NHL teams have until 3 p.m. ET today on Friday, March 6, to get a deal done. Contenders will be looking to add the final piece or pieces to get them over the top for a Stanley Cup title. Non-playoff teams will be looking for prospects or draft picks to help them with their rebuild or retool.
Forwards changed hands on March 5, including Nic Dowd to the Vegas Golden Knights, Nicolas Roy to the Avalanche, Michael Bunting to the Stars and David Perron returning to the Detroit Red Wings. Defensemen John Carlson (Anaheim Ducks) and Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn (Buffalo Sabres) were moved after midnight.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports that the Rangers "have indicated they are prepared to keep Vincent Trocheck if they don't get what they feel they need. Told teams, they are not trading him just for the sake of making a trade." Trocheck is signed through 2029. He was held out of the Rangers' last game.
The trade: The Buffalo Sabres acquire forward Sam Carrick from the New York Rangers for 2026 third- and sixth-round picks.
Analysis: Carrick has won 53.9 percent of his faceoffs this season, and the Sabres are last in the league at only 45 percent. He also has playoff experience with the 2024 Edmonton Oilers, playing 10 games in their run to the Stanley Cup Final, including four in the conference final. He also had 86 hits while averaging 10:25 a game. He's under contract for another year.
When is the NHL trade deadline?
The NHL trade deadline is at 3 p.m. ET on Friday, March 6. Trades usually are announced after that hour, too, because of a backup in the NHL approving the deals submitted beforehand.
Players who could be moved today
The following players were held out of the lineup on Thursday night for roster management purposes: New York Rangers forwards Vincent Trocheck and Sam Carrick, the Toronto Maple Leafs' Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Scott Laughton and Bobby McMann, plus Florida Panthers forward A.J. Greer.
Happy Trade Deadline day, Vancouver Canucks fans. After the deadline passes at 12:00 pm PT later today, the Canucks (18–36–7) will take on the Chicago Blackhawks (23–28–10) in what will be the first of a road back-to-back. Vancouver’s last matchup saw the team show a little spirit, attempting a comeback but ultimately falling 6–4 to the Carolina Hurricanes at home. Chicago’s last game also ended in a loss, with the Blackhawks falling to the Winnipeg Jets by a score of 3–2 in overtime.
Today’s game will be an interesting one to watch, as the moves made ahead of the deadline today could cause both teams to look different from how they appeared at the start of the day. Already, both teams have gotten moves in ahead of the deadline, with the Canucks trading Tyler Myers to the Dallas Stars on Wednesday and Conor Garland to the Columbus Blue Jackets last night, and the Blackhawks dealing Jason Dickinson and Colton Dach to the Edmonton Oilers for Andrew Mangiapane and a first-round pick. It’s currently unclear whether either team will make another move before 12:00 pm PT or not.
Vancouver is coming off what many view as the perfect tank game on Wednesday, as they managed to put up a decent comeback effort against the Hurricanes but ultimately fell short. Key players in Vancouver’s lineup — Filip Hronek, Elias Pettersson, and Marco Rossi — all recorded multi-point games, while Nils Höglander scored his first goal of the season. While the decisions made leading into the deadline could impact how the team looks come puck drop, Wednesday’s effort should be something the team looks to build on when they face the Blackhawks later today.
Players To Watch:
Marco Rossi
Rossi had what’s been considered his best game in a Canucks uniform on Wednesday, putting up a goal and an assist in Vancouver’s loss to the Hurricanes. Prior to that, the forward’s last point came on December 27 against the San Jose Sharks, though he missed the entire month of January and parts of February due to injury. If Rossi remains paired with Brock Boeser and Liam Öhgren tonight, the two wingers he played with on Wednesday, it’ll be interesting to see if they can replicate their success from the prior game.
Connor Bedard
Regardless of who he’s playing against, Connor Bedard is always a treat to watch. In his last game against the Canucks on November 5, the forward scored his first goal against his hometown team in a 5–2 win for Chicago. Since returning from the Olympic break, Bedard has put up a point-per-game pace all against Central Division teams. Chicago’s lines still have yet to be altered to fit Mangiapane in, though Bedard will likely contribute lots offensively no matter who he ends up playing with.
Oct 17, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Vancouver Canucks left wing Drew O'Connor (18) shoots against Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Spencer Knight (30) during the first period at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images
Vancouver Canucks (18–36–7):
Points:
Elias Pettersson: 13–24–37
Filip Hronek: 6–29–35
Jake DeBrusk: 13–17–30
Brock Boeser: 13–14–27
Evander Kane: 11–16–27
Goaltenders:
Thatcher Demko: 8–10–1
Kevin Lankinen: 7–20–4
Nikita Tolopilo: 3–5–2
Jiří Patera: 0–1–0
Chicago Blackhawks (23–28–10):
Points:
Connor Bedard: 25–32–57
Tyler Bertuzzi: 26–19–45
Andre Burakovsky: 10–20–30
Teuvo Teräväinen: 13–15–28
Ryan Donato: 13–12–25
Goaltenders:
Spencer Knight: 16–18–8
Arvid Söderblom: 6–9–2
Drew Commesso: 1–1–0
Game Information:
Start time: 5:30 pm PT
Venue: United Center
Television: Sportsnet
Radio: Sportsnet 650
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TOKYO, JAPAN - MARCH 06: Martin Muík #49 of Team Czechia prepares to bat in the first inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool C game presented by dip between Team Australia and Team Czech Republic at Tokyo Dome on Friday, March 6, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The vagaries of scheduling made yesterday a day chock full of Czechia baseball action… but unfortunately, it went pretty terribly for them.
The early-morning (at least here on the East Coast of the United States) contest saw Czechia get absolutely clobbered by Korea. Starter Daniel Padysak didn’t even escape the first inning — two walks and a single loaded the bases, and then Bo Gyeong Moon unloaded them with a grand slam. The game got kind of closer (6-3) when Terrin Vavra (I think the only guy on Team Czechia with MLB experience) hit a three-run homer in the fifth, but Korea’s onslaught continued and the game ended with a 11-4 tally. Korea hit four homers in total, including two by Astros infielder Shay Whitcomb. Overall, it was about as unbalanced as you’d probably expect when glancing at the matchup: Czechia pitchers had a combined 6/5 K/BB ratio to go with those four homers; Korea’s pitching slate had a 12/3 K/BB ratio.
There was a very quick turnaround of only about 14 hours before Czechia had to get on the horse again, this time against Australia. This game didn’t go much better for them. Though they did take an early lead on a sac fly, White Sox infielder Curtis Mead bashed a three-run homer off starter Tomas Ondra, and that was basically the game. (Southern Thunder added a couple of more runs in the ninth, including an Alex Hall homer.) The game was heavy on balls in play, as there were only a combined ten strikeouts across the two teams.
Czechia is now in pretty unfortunate territory, since the remaining pool-mates they haven’t played include Japan.
Speaking of haven’t played, Friday’s slate is massive:
Japan-Taiwan (spoiler alert, Japan already won 13-0)
Cuba-Panama
Netherlands-Venezuela (aka, the Braves Best Buds Cup)
Mexico-Great Britain
Puerto Rico-Colombia
Nicaragua-Dominican Republic
USA-Brazil
Taiwan-Czechia (yes, a short turnaround for Taiwan this time)
Which of those matchups are you most looking forward to? It’s probably the Braves Best Buds Cup, but maybe you really want to see Team USA or the Dominican Republic smash their underdog bracketmates instead.
The remaining games start at 11 am ET and progress basically all through the day, so there’s a lot of WBC action if you’re so inclined.
Oct 7, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (11) throws a runner out in the sixth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during game three of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
On May 3, 2025, Anthony Volpe’s luck took a turn for the worse. That day, he hurt his left shoulder while diving for a ball in the performance of his defensive duties. He felt a pop that turned out to be a torn labrum, re-aggravating the injury in September and managing the discomfort while playing.
Volpe received cortisone shots in June and September. After putting up a 115 wRC+ since the first day of the season until May 3rd, he finished with a highly disappointing 83 mark for the year, adding 19 homers and 18 stolen bases. Even his defense, which earned him a Gold Glove in 2023, suffered in the process. He underwent surgery to repair his torn labrum in October and is likely to miss the entire first month of the season at the very least. Can he become an offensive threat in 2026, or is his time in the Bronx coming to an end?
While saying that Volpe’s presence in the Yankees’ future plans is in jeopardy if he doesn’t perform would be premature, it’s clear that he will have a lot to prove this year when he returns, and it might not be entirely fair to expect immediate results after such a major surgery. And if he fails to bounce back, the Bombers might start seeking other alternatives; that’s the truth. The Bronx rarely waits for anyone.
The reality is that, injury or not, the former first-rounder is running out of time. He has failed to return even league-average offensive production in any of his three seasons in The Show, as his career-high wRC+ was 87 in 2024. His excellent defense used to make up for the lack of offensive consistency and on-base ability, but that also evaporated last year, presumably affected by the bum shoulder.
José Caballero prepares to enter the 2026 campaign as the shortstop, having focused his offseason training on improving his bat speed. On the other hand, Volpe started his hitting program by taking dry swings in mid-February. He is significantly behind his counterpart, but right on schedule according to the team’s estimates. Volpe will likely need a lot of at-bats to even approach his top form. The question here is how long the Yankees are willing to wait for him to regain full health or even approach a point at which he can fully trust his shoulder.
A healthy version of Volpe is a much better defender than what he showed last year, but we are not so sure if it’s a big upgrade offensively over his 2025 self. He is still young, though, and has a lot of room to grow and improve. He is, after all, just 24, younger than some of the highest-profile prospects in the game. Volpe does contribute some power and speed, but it will all come down to contact and plate discipline. There are some encouraging signs, though.
For a hitter who ranked in the 76th percentile in chase rate per Baseball Savant, he should be able to rank higher than the 36th percentile in walk rate. He is also in the 64th percentile in barrel rate. With some work, a sound gameplan, and a bit of luck, Volpe can take off if he’s fully healthy. Labrum surgery is no joke, though: ask Miguel Andújar, who needed five years to have an above-average offensive season over a significant sample after going under the knife in 2019.
That’s not to say that Volpe is necessarily doomed just because Andújar had a hard time returning to top form, but it’s a perfect example of how things can go south with labrum tears. It’s impossible to remove his current health status from any 2026 analysis. As a counterpoint to Andújar, there is Fernando Tatis Jr.: after undergoing labrum surgery in 2022, his performance diminished for one year (111 wRC+ in 2023 after three campaigns over 150) before settling in the 130 range in 2024 and 2025. Volpe clearly doesn’t have the sky-high ceiling that Tatis does, but he exists as a data point for pure injury recovery nonetheless.
The shoulder issues aren’t a death sentence for Volpe. However, combined with the urgency of playing for the Yankees, their perennial need for immediate results, and three disappointing seasons with the bat, they could definitely complicate things in 2026 and beyond.
SARASOTA, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 13: Zach Eflin #24 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches during practice at Ed Smith Stadium on February 13, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Baltimore Orioles/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For most of 2025, Zach Eflin was just not himself. The effort was undeniable. But something was badly, visibly wrong. In 14 starts, he went 6–5 with a 5.93 ERA, a 1.42 WHIP, and a K:BB ratio of 50:13 across just 71⅓ innings. He made three separate trips to the injured list before finally undergoing lumbar microdiscectomy surgery in August — a procedure that removes part of a herniated disc pressing on spinal nerves. When Eflin hit the market in free agency, the thought might have crossed your mind that he wouldn’t be back.
Well, good thing Mike Elias kept his agent’s number. On Thursday, in Eflin’s first spring training appearance of 2026, the righty offered a bracing reminder of what he can be when everything is working — and what the Orioles paid $10 million this winter to get back.
Against his former team, the Tampa Bay Rays, Eflin spun two-plus scoreless innings with three strikeouts, lighting up the radar gun and flaunting a command that looked nothing like the labored pitcher who gritted through 2025. He worked with six different pitches — sinker, sweeper, curveball, four-seamer, cutter, changeup — and got six whiffs in fourteen swings. Most excitingly, his sinker and fastball touched 94 MPH, several miles better than last season.
It’s just one spring start, I know. But the velocity, the pitch mix, the swinging strikes — it all points toward a pitcher who has been genuinely fixed, not merely managed.
Eflin agrees. His 2025 numbers were ugly in ways that the box score couldn’t fully capture, especially the four IL trips. Speaking in December, Eflin revealed that back problems had haunted him on and off for ten years in his pro career, but 2025 was when the pain turned debilitating, convincing him to finally go in for surgery to “clean it up.” Now, he reports feeling like he has a “brand-new back.”
This is good news for all of us. With Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers, and Shane Baz ahead of Eflin in the rotation, the Orioles aren’t depending on an Eflin resurgence, but seeing him approach his ceiling would be a wonderful thing. That would look something like 2023, a season when Eflin was arguably the most underrated starting pitcher in the American League as a member of Tampa Bay’s staff. That year, he made 31 starts, went 16–8, posted a 3.50 ERA, struck out 186 batters over 177⅔ innings, finishing sixth in AL Cy Young voting. His 1.02 WHIP ranked second in the entire American League, behind only Gerrit Cole. The Rays went 23–8 in his starts — a team winning percentage that, per historical records, tied David Price’s 2014 season for the best in franchise history in a starting pitcher’s qualified starts.
That is a genuine ace-adjacent performance. Not a fluke, not a warm stretch — a full-season demonstration of what a healthy Eflin looks like.
Eflin will never be a strikeout-rate marvel. He’s a contact pitcher who works with heavy sinkers and lateral break, generating soft contact and keeping the ball in the park. When his stuff plays at full strength, he profiles as a legitimate number-two or number-three starter capable of eating 175–180 innings with an ERA in the mid-threes. That is, in the current pitching landscape, genuinely valuable. The Orioles, who ranked near the bottom of the AL in rotation ERA last season, need that stabilizing presence badly.
The case for Eflin bouncing back rests on a straightforward premise: the problem was structural, and the structure has been repaired. A lumbar microdiscectomy isn’t a band-aid; it removes the source of nerve compression. Eflin himself says the chronic pain is gone in a way it hadn’t been in years. The early evidence from the mound — the velocity restored, the arm angle presumably returning toward its 2023 level, the whiff-generating breaking ball — suggests the surgery worked.
Baltimore re-signed him to a prove-it deal worth $10 million with a mutual option that could extend to $30 million total. The incentive structure is perfectly aligned. Eflin has everything to prove and, finally, a back that will let him prove it.
Canucks vs Blackhawks best bet:Jake DeBrusk Over 2.5 shots (+105)
Jake DeBrusk is averaging 2.68 SOG this season for the Vancouver Canucks, and while that number dips to 2.33 in road games, there’s a serious reason to believe he’ll be busy offensively tonight.
Across two meetings with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2025-26, DeBrusk has put an absurd amount of pucks on net. We’re talking 14 shots on target. The Blackhawks are also poor defensively, allowing 29.4 SOG per game.
Canucks vs Blackhawks same-game parlay
Drew O’Connor is averaging just 1.45 SOG per contest this season, but he’s hit the Over in two of his last three contests.
O’Connor has also cashed the Over on his shots prop in one of the two meetings with Chicago this season.
Despite trading Conor Garland on Thursday, I’m eyeing them to end their seven-game losing skid tonight. Vancouver is 1-1 against the Hawks in ‘25-26, and that lone win came on the road.
In fact, the Canucks are 9-1-0 across their last 10 meetings with Chicago.
The Vancouver Canucks have hit the game total Over in eight of their last 13 games (+3.10 Units / 21% ROI). Find more NHL betting trends for Canucks vs. Blackhawks.
How to watch Canucks vs Blackhawks
Location
United Center, Chicago, IL
Date
Friday, March 6, 2026
Puck drop
8:30 p.m. ET
TV
Sportsnet Pacific, CHSN
Canucks vs Blackhawks latest injuries
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
It’s been 298 days since Jayson Tatum last played for the Boston Celtics. That streak is likely to end Friday night at TD Garden.
The Celtics star is expected to make his 2025-26 season debut Friday against the Dallas Mavericks, as the team upgraded him from questionable to available.
Tatum has been sidelined since May 12, when he ruptured his Achilles tendon in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks.
Tatum will return to a Celtics team that has vastly overachieved in his absence, entering Friday’s game with a 41-21 record and the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference despite parting with several key members of their 2024 championship squad.
Tatum will steal the spotlight, but there’s another great storyline Friday night: Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg, who grew up a Celtics fan in Newport, Maine, will play his first NBA game at TD Garden.
Mavericks-Celtics will tip-off at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Coverage begins on NBC Sports Boston at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
CAMDEN, N.J. — Joel Embiid’s post-practice footwear was telling.
The Sixers’ star center wore sandals following the team’s practice Friday and watched the suspended Paul George play 1-on-1 with two-way contract player Dalen Terry.
Needless to say, Embiid is not on the verge of a return from his strained right oblique. A Sixers official said he’s begun individual strength and conditioning work and will be re-evaluated in approximately one week.
“They’ve said it’s feeling a little bit better,” Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said. “I don’t think we’re too far away from getting on court. Again, just getting that a little more pain-free. Being able to get his arms up so he can get on the court and actually shoot I think is what we’re waiting for, but I don’t think we’re too far away.”
VJ Edgecombe (lumbar contusion) did not practice and had an individual on-court workout, the team official said. Kelly Oubre Jr. (illness) was back in the mix.
The 34-28 Sixers enter Friday night sixth in the Eastern Conference. Slipping below sixth would put the Sixers in play-in tournament territory. The team holds a half-game lead over both the Magic and Heat. Next up is a trip to Atlanta to face the 32-31 Hawks, who sport a 3-0 mark this year against the Sixers.
With Embiid still out, Adem Bona again looks set for a large role.
The second-year big man both started and closed over Andre Drummond vs. the Jazz. He posted 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting and five rebounds in 29 minutes and threw down a critical late put-back dunk.
In terms of availability, Bona’s been one of the Sixers’ most dependable players. He’s appeared in 26 consecutive games. The zealous shot blocker has also seemed to make progress lately at curbing cheap fouls and understanding how he can chip in offensively.
“I don’t really have any next steps,” Nurse said, “other than how long can he sustain it? How long can he do what he’s doing, which has just been being disruptive on defense, blocking shots, providing tremendous energy, providing a chance for us as a staff to do a myriad of coverages where we can throw different things at people because of his disruptiveness and speed? Do we probably need him to up his defensive rebounding? Yes, but he’s on the list with everybody else on the roster on that. He can do that with his great athleticism as well.
“And I think the offensive stuff right now is fairly simple for him. It’s lob dunks, it’s dump-off dunks, it’s running the floor. If there’s a put-back here or there … would like to see a little bit more offensive rebounding. He does well at it, but that’s something you can never do enough of.”
Later, as he detailed the nuances of when the Sixers are fine with Bona fouling, Nurse had another thought.
“One thing I wish he’d do is block some more in play. Sometimes he swats them into the 19th row,” Nurse said with a smile. “It’s hard to go the other way when it’s in the bleachers. That’s asking a lot, I know, but that may be something we work on for next year.”
The Charlotte Hornets’ mid-season transformation has the team on track to compete for spot in the playoffs, and they’ll look to add a key victory over the visiting Miami Heat on Friday.
Charlotte has won six straight games, and my Heat vs. Hornets predictions expect them to extend that win streak and cover the spread as the home favorite.
Here are my best free NBA picks for this Eastern Conference showdown on Friday, March 6.
Heat vs Hornets prediction
Heat vs Hornets best bet: Hornets -7 (-110)
The Charlotte Hornets have won six in a row and covered in nine straight, and I expect them to extend those streaks with a comfortable win at home over the Miami Heat.
No team has been better ATS than the Hornets over the last 25 games, with a 19-6 record. Charlotte boasts a monstrous +308 point differential in that span, easily the best mark in the Association.
Charlotte’s 18-12 ATS mark at home is third-best in the NBA. The Hornets are 8-2 ATS across their last 10 home games, and have outscored opponents by 8.3 points per game.
Heat vs Hornets same-game parlay
The Hornets sport the sixth-best defensive rating (109.9) across the last 25 games. In that span, the Heat's 112.2 defensive rating ranks 10th-best.
Charlotte has hit the Under at home more times than any other team this season, doing so in 21 of 30 games at Spectrum Center.
LaMelo Ball is averaging 12.1 rebounds + assists on the season, and he's recorded 12+ in 29 of 53 games. He's reached that mark in five of his last eight and totaled exactly 11 in one more. Ball finished with 17 rebounds + assists in his first meeting with Miami.
Heat vs Hornets SGP
Hornets -7
Under 229.5
LaMelo Ball Over 11.5 rebounds + assists
Our "from downtown" SGP: Sharing the love
Tyler Herro has logged seven appearances since returning from a lengthy absence. Over his last six, he's dished 4.8 assists per game and handed out 4+ in four of them.
Over the last eight games, Charlotte has allowed the fourth-fewest points in the paint, which means Bam Adebayo could be forced to operate more as a facilitator than a scorer. He’s recorded 3+ assists in 31 of 55 games on the season, including four of his last seven.
Moussa Diabate has displayed elite playmaking skills as of late, handing out at least two assists in four of his last five games, while averaging four assists in that span.
Heat vs Hornets SGP
Hornets -7
LaMelo Ball Over 7.5 assists
Moussa Diabate Over 1.5 assists
Tyler Herro Over 3.5 assists
Bam Adebayo Over 2.5 assists
Heat vs Hornets odds
Spread: Miami +7 (-110) | Charlotte -7 (-110)
Moneyline: Miami +240 | Charlotte -300
Over/Under: Over 229.5 (-110) | Under 229.5 (-110)
Heat vs Hornets betting trend to know
The Hornets have covered the spread in 33 of their last 45 games (+20.90 Units / 42% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Heat vs. Hornets.
How to watch Heat vs Hornets
Location
Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
Date
Friday, March 6, 2026
Tip-off
7:00 p.m. ET
TV
FDSN Sun, FDSN SE-Charlotte
Heat vs Hornets latest injuries
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We got into Jupiter Wednesday 2/25 and stayed through Monday 3/2. Here is a rundown of various discoveries and observations outside of the game reports. This will be a fair amount of surface level observations. I will follow up with a couple more in-depth articles where it appears more attention is deserving. Ask questions, and I will put a little more detail, in comments, where the questions come up.
Getting out of the blocks
Turns out I know a guy (Doc) who set me up to get press credentials with the Cardinals in advance of my visit.
I think the connections were a bit circuitous (he knew a guy, who knew a guy, etc.), but it worked out in the end. They gave me press badges, one for each day (see example above), access to the back fields, the press box and the media room (where Oli does his pre- and post-game interviews). Thank you Doc!
They were reluctant to give me clubhouse access, understandably since they don’t know me, and as a blogger I’m a bit different. They figured out in their research that I’m more a big picture guy anyway, so their reluctance was not an imposition. Overall, they were very gracious and accommodating. Hopefully they saw it as a positive thing and perhaps another avenue to reach a portion of the fanbase.
The media room was populated by the usual suspects. Feinsand. Goold. Guerrero. Jones. A few others I didn’t recognize but will try to get introductions as the week goes on. I’m a closet introvert, so that is not my favorite part, but still a group that obviously likes to talk baseball. Never a bad thing.
In the press room, they pass out a schedule of who is in which group and which group is on which field doing which drill. They certainly keep them moving. Lots of small print. Sometimes in the details there is a story lurking.
The construction
I’ll touch on this lightly since there has already been lots put out about the improvements at RDS. Mostly things that might be helpful to people heading down later this month. There is lots of new square footage added for player development work. Their new hitting building is enormous. I got to see the Trajekt machine in operation as Walker was prepping for the Astros game. It is very realistic. That part of the complex is a no fans area right now.
Access to the quads (backfields 2-5) is temporarily (for fans) re-routed through the Marlins side, using the Marlins entrance to their quads. It is a bit of a trek. FYI, they closed up that access at noon. I don’t know if that will continue deeper into spring. Fields 1 and 6 were largely inaccessible to fans. It appears due to the hangover in construction work (there are certainly punch list items and clean-up to be done yet), so I’m hopeful access to the fields the MLBers work out on will be restored for fans by next spring.
The camp – day#1
With the orientation I got and getting settled, I didn’t get a lot of time on the back fields on the first day.
The MLB players were almost all working out inside the stadium. I did not go watch. Fans can buy early entrance to RDS on home games and see the MLBers take BP. I focused on the back fields. All the MiLBers are in, so the camp itself is in the neighborhood of 240 players! 40-man roster, plus 28-ish NRIs, plus 165 MiLB roster guys plus a few more development guys. Lots to watch. Not many names on back of MiLB jerseys yet, so hard to discern who is who. The groups are telling. As are the uniform numbers and names (or lack of).
If you wonder how exactly they fit 165 two-digit numbers on MiLB unis, there are lots of guys with duplicate numbers.
I looked but didn’t see Raniel Rodriguez on the back fields. I guessed he might be in the stadium working with the MLBers, but not sure. He was not listed anywhere on the schedule, on either the MiLB or MLB sides. Lots going on. It is quite a logistical challenge.
I watched Deniel Ortiz take BP. Nice stroke. Nice sound coming off the bat. Mautz and McGreevy threw bullpens today. Honeyman was out there. Perhaps he is past the injury woes that plagued him.
The camp – day#2
Couple of guys on the rehab track got BP sessions in. Saw B. Holiday with P. Graham. Graham threw some breaking balls, so he must be further along. Watched Ethan Young throw in live BP. Seems to have a pretty live sinker. No tech on his field, so I didn’t see the Trackman read outs on it. You get VEB bucks if you can answer the trivia question of “Who is Ethan Young?”
Watched May throw a sim game, opposed by Bradt. The tech readings seemed pretty strong for early spring. Velo 96-98, horizontal break on his breaking pitch got up to -27”. His change had good fade, too. Herrera was his catcher. They had runners on most of the time (so May was out of the stretch most of the time). They worked Ivan in the running game pretty hard. Bradt had good stuff, too. Consistent 96 with sharp slider. Command is a work in progress, particularly with pitches on the inner half. An uncomfortable AB for the hitters. Walker, Scott, Moore, Prieto were the hitters.
MLB has a reference card on ABS. A good read. One thing I did not know. If a manager wants to challenge the results of a play AND there is a challenge on the ball/strike call, the ball/strike must come first. They can’t ask for an ABS challenge after a ruling on a play in the field that results challenge.
Today, I discovered an additional info sheet in the RDS pressbox that listed “minor league extras” for today’s game. Sure enough, I find Raniel Rodriguez on it. He doesn’t appear anywhere else in the lists. He seems like the rare guy we had in High School football who was a freshman but worked out with Varsity.
On the business side, I hear a lot of comments that the crowds aren’t what they used to be. To-date, the Cardinals are well ahead of the Grapefruit League average attendance, with almost 4,000 per game, versus ~3,200 on the road. Today’s 4,600 will boost that. Fair number of Mets fans here, though.
The camp – day#3
Saturday. Marlin’s home game, so I head down to the Marlin’s clubhouse to get a Marlin’s authorized press box credential. The Marlins had sent me an email with some very specific instructions, all of which were incorrect, so there was a bit of a run-around there. They got it all figured out in good time. I’m getting my steps in!
Lots going on today. Watched a Cinjtje bullpen. Lots to like. Dobbins had a “live BP”. He looked comfortable. Oli talked in the pre-game that they are keeping him in the backfields just for protection because there are still things (like covering first) that they don’t want him doing yet. The pitching side is coming along, although they are intentionally bringing him along more slowly.
The MLB group (29 non-pitchers if anyone is counting) went through an “execution game” where they set up situations and awarded points for hitters taking (and executing the correct approach). Ex. 1st and 3rd, 1 out, infield back. What do they want out of that hitter? And then if the infielders creep in just before the pitched, does the hitter recognize and switch to the new, correct approach? One point if he does. Competitors being competitors, they took it seriously and argued pretty much everything. Lots of hooting and hollering. Spring fun. More on that tomorrow.
Got a peek in at a bullpen by Franklin, while trying to watch Doyle and Fajardo in live BP against Levenson, Mendlinger, Madris, Peete, Gazdar and Ledbetter.
Fitts and Zimmerman threw bullpens, as well. I see on the schedule that Lin was to throw off the NewtForce mound (which is inside the MiLB batting cage building). I have inquired about what this is, exactly. On Franklin, I’ve seen some pundits suggest he might be the steal of the 2025 draft, or something like that. Watching him throw BP, I can see why someone might say that.
Camp day#4
Today is not a total quiet day, but close. The MiLBers have the full day off, so the back fields are closed down. Some scrimmage action on the MLB side for guys not playing today. A bit of a dreary morning, giving away to clearing skies and cooling into the 70’s.
The press conference announcing Oli’s extension took center stage. Quite a few players attended and applauded. Some will poo-poo culture and chemistry. I get it. Performance and wins count. That said, trying to incorporate winning habits requires some degree of culture that is not tolerant of mediocrity, incomplete effort or lack of attention to details. I get that, too. In the firefighting world I live and work in, minor failures in execution can get people hurt.
Oli described this morning that they expect players to take pride at being really good at the mundane things (I had used PFP as an example). In my view, one guy at the top doesn’t set that tone alone, it’s got to be throughout the org. Coaches, top players, etc. He talked about the fun the players had in the execution game yesterday as another example. One team won 17-16 in a very spirited competition with lots of hooting and hollering. Brotherly love, we used to call it. Inside all of that, you could hear whispers of the culture … when Brant Brown awarded an execution point for a guy who tried to hit a groundball in a GB situation (runner on third, fielders back, 1 out). The young hitter actually hit a laser about 3 feet off the ground that was caught. Burleson was quick to observe that everyone had the right intent, the point was to execute perfectly. Sort of out of Yoda’s Master Jedi playbook. “Either do, or do not. There is no try”. I’d put Pages, Nootbaar and Burleson as the vocal leaders of this group. Oli says they are all close knit. He described it as it seems to be because they are in the same boat and realize they will be together for a while.
Camp Day#5
Last day. Will wander the backfields as a fan only. Using only my eyes. I won’t be at the game today and will stay out of the press room. I need to get some more pics. Do our readers like the kind of pics I’m putting in here? I’m no photographer.
This catcher appears set to start at High-A. I don’t think he will end there.
As compared to the last couple of years, you can definitely see/hear/feel the presence of more coaches, trainers and technicians. Perceptibly more instruction in Spanish this year as well. Both, I thought, were pretty noticeable.
More players were wearing “wearable” tech. The visible ones were all not pitchers. Catapault wearable technology as shown below…
Watched what I expect to be the AA rotation do some PFP type drills. Noted Doyle and Lin in this group. Will Cinjtje be here, too, or AAA?
I watched Won-Bin Cho hit for a bit. Man, there are a lot of left-handed hitters in these parts. He is starting to fill out. I am very curious about him. This will be a big year for him.
One last thought. Today, I wandered through the Marlins side just to get a sense of how the other half lives. I thought the differences were noticeable. Maybe even almost stark. Across 6 fields, all I saw were a handful of guys taking BP under the mobile cages. Since the trek in and out is lengthy, this was more than just a point-in-time view. Didn’t see a single Trackman device, iPad, or anything like that. No tech guys running around setting up cameras. Just coaches throwing BP pitches from behind the L screen. Not even many guys out shagging balls or working on fielding skills. In the end, it seemed like the Marlins side had a tech and organizational feel more akin to high school than the Cardinals side. Interesting how different the approaches are.
That a rundown of what my eyes took in. More detail next week.
A mere ten months after tearing his Achilles, Jayson Tatum is expected to make his return to the court for the Boston Celtics (41-21) at TD Garden against the Dallas Mavericks (21-41) tonight.
Jaylen Brown and Boston (41-21) have thrived without the All-NBA forward. The Celtics lead the Atlantic Division by a game and a half over the Knicks. No doubt the addition of the six-time All-Star Tatum is a tremendous add to the lineup, but how long will it take the team to adjust to his return? How many minutes will he assume? How will he fit in Joe Mazzulla’s rotation?
Conversely, the Dallas Mavericks arrive in Boston sitting twelfth in the Western Conference and looking to snap a five-game losing streak. A bad team that has been especially bad on the road, the Mavericks did get a dose of good news yesterday with the return of Cooper Flagg. The standout rookie scored 18 points in 26 minutes last night in the Mavs’ 115-114 loss to the Magic in Orlando. Tonight will be a homecoming of sorts for the native of Newport, Maine.
Flagg was outstanding when these teams met earlier this season on February 3 albeit in a 110-100 loss, scoring 36 points and grabbing nine rebounds in 37 minutes. Jaylen Brown scored 33 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to pace the Celtics. Payton Pritchard added 26 off the bench.
The Celtics were blown out in their last game losing 118-89 at home to the surprising and surging Charlotte Hornets. As mentioned earlier, the Mavs were in action last night in Orlando, losing 115-114.
Ultimately, this game is all about the return of Tatum and how the Celtics handle all the emotions in the building and his minutes.
Lets take a closer look at tonight’s matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game Details and How to Watch Live: Mavericks at Celtics
Date: Friday, March 6, 2026
Time: 7PM EST
Site: TD Garden
City: Boston, MA
Network/Streaming: ESPN
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Game Odds: Mavericks at Celtics
The latest odds as of Friday courtesy of DraftKings:
Moneyline: Dallas Mavericks (-1000), Boston Celtics (+650)
Spread: Celtics -14.5
Total: 224.5 points
This game opened Celtics -15.5 with the Total set at 225.5.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NBA schedule!
Expected Starting Lineups: Mavericks at Celtics
Dallas Mavericks
G Cooper Flagg
SG Max Christie
SF Khris Middleton
PF Daniel Gafford
C PJ Washington
Boston Celtics
PG Derrick White
SG Baylor Scheierman
SF Jaylen Brown
PF Jayson Tatum
C Neemias Queta
Injury Report: Mavericks at Celtics
Dallas Mavericks
Marvin Bagley III (neck) has been ruled OUT of tonight’s game
Brandon Williams (quad) has been ruled OUT of tonight’s game
Boston Celtics
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) is listed as questionable for tonight’s game
Important stats, trends and insights: Mavericks at Celtics
The Celtics are 20-10 at home this season
The Mavericks are 7-20 on the road this season
The Celtics are 3-25-1 ATS this season / 15-15 at home
The Mavericks are 27-34 ATS this season / 10-17 on the road
The OVER has cashed in 28 of the Mavericks’ 61 games this season (28-33)
The OVER has cashed in just 22 of Boston’s 62 games this season (22-40)
The Celtics are 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 against the Mavericks
In 6 games since the All-Star Break, Jaylen Brown is averaging 25.5 points, 10 rebounds, and 7.8 assists per game
Nikola Vucevic has pulled down a total of just 9 rebounds over his last 2 games
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NBA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s Mavericks and Celtics’ game:
Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline
Spread: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Celtics -14.5 ATS
Total: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Game Total OVER 224.5
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Seven games are scheduled across the National Hockey League tonight, with no shortage of stars in action. My NHL player props will highlight Nathan MacKinnon, Wyatt Johnston, and Matt Boldy.
Read more in my NHL picks for Friday, March 6.
Best NHL player prop bets today
Player
MacKinnon Over 3.5 shots on goal
-170
Johnston anytime goal
+150
Boldy Over 0.5 assists
-115
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Our best NHL player props for Friday, March 6
Take a look at our best bets and expert analysis below.
Prop #1: Nathan MacKinnon Over 3.5 shots on goal
-170 at BET99
Nathan MacKinnon is an unstoppable force offensively, and that’s clear by the -170 odds here. After all, he is averaging 4.55 shots on goal per game. While the Colorado Avalanche are taking on the red-hot Dallas Stars tonight, MacKinnon has already had success against them this season.
The Nova Scotia native had a goal, two helpers, and four shots on target earlier in the campaign versus Dallas. Yes, the Stars are seventh in the league in fewest shots allowed, but MacKinnon is a superstar who can compete with the best of them.
He’s also cashed the Over in shots on goal in six of his last seven, and MacKinnon even had eight shots on net against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday, a team who is 13th in fewest shots conceded.
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Where to watch: ALT, Victory+
Prop #2: Wyatt Johnston anytime goal
+150 at BET99
The Stars have won 10 straight, and Wyatt Johnston has certainly played his part. The youngster, who has 33 goals on the year, has scored in three of four games since the Olympic break.
Johnston found the back of the net on Tuesday against the Flames, and he also scored twice in the Stars’ first game back from the Winter Olympics. The Ontario native already scored this season against the Avs as well.
Johnston has 18 goals in 28 home games, and Dallas welcomes Colorado to town this evening.
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Where to watch: ALT, Victory+
Prop #3: Matt Boldy Over 0.5 assists
-115 at BET99
Matt Boldy was one of the heroes for Team USA in Milan, and he’s carried that form right back to the National Hockey League. The Minnesota Wild star has notched 37 assists in 2025-26, and he’s already grabbed seven helpers since the league resumed play.
Boldy handed out three assists in a win over the Lightning earlier this week, and he set up another in Sunday’s loss to the Blues. The Wild hit the road tonight to face the Golden Knights, and that’s a welcoming sight for Boldy.
He’s compiled two helpers in two meetings with Vegas this season, and the 24-year-old has 18 assists in 27 road games.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - MARCH 4: Santiago Espinal #21 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates with teammates after scoring a run during a World Baseball Classic exhibition game against Team Mexico at Camelback Ranch on March 4, 2026 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Three years ago, the Dodgers took a chance on outfielder Jason Heyward after a disappointing finish to his seven-year tenure with the Chicago Cubs. Although signed to a minor-league deal, Heyward eventually broke camp, had a bounce back season in 2023 and was able to prolong his career for another two years afterwards.
Now, the Dodgers find themselves in a similar situation with Santiago Espinal.
After two seasons playing at a below replacement level rate with the Cincinnati Reds, Espinal latched on a minor league deal with the Dodgers, uncertain of whether or not he could continue his time in Major League Baseball. So far this spring, he is leading the Dodgers in both batting average and OPS (.625, 1.761 OPS), most recently wrecking havoc against his old team with a two home run, five RBI game in Thursday’s loss to the Reds.
With 20 days to go until the Dodgers’ home opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Dave Roberts commented that it’d be hard to not see Espinal on the opening day roster, with the utility man adding that he’s not thinking too far ahead in the future despite the positive results this spring, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“It’d be hard to imagine him not being on the team,” Roberts said of Espinal… “It would be amazing,” Espinal said. “I’ve just got to let my work talk for it. So far, that’s what I’m doing, and I’m just going to keep working for it, but I’m not worrying about that.”
Links
Hyeseong Kim made quite the audition for the starting second base gig this spring before departing for the World Baseball Classic, but Alex Freeland is now being handed an equal opportunity to assume the role as well.
Freeland is trying to make the most of his opportunities both at second base and shortstop this spring as he attempts to increase his chances of cracking the opening day roster, per Jack Vita of the Los Angeles Times.
“Opportunity is present, so I’m trying to make the most of it,” Freeland said. “It sucks that Tommy’s not ready and he won’t be ready for the beginning of the season. He’s a big part of this team, so I wish him a super speedy recovery and I hope that he gets out there as quickly as possible. But yeah, with Hyeseong being gone, I am getting more reps at second and short, so I’m just trying to make the most of them.”
Despite a horrible second half in 2025 and with just one year left on his current contract, Blake Treinen does not want to go out on a whimper, writes Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.
“I don’t think God would have given me a two-year contract for me to just have the year I had last year,” Treinen said. “I’m praying my whole life that I’m able to go out on top as the best version of myself. I don’t think I’m done.”
Thirty-four years on from Mickey Thomas’ winner against Arsenal, the Welsh club seek statement win over Chelsea
“It’s just surreal,” says the former Wrexham midfielder Mickey Thomas, scorer of arguably the club’s most famous goal. When he helped strike down Arsenal, the reigning English champions, in the FA Cup third round in 1992, he could not have expected 34 years later to be regularly rubbing shoulders with some of the world’s biggest stars, regaling them with the story of how he smashed a free-kick past David Seaman.
In recent years, Wrexham have welcomed a glittering array of famous Hollywood guests to Cae Ras, thanks to Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, who often invite Thomas to the owners’ box. The north Wales town has become a hotbed for famous faces, all given the warmest welcome by a club enjoying a meteoric rise.
(Original Caption) Among those who reported for the press on the 1926 World Series were these well known celebrities of the baseball world. Seen grouped together just before the start of the second game in Yankee Stadium, they are (left to right) Miller Huggins, Nick Altrock, Babe Ruth, John McGraw and Rogers Hornsby.
The title is actually a misnomer, as the book focuses specifically on the year 1926. Overall, I found it to be a great examination of the key events both on the diamond and off it. Without delving into as much detail as Wolf, I thought it would be fun to hit some of the key points of what MLB was like a literal century ago.
To set the scene, we’re talking about a league year in which…
No team resided west of St. Louis
The rosin bag was introduced
The sacrifice fly came into being
Satchel Paige made his debut for the still-developing Negro Leagues (they would draw between 3,000-5,000 fans for their World Series contests that year)
In the wider world of sports, Gertrude Ederle attempted the first-ever female English Channel swim (a feat immortalized in this under-the-radar but surprisingly effective film) while Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney traded fisticuffs in the squared circle. Perhaps the biggest baseball fan to ever reside at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave was in office: not Calvin Coolidge—wife Grace.
A game-fixing scandal involving star players Ty Cobb & Tris Speaker was an extremely sensitive topic for MLB officials in the wake of the 1919 World Series. Though neither player was convicted in a court of law—some conveniently-lost documents saw to that—they both received a harsh reprimand from Commisioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis and were ostensibly forced to leave their long-standing clubs to finish up their careers.
Between the white lines…
Heinie Manush (DET) led the league with a .378 BA
Babe Ruth (NYY) swept all the power categories: 1.253 OPS, 47 HR, 153 RBI, 139 R
George Uhle (CLE) was the wins (27) & IP (318.1) king
Lefty Grove (PHA) presided over Ks (194) & ERA (2.51)
The respective league MVPs were quite interesting as well…
Somehow, 1B George Burns (CLE) ousted the AL’s Bambino with this line: 5.2 WAR, 216 H, 64 2B, 115 RBI, .358 BA, 130 OPS+
In the NL, C Bob O’Farrell (STL) (3.9 WAR, 144 H, 30 2B, 9 3B, .293 BA, 112 OPS+) took home hardware in large part due to his handling of the Cardinals pitching staff
When the dust settled, it was a Yankees (91-63) versus Cardinals (89-65) World Series.
Through six games, the Fall Classic had been a taut, thrilling affair. As usual, the Sultan of Swat presided. In Game 1, he ripped his pants sliding and the team tailor ran onto the field to sew them up, causing a 15 minute delay. Before Game 4, Ruth promised a critically-ill 11-year old boy—Johnny Sylvester—that he’d sock a home run for him. The Maharajah of Might mashed three dingers just to be safe.
The season’s most indelible moment would occur in Game 7. With the Cards up 3-2, the Yanks loaded the bases with two outs in the 7th inning. Despite pitching a complete game the day before, veteran Grover Cleveland Alexander was summoned from the pen. Ambling to the bump without so much as a stretch, Ol’ Pete tossed three spheres toward the dish and called his arm good.
Tony Lazzari—a rookie on the verge of stardom—dug in and sent an Alexander attempt deep, far, and…foul. Whether by inches or feet is known only to the 38,093 paid at the House That Ruth Built. Reprieve given, Grover got a third strike by Tony and STL escaped the jam.
With the visitors still clinging to a one-run lead and riding Alexander to the finish, Ruth represented the last hope for the Bronx Bombers. On a 3-2 count, the STL ace did the smart thing and let the Babe trot to first base (instead of tie the game). What happened next is one of the most inexplicable plays in the history of the World Series.
With Bob Meusel (120 OPS+) & Lou Gehrig (153 OPS+) due up, the Big Fella—he of 11 SB & 9 CS in ’26—decamped for second base on the first pitch! O’Farrell threw a seed to Rogers Hornsby who slapped the tag down on Ruth. Game over. World Series over. Theeeeeee Yankees lose.
Imagine the second-guessing in today’s media landscape?! In that more innocent time: Ruth got up, shook the Rajah’s hand, and jogged off the field.
MacKinnon Over 3.5 shots on goal 
Johnston anytime goal 
Boldy Over 0.5 assists 
