Category: Sports News

Good morning! The Mariners defeated the Cincinnati Reds yesterday 6-3 with another solid George Kirby outing. His final line after 4 2/3 innings pitched included two runs, seven hits, one walk, and four strikeouts. There is no game today as the players will get a break from live game action.

With Team USA’s win in the World Baseball Classic last night, who do you hope their opponent will be in the finals?

In Mariners news…

• The No Fly Zone was in full effect in Miami last night as Julio made an incredible catch at the wall for the Dominican Republic, and robbed Aaron Judge and Team USA of a home run in the fourth inning of the WBC.

• Third baseman Brendan Donovan continued his impressive Spring Training performance today with a four-hit game, bringing him to 14 hits in 31 at-bats so far.
• As Mariners players start to return from the WBC, their focus is finally turned towards the MLB regular season, writes Tim Booth at The Seattle Times.
• Jerry Dipoto joined Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob this past weekend to discuss what the team saw in Eduard Bazardo last season and the tweaks they made to unlock his potential.
• As Bryce Miller works back from his left oblique inflammation, the battle for the Mariners’ fifth starter spot is heating up between multiple potential candidates.

In the World Baseball Classic…

• Team USA is headed to the finals after defeating the Dominican Republic 2-1 with a very questionable game-ending strike call. Impressive pitching by Paul Skenes, and homers from Gunnar Henderson and Roman Anthony held the dominant Dominican Republic team to just one run.
• Italy and Venezuela face off today at 5 PM for a spot in the finals against the U.S.

Around the league…

• Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez left the team’s game early with left shoulder inflammation and is currently considered day-to-day.
• Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki is battling right knee discomfort after he was forced to exit in the first inning of Team Japan’s WBC matchup against Venezuela on Saturday.
• New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor made his Spring Training debut yesterday after recovering from a left hamate bone injury, and will now likely be ready for Opening Day.
• San Francisco Giants RHP Hayden Birdsong has suffered a UCL sprain and Grade 2 forearm sprain. He will weigh treatment options in the coming days but could potentially miss significant time this season.
• In other Giants news, the team lost a combined perfect game and then a no-hitter with one out to go in the ninth inning of their Spring Training matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers.
• St. Louis Cardinals RHP Hunter Dobbins will begin the season on the injured list as he continues rehabbing from an ACL tear he suffered last July.

Since making his debut, Brett Baty has been fighting to prove he belongs in the majors. The former first round pick, whom the Mets drafted 12th overall in 2019, has struggled to establish himself at the big league level, and there were serious doubts about where he might fit on the Mets’ roster, especially after Mark Vientos’ breakout 2024 regular season and eye-opening postseason performance.

Fast-forward to the end of the 2025 season: Baty enjoyed an all-around solid campaign on both sides of the ball, while Vientos came crashing back to earth. Meanwhile, Ronny Mauricio, who missed all of 2024 due to an ACL injury, failed to make a strong impression in his return. All of that helped Baty climb up the depth chart in the minds of both the Mets and the fans. This is a critical season for Baty, who must show that the progress he made in 2025 is not a fluke, and that he has legitimate staying power at the big league level.

Baty’s star shone brightest right before the start of his major league career. He entered 2022 ranked No. 2 among prospect in the Mets’ system by both Amazin’ Avenue and MLB Pipeline (No. 27 overall by the MLB Pipeline rankings). By the midway point of the season, he moved up to #19 overall and the calls grew louder for the Mets to bring him up, including from our very own Michael Drago. The call finally came in mid-August, and he homered in his very first at-bat in Truist Park, a feat accomplished by only four other Mets before him, which showcased some of the promise that excited the fanbase and the organization.

However, that really was the lone highlight of a rough launch to his career. He appeared in 11 games and slashed a paltry .184/.244/.342 in 38 at-bats, finishing the year with a -0.1 fWAR and a 69 wRC+. After a scorching-hot start in Triple-A to kick off 2023, he returned to Flushing two weeks into the season and stayed with the club, more or less, through August, posting a -0.5 fWAR in 389 plate appearances. He ended 2023 with nine homers and 51 runs scored, and slashed .212/.275/.323 with a 67 wRC+.

He broke camp with the club for the first time in 2024 and stayed with the team until late May, when his inconsistent play earned him a demotion to Triple-A so he could get consistent playing time. His numbers were marginally better—a 0.5 fWAR, an 83 wRC+, and a .229/.306/.327 slash line, with four home runs in 50 games—but nowhere near good enough for his level of promise and the needs of the club. Combine that with Vientos’ breakthrough, and Baty didn’t really fit on the roster.

Baty once again broke camp with the Mets in 2025, and once again failed to make a positive impression. He hit .204/.246/.352 with a 66 wRC+ in 18 games prior to his demotion, but he returned in early May following Jesse Winker’s injury and stuck around this time. From that point forward, he saw much more consistent playing time and posted a 117 wRC+ in 108 games, slashing .263/.324/.448 while hitting 17 home runs, scoring 49 runs, and driving in 46. He set career highs in all major offensive categories, including hits (100), doubles (13), homers (18), runs scored (53), RBI (50), walks (33), and wRC+ (111) while posting a career-best 2.3 fWAR. He also started 46 games and appeared in 57 games at second base, a position he had never played before, and posted a 3 DRS and a -1 OAA, while posting a 4 DRS and a 2 OAA at third base, his natural position. That, paired with Vientos’ awful play at third, helped him secure more time in the field and has done wonders for his outlook heading into 2026.

A quick glance at his baseball savant page shows noticeable improvement in a few key areas, including Avg Exit Velo (90.7 in 2025 vs. 86.6 in 2024), Barrel % (12.8% in 2025 vs. 5.4% in 2024), Hard Hit % (46.9% in 2025 vs. 33.0% in 2024), and Chase % (24.8% in 2025 vs. 31.1% in 2025). In each of those categories, he progressed from ‘poor’ or ‘average’ to ‘great’ in 2025. He also finished 2025 in the 86th percentile among qualified major league hitters with a bat speed of 74.8 mph, up from 73.5 mph in 2024—he finished 2025 second behind only Pete Alonso in bat speed among Mets hitters). He did hit the ball on the ground way too often, which has plagued him throughout his career. His 52.6% GB% in 2025 was the fifth-highest among major leaguers with at least 300 plate appearances, and it’s something he will likely need to work on with the team’s new hitting coach. As Michael summarized in his season review for Baty:

To put it simply: when Baty swings hard and makes good contact, he’s still capable of showing why he was such a highly rated prospect just a few short years ago. While the bad parts of his batting profile still held him back some, the good parts allowed him to take a meaningful step forward this year.

This is probably the first year that Baty is all but guaranteed a spot out of spring training, and he has come out swinging to start spring. As of March 14, he’s posted a 191 wRC+ while slashing .389/.450/.667 with one homer, two doubles, 4 runs scored, and five runs batted in over 20 plate appearances. He’s worked hard to seize the opportunity in front of him and has left no doubt that he deserves a spot on the roster.

And yet, Baty still enters 2026 with something to prove. His name was floated in trade rumors all offseason, as recently as February, despite being under team control until he reaches free agency in 2030. The price was understandably high, and the winter came and went without a trade. However, two of the club’s most notable acquisitions—Marcus Semien and Bo Bichette—have displaced Baty from his natural infield positions. He has spent the spring taking up outfield, despite only one major league inning in left field to date (back in 2023). He made his spring debut in right field and has spent considerable time playing the outfield, exclaiming that he is “comfortable” playing the outfield given his time there in both Double-A and high school. Baty has displayed the right attitude amidst the transition, saying “I just love being on the field, wherever I play,” and “Whatever it takes to help us win.” Despite the up-and-down start to his career, all signs point to him still having a place on this team, especially if he can build off his 2025 progress.

Most Mets fans are not the illusion that Baty will become a superstar who can carry the franchise. However, with his positional flexibility, and given the progress he made at the plate in 2025, there’s every hope he can establish himself as a super utility player who can become very useful to the club for years to come. With Jeff McNeil now in Oakland Sacramento, Baty can take up the mantle and fill his shoes, playing a little bit of second, a little bit of third, and a little bit of the outfield when needed. That would serve the club well, and would likely lead to Baty finding a pretty steady spot on the club’s roster for the foreseeable future.

On December 8, 2009, the Yankees were part of a three-team trade that brought Curtis Granderson’s big smile to the Bronx. New York acquired the center fielder from the Detroit Tigers while sending Austin Jackson and Phil Coke to Detroit and Ian Kennedy to Arizona. The larger trade also included Edwin Jackson going from Detroit to the desert and a pair of pitchers heading to the Tigers: future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer and not-future-Hall-of-Famer Daniel Schlereth.

The Grandy Man would spend four seasons patrolling center field in pinstripes. He celebrates his 45th birthday today.

Curtis Granderson
Born: March 16, 1981 (Blue Island, IL)
Yankees tenure: 2010–13

When the Yankees acquired Granderson from the Tigers, expectations were high. He had already established himself as one of the American League’s most exciting center fielders, combining power, speed, and defense while helping lead Detroit to the 2006 World Series earlier in his career.

Despite going yard in his first career at-bat with the Yankees, Granderson’s first season in New York came with an adjustment period. Granderson hit .247 in 2010 while launching 24 home runs, but he struggled at times adapting to the Yankees’ lineup and the pressure of the Bronx. Late that season, Granderson worked with hitting coach Kevin Long to make adjustments to his swing. Those changes, combined with a full season of experience under the bright lights of Yankee Stadium, set the stage for one of the most productive stretches of his career.

The following season, Granderson exploded into one of baseball’s most dangerous hitters. In 2011, he blasted 41 home runs, drove in 119 runs, and posted a .916 OPS while settling into the two-hole in the Yankees’ lineup between Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira. The performance earned him an All-Star selection and a fourth-place finish in the American League MVP race.

Granderson followed that campaign with another outstanding season in 2012, crushing 43 home runs, with 106 RBI, earning him his third and final All-Star selection. He became the fifth player in Yankees franchise history to hit 40+ home runs in back-to-back seasons. From 2011 through 2012, Granderson’s 84 home runs were the most in Major League Baseball. Forty-seven of those blasts came in front of the Bleacher Creatures in Yankee Stadium.

The 2013 season would be mostly lost to injury. Granderson broke his forearm during spring training after being hit by a pitch by future Yankee J.A. Happ. Then Granderson was hit again that season, this time by Cesar Ramos, fracturing a finger. He finished the year hitting .229 with seven home runs, 15 RBI, and a .723 OPS. That winter, Granderson signed with the Mets, a move that was somewhat overshadowed in New York by Robinson Canó’s blockbuster departure to the Seattle Mariners. Across four seasons in pinstripes, The Grandy Man hit 118 home runs while becoming one of the most popular players in the Bronx.

Yankees fans quickly embraced Granderson not only for his production, but for his personality. His upbeat attitude and constant smile made him an easy favorite in the clubhouse and among fans. When he stepped to the plate during those peak seasons, Yankee Stadium speakers often played the theme song from The Jetsons, a nod to his nickname “The Grandy Man.”

But while Granderson’s home runs and curtain calls made him a fan favorite, his most meaningful impact may have come off the field. Those are the contributions worth celebrating most today. Throughout his career, Granderson became known as one of baseball’s most dedicated philanthropists. In 2007, he established the Curtis Granderson Foundation, an organization focused on improving educational opportunities and expanding access to baseball for young people.

The foundation has supported a wide range of initiatives, including renovating baseball fields in underserved communities, providing scholarships for students, and funding youth programs that connect education with athletics. Granderson has frequently emphasized that the mission is about more than simply promoting baseball.

“The goal isn’t just to create baseball players,” Granderson once explained. “It’s to create opportunities.”

Those opportunities have taken many forms. The foundation has partnered with schools and community organizations across the country, helping provide resources for classrooms while also introducing young people to the game that shaped Granderson’s own life. His work has also extended to efforts to promote diversity within baseball. Granderson has been a vocal advocate for expanding access to the sport and ensuring young athletes from a wide variety of backgrounds can see themselves represented on the field. It’s a role he has embraced enthusiastically since retiring following the 2019 season. Granderson has continued promoting the foundation’s mission through media appearances, most recently during his work as a baseball analyst for TNT.

Granderson played 16 major league seasons, finishing his career with 344 home runs, more than 1,700 hits, and three All-Star selections. Yet his reputation within the game has often been defined as much by his character as by his accomplishments. That reputation was evident throughout his time in New York. Teammates routinely praised his professionalism and leadership, while fans appreciated the way he carried himself both on and off the field.

For many Yankees fans, Granderson represents the kind of player who made the organization easy to root for: productive, approachable, and deeply committed to the communities that supported him. His home runs provided plenty of memorable moments in Yankee Stadium. But years after those balls cleared the outfield wall, Curtis Granderson continues to make an impact in a very different way.

Happy birthday to the Grandy Man!

See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.

In advance of the 2026 season, it’s time to take a look at Detroit’s biggest rivals. Rosters around the AL Central have experienced a lot of turnover this winter, especially in Chicago and Minnesota, and some under the radar trades have shored up the depth for the top-heavy KC Royals. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Guardians are still led by Jose Ramirez and a band of misfits that I’ll inevitably regret underrating. This four-part series will be a brief summary of what to expect from each team, highlighting the major gains and losses to the roster, their projected strengths and weaknesses, and a key player who could flip the entire season on its head if things break right. Today, we’re starting with the Kansas City Royals, who are projected to be Detroit’s stiffest competition for an AL Central title.

Projected Record and Team Summary

The two most reputable project systems, at least at the team-level, are PECOTA from Baseball Prospectus, and the Depth Charts from FanGraphs. The two naturally value different teams and players differently, but the broad steps they use to project standings – determine how good each player on each team is, assign playing time, and then simulate the season thousands of times with different injury scenarios and luck – are similar. PECOTA projects the Royals as an 85-77 team, which wins the division, while Depth Charts has them for 81-81 and a few games behind the Tigers.

It’s worth noting none of this is certain, of course, and I don’t have deep access to either’s methodology. The Royals are a team of extremes that projection systems tend to evaluate differently. Recently, the Royals have had a ‘stars-and-scrubs’ approach to team building around Bobby Witt Jr. This year seems poised for more of the same, but a few small moves have helped shore up their depth, especially in the outfield.

The winter saw KC spend about $7M in free agency to bring in former Tiger Alex Lange and two depth outfielders, Lane Thomas and Starling Marte. That’s all. Trades for Isaac Collins of Milwaukee and Kameron Misner of Tampa Bay furthered the outfield depth; Collins is a projected starter in a corner after an unexpectedly excellent rookie year. Their likely most impactful trade was to snag Matt Strahm, a good lefty reliever, from a cash-strapped Phillies roster to bolster the bullpen. Extensions to key players Maikel Garcia, Sal Perez, and Vinnie Pasquantino ensure the band stays together for a long time, but the organization continued to make small additions around a solid core rather than take a big swing.

Greatest Strength: Star Power

Is it a cop-out to say Bobby Witt Jr and leave it at that? Any roster with him on it starts in an excellent position; he’s simply the best shortstop in baseball right now and the best single player in the division. KC is clearly built in a “if he goes, we go” fashion around Witt and a few other stars. Cole Ragans is one of the better lefty starters in the game and projects as a top 15 or so starter if he’s healthy in 2026. Meanwhile, Garcia and Pasquantino anchor the top of the lineup around Witt, while Strahm and Carlos Estevez are a strong 1-2 duo at the back of their bullpen. The issue is what comes next.

Currently, KC is counting on two rookies, two over-30 veterans with 2.2 total fWAR over the last two years, and a second-year player Milwaukee didn’t believe in, to fill out their lineup behind the big three. In the rotation, it’s more of the same, as only Ragans projects for meaningfully above average production. Michael Wacha and Kris Bubic project as about average, while Seth Lugo looks pretty much done as his strikeouts have plummeted. Building depth around their top guys has been a longstanding struggle they don’t quite appear to have solved this year. They’ll need good health and a few breakout performances to really threaten Detroit this year.

Greatest Weakness: The Outfield

This is absolutely just the outfield. KC’s outfield in 2025 posted a combined .617 OPS, roughly equal to uh… Manual Margot’s production? Did you remember he was a Tiger for a few weeks? That was their average outfielder. It was .019 worse than the next worse team, a Cleveland outfield we’ll be talking about later. Bringing in Isaac Collins is a good start, but they probably shouldn’t count on him repeating his age-28 rookie breakout. History has generally been unkind to hitters who rely on walks alone to garner offensive value. His speed and defense give him a high enough floor, but Isaac is probably more fourth outfielder than everyday corner option going forward. Meanwhile, the veterans Starling Marte and Lane Thomas are already fourth outfielders or platoon options, while Misner is purely optional depth. Getting so little production from the easiest positions to add cheap offense seems likely to hamstring KC once again.

X-Factor: Jac Caglianone and Carter Jensen

If any player is likely to significantly alter KC’s season in a good way, it’s the dynamic duo of Jac Caglianone and Carter Jensen. The two debuted last year to very opposing results, but both showcased their tools and upside. Look for them to build on 2025 as they adapt to their first tastes of MLB level pitching.

Jensen is a patient catcher with tremendous raw power and roughly average defense. His late-season debut yielded an excellent .941 OPS and strong underlying power metrics in 20 games, with a surprisingly low 17.4% K rate. Of course, 20 games doesn’t guarantee anything, but it’s as positive of a start as a rookie can have. He seems likely to split time around catcher and DH with Perez as he phases into the power-hitting, clubhouse-favorite backup phase of a strong career. If he can maintain even a little of his stunning debut, he’ll be a lineup mainstay for years to come. Catchers that hit like this are very hard to replace.

Caglianone had just about the opposite debut, but the talent is undeniable. Caglianone destroyed the SEC in 2023 and 2024 enroute to the 6th overall selection in the 2024 draft. He then tore up the minor leagues and earned a MLB promotion on June 3rd, just 11 months later. Caglianone is a slugger in the Giancarlo Stanton mold; he’s a huge physical specimen who swings terribly hard and posts eye-popping exit velocities, but adds little value elsewhere. He isn’t fast and doesn’t play defense well, but his offensive ceiling is so high it just might not matter. He’s looked much improved this spring training and cranked this massive home run off a solid MLB lefty, Ryan Yarbrough, in the WBC. Things didn’t go his way in 2025, but an unfathomable .172 BABIP and an above-average xwOBA suggest he’ll be just fine moving forward.

These two youngsters hitting the way KC expects turn the offense from 3 good hitters and a group of underwhelming veterans into a threatening lineup where Sal Perez bats closer to 7th than 4th. That’s plenty of support for Bobby Witt Jr and Cole Ragans. However, if they struggle to adjust to MLB hitting over a full season, that puts a lot of stress on Starling Marte or Jonathan India being better than replacement level.

Overall, Kansas City has built a roster along the same lines of the recent Tigers’ teams: a few great players anchor the roster while some critical rookies have an outsized responsibility on a team close to contending. There’s undeniable upside, but considerable risk, too. They made very few additions to a team that won 82 games last year and seem to be hoping for the AL Central classic strategy of “sneak into October and get hot”. With Bobby Witt Jr, anything’s possible, but it feels like there’s too many holes on the roster and not nearly enough depth to really count them in unless things go perfectly for them.

Last season, the Washington Nationals bullpen was an utter disaster. They posted a 5.59 ERA as a unit, which was comfortably the worst in baseball. However, I do not see that happening again. In fact, I think the Nationals bullpen will surprise people in 2026. There may not be any star names, but I think the unit will be solid.

Don’t get it twisted, I do not expect the Nats to have an elite bullpen, but I do not think it will be among the worst in the league either. Honestly, I would expect the bullpen ERA to look something like the 4.14 mark the Nats posted in 2024. There will be some breakouts, as well as plenty of trial and error.

There is going to be a lot of churn in the Nats bullpen this year. It is part of Paul Toboni’s philosophy. We already got a taste of that with all the waiver claims this offseason. These waiver claims will continue into the season. If guys aren’t producing, they will be demoted or DFA’d, and replaced by pitchers the front office finds more interesting. The mixing and matching will continue until they find the right combination.

That means we are not going to see Colin Poche and Lucas Sims types get over a month of run despite clearly not having the goods. The fact the Nats do not have a ton of relievers on guaranteed big league contracts will also help them be more flexible. A lot of teams like to just churn through relievers, and the Nats are going to be one of those teams.

However, they will have a few guys who they rely on in high leverage spots. One of those pitchers is Clayton Beeter, who Mike DeBartolo picked up in the Amed Rosario trade. Beeter posted a 2.49 ERA in 24 appearances with the Nats last year. This spring, Beeter has bumped up his slider usage, which could help him out. His slider is an elite swing and miss weapon, which he will lean on this year.

I would not be surprised if the Nats have more of a closer by committee set up this season. However, if they were to have a set closer, Beeter would be my pick. While he has control issues, he has the swing and miss stuff to bail himself out. When batters do put the ball in play against him, they do not tend to make great contact either.

Another high leverage reliever for the Nats will be Cole Henry. The right hander had his moments as a rookie, but faded as the season went on. He posted a 4.27 ERA last year, but I think that will be improved upon this year. Henry has bumped up his cutter usage this spring. I like that a lot because it gives him a bridge pitch between his fastball and sweeper. That cutter makes his arsenal much more complete.

Those two were in the Nats bullpen last year, but I would expect them to take strides forward this year. Brad Lord and PJ Poulin are two more arms that should give the Nats more stability in the ‘pen. Beyond those guys, we should see a revolving door of arms. I am sure a couple of those pitchers they give chances to will blossom under this new pitching development program.

The pitchers I have named so far lack experience, but Paul Toboni did bring in a couple of veterans on minor league deals right before Spring Training. Cionel Perez and Drew Smith are both looking to re-establish themselves as bullpen mainstays. They have success on their resume’s, but Perez struggled in 2025 and Smith was injured the whole year. Both have looked sharp this spring.

If one or both of those guys recapture some of the magic they had a few years ago, that would provide a massive boost. It feels like Smith is getting sharper and sharper as he gets more innings under his belt. Perez has also thrown the ball well this spring.

Honestly, most of the Nationals pitchers have looked good this spring. Some of the usage tweaks the new regime has made seem to have positive early returns. It is still Spring Training, but I like what I am seeing.

I am calling my shot! If the Nats bullpen ERA is not at least a run lower than last year, I would be very surprised. A 4.59 bullpen ERA still wouldn’t be good, but after last year, I would take it. Like I said up top, I expect the bullpen ERA to look much closer to the 4.14 mark they posted in 2024. 

There are no massive names in this group, but there do not need to be. We just need less Colin Poche and Jorge Lopez type blow-ups. Based on what we have seen this spring, I expect that will happen. Even last Spring Training, you could see the cracks in the Nats bullpen showing. We have not seen that so far this spring. Instead, we have seen a plethora of arms who can get outs.

You never truly know until you get into the regular season, but I really think the Nats bullpen will be solid. The pitchers performing well will stay and the guys struggling will have a short leash. I expect the bullpen to be a pleasant surprise for Nats fans in 2026.

The World Baseball Classic has matured to the point where, like the World Cup and NCAA tournament, each edition is going to be remembered for a specific storyline.

In 2023, that storyline was the ascension of Shohei Ohtani to the level of Global Sports God. Over those two-and-a-half weeks we saw him definitively swipe the crown of “game’s best player” right off the head of his then-teammate, Mike Trout. We saw him hit a cultural Q-rating that no baseball player had approached in decades. And we reached a tipping point in the baseball GOAT debate wherein a critical mass of fans started saying “yup, it’s him.”

What will the storyline be for the 2026 tournament? Sadly, I think it’ll be last night’s atrocious strike call to end what had been a sublime baseball game.

Just an awful, inexcusable call. I’m sure someone in the comments will come up with something, but I can’t think of a single botched ball/strike call that was as impactful as that in recent baseball memory. The fact that Juan Soto was rung up with a similarly bad call at a similarly big moment earlier in the game only fuels the outrage. I have a feeling this is something we’re going to hear Dominican ballplayers and fans talk about for a long time. It’ll probably even be the main storyline heading into the next tournament.

But if there’s a second storyline this tournament will be remembered for — especially in the free and independent Republic of New England — it’ll be the outstanding play of the Boston Red Sox. We had Jarren Duran balling out for Mexico, Masataka Yoshida thriving in pool play,Wilyer Abreu hitting one of the most electric homers the tournament has ever seen, Brayan Bello carving up Israel, and Greg Weissert closing out one of the most notable upsets in tournament history.

And now we have Roman Anthony and Garrett Whitlock carrying Team USA into the finals.

Anthony — who has seven hits, four walks, two homers, seven RBI and an OPS of 1.014 thus far — hit this monster sockdolager that turned out to be the game winning hit:

Then Garrett Whitlock mowed down the heart of possibly the greatest lineup ever assembled to hold Anthony’s lead in the eighth (though, yes, this included that bad call against Juan Soto).

Team USA now awaits the outcome of tonight’s Venezuela-Italy game, while Anthony-induced giddiness has reached dangerous levels amongst Red Sox fans.

Talk about the WBC and whatever else you feel like and, as always, be good to one another.

In a week full of World Baseball Classic games, Guardians players have been finding success in Goodyear and in Houston.

Naylor’s Big Night

In Friday night’s WBC game between the United States and Canada, Guardians’ catcher Bo Naylor had a big night for his native Canada. Although his team lost and ultimately sent the U.S. to the semifinals, Naylor proved himself to fans all over the world. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Gabe Speier threw a two-out pitch to Naylor with a runner on base. He took that pitch deep into the seats at Daiken Field to cut the United States’ lead to 5-3. While his team wasn’t able to capitalize on that momentum and was ultimately eliminated from the WBC, Naylor made his name known on the biggest stage.

Halpin Helping Big

Cleveland’s 95th draft pick from 2020, Petey Halpin, has been making waves in Spring Training. The young centerfielder has had pretty consistent playing time this March, totalling 25 at bats so far. In that time, he’s hit .320/.433/.640 with eight hits and two home runs. He’s also continuing to show off his speed on the basepaths, claiming five stolen bases so far. He’s played just six Major League games during the regular season so far, but if he can get consistent playing time in 2026, he’ll definitely be a threat on the bases and at the plate.

Gaddis Nearing Return

As the start of the regular season inches closer, so does the return of setup man Hunter Gaddis. Gaddis was shut down early in Spring Training due to right forearm tightness. He received an MRI to assess the damage and found that there was no damage, however, the team had shut him down just to be safe. Since then, he’s been working towards a return with two bullpen sessions this week. While the timing of his return has yet to be fully determined, he’s been making good progress and has “been feeling really good” according to Manager Stephen Vogt.

Social Media Spotlight

This week’s social media spotlight highlights Matt Wilkinson who pitched for the Lake County Captains in 2025. He’s spent the last couple of weeks representing Team Canada at the World Baseball Classic, and he had a huge moment in Friday’s game against the U.S. He struck out the team’s heavy hitters, Cal Raleigh and Bryce Harper. The below video shows just how much spirit the young pitcher has.

Sometimes when we go over numbers things get missed. In this case, there were a few arms that got left out of the conversation and I would be remiss if I didn’t at least address them as camp is coming to a close. Some of the names are names you are familiar with, but they exist on the periphery of the conversation. Our numbers can help explain why that is.

There is one that came up late last season and actually looked pretty good. A third name is from one of the many non-roster invitees that has had major league time. As we do with most of the arms, we look at both major and minor league numbers when it suits us. There is a general rule in data analysis and that general rule is that we go with more data whenever possible. Nothing kills analysis quite like small sample sizes. All three of these arms have spent more time in the minors than at the big league level. As usual, before we get started let me remind everyone about our norms for the numbers we are using.

• Chase rate: This is the percentage of balls a player swings at outside of the zone. The league average normally lives around 30 percent, but we will be looking at three year intervals and we should notice trends more than where a player is in relationship to the league average.

• Hard hit percentage: This is simply the percentage of balls that a player hits hard. Hard hit balls become hits and extra base hits more often than softer contact. Typically 35 percent is around the league average in this category.

• BABIP: This is batting average on balls in play. Home runs are obviously excluded since they are not in play. The league average tends to hover around .300 but it will largely depend on hard hit percentages and breakdowns between groundballs, flyballs, and line drives.

• Contact percentage: This is the percentage of swings that turn into contact. Typically 75 percent is around league average.
• HR/FB percentage: This is the percentage of flyballs that result in home runs. Ten percent is typically around the league average.
• LOB%: It is pretty self-explanatory. It is the number of runners that get stranded on base. The league average tends to be around 70 percent. Of course, there is some debate as to whether pitchers control that or not.

J.P. France

It should be noted that 2023 and 2024 came at the big league level where 2025 came at AAA. That can help explain the dip in contact and hard hit rate. Otherwise, France is pretty average and maybe even below average when it comes to contact rates. 2023 was a magical year for him when everything came together. He had a higher than normal left on base percentage and lower than normal BABIP.

I suppose that luck could return in limited exposure. If you pitch him exclusively in the pen and don’t let the order turn around on him then you could coax above average results out of him. In all likelihood, he will be penciled into Sugar Land’s rotation and provide decent quality depth when and if some of the ML starters go to the injury list.

Jayden Murray

Let’s start with the good news. Murray is better than the AAA numbers he put up in 2023 and 2025. He pitched only three innings in 2024, so we did not include those numbers here. Ultimately, he has the look of an average AAA pitcher. Like most average pitchers, he is capable of short bursts of solid production and that happened late in the season in Houston. He had 11.2 innings and pitched to a 1.54 ERA. That came with a .3.78 xERA and 4.52 xFIP.

Those numbers are obviously much more in line with who he is. He is like most middle relievers pitching in the big leagues. There are going to be years when the ball bounces their way and they put up very good numbers. There are going to be years where it doesn’t. The Astros’ strategy seems to be to collect as many of those guys as possible with the hope of finding three or four guys (to go along with their two or three high leveraged relievers) to cobble together a solid pen.

Christian Roa

This is one of those calculated gambles that teams sometimes take. Roa seemed to find something last season. His chase rate went up and contact rates went down. His left on base percentage, BABI, and home run rate also improved dramatically. It could be fool’s gold and that is the risk. However, consider that Roa was brought in on a minor league contract. What’s the worst that can happen?

He has a 1.29 ERA in seven innings with seven strikeouts. So, maybe what he found last season has stuck with him. If we look at just the 2025 numbers we see that he is around the league average in contact rate, home run rate, and reasonably close in chase rate. He is just another guy that could potentially work out with good batted ball luck. The Astros have at least a half dozen of those guys and the expectation is that their pitching lab along with good batted ball luck could coax good performances out of half of them. Will Roa be one of those guys?

The San Diego Padres could not get much going against Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Pfaadt in their game at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Ariz. on Sunday. San Diego was unable to record a hit against the right-hander through five innings, but in the eighth and ninth innings, facing relievers, the Padres scored four runs and pulled even with the Diamondbacks and the game ended in a 4-4 tie.

Randy Vazquez started the game for San Diego, and he too had success controlling the Arizona lineup through his first three innings and he entered the bottom of the fourth with the game tied 0-0. Vasquez ran into trouble in the fourth when he hit the first batter, allowed a single to center field which was misplayed by Samad Taylor and resulted in a one-run lead for the Diamondbacks. Vasquez then allowed a single, a triple and a single and Arizona had a 4-0 lead in the fourth before an out was recorded. He did get a lineout following the consecutive hits and was replaced on the mound by Johan Moreno. A forceout on a ground ball and a runner caught stealing by Freddy Fermin ended the inning.

Vasquez returned for the fifth and put all three batters down in order. The rest of the Padres pitching staff shutout the Diamondbacks over the final five innings and San Diego rallied in the eighth for three runs to make the score 4-3 before tying the game in the ninth with a run.

Padres News:

• Nick Castellanos started his career on the dirt as a third baseman. He then spent several years on the grass as a right fielder. Since joining the Padres, he has said he will play anywhere the team needs him. That need may be at first base and Castellanos seems to be handling the transition as well as expected and could play a significant role for San Diego in 2026.
• There has been and still is an ongoing battle for the fifth spot in the San Diego rotation, but that may be decided after Spring Training once Griffin Canning is able to return to game-action. The free-agent pitcher is recovering from an Achilles injury and is expected to return early in the 2026 season. The addition of Canning and possibly reliever Jason Adam who is recovering from his quadriceps tendon injury could be a boost for Padres pitchers.

Baseball News:

• New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor made his return to Spring Training after Hamade surgery and had a successful day with plenty to build on with Opening Day just around the corner.
• New York Yankees pitcher Luis Gil is looking to improve as an MLB pitcher and part of that for him is reaching the “next level of electricity” with his fastball.

WBC News:

• Mike Trout and then Los Angeles Angels teammate Shohei Ohtani provided one of the most memorable WBC moments in tournament history when the USA slugger faced the Japanese pitcher in the final at-bat of the 2023 World Baseball Classic final. Trout is not participating in the 2026 tournament, but like most baseball fans, is still watching and is happy to see the success of the global event.
• Venezuela and Italy will face off today at 5 p.m. to determine who gets the opportunity to compete for the WBC title against the US, which defeated the Dominican Republic 2-1 in their semi-final on Sunday. Mason Miller closed out the game and earned the WBC save.