PORT ST. LUCIE — Luis Robert Jr.’s various lower body injuries over the last two seasons have largely prevented him from maintaining the level he reached in his 2023 All-Star season with the White Sox.
A physical specimen, the 28-year-old outfielder has only once in his first six seasons surpassed 110 games played. All the talk of his new team, the Mets, unleashing Robert’s potential begins with keeping him on the field.
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“The more games I play, the more opportunity I have to have success and, yes, for me the ultimate goal is to be able to stay out on the field,” Robert said Tuesday through an interpreter. “And once I am able to stay out on the field, I think things are going to turn out the way that I want.”
It was a move that caught Robert, who had already begun shipping equipment to the White Sox spring training complex in Arizona, by surprise.
Robert had a dismal first half last season, but began showing life after the All-Star break. The fun was short-lived: By late August he was on the injured list with a left hamstring strain, and he never returned to action for the White Sox.
He appeared in 110 games and produced a .223/.297/.364 slash line with 14 homers and 53 RBIs with 33 stolen bases.
“Once the offseason started the focus was to strengthen the parts of mostly the injuries I have dealt with up until now,” Robert said. “That has been the same focus, to try to strengthen everything and make sure I am ready for the season.”
Robert has gold and silver on his resume. He won a Gold Glove in 2020 and a Silver Slugger in 2023, a season in which he blasted 38 homers and posted an .857 OPS.
Luis Robert Jr. runs a fielding drill during Spring Training at Clover Field, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. Corey Sipkin for tNY Post
“The tools are there — elite power, the defensive speed,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “When he is healthy, we saw it in 2023, a lot of the things he can do.”
The Mets won’t push him too hard too fast. Mendoza said the plan is to exclude Robert from early Grapefruit League action, allowing him to build up his legs. Robert will still participate in daily workouts with the team.
It’s an approach the team is also taking with Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty to ensure their health. Alvarez is returning from thumb ligament surgery and Baty reported to camp with hamstring tightness, according to Mendoza.
“I know that’s the type of process that they have,” Robert said. “I trust in them and whatever they have because they want what’s best for me.”
The Mets have other options for center field, most notably top position player prospect Carson Benge and defensive whiz Tyrone Taylor. Benge could win the starting right field job.
Luis Robert Jr. (l.) runs with Juan Sotod uring Spring Training at Clover Field, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
Robert was asked the difference between his old surroundings and his new ones.
“It’s just the amount of people that are around,” he said. “When you come to a team like this the expectations are to win. When you have these goals and expectations there are obviously going to be more eyes on the team. I think that has been the biggest difference.”
How did he respond to the news that he had been traded?
“Once I got traded I really can’t explain the emotions that I had,” Robert said. “I was excited, nervous. Sometimes you hear a lot about New York and how big it can be and to play with as many stars as I was going to play with them. I knew I was going to be entering a different stage of my career.”
Javier Báez #28 of the Detroit Tigers runs to first base after hitting a single in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians during game one of the American League Wild Card Series at Progressive Field on September 30, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Javier Báez is taking full responsibility for failing a drug test that will force him to miss the World Baseball Classic.
The Tigers star is suspended from the tournament after testing positive for marijuana during the 2023 WBC.
“I don’t want to point fingers at anybody because this is all my fault,” Báez said Tuesday, according to The Athletic. “I’m the one that failed the test … It’s just really frustrating that I won’t be able to be there.
“It really hurts my family, my reputation, but it’s part of it. Other than that, I got a long season to go, and I got to prepare for that.”
Javier Báez of the Detroit Tigers runs off the field during the third inning against the Seattle Mariners in game two of the Division Series at T-Mobile Park on October 05, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. Getty Images
Marijuana use is allowed under Major League Baseball’s drug policy, but is prohibited by the WBC’s governing body, the World Baseball Softball Confederation.
“I understand the rules,” Báez said. “It’s not like I was taking steroids or anything to last longer or whatever. They made that decision. I’m fine with it, I mean, I’m not fine with it. I just keep my mouth shut.”
Báez failed the test during the last WBC in March 2023.
The loss of Báez is the latest blow to Team Puerto Rico, which will host Pool A of the WBC starting March 5.
Javier Báez of the Detroit Tigers runs to first base after hitting a single in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians during Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series at Progressive Field on September 30, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. Getty Images
“One of my dreams is to play in Puerto Rico for Team Puerto Rico with our families, our fans, our island,” Báez said. “Nothing I can do. I’m just happy for all of my teammates that got the chance to represent. I wish them good luck.”
The Tigers star will instead shift his focus to the MLB season, which kicks off in late March.
Mark DeRosa knew if Team USA could get Aaron Judge in the fold for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, other American position players would come.
But for DeRosa’s “Dream Team” to fall into place, Judge would first have to agree to play.
The American manager tried and failed to lure the Yankees superstar outfielder for the 2023 international event, one in which the U.S. fell in a heartbreaking championship game to Japan. In the middle of his long free agency process that saw him end up back in The Bronx and get named captain, Judge decided not to participate.
Aaron Judge throwing a ball during a workout at Steinbrenner Field, the team’s spring training home. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Back as skipper for Team USA, DeRosa opened up on “The Show with Joel Sherman & Jon Heyman” on Tuesday about his team-building process last spring. He had received some intel from legendary Yankees lefty Andy Pettitte: Judge wanted in if the manager wanted him.
So the longtime MLB utility player started his recruiting in earnest — one hour after getting the info from Pettitte.
“I just said, ‘Hey Aaron, I’m not going to bug you throughout the year. … I talked to Andy Pettitte, I’d love for you to be obviously the captain of Team USA and kind of start with you and filter everything around you as the pillar of this thing,’” DeRosa said was his pitch to Judge.
“He called me back within 48 hours and was like, ‘I’m in, I want to do it.’ … I started it in April, I just started slow-playing and trying to make pitches. I was building a Dream Team at night in my apartment on paper. Trying to make lineups out and pitching staffs. I was just slowly cold-calling people and seeing where their heads were at”
Aaron Judge jogs around the bases during practice at Steinbrenner Field. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
That next cold call was to Pirates ace Paul Skenes because, in DeRosa’s mind, Team USA has had trouble getting top-flight pitchers to join the tournament. He barely had to make any effort with the 2025 National League Cy Young Award winner, who pitched two years at Air Force and said he wanted to represent his country to honor the troops.
DeRosa got his two pillars, and the talent followed suit. The U.S. now boasts a roster that includes a combined 65 MLB All-Star selections and six Cy Young Awards.
“The time is now to do it,” Judge said Monday. “USA came up a little short [in 2023], but it’s an exciting group of guys. [DeRosa’s] got quite a squad he’s put together so far, so I’m looking forward to seeing what’s happened.”
That was the first word that came to mind for Dodgers catcher Dalton Rushing on Tuesday, when asked to describe how Shohei Ohtani’s first live pitching session of the spring looked from behind the plate.
“He was locating all his pitches, getting the misses that he wanted,” Rushing said. “Yeah, he looked really, really good today.”
When it comes to Ohtani, that has been the common refrain around Dodgers camp in the early days of spring training.
For his time since signing with the team three years ago, the two-way star is coming off a fully healthy offseason, unencumbered by the Tommy John surgery he had at the end of 2023 and the labrum repair he underwent after 2024.
Also for his first time as a Dodger, Ohtani enters this season preparing to play both ways on a full-time basis, setting his sights on not only a fifth career MVP award but also contention for Cy Young honors (something never before won by a Japanese player).
“He seems like he’s on a mission, pitching-wise,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said later Tuesday afternoon. “And whenever we’ve seen him on a mission, good things happen.”
Indeed, there seems to be little question this year about whether Ohtani can re-emerge as one of the top pitchers in the sport –– a status he earned by posting a 2.84 ERA over three seasons with the Angels from 2021-2023, then a 2.87 mark in 14 workload-restricted outings in his return from Tommy John with the Dodgers last season.
For his time since signing with the team three years ago, the two-way star is coming off a fully healthy offseason Getty ImagesOhtani enters this season preparing to play both ways on a full-time basis, also eyeing a Cy Young Award (seen above held by last season’s AL winner Tarik Skubal). Getty Images
But, there are still uncertainties over how aggressively the Dodgers will utilize him in 2026, with the club trying to strike a delicate balance between his dueling (and potentially draining) roles on the mound and at the plate.
“Obviously, last year, he was coming back from surgery, and so we were very deliberate about a lot of things,” Friedman said. “This year we will be less so, but still mindful of it.”
This week, the challenges of that process have begun to come into focus.
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Manager Dave Roberts called it a positive sign that Ohtani was already facing hitters on Tuesday, with the right-hander throwing 18 pitches and hitting 98 mph with his fastball over a one-inning outing.
“He’s certainly way ahead of where he was last year on the pitching side,” Roberts said. “That’s a good thing.”
Yet, Ohtani’s return to full-time pitching will still face some workload-related hurdles –– with the Dodgers prioritizing his availability as a pitcher come this year’s playoffs, as well as the long-term health of his now twice-surgically-repaired arm.
Manager Dave Roberts called it a positive sign that Ohtani was already facing hitters on Tuesday. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“Obviously, we have designs of playing through October this year, and Shohei being a big part of that on the mound,” Friedman said. “That, coupled with the idea that he wants to pitch for the next eight years, and we want him to pitch for the next eight years, (is why we’re) just trying to be really mindful of all of that.”
Right now, the most pressing question has to do with Ohtani’s pitching status for opening day.
Though he won’t pitch in next month’s World Baseball Classic for Team Japan, his absence from Dodgers camp will make it harder for him to stay on a normal ramp-up schedule while he serves as a designated hitter in the international tournament. Roberts said it’s “very unlikely” Ohtani pitches in any Cactus League games before he departs for the event later this month, meaning his first actual game action on the mound might not come until the final week of spring training.
Friedman still expects Ohtani to be ready to make starts at the beginning of the regular season, and said he “certainly wouldn’t bet against” the 31-year-old’s chances in the Cy Young race.
But he also cautioned that the Dodgers will do a lot of “reading and reacting” to determine Ohtani’s pitching schedule over the course of the season –– acknowledging that “it’s hard to say” whether Ohtani (who is expected to get more extended breaks between his pitching outings than normal starters do, upwards of perhaps 6-8 days on some occassions) will make enough starts to legitimately vie for the sport’s top pitching award.
“It’s a heavy, heavy load that he takes on, that is different from every other player in baseball,” Friedman said. “A lot of it is going to be reading and reacting based on how he’s feeling, how he’s recovering, what the load looks like. But at some point, stepping up that level of aggression (for him as a pitcher) as we get deeper into the season, that will be a little bit different than last year.”
Friedman still expects Ohtani to be ready to make starts at the beginning of the regular season. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
What the Dodgers are most confident in for now is the quality of Ohtani’s stuff.
In the wake of Tuesday’s live session, Rushing said Ohtani’s throwing mechanics already look “cleaner” than when he was returning from Tommy John last year, praising his execution of a sinker/slider/splitter arsenal.
“I think he’s moving down the mound a lot better this year than he had in the past,” Rushing said. “His body is starting to feel recuperated, rejuvenated.”
And when asked about his expectations for Ohtani’s pitching this year, the second-year catcher called his superstar battery mate “limitless,” marveling at the way “he can do basically whatever you ask him to.”
“He is the greatest, and he wants to be the greatest,” Rushing said. “He sets the bar for this clubhouse, the way he works, being obviously as good as he is right now. And he only wants to get better.”
Time will tell how that materializes in his usage plan for 2026.
Former MLB speedster Terrance Gore died in early February from complications following surgery to remove his appendix, according to his wife, Britney.
In a heartbreaking social media post shortly after his death, Britney said the 34-year-old underwent “what was supposed to have been a simple procedure.”
Gore passed away earlier this month after undergoing an “emergency” surgery. AP
“He went in for an emergency surgery. He had his appendix removed,” she said. “He came out of surgery and was doing OK.
“And had some complications after, possibly with the anesthesia, and went into cardiac arrest.”
Gore’s untimely death shook his family and the baseball community.
He is survived by his wife and three children.
“Our hearts are shattered, my babies are shattered,” Britney wrote in her first post on social media following her husband’s death. “Our whole family is lost. This was so unexpected.”
A fan favorite across parts of eight MLB seasons, Gore was remembered fondly for his game-changing speed and role on three World Series-winning teams.
The Macon, Ga., native debuted in the majors with the Royals in 2014, serving as a baserunning specialist for Kansas City’s back-to-back American League pennant-winning teams.
The three-time World Series champion spent parts of eight seasons in the majors, finishing his career with the Mets in 2022. Michelle Farsi/New York Post
Gore swiped a combined four bases during those two postseasons, including the Royals’ run to a World Series title in 2015.
“Terrance brought a high level of excitement and anticipation to the game,” former Royals general manager Dayton Moore said after Gore’s passing. “He was unstoppable as a base stealer, and he inspired athletes throughout our country to pursue baseball. He was loved and respected by his very special teammates, who will continue to love his family during this time of sadness.
“There have been very few players who can take over a baseball game,” Moore added in an interview with the Royals team website. “That’s exactly what he did. He became a fan favorite. He was beloved by his teammates. And he was just fearless and impactful on the bases but also off the field.”
After spending his first five years in Kansas City, Gore won another pair of championships with the Dodgers (2020) and Braves (2021).
Despite notching just 85 plate appearances in 112 regular-season games, Gore stole 43 bases in 52 attempts, including five in the postseason.
He finished his MLB career with the Mets in 2022, recording three steals and one hit over 10 games.
The Richard R. Robinson Funeral Home Eastside Chapel in Macon will hold a visitation on coming Friday, with a celebration of life the following day at Jones County High School Gym in Gray, Ga.
TAMPA — Anthony Volpe woke up from surgery in October to a surprise, but not an excuse.
Speaking Tuesday for the first time since going under the knife to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder, the Yankees shortstop still refused to use the injury as an explanation for his poor play last season, despite the damage being worse than tests had suggested as he played through it.
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“I know I could have played better,” Volpe said Tuesday after the Yankees worked out at George M. Steinbrenner Field. “I felt strong and good enough to go. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have. But you definitely learn a lot about yourself. Then when you see what ended up happening and having to get surgery, you learn a lot about the mindset and how you got to be self-aware and aware of certain things going on. If you’re going to play through it, how to perform and do the best you can.”
It remains impossible to determine just how much the ailing left shoulder impacted Volpe’s play after he initially injured it on a dive on May 3, 2025.
He said Tuesday that “it just didn’t feel like my right shoulder — my left side didn’t feel like my right.”
New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe fields a ball during spring training. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
But the end result was his worst year in pinstripes on both sides of the ball.
The 24-year-old struggled defensively, especially during the summer months, and was far less dependable than when he won a Gold Glove as a rookie in 2023. Offensively, it was more of the same inconsistency as he hit just .212 with a .663 OPS and 19 home runs.
Now, after three full seasons in the big leagues, Volpe is still facing questions about his future, and exactly what the Yankees have in him, though he will not get a chance to show it until late April or early May after starting the season on the injured list to finish off his rehab.
“The chip I’ve had on my shoulder has been there for my whole life, my whole career,” Volpe said. “I just can’t wait to go back out there and play and feel good and perform and help the team win. At the end of the day, if I do that and I play the way I know I can play, everything will take care of itself.
“I appreciate everything — I appreciate the accountability, I appreciate everything that comes with being the shortstop for the New York Yankees. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. That’s why I just can’t wait to get out there.”
Volpe will just have to wait a little longer for that to happen. He began his hitting progression Monday with dry swings — which will soon be followed by hitting off a tee — but otherwise is a full go defensively besides diving, which will be the last step in his recovery before he is cleared.
The rehab process has been a painstaking one, with Volpe describing the first half of it as feeling like “rock bottom” physically.
Anthony Volpe throwing a ball during practice at Steinbrenner Field, the team’s spring training home in Tampa, Fla. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“But I really wanted to make sure the rest of my body was ready to go and ready to play 162,” Volpe said. “Probably at the turn of the new year is when I started to feel good and started to do baseball activity. That was definitely nice.”
During the first few days of spring training, Volpe has been throwing, taking ground balls with the rest of the starting infield and going through defensive and baserunning drills. Before camp is over, he will likely advance to hitting on the field and perhaps playing in Grapefruit League games
José Caballero is expected to start the season at shortstop until Volpe returns, but once he does, it will be a critical year for the homegrown player trying to prove he still has a place in the organization’s future.
“There’s been a lot of positives in the whole process, just slowing stuff down and working literally from the ground up,” Volpe said. “So to take those things and go from there has been nice.”
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton feels his Yankees career is lacking.
“It’s definitely incomplete,” he said Tuesday ahead of his ninth season in pinstripes. “The point of being a Yankee is being a champion.”
Now 36 and entering the final two guaranteed seasons of a $325 million, 13-year contract he signed with the Miami Marlins, Stanton has gone on the injured list in seven consecutive seasons but has been a force when healthy.
“I’m good. Ready to go,” Stanton maintained. “As I said before, it’s not going anywhere. It’s always going to be maintenance, but it didn’t hinder me from any work.”
He said the preparation is “a lot of hold, strengthening, make sure I’m able to maintain holding and swinging with power and throwing.”
A five-time All-Star and the 2017 NL MVP, Stanton has a .258 average with 453 homers — most among active players — and 1,169 RBIs in 16 big league seasons. He is key component in the Yankees batting order.
“With us over the last couple of years (having) become more and more left-handed, his presence in the middle is just really big,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “It’s like having that guy lingering there, that’s Big G in the middle.”
Stanton had 38 homers with 100 RBIs in his first season with New York in 2018 but missed 266 of 708 games over the next five seasons because of a series of strains of right biceps, right knee, left hamstring (twice) and left quadriceps along with right ankle inflammation and left Achilles tendinitis.
Noticeably slimmer in 2024, he limited his lost time to 28 games for a strained left hamstring. Stanton finished with 27 homers and 72 RBIs in 114 games and added seven homers and 16 RBIs in 14 postseason games.
He isn’t thinking about career stats.
“Numbers like the next one and the next one is good for now,” he said. “Those numbers, 500 or what not, is the same as we’re going to win the World Series right now. You got each day to do work and prove and do something positive.”
Stanton is owed $64 million in guaranteed money by the Yankees: $29 million this year, $25 million in 2027 and a $10 million buyout of a $25 million club option for 2028. He comes at a discount because the Marlins owe the Yankees $30 million to offset part of what remains in his contract: $5 million each on July 1 and Oct. 1 in 2026, 2027 and 2028.
However, his salary for purposes of the Yankees’ luxury tax payroll is $25 million and since New York is likely to pay the top tax rate of 110%, he adds $27.5 million to the team’s tax bill.
Teammates look to Stanton for succinct tips before they bat.
“He just processes things really well and really gains from the things he sees: the experience, the times he faces a pitcher, how he processes that and puts it to use in future at-bats against guys,” Boone said. “I think he knows himself incredibly well as a hitter, but his presence with just the makeup of our club is huge.”
Volpe hopes to return in April
Shortstop Anthony Volpe won’t be ready for the March 25 opener but hopes to return in April following surgery on Oct. 14 to repair the labrum in his left shoulder.
He started a hitting progression Monday with dry swings — no ball involved — and hopes to advance soon to hitting off a tee and soft toss.
“My body’s ready to go defensively and running, so the hitting will be what we work through next, and judging on how everything’s gone so far, I’m just excited,” he said.
Volpe hurt the shoulder on May 3. He returned to the lineup two days later but struggled for much of the season. He had a pair of cortisone shots and hit .212 with 19 homers and a career-high 72 RBIs. He went 1 for 15 with 11 strikeouts in the AL Division Series loss to Toronto, making an out in his last 13 at-bats.
Volpe’s surgery was more extensive than had been expected following an MRI.
“When I woke up from the surgery and we went through everything, we kind of had an idea of what the best case and what the worst case and everything in between would have been, so I wasn’t shocked” he said. “I was just more excited and in pain and motivated.”
Looking back, his left shoulder and side didn’t feel like his right after the injury. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said following the surgery that Volpe could start hitting in four months but couldn’t dive on the shoulder for six months.
“The first half rehabbing was tough. It felt like rock bottom as far as physically,” Volpe said. “Probably at the turn of the New Year is when I really started to feel good and I started to do stuff, baseball activity.”
Barrel Man, one of the Brewers mascots operates a TV camera before the Milwaukee Brewers faced the Colorado Rockies for the home opener at Miller Park in Milwaukee, April 6, 2015. Barrel Man was originally the Brewers logo from 1970-1977. He became an official mascot in 2015. | Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
After an offseason full of turmoil with the Brewers’ broadcast plan, the team has a new home on Brewers.TV, an offshoot of MLB.TV, which is now owned by ESPN as part of the league’s new media agreement.
While the team has not yet announced local carrier information — you can keep track of that here — the team has announced their spring broadcast schedule, with most games available for listening via radio or MLB audio and a handful of games on Brewers TV.
I’ve also included the team’s two Spring Breakouts (prospect showcases), their exhibition against Great Britain’s World Baseball Classic team, and their two exhibitions against the Reds leading up to the regular season in late March.
Here’s the schedule, including game times and where to watch/how to listen (note: 620 WTMJ is the Brewers’ flagship radio station, though all games on WTMJ are broadcast across the Brewers Radio Network):
Saturday, February 21: vs. Cleveland @ 2:10 p.m. (620 WTMJ)
Sunday, February 22: @ White Sox @ 2:05 p.m. (Brewers TV)
Sunday, February 22: vs. Royals @ 2:10 p.m. (94.5 ESPN Radio)
Monday, February 23: @ Padres @ 2:10 p.m. (Brewers TV & 620 WTMJ)
NORTH PORT, Fla. — The Atlanta Braves added veteran first baseman and outfielder Dominic Smith to their major league spring training camp on Tuesday as a non-roster invitee.
Smith, 30, will provide depth behind starting first baseman Matt Olson as well as a possible option in left field or designated hitter.
Smith, who played his first six seasons in the majors with the New York Mets, hit .284 with five homers and 33 RBIs in 63 games with the San Francisco Giants last season. He also has played for Washington, Boston and Cincinnati.
Smith is a .250 career hitter in nine seasons. He has 69 homers, including a career-high 12 for the Nationals in 2023.
NORTH PORT, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 21: Overall view during an Atlanta Braves spring training workout at CoolToday Park on February 21, 2025 in North Port, Florida. (Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good evening, folks. I hope today was a good one for you. Here’s a random clip:
Back-to-back World Series champions puts you in rarified air.
Winning three in a row, that makes you immortal.
That’s what the Dodgers are chasing this year.
On one end is a dynasty close to ending if they come up short in the Fall Classic. On the other, with the trophy in hand and champagne spraying, is history and immortality.
However, that journey begins in Arizona where the Dodgers are spending spring training at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix.
Here is The California Post daily gallery of the Dodgers at spring training. Check back every day for updates.
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PEORIA, Ariz. — Walker Buehler has signed with the San Diego Padres after the right-hander spent the first eight seasons of his major league career with their archrivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Buehler was in the Padres’ clubhouse Tuesday morning after agreeing to a minor league deal with an invitation to big league camp.
“Yeah, it feels a little weird,” Buehler told reporters in Arizona after pulling on a brown and gold uniform. “I imagine five years ago it would have felt a lot more weird, but this is a crazy game and this is a great opportunity for me.”
The 31-year-old Buehler said he will “come in and try and make the team and contribute in any way I can. I’m a starter, and I want to start, so I’m here to try and make the rotation.”
Buehler spent last season with Boston and Philadelphia, which signed him in late August after the Red Sox released him. Buehler struggled in Boston, but looked good enough during his brief time with the Phillies to generate interest from the Padres and other teams.
“I threw the ball well over there, and getting the velocity back as well as the delivery has kind of been the big thing,” Buehler said. “The second half of last year was relatively successful compared to the first half, and there’s stuff we want to continue to build on there.”
Buehler earned two All-Star selections and two World Series rings during his 10 years in the Dodgers organization, serving as a mainstay in their rotation whenever healthy and often looking like one of the majors’ top starters. He has been particularly good against the Padres in his career, going 7-1 with a 1.67 ERA and 83 strikeouts in his 13 starts.
He won Game 3 of the World Series in 2024 before earning the save in the Dodgers’ clinching Game 5 victory at Yankee Stadium, capping his return to uniform with a gritty Fall Classic. He had missed the entire 2023 season and big chunks of 2024 while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery.
But that memorable relief inning in Game 5 to preserve a 7-6 victory over the Yankees was his final appearance for the Dodgers, who allowed Buehler to walk as a free agent for a lucrative deal with Boston. After one tumultuous year back East, he’s eager to be back in the NL West with the Padres, who have two openings in their rotation.
“Obviously some familiarity with the division, and living in Southern California is something that my family and I are accustomed to,” Buehler said. “A good opportunity to be a part of a really talented ballclub. Looking forward to seeing what we can make of it.”
Nick Pivetta, Joe Musgrove and Michael King already have spots in San Diego’s rotation. Buehler will be competing for the final two slots with returnees Randy Vásquez and JP Sears and newly signed Germán Márquez and Griffin Canning.
Buehler said he moved out West during the offseason to prepare for another run at the majors, and he “got my body in a little better spot.”
Buehler said his delivery is returning to the level and form at which he spent his first six big league seasons with the Dodgers before elbow surgery.
“My elbow and my body has kind of been through some stuff,” he said.
The Padres have been remarkably busy over the past week after doing little during the winter to bolster the roster of a team that won 90 games and made the postseason for the fourth time in six years.
General manager A.J. Preller signed slugger Nick Castellanos along with Canning and Márquez over the weekend after adding Miguel Andujar a week earlier.
Preller also agreed to a contract extension, keeping the second-longest-tenured baseball boss in the majors with San Diego during the club’s probable sale process.
Buehler is 57-29 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP over his decade in the majors. He has topped 150 strikeouts three times.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 11: Manager Tony Vitello #23 of the San Francisco Giants talks to players during Spring Training at Scottsdale Stadium on February 11, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images) | Getty Images
When the San Francisco Giants made the unprecedented decision to hire Tony Vitello as their next manager, it was understood that there would be some hiccups along the way. There’s a learning curve for every first-time manager, and that’s doubly true for one attempting the unheard-of leap from college to the Majors with nary a day spent in professional baseball.
The sales pitch with Vitello was simple enough: his personality and people skills were so dynamic that they would propel him forward even while dealing with the requisite adjustments and bumps in the road as he blazed a trail in his new role. How he would manage a big league rotation and how he would adapt to an additional 100 games on the schedule were questions waiting to be answered; how he would present himself as a personality was not.
Which made Monday’s hiccup — his first since accepting the job — quite surprising. It didn’t come from mismanaging a bullpen, or mishandling bench deployment, or, heck, whatever the 2026 equivalent of pinch-hitting Mark Mathias for Brandon Crawford is. It came from the most surprising of places: a controlled environment, with some microphones and mild-mannered reporters in his face.
Less than one week after pitchers and catchers reported, Vitello opened his Monday media scrum not by fielding questions, but by asking one: “When did you first think I was taking this job?”
It was clear that the question was meant both rhetorically and for the group at large, though he seemed to pose it specifically to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser to ensure that someone actually answered him.
After Slusser responded with “about four days before it actually happened” — a reference to reporting from The Athletic that the Giants were “closing in on” hiring the then-Tennessee manager — Vitello had successfully created his opening. Now he could say what was on his mind. “It’s funny you say that,” he smirked, despite it being obvious that it was what Slusser would say. “Because that was not reality. At all.”
Vitello, who in fairness seemed jovial as usual while engaging in a half-monologue, half-conversation about what he deemed to be inaccurate reporting, certainly aired some grievances. While clarifying that he had not accepted the job at the time of The Athletic’s reporting (which, it should be noted, is in line with said reporting) Vitello offered up an ominous and fairly cryptic set of sentences: “Somebody tweeted it out. I don’t know who told them. I wish I did. It might have changed the course of history if I’d known who did.”
As is usually the case with reporting in sports, Vitello’s primary source of ire seemed to be that he wasn’t in control of his own narrative. “I did a really damn good job at keeping that away from our team, our recruiting, and it was not a distraction,” Vitello emphasized, suggesting he had taken meetings with the Giants without letting those around his college team find out. “And then all of a sudden in the middle of practice, I see our first and third base coaches freaking out. And they freaked out on me, too. And for no reason, because at that point nothing was gonna happen. And then somebody decided it that it was gonna happen, and then the whole world starts spinning real quick and I had to address the team.”
There was a lot in Vitello’s TED Talk that was understandable, but even more that was, frankly, odd. Most notable was that he performed the cardinal sin of Spring Training managers: he made himself the story.
At a time when platitudes and superlatives are as copious as bubble gum and sunflower seeds, the story this week has become Vitello. It stood in stark contrast to the last memorable time that a Giants manager eschewed questions and instead opened his Spring Training scrum with his own thoughts. That came a whole seven years ago, when a sheepish and slightly-uncomfortable Bruce Bochy announced that the upcoming season would be his final one in a Giants jersey; and while Bochy had, indeed, made himself the story on that day, he had quite clearly and openly done so to avoid being the story in the days that would follow.
That was not the case for Vitello who, four months after the offending action, opened a can of worms for seemingly no purpose at all. A point that could have been made at his introductory press conference, or during one of his many winter interviews, or, better yet, not at all, is now dominating the black and orange airwaves. At a time when we’re usually serving up best shape of his life clichés and excitedly discussing the battles for eighth reliever and fifth outfielder and second emergency starter, we’re instead not just talking about Vitello, but talking about a long-since buried story of his.
Vitello, like so many others in professional sports over the years, appeared upset at the media for an accurate report. His desire to control when his decisions are made public is very understandable, as is his ire at someone leaking the news prematurely. But those issues, of course, are not the fault of the journalists at The Athletic (national MLB reporters Ken Rosenthal and Brittany Ghiroli, and Giants beat reporter Andrew Baggarly). The implication with such a complaint (and sometimes it’s an outward statement, rather than an implication) is that the media should be working with the players and coaches, rather than in opposition to them.
It’s there where the funny irony of the story comes in. While it is, of course, not the media’s job to do PR for the Giants, it is, inadvertently, much of what we do, especially this time of year. Every article and soundbite about Bryce Eldridge’s rising stardom, and Hayden Birdsong’s attempt to bounce back, and Harrison Bader’s defensive wizardry, and the battle for the backup catcher position only serves — even when objective and journalistically sound — to excite a fanbase that is then even more likely to purchase tickets, buy merch, tune into a game, and heck, maybe even hop online in a fit of spontaneity and see what the flight prices to Scottsdale look like.
I had an article planned for today about Giants players. I suspect Baggarly, Slusser, and the other beat reporters on the scene at Papago did, as well. Instead, we all wrote about Vitello. The KNBR airwaves, offering Giants nuggets not just to diehard fans but, perhaps more critically, to casual ones, have been dominated with talk about Vitello. Many of the takes are absurd, but they’re out there nonetheless, causing damage where there would otherwise be excitement.
On Tuesday, Vitello fielded a question about the prior day’s scrum, and noted that he had not received any friendly feedback on his comments from the front office, despite the employment of the notoriously even-keeled trio of Bochy, Buster Posey, and Dusty Baker. It would certainly seem he was being honest there, as he somewhat doubled-down on his sentiments, saying that he was “just stating facts.” He thankfully offered a clarification on his cryptic comment: while “it might have changed the course of history” seemed to imply that Vitello may have chosen a different path had he known who leaked the story, he said on Tuesday that it “has no real impact on the opportunity that was presented, and it wouldn’t have changed what Buster and I would have agreed and joined to do.”
That probably ends the story. It’s not like Vitello committed a fireable offense or, despite what the online masses may have you believe, did something that should make you question his ability to be a good big league manager.
But it was an unforced error. The Giants have had a lot of those over the last half-decade, on and off the field. The hope was that Vitello would help them have fewer. For now, it remains exactly that: the hope.
02/17/26: Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Kyle Tucker warms up during day five of spring training workouts at Camelback Ranch Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, Tuesday, February 17, 2026. Photo By: Jason...
PHOENIX –– In his annual start-of-the-spring address to his Dodger team on Tuesday, manager Dave Roberts delivered a simple message to the two-time defending World Series champions.
“I think for us it’s more about looking forward, focusing on ourselves and … not concerning us with outside expectations, noise, other teams,” he said. “That’s what we’ve done a pretty good job of in years past.”
Then, Roberts invited the club’s two superstar offseason additions to speak to the room and drive home that message.
As has become a common theme in these team-wide spring meetings –– which take place on the morning of the club’s first full-squad workouts, which the Dodgers had on Tuesday –– the longtime skipper wanted his returning players to hear from the new faces in the clubhouse.
“It was just more about what made the Dodgers attractive to them,” Roberts explained. “I think it’s powerful for our guys to hear it from the other side, from somebody who hasn’t been here.”
This year, that meant speeches from Kyle Tucker and Edwin Díaz, each of whom explained why they wanted to sign with the Dodgers as free agents this winter.
Roberts said Tucker talked about watching “how the Dodgers go about things” while playing against them as a member of the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros over the last eight years, calling the franchise “a destination place.”
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Díaz echoed that sentiment when he got up to talk, joking that the Dodgers always “look pretty nice on the field” and how he “heard they treat every player the same inside the clubhouse.”
“That,” the new closer added while speaking to reporters later, “was one of the things I was looking for.”
The Dodgers hope that a scene like Tuesday’s will serve as a tone-setter ahead of their three-peat pursuit this year. Simply signing big names like Tucker (the $240 million outfielder) and Diaz (the $69 million right-hander) served as a source of reinvigoration for the club this offseason. But hearing their perspectives of the team for the first time was “refreshing,” veteran third baseman and longest tenured Dodger Max Muncy said.
Kyle Tucker explained why he wanted to sign with the Dodgers as a free agent this winter. Jason Szenes for CA Post
“Not that anyone in this room ever forgets, but (when) they talk about how good the organization is from the outside, from what they see and what they hear, just things about how the front office and the staff treats the players and the families –– (it’s a reminder that) we have it really good here,” Muncy said.
There’s another important dynamic, too.
“Then you get that little extra hunger from guys who want to go out there and win a ring,” Muncy added. “It keeps everyone else in here hungry, because you just start feeding off each other. And when it’s time to go out there and it’s go time, everyone’s ready to go.”
Díaz echoed that sentiment when he got up to talk, joking that the Dodgers always “look pretty nice on the field.” JASON SZENES FOR CA POST
For these Dodgers, it won’t be “go time” for a little while still.
Unlike the past two years, the team has no early start or season-opening international trip. And while they will send five players to next month’s World Baseball Classic (including Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Will Smith, Hyeseong Kim and Díaz), they will use this spring to slowly build up many of their other veterans after a short offseason (namely, Muncy, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, whom Roberts said will likely not be playing in Cactus League games right away).
“It’s just about preparation,” said Betts, recounting the message he shared as one of several longtime Dodgers to talk at Tuesday’s meeting, along with Miguel Rojas and Will Smith. “Our confidence is gonna come with our preparation.”
Roberts said Tucker talked about watching “how the Dodgers go about things” while playing against them. JASON SZENES FOR CA POST“That,” the new closer added while speaking to reporters later, “was one of the things I was looking for.” JASON SZENES FOR CA POST
Tuesday, however, was about setting bigger-picture expectations, too, and reminding both the club’s returning core and new star players about the opportunity in front of them.
“It’s just trying to sustain that energy, that focus every day,” Roberts said, reiterating his clubhouse message. “Put those blinders on and get to work.”
As has become a common theme in these team-wide spring meetings –– which take place on the morning of the club’s first full-squad workouts, which the Dodgers had on Tuesday –– the longtime skipper wanted his returning players to hear from the new faces in the clubhouse.
“It was just more about what made the Dodgers attractive to them,” Roberts explained. “I think it’s powerful for our guys to hear it from the other side, from somebody who hasn’t been here.”
While the Yankees have entered spring training under the impression Anthony Volpe will miss all of April recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, the young shortstop is aiming for an earlier return.
Just a day after beginning his hitting progression with dry swings, Volpe sounded optimistic about playing in April, calling the timeline "definitely" possible while also not committing to a date for his 2026 debut.
"My body’s ready to go," Volpe said on Tuesday in Tampa. "I started my hitting progression, so other than that, I mean, I'm full go. My body's ready to go defensively and running, so the hitting will be what we work through next and judging on how everything's gone so far, I'm just excited."
The partially torn labrum on Volpe's left shoulder was repaired in October, and while the issue was cleaned up successfully, his doctors were surprised to see the damage was actually worse than what imaging showed.
Volpe doesn't believe the shoulder injury -- suffered last May -- was largely responsible for his regression-filled 2025 campaign, in which he slashed a woeful .212/.272/.391 with 19 home runs and 150 strikeouts across 153 games.
He continues to make no excuses for last season's low production, and the recovery process has helped him learn how to improve communication with the club and stay honest with himself.
"I know I could've played better, I felt strong and good enough to go. If I didn't, I mean, I wouldn't have," Volpe said. "You learn a lot about the mindset and how you've got to be self-aware, aware of certain things going on. And how to, if you're going to play through, perform and do the best you can."
Volpe described the early stages of rehab as "rock bottom" physically, and he didn't start to feel over the hump in his offseason work until more baseball activities around the new year.
The next step in Volpe's progression will be tee work, followed by soft toss. He'll make sure landing on the shoulder is the last hurdle cleared, since a diving defensive play against the Rays at Yankee Stadium caused the "pop" that prompted two cortisone shots last season.
In the meantime, Volpe is trusting the training staff's plan, no matter how long utilityman Jose Caballero and others hold down the fort at shortstop. Volpe claims there's always been "a chip on his shoulder" -- apparently, doctors missed that during imaging, too.
"I just can't wait to go back out there, play, feel good, perform, and help the team win," Volpe said. "Because at the end of the day, if I do that and I play the way I can play, everything will take care of itself and I appreciate everything. I appreciate the accountability."
