Category: Baseball

Columbus Clippers 0, Worcester Red Sox 5

Clippers fall to 7-5

Columbus managed just four hits on Thursday and Nolan Jones had two of them, going 2-for-4. The only other player to reach base safely twice was Kody Huff, who went 1-for-3 with a walk.

Starting pitcher Logan Allen was tagged for four runs on four hits with three walks and seven strikeouts in 4.2 innings pitched.

Will Dion had 1.1 scoreless frames of relief and Hunter Gaddis allowed one run on one hit with a hit by pitch in his one inning of rehab work.

The lone bright spot was Daniel Espino, who continues to pitch spotlessly, striking out two batters in a scoreless inning of work. I can’t wait until they start allowing him to pitch more than one inning at a time.

Akron RubberDucks 1, Harrisburg Senators 12

RubberDucks fall to 3-3

This one was uuuuuugly. Christian Knapczyk was the lone source of runs for Akron, hitting a fourth inning solo shot over former Guardian prospect Alex Clemmey.

Other than that, the only offensive bright spot was Jose Devers, who went 1-for-2 with a pair of walks.

Starting pitcher Khal Stephen was OK, allowing three runs (one earned) on seven hits in 3.2 innings pitched. He struck out five and walked two.

Reliever Jack Carey had an especially rough day, giving up five runs on three hits and two walks in just 0.1 innings.

Position player Guy Lipscomb got to pitch late in the game, giving up a pair of runs in one inning.

Lake County Captains 4, Dayton Dragons 7

Captains fall to 3-3

The top of Lake County’s batting order accounted for nearly all of the team’s offense in this game.

Jace LaViolette’s bat woke up from its ancient slumber as he picked up his first two career hits as a professional ballplayer. He went 2-for-5 with a double.

Jaison Chourio reached base safely three times, going 2-for-4 with a walk and two stolen bases.

Nolan Schubart walked twice and scored a pair of runs while both Anthony Silva and Garrett Howe went 1-fo-3 with a walk.

Starting pitcher Jackson Humphries was solid, allowing three runs on three hits in 5.0 innings with four strikeouts and two walks.

Miguel Virguez was tattooed for four runs on four hits and a walk in just 0.2 innings of work. Cam Walty cleaned up the mess with 2.1 innings of scoreless long relief and three strikeouts.

Hill City Howlers 3, Fredericksburg Nationals 8

Howlers fall to 3-3

Fredericksburg jumped all over starting pitcher Joey Oakie with four runs in the first inning and two more in the second, although three of the runs were unearned.

Oakie’s final line was 3.0 innings pitched, six runs, three earned on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts.

Jervis Alfaro was sensational in long relief, striking out seven in 4.0 scoreless innings of work.

Jose Pirela was a standout on offense, going 2-for-3 with a home run and a walk.

Luis De La Cruz also went 2-for-3 with a walk. No one else reached base twice or had an extra base hit.

[Warning: Mixed metaphors incoming. Polar bears don’t like the heat. But human ballplayers do go hot and cold, respectively and metaphorically.]

When the Orioles signed Pete Alonso last winter, they knew they what they were getting: the big, slow, mashing first baseman whose value resides entirely in the batter’s box. Not a fielder. Not a base stealer. A big bat, designed to hit dingers, strike fear in the hearts of opposing starters, and do little else.

So when Alonso dove headfirst into second base in the sixth inning of Wednesday’s come-from-behind win against the White Sox—belly flopping across the bag on a hustle double that ignited the go-ahead rally—it felt like a statement… maybe? … about this team and its character, surely, but more importantly, about what version of Pete Alonso we might come to expect.

One double is a rounding error in the career of this five-time All Star. (He’s hit 185, if you were wondering.) But it felt encouraging in context. The truth is, through the first twelve games of 2026, Alonso has been… ice-cold. Not, to prolong this strained image, like a Polar Bear romping in the Artic; more like, well, a first baseman you worry might be overpaid, granted a generous five-year, $155 million contract. He’s hitting .188 with a .264 OBP and .556 OPS.

Wednesday didn’t fix that. But maybe it was the start of improvement. Twelve games, as we know, is nothing.

Also, there are other things going right. Alonso is pounding the ball right now. He’s posting career-highs in exit velocity (95.1 mph) and hard-hit percentage (60.6%). He’s walking at normal rates, and he’s not chasing, either.

The story seems pitch-specific. Alonso is a hitter who loves to hit fastballs, and this year, results-wise, despite good contact, it’s not going well: his average off heaters is .185, although with an expected average (.241) about seventy points better. Interestingly, the launch angle on this pitch is way down: 5 degrees. So is his bat speed: 72.9 mph, down from above 75 in most seasons since MLB Statcast started keeping track. With a lot of ground balls off heaters, this helps to explain why his power is way down, as evidenced by a career .261 ISO (isolated power) and a .104 mark so far this season.

Also, his strikeouts are up: 28.3% versus a career 22.9%. This seems to be driven by swinging strikes against breaking balls, a 40.7% whiff rate that’s a career high in the way you don’t want. It seems Alonso is having difficult timing up offspeed and breaking pitches, and he’s seeing more of them, especially on the first pitch, than ever.

Alonso is struggling to hit lefties (.100 LH vesus .211 RHP splits, respectively), but he’s struggling to hit lefty fastballs most of all. He still doesn’t have a hit off this pitch, despite already seeing 26 of them so far. As for right-handed pitchers, his worst work is against changeups: he’s still hitting .000 off these.  

I’m curious about the bat speed, but otherwise, my best guess, these problems are fluky and small sample-size-based and shouldn’t continue. The weather is still cold, Alonso’s career lefty-righty splits are .231/.260, and power has always been his greatest strength. If I had to guess, I’d say he still hasn’t found his timing.

Back on Wednesday, that sixth-inning double came off an 86-mph sweeper from a right hander. This is a pitch Alonso hasn’t had much luck with all season. Instead, this time he put a charge into one to the gap, and then he ran. Hard and true, pulling out a double with a dive into the bag before later scoring on a wild pitch. It was inspiring hustle from the big man.

Pete Alonso’s designated role on this team is clubhouse leader and big bat. So far, he hasn’t found the latter, for interesting reasons. But there’s a lot more to him as a hitter and he’s certainly already earned a lot of trust with his impressive career track record and leadership role on this new team.

Once the power shows up, the Polar Bear will be an anchor of this lineup. He’s here to play.

The Orioles are now 6-6, back at .500 after Wednesday’s sweep-clincher over the White Sox, and they feel like a team that’s finding something. Whether Alonso ends up being a difference-maker in the traditional sense remains to be seen. But this week, when the moment called for effort over elegance, he delivered.

NC State’s 2026 season took a significant hit as multiple sources have confirmed that JR RHP Jacob Dudan will require Tommy John Surgery for a torn UCL, ending his season and dealing a significant blow to the Wolfpack.

A potential 1st round pick in this year’s MLB Draft before the injury, this likely marks the end of Dudan’s Wolfpack career as he will still be a top three round draft pick come July. The junior from Huntersville was 4-1 with a 3.60 ERA this year over 50.0 innings, spanning eight starts. He had a 30.4 K% against a 5.9 BB% with hitters mustering just a .229 batting average against him.

The clear question here is around the workload that the team was placing on Dudan. Transitioning from his role as a high-leverage bullpen arm in 2024 and 2025, Dudan threw 100+ pitches in each of his last six starts, including 110+ in four of the last five. Given the high velocity and a heavy slider mix for the righty, it’s fair to question if he should have been allowed to work such high pitch counts.

With Dudan out, JR LHP Cooper Consiglio will likely slide into the weekend rotation, joining JR LHP Ryan Marohn and JR RHP Heath Andrews. That in turn pulls a valuable arm from an already thin bullpen for State.

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The Chicago Cubs will look to improve their winning streak to three games when they host the Pittsburgh Pirates in an NL Central clash at Wrigley Field on Friday, April 10.

My top Pirates vs. Cubs predictions and MLB picks expect Chicago to pull off the victory, with the total going Over the number this afternoon.

Who will win Pirates vs Cubs today: Cubs moneyline (-140)

The Chicago Cubs will receive a boost with Seiya Suzuki making his season debut this afternoon, and the Cubbies have also been on the unlucky side to start the year.

Chicago ranks second in hard-hit rate and sixth in barrel percentage, so positive regression to a 25th-ranked BABIP is coming.

Additionally, Pittsburgh Pirates righty Carmen Mlodzinski has surrendered a 68.0% hard-hit rate through two starts, and three of his five offerings have negative pitch values.

Chicago starter Shota Imanga is also eyeing statistical correction with his 4.50 ERA above his 3.03 xERA and 3.48 xFIP.

COVERS INTEL: Seiya Suzuki was third in wOBA on the Cubs in 2025, and he posted a monster .467 mark during his five-game rehab stint.

Pirates vs Cubs Over/Under pick: Over 6.5 (-113)

The wind is forecasted to be blowing in at the Friendly Confines, but Chicago isn’t truly going to live up to its Windy City moniker. 

As noted, the Cubs are positioned to have a breakout day at the dish, and have scored 24 runs across their past four games.

And, while Imanga has solid underlying numbers, the Pirates can also do damage.

Pittsburgh has a deeper and more potent lineup than in years past and ranks seventh in wOBA against lefties to start the season.

Pirates vs Cubs odds

• Moneyline: Pirates +133 | Cubs -138
• Run line: Pirates +1.5 (-156) | Cubs -1.5 (+150)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (-113) | Under 6.5 (+108)

Pirates vs Cubs trend

The Cubs have covered the run line in 10 of their last 14 games at home (+7.25 Units / 43% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Pirates vs. Cubs.

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Here are five things to watch and predictions as the Yankees hit the road to take on the Rays from newly-renovated Tropicana Field.

5 things to watch

Offense looking for answers

The Yankees dropped their first series of the season, losing two of three games against the Athletics at Yankee Stadium. But it's not the fact that they lost, it's how it went down.

After Amed Rosario was the hero on Tuesday night, the offense went silent, dropping the final two games while scoring a total of two runs. After scoring two runs in the first inning of Wednesday's game, the Yanks picked up just two hits (and no runs) across the next 17 innings. 

While the players who have struggled to start the season continued to scuffle, the top of the order hasn't been great of late.

Aaron Judge was 1-for-9 with two walks and two strikeouts in the A's series. Giancarlo Stanton, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Cody Bellinger had just four hits combined in the three games. 

Even Ben Rice, the team's hottest hitter, was just 2-for-10. As good as the pitching has been for the Yankees, they'll need more production from the hitters to achieve their goals.

Bottom of the order woes

A big part of the offensive outage has been the bottom of the order.

Ryan McMahon, Jose Caballero and Austin Wells are a combined 12-for-96 this season, including 2-for-18 in the three-game set against Oakland. That has forced manager Aaron Boone to shuffle the lineup in a number of ways. Rosario has started at third and second base recently, while McMahon and Caballero were given games off. 

McMahon even made his first MLB start at shortstop this week just to give a different look. Now, aside from Rosario's heroics on Tuesday, the lineup shuffling didn't work, but we should expect more this weekend. Boone confirmed Giancarlo Stanton will take one game off this weekend (likely Saturday) to give Judge a game at DH. 

How often will we see Rosario in the starting lineup? Can the bottom of the order improve, even a little, this weekend?

Luis Gil's season debut

After the Yankees broke camp with just four starters -- thanks to a number of off days -- the team is ready to bring Gil back.

Gil will make his season debut in the series-opener on Friday. The young right-hander was up-and-down in spring training, which resulted in him starting the season in the minors, but now it's time for him to try and reclaim his spot.

As Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon work toward returns, and Will Warren and Ryan Weathers -- starters who can potentially be sent down once reinforcements arrive -- pulling their weight, Gil needs to get off to a good start.

He made one minor league start and allowed three runs in 4.2 innings. He struck out six but walked four, a problem that plagued Gil in 2025. 

Can Max Fried bounce back?

Fried got off to a scorching start to the season, not allowing a run in his first 13.1 innings. That momentum came to a halt against the Marlins on Sunday when he allowed three runs across 6.2 innings on a miserable, rain-delayed outing.

While still effective, the Yanks will need Fried to help them get back on track. The Yankees don't know what they'll get from Gil on Friday, so Fried on Saturday may be what stands between New York and a four-game losing streak.

Back at the Trop

The Yankees are well-acquainted with Tropicana Field, but it's been a while since they've actually traveled to St. Petersburg to take on their division rivals.

After spending their road games against Tampa Bay at their spring training facility last season, New York will finally return with all the quirks that come with the stadium that has housed the Rays since 1998. 

As Boone said prior to Thursday's series finale against the A's, he doesn't know what to expect when the team arrives.

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Aaron Judge

The Yankees will see two southpaws this weekend and Judge has 11 home runs in 53 career games at Tropicana Field. 

Which Yankees pitcher will have the best start?

Max Fried

The last time Fried allowed three or more runs in back-to-back starts, you'll have to go back to mid-August of last season. Don't anticipate that happening this weekend.

Which Rays player will be a thorn in the Yankees' side?

Junior Caminero

Caminero has gotten off to a hot start, and it's easy to see him smashing a home run or two this weekend.

After a high-quality win opened their most recent series with the Athletics, the Yankees finished it off with tough back-to-back losses. In those two ballgames, the “Bombers” mustered just five combined hits and two runs, which included a one-hit shutout in the latter. With some of their better arms slated to start in their upcoming series against the Rays, they have to hope the bats can wake up a bit for the trip down to St. Pete.

Tampa Bay has had a so-so start to the season, and will certainly have their hands full with the Yankees paying them a visit back at Tropicana Field.

Friday: Luis Gil vs. Steven Matz (7:10 pm ET)

A strategic move had Luis Gil start the season in triple-A, but now with a need for a full five-man rotation, he’ll make his 2026 debut on Friday in the series opener. The 2024 American League Rookie of the Year missed a good chunk of his sophomore campaign last season, and was shaky when he was on the mound. Across 11 starts and 57 innings, the righty managed an improved 3.32 ERA, but his strikeout and walk rates took troubling steps backward. He looked good in the spring, however, posting a 24:5 K:BB rate in 19.1 innings, and will look to keep that version of himself rolling in his season debut.

He’ll start against Steven Matz, who has started his 12th big league season on the right foot. I remember watching him toss a gem in the 2014 Eastern League Championship game for the Binghamton Mets, and 12 years later, he’s still making it happen on the mound, now with the Rays. In 11 innings across his first two starts, the lefty has worked efficiently, and is coming off of a one-run, eight-strikeout performance against the Twins last weekend.

Saturday: Max Fried vs. Nick Martinez (6:10 pm ET)

In the series’ second game, the Yankees will flip back to the top of the rotation, giving Max Fried another go-around. In the second season of his eight-year deal with the Yankees, the lefty has been terrific on the whole. His first two starts saw him shut out the Giants and Mariners, keeping the scoreboard blank and allowing just five total hits. He is coming off his first forgettable start of the season, when he walked three and allowed as many earned runs in a start against the Marlins. He’ll look to get back on track against Florida’s other team.

Fried will square off against journeyman Nick Martinez. He has put together a solid run of respectable pitching over the last half-decade, and has done a nice job thus far for the Rays. The 35-year-old has completed six innings in each of his first two starts, and has allowed just three earned runs in those 12 innings. His latest was a one-run, one-hit performance against the Twins.

Sunday: Cam Schlittler vs. Shane McClanahan (1:40 pm ET)

If Cam Schlittler’s rookie campaign was encouraging, the start of his 2026 season has been downright thrilling. Similar to his rotation-mate Fried, he kept things scoreless through each of his first two starts, but is coming off of a start with three earned runs pinned on him against the A’s. The real highlight, however, has been his striking out of seven or more batters in all three starts this year, and even more so, the fact that he has not surrendered a walk yet. He’ll look to build on his sparkling 1.62 ERA and 0.54 FIP on Sunday’s series finale.

Schlittler will square off with Shane McClanahan, who himself was once considered one of baseball’s best pitching talents. The left-hander has fallen on hard times of late, as non-stop injury trouble kept him from throwing a single big league season in either the 2024 or 2025 seasons. He is back, however, which is good to see, and he’s done some good things thus far. He’s worked on a limited load, tossing less than five innings in each of his two starts this season. McClanahan has struck out nine in his 8.2 innings, but will need to improve on the seven walks he’s surrendered if he wants to return fully to form. This will be his first start against the Yankees sine August of 2023.

Jorge Polanco, a capable switch-hitter, would normally feature prominently in almost all imaginable iterations of an ideal Mets lineup against lefty Eduardo Rodriguez. Yet Polanco did not start against Rodriguez and the Diamondbacks on Thursday night.

Before the Mets’ loss to the D-backs on Wednesday afternoon, Polanco said the Achilles pain that has been limiting his time in the field “comes and goes.” Some days, he feels well enough to play a game in the field and even tries to field some ground balls early. Some days, he admitted, he feels much worse.

“Yesterday,” manager Carlos Mendoza said Thursday. “Was one of those days.”

Polanco could require a trip to the injured list to fully vanquish regular pain. But even if it doesn’t, Polanco’s bout of what the Mets are calling “Achilles tendinitis” could still shift the Mets’ first base prognosis dramatically.

Ever since the Mets introduced Polanco – and did so a few days after the Baltimore Orioles introduced Pete Alonso as their first baseman – he has felt like the heir apparent to Alonso at that position. Maybe Bo Bichette would help replace Alonso’s offense, sure. But Polanco would be the man around the bag – and maybe even better than Alonso defensively (though opinions vary on the height of that bar) -- once he got the hang of it.

But in the short-term, and perhaps even long-term in 2026, Polanco might fit best as a designated hitter more often than not.

While he continues to avoid the IL and battles regular flareups, Polanco will almost certainly make his appearances as a DH. Not only would logic prescribe less time standing on achy legs in cold weather than more, but Polanco has not had time to build stamina and experience at first defensively. Playing there regularly will require regular work. And he is not able to work regularly yet.

“I just have pain, a little. Doing everything,” Polanco said. “It’s not something that, doing this feels really bad, doing this feels really good. Some days I feel really good. Some days I have a little bit of pain.”

Polanco has only played first base in two of the Mets’ first 13 games. His inexperience showed in both of them, though so too did his adjustments from play to play.

“I was comfortable. I was getting comfortable [before the injury],” Polanco said. “I was starting to feel like a first baseman.”

The good news for the Mets is they have other first-basemen-in-training to evaluate in the meantime. Mark Vientos and Brett Baty both got extra work at the position in spring training. Vientos has started five straight games there, in part because he exploded offensively, in part because Juan Soto’s injury cleared outfield space for Baty. That pair – both of whom now have more innings there than Polanco and have looked comfortable -- could platoon there when Soto returns. Jared Young also has more experience at first.

One could argue that the best way to keep Polanco’s much-needed bat in the lineup into October would be to have him DH most of the time, rather than test his legs at first. Certainly, in the short term, the Mets have chosen that solution.

“The priority here is to keep him healthy. Health is the most important part here,” Mendoza said. “When he gets [healthy], he’ll continue to get opportunity [at first]. But we just gotta make sure he’s feeling 100 percent before we put him out there.”

Long-term, Polanco – who has played more than 500 career games at shortstop and more than 400 at second base in his career – says playing the field is important to him.

“It does matter to me. I do want to be out there. I feel like I can be out there and help the team in that aspect, too,” Polanco said. “But it’s just what’s going on right now.”

The Mets can afford to wait and see whether he will be able to play first regularly for them this year. They did not sign him for his glove.

Toledo Mud Hens 5, St. Paul Saints 3 (box)

The Mud Hens bounced back from an extra innings loss on Wednesday to take a 2-1 lead in this best of six, their first homestand of the season.

Ty Madden got the start for the Mud Hens, and while his velocity is still way down in the low 90’s he was very effective in this one. After both teams were blanked in the first inning, Madden allowed an Orlando Arcia double, and an Eric Wagaman single scored him before Madden punched out Alex Jackson to end the inning. Still, that was all Madden would allow, as he struck out five across five innings of one-run ball.

Corey Julks evened the score with a solo shot to left in the bottom of the third. Two innings later, a Julks single of pitcher Grant Hartwig sparked a bigger rally. Cal Stevenson singled to right, and Max Burt doubled down the left field line to score Julks. Ben Malgeri walked to load the bases, and Max Clark smoked a line drive to center for a two-run double that made it 4-1. Malgeri was cut down trying to score a third run on the play, and Gage Workman grounded out to end the threat, but the Hens had all the runs they’d need on this night.

LHP Drew Sommers took over in the sixth, and he gave up one run, but Jace Jung mashed his first homer of the year in the bottom half, and it was a 410 footer to straightaway center field.

Jack Little allowed a solo shot to Alex Jackson in the seventh, but Tyler Mattison and Burch Smith shut down the Saints the rest of the way, with the latter earning the save.

Wenceel Pérez was scratched in this one, so expect him in Detroit for Parker Meadows on Friday night.

Julks: 2-3, 2 R, RBI, HR, BB

Workman: 2-4, K, SB

Jung: 1-3, R, RBI, HR, BB, K

Clark: 1-4, 2 RBI, 2B

Madden (W, 1-0): 5.0 IP, ER, 3 H, BB, 5 K

Coming Up Next: The two clubs meet up at 7:05 p.m. ET on Friday night.

Chesapeake Baysox 2, Erie SeaWolves 1 (box)

The Baysox walked off an otherwise close, well pitched game on Thursday, taking a 2-1 lead in the series.

LHP Joe Miller was very good again, as was the Baysox’s Evan Yates. Each went 4 1/3 innings, allowing one earned run while punching out five.

The SeaWolves had a chance to score in the first and missed it. Peyton Graham singled with one out and Brett Callahan reached on a throwing error, but Andrew Jenkins and E.J. Exposito struck out to end the threat.

In the top of the second, Joe Campagna walked with one out, moving to third on a Bennett Lee double. Seth Stephenson bounced a groundout to first, scoring Campagna, but that was all they’d get. 1-0 Erie.

Miller dodged a little traffic in the middle innings, but a pair of singles and a walk loaded the bases in the fifth. Aron Estrada reached on an infield single to score one run, and Miller punched out the next hitter before lefty Johan Simon took over, getting a strikeout and a flyout to escape the jam.

The SeaWolves threatened in the seventh but didn’t score. RHP Woo-Suk Go took over in the bottom half and he gave up a two-out double but punched out Ethan Anderson to keep the score 1-1. The SeaWolves just couldn’t string anything else together.

RHP Wandisson Charles took over in the bottom of the ninth, and he got the first two outs before plunking Brandon Butterworth, who then stole second base, and then scored on a walkoff single from Estrada.

Graham: 2-4, SB

Lee: 2-3, 2B

Miller: 4.1 IP, ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 5 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start on Friday.

Great Lakes Loons 5, West Michigan Whitecaps 2 (box)

Hayden Minton struggled with his command a bit, while the ‘Caps offense struggled in general on Thursday.

The right-hander gave up back-to-back doubles in the top of the first, and Logan Wagner followed with a two-run shot to make it 3-0 while people were still trying to find their seats. Minton got the next three outs in order to end the half inning with help from a great diving grab by Patrick Lee in left, but after a clean second, he got in trouble again in the third. He walked Mike Sirota with one out, and with two outs hit Jose Meza. A wind blown pop-up to right field dropped in as both runners scored and it was 5-0 without really a hard hit ball or a bunch of walks even involved.

The Whitecaps got on the board in the fifth. Cristian Santana was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and Clayton Campbell doubled him to third. Junior Tilien lined out, but Patrick Lee walked to load the bases. Woody Hadeen lifted a fly ball to right deep enough for Santana to tag and score, and then Lee stole second. Sterling Patrick walked Samuel Gil to load the bases. Justin Chambers took over from Patrick and walked in a run before Roberto Campos flew out to end the inning. 5-2 Loons.

Ryan Harvey and Luke Stofel did a nice job in relief in the late innings, but the Whitecaps never mounted another threat, managing just two hits on the night.

Gil: 1-3, BB, K

Campbell: 1-4, R, 2B, K

Hurtado: 0-2, RBI, 2 BB, 2 K

Minton (L, 0-1): 3.1 IP, 5 ER, 4 H, BB, K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:35 p.m. ET start on Friday night.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 10, Daytona Tortugas 2 (box)

Lefty Ben Jacobs outdid his excellent pro debut last week with a pretty spectacular outing as the Flying Tigers crushed Daytona to remain undefeated through six games.

Jacobs averaged 94 mph in this one with slightly above average induced vertical break. His good vertical attack angle and advanced fastball command helps that to play up, as the fastball and slider generated most of the swing and miss. The Tortugas had little chance as Jacobs racked up 18 whiffs and seven strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings of work. He did walk two, and had some long at-bats that stretched his pitch count up early on, but the Tortugas only managed a pair of singles against him. He’s not going to stay in Lakeland too long as an advanced college pitcher, but the Tigers’ 2025 third rounder is certainly off to a good start.

The Flying Tigers’ offense threatened in the first, and they broke through in the second when Sergio Tapia led off with a single. A one-out Anibal Salas single got Tapia to third and Jude Warwick singled him home for a 1-0 lead.

The Flying Tigers pushed across another run in the third, but it was in the sixth where they blew the Tortugas up for good. With Nelfri Payano taking over on the mound for Daytona, Salas drew a leadoff walk and Jesus Pinto singled through the right side to get Salas to third. A balk scored him, and after Warwick flew out, Jack Goodman walked and Beau Ankeney reached on an error to load the bases. Hernandez followed with a double that cleared the bases.

That made it 6-0, but they weren’t done. Nolan McCarthy drew a walk to put runners on first and second as the Tortugas went back to the bullpen. Bryce Archie took over and got Tapia to fly out, but then walked Newremberg Rondon to load the bases. A two-run double from Salas made it an 8-0 game.

Ankeney added on with a two-run shot in the fifth for his first professional home run, and the strapping first baseman looks built to hit plenty of them. 10-0 Lakeland.

Pedro Garcia took over from Jacobs, while Andrew Pogue took over for the sixth and seventh innings, racking up four strikeouts. Yendry Gomez allowed a pair of runs in the eighth to get Daytona on the board, but this one was long over by then.

Ankeney: 2-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR, K

Pinto: 3-6, R, K

Hernandez: 2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B, BB, K

Jacobs: 3.2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 7 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:30 p.m. ET start in Lakeland on Friday evening.

Last season the Dodgers were able to complete their quest of two straight titles without the help of their best left-handed relief option in the World Series.

Alex Vesia was away from the Dodgers during last year’s Fall Classic as he and his wife were grieving the sudden loss of their newborn daughter, Sterling, and both Dodgers and Blue Jays relievers alike sported Vesia’s no. 51 on the side of their caps. Back in Toronto for the first time since the epic seven-game series, Vesia came into a tough situation on Tuesday as he dealt with a bases loaded situation in the bottom of the seventh inning, with the Dodgers holding a slim lead. He was able to get the Dodgers out of the inning, and the team eventually sealed a series win over Toronto.

Vesia recounted that the past few days had been hard for him emotionally, as noted by Sonja Chen of MLB.com, and remarked that he was able to feed off of the energy from the crowd to get out of the bases-loaded jam.

“The past two days have been hard,” Vesia said Tuesday night. “It’s nice, though, to have my wife in the stands. She was right behind the dugout tonight. I definitely was looking at her, especially after the outing.

“But honestly, during it, that was awesome. I really — the adrenaline, the crowd, I feed off that. It was definitely a great outing. One pitch at a time. That was a great, great win all in all.”

Links

Despite an ugly 0-4 performance with four strikeouts, Andy Pages continues to sport some of the best numbers in all of baseball. Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register that Pages routinely takes simulated at-bats using the Trajekt machine, using Paul Skenes’ pitch mix to help give him a better feel as to how the ball moves.

“I focused a lot on the pitches that Paul Skenes was throwing, just because his ball moves so much,” Pages said. “I start with him (on game days), but then I zone in on the starting pitcher for that evening.”

Dodger Stadium had been the name of the iconic home of the Dodgers for 64 seasons. Beginning March 25, the traditional name was no more, as the era of UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium is upon us.

So far the rebranding has produced some very mixed results, per Sam Blum of The Athletic.

Not ideal:

Busy day yesterday, but Royals Review had you covered!

First, the Royals revealed the new City Connect jerseys. Anne Rogers also wrote about them. As did Pete Grathoff at The Star. Jaylon Thompson talked to players about them:

“It definitely adds character to the game,” Royals second baseman Jonathan India said. “It makes you feel a little swaggy out there. It gives you a confidence edge. You just kind of feel that.”

Then, there were some roster moves ahead of the game last night. Jaylon Thompson also wrote about them.

Finally, Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas talked about downtown ballpark plans. The Star had /a lot/ to say about that.

Sam McDowell and Kacen Bayless had the “just the facts” article:

“What I would say to folks is that today is a very material step in the delivery of a downtown baseball stadium that the Royals and the city are interested in opening by Opening Day of 2030,” Lucas said in an exclusive interview with The Star.

Eleanor Nash writes about the Washington Square Park location. Pete Grathoff linked to some renderings. The Kansas City Star Editorial Board claims “Kansas City leaders sprang another Royals stadium surprise on us”.

And last, but certainly not least, Chris Higgins and Dylan Lysen wrote an article entitled “How would KC cover $600M for Royals stadium? Why proposal doesn’t require a vote”:

“This is a baseball stadium footprint that is actually helping fund the development and surrounding development,” Lucas said. “This is a lot like incentives that we do each and every day, as compared to the old votes that we had on full county sales taxes.”

Similarly, public agencies like the Port Authority of Kansas City stags hearings but have not needed voter permission to consider incentives for new apartment buildings and other projects. And recently, the city of Independence staged public hearings but did not need voter permission to sign a deal granting $6 billion-plus in tax breaks for a $150 billion dollar data center.

Good news, everyone!

Oh, wait, that’s the opposite of

Want good news via BlueSky instead?

Listicles?

At The Athletic ($), Jim Bowden’s mailbag mentions the Royals:

What level of production should Royals fans realistically expect from Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone this season? — Lloyd W.

I expect Jensen to be in the conversation with the Tigers’ Kevin McGonigle and the White Sox’s Munetaka Murakami for AL Rookie of the Year. I think Caglianone will hit at minimum between 20 and 25 homers when all is said and done. They are both going to develop into All-Star caliber players over the next three years.

There was a lot of talk about the City Connects so I’ll post it in this section, too:

• At MLB.com, Anthony Castrovince wrote the official introductory piece
• Anthony Gharib wrote that story for ESPN
• He also gives a grade to every City Connect jersey. The Royals get a C. David Schoenfield gave their original City Connect a C, as well (if you scroll down the article)
• Matt Snyder at CBS Sports ranks the eight new jerseys and had the Royals in… 7th
• Meanwhile, Jack Baer at Yahoo had them in 2nd

Blogs!

Yesterday, David Lesky ($) had one called “Two Not So Fun Days in Cleveland for the Royals” while Craig Brown’s was “A painful afternoon in Cleveland”. I’m sure they’re well written and with a wealth of good information that I’m not going to read. I just want to get past this unfun week of baseball.

At Royals Keep, Kevin O’Brien asks if Bobby is “on the verge of breaking out”:

The bat speed isn’t bad, as it’s mostly been above-average this year. However, he’s touched 75 MPH far less than a year ago, and he’s hovered around or below the MLB average bat speed. It’s only a 74 swing sample, which is why I don’t think it’s something to panic about. However, if there’s not an uptick in bat speed, it will be interesting to see how his power will respond with the current swing path-tilt.

Blog Roundup:

• Also, Kevin O’Brien at Royals Keep: Royals Reveal New City Connect Jerseys for 2026
• Jackson Huxel at Royals Keep: The Cornerstone of the Hot Corner: 3 Reasons Why Maikel Garcia is Essential to the Royals’ Success
• Darin Watson at U.L.’s Toothpick: This Date In Royals History–1976 Edition: April 9 – The Royals begin the season with…a shutout loss in Chicago
• Caleb Moody at KOK: Royals’ silent offense has fans begging for do-over on questionable offseason choice
• Also, Caleb Moody at KOK: Royals fans’ reaction says it all after manufactured hype around new City Connects
• Even more Caleb Moody at KOK: Royals’ struggling bullpen could use Triple-A standout now more than ever

It’s that time of year again! Actually, it’s a little past that time of year. It’s time for our Asian Baseball previews. I think last year’s schedule worked pretty well: Three weeks of previews, one week of midseason fun, and then three weeks of wrap-up. Not too much or too little.

Here’s the schedule for this year:

• This week: CPBL
• April 17: KBO
• April 24th: NPB

Here are links to old articles:

• 2020: (CPBL Intro) (Pick KBO team) (May) (Early June) (Late June) (July) (October) (November Season Wrapup)
• 2021: (Asian Baseball Preview) (June CPBL Update) (June KBO Update) (July NPB Update) (Final July Update) (September KBO Update) (September CPBL Update) (October NPB Update) (CPBL Season Wrapup) (KBO Season Wrapup) (NPB Season Wrapup)
• 2022: Writing hiatus
• 2023: (CPBL Preview) (KBO Preview) (NPB Preview) (CPBL Midseason) (KBO Midseason) (NPB Midseason) (CPBL Wrapup) (KBO Wrapup) (NPB Wrapup)
• 2024: (CPBL Preview) (KBO Preview) (NPB Preview) (CPBL Midseason) (KBO Midseason) (NPB Midseason) (CPBL Wrapup) (KBO Wrapup) (NPB Wrapup)
• 2025: (CPBL Preview) (KBO Preview) (NPB Preview) (Midseason) (CPBL Wrapup) (KBO Wrapup) (NPB Wrapup)

For a reminder about competition level, here what Baseball America said in 2020:

Overall, here is the hierarchy of how MLB front office officials and evaluators generally view the quality of the various Asian leagues compared to MLB and the minor leagues.

MLB

NPB (Japan)

AAA

KBO (Korea)

AA

High A

CPBL (Taiwan)

Low A

CPBL – Chinese Professional Baseball League

Country: Taiwan

Opening Day:March 28

International Players: Not a lot of (any?) big name former players in the CPBL but this section will be more populated for the KBO and NPB; Full list from CPBLStats

Former Royals: Royals farmhands have drifted in and out of the league. There are four currently: Pedro Fernandez (Monkeys), Marcelo Martinez (Dragons), John Gant (Dragons), and Eric Stout (Hawks).

Last Season: In 2024, the Uni-Lions won the first half, the CTBC Brothers won the second half, and our Rakuten Monkeys were the wild card team. In 2025, the same thing happened. In 2024, the Lions defeated the Monkeys in the playoff and lost to the Brothers in the Taiwan Series. 2025 looked like history was going to repeat itself. The Uni-Lions had a 2-0 lead in the playoff but lost a game where they led 6-2 in the 6th, were pounded 9-3, and blew a 3-0 game in the 9th. The Monkeys then defeated the Brothers 4-1 in the Taiwan Series to win their first championship since 2019, when they were the Lamigo Monkeys.

Rooting Interest: The Rakuten Monkeys are our squad here at RR. As noted in a previous preview: “they had the first English broadcasts and were the inspiration for my first article”. The red-clad simians won it all last year and are looking to repeat. However, Martinez went to the Dragons in the offseason after the Monkeys spent a lot of their foreign player budget on retaining Fernandez. Sadly, my favorite, Chu Yu Hsien, moved on to the Dragons last season and Father Time may be catching up with the slugger. He has 184 home runs coming into the season and it would be nice to see him get to 200. Making it tougher to cheer on the team is that Rakuten keeps making their own PR nightmares. CPBL Stats describes them as “a lazy organisation that has been running its CPBL team half-heartedly over the past few years” when talking about their food scandal last year and then wrote about not paying for surgery for a player.

World Baseball Classic: Reminder: Taiwan competes under the laughable “Chinese Taipei” moniker because China threatens to use their international clout to exclude them from any international competition if they compete as “Taiwan”. In the opening game of the WBC, they were blanked by a trio of Australian pitchers, losing 3-0. Then they were pummelled 13-0 by Japan. They returned the favor by thumping the Czech Republic 14-0. In their final game in Group C play, thousands of fans flew from Taiwan to Tokyo to watch the team’s first-ever WBC win against Korea:

More than 40,000 fans – mostly from Taiwan – filled Tokyo Dome at noon on Sunday as Chinese Taipei’s cheerleaders danced atop the dugouts and its band blasted music and led chants. Fans were then treated to a dinger-filled, heavyweight spectacle, with Chinese Taipei emerging with an incredible 5-4 victory, the players walking off the field as tears streamed down their faces.

However, the extra-inning win was not enough. Korea, Australia, and Taiwan all finished at 2-2 but Korea advanced based on the tiebreakers. Despite participating in all 6 WBCs, Taiwan has only advanced once from pool play, in 2013.

Random Nuggets:

• Spoiler: The Monkeys won on Opening Day in front of a “sold-out crowd of 40,000 at Taipei Dome”. They defeated the Brothers in historic fashion: “the first-ever game-ending hit-by-pitch in CPBL’s opening game history”.
• Stadium musical chairs may be on the horizon in the CPBL. “Taiwan Life, a subsidiary of CTBC Financial, which also owns the CTBC Brothers baseball team, has secured a 10-year operating right for Chengcing Lake Baseball Stadium, along with a 12.43-hectare land development project surrounding the stadium”. The TSG Hawks, an expansion team from 2024, currently play there. The Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions (yes, that’s their full name) christened a new stadium at the Asia-Pacific International Baseball Training Center. They don’t own the stadium and are in a short-term lease but it could turn into a long-term home.
• If you think home run celebrations are still in MLB, they also happen around the world. Here’s one from the TSG Hawks. Hype videos? How about this one for the Uni-Lions? Or this lava-filled one from the CTBC Brothers? Theme nights? The Brothers have a Peanuts theme night coming up. Last one, I promise: Closer intro for the Fubon Guardians.

Links:

• https://en.cpbl.com.tw/ – The Official CPBL site has some parts translated into English
• https://www.reddit.com/r/CPBL/ – CPBL Reddit
• http://cpblstats.com/ – Best English fansite on the web; the author does a lot of the posting in the CPBL subreddit
• CPBL viewing guide for 2026: https://x.com/GOCPBL/status/2037464360797474955

How about some 8-bit awesome? We haven’t revisited Mega Man in years! Seriously: it was 2018. My favorite track from that game was Magnet Man’s but there are a lot of killer themes. This week, we’ll use Hard Man’s music:

Whether it was via free agency or through trade, Coors Field isn’t usually an ideal landing spot for veteran starting pitchers. There are success stories, of course, but even those usually come with few wins and a ballooned ERA.

That’s why having three new veterans in the Rockies starting rotation this year was quite a surprise. An even better surprise is the promising performance of Tomoyuki Sugano 菅野 智之. While the sample size is small, Sugano is shaping up to be a good addition to the Rockies roster. 

Sugano played and starred in Nippon Professional Baseball. During his 12-year career there, he was a three-time Central League MVP before coming to MLB in 2025. Sugano’s reasoning for coming to MLB is simple.

“Obviously, I wanted to play in the best place,” Sagano said last weekend through his interpreter Yuto Sakura. “Also, I wanted to test out how my skills translate.”

His 2025 season in Baltimore didn’t go as well as he’d hoped, as he went 10-10 in 30 starts with a 4.64 ERA and gave up an American League-leading 33 homers.

It’s been a different story for Sugano so far in 2026 with the Rockies, who signed the 36-year-old RHP in February to a one-year, $5.1 million deal. In two starts, Sugano is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA, nine strikeouts and only three walks in 10.2 innings. 

That includes a quality start in his first appearance at Coors Field when he held the Phillies to one run on four hits with five strikeouts and a walk in six innings. True to his KPop Demon Hunters anthem walk-up song, Sugano was ‘Golden.’

Prior to his start, he wasn’t too worried about pitching at elevation. He also said his brief time at a higher altitude hadn’t disrupted his sleep or taxed his body, but he did admit it had only been three days.

“I’m actually quite excited. I tested some of my offspeed stuff in the bullpen,” Sugano said. “I know it drops a little bit more than other stadiums, and we’ve been having good conversations with the pitching coaches and staff, so I’m quite excited.”

That excitement turned into the Rockies first quality start of the season and prevented a home opening weekend sweep at the hands of the Phillies. He surrendered only one run on four hits with one walk and five strikeouts to earn the win.

He threw 78 pitches in the outing: 23 four-seam fastballs, 21 sliders/sweepers, 13 cutters, 12 splitters, five curveballs and four sinkers. 

Due to his versatility and pitch mix, Sugano was able to overcome not having his best splitter.

“He was great. He mixed extremely well. He threw strikes. He did all the things we were talking about and looking for when we signed him,” manager Warren Schaeffer said after the Rockies 4-1 victory on April 5. “He did not have his split, which is one of his best pitches, today. He didn’t have the best feel for it, so he used the slider a lot, used the heater late, and just a good, solid mix that kept them off balance.”

A key factor in Sugano’s success is his 51.7% ground ball rate. He got eight groundouts against the Phillies in Denver, when he also threw 51 of his 78 pitches for strikes.

“The mix of pitch selection is definitely my strength, so I’m glad it worked out that way. But towards the end of the outing, my splitter was working, so that was also good,” Sugano said. “I wasn’t thinking too much about the environment, per se. I was trying to keep the ball down, get groundouts and get punchouts when I can. [I know] offspeed pitches move differently here, so I try to take advantage of that.”

While he’d never pitched at high altitude before (Sugano had faced the Rockies once, but it was in Baltimore last season), Sugano did bring experience playing at a hitter-friendly venue.

“The Tokyo Dome was definitely hitter-friendly. It’s a smaller stadium to begin with, and the ball flies. It has a tendency to fly in the Dome,” Sugano said. “For Japanese players, it’s well known that it’s a hitter-friendly ballpark.”

Sugano, the Rockies’ first Japanese pitcher since Mac Suzuki in 2001, had a busy spring. Outside of joining the Rockies in Scottsdale, he also pitched for Japan in the World Baseball Classic. In his lone start, he threw four scoreless innings with four hits, two strikeouts and no walks in a 4-3 win over Australia. Despite being new to the Rockies, he said he’s learning from his coaches and teammate Kyle Freeland, who he sought out for advice.

“He’s been here a very long time. He’s given me some advice on how to pitch here,” Sugano said. “Also, Alon [Leichman, the Rockies pitching coach], he’s been communicative throughout this process, and he’s been giving really good advice.”

Leichman believes Sugano has been a great addition to the team, especially since he and Sugano are both 36 years old.

“He’s my age, so I think it’s fun to have a guy like him around. You know, he sees a lot of things that most guys don’t, and he likes to express that. So it’s been good,” Leichman said. “He’s been a great clubhouse guy, he’s always super prepared, and what he did in Toronto really set an example for the rest of the team, too.”

While he wasn’t credited with the win, Sugano gave up one solo homer, with two hits, two walks and four strikeouts in a solid start of 4.2 innings in the Rockies first victory of the season, a 14-5 win over the Blue Jays on March 30.

In addition to learning to pitch at altitude, Sugano is also new to Leichman’s pitch suggesting. Like the other Rockies pitchers and catchers, he likes it.

“I’ve never experienced pitch calling from the dugout with my previous teams,” Sugano said. “But we have really good communication before the game and leading into the game, so I feel pretty confident about what we’re doing.”

Sugano is seeing early success, despite facing some heavy-hitting lineups in the Blue Jays and Phillies. That will be the case again today when Sugano will get his third start of the season tonight against Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis, Xander Bogaerts and the rest of the Padres.

On the Farm

Triple-A: Albuquerque Isotopes 6, El Paso Chihuahuas 1

Vimael Machín hit a grand slam in a six-run sixth inning to carry the Isotopes to victory on Thursday. Nicky Lopez added an RBI single and came around to score on a wild pitch in the sixth. Five pitchers combined to hold the Chihuahuas in check with Sammy Peralta picking up the win after giving up one run in two innings. Keegan Thompson started the game with four scoreless innings, while Collin Baumgartner, Seth Halvorsen and TJ Shook each added a scoreless frame. Zac Veen, Lopez and Chad Stevens posted two hits apiece.

Double-A: Reading Fightin’ Phils 3, Hartford Yard Goats 2, 10 innings

Austin Murr hit a walk-off, two-run homer to defeat the Yard Goats on Thursday night in Reading. Hartford took the lead in the first inning when Aidan Longwell hit a sac grounder to go up 1-0. Jake Brooks had an outstanding start, giving up just one run on a solo homer with 11 strikeouts in six innings. When it went to extra innings, Roc Riggio hit an RBI double to put the Yard Goats up 2-1. Unfortunately, the lead was short-lived. Benny Montgomery and Connor Capel each recorded two-hit nights.

High-A: Hillsboro Hops 6, Spokane Indians 4, 10 innings

Despite having a 4-1 lead, Spokane couldn’t hold it and the Hops completed the comeback with a walk-off, two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th. Alan Espinal hit an RBI triple, Ethan Hedges connected on a run-scoring double and Robert Calaz and Royneir Hernandez each drove in a run on singles to account for Spokane’s offense. Justin Loer earned a blown save when he gave up two runs in the bottom of the ninth. Hedges and Jacob Humphrey both had two-hit nights.

Low-A: Stockton Ports 5, Fresno Grizzlies 1

Stockton jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, continued to add to it throughout the game and came away with the victory. Roldy Brito hit an RBI double in the third inning to score Cameron Nelson for Fresno’s only run. The Grizzlies were held to four hits on the night and struck out eight times.

Colorado Rockies 2026 walk-up songs | Purple Row

Thanks to Renee Dechert for putting this together. It’s a great way to learn new music and get a glimpse into the taste, or lack thereof — Troy Johnston, I am talking to you — of the 2026 Rockies.

TJ Rumfield’s start giving Rockies edge in trade with Yankees | New York Post ($)

Jon Heyman dives into the early returns on the Rockies trade that sent Angel Chivilli to the Yankees and TJ Rumfield to Colorado. Rumfield is hitting .368/.432/.605 with two homers, eight RBI, a double and a single. He’s been a welcome surprise at first base.

Here is a potential impact callup for each team | MLB.com

Surprising no one, the MLB.com crew picked Charlie Condon. The 1B/OF is tearing things up with the Triple-A Isotopes, proving he’s the No. 1 PuRP for a reason.

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

Meet the Mets

Nolan McLean was great, but the Mets’ lineup and bullpen very much were not as the team dropped the rubber game of its series with the Diamondbacks last night at Citi Field.

Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, Newsday, New York Daily News, New York Post, The Athletic

Before the game, Carlos Mendoza told reporters that Jorge Polanco was getting the night off because his Achilles continues to bother him, and he didn’t rule out an IL stint if the situation doesn’t improve.

Anthony DiComo looks at three not-so-obvious effects of Juan Soto’s injury and wrote that the Mets continue to pay for having multiple players learning new positions on the fly.

Around the National League East

The Marlins improved to 8-5 on the season with a resounding 8-1 win over the Reds.

Here are the Braves’ new City Connect uniforms.

Zack Wheeler’s third rehab outing shows there’s still work to be done.

Federal Baseball considers what would make this Nationals season fun.

Around Major League Baseball

The Twins, projected to be the worst team in the American League Central this year, completed a four-game sweep of the Tigers with a 3-1 win.

The A’s, who begin a three-game series against the Mets tonight, shut out the Yankees in a 1-0 win as they took two of three games in the series in The Bronx.

It took until extra innings, but the Padres walked off the Rockies.

The White Sox got a much-needed win over the Royals.

Eight teams unveiled their new City Connect uniforms.

The Blue Jays raised the issue of how long it takes Shohei Ohtani to warm up when he’s pitching.

Dusty Baker, who won the World Series as a player in 1981 and as a manager in 2022 as a manager, has penned an autobiography.

This Date in Mets History

Tommie Agee hit a home run into the upper deck at Shea Stadium on this date in 1969.

Good morning.

• It must be a kind of a slow news day because the big news is the eight new City Connect uniforms that were announced on Thursday.
• Anthony Gharib has the details that went into the design of the new alternates.
• Gharib has the details on the uniforms and David Schoenfield gives them grades.
• Jack Baer ranks the eight City Connect uniforms.
• Matt Snyder also ranks the new City Connects.
• Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows spent the night in the hospital after a collision with left fielder Riley Greene in yesterday’s Tigers loss.
• Pirates rookie Konnor Griffin agreed to a nine-year, $140 million extension with the Bucs.
• Dan Szymborski evaluates the deal and thinks the Pirates did well here, even if Griffin falls a bit short his sky-high promise.
• Ken Rosenthal has the details on how the Pirates and Griffin came to an agreement. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Angels outfielder Jorge Soler and Braves pitcher Reynaldo López were both suspended seven games for their brawl on Tuesday. Both players are appealing the punishment.
• Mike Axisa has some early season trends. Edward Cabrera’s fastball is one.
• Jared Greenspan has pitchers with improved velocity.
• Brett Maguire has ten players turning heads so far this spring.
• Brian Murphy asks if a former prospect bust, Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker, is finally living up to his potential this year.
• Jordan Schusterman explains how much panic should each team off to a slow start should feel?
• Matt Snyder does the same thing and puts a panic meter to teams off to disappointing starts.
• Dan Szymborski looks at three playoff contenders who have lost a key player to injury already. Not the Cubs. Fangraphs gave the Cubs their own separate injury article.
• Anthony DiComo has three not-so-obvious impacts of the injury to Mets outfielder Juan Soto.
• Jason Foster have six questions for the Braves. None are about their new City Connect uniforms.
• Michael Baumann profiles Orioles pitcher Trevor Rogers and whether or not he deserves to be called an ace.
• Baumann also profiles Angels pitcher José Soriano, whom he calls a “good” but “weird” pitcher.
• Guardians third baseman José Ramirez just became the franchise’s all-time leader in games played. Thomas Harrington lists some other active players who could end up as the team’s leader in games played by the time they are done.
• The MLB Pipeline crew have a potential minor-league call-up for each team who could make a big difference.
• John Coppolella believes that college baseball is about to have a moment in the sun over the next few seasons if it can get its act together.
• Keith Law has his 2026 Draft rankings. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Angels right-hander Robert Stephenson is out for the year after elbow surgery.
• Orioles pitcher Zac Eflin is done for the year after Tommy John surgery.
• Ken Rosenthal reports that some umpires feel that ABS is holding them up to impossible standards. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Ryan Blake notes that bat speed goes down in cold weather, but that it probably doesn’t make much of a difference.
• Sam Blum reports that Dodgers fans are not taking to calling Dodger Stadium “Uniqlo Field.” (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Bob Nightengale speaks with Dusty Baker, who has a new autobiography coming out.
• Jared Greenspan has each team’s best promotional giveaway for the year.
• The White Sox are giving away White Sox Pope Hats to honor Pope Leo XIV.
• Paige Schector reports on the baby kangaroo that stole everyone’s heart at a Hub City Spartanburgers game.
• And finally, Theo DeRosa reports that Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson literally tore the cover off the ball on a ball he sent flying at . . . 14.3 miles per hour.