When the MLB trade deadline rolls around later this summer, Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara will undoubtedly be one of the biggest names on the rumor mill.
The 29-year-old right-hander is coming off of Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2024 season, but the two-time All-Star isn’t all that far from a Cy Young season in 2022, when he recorded a 2.28 ERA over 228.2 innings of work.
Alcantara is under contract through the 2026 season, and the Marlins have a club option for 2027. But with Miami seemingly being nowhere close to contention, it’s fair to assume teams with World Series aspirations will come calling.
Speaking with Mike Puma of the New York Post, Soto and Lindor shared their thoughts on the possibility of the Mets going after Alcantara should he become the biggest fish on the market.
“It would be one of the best trades that we could have,” Soto told Puma about potentially reeling Alcantara in. “I know we have great pitching here, but adding a Cy Young winner like that would be huge.”
“If he goes to a team that has a chance to compete at the end, I think you are going to see who he is,” Soto added. “He is doing that on a team that has no serious chance to go to the playoffs, but he keeps trying and competing even without run support. Whenever he goes to a winning team you are going to see what Sandy Alcantara is capable of.”
And if you ask Lindor, the Mets adding Alcantara would feel similar to when the Mets signed another star this past offseason.
“It would almost be like adding Soto,” Lindor said. “You add Soto, it’s going to help the team. You add Alcantara and it’s going to help the team.”
Alcantara allowed two earned runs on three hits over his 5.0 innings on Tuesday night, as the Marlins downed the Mets, 4-2. In two starts this season, Alcantara has pitched to a 3.72 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 9.2 innings, showing signs of being the pitcher he was prior to Tommy John.
As Soto told Puma, “It’s going to take a lot to get him,” but with the Mets already dealing with injuries in the starting rotation to Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas, a stocked farm system at their disposal, and an owner in Steve Cohen who wants to win as soon as possible, the thought of Alcantara pitching it Queens doesn’t sound all that fishy after all.
Invitational Australia & New Zealand side to play in July
Players who have switched nationality will not be eligible
The British & Irish Lions are set to face a number of former All Blacks with Rugby Australia’s chief executive, Phil Waugh, confident players based in Japan can be recruited for the Anzac fixture in July. Waugh also confirmed that players who have represented Australia and New Zealand but subsequently switched nationality will not be considered, ending Israel Folau’s hopes of appearing in another Lions series and ruling out Charles Piutau.
The Lions will lock horns with an invitational Australia and New Zealand side for the first time since 1989. When the fixture was announced in 2023, the then Australia head coach, Eddie Jones, turned his nose up, saying: “I don’t want to be involved with the Kiwis.” With the former All Blacks head coach Ian Foster leading the combined side, Waugh believes the fixture in Adelaide will have star appeal.
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball’s average salary broke the $5 million barrier on opening day for the first time, according to a study by The Associated Press.
The New York Mets, with Juan Soto’s record $61.9 million pay, led MLB for the third straight opening day with a $322.6 million payroll, just ahead of the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers at $319.5 million. Those two teams each spent roughly five times as much as the Miami Marlins, who at $64.9 million ended the Athletics’ three-year streak as the lowest spender.
Still, the Mets were down from their record high of $355.4 million in 2023.
The average rose 3.6% to $5,160,245. That was up from a 1.5% increase last year but down from an 11.1% increase in 2023.
Adding Blake Snell, Michael Conforto, Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates, the Dodgers boosted payroll by a big league-high $69 million from opening day last year. Baltimore hiked spending by $66 million, followed by Arizona ($55 million), San Diego ($47 million), Philadelphia ($41 million) and Detroit ($39 million).
Los Angeles’ payroll figure was held down by deferred payments. Shohei Ohtani’s $70 million salary was discounted to a present-day value of $28.2 million because it won’t be paid in full until 2035, causing him to be listed as the 18th-highest-paid player. Other Dodgers with deferred payments include Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernández, Scott, Will Smith and Snell.
Following their record 121-loss season, the Chicago White Sox cut payroll by $60.8 million, San Francisco by $39.1 million, Miami by $31.7 million and St. Louis by $31.6 million. The American League champion Yankees dropped by $18.5 million.
Just five teams were under $100 million, with the Marlins joined by the A’s ($74.9 million), Tampa Bay ($79.2 million), the White Sox ($80.9 million) and Pittsburgh ($87.9 million).
Soto broke the previous high of $43.3 million shared by pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander under deals they agreed to with the Mets.
Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler is second at $42 million, followed by Texas pitcher Jacob deGrom and Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge at $40 million each.
Of 953 players in the major leagues on opening day, 526 had salaries of $1 million or more, 55%, and down from 532 last year and 546 in 2023.
There were 15 players at $30 million or more, a drop of two; 66 at $20 million, up from 66; and 177 at $10 million, an increase from 166.
A total of 35 players made the $760,000 minimum.
The top 50 players make 29% of the salaries, the same as in the prior two years, and the top 100 earn 48%, up from 47%.
Baseball’s median salary, the point at which an equal number of players are above and below, dropped to $1.35 million from $1.5 million and well below the record high of $1.65 million at the start of 2015.
Average and median salaries decline over the course of the season as veterans are released and replaced by younger players making closer to the minimum. The AP’s average was $4.98 million at the start of last season; MLB calculated the final average at $4.59 million and the players’ association at $4.66 million.
Because they started the season in the minor leagues, Baltimore pitcher Kyle Gibson ($5.25 million), Detroit pitcher Jason Foley ($3.15 million) and Dodgers second baseman Hyeseong Kim ($2.8 million) were among the players not included in the opening day payroll figures.
The AP’s figures include salaries and prorated shares of signing bonuses and other guaranteed income.
Payroll figures factor in adjustments for cash transactions in trades, signing bonuses that are the responsibility of the club agreeing to the contract, option buyouts and termination pay for released players.
LOS ANGELES — Dustin May took the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers a changed man.
Making his first major league start since May 17, 2023, he allowed just one hit and an unearned run over five innings in the Dodgers’ 3-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves. He struck out six and walked three.
“Even if it would have went bad I still would have been having a good time just being back on a big league mound,” May said. “It literally meant the world to me just to be back on the mound because eight months ago I didn’t know if I would be.”
May spent all of last season rehabbing from a torn flexor tendon in his right arm and a life-threatening esophageal tear after eating a salad at dinner with his wife in Arizona. A piece of lettuce got caught in his throat and May sipped some water trying to clear it.
He felt a painful sensation in his throat and stomach, and later learned the lettuce had perforated his esophageal tube.
“It’s kind of one of those stories you just make up but it was actually true,” teammate Mookie Betts said. “God was just working his magic.”
May underwent emergency surgery that same night, with doctors later telling him he had sought medical attention just in time.
“After the esophagus thing happened it was like a total reset,” he said. “There’s nothing I can do at the moment, so playing baseball was at the very back of my mind. I was just trying to get healthy, get home and be able to see the next morning.”
The 6-foot-6 right-hander nicknamed Big Red closed his eyes and tilted his head toward the darkening sky before warming up.
“I was thanking the Lord for the opportunity to be back,” he said. “There’s been a lot of praying and a lot of devotion to him in the last two years of my life and I attribute all of my success to him.”
May’s first pitch was a 96 mph sinker to Braves leadoff hitter Michael Harris II for a strike. He again leaned his head back and looked skyward. Harris struck out looking.
Up came Austin Riley, who went down swinging on five pitches. Matt Olson was next and he took a called third strike. May skipped off the mound and was greeted with high-fives from his teammates in the dugout.
“It means the world knowing that my stuff still plays,” he said. “It was good to actually get big league hitters out in a big league game.”
The noisy crowd of 50,182 welcomed him back.
“That felt great,” he said.
May appeared to induce an inning-ending double play with two on in the second, but Betts bobbled the ball and threw it away at first to let a run score. It was Betts’ first error at shortstop this season.
“I didn’t get a good grip on it,” Betts said. “Just a dumb play.”
May’s emotions used to run as hot as his flowing red hair when he first came up to the majors.
“Every pitch everything would be super high or super low,” he said.
Cheating death calmed him down.
“Just being able to stay a little bit more level-headed throughout life in general has been one of my biggest things probably in the last six months,” he said.
In 2023, May was 4-1 in nine starts with a 2.63 ERA, 34 strikeouts and 16 walks before having Tommy John revision surgery.
Little did he know that would be the least of his troubles. And never did he think eating a salad would threaten his life.
“There wasn’t really a very bright light at the end of the tunnel at the time,” he said. “I had to scratch and claw my way out and find my way back.”
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a little over 24 hours away from facing the red-hot St. Louis Blues, winners of ten straight games on Thursday night.
As the team kicks off a three-game road trip, they invited Joona Koppanen along, recalling the 27-year-old on an emergency basis early Wednesday morning.
In the Warriors’ 134-125 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum, Curry scored 52 points – on 16-for-31 shooting from the field, 12-for-20 on 3-point shots and 8-for-8 on free throws – with 10 rebounds, eight assists, five steals and one block. He finished as a game-high plus-17 and entered halftime with 32 points, eight triples, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals.
It was Curry’s second 50-point game of the 2024-25 NBA season, as he scored 56 on Feb. 3 in Golden State’s 121-115 win over the Orlando Magic, and the 16th of his 16-year career (including his victorious 50 points against the Sacramento Kings in Game 7 of the 2023 Western Conference opening playoff round).
Jokić, meanwhile, reached the 60s.
In the Nuggets’ 140-139 double-overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Jokić posted 61 points – on 18-for-29 shooting from the field, 6-for-11 on triples and 19-for-24 from the charity stripe – with 10 rebounds, 10 assists and a pair of steals.
Jokić’s 61 points were the most any player scored in a game during the 2024-25 season and were the most scored in a triple-double in league history. It also was Jokić’s second 50-point game of the season, as he scored 56 on Dec. 7 in a 122-113 loss to the Washington Wizards, and the fourth of his 10-year career (including his unvictorious 53 points against the Phoenix Suns in Game 4 of the 2023 West semifinals).
Curry and Jokić, two future first-ballot Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers, have two of the most stacked résumés in NBA history.
Tuesday, though, will forever be remembered as the day the pair each had 50-plus points, 10-plus rebounds, eight-plus assists and five-plus triples. After all, It isn’t too often fans get to see two superstars have career games on the same night.
For about 59 and a half minutes Tuesday night in St. Louis, the Detroit Red Wings appeared on their way to a well played road hockey game: Moments of absorbing pressure, excellent goaltending from Cam Talbot, and an opportunistic attack to nab a third period lead. However, 29 seconds short of securing two points, Detroit failed to clear, the Blues won battles to keep the puck alive, then Cam Fowler teed up a Jordan Kyrou redirect to tie the game at one, leaving a frustrated Dylan Larkin to rifle the puck off the boards. In overtime, Fowler scored the game-winner to give his team a 2–1 win, robbing the Red Wings of a point they'd thought was theirs moments earlier.
The result was "brutal," J.T. Compher (who'd scored Detroit's lone goal of the night to take a 1–0 lead five minutes into the third) told reporters after the game. "We played a really good road game for a long time, Talbs played out of his mind, gave us a chance to win, and they were able to squeak one in late and steal that second point from us."
"That's a really good hockey team playing good hockey at the moment, and we gave ourselves a chance to get two points, and we come up short," Compher added. "No one's beat 'em in eight or nine games, and we gave ourselves a really good chance tonight."
The sting of the loss is compounded by the fact that both the Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets won Tuesday night, leaving the Wings four points to the wrong side of the playoff cutline with eight games left in the regular season.
"We know what's at stake, and it's not the fact that we gave up a point to an opponent," said coach Todd McLellan after the game. "It's just we didn't get the point, and I thought after starting slow on the night, Talbs kept us in it, and then we worked our way back in, checked fairly well...put ourselves in a situation to win and with about 3:40 left we iced the puck...and out comes the goalie and we just couldn't find a way to hit the open net at the other end or just finish the night."
Per McLellan, Tuesday's loss leaves Detroit with a choice that isn't really a choice: "We can either feel sorry for ourselves, which I don't think is a great option, or we can get back after it, and we have no choice."
The Red Wings host the Carolina Hurricanes Friday evening then the Florida Panthers Sunday in two games unlikely to lift them back into a playoff spot on their own, but certainly with the potential to all but eliminate them.
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You don’t have to talk to many folks in the Yankees clubhouse to hear whispered admissions that the team misses Juan Soto and wishes he were still around. Who wouldn’t feel that way after losing arguably the best left-handed hitter in the game, and a nice young man to boot?
But four games into the season, it is becoming evident that while the team thinks about its erstwhile mate, the 2025 lineup is dynamic, not to mention deeper and more athletic.
No roster is perfect, though, and the hole in this one popped up in the ninth inning of Tuesday’s 7-5 loss to Arizona.
Down 7-4 in the ninth inning and facing the D-backs’ left-handed closer A.J. Puk, manager Aaron Boone had already removed switch hitter Jasson Dominguez for outfield defense. That left three lefty hitters -- Austin Wells, Trent Grisham, and Ben Rice -- to face Puk. Switch hitter Oswaldo Cabrera, who is much better against righty pitching, was due up fourth.
Here is where the Yanks remain one threatening righty bat short. The two on the bench were Pablo Reyes and Oswald Peraza. After Rice homered to make it 7-5, Boone hit Reyes for Cabrera. Reyes lined the first pitch from Puk to center, ending the game.
The context that led to this moment:
-- The Yankees entered spring training without a full-time third baseman or high-end righty utility guy, in large part because they opted to exhaust their remaining budget at first base instead. The Paul Goldschmidt signing concluded the heavy lifting of a very busy and productive offseason.
-- All through spring training, the team scouted other camps for a righty bat, but the right player and deal did not materialize. They remain open to making this acquisition, but can’t create the player they need out of thin air; at the moment, this player doesn’t appear to exist.
-- Peraza entered camp with the chance to finally turn his potential to results and dazzle the Yankees. He could have become -- and still has the tools to be -- the righty bat about whom we’re talking. But he hit .160 in spring, and made the team in large part because he is out of minor league options and the Yanks aren’t quite ready to lose him on waivers.
-- Peraza’s lackluster spring left Reyes as Boone’s choice to hit for Cabrera on Tuesday.
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone (17) walks off the field after being ejected in the seventh inning against the Atlanta Braves at Yankee Stadium. / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Now, a few potential solutions to this problem:
-- Dominguez could improve his defense to the point where Boone is eventually comfortable forgoing the defensive replacement. Had this been the case on Tuesday, he would have batted in the ninth instead of Grisham.
-- Dominguez could also improve from the right side. At present he is a switch hitter who is significantly better from the left side. His continued development could at some point give the Yankees another righty bat.
-- Peraza could step up. Time is running out there.
-- An appealing trade could somehow pop up, though it hasn’t yet.
This issue aside, the Yankees’ post-Soto lineup redesign is looking not just hot to start the season, but sustainably good -- and that’s without two future Hall-of-Famers in Soto and, for now, Giancarlo Stanton.
Forget the 18 home runs through four games for a moment. Consider what happened in Tuesday’s game, started by Corbin Burnes, one of the best pitchers in the sport:
-- Wells worked a brilliant 13-pitch at-bat in a fifth inning that set in motion a chain of events that ended in first baseman Josh Naylor’s two-run throwing error. Yes, the runs were unearned, but this was a classic case of a team making its own luck.
Wells appears on his way to the upper echelon of catchers in the game; who could have imagined a year ago that it would be legitimate to debate if a team would rather have Wells, Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman, the Mets’ Francisco Alvarez or Arizona’s Gabriel Moreno? But here we are.
New York Yankees catcher Austin Wells (28) hits a solo home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
-- Cody Bellinger stole a base, his first of the season. The highly athletic Bellinger swiped 20 bags in 2023, and is a threat while on the bases.
-- The youngsters hit balls hard: A bulked-up Rice smashed a double at 111 mph and a groundout at 105 mph. Dominguez homered and made solid, 97 mph contact on a single to left. And Anthony Volpe took Burns way deep to left, smashing a homer at 107 mph. Volpe had three homers on the season before the curtain closed on April Fools Day.
-- In addition to those specific events, the Yankee lineup features several elements that should help it all year. Dominguez, Bellinger, Rice, Goldschmidt and Wells all bring swings naturally tailored to Yankee Stadium’s dimensions.
-- Chisholm is far more athletic than his predecessor at second base, Gleyber Torres. He already has three home runs and a helpful high-tech bat.
-- We haven’t even mentioned that the Yankees continue to employ the best position player to grace New York City in perhaps a generation or more, Aaron Judge.
-- Another green shoot appeared in the clubhouse before the game, when Stanton confirmed what we heard from sources last week: His tennis elbows are improving, and he won’t miss nearly as much time as many of us assumed in spring training after Stanton declared his injury "severe."
One note on Will Warren:
The Yankees are excited about Warren’s potential, and loved his performance in five strong innings in Tuesday’s start. But one thing to note: Warren did not hold his fastball velocity for all five frames. He was within his normal range for most of the game, sitting 90-92 mph and touching 94 mph twice, according to a scout.
But Warren’s 3-1 fastball to Jake McCarthy leading off the fifth inning flashed on the scoreboard as 89 mph. It actually came in above 89.5 mph, according to a scout, so it could be called 90. But it did get a few people’s attention.
Possible explanations: 1) Warren threw 85 pitches, more than he had in a spring training game. He is still building stamina; 2) he might have been focusing on throwing a strike, resulting in a tiny velocity reduction; 3) it was freakin' freezing out there.
Not a significant concern at all. Warren pitched well. Just an observation.
SAN DIEGO — All-Star outfielder Jackson Merrill and the San Diego Padres agreed to a nine-year, $135 million contract covering 2026-34.
Merrill’s deal includes a $30 million team option for 2035 that would convert to a player option if he has a top five finish in MVP voting at any point during the contract.
Merrill, who turns 22 on April 19, made his major league debut last season and became an All-Star, hitting .292 with 24 homers, 90 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. He finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Pittsburgh pitcher Paul Skenes.
He has an $809,500 salary while in the major leagues this year after earning the $740,000 minimum last year and gaining $1,191,534 from the pre-arbitration bonus pool.
Merrill would have been eligible for arbitration after the 2026 season and for free agency after the 2029 World Series.
(This article was written with the assistance of Castmagic, an AI tool, and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy. Please reach out to us if you notice any mistakes.)
The Dallas Cowboys are handling negotiations directly with Micah Parsons rather than his agent. This approach is typical for them, but it frustrates agents who prefer traditional negotiations. Jerry Jones is reportedly offering Parsons the largest non-quarterback deal in NFL history.
2. Impact of Jerry Jones and the Cowboys' brand
The hosts discussed how Jerry Jones has built the Cowboys into the most valuable sports franchise globally. Despite not winning a Super Bowl since 1995, the Cowboys brand remains incredibly strong because of Jones' business acumen and strategic deals.
Jimmy Haslam, owner of the Cleveland Browns, candidly admitted to making a mistake with the Deshaun Watson contract, calling it a "big swing and a miss." This public acknowledgment might help the team move forward and focus on rebuilding.
Woody Johnson, owner of the Jets, dismissed the NFL Players Association report cards, calling them "totally bogus." This response contrasts with other owners who have used the feedback to improve their organizations, reflecting poorly on the Jets' adaptability.
The vote on the controversial "tush push" play was pushed back to May. The play is criticized by some for its potential danger and fairness issues, yet no evidence supports it being more dangerous than other plays.
The NFL adopted the playoff overtime format for the regular season — each team will get a chance to touch the ball, regardless of if a team scores a touchdown on the opening possession — but with a compressed 10-minute period. This change could lead to more ties and raises questions about the fairness of possessions.
The NFL announced a triple-header for Christmas Day, intensifying competition with the NBA for viewership. The move marks a significant shift as the NFL aims to dominate holiday sports broadcasting.
SAN DIEGO (AP) — All-Star outfielder Jackson Merrill and the San Diego Padres agreed Wednesday to a $135 million, nine-year contract covering 2026-34.
Merrill’s deal includes a $30 million team option for 2035 that would convert to a player option if he has a top five finish in MVP voting at any point during the contract.
Merrill, who turns 22 on April 19, made his major league debut last season and became an All-Star, hitting .292 with 24 homers, 90 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. He finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Pittsburgh pitcher Paul Skenes.
He has an $809,500 salary while in the major leagues this year after earning the $740,000 minimum last year and gaining $1,191,534 from the pre-arbitration bonus pool.
Merrill would have been eligible for arbitration after the 2026 season and for free agency after the 2029 World Series.
