TORONTO, ONTARIO - OCTOBER 31: Alejandro Kirk #30 of the Toronto Blue Jays looks on against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning in game six of the 2025 World Series at Rogers Center on October 31, 2025 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Alejandro Kirk is a 27-year-old, right-handed hitting catcher from Tijuana, Mexico. He’s played the last five seasons (plus 9 games) with the Jays.
In 564 MLB games, he has a .268/.345/.398 batting line with 51 home runs, 1 stolen base and a 11.3 bWAR (fWAR likes him better, 14.9 career).
When he came up, we thought he would be a good bat/ok glove catcher, but his defense has been terrific. Baseball Savant has him at the 100th percentile for ‘Fielding Run Value’, as well as 100th percentile for Blocks Above Average (as much as we continue to be told that the one-knee-down catching cause more wild pitches/passed balls) and 98th percentile for Framing.
Kirk wasn’t all that great at throwing out baserunners this year, 56th percentile. He was great early, through the end of June he had thrown out 15 of 49 stealers (31%). The rest of the way he was 2 of 37 (5%). I don’t know what happened; maybe there was an injury that we didn’t know about.
On the season he threw out 22% of base streals, in 2024 he threw out 31%.
And, of course, he’s slow. Baseball Savant has him at the 1st percentile in Baserunning Run Value, and Sprint Speed is 2nd percentile. I tend to think the talk about his speed is overblown, If I have to choose between a fast catcher and a great defensive catcher, I’ll take the latter.
I think the same thing when people complain that he’s heavy. I’d rather have a very good catcher than a catcher in great shape. As John Kruk said ‘He’s a baseball player, not an athlete’. Again, I’d rather the ballplayer than the athlete. Of course, he’s my middle son’s favourite players, my son says he can relate to Krik, he can’t relate to
Kirk is in the 91st percentile in hard hit balls, squared-up balls and expected batting average. He’s 95th percentile in strikeout percentage.
His best season with the bat was 2022, when he hit .285/372/.415. I think he’s going to have a season where he puts it all together with the bat and his .300+ with 20+ home runs.
Steamer thinks he’ll play 106 games this year, with a .276/.354/.435 line and 14 home runs for a 4.2 fWAR.
The first time Andrew Friedman reached the World Series as a general manager, his upstart 2008 Tampa Bay Rays team had a payroll of $43 million, the second-smallest in the majors that year.
When last year’s Friedman-built Dodgers squad won its second-consecutive World Series title, the club’s star-studded roster cost almost 10 times that amount, with a record-setting $415 million payroll that incurred another $169 million in luxury tax penalties on top of it all.
Looking back at that juxtaposition now, Friedman can’t help but chuckle.
Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Andrew Friedman eyes a third straight World Series title. AP
“(When I got to the Dodgers), I didn’t even know what the CBT really was, or how it exactly worked,” he said. “And even to think back to where we were then, to where we are now, is comical.”
Indeed, such has been the transformation of not only the Dodgers in recent years, but also their longtime president of baseball operations.
Once the posterboy for small-market success, sustainable spending, and an analytically-driven approach that was supposed to help negate the traditional financial disparities within the salary cap-less sport, Friedman has a new reputation now:
Architect of a villainous Dodgers dynasty widely criticized as being “bad for baseball.”
“I’ve heard that over the last couple years,” Friedman deadpanned last month, when asked about public outcries over the Dodgers’ near-limitless spending. “For us, all we’re consumed with is the partnership that we have with our fans … That’s our only focus.”
For much of his 20-year front office career, of course, Friedman operated differently.
Such has been the transformation of not only the Dodgers, but also their longtime president of baseball operations. AP
In Tampa Bay, he built a consistent winner on shoestring budgets, pioneering a value-based operation to work around the club’s financial limitations. Even early in his Dodgers tenure, he practiced fiscal constraint when constructing his teams, occasionally dipping under the luxury tax threshold while avoiding many big-money free-agent signings.
Since then, Friedman has embraced his new financial reality, completing one star signing after another, including additions of Edwin Diaz and Kyle Tucker this winter that have pushed the team’s 2026 payroll back over the $400 million mark.
“The moment that we signed Shohei, it was important to back that up and continue to show our commitment to winning and reinvesting in the team,” Friedman said in a recent interview with The California Post. “How that has played out, in conjunction with having Shohei, I think has increased (our willingness to spend) and made it an even more aggressive plan than we initially thought. But again, we didn’t sit down and say, ‘OK, now it can be X instead of Y.’ It was more like, let’s be more aggressive. And as we’ve done that, aggressiveness has beget more aggressiveness.”
Friedman has completed one star signing after another, including Edwin Diaz (above) and Kyle Tucker this year. AP
Friedman didn’t always envision, or even seek, this kind of opportunity. During his time in Tampa Bay, “I thought I was going to be with the Rays forever,” he said.
Coming to the Dodgers in 2014, however, represented what he described as a “perfect situation” –– in large part because it meant “throwing myself in the deep end and activating a totally different part of my brain.”
A decade later, it has led more of Friedman’s offseason focus to now be on pursuing top free agents with eye-popping financial proposals, rather than more marginal maneuvers with payroll management in mind.
And while the Dodgers “are doing some things that probably aren’t sustainable, or we probably wouldn’t do for 10, 15, 20 years,” he acknowledged, the opportunity to capitalize on this current window has warranted such a drastic change in spending habits.
“(We are) appreciating this moment in time and the talent we have on our roster,” he said, “and not being flippant about the fact that it will always be like this.”
A decade later, it has led more of Friedman’s offseason focus to now be on pursuing top free agents like Tucker. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
When asked if such unprecedented resources has made his job any less stressful, Friedman paused to consider his career path.
“Whatever the rules are, whatever the unique challenges of your market and situation are, my focus has always been on just doing the best that we can to put the best team on the field and give us the best chance to win a championship,” he said. “So while it’s been very different in my two experiences, the pressure you feel, the work you put in, feels very similar. Because the constraints are given to you, and then you do your best within them to do the best you can.”
Still, the fact that the constraints are so much less now has led to a marked shift –– turning the man who once represented the antithesis to the Dodgers’ current style of spending, the face of a deep-pocketed dynasty sparing no expense in its hunts for more championships.
“I think it speaks to the success that we’ve been able to enjoy organizationally,” Friedman said. “And our mindset is to pump that back into our team on the field.”
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Spring training is almost here! Despite a winter that moved at a glacial pace, we’ve somehow already arrived at pitchers and catchers reporting to camp, the Yankees contingent arriving in Tampa on Wednesday. But before the warmer weather arrives, we ought to take one final look back at the business conducted by the Yankees during a frigid offseason and the man pulling the strings behind those decisions, general manager Brian Cashman.
The Yankees’ offseason began just over four months ago with their unceremonious dumping out of the ALDS at the hands of the Blue Jays. From that point forward, focus turned to 2026 and the calculus it would require to get the Yankees back to the playoffs. The team could boast a solid foundation of players — one which produced the best offense in baseball — and the question became whether to run in back and hope for better results vs. taking a more proactive approach to improving the roster.
Four months later, we know the answer to that question. Despite his public protests to the contrary, Cashman held firm to a policy of rolling the dice with largely the same group of players that fell well short of the ultimate prize in 2025, hoping that better luck might bring improved results. Let’s review the decisions he made before I hand the floor over to you to voice your opinions on the course charted by the front office.
Upon the conclusion of the World Series, eight players became free agents — Trent Grisham, Paul Goldschmidt, Devin Williams, Luke Weaver, Amed Rosario, Austin Slater, Ryan Yarbrough, and Paul Blackburn — with Cody Bellinger joining them a day later when he declined his player option for 2026. You’d be forgiven if you missed the Yankees’ opening moves of the offseason, the team picking up their club option on Tim Hill while declining the option on Jonathan Loáisiga. In a similar vein, their first free agent signing was Yarbrough, retained on a one-year, $2.5 million deal to reprise his swingman role from 2025. The focus remained on the margins of the bullpen in the early weeks of November, the front office trimming the fat by non-tendering Mark Leiter Jr., Ian Hamilton, Jake Cousins, and Scott Effross.
Then came the Rule 5 Draft, the Yankees selecting righty pitcher Cade Winquest from the Cardinals while adding Spencer Jones, Elmer Rodríguez, and Chase Hampton to the 40-man roster to protect them from departing. “Operation: Run it Back” kicked into another gear as the Yankees focused on returning even the fringe role players from 2025, both Rosario and Blackburn re-signed on one-year pacts. Shortly thereafter, the Yankees came to agreements with all of their remaining arbitration-eligible players — Clarke Schmidt, Oswaldo Cabrera, Jazz Chisholm Jr., David Bednar, Anthony Volpe, Fernando Cruz, Camilo Doval, Luis Gil, José Caballero, and Jake Bird. (The final piece of the ”Run it Back” puzzle fell into place this past week with the reunion with Paul Goldschmidt for one year and $4 million.)
The first real contentious decision of the offseason actually occurred a few weeks prior to the arb calls, when the Yankees extended the $22.025 million qualifying offer to Trent Grisham. The 29-year-old center fielder accepted it pretty quickly. Focusing solely on the player, one could make the argument that it’s a high-reward, low-risk move — he either repeats his career year from 2025 and plays for a relative bargain, or he regresses in which case he’s only on the books for one season. However, in the broader context of the offseason’s overall budget, many fans worried that his salary would dissuade ownership from authorizing spending on a potential foundational piece for the future.
The majority of the Yankees’ rumors were dominated by the dance between Bellinger and the front office — Cashman adamant in his desire to keep Bellinger in the Bronx, and Bellinger and Scott Boras holding out for an unattainable jackpot before returning to reality when a seven-year offer failed to materialize. The two sides reunited on a five-year, $162.5 million contract with Bellinger possessing opt-outs after each of the first two seasons. Because of how much money is front-loaded in the terms, Bellinger will be the Yankees’ most expensive player in 2026 and 2027 carrying a luxury tax hit of $44.75 million — almost $5 million more than the AAV of Aaron Judge’s contract and roughly $6 million less than Juan Soto’s AAV with the Mets.
While not an identical roster to 2025, the Yankees’ external additions could still be construed as lateral moves at best. They traded for lefty starter Ryan Weathers from the Marlins, but he’s effectively replacing Schmidt in the rotation as the latter recovers from Tommy John surgery. They lost two of their highest leverage relievers in Williams and Weaver, but filled their vacancies with a Rule 5 dice roll (Winquest) and the worst qualified reliever in baseball in 2025 (no matter how tantalizing the stuff might be) in Angel Chivilli. And of course, true to form, Cashman likened Gerrit Cole’s return from Tommy John rehab to a big-ticket acquisition despite the now-35-year-old starter having pitched just 95 innings since the end of 2023. Cashman also cited the 2025 Trade Deadline additions as 2026 pickups as well, given that the likes of Bednar and Doval will now have full seasons in the Bronx.
Obviously, all of these decisions have to be viewed in the context of the needs of the roster and the players they declined to pursue to upgrade it. Cashman somewhat oddly labeled Kyle Tucker as the backup plan to re-signing Bellinger despite the former being the younger, more superior player and settling for a short-term (albeit a record-high-AAV) deal with the Dodgers. They were vaguely linked to Bo Bichette before he signed his own short-term, high-AAV deal with the Mets, but seemingly felt that the defensives upside and cheaper cost offered by Ryan McMahon and Anthony Volpe justified passing on Bichette’s superior offensive profile.
The same goes on the pitching side. They were never players in the markets for the top-end names like Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez, and Ranger Suárez. They passed on Tatsuya Imai, who joined Astros for a surprisingly cheap three years and $54 million. They had varying levels of interest in trading for Freddy Peralta, MacKenzie Gore, and Edward Cabrera, but opted for the less expensive option in Weathers, despite the expectation that Cole, Schmidt, and Carlos Rodón will miss the start of the season as they rehab from their respective elbow surgeries. For whatever it’s worth, at the end of the day, both FanGraphs and Baseball Prospectus project the Yankees as the 2026 AL East winners, though both also project the Mariners and Dodgers for better records and World Series odds.
So now I would like to turn it over to you. Do you approve of the job Yankees GM Brian Cashman has done this winter in filling out the roster? Additionally, we are asking that you assign a letter grade to the Yankees’ offseason, giving us a slightly more concrete understanding of how the fanbase is feeling heading into spring training. Vote in our poll below:
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JULY 12: Juan Soto #22 of the New York Mets celebrates his two-run home run with Francisco Lindor #12 of the New York Mets in the fourth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on July 12, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Baseball Prospectus has released its PECOTA projections for 2026. PECOTA projects the 2026 Mets to win 88.4 games and come in second place in the National League East, and it puts the Mets’ chances of making the playoffs at 78.3% with a 28.5% chance of winning the division and a 49.8% chance of finishing with an NL Wild Card berth.
As for the rest of the NL East, PECOTA taps the Braves as the likeliest division winners, projecting Atlanta for 92.2 wins and over 90% playoff odds. The top three teams in the NL East are once again tightly packed with the Phillies projected for 85.1 wins with 58.9% playoff odds. Not surprisingly, there is a large gap between those top three teams and the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals, who are projected for 75.2 and 65.6 wins, respectively.
Taking a deeper dive into what PECOTA likes and doesn’t like about the 2026 Mets, the short answer is that the lineup is headlined by two very good players in Juan Soto (156 DRC+, 5.7 WARP projection—behind only Shohei Ohtani for all hitters) and Francisco Lindor (121 DRC+, 3.7 WARP projection). Going further down the depth chart, PECOTA predicts a bounce back season from Marcus Semien offensively (101 DRC+) and projects above average offensive production from all of Bo Bichette, Francisco Alvarez, Jorge Polanco, and even Mark Vientos. PECOTA also notably thinks Luis Robert Jr. will have a fully healthy season, penciling him in for 535 plate appearances of roughly average output with the bat, which would put him at 2 WARP and would represent a huge upgrade over what the Mets got out of the center field position last year.
On the other hand, PECOTA projects only 14.8 WARP from the Mets’ pitching staff—ten wins less than what it projects from their position players. Though it is quite bullish on the Mets’ bullpen and thinks Devin Williams projects similarly to Edwin Díaz in 2026, PECOTA is not enamored with Nolan McLean, despite his prospect ranking and big league success last year. McLean is projected to throw just 150 innings and put up a 100 DRA- and less than 2 WARP—pretty pedestrian numbers for what the Mets are hoping is a top of the rotation starter. McLean is probably the most obvious candidate to overperform his PECOTA projections. PECOTA does think Freddy Peralta (91 DRA-, 2.8 WARP projection) will have a very Freddy Peralta season—the exact boon to the rotation the Mets hoped for when they traded for him. And it is also intriguingly optimistic about Sean Manaea (90 DRA-, 1.3 WARP projection), but has him down for only 80 innings. PECOTA is less optimistic about the rest of the Mets’ rotation, which it projects as below average outside of Jonah Tong, who PECOTA thinks will make 11 starts with a 91 DRA-.
Both the Mets and the Atlanta Braves had disappointing finishes in 2025. The Mets turned over a significant chunk of their roster in response while the Braves are trusting their core and more or less running it back in 2026—an approach the other major competitor in the division in the Philadelphia Phillies is also taking this season. PECOTA projects a bounce back for both the Mets and the Braves, but a much more significant one for Atlanta, whose position player core outside of the shortstop position PECOTA likes quite a bit, expecting a regression to the mean for many of the Braves’ key players.
While Father Time has been unable to stop LeBron James, the NBA rules have found a way to do it.
LeBron James has been ruled out for LA’s upcoming game against the Spurs, meaning he will not reach the 65-game threshold needed to be eligible for NBA awards.
Tonight will be LeBron James’ 18th missed game, which will stop him from reaching the 65-game threshold to be eligible for season awards. His All-NBA streak will end at 21 seasons. https://t.co/0DudWfcZNO
This means that LeBron’s All-NBA streak will be coming to an end. LeBron holds the NBA record for most All-NBA selections at 21, but he won’t make a 22nd team this season, regardless of his production, due to missing too many games.
Since that extended absence, LeBron has been relatively healthy. However, given his age and recent injury history, he’s only played both legs of a back-to-back once and with no wiggle room left, it was inevitable that he’d ultimately become ineligible for end-of-season awards due to this restriction.
LeBron is having a season that certainly warrants All-NBA consideration. He is averaging 21.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game.
The NBA began this 65-game rule for NBA awards began during the 2023-24 season. How fair it is that players who are worthy of such accolades miss it due to injuries has always been a point of contention for fans and media alike.
This season, with superstars like Nikola Jokić set to miss significant time and now LeBron being ineligible, the rule has come under even more scrutiny.
We’ll see if the NBA makes another change in the future, but for this season, James will not be eligible and his potential spot will go to someone who played in enough games, regardless of whether they had a better year than LeBron or not, which is definitely the point of these awards.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa, a former Yankee in his own right, said on Tuesday that the Toronto Blue Jays were "a lot happier" to face the Yankees instead of the Boston Red Sox in their 2025 American League Division series matchup.
“I don’t know if people were expecting Boston to get in last year. But I know in Toronto we were happy they lost because we weren’t ready for (Garrett) Crochet and all those guys,” said Kiner-Falefa, via Lauren Campbell of MassLive.com.
“One-hundred percent,” he answered when asked if that was truly a topic in the Jays clubhouse. “We thought it was a better matchup for us the other way. We were watching Crochet just dice up. ... We definitely felt like it was a tougher matchup for us. So, once we saw the other team (win), we were a lot happier. It was definitely a topic.”
Now a member of the Red Sox, the 30-year-old Kiner-Falefa played two seasons in the Bronx from 2022-23, slashing .253/.311/.333 with 10 home runs, 85 RBI, and 105 runs scored. He was the starting shortstop in 2022 before serving in more of a super-utility role in 2023, when Anthony Volpe won the starting job out of spring training.
IKF played with Toronto in 2024 and ended up back with the Blue Jays late in 2025, as Toronto went on to beat the Yankees in the ALDS in four games before eventually having its dreams crushed in Game 7 of the World Series by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Kiner-Falefa went 0-for-6 with a strikeout against the Yankees in the ALDS.
The Yankees, of course, defeated the Red Sox in the Wild Card Round, despite losing to Crochet and the Red Sox in Game 1.
TORONTO, CANADA - FEBRUARY 5: Brandon Ingram #3 of the Toronto Raptors walks to the dressing room after their NBA game against the Chicago Bulls at Scotiabank Arena on February 5, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 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 Cole Burston/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Brandon Ingram, the Toronto Raptors’ leading scorer this season, has been named an injury replacement in the 2026 All-Star Game. With Stephen Curry out for Team USA, Ingram has been called up to take his spot, and will be playing for the “Stripes” squad , adding some valuable length to the notably centre-absent roster.
The newly minted two-time All-Star has season averages of 22 points per game, 5.8 rebounds per game, and 3.7 assists per game in this bounce-back year from him, after playing only 18 games in the 2024-25 campaign. The Raptors are currently 5th in the Eastern Conference, seemingly destined for the playoffs, sitting 3 games above the 6th seeded Philadelphia 76ers. The Raptors have already surpassed the 30-win mark they achieved last season, when they finished well outside of the postseason, in large part thanks to Ingram’s efforts.
His prowess has elevated the Raptors’ offence, bringing tough shotmaking and consistent scoring to the fold, while allowing his fellow All-Star teammate Scottie Barnes to focus on defence and playmaking. This split of responsibilities has raised Toronto to heights that have not been reached since the early 2020s, and has begun the ushering in of a new identity to replace the last remnants of the championship squad.
Sharing the floor with other scorers like RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley has resulted in a slight dip in production for the Notorious B.I.3, but he still stands head and shoulders above the rest of the Raptors squad. Sharing those responsibilities has come hand-in-hand with fantastic team chemistry. William Lou of the Hello and Welcome Podcast posted footage of the team’s joyous celebration upon learning of Ingram’s award.
Ingram’s last All-Star season was in 2020, where he made the roster, as well as being named Most Improved Player in his first year with the New Orleans Pelicans. Ingram was 22 that season, and six years later, approaching 30, he is having a renaissance outside of the Big Easy. What Ingram has done to dig the Raptors out of a seemingly hopeless pit following the Raptors’ collapse in 2024 has already made him a part of Toronto history, but he has truly cemented himself as a team legend by being just the 10th Raptor named to an All-Star Roster.
The tandem of Ingram and Barnes look poised to lead the Raptors for years to come, and the duo ending up as All-Stars this season is a solid foundation for those ambitions.
Sep 23, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets guards Egor Demin (8) and Nolan Traore (88) speak at Media Day. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Back when they were drafted and even into the season, there were doubts — a lot of them — about the Nets top two picks: Egor Demin, the 19-year-0ld Russian guard selected with Brooklyn’s first lottery pick in 15 years, and Nolan Traore, an even younger French guard, selected with a mid-first round pick. Both were seen as stretchs.
Many — how about most — pundits thought both were taken too high or worse. Demin couldn’t shoot, the narrative went, and he was coming off a plantar fascia issue that had put him a wheelchair for a while. Traore was seen as a long-term project at best who needed a lot of time in the G League. There were concerns about whether he was even an NBA player. Oh yeah, he couldn’t shoot either, said the pundits.
Fast forward to this week and a lot of those concerns now seem to have been exaggerated or maybe even foolish. After all., they were very young — the 11th and sixth youngest of 540 NBA players — and needed time to develop. Bottom line, as Tom Cruise told Renee Zellwegger in “Jerry Maguire”, it’s about making each other better.
“Yes, we complete each other, and we play great [together],” Traore told Brian Lewis of The Post. “He is a good shooter, and it is always good for me to play with good shooters.”
For his part, Demin has said that Traore’s ability to fly past defenders and open things up on the perimeter is a big help to his shooting. And while they haven’t played a lot minutes together — including Monday night when Demin rested and Traore had his best game: 13 points and an equal number of assists — the numbers are catching up to the eye test. We’re no longer in small sample theater.
Look at the six games that Demin and Traore have started since January 29. Demin has averaged 11.7 points on 43/38/83 in those games while Traore has put up 11.0 points on 49/37/78. Those are not huge numbers but for teenagers, they’re more than solid.
Indeed, they go a long way to justifying the Nets decision-making back in June. Within that stretch, Demin has twice broken his career highs in points with games of 25 and 26 plus once in rebounds at 10 and registered his first NBA double double. Traore also notched his first double-double within that stretch and had career highs in points — 21 twice — and assists at 13. Moreover, Demin set an NBA rookie record for 3-pointers in consecutive games and Traore became the youngest player in Nets history to register 10 assists in a game. Together they became the two youngest rookies in franchise history to register 20 points in the same game vs. the Magic.
For Traore, it has to be particularly encouraging considering his slow start.
“Each time you improve, and when you go out and improve a level it shows progress. It’s hard in the beginning, and then it becomes easier,” Traore told Lewis, adding of his improved finishing, “I think it’s just the work; the work I put in every day. And then I’m just getting used to the speed of the game.”
Their coach is also encouraged by how they’re progressed as individuals and teammates.
“I like the creation,” coach Jordi Fernández said. “Nolan is able to get into the paint early in possessions, whether it’s to finish or spray it out. We’re starting to see us play earlier, which is good.
“He and Egor can both create. … The next step is the level of physicality. Them being rookies will never be an excuse. They’ve got to use those minutes to improve their technique and learn how to play with more physicality right now.”
That said, he told Lewis he sees the potential.
“I don’t see it as one guy covering for the other: I like the shooting from both of them. Nolan’s not shy when he’s open. We’ve seen Egor shoot at a very high level. Nolan’s speed, his paint touches and pick-and-roll playmaking, same with Egor. … They have clear goals, short-term things they need to do on both ends. As long as they keep taking those steps they’re doing a great job and that’s what matters.”
What also will matter in June, as Lewis notes, is how the Nets will see the 2026 Draft with its plethora of guards. Darryn Peterson, Kingston Flemings and Mikel Brown Jr. all are “on-ball dynamos.” With a little luck, the Nets could have their choice and Sean Marks & co. always professes that it’s about best pick available. We shall see.
BOSTON, MA - FEBRUARY 8: The sneakers worn by Derrick White #9 of the Boston Celtics during the game against the New York Knicks on February 8, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. 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 Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training is no longer the only early sign that baseball is around the corner. Now, the year might as well officially begin with fans figuring out what subscriptions they need to stream MLB games.
In 2026, the answers are more complicated. Starting Tuesday, ESPN manages MLB’s out-of-market streaming package for the first time, as MLB.TV went on sale for $150/season or $30/month. However, as the local sports TV industry crumbles, the league is handling in-market rights for more than a dozen teams, leading to a split of viewing—and purchase—opportunities across MLB and ESPN apps. Add in the transition of numerous bundle and discount offers, and at least some confusion is nothing to be ashamed about.
Here are the most common questions fans might have and what we know for now…
I’m an existing MLB.TV subscriber. What changes this year?
Potentially nothing. MLB will continue handling billing for fans whose accounts are set to renew normally. This year, viewers can still watch games in the MLB app, or they can authenticate their subscription to watch in ESPN’s app as well.
“The proposition here for this year and moving forward, we believe, is pretty simple,” ESPN direct to consumer SVP John Lasker said. “We’re creating more flexibility, more accessibility and enhancing the entire experience for baseball fans.”
Do I need ESPN Unlimited to access MLB.TV?
No, despite what you may have read. Again, existing subscribers won’t need to do anything to continue accessing MLB.TV. And for a service that’s been around for two decades, that’s likely most viewers.
Those existing MLB.TV subscribers who auto-renew their accounts through MLB platforms will also receive the option to sign up for a one-month free trial offer for ESPN Unlimited.
New MLB.TV subscribers or those who didn’t auto-renew, meanwhile, will be signed up for an ESPN Unlimited account, including a free month to start, before purchasing MLB.TV. People can immediately cancel their Unlimited subscription before being billed, without impacting their MLB.TV access, though they can’t opt-out of being enrolled in the first place, much to the chagrin of a few online posters.
Ifnew MLB.TV users already have ESPN Unlimited, which is included in many cable packages or costs $30/month, they can get a 10% discount on MLB.TV ($135/year). That means if you have a cable subscription and are an annual MLB.TV buyer, it’s worth looking into turning off that auto-renewal so you can get the discount via ESPN.
Those currently paying for Unlimited need to end their membership and wait for their current pay term to end if they want to get a free month of ESPN’s all-in-one product along with MLB.TV.
(I warned you this might get complicated!)
ESPN has also promised to continue offering discounted MLB.TV subscriptions beginning mid-season. In those cases, fans will similarly be enrolled for ESPN Unlimited, with a free month to start, as part of the checkout process. As for future years, ESPN has not yet announced whether the free Unlimited month promotion will carry over into 2027, or whether fans would need to have ESPN Unlimited at that point to either renew or sign up for MLB.TV.
What about T-Mobile’s free MLB.TV promotion?
Still around! After activating T-Mobile’s offer, fans can watch in the MLB or ESPN app. As in the past, that deal does not include MLB Network access, which otherwise comes with the MLB.TV all-team product. MLB will still allow fans to buy standalone MLB Network access. MLB.TV won’t be available on other platforms, such as Amazon Prime Video.
Any other changes to be aware of?
One downside of the new agreement is that MLB.TV apparently no longer offers a free game each day. Instead, ESPN Unlimited subscribers will be able to watch one game each day, even without an MLB.TV subscription. The same is true for Peacock subs.
Several cable replacement services, such as YouTube TV, are integrating ESPN Unlimited content into their platforms. All of MLB.TV likely won’t be available within those interfaces, though the daily free game could potentially flow through, alongside traditional TV channels.
MLB.TV handles my team’s local streaming rights. How’s that going to work?
With Main Street Sports on the brink of collapse—again—MLB now handles the in-market broadcast and streaming rights for 14 teams and counting. Local fans can subscribe to watch those games online for $20/month or $100/season within the MLB app. That will still be the case this year, though ESPN hopes to offer those local packages starting next year. If and when ESPN sells the full suite of local and out-of-market packages, it’s unclear what will become of the league’s own app offering.
For now, MLB will also directly sell bundled packages of local and national streaming rights. For example, fans in San Diego can watch every MLB game, including Padres contests (but still excluding blacked out nationally televised games), for $200 via MLB.
ESPN VP of programming and acquisitions Ashley O’Connor said ESPN is not actively involved in conversations with local teams such as the Atlanta Braves that are currently determining their local media futures. However, the company’s deal with MLB accounts for any new teams whose rights might fall under league control.
Why is ESPN/MLB doing this?
ESPN’s takeover of MLB.TV emerged from rights talks last year after the company opted out of its Sunday Night Baseball deal, leading to new agreements between MLB and ESPN, NBC and Netflix.
Lasker said ESPN’s goal is to both extend the distribution of MLB.TV to more fans—links to watch games are already live on ESPN’s baseball schedule and scores pages—while also generating additional engagement with the six-month-old ESPN Unlimited product.
“Our streaming ambitions are to make sure that ESPN is serving sports fans in the best possible way with the most valuable and comprehensive offerings,” Lasker said.
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - AUGUST 16: Andre Granillo #65 of the St. Louis Cardinals delivers a pitch against the New York Yankees at Busch Stadium on August 16, 2025 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With one day before pitchers and catchers report to camp, Paul Toboni made a move. He traded the recently DFA’d George Soriano for Cardinals reliever Andre Granillo. This is just an exchange of two players on the fringes of 40 man rosters, but it is one the Nats did well in. Granillo has some interesting traits as a slider heavy reliever.
This is an interesting trade because the Cardinals could have waited to claim Soriano, but wanted to jump the line. They probably gave Toboni the choice of a few players on the edge of the 40 man roster and gave him a choice. Granillo might have been the one the Cardinals DFA’d if they decided to just claim Soriano.
Granillo is a 25 year old reliever who has some intriguing qualities. His primary pitch is his slider, which he just spams. In the MLB, he threw the pitch 65% of the time in his 14 outings. At the AAA level, he threw it 55% of the time. Despite the heavy usage, the pitch was still dominant.
MLB hitters only batted .245 against the pitch with an expected batting average of .188. Granillo also got whiffs at nearly a 35% clip. The slider was even more dominant in the minors with a .139 expected batting average and a 47.5% whiff rate. Here is a look at the pitch.
While Granillo is very slider heavy, his fastball has enough life for hitters to respect it. He averaged 94.6 MPH on the pitch, but his fastball shape is not very good. It can be used as a pitch to keep hitters off guard though.
Granillo had a 4.71 ERA in 14 outings at the MLB level, but he showed some promising flashes. He only struck out 19.8% of hitters, but his whiff rate was excellent at 31.5%. Granillo also limited hard contact well with an average exit velocity of 86.7 MPH and a hard hit rate of just 27.7%. These are some things for the 25 year old to build on.
While the results in the MLB were mixed, he was dominant in AAA. He posted a 1.29 ERA in 42 innings with 58 strikeouts. Getting a pitcher that is that productive, who is still pretty young is a major win for Toboni.
Andre Granillo at Triple A in 2025 -42 IP, all in relief -1.29 ERA -2.42 FIP -27.3 K-BB% -91st percentile xwOBA -92nd percentile whiff rate -94th percentile strikeout rate Acquired for a guy picked up off waivers a few days ago? That’ll play. https://t.co/ds8S6QgLXY
I am also interested to see what Toboni can do with Granillo. He might try to diversify Granillo’s pitch mix. There is an intriguing changeup that Granillo threw that could be used as a third pitch more frequently. He also experimented with a sinker, which could be a good idea given his lack of ground balls and sub-optimal fastball shape.
It feels like Toboni may have fleeced his former boss Chaim Bloom here. Granillo is not likely to ever be a closer, but he looks like a solid medium leverage option who is young and has options.
The corresponding move to this was sending Trevor Williams to the 60-day IL. This is unsurprising given that Williams is coming back from elbow surgery. It also underscores the Nats need for starting pitching.
The Nats will be able to open up at least one more 40-man spot with DJ Herz likely to start the year on the 60-day IL. Hopefully that spot can go to a starting pitcher. Picking up Granillo is a nice move, but the Nats still need more pitching.
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor is being evaluated for a stress reaction in his left hand.
Lindor experienced some soreness in the area around his left hand and wrist over the past couple days. David Stearns, the president of baseball operations for New York, said Lindor is going to visit a hand specialist on Wednesday to check his hamate bone.
“It is possible this will result in hamate surgery. If it does, that's a six-week recovery, which puts us right at opening day,” Stearns said. “So at this point, even if it does require surgery, we would remain optimistic that Francisco would be back for opening day.”
Lindor, 32, hit .267 with 31 homers, 86 RBIs and 31 steals in 160 games with New York last year. The five-time All-Star was left off Puerto Rico's roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic over insurance coverage.
Stearns also announced that Juan Soto is going to shift from right to left field. The change was finalized after discussions between the slugger and manager Carlos Mendoza.
Soto also is going to play left for the Dominican Republic in the WBC.
“Over the last month or so, as Mendy and Juan were talking about the season, Juan was working out in left field because he's going to play left field for the D.R. in the WBC,” Stearns said. "As they had their conversations, he felt really comfortable there.
“It made sense for us from a roster perspective, so we're going to go forward with it and everyone's on board with it.”
New York's pitchers and catchers are scheduled to have their first spring training workout Wednesday. The team’s first full-squad workout is Monday.
Soto, 27, agreed to a record $765 million, 15-year contract with New York in December 2024. The four-time All-Star batted .263 with 43 homers, 105 RBIs and 38 steals in his first season with the Mets.
Soto also played left field at the beginning of his career with the Washington Nationals. Mendoza said the conversations about moving to left started in late December.
“I just asked him, ‘How would you feel to play left field for us?’” Mendoza said Tuesday. “And he was like ‘I’m willing to do whatever, you know. If you want me to pitch, Mendy, I’ll pitch.’ Kind of like with that smile, right? And then I was like, ‘Now seriously speaking here, is that something you will consider, if it makes sense for both?’ He's like, 'Absolutely.'"
Francisco Lindor has a stress reaction in his left hamate bone, New York Mets president David Stearns said Feb. 10, and the All-Star shortstop is expected to miss six weeks, putting his status for Opening Day in doubt.
Lindor, 32, had already been ruled out of competing for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic due to insurance concerns regarding past offseason surgeries, but Stearns said this injury emerged recently and wasn't part of the WBC decision. Lindor will see a hand specialist Feb. 11, says Stearns, which should determine whether Lindor requires surgery.
Hitters often have surgery to remove the hamate bone once it fractures, with recoveries ranging from a few weeks to a couple of months. Lindor is coming off his fifth All-Star season, and the fourth consecutive year he's finished in the National League's top 10 in MVP voting.
"Knowing Francisco, I’m optimistic, even if he has to go the surgery route," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said on a video call with news reporters. "Found out a couple days ago and didn’t think much of it because this is a guy who’s played through a lot. For him to say something this early, I was like, hmm.
"But if he has to go that route, I’m optimistic he’ll play shortstop for us on Opening Day."
Meanwhile, Mendoza confirmed that Juan Soto will move from right to left field this year, a move that evolved from conversations they had about him playing left for the Dominican Republic in next month's WBC.
The Mets acquired Luis Robert to play center field, and Soto − in the second year of a 15-year, $765 million contract − might be better suited for left, anyway. Former center fielder Tyrone Taylor and rookie Carson Benge are, for now, expected to command most of the playing time in right field.
"I asked him, 'How would you feel playing left field for us?" Mendoza said. "He said, 'I'm willing to do whatever. If you want me to pitch, Mendy, I'll pitch.' I asked if it made sense for both.
"He said, 'Absolutely.'"
The Mets won 83 games but missed out on a playoff berth by one game last season.
If you are wholly unfamiliar with how Major League Baseball arbitration cases work, this headline could sound somewhat ominous. The reality, though, is that MLB’s arb system is something of a binary system if salaries for eligible players are not hammered out and finalized by a certain date, and an independent arbiter simply gets to pick which side – the player, or the team – has a number that is most deserved.
That’s precisely what went down today between Tyler Stephenson and the Cincinnati Reds. The team’s veteran catcher had submitted a $6.8 million request for the upcoming 2026 season, and the Reds had come in with a $6.55 million number, and despite those two being incredibly close (by baseball salary standards) it was up to an arbiter to decide between the two. And, as MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon relayed, they picked Stephenson’s $6.8 million mark.
The $250K is even less significant in the grand scheme given that the 2026 season will be Stephenson’s final year of team control before he reaches free agency. Since arb salaries become benchmarks on which future year salaries are built, a difference of even that amount in a first year of arbitration could end up escalating further in each of the subsequent trips through the process, but in Stephenson’s case, this is obviously the last time he’ll be doing that.
It remains to be seen whether this February will also be the final time he reports to Goodyear, Arizona as a catcher in a Reds uniform. The Reds went out and acquired Jose Trevino this time last winter to augment the catching mix and immediately signed him to a contract extension through at least 2027 (and potentially 2028), and top catching prospect Alfredo Duno has rocketed up the rankings after his monster 2025 in the minors. That means the writing may be on the wall for Cincinnati’s 1st round pick from back in 2015, but it could also be the right kind of fuel for him to do everything he can to have a monster platform season in 2026 before hitting free agency.
Regardless, one final, major piece of the roster puzzle for 2026 has been adjudicated.
Vancouver's hockey scene has lost a legend, as former Canucks play-by-play broadcaster Jim Robson has died at the age of 91. Robson has been a staple in Canucks history, as he called the team's games from their NHL induction in 1970 and beyond (beginning in 1956) to his retirement in 1999.
Robson was behind the calls for many of the Canucks' most iconic moments in franchise history, most notably those from Vancouver's Stanley Cup run back in 1994. Even so, his list of accomplishments extends past the Canucks. Robson also called various Stanley Cup Finals (1975, 1980, 1982), NHL All-Star games, as well as lacrosse, football, and baseball.
Despite his retirement in 1999, Robson remained a fan of the Canucks and could occasionally be seen attending games. His contributions to the sport resulted in him being named to the BC Hockey Hall of Fame (1998), BC Sports Hall of Fame (2000), CAB Broadcast Hall of Fame (2002), and more.
Mar 2, 2013; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Sports broadcaster Jim Robson is honored during the first period as the Vancouver Canucks host the Los Angeles Kings at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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