HOUSTON, TEXAS - MARCH 13: Aaron Judge #99 of Team United States celebrates in the dugout after the 5-3 victory against Team Canada at Daikin Park on March 13, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s Sunday once more, and you know what that means — it’s time for our weekly social media roundup! This week has been a whirlwind of baseball, filled with spring training games and, of course, the World Baseball Classic. How have the Yankees been spending their time off the diamond? Let’s find out!
The WBC Continues
As expected, the World Baseball Classic has remained the biggest news in the baseball world, and thus has dominated social media.
While it’s not Yankees-related, I also want to highlight Ondřej Satoria, “the Electrician,” who struck out Shohei Ohtani in the 2023 World Baseball Classic and who ended his baseball career this week with 4.2 shutout innings against Samurai Japan in Czechia’s final game of the WBC.
Former Yankees Hall of Fame pitcher CC Sabathia spent last weekend watching his son play ball at the University of Houston; also with him were Ken Griffey Jr. and former Yankees bullpen coach Mike Harkey.
Alex Rodriguez took to Instagram to show how he would build a Major League Baseball team on a budget. While I won’t get into his full analysis here, the fact that he has Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger on the team should be an encouraging sign for Yankees fans (he also has Aaron Judge, of course, but that’s kind of a no-brainer, and in fact the entire linchpin of the team he constructed).
Both the Yankees as an organization and Derek Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation celebrated major milestones this week, with the former receiving the 2025 Allan H. Selig Award from Major League Baseball, and the latter turned 30.
This busy week saw the Yankees social media team post a number of Questions of the Day. We got some restaurant recommendations, learned who everyone’s favorite princess was (I am personally annoyed at all those who said Elsa, Frozen is sooo overrated, and quite a few guys smoothly named their wives/daughters), and found out what obscure topics the players can give presentations on.
WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - MARCH 11: James Wood #29 of the Washington Nationals at bat during a spring training game against the St. Louis Cardinals at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches on March 11, 2026 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For the most part, I have liked what I have seen from the Nats during Spring Training. The pitching has been good and the vibes seem to be high. However, the Nationals offense has left a lot to be desired this spring, especially from the big guns.
While the games do not count, it would be nice to see some of the Nats star hitters heat up as we get closer to Opening Day. It has been a pretty brutal spring for guys like CJ Abrams, James Wood and Dylan Crews. All three of them are below the Mendoza line for the spring, and they are not alone. The Nats are hitting just .192 as a team this spring.
The Nats .606 spring OPS is the worst in the league, which is obviously not what you would like to see. So far, the pitching staff has picked up the slack, but I want to see the offense explode one of these games. The offense was supposed to be the best part of the team heading into spring, but it has not looked that way so far.
Of course, the script could totally flip by the time the real season starts, but I think you can take something from this. I would not be surprised if the pitching staff sees quick improvement this season, while the hitting is more of a work in progress. It is easier to teach a new pitch or alter a pitcher’s usage than it is to tweak a hitter’s mechanics.
We are seeing some of those growing pains this spring. Matt Borgschulte has a different philosophy to Darnell Coles, and that might come with an adjustment period for some hitters. It would not be surprising if the Nats struck out more than they did last year. Hopefully that can come with more power and patience though.
One player I would love to see get going is James Wood. As we all know, he was not the same hitter after the All-Star break. The strikeout rate exploded and his confidence dropped. So far this spring, Wood has looked like the second half version of himself. We have not even seen as much hard contact as you would expect from him.
I am no hitting guru, but when I compare his swing from early last year to this year, I think his leg kick has gotten a bit out of control. Last Spring Training, he had a medium sized leg kick and was able to control his long levers. Right now when I watch him, it seems like he is a bit out of control due to that leg kick getting higher. Here is a video of what his swing looked like last spring.
This somehow left the yard off of James Wood's bat the other way. 111 MPH at 16 degrees…I'd venture to say pulling the ball is much less important for a guy like him. pic.twitter.com/saLaI8aXUW
While CJ Abrams has not been very productive this spring, I am not very worried about him. His at bats look good, and he is clearly working on being patient. Abrams is also getting a bit unlucky. He crushed a ball over 400 feet the other day, but it was right at the fence in the deepest part of the park. I would not be surprised if he quickly flips the switch in the regular season. He has been a fast starter these past couple years.
Dylan Crews has been another hitter that has struggled, but he has shown more signs of life lately. In his last game against the Mets, he hit the ball hard in all three of his at bats. He had one hit, a sac fly and a hard hit out. Blake Butera was very happy about that, saying Crews’ swings were “the biggest positive of the night in my mind”.
Dylan Crews has had three of his better swings of the spring tonight. One hit, one sac fly and one hard hit out
Getting Dylan Crews going would be a huge plus for the Nats. He has yet to hit the heights expected of him when he was taken second overall in 2023. However, when you watch him on the right night, you can see his talent. It is all about consistency and finding a swing that works for him.
So how worried am I about the Nats offense? On a scale of 1-10, I am at about a 4 right now. James Wood not looking like himself again after his second half is a bit disappointing. It also really feels like there will be growing pains for this offense. The one bright spot has been Brady House, who has been destroying baseballs. Hopefully he can keep that up and some of the quieter Nats hitters can get going.
GLENDALE, AZ - MARCH 12: Freddie Freeman #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats during the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch on Thursday, March 12, 2026 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Julia Jacome/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Believe it or not, but today is the final Sunday for the Dodgers in Arizona this spring training. By this time next week, they’ll be back in Southern California for the exhibition Freeway Series against the Angels. Here’s a look at the schedule for the week ahead, which includes Cactus League action, one more split-squad day, the final three games of the World Baseball Classic, and prospects in the spring breakout game.
With Korea, Japan, and Puerto Rico eliminated Friday and Saturday, the Dodgers will get Hyeseong Kim, Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Edwin Díaz back in camp at some point this week.
Sunday, March 15
Dodgers vs. Rangers, 1:05 p.m. (SportsNet LA, AM 570) Dodgers at Cubs, 1:05 p.m. (Marquee Sports Network) WBC: United States vs. Dominican Republic, 5 p.m. (FS1)
Monday, March 16
Dodgers vs. Brewers, 1:05 p.m. (SportsNet LA, AM 570) WBC: Venezuela vs. Italy, 5 p.m. (FS1)
Mar 14, 2026; Miami, FL, United States; Venezuela pitcher Enmanuel de Jesus (37) reacts against Japan in the sixth inning during a quarterfinal game of the 2026 World Baseball Classic at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
The World Baseball Classic continues to be the most fun you can have with March baseball. Move over March Madness. On Saturday night, an absolute classic unfolded as Team Venezuela took on Team Japan in a back and forth slugfest that saw the Venezuelans advance to the semifinals with a wild 8-5 victory. Detroit Tigers’ Gleyber Torres, and in particular lefty Enmanuel de Jesus, played big roles in the victory. It was a bit of a Tigers’ fest all around as even Miguel Cabrera had a long cameo in a key moment.
The Tigers contingent will continue to be center stage as Keider Montero is now slated to start in the semifinals against Team Italy on Monday. The winner will advance to the finals against the winner of tonight’s 8:00 p.m ET matchup between Team USA and Team Dominican Republic.
Last night’s game started off with a bang and it didn’t slow down until Team Venezuela’s bullpen slammed the door on Samurai Japan from the middle inning onward. Facing World Series hero and Dodgers’ ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Ronald Acuña Jr. led off the game with a solo shot to right center field on a 1-0 heater right down the pipe.
In the bottom of the first, Shohei Ohtani struck right back with a leadoff solo shot on a Ranger Suarez curveball down and in to make it 1-1. It was not a good night for Ranger Suarez. It’s way too early for this kind of statement, but after spending a fair amount of time trying to decide whether the Tigers would be better off signing Suarez or Framber Valdez, but expecting neither, so far I think we’re in a good place. The bottom of the first ended with Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki getting banged up a bit trying to steal second with two outs. Salvador Perez cut him down and the Venezuelans got right back to work.
Ezequiel Tovar, who had a big night all around, opened the second inning with a drive off the wall in center field, and our own Gleyber Torres followed suit. Yamamoto hung a 2-2 splitter up on the inner edge of the plate, and Torres smoked it to left, missing a home run by inches and cruising into second with an RBI double that made it 2-1 Venezuela.
Torres was stranded on base, and Ranger Suarez settled down for a quick 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the second. Yoshinobu did likewise in the top of the third, giving up a leadoff double to Maikel Garcia of the Royals, but settling things down by stranding him. Suarez then imploded a bit in the bottom of the third, giving up an RBI double to Teruakui Sato, and then a three-run shot to Shota Morashita that threatened to blow the game open.
Suarez was knocked out of the game a batter later, but Venezuela got out of the inning without further damage. Still it was 5-2 Japan with Yamamoto on the mound. Things looked a little bleak.
In the bottom of the fourth, Enmanuel de Jesus took over, and this is where the game’s momentum began to shift. The left-handed has been a minor revelation this spring, and he was outstanding in this one and truly one of the standout heroes for Venezuela.
As he has all spring, De Jesus had his deep pitch mix under control and showed off a lot of deception. Team Japan was guessing wildly as De Jesus painted the edges with fourseamers and sinkers, and then bent cutters and changeups in and out of the zone with good command while pitching in the most pressure packed environment he’s faced as a professional.
He got the first out of the fourth, but gave up a single and a walk before bouncing back to strike out Ohtani and Sato both swinging at ghosts as his cutter sailed down and away from the two left-handed hitters.
In the top of the fifth, Miguel Cabrera briefly got involved. After Jackson Chourio drew a leadoff walk, Acuña was called on out a really tough checked swing call by home plate umpire Dan Iasogna. Acuña was livid, and it was the Tigers’ great and future Hall of Famer Cabrera, Venezuela’s hitting coach, was seen hollering at Acuña to let him do the yelling and to calm down before he got tossed out of the game. Iasogna did a nice job there by taking it without immediately tossing the Braves’ star in such a key game.
Miguel Cabrera salió a calmar a Ronald Acuña Jr, que se vio frustrado con el umpire de primera base luego del ponche en el quinto inning.
Cabrera tuvo algunas palabras para el árbitro, Dan Iassogna.
Fortunately for Venezuela, they had other powerful options. A two-run homer from Maikel Garcia cashed in Chourio anyway, cutting Japan’s lead to 5-4, and de Jesus held it in the bottom of the inning, striking out Morashita and getting a routine grounder and a pop-up to send this to the sixth inning.
Wilyer Abreu seized control for Venezuela with Yamamoto gone, cracking a three-run shot after singles from Tovar and Gleyber Torres to make it 7-5. De Jesus got the dangerous Munetaka Murakami, who we’ll see a lot of with the White Sox, on a flyout to start the bottom of the sixth before giving way to José Butto.
De Jesus finished with 2.1 IP, 0 R, H, BB, 3 K for the night. Pretty darn good against a dangerous lineup.
Team Venezuela’s bullpen followed de Jesus’ example and shut the door on Japan the rest of the way. Angel Zerpa, Andrés Machado, and Daniel Palencia shut the door with a solid inning of work each. Tovar continued his huge game with an eighth inning double, and then scored on a ill-fated pickoff attempt that was thrown away by Atsuki Taneichi. That was the ballgame.
Now, Keider Montero will take Venezuela’s hopes into his hands in the biggest start of his career. Of course, Montero is familiar with some pressure. He does have 8 1/3 scoreless innings over the last two postseasons with the Tigers, so he’s been in these situations before. However, doing the pre-game media as the starting pitcher in an elimination game for your country is a different animal. Hopefully Keider handles the pressure and does well in all respects. This could be a huge confidence builder for him, or a tough moment that stings a while.
It will be very interesting to see how he does, just as his role with the Tigers this season remains an interesting question. Going from starting a semifinal game for your home country, to getting sent out to Toledo to start the year, is going to be some medicine for a letdown if that’s how it goes. No doubt his chances will come anyway if he’s pitching well.
The Detroit Tigers have had really longstanding ties to Venezuela. Apart from Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, and Magglio Ordonez, one of the Tigers top prospects, Josue Briceño is Venezuelan, as well as Torres, Montero, and now de Jesus. So it’s great to see Team Venezuela’s underdog run.
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SB Nation’s CBB expert Mike Rutherford and resident bracketologist Chris Dobbertean will answer all your questions this week and help guide you to bracket glory! Drop in SB Nation’s March Madness Feed all week long and we’ll have both on hand! (All times ET)
GOODYEAR, ARIZONA - MARCH 5: Infielders (L-R) Christian Encarnacion-Strand #33, Matt McLain #9, Spencer Steer #7, and Elly de la Cruz #44 of the Cincinnati Reds talk during a pitching change during a Spring Training game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Goodyear Ballpark on March 5, 2026 in Goodyear, Arizona. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) | Getty Images
When looking back at the 2025 postseason, one would be forgiven for forgetting that the Cincinnati Reds were involved. Even despite the inherent dangers of a short-term series, the Reds weren’t able to give a proper contest to the Dodgers, falling in two straight games during Terry Francona’s first year in charge. It might have been their first playoff appearance in five years, but they haven’t even won a playoff game since 2012, nor a playoff series since 1995 — when the NL Central champion Brewers were still playing in the American League.
All the skepticism surrounding the Reds felt justified given that they were every bit of their 83-79 record. It was a type of campaign that leads a team to a playoff appearance only in very specific circumstances — the New York Mets’ late-season collapse, in this particular case. It wasn’t as though they caught them in a race, it was more that they kept walking at an adequate pace while the Mets took a wayward step into a ditch.
Any projection about the 2026 Reds starts with the unfortunate acknowledgment of ace Hunter Greene’s injury status heading into the year. The former No. 2 overall pick became the latest in a series of hard-throwing starters to be sidelined for a significant period. He’s now on the 60-day IL, out until at least July due to arthroscopic surgery on his elbow. Greene had already missed significant time last season, barely cracking the 100 innings mark in what was otherwise a magnificent campaign. Once again, the Reds will have to make do without him for a significant portion of their season.
Typically, good Reds team score runs, doing their best to benefit from playing half their games at Great American Ballpark, hitters’ favorite venue this side of Coors Field. Well, for the 2025 Reds—and this ties into some of the added concerns from Greene’s absence, it was all about the pitching.
Despite Greene’s time missed, Cincinnati managed a team ERA+ of 119, largely thanks to a career year from Andrew Abbott. The left-hander defied all odds to post a 2.39 ERA at home without the benefit of overwhelming stuff, boasting a strikeout rate below league average, all of which led to his first All-Star nod and a top-10 Cy Young finish. The de facto ace of this staff without a healthy Greene, Abbott may take a step back if we’re to read into his peripherals. It’s hard to see how he sustains a sub-3.00 ERA, pitching half his games in Cincinnati. On the positive side of things, Chase Burns (like Greene, a former No. 2 overall pick) showed outstanding stuff in his short period in the bigs and is probably one of the top young players to watch across baseball in 2026. He is currently dealing with a “range of motion issue” that they’re hoping isn’t too serious.
All in all, between Abbott, Burns, and Nick Lodolo, the Reds have an intriguing foundation even without Greene available, but it can’t quite be expected to carry the load of what could be a fringe contender if all things break right. Moving over to the bullpen, Emilio Pagán will be expected to live up to his resurgent 2025 campaign, set up primarily by Tony Santillan; the two combined to be one of the better late-inning duos in the National League last season. Trusting the pair, Cincinnati didn’t make any high-profile acquisitions to bolster its bullpen. Pierce Johnson and Caleb Ferguson are depth acquisitions to supplement Pagán, who was brought back on a two-year deal worth $20 million, showcasing a bit of the skepticism the market had about Pagán retaining that 2025 form.
Offensively, despite whiffing on their pursuit of Kyle Schwarber, Cincy has a few intriguing sluggers to keep an eye on ahead of 2026. After lighting up in the minors, Sal Stewart, a first-round pick in 2022, got a small opportunity in the bigs and answered the call with five homers in just 18 games. The youngster will get a free run to try and lock down a first base role that hasn’t been totally spoken for since the better days of Joey Votto. Spencer Steer is a fine player, but his flexibility is best utilized playing in other positions rather than as the primary first baseman. Carrying on the theme of sluggers, 49-homer bat Eugenio Suárez returns home, in a manner of speaking, on a one-year, $15-million contract that speaks for itself on why the Reds were more than happy to accommodate him as their primary DH. The man with 101 career bombs and a .504 SLG in Great American Ballpark should see his power play better there than it did in Seattle in the second half of 2025.
We went an entire paragraph on the club’s offense without discussing the inhuman Elly De La Cruz, a player whose God-given talent matches up with anybody in the game. His highlight reel will be phenomenal, his Statcast page equally so, but the challenge is to take not just one but several steps forward. The .777 OPS De La Cruz put up last year is not fitting for a player of his skill set; if this is to become a very good offense, it needs De La Cruz producing as a perennial MVP, which he very well could do. The best-case for the Reds is that the quad injury that Elly played through really affected his final 2025 numbers, and now recovered, he can get back to peak form.
De La Cruz, however, isn’t the only exciting Reds youngster who needs to do more in 2026. Matt McLain followed up an outstanding rookie campaign with an injury-riddled sophomore season. If he can regain that form we saw in 2024, the Reds could have one of the deadliest middle-infield partnerships in baseball, but that’s a big if.
As you’d expect, the Reds have the talent to compete for a Wild Card, but there are a lot of ifs and maybes and not very many certainties surrounding this team. They’ll be fun to watch, and the NL Central isn’t the gauntlet some other divisions are, but one is justified in being skeptical about this team’s chances to make a lot of noise in 2026.
More Pinstripe Alley MLB team season previews can be found here.
I think the best line I’ve seen from Italian sports fans is their disbelief that Italy has a better national baseball team than a calcio (soccer) team.
But Angels pitcher Sam Aldegheri retired the next three batters in order. Meanwhile, Italy jumped all over Puerto Rico starter Seth Lugo for four runs in the bottom of the first inning.
Jovani Morán then replaced Lugo, but he walked the first batter he faced. Then J.J. D’Orazio hit a sacrifice fly and it was 4-1 Italy.
Puerto Rico got a run back in the top of the second when Aldegheri walked two batters and hit a batter to load the bases. At that point, Italy manager Francisco Cervelli pulled Aldegheri for Alek Jacob, but Jakob hit the first batter he faced to make it 4-2 Italy.
But Jacob then struck out Castro and got a ground out by Darell Hernaiz to end the threat.
After that, it was up to the Italian bullpen to hold the six-run lead. They almost blew it. Guardians minor leaguer Dylan DeLucia was strong for Italy, pitching four shutout innings against heavily-favored Puerto Rico. Twins reliever Dan Altavilla pitched around an error in the seventh. But Matt Festa came on to pitch the top of the eight and and he failed to retire a batter, loading the bases on a single, a walk and another single. Festa gave way to Pirates reliever Joe La Sorsa. La Sorsa gave up a run on an groundout to first, which was a trade Italy would make any day in that situation. But with the score now 8-3, La Sorsa’s control abandoned him. He hit a batter and then uncorked a wild pitch that scored a run and made it 8-4 Italy.
Cervelli went to his closer Greg Weissert at this point in the eighth inning. Weissert struck out Castro for the second out, gave up a single to Darell Hernaiz and then got Nolan Arenado to ground out to end the inning with no further damage.
Weissert stayed in the game to pitch the top of the ninth and immediately gave up a single to Athletic Carlos Cortes to lead off the inning. But Weissert retired the next three batters to end the game and send Italy to the semifinals for the first time.
The Italian broadcast call of Italy’s historic win over Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals, on Sky Sports 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/07JL7YGZ7s
Venezuela broke out to a 2-1 lead in the top of the second when Ezequiel Tovar doubled off Yamamoto to lead off the inning and then Gleyber Torres doubled him home. [VIDEO]
Let’s all hope Suzuki isn’t seriously hurt. This doesn’t sound too bad.
Chicago Cubs OF Seiya Suzuki is being evaluated for right knee discomfort after being taken out of the game after sustaining the injury on a stolen-base attempt in the first inning for Japan.
As noted in that video, it is the first time Venezuela has made the semifinals of the WBC since 2009. It’s the first time ever that Japan has been eliminated before the semifinals.
Italy will play Venezuela in the semifinals at 7 p.m. CT on Monday. On Sunday at 7 p.m. CT, Team USA takes on the Dominican Republic. Both games are on FS1. A game thread for tonight’s game will post here at 6 p.m. CT.
MIAMI, FL - MARCH 14: Ronald Acuña Jr. #21 of Team Venezuela celebrates with teammates after winning the 2026 World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals game presented by Capital One between Team Venezuela and Team Japan at loanDepot park on Saturday, March 14, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
After yesterday’s quarterfinals, which featured a blowout and something much closer but not exactly thrilling, the WBC delivered drama in spades on Saturday.
Italy 8, Puerto Rico 6. In something that happened three times on Saturday, Willi Castro connected for a leadoff homer off Sam Aldegheri on the fourth pitch of the game. That lead didn’t last long, however, as Seth Lugo struggled on the mound from the get-go. He walked two of the first three Italian batters, and then a couple of soft singles through the infield turned things around into a 2-1 game. A harder single by Jac Caglianone made it 3-1, and Italy then collected another walk and a sac fly against new hurler Jovani Moran.
Aldegheri walked the bases loaded in the second and was replaced by Alek Jacob, who promptly plunked Puerto Rico captain Martin Maldonado to make it a two-run game, but then got out of it with a strikeout and a groundout. Moran and Eduardo Rivera escaped trouble of their own in the bottom of the inning, with Rivera striking out Caglianone with the bases loaded. Rivera left after consecutive two-out walks in the fourth, and then Italy reeled off an unholy rally against Luis Quinones, with a walk, a ground-rule-double-because-a-fan-reached-over-the-railing-to-catch-it, and then a more traditional ground rule double blooped far down the right-field line. Italy led 8-2 after all those walks and doubles.
Then things got quiet, with Puerto Rico squandering a good chance to get into it against Dan Altavilla in the seventh by wasting a two out, none on situation. Instead, they got into it the next frame against Matt Festa, with single-walk-walk to start the frame. That chased Festa and brought in Joe La Sorsa, but an RBI groundout, a hit batter, and a wild pitch made it 8-4, and then Christian Vazquez hit it hard through the infield to pull it back within two runs. So, Team Italy brought in presumptive closer Greg Weissert, who restored order, striking out Castro and later getting Nolan Arenado to softly ground out. After Edwin Diaz had an uncharacteristically wonky ninth (hit by pitch and walk) but nonetheless kept it to within two, it was Puerto Rico’s last chance, with Weissert still pitching.
Carlos Cortes made things more interesting with a leadoff single. Weissert then got a strikeout and Heliot Ramos hit a routine flyout, meaning it all rested on the shoulders of Eddie Rosario. After falling behind 2-0, Weissert missed with a fastball that ended up right down the middle… but Rosario didn’t really do anything with it, flying out to left to end the game. A bit more oomph and maybe Puerto Rico survives, but no dice. Italy moves on to the semis.
Venezuela 8, Japan 5. This is probably the kind of game the WBC organizers were envisioning when they dreamed up this tournament. What a barnburner.
Ronald Acuña Jr. started things off in electrifying fashion by raking an opposite-field leadoff homer against Yoshinobu Yamamoto. But, a few pitches into the bottom of the first, Shohei Ohtani returned the favor off Ranger Suarez. Later in the inning, Seiya Suzuki was thrown out trying to steal second and had to leave the game due to injury.
Ezequiel Tovar, who apparently owns Yamamoto for some reason, led off the second with a double, and then Venezuela pulled ahead when Gleyber Torres barely missed a homer and ended up doubling Tovar home. The inning ended on a didn’t-mean-to-swing from Acuña that dribbled out to the second baseman. Suarez struck out two in the bottom of the second, and Venezuela squandered a leadoff double in the third. Suarez then wobbled in the bottom of the third, with a leadoff walk and an intentional walk to Ohtani, which then all came to roost when Teruaki Soto doubled down the right-field line to tie the game, and Suzuki’s replacement, Shota Morishita, yanked a three-run go-ahead homer into the left-field corner. It probably isn’t really any consolation for Suarez that the pitches both Soto and Morishita hit were basically perfect pitcher’s pitches that they nonetheless creamed.
The teams traded zeroes in the fourth, but Venezuela jumped on Chihiro Sumida after he replaced Yamamoto to start the fifth, with Jackson Chourio drawing a leadoff walk and Maikel Garcia depositing a baseball deep into the left field stands to make it a one-run game. Meanwhile, Enmanuel de Jesus was restoring order for Venezuela on the mound.
The big blow for Venezuela came against Hiromi Itoh in the sixth. Tovar dunked one for a leadoff single, and Torres rolled one through the infield. Up came Wilyer Abreu, Itoh tried to sneak a 91 mph fastball by him at the top of zone, and nope. Kablamo. Abreu didn’t miss it and instead crushed a second-deck shot over 400 feet for a three-run go-ahead dinger. (Later in this inning, Acuña got absolutely screwed on a not-even-that borderline strike three call.)
At this point, the game was basically over, as de Jesus, Jose Butto, Andres Machado, and Daniel Palencia, along with the Venezuelan gloves, stymied Japan the rest of the way. Those five games combined for an 8/1 K/BB ratio in six innings, and after Venezuela took the lead on Abreu’s homer, Japan’s only baserunners came on a couple of two-out singles in the eighth against Machado — but Shugo Maki grounded out. On the flip side, Venezuela added an eighth run when Tovar doubled, stole third, and scored on a poor throw down. Daniel Palencia made short work of Japan in the end, blowing away Sosuke Genda for the first out, clipping an edge against Kensuke Kondoh for the second, and then getting Ohtani to pop out on a down-the-middle fastball to end the game, eliminate Japan, and send Venezuela to an Olive Garden date on Monday night.
Acuña went 1-for-5 with three strikeouts and the leadoff homer. In one of his strikeouts, he just got beat on a high fastball after getting five pitches in a row below the zone. Then, there was that horrible 0-2 call, and he was carved up by Yusei Kikuchi in the ninth without seeing a fastball. Ah well, I’m sure he doesn’t mind given the exciting game and victory for his team — plus, you can see him hopping over the railing and jumping around repeatedly as his teammates walloped the ball. Fun stuff.
The U.S.-D.R. heavyweight match is on tap for Sunday night.
MIAMI, FLORIDA - MARCH 14: Hiromi Itoh #14 of Team Japan pitches against Team Venezuela during the sixth inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic at loanDepot park on March 14, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning, foLLks, and happy Sunday!
The M’s lost by a score of 6-2 to the Angels yesterday as Cactus League play drags on, but we did get a fun sequence of Cole Young knocking in Colt Emerson for Seattle’s first run. It’s definitely not tough to imagine that happening in big league games that count soon!
What’s a theme song from a TV show or cartoon that has a tendency to get stuck in your head? My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed the new season of Ted – itself having an earworm of an opening theme – but thanks to a scene in one of the later episodes, I have not been able to shake the theme of Adventures of the Gummi Bears the past few days despite that show being well before my time. Sound off in the comments!
In Mariners news:
Randy Arozarena is back in Mariners camp following an eventful week at the World Baseball Classic, and issued a statement through the team addressing the situation between him and Cal Raleigh.
Italy continued its magical Classic run. Fresh off an upset victory over the US in pool play, they jumped out to an early 8-2 lead and held on after Puerto Rico hung a four-spot in the eighth inning to win 8-6.
Venezuela toppled the defending champion Japan 8-5 in a wild back-and-forth affair, with Wilyer Abreu’s three-run blast in the sixth inning the deciding blow.
Around the league:
Ideally, you get through spring training without anyone getting hurt. That may not be the case for the Angels, as shortstop Zach Neto left yesterday’s contest after injuring his hand on a head-first slide. While he will undergo further testing, it’s not the first time he’s injured himself sliding head-first.
Jorge Castillo reports that righty Hiromi Itoh and third baseman/outfielder Teruaki Sato – both part of Team Japan – could enter the posting system this winter and make the jump from NPB to MLB.
SB Nation’s CBB expert Mike Rutherford and resident bracketologist Chris Dobbertean will answer all your questions this week and help guide you to bracket glory! Drop in SB Nation’s March Madness Feed all week long and we’ll have both on hand! (All times ET)
Feb 19, 2026; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets pitcher Clay Holmes (35) poses for a photo during media day at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
In his first year as a full-time starter, Clay Holmes was sturdy, if unspectacular. After eight years of solely relieving (after his first season where he both started and relieved), Holmes made 31 starts in 2025 (plus two relief appearances) good for a 3.53 ERA. That line looks good in insolation, but watching Holmes pitch over the course of the year didn’t always feel like you were watching someone with a sub-4.00 ERA.
While the overall results may have been there, batter to batter, inning to inning, Holmes appeared to be pressing, often looking fatigued and frustrated. A lot of this can be placed at the feet of the transition from relief pitching to starting pitching. Midway through the season, Holmes had already blown past his innings total for any big league season, so some of the fatigue was earned.
But with a season under his belt, it’s becoming clear who Holmes the starter is. When he’s on, he’s inducing a lot of ground balls. His pitch mix hasn’t changed too much from his bullpen days, but he’s lost a little velocity (about three miles per hour on his sinker, approximately two miles per hour off of breaking/off-speed stuff) due to the extra pitches he’s throwing. Amazingly, his walk rate didn’t change too much, though he was never a reliever who didn’t put men on base.
So while the stuff is unlikely to change in his second year as a starter, there’s hope that the endurance may. Now fully stretched out for more than a calendar year, Holmes can hopefully put together a season that sees him go deeper into games. With a partially rebuilt bullpen and an actual swingman (hello, Tobias Myers!), the Mets have attempted to address some of the issues of the 2025 pitching staff, but ultimately, starting pitcher length is going to tell a lot of the story.
There was a stretch during the summer of over two months between Mets’ starters going six innings. After June 7, Holmes only pitched into the seventh inning once. Even the reliable bullpen arms were getting dinged up because of overuse. While newly acquired starter Freddy Peralta didn’t average much better than Holmes did (both averaging just over five innings per start), the big difference is that he only had one start (aside from a last start before the playoffs purposely shortened outing) where he didn’t go five innings. His ERA was also almost a full run better than Holmes’s.
With Peralta and Nolan McLean at the top of the rotation, (hopefully) healthy Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea, and a (hopefully) resurgent David Peterson, the Mets have lots of options for how their starting staff is going to look. But based on a combination of effectiveness and health, Holmes looks to slot into the third or fourth starter role. And with Christian Scott and Jonah Tong not far behind, Holmes’s ability to transition into the bullpen and his modest contract ($13 million this year with a $12 million player option for 2027), if his effectiveness dips also makes him an asset in the way that Manaea or Senga simply aren’t.
SURPRISE, ARIZONA - MARCH 14: Josh Smith #8 of the Texas Rangers high fives Evan Carter #32 after hitting a grand slam off relief pitcher Logan Gillaspie #71 of the San Diego Padres during the third inning of the spring training game at Surprise Stadium on March 14, 2026 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: A detailed view of an Apple TV + Friday Night Baseball microphone before the game between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on September 13, 2024 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It feels like every year you need more and more subscriptions to watch the Red Sox. Rob Manfred supposedly wants to fix this in the future with nationalized broadcasting but for now, let’s see what’s on the docket for all those games in 2026.
You might remember last fall when the Red Sox and Tigers played on Apple TV and part of the broadcast was done on an iPhone. Well, that phone is now in the Hall of Fame.
The milestone broadcast at Boston’s Fenway Park — where the Red Sox clinched a postseason berth with a thrilling walk-off win over the Detroit Tigers — has since been recognized by the National Baseball Hall of Fame, which added one of the authenticated iPhone devices to its permanent collection in Cooperstown, New York. Read more on the Hall of Fame website.
By coincidence (or on purpose) the Tigers will be in town on April 17th for the Red Sox first, and currently only, Apple TV game of the year. The schedule Apple released is just for the first half of the season so there may be more to come after the All-Star Game. At least the Apple games look really, really good.
NBC/Peacock will be airing games on Sundays and the Red Sox are featured four times this season. NBC, to their credit (maybe?) has tried to make these big, exciting, matches. While that is definitely a win for the national audience, we miss out of Don and Jerry Dave and Lou.
Here are your 2026 Red Sox games that will be on NBC:
June 14 — 7 p.m. — Texas Rangers at Boston Red Sox — NBC/Peacock
Apologies if I don’t remember the large Rangers/Red Sox rivalry, NBC. In 2007 Boston traded for Eric Gagne from the Rangers? Ian Kinsler played for both teams?
June 28 — 7 p.m. — N.Y. Yankees at Boston Red Sox — NBC/Peacock
Now we’re talking…a series against the Yankees! And a second look at Fenway Park. If they’re going to be on the national stage might as well let other fans see our ballpark and wonder why they can’t have a Green Monster.
August 2 — 7 p.m. — Boston Red Sox at L.A. Dodgers — NBC/Peacock
Nothing on the schedule in July but there are two broadcasts scheduled for August. The first of which is August 2nd against then Dodgers. Mookie. Ohtani. Freeman. Decoy. All the big names. This has a little interest in the timing because it’s the day before the trade deadline. Monday August 3rd will be an off day for the Red Sox but the teams that do play will start ay 6:40 PM ET or later – after the deadline.
What do you think? Do you like when the deadline occurs during a game and every move is a possible trade? Or is it better to schedule games, as much as possible, with around 20 hours of space between day games on Sunday and night games on Monday?
August 23 — 3 p.m. — San Francisco Giants at Boston Red Sox — NBC/Peacock
Boston closes out the NBC slate with the Rafael Devers Reunion. The new-look Giants are trying to compete in 2026 and by August 23rd we’ll have a pretty good idea of the fortunes of both Boston and San Francisco. Did the Dodgers collapse? Are Roman and Marcelo fueling a youth revolution?
The real sacrifice comes, as usual, from FOX and their game of the week. Here’s what we get from FOX:
April 11 — 7 p.m. — Boston Red Sox at St. Louis Cardinals — FOX
It starts off with the Bloom vs Breslow Battle! Willson Contreras and Sonny Gray head back to St. Louis. Maybe Richard Fitts makes a start?
June 6 – 3 p.m. – Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees – FOX
Yankees, because Red Sox, Yankees, and FOX are just a thing that happens in MLB. Lots of good times. Lots of Joe Buck in the past.
July 11 – 4 p.m. – Boston Red Sox at New York Mets – FS1
Step right up and meet Grimace.
August 22 – 7 p.m. – San Francisco Giants at Boston Red Sox – FOX
A full national weekend of Devers clips. You’ll be tired by the end. Guaranteed.
September 26 – 7 p.m. – Chicago Cubs at Boston Red Sox – FOX
The Cubbies will be in town and everyone in the country might watch as Boston and Chicago battle out (hopefully) for postseason positioning in their respective divisions. If things go right, both teams will be setup up for October.
Then it’s on to, hopefully, more national games in October.
PEORIA, ARIZONA - MARCH 14: Nick Pivetta #27 of the San Diego Padres pitches during a Spring Training game against the Cleveland Guardians at Peoria Stadium on March 14, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Nick Pivetta returned to the mound for the San Diego Padres after he missed time with what was described as arm fatigue. Pivetta completed three innings and threw 56 pitches, allowing two runs on two hits with two walks and four strikeouts to lead the Padres to an 8-5 win over the Cleveland Guardians at the Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Ariz. on Saturday. Miguel Andujar and Freddy Fermin both homered in the game with Andujar hitting a grand slam for his third home run of the spring. Fermin continued his hot spring finishing with two hits in the game including his home run. Xander Bogaerts made his first start since returning from the World Baseball Classic and he added two hits as well.
Marco Gonzales led a group of Padres into the contest with the Texas Rangers in Surprise, Ariz. as Saturday was a split squad day with a home game and road game taking place with start times differing by five minutes. Things did not go so well for Gonzales and the Padres who faced the Rangers and the day ended with San Diego losing to Texas, 22-2. The Padres allowed five runs through the first two innings and an abysmal 13 runs in the third inning, alone. Gonzales completed two innings and allowed 11 runs, 10 of which were earned on eight hits with six walks and one strikeout. As bad as that was, reliever Logan Gillaspie had a different struggle. He could not keep the ball in the yard, allowing five home runs. He finished 2.2 innings and allowed nine runs on 11 hits with three walks and one strikeout. The lone bright spot for San Diego in the game was a two-run home run by Jase Bowen in the top of the third inning.
Padres News:
The Padres Reacts Survey on Gaslamp Ballasked readers which of the candidates they thought would win the final spot in the starting rotation. The overwhelming majority of respondents said they believe Walker Buehler will win the job.
Jackson Merrill had a difficult sophomore season, but it had more to do with health than regression. Merrill fought through multiple ailments and missed significant time for various injuries sustained throughout the year. Cheri Bell of Gaslamp Ball believes a healthy Merrill could have a big season and help the Padres return to the playoffs in 2026.
AJ Cassavell of Padres.com says that with his performance against the Guardians on Saturday, Pivetta is back on track, and his arm fatigue issues appear to be behind him.
With news about the possibility of Joe Musgrove missing time to start the season the Padres may have to fill more than one hole in the rotation. But even with a healthy Musgrove, San Diego may have to get creative to fill the No. 5 starter position.
Baseball News:
Randy Arozarena returned to the Seattle Mariners after he and Team Mexico were eliminated from the WBC. Arozarena and teammate Cal Raleigh, who plays for the US, had a now infamous interaction at home plate where Raliegh refused to shake Arozarena’s hand. Now back with the MLB club, Arozarena is ready to move on.
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Chris Devenski, who was struck in the head by a line drive on Friday, is back home and resting.
Paul Skenes will make his return to the WBC to help the US try to get past a dominant Dominican Republic lineup in their semi-final matchup tonight. Whichever team wins will advance to the final to face Italy or Venezuela.
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 21: Home plate umpire Jen Pawol is seen on the field during the game between the Athletics and the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on Sunday, September 21, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rayni Shiring/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The MLB season is around the corner, which means we are close to seeing one of the most electric things in all sports, homeruns.
Rotowire.com ranked the MLB ballparks by total home runs hit from the 2020-2025 season. They gathered home run data using Statcast data via Pybaseball, ensuring a comprehensive dataset covering every regular-season home run. To determine which stadiums are the most home run-friendly, they ranked all 30 MLB ballparks by total home runs hit, including both home and visiting teams. For teams that relocated or used temporary venues in 2025, totals have been combined across all stadiums used. They also did not count postseason Homers, it was just the regular season.
The stadium with the most home runs hit is Dodger Stadium with 1,241. The Dodgers bashed 244 homers in 2025 alone, with 142 of those being at home. Their slugging helped Los Angeles earn its second consecutive World Series title, taking down the Toronto Blue Jays. The Dodgers are 2026 World Series betting favorites at MLB betting apps to make it three in a row.
Great American Ballpark, the home of the Cincinnati Reds was second on the list with 1,221 dingers hit. While Yankee Stadium finished out the top three at 1, 216 homers.
The big surprise though was who ranked dead last on the list. PNC Park, the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates, finished 30th. Only 794 home runs were hit in over the last six seasons, counting the Pirates and the away teams stats.
This means the offense has really been struggling over the years for Pittsburgh but it also means the pitching has been doing its job not allowing the ball to leave the park.
PNC Park is not considered to lean heavily toward either hitters or pitchers, so Pittsburgh’s offensive struggles last season – their 117 homers were by far the fewest in the Majors – is more of a roster issue, not the ballpark.
The Bucs had by far the fewest HRs hit last season with 117, The St.Louis Cardinals had the second fewest with 148. The offensive struggles that Pittsburgh has had over the last couple of seasons is a big reason why PNC Park ranks dead last.
Pittsburgh made some good moves in the offseason to break that cycle. The Pirates traded for Brandon Lowe, signed Ryan O’Hearn and picked up Marcell Ozuna in the offseason. Those are all guys with serious power who can hit 30-plus homeruns.
It felt like over the years the power has not been there for the Pirates, but with those acquisitions, we could see more balls hit into the Allegheny river for the 2026 season.
