Category: Sports News

The latest iteration of the storied MLB The Show series is good, it’s really good — but it’s been good for years now. Routinely one of the best sports video games of the year, The Show is truly hitting the point of diminishing returns, and while MLB The Show 26 is the best iteration of the series, it’s also not that much better to the point of an overwhelming recommendation unless you’re a die-hard fan who keeps up with the live service elements of the game each season.

It begins with the on-field action, and to this end MLB The Show 26 still reigns supreme. No sports game feels as true to life as this series in capturing not just hitting, pitching, and fielding — but the minutia in between. Top pitchers will paint the zone with infuriating accuracy, hitters will manage to get the barrel on balls outside of the zone, and an elite shortstop will really shine through with their ability to create double plays and rifle incredible throws into first.

One big quality of life improvement for more casual players is the addition of “Big Zone Hitting,” this is a happy medium between the incredible ease of simple timing hitting and traditional zone hitting — generating more reliable contact if you’ve struggled with batting in the past. There’s enough granularity to feel like you actually need to locate the pitch, without the frustration of endless pop-up flies without perfectly guessing which zone the ball is going to.

On the pitching side the added drama of “Bear Down Pitching” amps up the drama in clutch situations. With a press of LT before the pitch crowd noise is drowned out, you can hear the pitcher’s heartbeat, and it offers greater accuracy on one key pitch. These can only be used a couple of times per game, so as not to be abused — but there’s nothing quite like having a tying runner on base in the 9th and activating Bear Down to get that critical out.

Along with these two features are a slew of new niche animations that add even more realism to the game. That said, glitches still happen — including this one where ___ bat became something rather lewd.

The bummer that is the World Baseball Classic

MLB The Show 26 is dripping in World Baseball Classic references, including the cover which boasted Aaron Judge along with the WBC uniform, and Team USA jersey. Unfortunately there isn’t a fully fleshed out WBC mode, or even the option to simply pick up and play the WBC.

Instead, it’s been tucked inside “Diamond Dynasty,” which is The Show’s equivalent of Ultimate Team as special challenges. There are licensing and timing realities that developer San Diego Studios have used to explain why there isn’t a fully-realized WBC mode, but especially releasing well before opening day it’s jarring not to be able to play the biggest international tournament in baseball inside MLB’s flagship game.

The Negro Leagues continue to be incredible

It’s astonishing to me that no other sports video game has played into the history of the game to the depth of MLB The Show. The mode has returned as an ode to the incredible players lost to time and prejudice who deserve to have their stories told. My nine-year-old daughter was glued to the screen as I was playing through the Negro Leagues, loving the real-life interviews woven with watercolor images from the past.

This year’s crop of stories from the Negro Leagues are:

• Roy Campanella
• Mamie “Peanut” Johnson
• John Henry “Pop” Lloyd
• George “Mule” Suttles

We need historical modes like this in other sports games.

Creating my baseball monster

“Road to the Show” is naturally back, and remains one of the best individual career modes in sports video games. The ability to take a player from high school, through college, the minors, and into the pros really highlights the brutal mountain prospective baseball players have to climb on the way to stardom.

This year adds more college recruiting options to choose from, expanding the roster to 19 possible schools to play for en route to The Show: Cal State Fullerton, TCU, Tennessee, South Carolina, UCLA, Texas, Vanderbilt, LSU, UNC, Stanford, Michigan, Florida, Arkansas, Virginia, FSU, Oregon State, Wake Forest, Clemson and Fresno State.

It’s a small addition, but a notable one. On the other end of the spectrum is new “Road to Cooperstown” integration, which formats specific goals when you’re in MLB to try and make the hall of fame and cement your legacy. Otherwise the mode has seen some general improvements in requesting trades, and position changes — but nothing that reinvents the wheel.

Thankfully you can still make absolute monsters as your created players, or scan your own face if you want to be in the game. I’ll let you decide what I did here.

Is MLB The Show 26 worth getting?

If you’ve taken a long break from baseball games and want to get back in then there’s absolutely no reason not to get MLB The Show 26. It’s a brilliant game in a series that always iterates, always gets better, and is constantly improving. Similarly if you enjoy the live service elements of the game like Diamond Dynasty, and that’s your main gaming focus of the year — then you more or less have to buy it to keep up with the player base.

However, if you bought MLB The Show 25 and only played casually, well, there’s nothing really here that reinvents the wheel. At best it will feel like small, iterative improvements that unquestionably make the game look, feel, and play better than ever — but there’s no huge leap over past titles in the series.

Overall, we have a great baseball game that feels like it’s been going back to the well a few times too many. The true lack of the WBC feels like an unforced error, and the core experience is largely the same.

8/10

MLB The Show 26 was reviewed on Xbox Series X using review code provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment

We had another great game today and this time, there was no controversy.

Venezuela 4, Italy 2

Italy took an early lead, but Venezuela rallied with a three-run seventh inning to end Italy’s magical run in the World Baseball Classic.

Italy actually broke out to an early lead when Tigers pitcher Keider Montero struggled to throw strikes. Astros outfielder Zach Dezenzo singled with one out and then Montero walked Jac Caglianone, Brewers minor leaguer Andrew Fischer and the Angels’ J.J. D’Orazio in a row, forcing in the first run of the game. Phillies minor leaguer Dante Nori grounded into a fielder’s choice to make it 2-0 Italy in the second.

Meanwhile, Aaron Nola kept the powerful Venezuelan lineup scoreless for three innings. He got some help in the first inning with when Jakob Marsee made a nice catch in center field and doubled up Maikel Garcia at first base.[VIDEO]

You can’t tell from that video but Italy shortstop Sam Antonacci deked out Garcia with a dive at second base.

That’s the second time this tournament that Antonacci successfully pulled off that move.

But with one out in the fourth inning, Eugenio Suárez got Venezuela on the board with this solo home run. [VIDEO]

Italy threatened to blow the game open in the sixth inning when they loaded the bases with two outs. But Brewers pitcher Angel Zerpa struck out Antonacci looking to end the threat. [VIDEO]

Italy manager Francisco Cervelli’s strategy in this game was to get through as much of the game as possible by piggybacking his two best pitchers, Nola and Michael Lorenzen. The strategy looked brilliant as Nola allowed just one run on four hits over four innings. Lorenzen kept the Venezuelans from scoring in the fifth and sixth innings, allowing just one walk. But Lorenzen walked Gleyber Torres to lead off the seventh, That looked like no big deal as he then struck out Wilyer Abreu and William Contreras.

But with a man on first and two outs, Lorenzen allowed four straight singles. First, number-nine hitter Jackson Chourio singled to center. Returning to the top of the order, Ronald Acuña Jr. tied the game 2-2 by beating out an infield single. [VIDEO]

Next, Maikel Garcia singled home Churio to give Venezuela a 3-2 lead. [VIDEO]

Finally, Luis Arraez connected for the fourth-straight single to make it 4-2. [VIDEO]

Cervelli pulled Lorenzen for reliever Kyle Nicolas after the Arraez single, but by then it was too late.

Neither side managed another baserunner after the Arraez RBI single. Daniel Palencia came on to collect the save for Venezuela and he struck out Antonacci to the end the game. [VIDEO]

It’s the first ever trip to the World Baseball Classic finals for Team Venezuela. Team Italy has nothing to be ashamed of, putting on a near-miraculous run and electrifying a country that was discovering baseball for the first time in some cases. Even their only loss was a narrow one to a very good Venezuela team.

Tonight’s final between Venezuela and USA is at 7 p.m. CT at LoanDepot Park in Miami. Nolan McLean is scheduled to start for the Americans and Eduardo Rodríguez is penciled in for Venezuela. We will, of course, have a game thread here this evening for the title game.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Orioles fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

After an offseason of surprising and occasionally quite exciting moves, and a spring training season that began with injury news that shook up the infield, we’re finally down to the wire and heading towards the regular season. The Orioles who are going to try to make this year a better one than last year are assembled and in nine days we’re going to start to find out how this season is going to go.

This week’s survey is a simple one: How many wins do you think the Orioles will get this year?

The options below start with 75 or fewer, signifying that someone thinks this year will go as badly as last year did or even worse than that, and then go in bands of several wins from there. Vote for the one you’re feeling right now. As usual, we’ll have to hope the optimists are the ones that end up being right.

If you’ve voted for a low number, what are you afraid is going to hold this team back? If you’ve voted for a high number, how do you think they’re going to overcome last year’s problems? If you’re somewhere in the middle, what would make you feel better about the season early on? Let us know in the comments below.

There is no doubting that the Dodgers have made themselves the juggernaut of the NL West and indeed all of baseball, winning back-to-back World Series and signing one of if not the top free agent every winter. The Rockies meanwhile don’t look close to shaking the label of worst team in baseball any time soon. The intriguing question for the division, therefore, is how the other three teams will place by the end of the season. For the first time in what feels like a long time, it looks like the Padres may finally be displaced from their perch as the perennial runners-up to the Dodgers, and appear at risk of missing the playoffs altogether.

2025 record: 90-72 (2nd, NL West)
2026 FanGraphs projection: 80-82 (4th, NL West)

They’ve got an incredibly top-heavy lineup — Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill, and Xander Bogaerts are expected to put up over 16 wins between them and should carry the rest of the offense on most nights. However, they have a billion dollars tied up in Tatis, Machado, and Bogaerts. While that’s not the worst trio to have that kind of money invested into, Machado and Bogaerts are both 33 while Tatis is excellent yet not exactly the slugger he was pre-PED suspension. Furthermore, Merrill has to prove he can bounce back from a disappointing sophomore campaign and once again establish a ceiling as a perennial future All-Star.

If anything should happen to that quartet, be it injury, regression, or failure to rebound, production will drop off precipitously. No other hitter on the roster is expected to reach a 110 wRC+ while Merrill is the only projected starter under the age of 30. That being said, I don’t expect the offense to be the unit that holds the Padres down.

That distinction belongs to the starting pitchers. There is a scary amount of injury risk in the rotation. Michael King re-signed for three years and $75 million after missing most of the season to a nerve injury in his throwing shoulder. Nick Pivetta is coming off a career-high in innings and has several major injuries in his pitching arm’s past. Joe Musgrove is expected to start the season in IL after suffering a setback in his Tommy John rehab. Yu Darvish’s status is at the very least “unlikely to pitch” after conflicting reports of his retirement over the winter. King’s fellow former Yankee Randy Vásquez has been healthy but is downright allergic to strikeouts. Germán Márquez, Griffin Canning, and Walker Buehler were all brought in on one year prove-it deals, all three having undergone major surgery in the last two years. There is a very real possibility that none of the players mentioned hits 100 innings in 2026.

The saving grace is that the Padres should continue to have the No. 1 bullpen in MLB. Led by flame-throwing closer Mason Miller, almost every late inning San Diego lead is safe. Jeremiah Estrada and Adrian Morejon were both terrific in 2025 and project to be the same in 2026 while Jason Adam could be ready for Opening Day after his excellent 2025 was cut short by a torn quad.

All this being said, the biggest Padres story as Opening Day looms does not take place on the field but instead in the highest offices of the organization. Following former owner Peter Seidler’s untimely passing from non-Hodgkin lymphoma after the 2023 season, his brother and widow became embroiled in a toxic lawsuit over control of the team. His widow eventually dropped the bulk of her claims, but it created a pall over a team that should have been solely focused on its championship window. Seidler’s sons are now in the process of fielding bids for a team sale, with final bids expected to come in April as many around the industry predict that the franchise will top the record $2.4 billion that Steven Cohen paid to buy the Mets.

Thus, San Diego appears to be in somewhat of a no-man’s land as they await the finalization of the sale and the accompanying changes to the front office. They have one of the oldest rosters in baseball and shouldn’t expect any help to come from the minors given their status as the worst farm system in MLB, with only Kruz Schoolcraft cracking MLB Pipeline’s top-100 list at 88th overall. Given all this uncertainty about the short and long-term trajectory of the franchise, it’s understandable that the Padres were conservative when it came to external additions, preferring one-year deals near the league minimum for veteran players. Canning and Márquez joined the fold one one-year pacts and Buehler on a minor league deal with a spring invite while Nick Castellanos was claimed off waivers from the Phillies, San Diego only on the hook for the minimum portion of his salary. Even regarding King’s three-year deal, it has opt-outs, so if he fully gets back to his 2024 form, he’s probably out the door for a better dealafter 2026.

For Padres fans accustomed to their recent success, they could be in for a rude awakening in 2026. FanGraphs Depth Charts pegs them for a fourth-place finish with a losing record of 80-82 and just 22.3-percent playoff odds while PECOTA believes they will finish third at 81-81 with 30.6-percent playoff odds. It’s not that the teams around them have gotten better — though the Giants have made several marquee additions to the offense over the last two years — so much as the Padres being injury-riddled and a year older. It’ll be a three-way dogfight for second in the division, and even then that’s no guarantee of clinching a Wild Card.

More Pinstripe Alley MLB team season previews can be found here.

A lot has changed for Griffin Hugus since joining the Seattle Mariners organization.

Drafted in the third round for slightly under slot value, the University of Miami product checked every box of a “Seattle Mariner starting pitcher”. With an athletic 6’2 frame and a full arsenal of offerings at his disposal, Hugus paired intriguing underlying traits with good command and high-spin breakers, a profile the Mariners absolutely love to get into their development program. The heater, though typically in the low 90’s, has a good cut-ride shape and plays well at the top of the zone, and his cutter/sweeper/curveball combination all possess good movement and look like potential above-average offerings at the next level. His fifth offering, a changeup, still needs some fine tuning, but that isn’t necessarily atypical for a young pitcher. A clean operation down the mound and a burgeoning arsenal had Hugus on the rise, and the Mariners capitalized. If he was capable of adding the tick or two of velocity many scouts thought he could, Hugus would elevate his profile and look like a massive steal as a money-saving third rounder.

In an amazingly short amount of time, he did just that. With reports out of “gas camp” this winter indicating he was arguably the stuffiest pitcher present, the indication was he’d found some extra juice after beginning professional-grade strength training and instruction. Hugus had taken the leap the Mariners expected of him, positioning him beautifully for his debut season and prompting us to rank him rather aggressively prior to his debut season.

That debut, unfortunately, doesn’t look like it will be happening in 2026.

Our own Kate Preusser got word that Hugus appears to be heading toward Tommy John surgery, and though it isn’t yet a certainty, he’s expected to miss significant time regardless. It’s obviously a brutal blow for any young pitcher, but I have all the faith in the world that Hugus is in good hands with his recovery. Whenever he’s back healthy and ready to throw again, Hugus is sure to be an interesting arm for the Mariners development gurus to help maximize. Until then, however, all we can do is wish him a speedy recovery.

Is there anything that goes together quite like the Phillies and St. Patrick’s Day? After all, “Phillie” kind of sounds like an Irish term, and the team mascot is green for some reason. The Phillies used to wear green uniforms on the holiday, but due to Nike’s rules limiting the number of uniforms, that tradition has come to an end.

But that shouldn’t stop us from celebrating the holiday! Thus, I’ll discuss a few notable players named Patrick in Phillies history.

Paddy Greene

We’ll start off with the player with perhaps the most Irish sounding name ever. I mean, Paddy Greene sounds like the name of a leprechaun mascot.

As far as I can tell, Greene was the first Patrick in Phillies history although he didn’t last very long with the team. He played 19 games for the 1902 Phillies, batted just .169 and after the season, he left to go to the Yankees.

Pat Corrales

Pat Corrales was not Irish. In fact, he was the first Mexican American manager in MLB history. Despite that distinction, he isn’t fondly remembered by most Phillies fans, since he had the unfortunate task of replacing Dallas Green, who at the time was the only man to manage the Phillies to a World Series title.

After Green left for the Cubs after the 1981 season, the Phillies turned to Corrales, and the team missed the playoffs after an 89-win season. (Remember, it used to be much harder to make the playoffs when only division winners qualified.) In July 1983, the Phillies were in first place, (but only a game above .500) and several of the team veterans (and this was the Wheeze Kids, so there were a lot of veterans) were grumbling about Corrales’ managerial style.

General Manager Paul Owens decided to fire Corrales and handle managerial duties, eventually leading the Phillies to the NL Pennant.

Pat Combs

Pat Combs is a cautionary tale for anyone who gets too excited about a pitching prospect. The Phillies’ first round pick of the 1988 draft, Combs blazed through the minor leagues and went 4-0 in six starts as a September callup in 1989. It looked like the Phillies had a future ace on their hands.

Combs followed up that showing with a mediocre season in 1990, and then injuries, and a lack of control (6.0 BB/9 in 1991) caused his career to quickly flame out. Perhaps his greatest acheivement was sparking one of the best brawls in Phillies history:

After four bad starts in 1992, Combs’ major league was over.

Pat Burrell

Now here’s a guy who probably enjoyed St. Patrick’s Day. “Pat the Bat” was the top overall pick in the 1998 draft and joined the big-league team in 2001. He looked like the next big thing in 2002 when he hit 37 home runs and put up a .920 ERA. But he never built upon that early success and settled in as just a pretty good player (although reportedly an amazing partier).

He would probably be held in higher regard in modern times when he could have been a designated hitter, and we wouldn’t have had to watch him attempt to catch up to balls in left field. I thought he actually took decent routes to balls and had a good arm; he was just horrifically slow. And while he never developed into the massive power hitter that people expected, he always had a high on-base percentage.

Pat Neshek

Unlike Pat Burrell, Pat Neshek made an All-Star team as a Phillie, although it was very much a token selection for a dreadful Phillies team in 2017. Still, Neshek was a very solid reliever who the Phillies traded for three minor leaguers – most notably the immortal J.D. Hammer.

The Phillies liked Neshek well enough that they brought him back as a free agent the following season. He was paired with another bearded reliever in Tommy Hunter, and it was difficult to tell them apart except for the fact that Neshek was generally effective, while Hunter often stood on the mound looking scared for a few seconds before surrendering another base hit. (I couldn’t stand Tommy Hunter.)

“Irish” Mike Ryan

While he wasn’t named Patrick, I couldn’t possibly have a Phillies St. Patrick’s Day post without mentioning the famous “Irish” Mike Ryan. Ryan spent six years with the Phillies as a catcher, known for strong defense and little offense. He then spent 15 years on the Phillies’ coaching staff, mostly as the bullpen coach and batting practice pitcher.

Ryan lived up to the stereotype of the “fiery” Irishman, as whenever there was a scuffle between Phillies and an opponent, Ryan would usually be involved. You might have noticed him in that brawl with the Mets from above.

If you choose to celebrate with a green-colored beverage or three, please make sure to do so responsibly. And have a good St. Patrick’s Day!

After two weeks of incredible baseball, the World Baseball Classic comes down to one game, with the United States taking on Venezuela at LoanDepot Park in Miami on Tuesday, March 17.

Team USA, looking for its first WBC triumph since 2017, got to the final by beating the Dominican Republic 2-1, and Venezuela, which defeated reigning champion Japan in the quarterfinals, punched its ticket to the final with a come-from-behind 4-2 triumph over Italy.

Venezuela, which is making its first-ever appearance in the championship game, is led by Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. and three-time batting champion Luis Arraez.

Here is how to watch the WBC final.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Rays fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

One of the bigger storylines in the Nats fanbase is whether Dylan Crews should make the team. Even a month ago, that would have sounded a bit crazy, considering Crews seemed to have a starting job locked up. I still think he will make the team and play a lot, but his leash is getting tighter.

This spring has been a real struggle for Crews. He is 3/28 with 10 strikeouts so far. Frankly, this looks a lot like it did when he was struggling last year. The former number 2 pick looks like he is second guessing himself and caught in between at the plate. That has led to ugly results and even uglier at bats.

This begs the question, should Dylan Crews start the season at Triple-A? I do not think it will happen, but it is not an idea I would be opposed to. Crews never truly mastered the Triple-A or Double-A levels. After he got promoted from A ball in 2023, he hit a wall in Double-A, posting a .595 OPS in 20 games. Most attributed that to Crews being tired after a long college season and a pro debut.

In 2024, he got better in Double-A, but did not truly dominate the level. He hit .274 and posted a .789 OPS. Not bad, but you would like to see more from a guy who was one of the best college hitters of the 21st century. The Nats saw enough to promote him to AAA though. Like in Double-A, Crews was solid but not spectacular. He hit .265 and posted a .795 OPS. Crews did not exactly take the league by storm.

However, that was enough for him to get called up to the big leagues at the end of 2024. Crews showed flashes, but his .218 average and .641 OPS were not great. Despite that, he was given a spot in the starting lineup heading into 2025. Crews struggled mightily out of the gate and just as he was heating up, he got hurt. It was a disappointing year, but he showed some flashes and the hope was that the new regime could help him take the next step.

This spring, Crews has looked as lost as ever. It has led a lot of Nats fans to re-examine his path and wonder if some time in AAA might not be the worst thing. The fact he never truly dominated in the high minors should have been a bit more of a red flag to Nats fans. However, his college pedigree was so good that most of us chose to ignore his deficiencies. 

Paul Toboni and Blake Butera have stressed that this is a fresh start for everyone. Most have assumed that would be a positive for Crews, but it is a double edged sword. If he is not performing, this new regime should be willing to send him down. They were not the ones who picked him second overall, so they do not have the same level of attachment to him. I think that should mean he is not a lock to make the team.

However, I would still be surprised if he is not on the Opening Day roster. The new regime seems to want to try to fix him at the MLB level. However, given the fact he did not dominate AAA when he was there, some time in the minors would not hurt.

Wanting Crews to start the season in the minors is not a Spring Training overreaction, it is a justified reading of the situation. I can see the case for keeping him in the big leagues too, but do not let anyone call you crazy for thinking Dylan Crews could use more time in AAA.

Since he reached the upper minors, Crews has not been the same guy that took college baseball by storm. I still do not really know what happened here. Crews was supposed to be one of the safest draft prospects in some time. Now, his career is at a serious crossroads.

It has been three years since his junior season at LSU now. We have seen his college teammate Paul Skenes take the league by storm, but Crews has not taken the next step. At the time of the draft, Crews and Skenes were seen as similar levels of prospect. It is crazy to see how both of their careers have gone so far.

In 2009, the Nats took a premier pitching prospect first, while the Mariners took a polished college bat second. Of course, the Nats got Stephen Strasburg and the Mariners got Dustin Ackley. Crews still has time to avoid being a Dustin Ackley style flop, but the trajectory is concerning for the 24 year old. 

The fact he never dominated the minors might be even scarier than his big league struggles. You cannot fall back on Crews dominating AAA as a reason to keep him in the big leagues because he never did. At this point, we are really clinging on to his performances at LSU. Those were so dominant that you should keep some faith in him, but it is getting scary.

Of course, these Spring Training games do not count, but I do not love what I am seeing. Paul Toboni is going to have a real choice to make here. Is it better for Dylan Crews to stay in the big leagues and learn from a new big league staff, or should he get the opportunity to truly dominate AAA and gain some confidence. 

I think they will choose the former option, but Crews will be on a tighter leash. If he looks like he does this spring once the real games start, a trip to Rochester will be imminent. The story of Crews’ career so far is one step forward, two steps back. Whenever it feels like he is getting momentum, he either gets hurt or starts struggling again. Dylan Crews’ pro career has not gone how just about anyone has expected. I am officially worried.