made it a ballgame again at 6-3 in the fifth with a three-run shot off righty Woo Joo Jeong. But Whitcomb’s second long ball pushed his team’s lead back up to a comfortable five, and they only added from there. 2024 Yankee Jahmai Jones clubbed a solo shot of his own to join in on the action.
South Korea was expected to take care of business against the Czech Republic in their WBC opener, and they certianly did. They’ll face a far greater challenge tomorrow morning, when they square off with Shohei Ohtani and longtime rival/defending champion Japan at 5am ET — a Saturday night thriller at the Tokyo Dome.
Pool C: Australia (2-0) 5, Czech Republic (0-2) 1
No rest for the weary Czechs, who went right back to business in reporting to the ballpark the following morning. Their tenacity was briefly rewarded when they drew first blood against the Aussies. Tomas Ondra threw two scoreless innings, and in the the third, Vojtech Menšík gave Czechia a 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly.
That being said, even the brief tally wasn’t a pure feeling of relief, as from the outside, it sure seemed like skipper Pavel Chadim played it too safe by going for small ball. The inning began with a Martin Cervenka double and a walk to Marek Chlup had set the table for one of their few power bats, Martin Mužík. But Chadim had Mužík bunt the runners over, which just looked worse when the sacrifice came on a 3-0 count. (In the postgame, Chadim said that he had indeed called for the bunt, but hadn’t wanted it after going up 3-0.) The Czechs played for one run, got it, and never scored another.
The very next inning burned this decision. Left fielder Chris Burke beat out an infield single for Australia’s first hit, and after a fielder’s choice at second that should’ve been a double play, Bazzana walked to set the table for White Sox infielder Curtis Mead — a familiar name around these parts as a former Rays prospect. Ondra went ahead 1-2 and was nearly out of the jam. Then Mead went monster.
The three-run shot proved decisive. The rest of the Czechia pitchers did a better job of holding down Australia than Korea, as it remained a 3-1 score into the ninth. Unfortunately for them, the Aussie arms had little trouble of their own. Josh Hendrickson, Coen Wynne, Blake Townsend, Ky Hampton, Todd Van Steensel, and Mitch Neunborn combined to hold Czechia to four hits on the day. Alex Hall homered in the ninth as part of insurance for Australia and Neunborn closed it out to move Australia to 2-0.
More likely than not, the Australians will have to at least beat Korea in their eventual head-to-head to advance in the WBC as they did in 2023, but they’ve put themselves in prime position by handling Chinese Taipei and Czechia. As for the Czechs, they know that they won’t be moving on. All they can do now is try to take down Chinese Taipei and at least ensure an automatic qualification for the 2029 WBC by avoiding last place in the pool, as they did by beating China in 2023. Chinese Taipei is far more internationally renowned though, so it’s a tall task.
Today at the WBC
/deep breath/
Japan vs. Chinese Taipei (Pool C) Pitching matchup: RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. RHP Hao-Chun Cheng Time: 5:00 a.m. ET TV: FS1 Venue: Tokyo Dome, Japan
Cuba vs. Panama (Pool A opener) Pitching matchup: LHP Livan Moinelo vs. LHP Logan T. Allen Time: 11:00 a.m. ET TV: FS2 Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, PR
Netherlands vs. Venezuela (Pool D opener) Pitching matchup: RHP Antwone Kelly vs. LHP Ranger Suarez Time: 12:00 p.m. ET TV: Tubi Venue: loanDepot park, Miami, FL
Mexico vs. Great Britain (Pool B opener) Pitching matchup: RHP Javier Assad vs. RHP Jack Anderson Time: 1:00 p.m. ET TV: FS1 Venue: Daikin Park, Houston, TX
Puerto Rico vs. Colombia (Pool A) Pitching matchup: RHP Seth Lugo vs. LHP Jose Quintana Time: 6:00 p.m. ET TV: FS1 Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, PR
Nicaragua vs. Dominican Republic (Pool D) Pitching matchup: RHP Ronald Medrano vs. LHP Cristopher Sánchez Time: 7:00 p.m. ET TV: FS2 Venue: loanDepot park, Miami, FL
United States vs. Brazil (Pool B) Pitching matchup: RHP Logan Webb vs. RHP Bo Takahashi Time: 8:00 p.m. ET TV: Fox Venue: Daikin Park, Houston, TX
Chinese Taipei vs. Czech Republic (Pool C) Pitching matchup: RHP Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang vs. LHP Jan Novak Time: 10:00 p.m. ET TV: FS2 Venue: Tokyo Dome, Japan
In this episode of the Royals Rundown Podcast, hosts Jacob Milham and Jeremy “Hokius” Greco dive into the growing excitement surrounding the World Baseball Classic while breaking down the latest developments from Kansas City Royals spring training. From international baseball storylines to roster battles in Surprise, the hosts analyze how global competition and early spring performances could shape the Royals’ upcoming season.
Jacob and Jeremy evaluate key player metrics and performances, including encouraging signs from pitchers like Daniel Lynch, while also discussing how the recently finalized Starling Marte signing fits into the team’s evolving roster strategy. The conversation highlights emerging prospects, roster construction challenges, and the data-driven insights that help fans understand which players may rise — or fall — as Opening Day approaches.
Whether you’re tracking the Royals’ spring training competitions, following the global spectacle of the World Baseball Classic, or looking for deeper analysis on roster development and player performance, this episode provides thoughtful insights and engaging discussion for baseball fans everywhere.
Brandon Waddell | Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images
In December 2024, David Stearns signed Brandon Waddell to a minor league contract, the right-hander having spent the prior two seasons playing in Asia, 2023 with the Rakuten Monkeys of the CPBL and the Doosan Bears of the KBO and 2024 with Doosan. Scouts specifically honed in on Waddell’s improved control, a refined changeup, and a newly added sweeping slider. While the right-hander didn’t do anything in particular to stick out, he logged an extremely respectable season. He was promoted up and down from Triple-A Syracuse to the major leagues multiple times over the course of the season and posted a 3.45 ERA in 11 games with the Mets, allowing 29 hits, walking 11, and striking out 22 in 31.1 innings.
The yeoman’s work that the left-handed did throughout the year did not go overlooked, as Stearns re-signed the left-hander for the 2026 season on a major league shortly after the 2025 season officially concluded. Not every player who steps foot on the field needs to be a star, and while Waddell certainly was not one, he was a good soldier and then some in 2025. He was designated for assignment in December and then outrighted to Syracuse after passing through waivers.
The left-hander will be competing for a spot in a Mets bullpen that has been augmented since his initial signing, but a strong showing in spring training could punch his ticket north for Opening Day 2026 in Queens as one of the final bullpen arms.
CLEARWATER, FL - MARCH 04: Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches during the game between the Team Canada and the Philadelphia Phillies at BayCare Ballpark on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Alex Zadorozny/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Aaron Nola got off to bad starts over the previous two seasons. While it didn’t look bad from a results standpoint in 2024, he had a FIP of 4.49 over the first month of the season and carried a strikeout rate that would’ve been his lowest since 2015 over a full season.
His 2025 season was a mess all around. His ERA sat at 5.40 in the six starts he made to begin the season, but he showed better signs than the previous season with a higher strikeout rate and a slightly lower FIP. It was slightly better from a process standpoint but significantly worse results.
In both cases, the Phillies front office didn’t pay Nola over $24 million a season to put up those numbers, so it was important for him to look different coming into camp. He needed to get off to a much better start in 2026.
The biggest reason Nola started slow in back-to-back seasons is his velocity. Over the first month of the last two regular seasons, he has sat at 91.2 mph on his four-seam fastball. That is always going to be worse for him than the typical 92-93 he ramps up to over the following five months.
This was, at least to some extent, intentional. He is expected to make 30-33 starts and pitch 190-200 innings a season while being as effective as possible in October. Spring training and April are sacrifices to make for what is more important down the line.
But with only pitching 94.1 innings and playing for Team Italy in the WBC, he has looked different to begin spring training. Over his first two starts this spring, Nola has pitched five innings with six strikeouts and one earned run. His breaking ball has looked sharp, the changeup looks good, and the command is dialed in.
But the most encouraging sign is what his velocity looks like so far in camp. He sat 91.7 mph while touching 92.9 against the Marlins. In his second start against Canada, Nola sat 92.1 while touching 93.9.
This looks like the makings of not just a bounce back season from a disastrous 2025 but his best since 2022, the last time Nola looked like a top of the rotation starter.
Other Notes
It’s only been two outings for pitcher Yoniel Curet but you would certainly like to see more. In his first outing against the Nationals, he struck out two in a scoreless inning but it took 28 pitches. His outing against the Tigers was a disaster, walking two, allowing two more hits, and five earned runs.
If the league still ends up suspending Johan Rojas after his appeal is over, the Phillies’ center field depth starts getting very thin. Only Justin Crawford and Brandon Marsh play a proven center field on their 40-man roster and the AAA options might be Pedro León. Gabriel Rincones Jr and Bryan De La Cruz are strictly corner outfielders, and there isn’t much depth behind them.
While Johan Rojas has been frustrating as a player with not cutting down the swing, not learning to bunt, and some mental baserunning issues, there could still be room for him to have some future here.
COLUMBUS, GA - JULY 26: Edwin Arroyo #4 of the Chattanooga Lookouts stands in position with a rainbow overhead during the game between the Chattanooga Lookouts and the Columbus Clingstones at Synovus Park on Saturday, July 26, 2025 in Columbus, Georgia. (Photo by Natalie Buchanan/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
The Cincinnati Reds have trimmed their roster prior to Friday’s trip to Scottsdale to face the San Francisco Giants. According to C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic, right-handed pitchers Julian Aguiar and Jose Franco were joined by shortstop Edwin Arroyo and outfielder Hector Rodriguez in being optioned to AAA Louisville, while infielder Leo Balcazar was optioned to AA Chattanooga.
Perhaps the biggest bit of news here is that both Aguiar and Franco are now out of the running for spots in the team’s starting rotation for Opening Day. Both were always going to be considered dark horse candidates given the presence of each of Chase Burns, Rhett Lowder, and Brandon Williamson in camp, but it’s somewhat notable that both were optioned right now given that we’re all waiting with bated breath to see just how forked ace Hunter Greene’s right elbow is.
As for the rest of the moves, they’re pretty stock issue. Arroyo is already away with Team Puerto Rico for the World Baseball Classic, and despite his best efforts so far in spring camp is clearly behind Elly De La Cruz and Matt McLain in the middle-infield mix for the time being. It’s a similar story for Rodriguez, as he’s buried on the depth chart (for the time being) behind the likes of JJ Bleday and Will Benson and will get a second, more thorough chance to mash at AAA as still just a 21 year old.
It’s also worth pointing out who did not get cut in this round. Despite having pretty significant hills to climb to beat out more established guys for Opening Day roster spots, each of Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Rece Hinds, Tejay Antone, and Blake Dunn will remain in big league camp for the time being, as will non-roster guys like Nate Lowe and Garrett Hampson.
SURPRISE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 17: Jack Leiter #22 of the Texas Rangers poses for a portrait during photo day at Surprise Stadium on February 17, 2026 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Texas Rangers lineup for March 6, 2026 against the Seattle Mariners.
Texas plays a spring game against the hated Mariners of Seattle this afternoon. Jack Leiter will be the starting pitcher for Texas.
PEORIA, AZ - FEBRUARY 28: Kade Anderson #13 of the Seattle Mariners pitches during the game between the Seattle Mariners and the San Diego Padres at Peoria Sports Complex on Saturday, February 28, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Julia Jacome/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
While we’ve been getting a heavy dose of Mariners prospects this spring with so many players out at the WBC, there’s still a showcase event for prospects: the Spring Breakout games, a prospects-vs-prospects contest between two teams. Last year the Mariners matched up with the Guardians, including top prospect Travis Bazzana. This year, they’ve drawn the Brewers as an opponent and will play the Spring Breakout game at American Family Field in Maryvale.
The Mariners spring breakout game will be on Friday, March 20 at 2:10 PT. It will be broadcast live on MLBN and streamed on MarinersTV. Expect this game to be one of the more-publicized of the Spring Breakout games, as there is a chance the Mariners-Brewers game could have as many as 11 Top-100 prospects (six from the Mariners, tied for highest in baseball, and five from the Brewers: SS Jesus Made, SS Luis Peña, INF/OF Jett Williams, SS Cooper Pratt, RHP Brandon Sproat).
The current Spring Breakout roster is a traditional 40-man roster; that will be reduced to a regular 27-man roster on March 16th. Here is the current Mariners player pool, which will be updated after the cuts are made.
Left-handed pitchers:
Kade Anderson, Robinson Ortiz, Mason Peters
Right-handed pitchers:
Charlie Beilenson, Tyler Cleveland, Ryan Hawks, Casey Hintz, Griffin Hugus*, Lucas Kelly, Grant Knipp, Po-Chun Lin, Danny Macchiarola, Teddy McGraw*, Brock Moore, Michael Morales, Marcelo Perez, Colton Shaw, Chia-Shi Shen, Ryan Sloan
Catchers:
Josh Caron, Connor Charping, Luke Stevenson
Infielders:
Michael Arroyo, 2B; Nick Becker, SS; Felnin Celesten, SS; Colt Emerson, SS; Charlie Pagliarini, 3B; Brock Rodden, 2B/3B; Leandro Romero, SS; Austin St. Laurent, 3B; Luis Suisbel, 1B
Outfielders:
Yorger Bautista, Korbyn Dickerson, Jonny Farmelo, Carlos Jimenez, Victor Labrada*, Lazaro Montes, Jared Sundstrom, Aiden Taurek, Rhylan Thomaa
*Not currently playing due to injury
This will be the last year for the traditional Spring Breakout games (one organization’s prospects vs. another organization’s prospects in a single game). Next year, MLB is introducing a single-elimination, tournament-style contest for the games.
Head Coaches: Jake Boss Jr. (18th season, 496-450) & Will Bolt (7th season, 177-131-1)
TV/Stream: B1G+
Radio: All Nebraska games on Huskers Radio Network, Huskers.com, Huskers App
Nebraska baseball goes into conference play having won both of its mid-week games since returning home to Haymarket Park. It’s riding the hot bats of Dylan Carey, and Mac Moyer. Carey is fresh off a 5 for 5 game, the first 5 hit game for a Husker since Gunner Hellstrom in 2018. Carey is leading all Big Ten batters in both hits (28) and doubles (8) and is 2nd in avg. (.509). He is piling up the RBIs with Moyer reaching base at a .592 clip. He is tied for the Big Ten lead with 13 walks.
Nebraska should also be getting Will Jesske back after a week off due to feeling a twing in his hamstring Friday night at Auburn. Husker coach Will Bolt said he was going to pinch hit if needed the last inning against South Dakota State, but didn’t want him playing the field yet with the cold weather. Jesske has 3 home runs on the year, but with the amount of hits on the barrel he has had at some giant ballparks, he could be close to the Big Ten lead if he played all his games at a place like Haymarket Park.
The Spartans had the biggest upset of the first week of the season, taking the series from then #8 Louisville by winning the first 2 games 4-3 and 13-4. They have struggled mightily since, going 1-8 against a pretty rough schedule. They went from Louisville to #3 Texas and were swept by a combined score of 15-2 in 3 games.
They have a yearly “residency” as they call it, in Greenville, South Carolina early every year, thanks to a big alumni base in the area. They struggled to put up runs in those 2 weeks, never putting up more than 4. Their lone win was a 4-1 victory over Albany, and they ended the residency on a sour note, with a 7 inning run rule loss to #10 Clemson, 12-1. Husker pitchers will need to limit walks and hit batters, and should be able to manage the lineup if they can.
Game 1: RHP Ty Horn (0-0, 4.05 ERA) vs. RHP Aidan Donovan (0-1, 3.95 ERA)
Game 2: RHP Carson Jasa (1-1, 7.71 ERA) vs. RHP Carter Monke (1-1, 2.35 ERA)
Game 3: RHP Gavin Blachowicz (1-1, 2.31 ERA) vs. RHP Logan Pikur (0-2, 7.30 ERA)
It was a rough weekend for Husker starting pitching. In fact, in 2026 no weekend starter has turned in a quality start. Ty Horn started strong, piling up strikeouts in the first couple innings before a couple hits and an error jump started the Tigers’ offense. Still looking for him to work on getting through the order a couple times in a more efficient fashion. It would really behoove Friday starters to go longer so the bullpen is more available the next two days. That is just as big of a deal as being dominant for 5 innings.
Really nothing went right on Saturday for Carson Jasa. Well, he could locate his fastball for strikes, but that was about it, and Auburn quickly realized it. 2 walks and a hit batter went a long way to giving up 4 earned runs in his lone inning of work, but Auburn learned to just sit and hunt his fastball, and when you connect with a 97 mph fastball, it tends to go a long way. Regaining a feel for his cutter/change and slider is really all he can do.
Even the most steady of the starters for the first 2 weeks had a rough go. Gavin Blachowicz seemed to get out of an issue with minimal damage in the 2nd inning against Auburn in which an error led to a run being scored, but a wild pitch and then giving up a no doubter 3 run home run, opened the game up. Rather than let him work out of it, Nebraska had a couple strong options in the bullpen to turn to, so they let Kevin Mannell come out and get some work in to try and regain his confidence. Blachowicz needs to work on not letting a mistake turn into a big inning, and he should regain his form.
MSU had 2 starting pitcher and kinda filled in the Sunday position last season. They lost Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Joseph Dzierwa, and their Saturday guy was moved to a long relief role. Aidan Donovan was mostly a mid-week starter last season, but has moved into the Friday role. He showed a lot of promise as a freshman in 2025, with a 2-3 record and 4.70 ERA. He pitched well against Louisville and Texas, but struggled in his last outing against Illinois. Don’t look for him to pile up strike outs or go deep into the game, his season high is 5 innings and he has 10 strikeouts in his 13.2 innings so far.
Carter Monke is a grad transfer from Illinois State. He started 14 games in his 2 years at ISU, and had a 6.16 ERA, striking out 67 in 83 innings of work. Despite those numbers, he has pitched very well to start 2026. He started 2 of their 3 wins, and in his loss only gave up 1 earned run in 6.1 innings against Texas. Logan Pikur led the team in appearances the past 2 seasons, but has really struggled moving into the starting rotation. He has a career ERA over 7.00 and career batting average against of .315. Nebraska’s offense should be ready to roll Sunday.
Scouting Report
The Spartans returned a lot of position players, but from an offense that really struggled in 2025. They have far and away the fewest hits of any Big Ten team currently, a combo of their offensive struggles and their incredible strength of schedule. They have only 62 hits on the year. The next lowest is 83, and Nebraska by contrast, has 132. They have scored only 33 runs on the season. Nebraska is below average in the B1G, but still has scored 78 runs.
Everything starts with returning 2nd Team All-Big Ten second baseman Ryan McKay. Like everyone, he’s had a rough start to the year. A .250 average and only 1 double from a guy that hit .306 with 20 home runs a season ago. He epitomizes the team’s philosophy of working deep into counts, but not striking out. He has as many walks in his career as strikeouts. He also likes to run, already with 4 stolen bases despite the limited opportunities.
Sliding over from short stop to first base, senior Randy Seymour is leading the team in most hitting categories so far, batting .256, with 2 home runs and 3 doubles. He is a very free swinger though, striking out 11 and only walking once. The team was also expecting big things out of outfielder Parker Picot, and in the second game of the season, he delivered, hitting 2 home runs and driving in 8 RBIs in the 13-4 win over Louisville. Other than that game, he is 1 for 25 with 1 RBI.
The Spartans landed a huge recruit in 3B/OF CJ Decking. They beat out a long list of Big Ten and SEC programs to get him out of Illinois. Needless to say, a freshman starting his career playing against a top 10 team in 6 out of 8 games has been a rough go. He’s batting .100 with 7 strikeouts, but he will explode eventually.
The MIchigan State bullpen is solid. They don’t strike a ton out as a group, but keep guys off the basepaths, only walking 40 in 93+ innings. Last season’s Saturday starter, Gannon Grundman has transitioned into a bullpen role. He leads the team with 6 appearances, He’s had 2 terrible outings, allowing 4 runs against Texas and 6 against Clemson, ballooning his ERA to 14.04
One of their better arms is Tommy Szczepanski. He stands 6’5 and 235 lbs, and will appear in late game situations. He has 13 strikeouts in 8.2 innings, but also has 8 walks already on the year. He has 1 of the team’s 2 saves on the year.
Per usual, Michigan State is solid on defense. Something to be expected with a SS moving over to first baseman. They currently sit at a 98.2 fielding percentage.
Series History
Nebraska leads the all time series 21-11 against Michigan State. They last met in the opening game of the Big Ten Tournament last year. Nebraska won 5-4 in 10 innings in a game that will long be remembered. The Spartan right fielder dropped the final out in the 9th in what due to the setup of the tournament was essentially an elimination game. That allowing Nebraska to start their improbable run to be Big Ten Champions.
Dylan Carey is 2 doubles shy of owning the career record at Nebraska, currently held by head coach Will Bolt. With the tear he is on, and how up and down the Spartan pitching staff is, a new record by the end of the weekend is not out of the question.
OSAKA, JAPAN - MARCH 02: Shohei Ohtani #16 of team Japan warms up during the 2026 World Baseball Classic exhibition game presented by Capital One between Team Japan and Orix Buffaloes at Kyocera Dome Osaka on Monday, March 2, 2026 in Osaka, Japan. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Today the World Baseball Classic’s group stage enters full swing as pool play games kick off in Houston, Miami, and San Juan. Not counting the 3:00 AM MST match between Japan and Chinese Taipei—which was included in yesterday’s game thread—and including tomorrow’s 3:00 AM match, there are eight World Baseball Classic games today!
Game No. 1: Cuba (República de Cuba) at Panama (República de Panamá)
Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico
First Pitch: 9:00 AM MST
TV: FS2
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 2: The Netherlands (Nederland) at Venezuela (República Bolivariana de Venezuela)
Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA
First Pitch: 10:00 AM MST
TV: Tubi
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 3: Mexico (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) at Great Britain
Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA
First Pitch: 11:00 AM MST
TV: FS1
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 4: Puerto Rico at Colombia (República de Colombia)
Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico
First Pitch: 4:00 PM MST
TV: FS1
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 5: Nicaragua (República de Nicaragua) at Dominican Republic (República Dominicana)
Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA
First Pitch: 5:00 PM MST
TV: FS2
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 6: United States at Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil)
Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA
First Pitch: 6:00 PM MST
TV: Fox
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
Game No. 7: Chinese Taipei ( 中華臺北) at Czechia (Česká)
SCOTTSDALE, AZ - MARCH 03: Roman Anthony #3 of Team USA hits a home run during the 2026 World Baseball Classic exhibition game presented by Capital One between Team USA and San Francisco Giants at Scottsdale Stadium on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Rob Tringali/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Do you know the last time the Red Sox finished a season without a single player hitting at least 20 home runs? If we’re not counting 2020 — which we shouldn’t, pretty much ever, for pretty much anything — then the answer is a loooooong time ago: 1945, to be exact. But, frankly, we shouldn’t even count the World War II years, either. Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio and the rest of the actual Red Sox were fighting overseas, leaving the lineup to be filled with 34-year-old infielders named Skeeter. Everyone knows that it’s impossible to be a power hitter if your name is Skeeter.
Discounting the war years, we have to go all the way back to 1935 — the year before Jimmie Foxx joined the team — to find a season in which no Red Sox player hit at least 20 homers. Suffice it to say, the game was very, very different 91 years ago. Only 14 players across the entire sport hit 20 or more homers. Only 5 hit more than 30. The only thing that the baseball players of 1935 were better at than the players of 2026 was having cool, old timey names (and not just Skeeter, either; let’s hear it for Ripper Collins, Pinky Higgins, Dolph Camili, and Zeke Bonura, all of whom did hit 20 or more homers that year).
Could 2026 be the season that the Red Sox break their 91-year 20-homer streak? It’s not a totally ridiculous question to ask, as FanGraphs currently doesn’t project a single Red Sox player to hit 20 bombs, the only MLB team with that dishonorable distinction. But, nevertheless, the answer is no. Someone on the Red Sox (likely multiple someones) will hit 20 homers in 2026.
This isn’t to say that the FanGraphs’ projections are “wrong.” Rather, this is an acknowledgment that projections are not predictions. Projections are conservative by nature, favoring mean outcomes rather than outlier outcomes because, well, outlier outcomes are outliers for a reason. The projections also don’t take into account the real-world human factors that influence statistical outcomes. E.g., the projections only know that Trevor Story hit 16, 2, and 3 home runs from 2022-2024; they do not know that he his home runs totals were that low because he was injured for most of that time.
So, starting with the assumption that someone will hit 20 homers, our question of the day is: how many will do so and who will they be?
There’s one easy answer on this roster:
Roman Anthony is a generationally talented player with monster power. It didn’t always show up in his partial rookie year in 2025, but it’s there, and it’s going to be unleashed sooner rather than later. If he plays at least 130 games, it’s hard for me to see him not getting to at least 20, if not 30.
But, admittedly, it’s hard to say with any certainty that anyone else on the roster will likely hit 20 homers. Trevor Story blasted 25 last year. But no one would be shocked if he has yet another injury set-back this year, and he’s a 33-year-old with a rapidly slowing bat who struggles to make contact. Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela both hit 16 last year, but both have obvious flaws in their offensive profiles (for Druan, it’s hitting against lefties, for Rafaela, it’s his swing decisions) and both of them find themselves in a crowded outfield rotation that will almost certainly result in them playing fewer than the 157 and 156 games they played in last year. Like Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu is also a young player with some offensive flaws who has yet to totally establish himself in the bigs. And while Willson Contreras hit exactly 20 last year, like Trevor Story, he is battling not just opposing pitchers but the relentless march of time.
For me, I’ll set the over/under on Red Sox players who hit 20 or more home runs at 3. I believe Anthony and Abreu are likely to get there, and someone from that Duran/Ceddy/Contreras/Story group will join them. Hell, we can’t even rule out Triston Casas.
What say you? Talk about home runs and whatever else you want and, as always, be good to one another.
SURPRISE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 27: Leo De Vries #83 of the Athletics walks off the field during a spring training game against the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium on February 27, 2026 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Morning everyone and happy Friday!
This year’s Spring Breakout Game for the Athletics is quickly approaching. In just over two weeks we’ll see some of the Athletics’ top prospects take on the Milwaukee Brewers’ top prospects in some head-to-head action of what could be and ultimately is a peak into the future of both organizations.
The A’s announced a few of their players that will be participating in this year’s contest. In no surprise to any A’s fan, top farmhand Leo De Vries is set to don the Green & Gold against the Brew Crew. The 19-year-old shortstop is seemingly on the cusp of the majors after crushing the ball last year between Double and Triple-A. It’s important to remember he’s still extremely young for his age but that hasn’t seemed to faze him during his first camp with the A’s. So far he’s 6-for-16 this spring, though all singles. Encouragingly he’s also avoided the punchout with just three so far, which could be one of the things he’s been working on during camp.
Joining De Vries in the Breakout will be outfielder Henry Bolte, currently ranked #5 according to MLB Pipeline but #6 according to A’s fans. A top high school draft choice by the A’s in 2022, he was young when he joined the organization but has steadily climbed the minor league ladder over the past few seasons and is now also on the cusp of the big leagues. He’ll be joining De Vries in the Breakout Game, Triple-A, and before long they’ll be teammates on the Athletics hoping to lead us to the Promised Land. He’s also had a good camp so far with the A’s, going 7-for-20 (but also worryingly with six strikeouts).
Another notable prospect, but one that is much further away from The Show than the previously mentioned two, is two-way player Shotaro Morii. The 2025 international signee last year decided to skip the regular career path of Japanese players and decided to come directly over stateside at just 18 years of age. There was a lot of excitement when the A’s nabbed him, not only because he’s a two-way player but because he’s legitimately talented on both sides of the ball. The A’s promised to develop him as both a shortstop and a pitcher and that seemed to have been the deciding factor for him joining up with us last year. The club decided to slow-roll his development on the pitching side of things but plan to “unleash” him this coming season.
On the pitching side of things for the A’s in the Breakout Game, it should come as no surprise that left-hander Jamie Arnold will be getting the ball at some point in that contest. The Athletics’ first-round pick during the most recent draft looks like the real deal here in camp. It’s just spring and he’s likely to start on the lower end of the minor league ladder but he’s looked good in camp so far in short relief bursts. He won’t be the only top lefty though as he’ll be joined by Gage Jump on the roster. Like Arnold, the 22-year-old Jump has a high ceiling of a #2 or #3 starter on a contending team. Unlike Arnold however Jump is further along in his development and could be an option for the big league squad as soon as this summer. Exciting times to be a left-hander in the A’s system!
Here’s how the full preliminary roster for the Breakout Game looks:
PITCHERS (19) Jamie Arnold, LHP, No. 2/MLB No. 41 Corey Avant, RHP, NR Henry Baez, RHP, No. 14 Mason Barnett, RHP, No. 17 Samuel Dutton, RHP, NR Steven Echavarria, RHP, No. 16 Jackson Finley, RHP, NR Gunnar Hoglund, RHP, No. 18 Kenya Huggins, RHP, No. 24 Gage Jump, LHP, No. 3/MLB No. 57 Wei-En Lin, LHP, No. 4 Cole Miller, RHP, No. 25 Kade Morris, RHP, No. 12 Braden Nett, RHP, No. 6 Eduarniel Núñez, RHP, No. 22 Grant Richardson, LHP, NR Tzu-Chen Sha, RHP, NR Zane Taylor, RHP, No. 19 Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, RHP, No. 27
TWO-WAY PLAYERS (1) Shotaro Morii, SS/RHP, No. 13
CATCHERS (3) Cole Conn, C, NR Davis Diaz, C, NR Dylan Fien, C, NR
INFIELDERS (8) Bobby Boser, 3B/SS, No. 30 Leo De Vries, SS, No. 1/MLB No. 4 Colby Halter, , INF, NR Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, SS, No. 10 Luke Mann, INF, NR Edgar Montero, SS, No. 11 Drew Swift, INF, NR Tommy White, 3B, No. 9
Lots of other interesting and exciting prospects will be available for that game and it truly is a sneak-peak at the future. Just think: current Athletics Nick Kurtz, Luis Morales, Max Muncy, Denzel Clarke, and Gunnar Hoglund were all featured in last year’s Breakout game and finished the year with the big league squad. Which prospects from this year’s contest will be in the majors by season’s end?
In other news, the World Baseball Classic is officially underway! The A’s have six players participating in the tournament but so far none have gotten into official games. In the two exhibition games for Canada we saw Denzel Clarke go 1-for-5 with a walk and three strikeouts. In two Puerto Rico games outfielder Carlos Cortes has gone 3-for-3 and 0-for-2, respectively, while his teammate Darell Hernaiz has gone just 0-for-5 across the two contests.
The three A’s pitchers participating in the tournament meanwhile have been quiet. Starting pitcher and staff leader Luis Severino got two innings of work in for the Dominican Republic in an exhibition against the Detroit Tigers, getting touched up for three runs (including a solo homer to top prospect Kevin McGonigle). Teammate and fellow Athletic Elvis Alvarado made a scoreless appearance the next day with two strikeouts against those same Tigers in their team’s final tune-up. And righty prospect Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, on the Chinese Taipei National Team, has yet to make an appearance but likely will today.
Have a good weekend A’s fans. And enjoy the World Baseball Classic!
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 12: Tomoyuki Sugano #11 of the Colorado Rockies plays catch during a spring training workout at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on February 12, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Kyle Cooper/Colorado Rockies/Getty Images)
In 2025, Colorado Rockies starters had a combined 6.65 ERA, more than a full run higher than the next-worst Washington Nationals. It would be difficult to exaggerate how poorly this group performed over the past few seasons.
But it’s a new day.
The rotation enters 2026 having taken steps designed, not only to stop the bleeding, but also to foster experimentation in order to build a long-term identity.
The Locks
The Rockies spent more money on free agent starting pitchers this offseason than they had in any other since signing Jorge De La Rosa to a two-year deal (with a couple of option years) in 2010.
With that money, they secured the services of three veteran arms that are expected to — alongside rotation stalwart Kyle Freeland — provide the bulk of innings for the major league club in 2026. While the context that brought them here differs, Tomoyuki Sugano, José Quintana, and Michael Lorenzen enter the organization sharing a striking number of similarities as pitchers:
They have been consistently available to take the mound; as a trio the past two seasons they have averaged 26 ⅓ starts a year.
Each has a wide pitch arsenal ranging from Quintana’s five pitches to Lorenzen’s whopping eight.
They’ve all had playoff experience (Sugano’s coming in NPB where he was a three-time MVP).
None of them collects many strikeouts or even throws particularly hard (Lorenzen’s 8.07 K/9 and 93.5 mph fastball are both the high marks for the group).
All of this is also true of the only rotation lock that was present on the team last year: Kyle Freeland.
Now the franchise leader in career games started and bWAR, Freeland has managed to remain a major league quality pitcher for nearly a decade. It’s been years since hope of regaining his near Cy Young form from 2018 seemed reasonable, but the club clearly valued the sort of stability he provides enough to go get three more arms just like his.
There is one other thing everyone in this category has in common: They are in their mid-30’s, and their futures with the organization past 2026 is murky.
Sugano (36) and Quintana (37) are on one-year deals. Lorenzen (34) has a not-insubstantial $9 million club option for 2027. Freeland (32), has an option for 2027 that will vest if he reaches at least 170 innings pitched this year (a number he hasn’t reached in any of the past three seasons).
For this season, though, they will not be expected to shut down the competition, but simply to remain reliably competent.
Under consideration
Beyond those veteran arms that, barring injuries, will provide the bulk of starts for the club is an eclectic group of pitchers vying for the final rotation spot (or two) to start the year.
The front runners are Ryan Feltner, whose 2024 success is clouded by a 2025 lost to injury, and Chase Dollander, one of the most well-regarded pitching prospects in franchise history, who struggled mightily when at Coors in his rookie season.
They both spent their offseasons attempting to overcome the factors that kept them from succeeding last year: For Feltner, that meant gaining strength, whereas for Dollander, it took the form of making mechanical adjustments to be “more direct to the plate.” They both have at least five pitches in their arsenal, like the veterans at the top of the rotation, but they haven’t been able to harness them with consistency. What upside exists with this year’s rotation primarily comes from these two.
Tanner Gordon and McCade Brown (No. 18 PuRP) are in their mid 20’s (28 and 25, respectively), and both have gotten some chances with the major league squad over the past couple years (109.2 and 25.2 innings respectively). Neither is viewed as a future ace (though Brown has seen his stock rise after remaking his delivery last year), but both are arguably major league ready.
The likeliest outcome for Gordon, a finesse pitcher who had a 93rd percentile walk rate last year, is that he’s pushed into a long man/spot starting role. If Brown — who hasn’t pitched more than 102 ⅓ innings in a season — doesn’t make the rotation right out of the gate, he’ll likely see time back in the minors so he can build up to a starter’s workload.
Finally, we get to the two biggest question marks in this equation.
Jimmy Herget, with his funky side arm delivery, had a phenomenal 2025 season but has pitched from the bullpen his whole career. The same cannot be said for Antonio Senzatela who, having been a rotation mainstay when healthy since 2017, lost his spot last August. This was due, in large part, to an overreliance on his fastball, despite it being the worst in the league according to Statcast’s wFA (Fastball Runs above Average).
Both have, somewhat surprisingly, come into the spring being given a genuine chance to win a starting spot. For either to earn a spot in the rotation — and then perform well in it — would be a major win for the new coaching staff.
Regardless of who from this group ends up in the major league rotation on opening day, it’s likely that all of them (with the exception of Herget) will make starts for the Rockies at some point during the season. Injuries, regression, and/or trades will open up opportunities for them, the question is just which of them forces the team to keep them in that spot.
On the Farm
While the new front office made it a priority to bring in veteran reinforcements for the major league rotation, they have yet to put their stamp on the minor league side of things. They’ve inherited a system that has quite a few realistic back-of-the-rotation-type arms that could be ready to make their big league debuts over the next couple years.
It is, however, sparse when it comes to potential impact talent. The one arm within this group that has true top of the rotation potential is Brecht, but he hasn’t pitched above Low-A and has legitimate command concerns to work on.
That’s not to say this group is without future big leaguers — far from it. Guys like Sullivan, Hughes, and Brown are likely going to be in the majors soon and could end up as solid options for the foreseeable future. It remains to be seen, however, whether or not the new pitching development staff can find ways to pull something more than is currently projected out of anyone already in the system.
If not, this may be an area of the organization that sees quite a few new names added over the next year or two.
Closing thoughts
The main theme that has emerged with this group over the course of the offseason is this: depth.
That means depth in the number of arms Warren Schaeffer can feel comfortable turning to for any given game; depth in the number of pitch types that opposing batters have to think about when digging in against each of those arms; depth in experience with other organizations to pull from; and, finally, depth in the potential young replacements for when the veterans depart.
As things stand, there is no one in this group that a playoff-bound team would feel confident in handing the ball to in an elimination game. However, the Rockies are no longer counting on anyone to start for them that wouldn’t get a major league job with another team.
There is still a long way to go before anyone would call the Rockies rotation good, but it should no longer perform so poorly that it’s historically significant.
