Center Kristaps Porzingis is available to play tonight for the Golden State Warriors after missing time due to illness.
The Warriors traveled to Paycom Center to play the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, March 7.
Porzingis has not played since the Warriors' 121-110 loss to the Boston Celtics on Feb. 19. He had 12 points in 17 minutes.
It's the only game he had played with the Warriors. The Atlanta Hawks traded him to the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 5. The Warriors sent Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield to Atlanta in return.
Porzingis played his last game for the Hawks in a 117-110 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans on Jan. 7. He had 13 points, three rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes played.
PITTSBURGH, PA - MARCH 07: Alex Bump #20 of the Philadelphia Flyers moves the puck against Ben Kindel #81 of the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on March 7, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Pregame
There’s no Evgeni Malkin (suspension) or Sidney Crosby (injury) so the Penguins are working with this lineup today.
Good start for the Penguins, the Flyers take the first penalty about 90 seconds into the game and then about 90 seconds later a pretty passing play between Justin Brazeau to Tommy Novak leads to an opening goal.
Philadelphia is able to respond less than a minute later, Avery Hayes tries to clear the zone but isn’t quite on the same page with Ville Koivunen, the turnover gets down to Trevor Zegras. Zegras makes a nice pass over to Owen Tippett who has the time and space to beat Stuart Skinner with a shot. 1-1.
Hayes finishes a big time hit on Cam York behind the net. Jamie Drysdale takes offense to it, not much comes out of the fight where both are off-balance. The Pens get a power play out of the sequence but are unable to score.
Something's telling me these teams don't like each other… 😡
— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) March 7, 2026
Shots are 8-2 PIT after one period; a fight, some nice hits, some goals, a nice Penguin/Flyer game to start.
Second period
Pittsburgh scores in the second period, Egor Chinakhov feeds Rickard Rakell, who steps into a wrister from the top of the circles that ends up in the back of the net in part thanks to the Bryan Rust center lane drive. 2-1 Pens.
The Flyers find another answer quickly, Ben Kindel tries to bump a puck back to Connor Clifton but it gets turned over deep in the Pens’ zone. It ends up going to Alex Bump, who is able to score in his first career NHL game by settling a rolling puck and firing by Stuart Skinner. 2-2.
It takes another minute for the Penguins to respond to that. Rakell wins an offensive zone faceoff and Chinakhov plays the puck back to Erik Karlsson. Dan Vladar has a clean lane to see the shot, but it sails through his blocker side anyways. 3-2 Pens.
Philadelphia is able to tie the game once again, another Penguin turnover results in a nice passing sequence for Denver Barkey to flick into the net. 3-3 game.
Kris Letang’s rough period continues, he allows Travis Sanehim to skate right through him and then has to slash at him from behind to help deny a scoring chance. The Flyers get their second power play of the game out of it, they come up empty.
There are only 25 total shots in the game after 40 minutes (15-10 for PIT) but there have been six total goals, three per team.
Third period
The Pens are the better team at the start, Chinakhov gets a great chance that just misses the net, as does a Novak tip attempt on a Karlsson point shot. Rakell flashes and forces a Flyer to take a penalty to alter a scoring chance to send Pittsburgh to their fourth power play of the game but they don’t manage even a shot on goal.
The Flyers then get a few chances but don’t score. Rakell draws a second power play in the period by taking a stick up high for a big chance with just 6:40 to play in the game. It gets a ton of zone time but is mostly stagnant and the puck remains to the outside.
Quiet period, each team records four SOG a piece, neither comes particularly close to breaking the tie during regulation.
Overtime
Rakell-Rust-Karlsson start out the 3v3 for the Pens. Pittsburgh got the puck back but Novak looked like he got hurt in the corner. The Flyers have a 3-on-2 the other way and Trevor Zegras’s pass through the crease gets inadvertently blocked away from the open net by his own teammate.
Vladar makes a stop on Chinakhov but then steps out of his crease and puts a pick on Karlsson. Can’t do that, refs penalize him and Zegras slams a stick to the ice in frustration of his goalie’s mistake.
4v3 power play with 2:09 to go, Skinner wisely heads to the bench for an “equipment issue” to serve as an impromptu, uncharged timeout for the Pens to get ready. Karlsson does send a shot off the outside of the post at one point, but all things considered a tough miss.
Shootout
Anthony Mantha is the first one up, he swoops in slowly and shoots right into Vladar’s leg pads.
Matvei Michkov goes first for the Flyers, similarly his low shot is stopped by the legs of Skinner.
—
Rakell is the second shooter for the Pens, his shot finds the post but ricochets out.
The dangerous Trevor Zegras is up next, he dances in then picks a corner, making it look easy on the goal.
—
Chinakhov has to score to keep the game alive, he doesn’t.
Some thoughts
We’ve been coming back to the difficulty for the forwards to produce 5v5 goals lately without Sidney Crosby around (they only have five 5v5 goals from a forward in the last six games), it was huge for Rakell to get on the board in the second period. It’s almost like a bonus these days when that happens, tough to live like that indefinitely but hopefully Crosby’s eventual return will help boost that area.
The power play went 1/6 won’t kill yearly percentage but doesn’t really like in a good flow, especially the first group. That’s partially to be expected with no Crosby and now no Evgeni Malkin. It’s not always going to be pretty, getting as much as they can out of it is absolutely crucial within the game —since as mentioned above— it’s been a struggle for the forwards at even strength so they need players like Brazeau and Novak to produce goals in whatever way they can.
Pens fall to 1-9 on the shootout, more of the same where they can’t find a goal at all. But the problem isn’t the shootout in this one, the problem was letting this game get to the shootout in the first place. Philadelphia only had five total SOG in the third period + OT, basically doing nothing out there. That’s a disappointment to let a game drag on so far — especially with the late power play in OT. The game is right there for the taking for the Pens, they simply were unable to reach out and grab it.
On all the Flyers goals, the Penguins had the puck in their defensive zone less than five seconds before the goal was scored. That’s got to be frustrating for the coaches. On a pair of goals it looked like Kindel was caught in space and Koivunen was either weak on the puck or half a beat too slow to gain a clearance. Kris Letang making mistakes all over the place didn’t help either. It happens with young players, but it’s a lesson to be a little more on the details or learn that the puck ends up in your own net mighty quickly at this level.
There was an adjustment made in that department for the start of the third period; Kindel was put on a line with Mantha/Brazeau (a line from earlier in the season) and Novak moved in to play with Koivunen/Hayes.
Two assist game for Chinakhov, who seamlessly fit in with his new linemates of the day. Nice to see him continue his productive ways apart from Malkin.
Great game from Rakell, he actually won 45% of his 21 faceoffs which is legitimately a very positive increase. A goal, an assist (due to a faceoff win) and he was a beast at taking the puck off Flyers in the 3v3. One of his best games in a long time.
Today was the last PIT/PHI game of the year, and I don’t know, March 7th and Game No. 62 is too early in the season to not have any more Pens/Flyers games. Kinda a bummer.
The Pens went 2-0-2 against the Flyers this season, which in NHL math is as good as three wins.
It’s going to be a struggle for Pittsburgh to claw out any and every point that they can without Crosby and Malkin. and now move to 2-2-2 in the six games post-Olympics without their captain. Staying .500 will help keep the afloat, though it would be nice to see them dig deep and get some sort of result at home against the Bruins tomorrow. Easier said than done with that opponent.
New Zealander Brett Randell has made history during a Plunket Shield match in Napier on Sunday morning, becoming the first cricketer to take five wickets across five deliveries in a first-class contest.
SARASOTA, FL - MARCH 15: George Lombard Jr. #55 of the New York Yankees throws the ball during the game against the Baltimore Orioles at Ed Smith Stadium on March 15, 2025 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by New York Yankees/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s absolute nonsense that a game featuring so many top prospects and recent graduates wasn’t televised, but then again, maybe we’re all better off for not having seen this matchup on Saturday night. The Yankees really didn’t bring much to West Palm Beach, with a sextet of pitchers walking more Nationals than they struck out, and a collection of people who called themselves hitters failed to manage much from the Yankee side of the box score. It’s a good thing these games don’t count, because New York went down without a whimper 3-0.
I thought Will Warren was fine today, if not electric. He was facing a lineup that’s pretty representative of what the Nationals will throw out there in the regular season — and that’s an indictment on the state of that once-again-rebuilding franchise. He threw the four-seam fastball nearly half the time, and half his whiffs came against the heater as well. Warren did struggle a little more with his control than in his previous outings, walking two in four full innings against three strikeouts.
One of those walks was a successful Dylan Crews challenge under the ABS system, and I wonder how (if at all) we will distinguish reviewed walks/strikeouts over the course of a full season. The one run that Warren allowed was unearned, as George Lombard Jr. couldn’t cleanly throw out Luis García Jr. to load the bases in the fourth, then Crews would come home on Brady House’s sac fly to make the game 1-0.
Will Warren fired off another productive Spring outing with 4 scoreless innings against Washington
Warren continues to showcase his impressive stuff which was supplemented by solid command, rendering a sparkling 50.0 O-Swing% on the day pic.twitter.com/LrjSGQxHqZ
Jake Bird took over for Warren and struggled mightily, walking the first man he faced, allowing a single, then a triple off James Wood’s bat that pushed those two runners across. He would get Crews swinging and a lazy fly ball from CJ Abrams, but for a player who landed flat on his face upon acquisition last year, this wasn’t exactly the best way to stake your claim on a regular-season MLB bullpen role.
A bunch of the Yankee first-stringers are playing in the World Baseball Classic, and even the second-stringers didn’t seem to make the trip to West Palm Beach. That left a bunch of prospects and org depth, and while Jasson Domínguez, Lombard, and Spencer Jones all managed to reach base — Jones twice, with a single and a walk — there wasn’t much offense to go around. The club managed just three hits overall on the day, and the one time that Lombard Jr. did reach, he was picked off at first base for an easy retirement. It’s rarely a good thing when your side manages one hit more than the cumulative number of errors they made.
There’s been plenty of buzz about Lombard in camp, between his strong showing in Grapefruit League games and Anthony Volpe continuing to rehab, the nominal incumbent hasn’t even played so far this spring. Today’s a good reminder of how far George still has to go though, and how he is still a product requiring some sanding, polishing and seasoning. We’ve all seen and read about the talent the 20-year old boasts, but there’s still a long way from Double-A to the majors.
The Yankees stay “on the road” tomorrow, bussing to Port St. Lucie to take on the Mets. Ryan Weathers will get the ball for his second exhibition start, coming off that stellar start against these same Nationals, the outing that had the internet abuzz about his raw stuff. The challenge for Weathers will be refining that raw product into something a little more dependable, and that will be the focus of his start tomorrow. First pitch comes at you at 1:10pm Eastern, note the time change tonight, and this one will be on TV (SNY).
WACO, Texas (AP) — Tounde Yessoufou scored 26 points, and Baylor coach Scott Drew collected his 500th career win with the Bears' 101-75 rout over Utah on Saturday in a Big 12 Conference regular-season finale.
Drew, in his 23rd season at the helm with the Bears, is one of 25 active Division-I coaches with at least 500 wins (500-285). Drew came to Baylor after a decade coaching at Valparaiso, the final year as head coach.
Yessoufou shot 10 of 16 from the field and Cameron Carr added 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting for Baylor (16-15, 6-12), which shot 61.5% (40 of 65) overall.
Reserves Michael Rataj chipped in with 14 points and Dan Skillings Jr. scored 10 for the Bears.
Don McHenry scored 20 points and Terrence Brown added 16 for Utah (10-21, 2-16), which has lost five straight. Keanu Dawes scored 14 points but grabbed just one rebound, a season low.
The Utes shot 60% (29 of 48) from the floor and hit 7 of 14 from long range, but committed 16 turnovers that led to 31 points for the Bears.
Baylor opened on a 21-9 run and led 53-33 at the break. Yessoufou scored 15 first-half points and Carr added 12 with a pair of 3-pointers.
Carr's 3 with 3:38 to play stretched the Bears' lead to 95-65.
Up next
The Big 12 Conference Tournament starts Tuesday in Kansas City, Missouri.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 20: Brandon Woodruff #53 of the Milwaukee Brewers poses for a portrait during photo day at American Family Fields of Phoenix on February 20, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jeremy Chen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With the Brewers top middle infielders off playing in the World Baseball Classic, Pat Murphy has been getting quite the look at Jesus Made and Cooper Pratt as the potential future up the middle and they aren’t missing their opportunities.
The Cactus Crew got the scoring started with three runs in the 2nd inning on an RBI fielder’s choice from Luke Adams, then an RBI single from Pratt, and an RBI fielder’s choice from Made.
The next inning, Andrew Vaughn slugged a solo homer to put the Brewers up 3-0. The Angels got their lone run of the game in the 4th inning from an RBI double by Zach Neto off Brewers reliever Grant Anderson.
King Vaughn this Spring after his second Cactus League HR 👑
Blake Perkins added a sacrifice fly to score Pratt in the 5th inning and then in the 6th, Jesus Made ripped a 2 RBI single to give him his second hit and 3 RBIs on the day.
On the pitching side, Brandon Woodruff was the big news for the Brewers. He made his spring debut this year, throwing 2 scoreless IP with 3 Ks on 32 pitches. His fastball velo was sitting 92-93 as he continues to ramp up for the regular season. He talked to reporters after his outing that his goal is still not necessarily Opening Day, but being healthy for the whole season.
Following Woodruff was Trevor Megill, who struck out the side in his one inning, then Anderson and Easton McGee. Non-roster players Drew Rom, Yerlin Rodriguez, and Bryan Rivera rounded out the pitchers for this one.
Pratt and Made both went 2-for-3 as they continue to impress. Luis Rengifo went 1-for-2 with a pair of runs scored.
The Brewers take on the Seattle Mariners tomorrow at AFFOP with Kyle Harrison scheduled to start.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Bruce Thornton scored 25 points and had seven assists, John Mobley Jr. and Amare Bynum each added 18 points, and Ohio State defeated Indiana 91-78 in a Big Ten regular-season finale on Saturday night.
The Buckeyes (20-11, 12-8) rode a strong shooting performance to the win, making 59% of their shots, 46% from deep, and 88% of their free-throw attempts. Thornton was 7-of-9 from the floor and 9-of-11 from the line. Bynum hauled in nine rebounds to lead all players, along with two steals and one block.
Ohio State shook off a slow start with runs of 6-0 and 8-0 in the first half, scoring 50 before halftime and taking a 17-point lead into the break.
Thornton entered the contest 12 points away from becoming the Buckeyes’ all-time leading scorer, and a 3-pointer with 44 seconds remaining in the first half put him into the Ohio State record book ahead of Dennis Hopson, who was on hand to present Thornton with the ball used to break the record.
Lamar Wilkerson led the Hoosiers (18-13, 9-11) with 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting. Tucker Devries added 17 points and five assists, and Sam Alexis, who hit all five of his shot attempts had 14 points.
Up next
Indiana is the No. 10 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and will play on Wednesday.
Ohio State has earned a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament, and will be either the No. 7 or No. 8 seed. The Buckeyes will open play on Thursday.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: Gage Jump #79 of the Athletics throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Angels in the first inning of a spring training game at Las Vegas Ballpark on March 07, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Angels defeated the Athletics 3-0. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
One day, two losses. The A’s split the team up and dropped both sides of Saturday’s double header, first falling to the Cubs in Arizona 4-3 and then seeing the other half lose to the Angels 3-0 in front of their future Las Vegas fans. Not a great day for scores but still exhibition!
Feb 19, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Landon Knack poses for a portrait during photo day at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Featuring in the last game of Saturday’s slate, the Landon Knack-led Dodgers play host to the Colorado Rockies.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — In the lead-up to the draft, when Matthew Schaefer was asked what he knew about the Islanders, answers usually mentioned the players with whom he happened to share an agent.
That reflected something a little uncomfortable.
The Islanders, even with the new arena and even with recent success, were still a franchise that didn’t have much of a profile around the league.
Players who played there had plenty of good things to say and loved the area.
Those who didn’t tended to include Long Island on no-trade lists.
Brayden Schenn, who had a 15-team no-trade list this season, was one of them.
Now, the first thing everyone associates with the Islanders is Schaefer.
Brayden Schenn skates against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center on February 4, 2026 in Dallas, Texas. NHLI via Getty Images
“That’s no secret,” Schenn said before the Islanders’ 2-1 overtime win over the Sharks on Saturday. “He’s world-class. He’s elite. You hear a lot about him; you see his highlights. And I think you really learn what a guy’s all about when you start playing with him. The guys in this room obviously speak very, very highly of him, how dynamic [he is]. We all know what he does as a player.
“I think what guys say is how good of a person he is, how fun it is to be around him. When superstars in this league are good guys that take care of his teammates, guys are gonna want to be around him. And guys are only gonna want to come to the New York Islanders in the future just because of his talent and character.”
That’s music to the ears of fans who have watched their Islanders struggle to attract free agents for a long time.
Schaefer is not the only reason to come and was not the only reason Schenn agreed to the move.
He has relationships with Thomas Hickey, Josh Bailey, Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin.
Schaefer, though, was the first thing he brought up when listing off the reasons.
“What enticed me about this team, if you look, it’s a franchise defenseman that’s obviously taking the league by storm,” he said before referencing standout Ilya Sorokin. “Great goaltender, lots of skill up front. When you always play the Islanders two times a year for the past nine or 10 years, you always knew you were gonna get a tough game.”
Matthew Schaefer of the New York Islanders clears the puck during the second period against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on March 5, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NHLI via Getty Images
Part of the goal in acquiring Schenn ahead of Friday’s trade deadline was to get tougher and harder to play against.
He lined up Saturday between Cal Ritchie and Ondrej Palat on the second line.
Taking some responsibility off the 21-year-old Ritchie’s shoulders is a nice side effect.
“I think he’s gonna be a great mentor to Cal,” coach Patrick Roy said, noting how much dialogue the two had just in one morning skate. “I think that’s gonna help him. It’s nice to see that kind of leadership.”
Schenn, who bargained with Simon Holmstrom to keep the No. 10, will get a quick homecoming in St. Louis on Tuesday night before playing his first home game with the Islanders against the Kings on Friday.
He’s still in the middle of a whirlwind that started two days ago when Blues general manager Doug Armstrong called him with a heads up of where this could end up going.
“Even before that, we all knew with where we were at, it’s not this year, it’s previous years, too, in St. Louis, where they weren’t pretty happy with the direction of the team,” Schenn said. “I was there for a long time. They’re going all 20-, 22-year-olds. I’m looking forward to coming to a team chasing a playoff spot. You can just tell right now it’s a great group of guys that have fun playing for one another. Good to be a part of the group.”
Ahead of the trade deadline, Andrew Mangiapane was the one roster player to come to the Chicago Blackhawks. He came with a first-round pick from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Jason Dickinson and Colton Dach.
Things didn't work out for Mangiapane in Edmonton, and they were desperate to move him for players that better fit what they were trying to do.
With Chicago, Mangiapane has an opportunity to play on a team that doesn't have pressure to win. He does has pressure to keep his NHL career alive, and it's easier to do that on a non-playoff team loaded with young players like the Blackhawks.
Friday's game against the Vancouver Canucks was his first opportunity to suit up in a Chicago sweater. He battled some visa issues after the trade, but he was able to make it in time to participate.
In his first game, following an incredibly crazy time for him, he made a good first impression. He had a couple of scoring chances, three hits, and took a penalty in 8:52 of ice time. Jeff Blashill didn't play him a ton in his first game, but that ice time will only increase as he gets in more games.
"He played 8:52, so he didn't get a ton," Blashill said of Mangiapane's usage. "He got in a tough spot in the second there. There was four-on four, power play, penalty kill. He's not on any of those right now. He did a good job. I thought he showed the tenacity that I think he's gonna have to have to be successful for us."
Mangiapane was a cap-dump. Nobody in the organization thinks he's going to be the 35-goal scorer that he once was with them, but they do think he can do the little things needed to earn himself more work down the line.
Over the course of his career, he has shared a bench with some really good players. Now, he gets to see Connor Bedard up close and personal, and he recognizes that an elite talent is rising.
“I played with him at Worlds a couple of years ago, and it was my first time watching him. He's definitely matured and grown since then. He’s a special player in this league, and you could see it on the ice.”
It sounds like Mangiapane is bought into what the Blackhawks are doing, and that includes the nice words about the superstar in town.
The highlight of Mangiapane's night was very close to being a goal. He made a great play at the net-mouth, and the puck ended up in the net, but the officials ruled that Landon Slaggert kicked it in.
Mangiapane has the tools to be an effective player in the league. If he can defend well enough, he'll continue to get ice time, which will allow him to also be involved on offense. Off the ice, he already fits right in.
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Cameron Corhen scored 21 points, and Nojus Indrusaitis scored the winning bucket with 4.3 seconds left in overtime to give Pittsburgh a 71-69 victory over Syracuse on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams.
With the win, Pitt (12-19, 5-13) clinched the final spot into the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Syracuse (15-16, 6-12) will enter the tournament on a five-game losing streak.
The game was scoreless for nearly 2 1/2 minutes in overtime before Pitt called a timeout with 10.2 seconds left. Indrusaitis then took the inbound pass and drove to the basket and scored when William Kyle III was called for goaltending.
Naithan George's 3-point heave from midcourt hit the back of the rim to end it.
Barry Dunning Jr. added 17 points and Indrusaitis finished with 16 for the Panthers.
George scored a season-high 26 points for Syracuse. Donnie Freeman added 18 points and Nate Kingz chipped in with 14.
Freeman made a pair of free throws with 1:08 left in regulation to knot it at 65-all. Damarco Minor's 3-point try for Pitt rimmed out with 14 seconds left, and Kingz missed a 3-point try at the buzzer to force overtime.
Up next
Pitt: The No. 15 seed Panthers play 10th-seeded Stanford on Tuesday to open the ACC Tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Syracuse: The No. 14 seed Orange face 11th-seeded SMU on Tuesday in the conference tournament.
Anthony Volpe is pictured during the Yankees' Feb. 27 workout at spring training.
TAMPA — Anthony Volpe is not sure when he will debut this season and not sure when his swing progression will graduate to live at-bats, but he is checking off boxes and progressing well.
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“I feel like I’ve been able to handle everything thrown at me so far,” Volpe said Saturday from Steinbrenner Field.
Volpe is swinging and “in the middle of the hitting progression” he said, and has experienced no setbacks following a procedure that will keep him out of games until April or — more likely — May.
Anthony Volpe is pictured during the Yankees’ Feb. 27 workout at spring training. Charles Wenzelberg
The shoulder issue began in early May of last year, when Volpe heard a “pop” diving for a ball.
What followed were two midseason cortisone shots and perhaps Volpe’s worst stretch of play in his three major league seasons, when his usually reliable defense faltered and he hit poorly enough to lose some September time to José Caballero.
Exactly how much Volpe’s hurting shoulder contributed to his downturn is a matter of debate.
Does his shoulder feel significantly different now?
“I definitely feel like it’s healthy,” Volpe said. “I think I’m just progressing. The way I can tell [it’s improving] is it’s responding to the treatments. Every day is better, even if it’s a very small amount. I feel better every day.
“Whereas [last year], you do a bunch of treatment and you just don’t respond or you feel worse.”
The second cortisone shot, given in September, appeared to work and preceded an upturn in Volpe’s production defensively and offensively.
Still, the season ended with Volpe’s bat struggling in the ALDS after a campaign in which he was again a below-average hitter.
In 472 major league games, the New York native has posted just a .662 OPS.
For the first time since Volpe won the job from Oswald Peraza in spring training of 2023, there is some shortstop competition.
Caballero, who was excellent in 40 games with the Yankees (.828 OPS and 15 steals) after coming over from the Rays, is expected to be the Opening Day shortstop.
There is reason for Volpe to try to get back on the field as soon as he can.
Anthony Volpe throws a ball during the Yankees’ spring training workout Feb. 16. Charles Wenzelberg
So far, so good.
“I’m in a good spot,” Volpe said, “and I feel like I could do more, which I think is what [the trainers] want.”
JUPITER, Fla. — Kodai Senga’s four-seam fastball scintillated Saturday, a positive development that didn’t match his results from this first Grapefruit League outing.
One of those fastballs disappeared behind the fence at Roger Dean Ceverlot Stadium.
An inning later, Senga threw a forkball that also went for a solo homer.
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“Overall, really good outing,” Senga said through an interpreter on a day the Mets beat the Cardinals 3-2. “The results, a couple of homers, but no big deal. I’m working on things and we’ll continue to work on things the next outing, but overall it was really good today.”
Senga, who allowed two earned runs on three hits with two strikeouts over 2 ²/₃ innings, peaked at 98.9 mph with his four-seamer.
He averaged 96.7 mph with the pitch — an increase of 2 mph from last season.
“It’s not something that I have seen the last two years that I have been here,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “On the first day [of camp], he’s 94-95 and then Day 1 when he’s playing in a real game you see 97-98, and just how sharp he was. He’s healthy and you can see it now.”
New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga (34) pitches in the first inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium on March 7, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Senga, who threw 50 pitches, allowed a homer to Joshua Baez in the second inning and another to Miguel Ugueto in the third.
He got Nolan Gorman to hit into a double play to end the first inning after allowing a single to Alec Burleson.
“Not only the 98 [mph], but his ability to spin it, too,” Mendoza said. “I thought he stole a couple of strike ones with his breaking ball, but he used the fastball, he used the split. You have got 98 and got that forkball, it’s pretty impressive.”
Senga cited mechanical adjustments as the biggest factor in his increased velocity.
“I’m getting my body back to where I need to be so that I can perform,” Senga said. “I feel like I’m there right now.”
New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga (34) walks off the mound in the second inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
If the Mets escape spring training with full health among the starting pitchers — a big “if” — the plan is to deploy a six-man rotation that includes Senga.
And Senga said he is prepared to pitch on the normal fifth day if that is what the organization decides. Over his first three seasons, Senga has mostly been afforded an extra day of rest.
“I’ve never said that I can’t throw on regular rest or that I prefer an extra day,” Senga said. “If I’m told by the organization, ‘Hey, you are going on this day,’ that is what I am going to prepare for. As long as I know beforehand, I have no issues with that. Nothing has changed.”
Senga appears more relaxed to Mendoza.
“You see a Kodai Senga in the clubhouse smiling, more interactions with teammates,” Mendoza said. “He’s not in the training room getting treatment. He’s a healthy player that is able to do a lot of different things, but it affects the personality, so definitely a different version this year.”
How different is Senga’s level of confidence from the second half of last season?
“It’s pretty high because he’s feeling good,” Mendoza said. “We have got to keep it there. He’s working hard and he’s listening. Not that he didn’t listen before, but he’s just a different guy.”
Marcus Semien and Francisco Lindor have started to build some infield chemistry for the Mets.
JUPITER, Fla. — The Mets’ double-play combination is finally getting together, albeit only in drills.
Marcus Semien in recent days has begun taking ground balls alongside Francisco Lindor, as the Mets shortstop rehabs from hamate bone surgery in his left hand.
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“It’s exciting to see him joining us for defense, and hearing that he is swinging the bat — it’s impressive to be at the point he’s at right now,” Semien said.
Semien, who arrived in a trade with Texas during the offseason to play second base, is looking to build familiarity with Lindor.
In the meantime, he’s getting exposure to Ronny Mauricio, a strong possibility to begin the season at shortstop if Lindor isn’t ready.
“Ronny is 6-foot-4 and moves like a very good shortstop,” Semien said. “I think we have a great coaching staff that identifies things he needs to work on immediately. Just taking double-play feeds from him, and little tips that either me or Francisco give him to keep him sharp.”
Marcus Semien (10) is pictured during the Mets’ March 3 game. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectFrancisco Lindor is pictured Feb. 18. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
Luis Robert Jr.’s initial start this spring in the Grapefruit League is slated for Thursday against the Cardinals.
The Mets have been slow-playing the outfielder’s spring, limiting him to minor league games every other day in attempt to keep him healthy.
“He’s in a good place right now and you just watch him take batting practice and the way the ball comes off his bat is just different,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Our goal is to keep it on the field. If he stays on the field, it could be special.”
David Peterson has been pushed back a day to start Tuesday against the Cardinals in Port St. Lucie.
Mendoza said the switch was made after deciding there wasn’t a need to pitch the left-hander on the fifth day after only one exhibition start.
Brandon Waddell will start against the Marlins on Monday.
Freddy Peralta is scheduled to face the Yankees on Sunday at Clover Park.
Luke Weaver was slow in returning to the mound after sliding into first base to record an out, but remained in the game to complete the fifth inning.
“A lot went through my mind,” Mendoza said when asked about his level of relief that Weaver was uninjured. “But that’s who he is, he’s an athlete, a competitor and when they are out there the game is going to dictate, but it wasn’t a good feeling.”
