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PHOENIX — Shohei Ohtani wants to win the World Series.

Again.

He wants to win the World Baseball Classic.

Again.

He also wants to win his first Cy Young Award.

And then do it again.

Ohtani was unusually open on Friday, the ordinarily guarded two-way star revealing his goals and offering insights into his mindset after throwing a 27-pitch bullpen session in the Dodgers’ first workout of the spring for pitchers and catchers.

What Ohtani said confirmed the depths of ambition long described by those close to him.

Ohtani, 31, has won four MVP awards, two World Series and a WBC, but he said he wants more. And more. And more.

“I think that when you’re satisfied, it’s time to finish,” Ohtani said in Japanese. “I don’t feel that way at this point. The opposite way of saying it is that I think I should quit when I do.”

There aren’t many unchecked boxes in his career to-do list, but he said there’s value in checking the same box multiple times.

“Whether it’s winning the World Series or winning the WBC or being the MVP there, it’s not enough to do it once,” Ohtani said. “When you continue to do that, I think that’s when you’re viewed as a first-class player for the first time. Doing it twice is better than doing it once, and doing it three times is better than doing it twice.”

Nevermind that Ohtani proved he was a first-class player five years ago when he won his first MVP award with the Angels. He has already been at Camelback Ranch for close to two weeks. The bullpen session he threw on Friday was his third of the spring.

When manager Dave Roberts said a couple of weeks ago that Ohtani would focus on hitting and not pitch for Japan in the WBC, I wrote that it was a sign that he might have his eyes set on a Cy Young Award.

Ohtani basically said as much on this day.

“If I can get it,” he said, “I think that would be wonderful.”

Makes sense. Why else would a legacy-driven player such as Ohtani sacrifice potential glory in an event considered more prestigious than the World Series in his home country?

Ohtani said of the Cy Young Award, “To just be close would mean I’m pitching the required number of innings. I think the most important thing I have to do is to take my turns in the rotation for an entire year.”

The health of his arm figures to be front and center for Ohtani, who is very much aware that a third elbow operation could turn him into a full-time designated hitter.

“He’s gone through a lot of things,” Roberts said. “As much as people think that he’s not human, he’s still a human being that’s had two major surgeries. He’s got a long career ahead of him.”

Ohtani is under contract for eight more seasons. He underwent his second Tommy John surgery in 2023, his final year with the Angels. He returned to the mound in the middle of last season and went on to post a 2.84 ERA in 14 starts. He pitched four more games in the postseason.

Roberts was encouraged by what he saw.

“I think the thing that was most surprising from last year was his command,” Roberts said. “I’ll say that he still feels his command wasn’t up to par. But given the Tommy John and what typically command looks like the year after, it was above that. That was impressive. Just his ability to command a couple of different breaking balls, to change the shape of his breaking balls, was pretty impressive.”

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Ohtani sounded at peace with the decision to not pitch in the WBC, which he said was made jointly with the team.  

“Last year, I only pitched in the second half (of the season),” Ohtani said. “Timing-wise, if this came after pitching an entire season, I think the overall approach would’ve been different. Right now, at this stage, honestly, I’m satisfied with the feeling that it would be difficult.”

While Ohtani said he was relieved to finally have a normal offseason — he spent his two previous winters recovering from elbow and shoulder operations, respectively — he said he knew he would have to advance as a player to reach his latest round of goals. Pitching and hitting in the postseason, he acknowledged, was extremely demanding.

“Two years ago, I played as a DH, but it was a different feeling from last year,” he said. “It felt like a different task.”

So he continues to build up his pitching arm. He said he wants to pitch to batters next week.

Because after the WBC, he wants to be in position to do more. And more. And more.

TAMPA — Whenever Gerrit Cole returns to the big league mound, he plans to do so with a slightly tweaked windup.

During his first bullpen session of spring training Friday, Cole unveiled a new delivery in which he raises his hands over his head instead of keeping them by his belt or chest, as he previously did before undergoing Tommy John surgery last March.

“Just felt good,” Cole said of the change. “Throwing on the back fields during the summer and tried it out. I’ve had little idiosyncrasies that have changed over the years from still hands to a drop or hands off the body, close to the body. I think I generally just like the rhythm of it.”

Cole has long been known for his simple and repeatable delivery, which played a hand in the right-hander maintaining good health before finally needing elbow surgery last year.

But the 35-year-old still made the new-look windup look smooth Friday.

“When I think of Gerrit and his greatness, a lot of it ties to … his delivery is just so outstanding,” manager Aaron Boone said. “That’s [still] the case. Everything looks like it’s coming out free and easy, command. He looks to be in a really good place.

Gerrit Cole throws his first bullpen session in Spring Training. pic.twitter.com/nf7E8RxuLg

— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) February 13, 2026

“I’ve been saying it around here today after seeing it, that diver that dives off the high board and just goes in the water and makes no splash — that’s Gerrit on the mound. He’s just really efficient.”

The Yankees officially invited veteran reliever Rafael Montero to big league camp Friday after signing him to a minor league deal to join their bullpen competition.

The 35-year-old posted a 4.48 ERA in 59 games last season, but he finished strong with a 2.86 ERA in 20 games with the Tigers down the stretch.

“There’s some things we really like that he was doing last year,” Boone said. “Maybe some small adjustments we can make to help him. Hopefully, he can push himself into the mix.”

Cam Schlittler played catch again Friday, as the Yankees have him continuing to throw on flat ground as he deals with mid-back/left lat inflammation.

“I haven’t got the end-of-day report on him yet but he kind of brushes it off, like, ‘No biggie,’ ” Boone said. “Hopefully this is something that just slowing him down serves him well in the total buildup — I think it will. We’ll see how the next day or two unfolds to see when he gets back on the mound. But hopefully pretty quick.”

Relievers David Bednar, Fernando Cruz, Jake Bird and Brent Headrick each threw an inning of live batting practice Friday afternoon.

The Cubs have reportedly agreed to a two-year deal with veteran right-handed reliever Shelby Miller.Fansided’s Robert Murray was reportedly first with the news.

Miller, 35, pitched quite effectively last year with the Diamondbacks, posting a 1.98 ERA and ten saves in 37 games before he was traded to the Brewers at the trade deadline, even though he was on the injured list at the time with a right-forearm strain. He returned from the IL in early August and mostly pitched well until a game on September 1 when Miller felt a “pop” in elbow. That turned out to be a torn ulnar collateral ligament, which lead to his second Tommy John surgery. Miller is expected to miss all of 2026 and return in 2027, so this two-year deal is really a deal for 2027 for the Cubs.

Miller is an 11-year veteran who has pitched for ten teams, including the Cubs in 2021. He signed with the Cubs in Spring Training in 2021 and made three mostly-poor relief appearances until he went on the injured list with a back injury. The Cubs released him in May of that year when it was time for him to come off the injured list. Since then, Miller has bounced around with good seasons with the Dodgers in 2023 and Arizona last year and a poor season with the Tigers in 2024.

Miller began his career as starter in the Cardinals system and was traded to Atlanta as part of a package for Jason Heyward in 2014. In 2015, Atlanta dealt Miller to Arizona as part of a package for Dansby Swanson. Miller has also pitched for the Rangers and Pirates. He has not started a game since 2019.

It’s Friday the 13th, folks. If you aren’t into slasher flicks or the Winter Olympics, then hello! Welcome! You’re one of us! Let’s talk baseball!

Tomorrow is the day of love, so they say. And to carry that theme, here’s Chris Sale talking about how he wants to retire as an Atlanta Braves player.

Would you like to see him retire in an Atlanta uniform?

Sound off below!

Dylan Ray might be ahead only of Jose Fernandez, in terms of being the least well-known player on the 40-man roster. Ray was a fourth-round pick in 2022, after barely thirty collegiate innings, and it has been an up-and-down struggle since. Of the four “real” levels at which he has played, High-A ball is the only one where his ERA has been below five. To be fair, pitching in Amarillo or Reno is going to play hell with any prospect’s raw numbers, and last year, he did well in Amarillo. He posted a 3.93 ERA across his ten starts at the Double-A level, which is more than an entire run better than the Sod Poodles’ collective figure. It was also an improvement on his 5.22 in sixteen starts there during 2024.

What’s interesting – and a little odd – is, Ray has managed to reach the cusp of the major leagues without anyone particularly noticing. In terms of written material, for example, I found an interview Michael did with him for the SnakePit in October 2024, when Ray was appearing in the Arizona Fall League. Jack spoke to him last spring, after he was given the ball to start the Spring Breakout game against the Royals, and Ray addressed the perils of high-offense environments: “I’ll look back at it not from a results oriented standpoint, but more process oriented. Did I execute the pitch, throw it where I wanted it to go. The results take care of themselves at the end of the day.”

Since that? A video interview (below) from the Aces on the dreaded Ticky-Tac, just after Dylan had made his first start for Reno, after his promotion from Amarillo. That came on the heels of him being named the organization’s minor-league pitcher of the month for May. He went a perfect 5-0 across five starts with the Sod Poodles, pitching to a 2.03 ERA and holding batters to a .168 average, with a stellar K:BB ratio of 35:3 across 31 innings. Reno proved a rough awakening, as his ERA was a hair above seven across his first ten starts for the Aces. His strikeouts and walks both went in the wrong direction (38:24 in 52.2 IP).

But Dylan was able to put together a good string out outings in August, with a 3.81 ERA and 22:8 K:BB over 26 innings. That included 5.1 shutout innings in Reno against Sacramento, a game where he struck out nine, matching a career high. While he may have run out of gas down the stretch – he faced only four batters in his last start of 2025 – Ray had still done enough to convince the D-backs he needed protecting from the Rule 5 draft. They duly added him to the 40-man roster in December, when other, higher-profile names like Christian Montes De Oca, A.J. Vukovich, and Kristian Robinson were left eligible.

It was something of a surprise, given he wasn’t particularly highly-ranked as a prospect in the Arizona system. A few days after the Rule 5 draft, Ray was only ranked #45 in Fangraphs’ list of our top prospects, though Prospects 1500 had him just inside the top thirty. The former’s write-up suggested he might be better off converted to a reliever. “He’s velocity sensitive — everything plays fine at the very top of his velo band, but he gets hit when he dips — and in my looks his gas has tended to tail off throughout his outing. It’s worth seeing if Ray can add velo and maybe turn his above-average slider into a plus hammer in short stints.”

The manner of that final departure – Ray left the mound with a trainer, his velocity being sharply down – does give some pause for concern. I haven’t found any indications of an injury being involved, but as the case of Andrew Saalfrank showed, we are often the last to hear about these things. Fingers crossed it was simply fatigue rather than anything more meaningful. Ray’s subsequent addition to the roster is a hopeful sign, though the situation with Rule 5 picks and the IL is a murky one. [If they aren’t active for 90 days, the roster restriction carries forward to the next year] Hopefully, we’ll see him in spring, and any concerns about his health can be put to rest.

PHOENIX — Fans lined up and raced around the back fields at the Los Angeles Dodgers spring-training complex Friday, shrieking at the sight of him.

Photographers lugged their equipment around the complex, scurrying to see where he was going to go next.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts spent his media session talking about him more than anyone.

It was Day 1 of the Dodgers spring training camp, and once again, all the buzz was about Shohei Ohtani.

When will he pitch in spring training? When is he leaving for the World Baseball Classic? Are you sure he won’t pitch in the WBC? How can he prepare to pitch while he’s with Team Japan for three weeks? Will he continue to bat leadoff on the days he starts for the Dodgers? How often will he pitch this season? Is he the opening day starter?

So many questions, so few answers.

Yep, just like ol’ times.

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The difference this year is that there will be no limitations on Ohtani. He is fully healthy after undergoing two Tommy John surgeries. He had a completely normal offseason where he was able to pitch, as well as hit. And he feels as strong as he ever has in his spectacular career.

“I think it’s fair to say he expects to be in the Cy Young conversation,’’ Roberts said, “but we just want him to be healthy, make starts, and all of the numbers and statistics will take care of themselves. But man, this guy is such a disciplined worker and expects the most from himself. …

“Regardless of my expectations for him, his are going to exceed those.’’

Yes, when you’re the winner of four unanimous MVP awards − including three in a row − win two World Series championships, and are the only player to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases in the same season, why not try to check off the final box on the Hall of Fame resume?

Cy Young award, anyone?

“If the end result is getting a Cy Young, that’s great,’’ Ohtani said. “Getting a Cy Young means being able to throw more innings and being able to pitch throughout the whole season. So, if that’s the end result, that’s a good sign for me. What I’m more focused on is just being healthy the whole year.’’

Today’s Question of the day comes from yesterday’s Moose Tracks via poster Tuojiangoland:

Never has the best answer ever been a more “EVERYONE!!!” answer than right here, but for the sake of conversation, let’s say the Mariners can and will only choose one Mariners starting pitcher to offer a long term contract extension. Who do you most want them to sign of the Big Three? Logan Gilbert offers the longest track record of consistently good results, but perhaps doesn’t have as high a ceiling as the other two. Or maybe we’ve seen his peak/ceiling already? (I don’t think this is true, but some might).

Then there is George Kirby with arguably the best “STUFF,” but with the most ups and downs in consistency. When he’s on, it’s scary as hell for hitters out there, but when something is off, the wheels tend to fall off pretty quickly in an outing for Kirby.

And Bryan Woo entered this convo just this past season after being a large question mark himself in his MLB career prior to 2025 with health concerns hanging over his head. Well, he went ahead and posted career numbers and was the best pitcher on the staff with 4.2 WAR. I recall we had a preseason predictions question about who would have the better season in 2025, Woo or Bryce Miller and I definitely picked wrong. I owe Bryan Woo an apology, I am now familiar with your game.

So, if you can only choose one to extend, who are you choosing?

Give us your reasons in the comments.

PORT ST. LUCIE — Jonah Tong spent last spring training far removed from the spotlight as a Mets pitching prospect.

This spring is different.

Tong, in his first major league camp, is under the scrutiny of team officials any time he picks up a baseball.

And Friday was his first opportunity to face hitters.

Tong threw 36 pitches over two innings of live batting practice, the Mets’ first chance to watch the rookie on the Clover Park mound.

“I really get to appreciate not only the hitters in the box, but also building a relationship with the catchers,” Tong said. “That’s more important this time of the year as we get toward the season.”

In five starts late last season, the 22-year-old Tong pitched to a 7.71 ERA as part of a rookie threesome that also included Nolan McLean and Brandon Sproat.

Tong will likely begin the season at Triple-A Syracuse to receive further reps at that level.

Last season, he was called up to the Mets after only two starts for Syracuse.

Tong dominated in 20 starts for Double-A Binghamton to emerge as one of baseball’s top pitching prospects.

“The mindset stays the same,” Tong said of his spring training this season compared to last. “I am just going out there to have a lot of fun and enjoy these people, and try to learn as much as I possibly can and everything else will just fall as it may.”

Tong said a focus this spring is the continued refinement of his offspeed pitches, including sequencing.

“I want him to enjoy,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “I want him to learn as much as possible from every guy that we have in that room and I want him to go out there and be himself. We know about the fastball and the changeup and he’s working on a cutter. He’s working on his secondary pitches, whether we want to call it a slider, and I want him to go out there and to continue to develop all these pitches, compete and prepare for his year.

“He’s going to pitch for us and we’re going to need him. Learn, have fun and let the rest take care of itself.”