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2026 Fantasy Baseball Buy/Sell: Can you rely on Zack Wheeler and Pablo López after injury?

One of the biggest minefields to navigate when approaching drafting starting pitchers in fantasy baseball is our injury tolerance. We know that pitching inherently leads to an elevated risk of arm injuries, so some drafters believe that the best course of action is to lean into that risk. If all pitchers are at risk of injury, then drafting pitchers who present that risk early in the season allows you to potentially get value out of a depressed price.

For many years, I was one of those people, but the last few years have led me to change my ways. Even if there is truly no such thing as a "safe" starting pitcher, using an injury to buy a pitcher at a lower cost has also not proven to be a worthwhile strategy in recent seasons. Heading into the 2025 season, we knew that Shane McClanahan, George Kirby, Spencer Strider, Lucas Giolito, Sean Manaea, Yu Darvish, Brayan Bello, Ranger Suarez, Luis Gil, Ryan Weathers, and Clarke Schmidt were all going to be delayed to start the season. Some people saw that as a chance to draft a talented pitcher at a depressed price. However, from that group, only Ranger Suarez finished as a top-50 starting pitcher in 2025, according to FanGraphs Player Rater.

We also had Shane Bieber hope to come back from the All-Star break, but not actually return until August 22nd. We had Brandon Woodruff hope to return in May and not make his season debut until July 6th. We also had Grayson Rodriguez claim that he would come back at some point early in the season and wind up not throwing a single pitch in 2025. All of which is to say that relying on currently injured starting pitchers is a decision that doesn't often pay off if we're taking that risk earlier than the final couple of picks in our drafts.

Even though I've adjusted my approach slightly, you may not be convinced, so in this article, we can walk through all the fantasy-relevant pitchers who are coming into this season with injury concerns. For each one, I'll discuss whether I would take the risk on drafting him and in what situations. Hopefully this helps all of us avoid making those draft picks that wind up giving us little or no value during the 2026 fantasy baseball season.

⚾️ Coming soon: MLB returns to NBC and Peacock in 2026! In addition to becoming the exclusive home of Sunday Night Baseball, NBC Sports will broadcast MLB Sunday Leadoff, “Opening Day” and Labor Day primetime games, the first round of the MLB Draft, the entire Wild Card round of the postseason, and much more.

Missed (essentially) all of 2025 and could return by opening day

Shane McClanahan - SP, Tampa Bay Rays

McClanahan missed the entire 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery and was expected to start the 2025 season in the Rays' rotation. However, a nerve issue in his final start of spring training led to him being sidelined all year following a surgical procedure with Dr. Steven Shin to “clean up around the nerve” in his left triceps. It's also key to note that those two injuries are not connected. McClanahan has already been throwing and is "having a really good offseason," according to manager Kevin Cash. Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander said that McClanahan has "a day in the rotation," which means that fantasy managers should expect him to be ready to start the season and also pitch once every five days for Tampa Bay.

Now, Tampa Bay will likely limit him to about five innings per start early in the year, but they did that for Drew Rasmussen last year, and he put up solid fantasy value. McClanahan has a career 3.02 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and 28% strikeout rate. He is an elite starting pitcher. If we assume that he will be rusty and on a pitch count early on in the season, then McClanahan could be just a decent starter early on and then settle back into a solid arm. To me, that makes him a good target if you're outside the top 40 starting pitchers and already have a strong rotation foundation.

BUY or SELL: BUY AS LONG AS THE PRICE DOESN'T RISE TOO HIGH

Grayson Rodriguez - SP, Los Angeles Angels

Grayson Rodriguez could not shake the injury bug last season. In March, he was placed on the IL with right elbow inflammation, and it seemed like surgery would be on the table. However, the right-hander was certain he would return, only to suffer a lat strain in April that put him on the IL. Then, in July, he re-injured his right elbow and eventually had debridement surgery in August to clean up bone spurs in his elbow.

The concern for me, aside from the elbow issues, is that Rodriguez has now been on the IL three separate times with right lat strains since 2022. When you add in the fact that the Orioles traded him to the Angels this offseason, when his value was near its lowest, that's not a glowing endorsement for what the organization thought of his health. He's now on a worse team with a worse track record of developing pitching, so this is not a situation I want any part of. Sure, I'll draft a share of Rodriguez if he falls into my lap late in drafts, but I can't see taking him inside the top 70 starting pitchers right now.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Joe Musgrove - SP, San Diego Padres

Musgrove got hurt in the NL Wild Card round back in 2024 and then had Tommy John surgery. He started throwing bullpens in August and is apparently on track to return at the start of the season and will not be on any kind of strict innings limit in San Diego, which is good news. I have been a Musgrove fan, relative to the market, in recent years because I think he's just a solid arm who hasn't really been bad since 2019.

However, part of Musgrove's value before injury was his floor. Since the start of the 2021 season, Musgrove has pitched to a 3.20 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and 25.5% strikeout rate in 559.1 innings. That's helping you in most formats. Given that he didn't pitch at all last season and is coming off Tommy John surgery at 33 years old, we have to expect regression for Musgrove. Perhaps he's closer to his 3.73 career ERA. Perhaps he's more of a 23% strikeout rate arm. His WHIP will likely inch back up towards 1.20. And we have no idea how deep into games he'll be able to go. If you wanted to take a gamble on that late in 15-team leagues, I can still see the value in his floor, but his profile, coming off an injury, is not as alluring in shallow formats.

BUY or SELL: BUY IN DEEPER FORMATS ONLY

Reynaldo Lopez - SP, Atlanta Braves

Reynaldo Lopez made one start in 2025 before landing on the IL with right shoulder inflammation and eventually undergoing surgery. On a positive note, the surgery revealed no structural damage, only inflammation, and Lopez was back throwing in July. However, by the end of August, it was clear that the Braves weren't going to contend, so the team decided to shut Lopez down.

Given that Lopez has battled injuries for much of his career and has thrown over 66 innings just once since 2019, it's fair to question his health. However, he is also coming off his best season ever in 2024 and has a spot in the Braves rotation with AJ Smith-Shawver, Grant Holmes, and Spencer Schwellenbach also hurt. If Lopez is healthy in spring training, I'm more than fine with using one of my last starting pitcher spots on him and just rolling the dice that I'll get some decent production before he gets hurt again.

BUY or SELL: BUY AS A FLYER

Braxton Garrett - SP, Miami Marlins

Kutter Crawford - SP, Boston Red Sox

Josiah Gray - SP, Washington Nationals

I'm including these guys all together because it's a really quick "sell" for me.

BUY or SELL: SELL

MLB: Playoffs-Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays
Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Rankings 2026: Bryan Woo, Eury Pérez rise up in top 150 SP list
Eric Samulski ranks his top 150 starting pitchers for 2026.

Will miss the start of 2026

Gerrit Cole - SP, New York Yankees

I am considerably lower on Cole than many of my Rotoworld colleagues, and I think that's just me recalibrating from being too willing to draft injured "aces" too early. Cole suffered from right elbow inflammation and a nerve issue in 2024. He was able to pitch most of the year, but then he had elbow soreness in March and underwent Tommy John surgery. Those two issues back-to-back for a pitcher who's 35 years old doesn't make me feel great.

Cole is aiming to return in late May or early June, so, assuming everything goes according to plan, he will still miss two months. When he returns, we have to acknowledge that he wasn't even the same strikeout pitcher before the injury. In 2023, he had a 27% strikeout rate, and that fell to 25.4% in 2024. He's no longer a 30% strikeout rate arm, and we know that he's not going to throw more than about 110-130 innings. From 2021 on, Cole has had a 3.15 ERA and 1.03 WHIP in 686 innings, so if we're assuming some post-injury regression, is he a 3.40-3.50 ERA pitcher with a 25% strikeout rate and plus WHIP? That's certainly useful, but it's not a fantasy ace. Add the time missed to that, and I can't take him inside my top 40 pitchers in drafts, and I likely won't be drafting him in any leagues where he just has to sit on my bench for two or more months.

BUY or SELL: BUY AT DISCOUNT IF I HAVE AN IL SPOT

Carlos Rodon - SP, New York Yankees

Cole's teammate is in a bit of a better spot health-wise. Rodón had surgery in October to remove bone spurs in his elbow and was initially expected to be back at the end of May. However, at the end of January, Rodón said that he thought he’d be able to make some spring training appearances, even if he still started the year on the IL. That would be a late-April/early May return in the realm of possibility. So we should be all-in, right?

Well, just remember that Rodón also had left shoulder surgery in 2017, Tommy John surgery in 2019, and a forearm strain in 2023, so there are a lot of shoulder/elbow injuries in his past that we can't ignore. I like Rodón, and I had him ranked inside my top 25 before the elbow surgery. Now, I just can't see him pitching 175 innings, as he did in three of the last four years. That's going to cut into a lot of his productivity, but I could see drafting him outside of the top 40 starting pitchers, especially if I had an IL spot for him to begin the year. From January 15th on, he is being drafted as the 60th starting pitcher in NFBC formats, and while I might not draft him there in a format where I need to hold him on my bench, that would be a great spot in a league with an IL spot.

BUY or SELL: BUY AT DISCOUNT IF I HAVE AN IL SPOT

Zack Wheeler - SP, Philadelphia Phillies

The Wheeler situation is confusing. In August, he was diagnosed with venous thoracic outlet syndrome and a shoulder blood clot. He had surgery at the beginning of September and was given an eight-month timeline for return at the time, which would have put him on track for May, but the team had also indicated they would be cautious with him. Now we're hearing that Wheeler has begun throwing from 75 feet and could be available “near the start of the season.”

The issue here is that "near the start of the season" apparently means anytime between Opening Day and late May. That's a two-month window where we might see Wheeler back on the mound, and then we have to acknowledge that he's coming back from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, which has been tricky for many starting pitchers to do. We know Stephen Strasburg never really made it back to the same pitcher he was, and the best "success" story is Merrill Kelly, who is really an entirely different type of pitcher than Wheeler.

Given the nebulous timeline for Wheeler and the difficult injury to return from, I'm going to be very cautious in approaching him this draft season. Considering his ADP since January 15th has him going as the 36th starting pitcher off the board, inside the top 140 picks, I can't see myself paying that price.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Spencer Schwellenbach - SP, Atlanta Braves

Schwellenbach looked electric in 2025 before suffering a stress fracture in his elbow. The injury was almost assuredly tied to his velocity increase. That's obviously a bit concerning, but I don't think Schwellenbach needs the extra velocity to be an impact starter. He has a deep pitch mix and good command of the zone. I would have also liked to have seen him on the mound at the end of the season, but the Braves made the decision to prioritize rest for him in August when they realized they were too injured to contend for a World Series title. Otherwise, the team had said Schwellenbach would have been able to pitch in September.

I was all set to put Schwellenbach into my top 25, but then word came out the day before pitchers and catchers reported that he was going to be placed on the 60-day IL with elbow inflammation. The Braves stated that they were hoping it was just connected to bone spurs, but he will have surgery and, given last year's injury, I think I have Schwellenbach totally off my draft board now, which makes me sad.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Corbin Burnes - SP, Arizona Diamondbacks

Burnes was diagnosed with ligament damage in his elbow in June of last year and then had Tommy John surgery in the middle of the month. Over the winter, Burnes himself saidthat he was "looking at probably sometime in July" for his return. Specifically, he mentioned the All-Star break, which was also Shane Bieber's target return date last year. We know that Bieber had one setback, which pushed his return date, and he only pitched 40.1 innings last season. We may get the same thing from Burnes. Even if Burnes does come back after the All-Star break, you're likely looking at 10 starts for a pitcher who has 444 strikeouts in his last 452.1 innings. This is not a gamble I'm taking in any redraft formats.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Justin Steele - SP, Chicago Cubs

Steele is another pitcher with an inexact timeline for return. He had internal brace surgery on his elbow back in the middle of April, which should mean he can return to the mound early in the season. In January, we got an update that Steele feels "back to normal," and is planning to report to spring training with the rest of the pitching staff. While that is good news, we know that he's also going to use spring training to ramp up and is unlikely to break camp with the team. That could put him back sometime in late April or in May, much like Zack Wheeler.

So we have a pitcher with a 3.18 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and 24.4% strikeout rate in 450 innings since the start of 2022, potentially returning in May. Even if we bake in some regression there, that's a 3.50 ERA type of arm with just under one strikeout per inning pitching for one of the better teams in the NL. You're not rushing to draft that arm early in drafts, but it's a pretty nice addition to your rotation later in drafts. Yet, since January 15th, Steele has been drafted at pick 361 as the 96th starting pitcher off the board. There is no risk at all in taking him there. Would I do it in a league with no IL spot? That would be tough given his vague timeline for return, but there's a chance you're only holding him for more than a month on your bench, which isn't the worst thing in the world to add back a guy who could be a fantasy SP3 or SP4 in 2026.

BUY or SELL: BUY AT A DISCOUNT

Shane Bieber - SP, Toronto Blue Jays

At the end of the 2025 season, I placed Bieber in my top 25 starting pitchers when looking ahead to 2026. He had returned from Tommy John surgery. We saw him pitch, and pitch well, in MLB games, and he looked good in the postseason. This seemed to be a great opportunity to get a former ace at a reduced cost due to an injury he had recovered from. Then Bieber surprisingly picked up his $18 million player option to remain in Toronto, and it was revealed that he was dealing with a forearm strain at the end of the season. Given all the elbow issues that Bieber had in 2023 and 2024 before having surgery, the fact that he was already experiencing forearm soreness has me a bit concerned. I'd still draft him if he fell far in a draft, but I'm not anticipating a fully healthy season from him, so I'm baking that into the cost I'm willing to pay.

We then got an update on February 10th that the Blue Jays planned to have Bieber start the year on the IL because the forearm fatigue impacted his offseason ramp-up. He's fully off my draft boards.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Jared Jones - SP, Pittsburgh Pirates

Jones had an internal brace procedure in May and began throwing in December. We know thathe started throwing bullpens in January and that he "is targeting a timeline of sometime between March and May." There has also been a report that Jones could be used out of the bullpen to start the season, if the Pirates wanted to ramp him up without having him pitch in the minors. That's intriguing because he would still accrue stats for your team if he's pitching around five innings per week out of the bullpen; although, I'm not sure that's how the Pirates will handle it.

Jones was pretty good as a rookie in 2024, posting a 4.19 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and 132 strikeouts in 121 innings. He is predominantly a two-pitch pitcher, and we saw with Spencer Strider last year how hard it can be for pitchers with just two main pitches to return from a procedure like this. Precise command is even more important if you have a limited arsenal, so that could make this a tight needle to thread for Jones. Add in that he saw some velocity inconsistency with his four-seamer fastball in 2024, and it's hard to expect too much from Jones in 2026. That said, if his ADP remains after pick 400 and you have an IL spot, it's not the worst use of a late-round pick.

BUY or SELL: BUY IN IL LEAGUES IF ADP REMAINS DEPRESSED

Jackson Jobe - SP, Detroit Tigers

Clarke Schmidt - SP, New York Yankees

DJ Herz - SP, Washington Nationals

Another quick situation where I'm out on all three.

Jobe had Tommy John surgery in the middle of June and could be back at some point in the second half, but he also had just an 18% strikeout rate in 49 MLB innings last year and needs to optimize his arsenal to get more swing and miss. I'm not waiting until July for that.

Schmidt had internal brace surgery in July of last year, which means he won't return to the Yankees' rotation until around August. Just no way I can draft him in a redraft format with that timeframe.

Herz had a really strong winter season heading into 2025, but then he had a UCL sprain in March and had Tommy John surgery in April. The Nationals are not contending next season, so they are going to prioritize ramping him up and building strength, so he may be out for half the season. His command was also an issue even before the elbow surgery, so that's going to likely be a big concern in 2026.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Syndication: Detroit Free Press
2026 Fantasy Baseball Top 300 Rankings: Judge and Ohtani at the top; Skenes and Skubal in Top 10
Michael Harris II, Sal Stewart and Luis Robert Jr. are on the rise in our 5x5 player rankings for 2026.

Unclear timeline, but could be healthy in spring training

Pablo Lopez - SP, Minnesota Twins

Pablo Lopez is another pitcher who allegedly could have returned to the mound in September if his team had been in contention. However, unlike some of the others, Lopez wasn't coming off of surgery. Lopez had a lat strain in June and returned in September before dealing with a forearm strain that sidelined him in September, but he should be healthy at the start of the season. His strikeout numbers were down last season, but he did have a 2.74 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in 75.2 innings. I think he has more swing-and-miss upside than he showed last year, and I'd expect him to pitch at least 150 solid innings in 2026. Even at that innings ceiling, I have him inside my top 25 starting pitchers, but he has been drafted as the 41st starting pitcher at pick 145, so, at this cost, I'm in.

BUY or SELL: BUY

Nathan Eovaldi - SP, Texas Rangers

It's really two injuries for Eovaldi. The right-hander was shut down in August with a rotator cuff strain, but then also underwent sports hernia surgery during the offseason. Eovaldi has said that he’s fully recovered from the rotator cuff strain and that he's coming into spring training as healthy as he has in years past. That's the key part for me. I don't love drafting pitchers who are coming off a rotator cuff injury; however, Eovaldi has battled arm injuries many times throughout his career. When you draft him, you know that you're getting good production when he's on the mound, but not a full season of innings. That's why his draft cost never gets too high, so I won't be changing the way I draft him in 2026.

BUY or SELL: BUY

Brandon Woodruff - SP, Milwaukee Brewers

Woodruff was supposed to return from shoulder capsule surgery mid-way through the 2025 season, but then he was hit by a line drive in the elbow while pitching in the minors, and then sprained his ankle on the same rehab process. When he did come back, he looked good, posting a 3.20 ERA in 64.2 innings with a 0.91 WHIP and a 32% strikeout rate. A decent amount of that success, in my opinion, was because of his new cutter, which gives him three fastball variations that attack hitters from similar release points, but with different movement profiles. That can be devastatingly confusing for a hitter.

The downside is that Woodruff suffered a lat strain in September and missed the postseason. The team claims that the lat strain is in no way connected to the previous shoulder capsule surgery, but having so many injuries to the shoulder area is concerning. I'm willing to bet that Woodruff will be good again in 2026. I'm just not willing to count on him for more than around 120-130 innings. Given that he is currently being drafted as the 30th starting pitcher at pick 121, that's a cost I may not be willing to pay up for.

BUY or SELL: SELL AT CURRENT COST

Kris Bubic - SP, Kansas City Royals

Kris Bubic is in a similar boat, in my mind, to Woodruff. He was really good in 2025, but suffered a rotator cuff strain in July and missed the remainder of the season. He has also dealt with shoulder injuries and Tommy John surgery in previous years, which is why he has never pitched more than 130 innings in an MLB season. I think Bubic is a talented pitcher, and I think he'll be in the Royals' rotation to start the season, but I'm not banking on more than 130 innings from him so there will have to be a discount if I'm going to take him, and I'd prefer he not be one of the top four starting pitchers on my team.

BUY or SELL: BUY IF THERE'S A DISCOUNT

Kodai Senga - SP, New York Mets

I think I'm going to be fully in on Senga this year, especially at his cost. The right-hander suffered a hamstring injury in June, which sidelined him for a month. After he returned, his performance was inconsistent, and the Mets were struggling to hold onto a playoff spot, so the team sent him to the minors in August. However, despite those struggles after his hamstring injury, Senga still posted a 3.02 ERA in 113 innings. Yes, it came with a 1.31 WHIP and a 23% strikeout rate. That's not bad production when you factor in the second-half struggles. His strikeout rate was only 24% in the first half, before the injury, which isn't great, but he had a 1.13 WHIP, so there's a good chance that he'll still be a solid source of ratios on a strong Mets team. And what happens if he regains the 29% strikeout rate from 2023? He still has that elite Ghost Fork, none of his injuries were to his arm, and we know he has a spot in the rotation. That's a gamble I'll take.

BUY or SELL: BUY

Grant Holmes - SP, Atlanta Braves

In August, Holmes was diagnosed with a partial UCL tear. Instead of opting for surgery, Holmes decided on a non-surgical rest or rehab path. Atlanta is claiming that Holmes is fully healthy and will be full-go for Spring Training. I know that Holmes has said he feels better than he did last year, but this feels like a grenade that could go off at any time, with an upside that's not high enough for the risk.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Spencer Arrighetti - SP, Houston Astros

Much like with Shane Bieber, I was in on Arrighetti when the 2025 season immediately ended. This was a pitcher who impressed us in 2024 and was going as a top 50 starting pitcher heading into 2025. Then he fractured the thumb on his pitching hand when he was hit with a ball during batting practice. That sidelined him for four months, and he didn't look like the same pitcher when he returned. Yet, that's to be expected since the thumb is so crucial to grip and spin for pitchers. I was ready to throw all of 2025 out the window and jump back on the Arrighetti train.

Then I saw a note that reminded me that Arrighetti ended the season on the IL with an elbow strain. It was something he didn't have to get surgery for, andhe was back throwing bullpens by January. He claims he'll be ready for the start of spring training, but he also isn't guaranteed a spot in the rotation after the Astros signed Tatsuya Imai, Mike Burrows, and Ryan Weiss to add to a group that also includes Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Lance McCullers Jr. If we add Arrighetti, that's seven arms competing for five spots. Considering Arrighetti doesn't have a long MLB track record, and our enthusiasm for him in 2025 was based on perceived growth, a full year lost to an injury and an offseason spent rehabbing instead of developing new skills, is likely to put me off Arrighetti in 2026.

BUY or SELL: SELL

Zach Eflin - SP, Baltimore Orioles

It was a tough season for Eflin, who suffered a lat strain in April and then landed on the IL again in June with a lower back injury. He returned after a month but only pitched in two games before landing on the IL with a back injury again. He would eventually undergo a lumbar microdiscectomy to fix a nerve-related disc issue in his back over the offseason. On one hand, he wasn't dealing with an arm issue. On the other hand, back injuries for a 32-year-old are a bit concerning. Still, it was a disc issue that was corrected via surgery, so I don't imagine he'll have many residual issues in 2026. Over his two healthy seasons in the AL East, he's essentially been a 3.50 ERA pitcher with a 22% strikeout rate and 1.10 WHIP. That will play in most formats, and that's why I expect him to get back to that level in 2026.

BUY or SELL: BUY

Other Injured Starting Pitchers

Max Meyer - Miami Marlins:SELL
Hunter Dobbins - St. Louis Cardinals:BUY IN DEEPER FORMATS
Richard Fitts - St. Louis Cardinals:BUY IN DEEPER FORMATS
Sawyer Gipson-Long - Detroit Tigers:SELL
Jacob Lopez - Athletics:SELL
Patrick Sandoval - Boston Red Sox:SELL

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Today in White Sox History: February 12

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 19: Danny Mendick #20 of the Chicago White Sox pitches in the eighth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 19, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts.
On this day six years ago, MLB tried to restrict how and when players like Danny Mendick could pitch. But as this 2021 game proves, Danny’s arm would not be repressed. | (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)

1955
Chet Lemon, who would become the best defensive center fielder in White Sox history, was born in Jackson, Miss.

Moving to Los Angeles at a young age, Lemon played youth baseball with Hall-of-Famers Eddie Murray and Ozzie Smith, and was drafted in the first round out of high school at age 17 by Oakland. However, just three years later the A’s shipped Lemon and Dave Hamilton to the White Sox for Stan Bahnsen and Skip Pitlock. (The shortsightedness of the deal can be forgiven in that Oakland was trying for a fourth consecutive World Series title.)

Ironically, the future defensive wizard was poor with the glove at his drafted positions, shortstop-third base. After the White Sox acquired him and Chuck Tanner noticed how aggressive Lemon was at third base in his short call-up to the White Sox in 1975, the White Sox moved him to center — where he had played just 10 games in his life.

After a strong rookie year in 1976 that saw Lemon make the Topps Rookie All-Star Team, he exploded in 1977. At just age 22, Lemon slugged with the best of the South Side Hit Men (38 doubles, 19 homers, .804 OPS). Moreover, he set AL records for both putouts (411) and chances (431) — records that have yet to be broken.

Lemon remained the best two-way player on the White Sox and was at times the only star on the roster during the lean years of the late 1970s and early 1980s. After agreeing to a contract extension but then pulling out after the White Sox signed Carlton Fisk in 1981 to a bigger deal, the White Sox shipped Lemon to the Detroit Tigers after the 1981 season. He went on to win a World Series with Detroit in 1984.

For his major league career, Lemon ranks ninth all-time in range factor in center field (2.83) and 29th all-time as an outfielder overall (2.65). JAWS ranks Lemon as the 21st-best center fielder ever to play the game.

In White Sox annals, Lemon is the 18th-best position player all-time (24.9 WAR) and ranks 16th in offensive win percentage (.610).

1981
Marc Hill signed with the White Sox, as a backup catcher to … Jim Essian. At the time, Hill probably figured to get an increase in playing time from his days in San Francisco. But there was a twist to that plan, as on this very same day Carlton Fisk was granted his freedom after the Boston Red Sox goofed on sending him his 1981 contract.

Fisk signed with the White Sox a month later, dropping Hill to third on the catching depth chart. He never played in more than 77 games or saw more than 209 plate appearances in a season, and wrapped up his playing career with the White Sox in 1986 having accumulated -0.6 WAR over 266 games.

2010
After spending the 2009 season waiting for a call from any of 30 teams, White Sox slugger Frank Thomas signs a one-day contract with his home club and officially announces his retirement.

Frank spent the first 16 seasons of his career in Chicago, accumulating a team second-best 73.8 WAR and still ranking in the Top 10 in a number of all-time White Sox categories:

  • 74.9 offensive WAR (1st)
  • .427 on-base percentage (1st)
  • .568 slugging percentage (1st)
  • .995 OPS (1st)
  • 161 OPS+ (1st)
  • 1,327 runs (1st)
  • 447 doubles (1st)
  • 448 home runs (1st)
  • 906 extra base hits (1st)
  • 1,465 RBIs (1st)
  • 1,466 walks (1st)
  • 68.3 WAR (2nd)
  • 3,949 total bases (2nd)
  • 3,673 times on base (2nd)
  • 15.5 AB/HR (2nd)
  • 2,136 hits (4th)
  • 1,959 games (4th)
  • 1,230 singles (7th)
  • .307 batting average (tied for 10th)

He finished in the Top 8 of AL MVP voting for the first eight full seasons of his career, winning the award outright in 1993 and 1994. He had a third MVP essentially stolen from him in 2000 by Jason Giambi, who later admitted to taking steroids in his award-winning year. And perhaps most extraordinary in terms of award achievements is the fact that the year after Thomas left the White Sox (2006), his comeback season saw him finish fourth in MVP voting — at age 38.

For his full career, Thomas hit better than .300 (.301) with an .974 OPS and 156 OPS+. He led all of baseball for at least one season in games, runs, doubles, walks, on-base percentage, OPS, OPS+, sacrifice flies and intentional walks.

Thomas was elected to the Hall of Fame on his first ballot, in 2014, earning 83.7% of the vote. Through the 2023 season, Thomas still sits high on many all-time career leaderboards:

  • 1,667 walks (10th)
  • 4.79 MVP shares (14th)
  • .974 OPS (18th)
  • 521 home runs (20th)
  • .419 on-base percentage (22nd)
  • .555 slugging percentage (23rd)
  • 156 OPS+ (25th)
  • 1,704 RBIs (26th)
  • 1,028 extra-base hits (33rd)
  • 15.7 AB/HR (34th)
  • 4,222 times on base (35th)
  • 80.4 offensive WAR (38th)
  • 4,550 total bases (47th)
  • 73.8 WAR (56th among position players, 88th overall)
  • 495 doubles (70th)
  • 1,494 runs (76th)

Coincidentally, Thomas’ fellow future Hall-of-Famer Tom Glavine also announced his retirement on this day.

The White Sox would honor Thomas with a retired number and ceremony before the Aug. 29, 2010 game against the Yankees.

2020
Despite questions growing over the likelihood of the season being dramatically affected by the growing pandemic, MLB announced its new rules:

  • No more LOOGYs (minimum of three batters faced for relief pitchers)
  • Active rosters expanded to 26 players, but no more than 13 pitchers
  • September call-ups limited to two players, expanding rosters to 28, with no more than 14 pitchers
  • Position players pitching limitations
  • 15-day injured lists for pitchers, 10-day lists for position players

The 2020 season would not be cancelled, but would be severely limited by the pandemic, with no fans in attendance, a delay of the start of the season, just 60 regular season games, and expanded playoffs.

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Canadiens: The New And Improved Slafkovski Proved Up To The Task

In 2022, Montreal Canadiens’ soon-to-be first-overall draft pick Juraj Slafkovsky dominated the Olympic Games as a 17-year-old and caught the eye of the Habs’ brass thanks to his MVP performance. Four years later, Slafkovsky returned to the Olympics with Slovakia, carrying the hopes of a nation. Before the first game, the youngster said he knew it would be a different tournament with NHL players participating, but as the level of competition rose, so did the 21-year-old.

In their first game of the tournament, the Slovaks were taking on the heavily favoured Finns, who had a roster made up almost exclusively of NHL players, with a single defenseman, Mikko Lehtonen, plying his trade outside of the NHL with the Zurich Lions of the Swiss National League. Meanwhile, the Slovaks had only seven NHLers on their roster, but if they were intimidated, it didn’t show, as they skated away with the three points. Their 4-1 win was the product of two brilliant performances: that of Slafkovsky, who had two goals and an assist in the game, and that of goaltender Samuel Hlavaj.

Canadiens: Slafkovsky Motivated To Make A Difference
Canadiens: Fowler To Miss All-Star Classic
Canadiens: One Of Their Worst Trades

According to the pregame coverage, the goaltending was meant to be Slovakia’s weakness, but Hlavaj clearly didn’t get the memo. Finland came out strong, forcing Hlavaj to weather the storm, which he did brilliantly. When the Finns made a mistake trying to exit their own zone, Slafkovsky pounced on the puck and beat Juuse Saros with a brilliant individual effort. After 20 minutes, the Slovaks had a 1-0 lead, and Hlavaj already had 18 saves to his name in a display reminiscent of Latvia’s Kristers Gudlevskis’ performance back in 2014 when he stopped 55 of the 57 shots he faced against Canada in a 2-1 defeat.

Finland came out strong in the 2nd frame. It tied the score when Eeli Tolvanen completed a great passing play from former Habs Artturi Lehkonen and Joel Armia just as Slovakia’s penalty was expiring. The Finns piled on another 15 shots in that frame but were unable to take the lead as the Slovaks grew more confident with each save Hlavaj made.

Seven minutes into the final frame, Dalibor Dvorsky won a big faceoff in the offensive zone and went straight to the net, where he was able to tap in a rebound to give Slovakia a lead it would never surrender. Just over three minutes later, with Slovakia on the power play, the Finns gave Slafkovsky plenty of time and space, and he went bar down on Saros to make it 3-1 Slovakia.

The winger came oh so close to getting his hat trick when the Finns had pulled their goalie, but Sebastian Aho managed to make him lose his stick, making it impossible for him to score. Slafkovsky didn’t give up, though; he created just enough obstruction to make sure his teammates recovered the puck and scored, which Adam Ruzicka did, with Tomas Tatar and the Canadiens’ forward getting an assist.

The Slafkovsky we saw on the ice on Wednesday showed just how much he has grown as a player since 2022. He’s much more confident and comfortable with the puck; he’s able to skate with it and slow down the play when needed. If you give him an opportunity, he won’t hesitate to take it and hit you where it hurts. He has poise, he has control, he has size; the world now sees just what the Canadiens saw when they drafted him in 2022.

In just eight Olympic matches, Slafkovsky now has nine goals, passing Marian Gaborik with the third-highest total in Slovakian history. Miroslav Satan is second with just 10 goals in 22 games, and Marian Hossa is first with 14 goals in 19 games. If the youngster keeps up that kind of play, it’s easy to imagine that he could still move up those rankings this tournament.

As for Oliver Kapanen, the Canadiens’ rookie had to look on from the press box as his teammate put on a show since he was a healthy scratch. We’ll see if the 4-1 defeat prompts the Finn to make some changes.

The Slovaks will be back in action on Friday at 6:10 AM ET when they’ll take on the host nation, Italy. Needless to say, they will not be the underdog then, with the Italian roster made up solely of players not in the NHL.

 

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23 Years Ago This Week: A dark chapter in Penguin history

UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 14: Hockey: New York Rangers Alexei Kovalev (27) in action vs Pittsburgh Penguins Joel Bouchard (39), New York, NY 2/14/2003 (Photo by Lou Capozzola/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (SetNumber: X67754 TK1 R3 F22)

Memories like these pop up and serve as a reminder of how drastically different things were for the Pittsburgh Penguins, although now way in the past.

In some ways, this moment might have been – if not rock bottom – than certainly a ‘it always gets darkest before the dawn’ for the Penguins. Kovalev was sent off for most importantly what was termed “future considerations”, which meant $3.9 million dollars in cash. That was the biggest amount the NHL would allow to change hands on a trade in a season where the Penguins were expecting to lose money that year, making their already tenuous financial situation that much worse. The Pens also threw in relatively expensive veterans Laukkanen and Wilson to drop even more salary while picking up a hodgepodge of players back from the Rangers without receiving any of their best prospects.

It was an act of survival and desperation in a hockey landscape where the end result of a healthy Penguin franchise was far from a given. At this point there was no Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin (or even Marc-Andre Fleury), there was just the grim financial reality of trying to scrape by and live to see another day. There was no reason to hope things would improve in the future, after all how could a team losing money purge their best players and expect to ever get better while worsening the product and team? That was a vicious cycle started with the Jaromir Jagr trade of 2001 as the team went into a downturn on and off the ice that troubled their very ability to remain competitive.

Of course by now, the sale of Kovalev is water long under the bridge. It took just five years from this point in 2003 to where the Penguins acquired Marian Hossa in 2008 as a sort of a full circle moment where the small time operation had been transformed into something completely different. In retrospect, it’s amazing just how quickly that took place.

A lot happened to get there: a new CBA tied revenue to team player payroll, there was an agreement with the state for a new arena to be built that would allow the team to grow, the draft broke extremely friendly to add players like Fleury, Crosby and Malkin to inject new life and talent get to the point where the shoe was on the other foot. The Penguins were now the fully functional NHL franchise, spending to the maximum limits, a position they would remain financially accessible to be at to this day. There were no more budgetary constraints, the team never had to imagine trading away a prime aged Crosby or Malkin due to salary concerns or even bigger questions about the viability of their team.

And, of course, eight years after they shipped him away, in 2011 Pittsburgh would re-acquire Kovalev as a rental of their own for a playoff run in the ultimate full circle moment. What he came back to by then was different in every way besides the jersey colors and Mario Lemieux from when Kovalev left.

That bright future felt like an extremely unlikely scenario back in 2003, when the Pens were in the NHL in name but hardly as a true franchise capable to operate.

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Orioles camp opened with surprise Holliday injury, Bassitt signing

BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 25: Jordan Westburg #11 of the Baltimore Orioles runs back to dug out between innings during a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at the Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 25, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Hello, friends.

There are now six weeks remaining until Orioles Opening Day. We’re three days from position players being required to report, with the first spring training game now eight days away. Many position players have reported days early.

Last night brought the late-breaking news that the Orioles are adding one more pitcher to the starting rotation after all. It’s Chris Bassitt time, y’all. Mike Elias didn’t get any impact guys on the free agent market but, just like last year, he’s once again dipped into the well of older guys who will sign for one-year deals of over $10 million. It didn’t work out too well with Charlie Morton last year. Hopefully it goes better with Zach Eflin and Bassitt this year.

Assuming that neither of these guys is a Morton-level disaster, the signing does at least seem to reduce the chances that the Orioles have to give a lot of starts to guys who have no business being major league starters. That’s what happened in 2025 when so many starts were made by Cade Povich and Brandon Young. Going into 2026, it seems that the 6 and 7 options for starters are Dean Kremer and Tyler Wells. That’s not an exciting improvement, but it is an improvement. It’s not immediately clear how the guys will line up for Opening Day. That’s a problem they can figure out if everyone gets through camp healthy. That sure didn’t happen last year.

Earlier yesterday was “Elias tells us about all of the secret offseason injuries” time. The big one from that news dump is that Jackson Holliday broke his hamate bone within the last week and will have surgery that will have him on the shelf until around Opening Day; he’ll have to start ramping up like he would have done during spring training only after that. Holliday’s injury was one of only a trio of hamates to come up in baseball as camps open, joining New York Met Francisco Lindor and Arizona’s Corbin Carroll.

The other update was about Jordan Westburg, who has been dealing with a sore oblique for about three weeks. Elias said that Westburg should miss the first few exhibition games but will be back after that.

As I wrote yesterday, this news provides a retroactive explanation for last week’s trade for Blaze Alexander. If the Orioles were already aware of something going on with Westburg, it makes a lot more sense to act to not have Jeremiah Jackson as the backup infielder. Holliday’s injury happened after the Alexander trade, according to Elias. So, having a guy to back up that position in place is even more of a bonus.

That’s a tough couple of injuries. The surgery for a hamate break can have lingering impacts on a player’s power even after they return. Oblique injuries also tend to be of the nagging sort. If Holliday returns around May 1 but isn’t full strength until July or August, that’s a problem for the 2026 Orioles. If this is the start of a season of injuries for Westburg, that’s also a problem.

For now, at least, there are no major issues with the pitching staff. The only injury that Elias reported yesterday is Colin Selby having shoulder inflammation. I would say that it is not especially likely that the success or failure of the 2026 Orioles hinges on the availability of Colin Selby. The anticipated starting rotation enters camp healthy, which to me makes the Bassitt signing a bit more of a head-scratcher, but someone’s going to get hurt eventually.

Last year’s start of camp injury dump wasn’t too bad, but then a bunch of injuries happened during spring training. Then, you know, the injuries just kept happening all through the year. One spring-injured player, Grayson Rodriguez, never pitched last season. That’s only a problem for the Angels to deal with this year, since the Orioles traded him for outfielder Taylor Ward. It’s still weird. I hope it works out.

Orioles stuff you might have missed

Notes from day one of Orioles spring training (School of Roch)
Roch Kubatko runs down some of the day one action, including live batting practice thrown by Dean Kremer and Shane Baz.

Even if another starting pitcher walks through that door, these Orioles starters know the onus is on them (The Baltimore Banner)
As it turns out, Bassitt will now be walking through that door. How much of Elias’s confidence in the group of starting pitchers he’s assembled you share probably has a lot to do with how you feel about the potential fortunes of this year’s team.

Pete Alonso sets tone on first day of spring training (The Baltimore Sun)
The Polar Bear’s veteran leadership and its impact on the clubhouse generally and possibly certain players specifically is a good bet to be one of the ongoing storylines through Orioles spring training.

Five options to play second base with Holliday starting the year on the IL (Orioles.com)
The first name listed is Westburg, who notably for this moment is also hurt!

ZiPS 2026 movers and shakers: Hitters (FanGraphs)
Dan Szymborski looks at players whose 2026 projections have improved the most since this time a year ago, and on the other end, players whose projections have fallen the most. The Orioles, unfortunately, have four players on the list, including Holliday, and that’s before even factoring in this hamate injury’s downtime and effects.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

Nothing of particular note in Orioles history is recorded on this day. Today is probably not going to be that changes, but I guess you never know.

There is one current Oriole who has a birthday today. Happy 27th to outfielder Heston Kjerstad. Yes, he’s 27. Several former Orioles were also born today: 2013 catcher Chris Snyder, 2007 outfielder Adam Stern, 1978-79/82 reliever Don Stanhouse, 1971-72 pitcher Pat Dobson, and 1957-60 pitcher Jerry Walker.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: 16th president Abraham Lincoln (1809), biologist Charles Darwin (1809), auto engineer Louis Renault (1877), rapper Gucci Mane (1980), and actress Christina Ricci (1980).

On this day in history…

In 1689, a special Parliament of England convened and proclaimed that when the monarch James II fled to France, that constituted abdicating his throne.

In 1733, the North American colony of Georgia was founded by James Oglethorpe. This was the thirteenth of the thirteen colonies that eventually became the United States to be founded.

In 1912, China’s last emperor, styled the Xuantong Emperor, abdicated his throne.

In 1947, French fashion designer Christian Dior unveiled a “New Look.” Don’t ask me to explain it.

A random Orioles trivia question

I received a little book of Orioles trivia questions for Christmas. Each time it’s my turn in this space, I’ll ask a question until I run out of questions or I forget.

The last question from Sunday is the first one that I believe stumped everyone on their first guess. Merv Rettenmund was the player who led the 1970 Orioles in batting average with a career-best .322. Today’s question:

Who was the only player to record his 3,000th hit in Memorial Stadium?

If you’re answering early in the day, please be kind to those who may arrive later and place your guess behind spoiler text in the comments.

**

And that’s the way it is in Birdland on February 12. Have a safe Thursday.

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What weakness will doom this team if nothing changes?

BALTIMORE, MD - JUNE 29: Brandon Lowe #8 of the Tampa Bay Rays rounds the bases after hitting a home run during a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on June 29, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

DRaysBay works best as a place for community and conversation. Accordingly, in the lead up to the new season, we are posting “Daily Questions” in the month of February. I look forward to seeing you in the comment section!

Is it the rotation, and the combined risk of injured elbows and lack of innings?

Is it the turnover on the roster, or an over-reliance on platoons to succeed?

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Brew Crew Ball Daily Question: What is the Brewers’ biggest weakness?

Oct 14, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts (50) gets the tag on Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz (3) in the fifth inning during game two of the NLCS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

We’re back with another daily question, and today’s question is: What is the Brewers’ biggest weakness?

While the Brewers led the majors in wins last season, finishing with a franchise-best 97-65 record, the team completely fell apart in the NLCS against the Dodgers, losing the series 4-0 as they were outscored 15-4, scoring exactly one run in all four games.

While the pitching performances weren’t terrible — the team finished with a 3.71 ERA and 37 strikeouts across 34 innings — the offense did not show up whatsoever.

As a team, the offense went just 14-for-119, slashing .118/.191/.193 with one homer (a solo shot from Jackson Chourio), four doubles, a triple, 11 walks, 41 strikeouts, and four steals.

Not ideal in the playoffs.

In my opinion, that narrows it down to the offensive side of the ball for Milwaukee, but where is the biggest weakness? Joey Ortiz is the obvious answer after a dismal sophomore season, but after Caleb Durbin and the rest of the third base depth chart were traded to Boston earlier this week, it’s looking more like the entire left side of the infield.

I’ll leave the question to you: With spring training now here, what is the Brewers’ biggest weakness?

Weigh in in the comments, and join us throughout the month as we keep these conversations rolling into spring training. Have a question you’d like to ask in a future BCB Daily Question? Drop one in the comments, and we may use it later this month.

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Rise and Phight: 2/12/2026

Jul 21, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws a pitch during the second inning against the Boston Red Sox at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Spring training is officially here, and with it comes the unfortunate slew of new injury updates. Hamate bone fractures seem to be an epidemic around baseball already. Orion Kerkering has a hamstring strain that will cause him to be a little behind the other pitchers. Zack Wheeler is progressing well and has a rib in his closet. Spring is almost here!

Phillies news:

MLB News:

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The Suns chose the long view against Oklahoma City

PHOENIX, AZ - FEBRUARY 11: Oso Ighodaro #11 of the Phoenix Suns looks to pass the ball during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 11, 2026 at PHX Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images

Wednesday night in Phoenix felt like the Suns walked into the game with a fourth-and-13 mindset. No debate about going for it. No drawing anything crazy up on the board. Special teams trots out, hike the ball, punt, move on.

And honestly, I cannot say I blame them.

As I wrote yesterday, this team has reached the part of the season where the priority is getting to the All-Star break. Is that the correct mentality? That is debatable. When you are hovering on the fringe between the Play-in and the postseason, every game carries weight, especially when you have dropped a few recently. This felt like a chance, at least in theory, to make something up in the standings.

But theory runs into reality pretty fast.

You were still playing the best team in the Western Conference. Even without their (and the league’s) MVP, Oklahoma City showed exactly why they are one of the toughest outs in the league. They are deep. They do a lot of what the Suns want to do, but they do it better. They are more aggressive. More disruptive. More relentless.

I have used this analogy before, and it still works. If the Suns are Mario, Oklahoma City is Mario after he gets the mushroom.

Now layer that on top of another reality. Your two highest-paid players are coming off lower-body injuries. Why risk it here? If there is a team that can absolutely put you back in harm’s way, it is OKC. The pressure they apply. The constant movement. The physical strain they force on every possession. And yes, Lu Dort is part of that equation, and yes, I still cannot stand him. Former Sun Devil or not, I want to root for those guys, and somehow I never do. Harden included.

So let them sit in street clothes. Let them bank another day of rest. You do not play again until next Thursday. I am not upset about the result at all.

There are still things to take from the game and some coachable moments. Oklahoma City’s back cutting was an issue. That shows up on film. But that film is also for the guys who do not usually get heavy minutes. You use it to reinforce habits. You use it to clarify roles. You use it to fortify who you are.

Then you get to the break. You focus on health. And you lock in on the final 26 games. That is where the season actually gets decided.

Bright Side Baller Season Standings

Booker and Oso led the way relative to voting, but ultimately, it was the calming effect Booker had in Q4 against the Mavs that garnered him his 13th Bright Side Baller of the season.

Bright Side Baller Nominees

Game 55 against the Thunder. Here are your nominees:

Dillon Brooks
23 points (9-of-19, 1-of-5 3PT), 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, -27 +/-

Jordan Goodwin
12 points (5-of-10, 2-of-5 3PT), 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, -32 +/-

Royce O’Neale
12 points (4-of-11, 4-of-11 3PT), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 turnover, -24 +/-

Jamaree Bouyea
11 points (4-of-12, 1-of-2 3PT), 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 turnover, -12 +/-

Rasheer Fleming
8 points (3-of-7, 2-of-5 3PT), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 turnovers, +12 +/-

Oso Ighodaro
8 points (4-of-4), 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, -14 +/-

…and the vote goes to…

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Open Thread: Victor Wembanyama has more 40-point games than Tim Duncan

On Tuesday night in Los Angeles, Victor Wembanyama had a 40-point game against a depleted Lakers.

25 of those points came in the first quarter giving Wemby the third highest scoring quarter in Spurs history behind George Gervin (33 points in 1978) and David Robinson (28 in 1994).

37 of Wemby’s 40 came in the first half. He wrapped up the 40 with a single three-pointer in the 3rd quarter. Overall he closed out his night in 26 minutes and 6 seconds.

This was Victor’s sixth 40-point game, pushing him past Tim Duncan. Let that resonate for a minute. Wemby has more 40-point games in just over 150 games than Big Fundamental had over his 19 year career.

The sky is the limit with Victor Wembnyama. And with a supporting cast consisting of the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week Stephon Castle (see 40-point triple-double) as well as NBA 6th Man hopeful Keldon Johnson, and the inaugural NBA Clutch Player of the Year De’Aaron Fox, the Spurs are having quite a season.

Brian Windhorst said it best, “We don’t put ceilings on Victor Wembanyama. If you say to me ‘Can Victor Wembanyama do X?’ my answer almost always is going to be ‘yes.’”

Go Wemby Go!

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'It fills me': Lakers' Deandre Ayton makes it a special day for kids at camp

The kids lined up on the basketball court at the National Basketball Players Assn. facility last week, groups on two sides with smiles on their faces, all of them patiently extending their arms as they waited for their guest to arrive.

When Lakers center Deandre Ayton peered through the glass and saw those kids, he smiled and shook his head before entering the gym. He slowly walked down the line by each kid, doing his best to slap every hand or to at least make eye contact with them.

This was a basketball clinic Ayton and his Ayton Family Foundation had been inspired to do in partnership with the NBPA, an event that the Jamaican and Bahamian Consulates aided by sending about 50 kids to participate in on-court activities and a dinner on behalf of Ayton and his family.

“It fills me, for real, just seeing their smiles,” Ayton said. “And me being out there. You saw me going at it against one of them. He’s about 6-4 and he tried to get at me. I’m like, ‘Whoa … Whoa. Bro. I got to keep these legs strong.’ In about 10 years, they are going to be knocking me over. They are ready and I’m loving it and they're so hip to the game and they know the terminology so I just loved it, man.”

Some of those kids got to see Ayton playing center for the Lakers against the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 3 at Barclays Center.

They saw Ayton at his efficient best, shooting three for five from the field for seven points to go along with eight rebounds and three assists.

Lakers center Deandre Ayton (center) elevates for a dunk against the Raptors.
Lakers center Deandre Ayton (center) elevates for a dunk against the Raptors. (Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)

On the Lakers recent eight-game trip, Ayton seemingly made every shot. He was six-for-six shooting with 13 points against the New York Knicks and 12-for-14 shooting with 28 points against the Washington Wizards.

Shooting a high percentage has been the essence of Ayton’s season — he is making 67.5% of his shots, the second-best mark in the NBA. He’s averaging 13.2 points and 8.5 rebounds.

So, sharing his wisdom with the kids about the game of basketball was cathartic for Ayton.

“Just having guys in my position visiting these camps, they don’t know how much they are doing for them, just to be in their presence and in their environment. Just giving a kid a high-five, you could feel the power and the energy of how excited they are,” Ayton said. “They are on you like white on rice, watching your every move, wanting to know what you say, and it’s just so inspiring because I was just like that.

“There were guys that came and visited the camps when I was growing up in the Bahamas and just being inspired by them and wanting to know who are they and why they are so good to make it look so easy. It’s nothing to me to come back here and do it. That’s just who I am. I want to let them know that they can do it as well and however they grew up, everybody can move on from that and be motivated, self-motivated as well.”

The Lakers spent four days in New York while playing the Knicks and Nets. Ayton could have been doing anything he wanted in the city during two days off.

Lakers center Deandre Ayton shoots a short-range shot with his right hand during a game against the Wizards.
Lakers center Deandre Ayton shoots short-range shot against the Wizards. (Nick Wass / Associated Press)

Yet, he chose to use some of his free time to help run a camp for youths, some of whom probably can’t afford to attend one.

“I ain’t going to lie. It’s just I don’t have a reason why I’m doing it,” he said. “It’s just something that I wanted to do. I found that it was the time and the right time as well to be in New York City and just how the culture is out here as well. So, they know how the Jamaican, Caribbean people are. I don’t know. Just having the NBPA behind me and the headquarters being here. I think it was just the right spot, to be honest.”

Chris Jean, the NBPA associate vice president for Elite Youth & Basketball Activation, encourages all their members to give back to the community.

“It just highlights who he is as a player and as a person,” Jean said about Ayton. “He’s doing a lot of great things in Jamaica and the Bahamas and in his community like that. So, it just makes us all feel better and easier to support him.”

Ayton won the NBA Cares Bob Lanier Community Assist Award for November 2025, recognized for his philanthropic efforts in providing hurricane relief in Jamaica and supporting youth in L.A.

Ayton said his mom, Andrea Ayton, is the backbone of his family and that she was always doing community work and helping others in the Bahamas.

His efforts are an extension of his mother.

“Yeah, mom started all that, that giving stuff, that just feeding the village, being that leader by action,” Ayton said. “I would say her love language was caring and feeding tummies, whether you’re hungry or not, it didn’t matter. It’s just her basically showing her love and it got to this point to where we’re doing more than that. We’re on a platform and a position where we’re so blessed. We can help people financially as well.”

Before Ayton started the drills with the kids at the clinic, dignitaries from the Jamaican and Bahamian Consulates presented Ayton with a proclamation, thanking him for his generosity and kindness.

It made his day that more emotional.

“I was stretching in the hallway and stuff like that when I saw the executives and meeting them, I said, ‘Yo, this is bigger than I thought. This just not no camp,’‘’ Ayton said. “And then this speech and I was just like, ‘Yo, I feel so special.’

"It was a moment I’m not going to forget as well, everybody just thanking me. It was a lot. It was overwhelming. I’m not going to lie. That was an overwhelming moment that I’m going to truly embrace.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Nikola Vucevic’s transition to Celtics is made easier by one old friend

Celtics center Nikola Vucevic shoots the ball against the New York Knicks in the second half at TD Garden on Sunday. | David Butler II-Imagn Images

BOSTON — Last Thursday, when the Celtics returned from Houston after a two-game road trip, the Celtics’ coaching staff didn’t go home from the airport.

Instead, they headed straight to the Auerbach Center, where Nikola Vucevic, the team’s newest addition, awaited them.

Vucevic had been traded to Boston two days earlier, and immediately dove into watching film and acclimating to a brand-new team.

It was a lot of new faces and concepts to take in, but the 35-year-old’s transition was made easier by the presence of one assistant coach: Amile Jefferson.

In 2018, Jefferson and Vucevic were teammates on the Orlando Magic for two seasons. During that span, Jefferson was a young two-way player fresh out of Duke, and Vucevic was an All-Star. The two became good friends.

Eight years later, Jefferson is in his third year as an assistant coach on the Celtics, and Vucevic is the latest acquisition on a Celtics team that hopes to contend for a championship.

So, after a lengthy walk-through with all of the Celtics coaches on Thursday, Vucevic and Jefferson spent the evening together.

The next day, Vucevic was introduced as a Celtic for the very first time, and made his debut just hours later.

“When they came back, he and I went to dinner so I could ask him more questions, just about Celtics in general, how they like to do things, the expectations, things like that, the players, the coaching staff,” Vucevic said. “So I got a little better feel for everything. That helped me a lot.”

Vucevic appreciated that the coaches immediately prioritized getting him up to speed, not wasting a moment after they got back from Texas, and meeting with him right at the practice facility.

“As a player, that means a lot,” Vucevic said. “It shows they really care. They really want you to get involved. Because it’s not easy after a couple-day trip, everybody wants to go home, be with their families, but they came to make sure I can get up to speed as quick as possible. Everybody’s really trying to make my life much easier with the transition.”

Joe Mazzulla has already praised Vucevic for his on-court acclimation, and the progress is undeniable. The Celtics’ big man tallied 19 points and 11 rebounds in 26 minutes in a blowout win against the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night

But, the off-court acclimation matters too. And, Jefferson has played a critical role in that process.

“It was really helpful to have a familiar face and somebody I can talk to about other things, not just the X’s and O’s of the game and the coverages and all that,” Vucevic said.

“The relationship we had before as friends just kind of translated. It’s pretty easy: we have respect for each other.”

Now, Vucevic will enjoy a nearly week-long break that he hopes aids his transition to Boston. As he gets to know everyone else, he’s grateful to have a familiar face in his corner.

“That helped a lot, made me a little more comfortable,” Vucevic said. “But they’ve all been really helpful.”

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Olympics 2026: How to watch Czech Republic-Canada men’s ice hockey for free

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An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 08: Sidney Crosby #87 of Team Canada takes part during training on day two of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 08, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images), Image 2 shows MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 09: David Pastrnak #88 of Team Czechia participates during training on day three of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 09, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

After 12 years, the NHL has officially returned to the Winter Olympics.

Team Canada plays its first game of the Olympics today, Feb. 10, against a Czech Republic team with 11 NHL players in addition to players from the Czech, Finnish, Swedish and Swiss leagues.

Of Canada’s 25-man roster, all of whom play in the NHL, 23 are first-time Olympians, ranging from long overdue stars like Connor McDavid to the next generation, including second-year phenom Macklin Celebrini.

olympics 2026 men's hockey: what to know
  • What: Canada vs. Czech Republic
  • When: Feb. 12, 10:40 a.m. ET
  • Where: Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena (Milan, Italy)
  • Channel: USA Network
  • Streaming: DIRECTV (try it free)

In his third Olympics, Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby will serve as Canada’s captain for the second time as he begins his quest for a third Olympic gold medal.

Canada vs. Czech Republic start time

Canada vs. Czech Republic is scheduled to start at 10:40 a.m. ET today, Feb. 12.

How to watch Canada vs. Czech Republic for free

If you don’t have cable, you’ll need a live TV streaming service to stream the Olympics for free.

DIRECTV is our favorite service for watching TV live for free — it has a five-day free trial and there are a ton of options for plans that include USA Network (and every other channel you’ll need for the Olympics), starting at $69.99/month.

TRY DIRECTV FOR FREE

You can also catch every minute of the Olympics with a subscription to Peacock, which starts at $10.99/month.

Canada and Czech Republic team rosters

Below, check out the rosters for Team Canada and Czech Republic, along with each player’s NHL team.

Canada
  • Travis Sanheim (D) – Flyers
  • Devon Toews (D) – Avalanche
  • Cale Makar (D) – Avalanche
  • Thomas Harley (D) – Stars
  • Shea Theodore (D) – Golden Knights
  • Josh Morrissey (D) – Jets
  • Colton Parayko (D) – Blues
  • Drew Doughty (D) – Kings
  • Sam Bennett (F) – Panthers
  • Nick Suzuki (F) – Canadiens
  • Sam Reinhart (F) – Panthers
  • Bo Horvat (F) – Islanders
  • Macklin Celebrini (F) – Sharks
  • Seth Jarvis (F) – Hurricanes
  • Nathan MacKinnon (F) – Avalanche
  • Brandon Hagel (F) – Lightning
  • Tom Wilson (F) – Capitals
  • Mark Stone (F) – Golden Knights
  • Brad Marchand (F) – Panthers
  • Sidney Crosby (F) – Penguins
  • Mitch Marner (F) – Golden Knights
  • Connor McDavid (F) – Oilers
  • Darcy Kuemper (G) – Kings
  • Logan Thompson (G) – Capitals
  • Jordan Binnington (G) – Blues
Czech Republic
  • Radko Gudas (D) – Ducks
  • Michal Kempny (D)
  • David Špaček (D)
  • Filip Hronek (D) – Canucks
  • Jirí Ticháček (D)
  • Jan Rutta (D)
  • Radim Šimek (D)
  • Tomáš Kundrátek (D)
  • Roman Cervenka (F)
  • Radek Faksa (F) – Stars
  • Filip Chlapík (F)
  • Ondrej Palát (F) – Islanders
  • Jakub Flek (F)
  • Lukás Sedlák (F)
  • Tomáš Hertl (F) – Golden Knights
  • David Kämpf (F) – Canucks
  • Ondrej Kaše (F)
  • Dominik Kubalík (F)
  • David Pastrnák (F) – Bruins
  • Matej Stránsky (F)
  • David Tomášek (F)
  • Martin Nečas (F) – Avalanche
  • Lukáš Dostál (G) – Ducks
  • Karel Vejmelka (G) – Mammoth
  • Daniel Vladar (G) – Flyers

Canada Olympic hockey schedule

  • Feb. 12, 10:40 a.m. ET – vs. Czech Republic
  • Feb. 13, 3:10 p.m. ET – vs. Switzerland
  • Feb. 15, 10:40 a.m. ET – vs. France

When do the Winter Olympics end?

The 2026 Winter Olympics end with the closing ceremony on Feb. 22 at 2:30 p.m. ET.

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Twitter Gold: Jared McCain Settling In With the Thunder

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 11: Jared McCain #3 of the Oklahoma City Thunder attempts a shot during the first half against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center on February 11, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) | Getty Images

After a terrific rookie season with the Philadelphia 76ers which was unfortunately cut short by a knee injury, former Blue Devil Jared McCain had another issue this season with a hand injury. And since Philly’s backcourt is pretty solid, they decided to trade the promising second-year player to Oklahoma City…and that might have been shortsighted.

In his first two games, McCain got 7 points and 3 rebounds against the L.A. Clippers and in his second, against Phoenix, he got 12 points and 4 boards. Here are some highlights from the outing against the Suns.

He’s always been a smart player with a beautiful jumper and with teammates like Chet Holmgren, Jalyn Williams and Shea Gilgeous-Alexander, and he could have a long, prosperous run in OKC.

Incidentally, Phoenix now has three former Blue Devils: Grayson Allen, Mark Williams and Khaman Malauch.

Allen didn’t play as he has an apparent knee injury. Fortunately, it doesn’t look too serious.

Williams and Maluach both got 6 points while Williams got a single board and Maluach got 6.

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