ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 24: Will Riley #27 of the Washington Wizards handles the ball during the game against the Atlanta Hawks on February 24, 2026 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Boatman/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Washington Wizards lost to the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, 119-98.
Again, like most games this season, the Wizards were the underdogs and it showed right away. Though neither team shot well in the first half, the Hawks were leading 60-43 thanks to better ball control and team assists. By the time the third quarter ended, Jonathan Kuminga scored 18 of his 27 points in the third quarter for the Hawks, which ended any hopes of Washington making this game competitive. The fourth quarter was garbage time.
I’m not happy watching another blowout, especially when the Wizards — even if Trae Young didn’t play tonight — just came out flat minus the fourth quarter. Will Riley scored 18 points to lead Washington.
The Wizards still play the Hawks on Thursday. Tip off is at 7:30 p.m. ET. See you then.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Nick Martinelli scored 28 points, Jake West added 16 points and Northwestern rallied to beat Indiana 72-68 on Tuesday night for its first six-game winning streak in series history.
The Wildcats have also won four consecutive road games against Indiana for the first time in program history.
Arrinten Page had 10 points off the bench for Northwestern (12-16, 4-13 Big Ten).
Lamar Wilkerson scored 18 points, reserve Tayton Conerway added 14, Sam Alexis had 13 and Tucker Devries 11 for Indiana (17-11, 8-9).
Northwestern clinched the win making 6 of 8 foul shots down the stretch.
Down 69-66, Conerway drove to the basket on the right and threw down a two-handed dunk and crashed to the floor claiming to be fouled with eight seconds to go. Conerway then intentionally fouled Jake West, who made two foul shots to push the Wildcats' lead to 71-68.
On Indiana's ensuing possession, Devries took a dribble hand-off on the right, gave a head fake and when elevating for the shot attempt, appeared to be grabbed on the left wrist by Angelo Ciaravino. The errant attempt was nowhere near the rim with 1.1 seconds left and Northwestern secured the rebound.
Indiana fouled Page, who made 1 of 2 shots to end it.
The Hoosiers missed 11 straight shots starting near the midway point of the second half until Conerway's dunk.
Indiana reached its largest lead at 38-25 with 4:48 left before halftime and went to intermission up 42-33.
Up next
Northwestern: Hosts Oregon on Saturday.
Indiana: Hosts 13th-ranked Michigan State on Sunday.
There's nothing in sports like attending a spiring training game under the sunny Arizona and Florida skies, with fans camped out on the berms beyond the outfield walls to watch Major League Baseball's exhibition games before the regular season gets underway.
MLB's 30 teams are split evenly between Arizona (Cactus League) and Florida (Grapefruit League) to prepare for the new season with players battling for jobs ahead o the grueling 162-campaign that every team hopes will end in late October.
Tickets for spring trraining games are markedly less expensive that regular-season games, offering a great value for fans and families lucky to be in the Phoenix area and coasts of Florida.
Here's how to buy spring training tickets for every team:
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Kanye Clary scored 17 points and Oklahoma State scored the first seven points of overtime to help beat West Virginia 91-84 on Tuesday night and end the Cowboys' five-game losing streak.
Anthony Roy converted a three-point play, Parsa Fallah added a free throw and Jaylen Curry capped the extra-period surge with a 3-pointer to give Oklahoma State an 84-77 lead with 1:55 remaining. West Virginia pulled within five points twice inside the final 33 seconds but no closer.
The Mountaineers trailed by 14 points early in the second half.
Fallah and Clary each made a 3 to give Oklahoma State a 77-72 lead with 3:06 left in regulation. Chance Moore made 1 of 2 free throws, tipped in a shot and added a layup to knot it at 77. Clary missed a 3 at the buzzer to force overtime.
Fallah scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds for Oklahoma State (17-11, 5-10 Big 12). Curry added 15 points and Andrija Vukovic scored 12. Roy and Christian Coleman scored 10 apiece.
Honor Huff made six 3s and scored 20 points to lead West Virginia (16-12, 7-8). Treysen Eaglestaff added 18 points and Moore finished with 14 to go with 10 rebounds.
Oklahoma State scored the last nine points of the first half to take a 46-33 advantage. Two minutes into the second half, Vukovic made a pair of free throws to give the Cowboys their largest lead, 49-35.
West Virginia used a 10-0 run to take its first lead, 56-55, with 10:48 left.
Observations from Yankees spring training on Tuesday.
Good Start
Cody Bellinger and Jazz Chisholm Jr. delivered back-to-back RBI singles in the top of the first inning as the first four Yankees reached base against Blue Jays minor league righty Grant Rogers.
Casey at the Bat
Jake Casey, the son of former Yankees hitting coach Sean Casey, hit a two-run homer for the Blue Jays in the bottom of the ninth off Carson Coleman. “As close as Case and I are, I know what it’ll mean to him,” Aaron Boone said. “So, cool.”
Paul Goldschmidt enjoyed a strong day at the plate, crushing a two-run homer off submarine righty Tyler Rogers and later adding a two-run double off another righty, Jesse Hahn.
Wednesday’s Schedule
Lefty Ryan Weathers will make his Yankees spring debut against the Nationals in a 6:35 p.m. game at Steinbrenner Field.
One of the Buffalo Sabres' top objectives ahead of the 2026 NHL trade deadline should be to add a right-shot defenseman. It is clear that the right side of their blueline could use more depth.
When looking at potential trade candidates around the NHL, one blueliner who could make sense for the Sabres to pursue is Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Perbix.
If the Sabres landed Perbix, he would have the potential to be a solid addition to their bottom pairing. He would also give the Sabres another option for their penalty kill.
Perbix's contract also adds to his appeal. This is because he has a reasonable $2.75 million cap hit until the end of the 2026-27 season. With this, he would be more than a rental for the Sabres if acquired.
Perbix has appeared in 54 games this season with the Predators, where he has recorded three goals, six assists, nine points, and 56 blocks. This is after the right-shot defenseman had six goals, 13 assists, 19 points, and a plus-8 rating in 74 games this past season with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
First things first: the Dbacks Dispatch crew and I will put in our two cents on games and their outcomes, but like any seasoned Spring Training vet knows, the numbers on the scoreboard are like the $7 churros at the Phoenix Zoo – I ain’t buying it. Let’s focus on the players. Whether it’s the shoo-ins to the opening day roster, or the prospects to take mental notes on for future years, that’s what really matters when you’re watching from your blanket on the lawn. Brett reminded us that the D-Backs had the best record in the Cactus League in 2016 and look how that turned out? (Don’t look; it was bad).
Players are going to be focused on specific parts of their game. They focus on things like their stride when they load up to swing or hitting a big leaguer’s breaking ball (you got this Jordan I believe in you). Yes, the actual product we’re seeing on the field may not be the most exciting when it comes to end results, but Spring Training audiences are either there for the vibes or hardcore hardball psychos like you and me. Some people have the giant bat beer in their hand, and others have a radar gun in their hand. The cool ones have both. That’s one reason why I love baseball.
A Swing with No Kick to It
One of our favorite annual traditions to watch for from camp is the mechanical transformation of Alek Thomas – his stride leg in particular (I swear that’s why I’m staring at his legs, guys). The Young King has arrived with a visible adjustment to his timing mechanism, notably shucking off his traditional leg kick in favor of a much simpler approach. Alek is currently trying out a no-leg kick style, often substituting a quiet toe-tap or a tiny lift for the straight up-and-down motion that defined his previous seasons at the plate.
You hope to see a more consistent approach at the plate and that he improves his ability to stay balanced against the ever rising high-level velocity zipping in from the mound. As one of Alek’s biggest fans whose copium is starting to wear off, he really needs to show some strong, consistent value at the plate. I say this only because the eye-test makes him seem like a liability, even though he actually had career highs almost completely across the board. In my opinion, Alek needs consistently productive AB’s for PR purposes. If he can have a successful, consistent year with the bat, he should be able to shed this stigma that he’s a defense-only outfielder. I know I’m certainly rooting for him.
Trouble With the Curve
Jordan Lawlar’s situation has been quite the conundrum thanks to a mix of high expectations and low sample size, but this year Lawlar has his own PR problem when it comes to breaking balls. So far, he’s been working on breaking that narrative in the few games he’s played in so far. Despite claims from critics that he couldn’t handle professional off-speed pitches, Lawlar has already left the yard twice this spring, clubbing home runs off both a changeup and a sharp breaking ball. I cannot emphasize enough that I’m fully aware it’s a drastically low sample size, but I’m down to celebrate small wins as much as I’m prone to scouring for areas to improve.
Maybe more impressive than the home runs themselves is the consistency of his contact. Lawlar has been barreling the ball with authority, turning in multiple three-hit performances with exit velocities reaching as high as 106 mph. By proving he can punish pro pitches, Lawlar is building an interesting case for a permanent spot in the heart of the Diamondbacks’ lineup, maybe even in the heart of the outfield. I chose to write about these two guys consecutively for a reason.
A Yu-Min Win
On the mound, lefty prospect Yu-Min Lin has become a major focal point due to a significant jump in his physical stuff compared to previous seasons. Lin, who was known for a craftier approach sitting around 89 mph, raised some eyebrows by reaching 93 mph with his fastball in his first spring outing. This velocity jump surely is a testament to his physical development following a difficult 2023 season where he missed significant time due to mandatory military service in Taiwan, not to mention a scary line drive he took to the dome that he had to recover from not too long ago.
Lin is pairing that newfound heat with a hard curveball that sits nearly at 80 mph. That’s a pretty significant tick up from the low-70s rainbow curve he featured in the minors. The increased velocity changes the outlook for the young pitcher, giving him the deception and power needed to navigate Reno and possibly The Show. Having ramped up successfully to represent both the D-backs and Team Taiwan, Lin appears poised to climb the organizational ladder faster than many anticipated a few years ago.
Spring Cleaning My Wallet
While the play on the field provides plenty of optimism, the soulless corporation side of baseball remains a major point of contention for fans dealing with rising costs and declining quality in the team shops. Resentment is growing over the current state of sports memorabilia thanks to everyone’s favorite manufacturer of transparent pants and jerseys with letters taken off the bottom line of the eye test chart. Fans have voiced frustrations that Fanatics’ modern jerseys, which can cost upwards of $200, often feel thin and cheap with screen-printed elements compared to the high-quality, stitched Majestic versions that were standard only a decade ago.
Hats are no exception either, with New Era’s new Clubhouse Collection hats drawing heavy fire. Retailing for $55 pre-tax, these designs have been described as looking like they were speed-ran or hastily assembled in Microsoft Paint. When combined with the rising barrier to entry at the ballpark, where lawn seat at Salt River Fields costs as much as it used to be to take the whole family, the affordable family outing of Spring Training has become a nostalgic memory of the past. For many, the disconnect between the premium price tag and the declining quality of the jerseys and hats is reaching a breaking point.
Say I wanted to take my son and daughter to a game for a classic dad outing in Scottsdale. I’m only buying 3 tickets. Of course they’re going to be lawn seats so they can roll around in the grass. I want us all to match so let’s say I get us all jerseys, not even with a last name on the back. I won’t even get the super cool purple Serpientes jerseys, just the standard cream colored home jersey for all three of us. Can’t forget this year’s Spring Training hats! One for each. I can’t take them to the game without having a hot dog either! So dad will be cheap and get the value dogs since the regular ones are almost half the cost of a lawn ticket. Alright, so tickets, jerseys, hats, and value dogs. What’s that ring up to?
$767
Um, what?
Let’s go ultimate discount dad. No jerseys for you guys because the logo is going to peel off before you even finish reading this sentence. Let’s go just the tickets, no food because we have food at home, and let’s not include any price for parking even though I definitely didn’t park in the Target parking lot just south of the stadium.
$80?! Our starters don’t even play long enough for the shadows to hit home plate! But hey, as long as the management from corporations can afford to take their clients out to the game, who needs generational fans? Well, at least we can stay at home and watch the games on the broadcast, right?
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - FEBRUARY 24: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers passes the ball to teammate Tyrese Maxey #0 as he is defended by Quenton Jackson #29 of the Indiana Pacers during the second quarter at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on February 24, 2026 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome back, big fella — boy, were you missed.
The Sixers rolled the Indiana Pacers 135-114 Tuesday night.
After missing the last five games, Joel Embiid put up 27 points, six rebounds and five assists on 11-of-17 shooting. Tyrese Maxey looked happy to have his running mate back, leading all scorers with 32 along with nine rebounds and eight assists while getting the fourth quarter off.
VJ Edgecombe had an extremely efficient 23 points shooting 9-of-13 from the field. Andrew Nembhard and Micah Potter led Indiana with 23 as well.
With Embiid back, the Sixers were only down Paul George due to his suspension while the Pacers were without six players but most notably, Pascal Siakam.
Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.
First Quarter
A quick start for both offenses, with Kam Jones, a 23% three-point shooter on the season, making his first two threes as well as his first two looks from inside the arc (in fairness, he was a 36% three-point shooter in college). On the other end, Kelly Oubre Jr. led the way with his first three shots of the night, knocking down a three and getting to the basket a couple of times as well.
Embiid’s first shift was as long as usual, but he only took three shots. He missed a long midrange jumper, but got a couple easy layups after sealing his defenders. Maxey was quite aggressive, attempting a poster for the second game in a row, but started the night 2-of-6.
The Sixers took much worse care of the ball in the quarter. They turned it over five times, three of which were steals that led directly to fast break layups. Defensively they were slow getting out to contest threes, and the Pacers shot 6-of-11 from deep in the quarter, putting the Sixers in an early eight-point hole.
Second Quarter
The second unit minutes sure do look different with Embiid back in the lineup. The Sixers ripped off a 17-0 run to open the quarter fueled by the starting backcourt. Edgecombe had a few successful drives and finished off a fast break started by an Adem Bona steal. They rewarded the big man for hustle coming out of a Pacers timeout, letting him go to work in the post for a floater.
Taking nearly five minutes to make their first field goal of the quarter, the Pacers gave the Sixers plenty of time to extend their lead. Embiid and Maxey both hit impressive circus layups before the former found a groove with a jumper. Trendon Watford returned to the rotation after being out the last two games and immediately was found by Embiid for a cutting layup.
Watford’s shift was rather up-and-down defensively, as he was getting shredded by Jarace Walker and Potter in the pick-and-roll. Just as the Pacers were putting together a run, he rotated over to block a Jones’ layup attempt. He picked Nembhard’s pocket on the next possession and that eventually led to points as well. Edgecombe looked to cap off a 7-0 run heading into the half, but Watford committed a really silly foul on the inbound with 0.5 left, and the ensuing free throws cut the Sixers’ lead to 10 at the break.
Third Quarter
Edgecombe was having a lot of success off the dribble in the first half and picked that right back up, barreling into Ben Sheppard for a layup to start the second. He and Oubre chipped in a couple more transition buckets as both teams started the half rather slow.
With Embiid, Edgecombe and Maxey all able to get to their spots with relative ease they were able to stay in front on cruise control. That did let the Pacers keep themselves within striking distance, with Nembhard being the latest to go on a flurry.
Credit to Bona, because it felt like the Sixers’ intensity on defense went up a notch every time he checked in. Both he and Maxey were both able to get their hands on the ball to create more fast breaks, helping to create a 9-0 Sixers run. That was a much needed spurt to end the quarter to put the Sixers up by 21.
Fourth Quarter
The only question remaining was whether the Sixers could keep the lead big enough to give their stars an early night. They probably wanted Embiid to get some extra minutes for conditioning as he did return a couple minutes into the fourth. He picked up a couple more easy baskets in the post, able to seal off Jay Huff nearly every time down the floor.
The benches started to empty a little less than halfway through the quarter with Justin Edwards and Andre Drummond checking in for the first time, and Dalen Terry shortly followed. Watford took advantage of the extra touches, his post-ups keeping the Sixers on the board and not allowing the Pacers any chance of a miraculous comeback.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Denzel Aberdeen scored 19 points, Mouhamed Dioubate had 12 points and a key block down the stretch, and Kentucky beat South Carolina 72-63 on Tuesday night to end a three-game skid.
Kentucky (18-10, 9-6 SEC) secured its first win at South Carolina since the 2021-22 season.
The Wildcats had their lead trimmed to 59-57 with 2:43 left when Mike Sharavjamts made a wide open 3-pointer, off a nice drive and pass from Meechie Johnson. But Kentucky scored the next 10 points to pull away.
Malachi Moreno made a driving layup to give Kentucky a 61-57 lead and a block by Dioubate led to a Collin Chandler 3-pointer for a seven-point lead. South Carolina was off on a 3-pointer and Aberdeen added two free throws with 1:29 left for a nine-point advantage.
Andrija Jelavic added 11 points, Chandler finished with 10 points and Moreno had 11 rebounds for Kentucky. The Wildcats outrebounded South Carolina 48-28, including an 18-5 edge on the offensive end.
Johnson led South Carolina (12-16, 3-12) with 18 points. Sharavjamts added 12 points and Elijah Strong scored 11.
South Carolina was just 7-of-28 shooting in the first half (25%) to trail 28-21. But the Gamecocks made 10 of their first 16 shots of the second half to tie it at 48-all with eight minutes left.
Up next
Kentucky: Returns home to play No. 25 Vanderbilt on Saturday.
New York Yankees pitcher Will Warren #98, throwing a warmup pitch at the start of the 1st inning.
DUNEDIN, Fla. — Clarke Schmidt has been where Will Warren is now.
Only two years ago, Schmidt was the right-hander coming off a season in which he made 30-plus starts to establish himself in the big leagues, even while taking some lumps along the way. Confidence was never an issue, but he arrived at camp the next spring with a different feel, a season’s worth of experience on his shoulders and information in his brain to use to his advantage.
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“You don’t really feel like you belong in this league until you’re a couple years in, until you start to feel like you’ve done some type of thing, whether it’s posting [pitching every five days] or having success,” Schmidt said. “So I think that definitely plays a factor.”
They are not the same pitcher, but the Yankees would sign up for what came next for Schmidt — taking off in the first two months of 2024 before a strained lat derailed him — to come next for Warren, injury aside.
In order for that to happen, Warren will have to address a few key areas that hurt him most last season on the way to a 4.44 ERA across 33 starts. Like Schmidt, Warren had trouble with left-handed hitters.
In general, he did not pitch as well against some of the better teams he faced.
And he got hurt by a few big innings that blew up a handful of starts.
New York Yankees pitcher Will Warren throwing a warmup pitch at the start of the first inning on Feb. 24, 2026. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“I think it’s comfort level, honestly,” Warren said Tuesday after throwing 2 ²/₃ innings of one-run ball while striking out four in an 8-7 win over the Blue Jays at TD Ballpark. “I know that my stuff plays, based on 33 starts and 170ish innings. It’s not trying to do too much.
“Be Will Warren. Will Warren’s good enough to get people out.”
The first task will be getting through the spring healthy to begin the season in the rotation at a time when the Yankees will already be missing Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón and Schmidt to the injured list.
Warren is coming off the heaviest workload of his career last season, having thrown 167 innings including the playoffs — well past the 132 ¹/₃ innings he totaled in 2024, but he says he feels strong after only taking an extra week off or so from throwing over the offseason.
As for his plan to better attack hitters, the 26-year-old has moved from setting up on the first-base side of the rubber to the third-base side, which he believes can help against both righties (who hit .232 with a .680 OPS against him last season) and lefties (who hit .266 with a .786 OPS).
Will Warren pitching during Tuesday’s contest with the Blue Jays. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“I think it’s helped the attack angle [be] a little sharper,” said Warren, who pitched from the third-base side in college. “Righties, it feels like I’m coming at them, lefties might feel like the ball is just way out there, especially backdoor sweeper, backdoor curveball. And then just making it super sharp going into them. I think that’s the biggest thing we’re working on is just comfortability.”
Warren also mentioned wanting to throw the kitchen sink against left-handed hitters, plus putting an extra emphasis on getting ahead of them so he could keep them guessing on multiple pitches.
The Blue Jays only had three lefties in their lineup Tuesday, and after giving up hits to each of them his first time through the lineup, Warren came back to retire the lefty-hitting Daulton Varsho and Jesus Sanchez (caught looking at a front-hip sinker) back-to-back to finish off his outing.
“I see those similarities with Will, where he’s trying to get better with lefties and cut down on some of the walks,” said Schmidt, who posted a 4.64 ERA in 32 starts in 2023 before jumping to a 2.85 ERA in 16 starts in 2025. “Then you start to clean up the details and iron out all that stuff and then your game just leaps.”
Warren allowed three earned runs or fewer in 24 of his 33 starts, but also had some clunkers — most notably with disastrous first innings against the Dodgers, the Blue Jays and Red Sox — which he will need to do a better job of containing.
“Just not letting things snowball, when you get a little emotional out there and you want to go harder and you want to go faster — no. You got to execute better,” manager Aaron Boone said. “So learning how to do it, how to be, what’s that fine line of having an edge to you and a fire to you but especially as a starting pitcher, also being emotionally really steady to handle all the things that come your way in the course of the game. He’s done a good job of that, but that’s the trick for a lot of these guys.”
Kevin Pillar is calling on Angels owner Arte Moreno to sell the team.
Days after Moreno said fans care more about affordability than winning, Pillar joined a growing number of critics of the boss in Anaheim.
“He doesn’t realize what he has, because if he really cared about winning, it would be such a destination for players to want to come and play,” the former MLB outfielder said during an appearance on the “Foul Territory” podcast.
"He needs to get rid of the team, because he really doesn't care about the Angels."
“He just needs to get rid of the team because he really doesn’t really care about, you know, the Angels and, obviously, franchise values are going way up again.
“[Moreno] said he wasn’t actively shopping [the Angels], but I think there’s a lot of people interested in buying. So hopefully someone just kind of blows them away with an offer here soon, and we could kind of move past the story.”
Moreno on Friday told reporters that the “number one thing fans want is affordability” and that “winning is not in their top five,” citing an internal team survey.
The owner added that “moms” preferred the affordability aspects of events like baseball games.
“Moms make about 80 percent of the decisions,” he said. “They want to be able to bring their kids and be affordable, and they want safety, and they want to have a good experience, so they get all the entertainment stuff or whatever. The purists, you know, it’s just straight winning.”
Pillar, who played 13 big league seasons before retiring last July, spent part of the 2024 season with the Angels.
Moreno’s comments didn’t sit well with new interim Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Bruce Meyer, either, telling The Athletic over the weekend that the union and players “took notice.”
Angels owner Arte Moreno in attendance for an opening day game between his team and the Red Sox on April 5, 2024 in Anaheim, Calif. Getty Images
“The bottom line is players are competitors. They grew up competing every day. They go out, and they try their hardest to win every game. And players want to see owners doing the same thing,” Meyer said.
Despite an embarrassment of superstar talent over the years, Moreno’s Angels haven’t done much winning under his ownership.
After Moreno bought the team in May 2003, just months after their 2002 World Series championship, the Angels made the playoffs in five of the next seven seasons, but have struggled since.
Since 2010, the Angels have made just one postseason appearance, wasting a big chunk of the careers of MLB legends like Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and Albert Pujols.
Kevin Pillar reacts during the Angels’ loss to the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on Sept. 24, 2024 in Chicago. Getty Images
The Angels have finished below .500 in 10 straight seasons, and it doesn’t appear to be getting much brighter in Southern California.
After years of big free agent contracts and one of the higher payrolls in the sport, Moreno slashed salary to around $155 million, which includes deferred payments to injured third baseman Anthony Rendon.
Moreno cited the loss of the team’s local TV deal as the reason for the money-saving moves.
“Will [payroll] get back to $200 million? Probably,” Moreno said. “We’ve got to get our TV thing worked out, and we just have to improve our brand.”
In August 2022, Moreno announced that he was exploring selling the Angels, but ended that process just months later, citing “unfinished business.”
The San Diego Padres traveled to Mesa, Ariz. to play the Chicago Cubs in Cactus League action on Tuesday. Starter Marco Gonzales, who had issues with location after more than a year off the mound, lasted 1.2 innings and allowed three runs on five hits and hit a batter.
Ron Marinaccio followed with 1.1 scoreless innings pitched, further building on his long-relief bid by going an up-and-down over the first and second innings. He will leave soon for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic but has not allowed a hit so far.
Bradgley Rodriguez struck out two in his inning of relief and got a weak swing on a pop-up to first. Reliever Francis Peña continues to struggle with his command while allowing two walks, a home run and a double for three runs in his 0.2 innings pitched.
The rest of the pitchers held the Cubs in check but the Padres fell just short, scoring three runs over the last two innings but were unable to come all the way back and lost 6-5.
First baseman Romeo Sanabria had another good day at the plate, subbing for Nick Castellanos, getting a single and knocking in a run. Castellanos also had an 11-pitch at-bat in the fourth inning that resulted in a double off the center field wall and two RBI. Outfielder Bryce Johnson was 2-for-2 with two singles and a walk. He has had a great spring, currently 3-for-8 with a walk in his three games played.
New Padre Sung-Mun Song didn’t get a hit in his Padres debut as a starter but played a clean third base and worked a walk with a good at-bat in the third inning.
Although outfielder Tirso Ornelas was designated for assignment last week, he cleared waivers and returned to spring camp yesterday. He entered the game in the sixth inning for DH Miguel Andujar and got a single in his first at-bat.
Busy practice fields
With the game being a 40-minute drive to Mesa, the practice fields saw early action and then bullpens for Joe Musgrove, Nick Pivetta, Walker Buehler and Miguel Mendez.
Germán Márquez threw live BP on the backfields with Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill taking swings and multiple members of the pitching staff looking on.
The team bus left at 11 a.m. for Mesa and the players making the trip got their work in early and were then off the fields. The remainder of the team did infield and outfield work as well as batting practice. Ramon Laureano took a break while walking between fields to sign some autographs and take a pic or two.
Tomorrow’s game will be back in Peoria versus the Angels. Michael King will make his Cactus League debut.
NORTH PORT, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 20: Nacho Alvarez Jr. #24 of the Atlanta Braves poses for a photo during Spring Training photo day at CoolToday Park on February 20, 2026 in North Port, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With newly signed free agent Ramón Urías opting to report to Spring Training with St. Louis Cardinals, Mexico is replacing the veteran infielder with Atlanta Braves infielder Nacho Alvarez, Jr. for the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
Alvarez, Jr. will be the sixth Braves player in camp for Spring Training slated play in this year’s WBC with outfielder Ronald Acuña, Jr. playing for Venezuela, non-roster invitee pitcher Javy Guerra with Panama, and outfielder Jurickson Profar, catcher Chadwick Tromp and infielder Ozzie Albies playing for the Netherlands.
Alvarez, Jr., 22, is likely on the roster bubble for Atlanta’s 26-man roster for this season. After missing much of the 2025 season due to injury, he was pressed in to action with the big league team after Austin Riley was lost for the season. Alvarez, Jr. played in 58 games for Atlanta last year after making his MLB debut in 2024. He also played in the 2025 Arizona Fall League.
Early in this year’s Spring Training, Alvarez, Jr. was working with the catchers, and would likely benefit from getting regular playing time at Triple-A regardless to whether to will look to add another defensive position to his toolbox.
Alvarez, Jr. will join a Mexican team with a number of current and former big league players, including one-time Braves prospects Victor Vodnik and Joey Meneses.
