Worldwide Sports News

Mets starter Clay Holmes had himself a dazzling World Baseball Classic debut for Team USA on Saturday night.

While coming in relief for reigning American League Cy Young champion Tarik Skubal during the Untited States’s’ 9-1 blowout win over Great Britain in Group B pool play, Holmes, 32, threw three scoreless innings and struck out six batters.

The Mets right-hander also struck out five Great Britain hitters in a row across the fourth and fifth innings.

Saturday’s game was Holmes’ first appearance in the WBC, with the two-time All-Star previously telling reporters that he was ready to represent his country.

“I feel ready,” Holmes told reporters earlier this month, according to MLB.com. “Whether you know you’re in spring training facing a big league lineup or you’re going to face another team in the WBC, you’re trying to get outs, and you’re doing the best you can.”

After initially being held scoreless for the first four innings, Team USA erupted for five runs in the fifth and four more in the sixth and never looked back.

Following Holmes, Yankees closer David Bednar came in and threw a scoreless seventh inning, striking out two.

Great Britain did start the game hot, however, with outfielder Nate Eaton taking Skubal deep on the first pitch of the game and Trayce Thompson robbing Will Smith of a homer in the second, but Team USA rolled after that.

After losing in heartbreaking fashion to Japan in the 2023 WBC, Team USA came back stronger than ever for this year’s tournament, with manager Mark DeRosa assembling a star-studded team this time around.

“Not only can we talk about players, but our coaching staff, too,” Team USA captain Aaron Judge told reporters on Monday, according to The Athletic. “We’ve got All-Stars, Silver Sluggers, World Series champs, [pitching coach Andy] Pettitte, one of the best postseason pitchers ever.

“It’s just some of the best baseball players that ever played the game in one room, so it was pretty cool to get a chance to address them and talk with them. That’s what I kind of started out with: It’s just an honor to be here in front of you and be wearing the same uniform as you guys.”

Observations from Yankees spring training Saturday:

Good Will Warren

Despite saying his “stuff wasn’t as sharp” later in his outing as he wanted, Will Warren threw four solid innings and gave up just an unearned run in a 50-pitch outing.

No-show on ‘O’

The Yankees left most of their main players — the ones who aren’t in the WBC — back in Tampa.

But the lineup that faced the Nationals didn’t impress, putting up just three hits — all singles.

Caught my eye

Washington right-hander Josiah Gray missed all of last season after July 2024 Tommy John surgery.

The New Rochelle native and Yankees fan appears to be all the way back, with three scoreless innings against the Yankees.

Sunday’s schedule

The Yankees continue their East Coast (of Florida) road trip with a game against the Mets at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie with offseason addition Ryan Weathers on the mound. 

The midway point through Spring Training brings a little more clarity to the roster competitions going on in camp for the San Diego Padres with almost three weeks to go. The scores of the games don’t matter; the games often include minor league players that will never see a major league roster. Even the performances by the veterans are not too important as it is the process that is the focus in spring.

Everyone is working on stuff. Hitters are refining approaches and tweaks to their mechanics. Pitchers are working on new pitches, grips, sequences and building stamina. Despite all of that, it is still possible to impress the coaching staff if you are a non-roster invitee or minor league prospect. There are many factors that go into making the final roster decisions at the end of camp and some of those decisions are made easy by performances.

Randy Vasquez

When camp opened in February, manager Craig Stammen sent a message to starter Randy Vasquez. You have to earn your spot on this staff; nothing is a given. It appears Vasquez took that challenge to heart and has been impressive. His fastball velocity is averaging 2.2 mph higher than last season, and he is using it a lot more. The whiff percentage has gone from 16% to 27.3% in his appearances so far. Last year, of his seven-pitch mix, he had a stuff+ rating of 100 or more for his cutter, sweeper, curveball and slider. This spring, his stuff+ is 100 or more for all of his pitches.

In the 4.2 innings pitched in his two starts, Vasquez has allowed one hit with five strikeouts and three walks and no runs allowed. The exhibition against Great Britain on March 4 featured the first start for Joe Musgrove in his return from Tommy John. Vasquez came on in the fourth inning and pitched four shutout innings, allowing one hit and three strikeouts with no walks. That is a drastic contrast to watching him in past seasons, where his nickname was “Strandy Vasquez” with his penchant for getting out of messes he created for himself.

The Padres staff has expressed excitement with his performance so far and Vasquez has no worries if he can keep this up.

Fifth rotation spot

Triston McKenzie will not be in the rotation. The velocity is impressive but the control and command are everywhere. No one can fix that in three weeks.

Marco Gonzales has improved from the start of camp, but his competition is pushing him to the back of the line due to his low velocity compared to the other starter options.

JP Sears has improved his velocity (up to 94 mph on his fastball) but the command of his pitches has not been consistent. If he is to compete, he must improve his location on all his pitches.

Germán Márquez has also improved as the number of starts have increased. His fastball in the mid-90s is used about half the time and he mixes in his knuckle curve, slider, sinker and changeup. Only his curve has a stuff+ of 100 or more and the rest are below average.

Walker Buehler has a seven-pitch mix with a fastball that currently hits 94 mph. His stuff+ is better on his secondary pitches and his only appearance for the Padres showed a starter that knows how to pitch. If he improves over the course of the rest of the games, it will be hard to imagine the other starters beating him.

The last starter spot will continue to be competitive until late in spring. An improvement in performance and execution could significantly affect the final decision. As things stand now, Buehler seems to be the frontrunner but that can change. There has been no clarity on what happens with the veterans who don’t make the roster. The opt-out rules and contract details aren’t totally clear, and those details could be part of the final decision.

First base and DH

The competition for the platoon partner for Gavin Sheets at first base and DH seems to have concluded with both Miguel Andujar and Nick Castellanos showing major league performances in spring games. Castellanos can play corner outfield and DH but spent his offseason working at first base. Despite learning a new position, Castellanos has looked comfortable and made some good plays. There have also been enough misplays to allow him to learn and get coaching and mentoring from those around him. Offensively, his 21 at-bats feature a home run, two doubles and six RBI with a .333 average and 1.011 OPS

Andujar, who can also play third base and left field, has had 21 at-bats with a double, two homers and three RBI. He is hitting .381 with a 1.233 OPS. Although spring stats mean very little, seeing them both make good contact and have good at-bats is encouraging for improving the production in the last half of the lineup.

Infield/Outfield depth

Sung-Mun Song looks good in infield drills, showing athleticism and excellent defense. He has played mostly third base so far this spring. He debuted at shortstop in the game on March 5, making a good play with quick reactions and a strong throw. He also hit a home run 430 feet with an exit velocity of 105 mph on a 95-mph fastball. Watching his hits so far this spring, hitting velocity hasn’t been an issue.

Unfortunately, he came out of that game with soreness in his right oblique. That is the same side he injured before camp began and is now day-to-day. Depending on his progress, there could be some competition for infield depth as infielder Ty France has impressed this spring. In his 24 at-bats, France has three doubles and five RBI while playing strong defense at first base. If the Padres test him at third base and second base in coming games, it could be a sign that he has a chance for the roster.

Coming into spring, most everyone figured Bryce Johnson had a lock on the fourth outfield job. He played well last year and is a defensive plus at all three outfield positions. It’s possible that may not be the case. Johnson has options remaining and there are multiple players in camp who have experience in the outfield. Castellanos and Andujar are infielders who have played the corner outfield spots. Gavin Sheets has also seen time. The real issue is the backup for Jackson Merrill in centerfield and only Ramon Laureano has been able to fill in. That isn’t a great fit, but Johnson could be called up in case of a longer-term issue.

It will be interesting to see if there is a true fourth outfielder on the roster when camp breaks.

Bullpen

The only clarity to come with this battle is that Bryan Hoeing appears to have a significant injury and may not be in the conversation at all. The team has been suspiciously quiet about details regarding his status. The only report is elbow soreness, and he is exploring second and third opinions on his options. None of that sounds good and it is possible surgery would be what is being debated.

The surprise has been the rise of Logan Gillaspie as an option for the long role. His velocity is also up from previous years and there looks to be more movement on his pitches as well. The 3.2 innings pitched so far have been over two games with one hit and six strikeouts. Nick Pivetta is backing off from his start on Sunday and Gillaspie will start in his place.

The final decision for the bullpen will probably come down to the last days of camp, unless there are further injuries. Fingers crossed that the performances will continue to make it hard on the Padres staff to make those final decisions.

Catcher

The start of his tenure as the new manager featured Craig Stammen naming Luis Campusano as his back-up catcher. He left no doubt he was counting on Campusano to win the job this spring. So far, Campusano has looked good behind the plate. He is noticeably more engaged with the pitchers, and his work seems a lot more focused. Although his throws were a bit off to start, his last couple have been on target and crisp.

Unfortunately, his offense hasn’t kicked in yet. It seems obvious that might lag behind if he is dedicating most of early camp to the pitchers and his defense. Watching for more offense as the games go on and we get closer to the regular season would relieve some anxiety among fans who have never seen a consistent Campusano in a Padres uniform.

If positive vibes and confidence from the manager have any effect, then Campusano should begin to bloom soon. If you buy into the theory that 80 percent of baseball is mental, then having confidence in a player and giving him all the opportunities should bring out the best in him. I continue to hope that Stammen supporting and encouraging Campusano will unlock the player we haven’t seen yet.

Saturday night was supposed to be about Tarik Skubal, at least from a Tigers fans’ perspective. The best pitcher in baseball had a perfectly fine short outing for Team USA against Team Britain, but it was southpaw Enmanuel de Jesus who put on a show. Taking on Team Israel, which does feature a few major league caliber hitters, the southpaw struck out seven of the first 14 hitters he saw in perfect fashion. A triple and a single in the fifth allowed a run before de Jesus punched out his eighth hitter of the night to wrap up five stellar innings. Team Venezuela went on to win 11-3 on homers from Eugenio Suarez and a pair of blasts from Luiz Arraez.

Granted, outside of Harrison Bader, Team Israel is composed of Triple-A caliber hitters. But considering how well de Jesus has pitched all spring, it wasn’t surprising to see him absolutely dominate in the spotlight. His fourseam and sinker command was outstanding, and he was working cutters and changeups just off the edges with a lot of precision. It reminded me of watching prime Jose Quintana out there.

De Jesus has 6 1/3 scoreless innings for the Tigers already in Grapefruit League play with an excellent strikeout to walk ratio. He signed a minor league deal worth a potential $1.3M if he makes the Tigers’ major league roster this offseason. After pitching well in the KBO the past few seasons, the lefty’s command of his 93-94 mph fourseam-sinker combination, cutter, and changeup, have all looked very good so far. It’s not the kind of arsenal that screams frontline MLB starter, but as long as his command is this good, it’s going to be hard to keep him off the Opening Day roster with a straight face.

The Tigers might prefer to keep him stretched out, but with Keider Montero and Ty Madden already optioned to minor league camp, there’s really no need. We also don’t know the specifics of de Jesus’s minor league contract. If he has an opt-out date if not called up to the major leagues, the Tigers are probably best served by taking him on Opening Day and optioning Brant Hurter. Let’s just say that Hurter needs to get it going in a real hurry or he’ll be tuning up with the Toledo Mud Hens while de Jesus occupies the longman/lefty role in the Tigers’ bullpen.

It’s easier to pitch well early in camp before the major league hitters are ramped up and clicking on all cylinders, but just watching the stuff and command, it’s obvious this isn’t just a fluke run. De Jesus pitched very well and really learned his craft overseas, and it looks like the Tigers are set to benefit so far this spring.

As for Skubal, he was only scheduled to throw 55 pitches or so, as he’s put his emphasis on preparing for the regular season. He surrendered a first pitch home run to Red Sox infielder Nate Eaton before getting into full Skubal mode and punching out five hitters in three innings of work. Team USA leads 7-1 in the seventh inning as of this writing.

This one was a win for the red coats.

Great Britain outfielder Trayce Thompson robbed a potential game-tying home run during their World Baseball Classic Group B pool play game against the U.S. in their 9-1 loss to the American on Saturday night at Daikin Park in Houston.

With one out in the second inning, Team USA catcher Will Smith belted a ball opposite field, but Thompson leaped and made the catch to keep the ball in the diamond.

Trayce Thompson at the wall!! What a play!

: WBC on FOX pic.twitter.com/hETGR2g5jS

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 8, 2026

Thompson, 34, is the brother of five-time NBA All-Star Klay Thompson, and spent this past MLB season playing for the Red Sox’s Triple-A affiliate in Worcester.

He has spent parts of seven seasons in the MLB, playing for the Dodgers, White Sox, Cubs, Padres, and Athletics.

Despite being a native of California, Thompson is eligible to play for Great Britain because his father, former NBA center Mychal Thompson, is from the Bahamas, a former British colony.

Thompson’s catch comes as Great Britain started surprisingly well start against a powerful U.S. team.

On the first pitch of Saturday’s game, Great Britain outfielder Nate Eaton blasted a solo shot off of reigning American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.

Reliever Najer Victor also struck out four batters in just 1⅓ innings pitched.

Great Britain also kept Team USA scoreless through the first four innings, until Team USA third baseman Ernie Clement came home on a wild pitch in the fifth inning.

Designated hitter Kyle Schwarber then followed with a two-run blast to give the U.S. their first lead of the night.

Shortstop Gunnar Henderson then hit a two-run double to break the game open for Team USA, putting them up 5-1, and they didn’t look back.

Great Britain is still seeking its first win in the WBC this year. They lost 8-2 to Mexico in their first pool play game on Friday.

Perhaps the feature player of Great Britain’s roster is Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr., who joined them for this year’s tournament after originally playing for them at 18 years old back in the 2016 WBC qualifiers.