SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 17: Bryce Miller #50 of the Seattle Mariners pitches against the Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning in game five of the American League Championship Series at T-Mobile Park on October 17, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Hello friends and happy Friday!
The Mariners took a generational spring training drubbing at the hands of the Padres yesterday, losing 27-6. It’s a bad day to be a reliever on the fringes of the big league roster.
Thanks to Meet at the Mitt podcast listener Josh for providing this helpful link: WBC for Me, which enables you find when and where Mariners are going to be playing in WBC games.
If star Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray ever decides he’s done making boatloads of cash in the NFL, the A’s want it to be known they’re open to giving him another shot at professional baseball.
LAKELAND, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 17: Justin Verlander #35 of the Detroit Tigers poses for a photo during the Detroit Tigers Photo Day at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium on February 17, 2026 in Lakeland, Florida. (Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images) | Getty Images
This wasn’t something most of us ever thought we’d see again. When long-time ace and future Hall of Famer, Justin Verlander, was traded away on August 31, 2017, an eventual reunion seemed a lot more likely. With the Tigers going into rebuild mode, the hope at the time was that they might re-renter a competitive cycle again by 2021-2022 as Verlander neared 40 years old. With his track record that didn’t seem too far fetched, but if you’d told most of us he would return in 2026 at age 43, well that would’ve been very hard to believe back in 2017. Instead, through his miraculous longevity and the Tigers finally getting it going over the past two seasons, a most improbable reunion at 43 years old is about to begin on Friday.
Verlander is slated to make his spring debut at Publix Field against the Boston Red Sox and a good young pitching prospect in lefty Connelly Early at 1:05 p.m. ET today. Annoyingly, the game won’t be broadcast other than on radio, but you can expect quite a welcome from the crowd as Verlander takes the mound in a Tigers’ jersey for the first time in eight and a half years.
It’s been interesting how spring camp has unfolded for him. Verlander threw a long bullpen session with media in attendance early in camp, but has otherwise laid low, leaving the limelight to Tarik Skubal and the Tigers’ top prospects in camp. Reports have indicated him topping out at 95 mph, which is exactly what the Tigers want to see, so all systems appear to be go for him heading into his first start. Still, it wouldn’t be surprisingly to see him cruising at less than full velocity the first time out either.
Veteran pitchers often need less time in camp to ramp up and stretch out, but this is still a pretty late debut. Verlander has been doing this for 20 years, and there aren’t many precedents for this kind of longevity, so presumably the Tigers have basically let him map out his own plan for spring camp. We wouldn’t expect him to throw more than two innings in his first start, but without having seen him on the mound already, it’s impossible to know quite where his timeline is as he builds up to the regular season. There are only three weeks left of camp, and he’ll need to be up to 80 or so pitches by the time the regular season starts, so it’s probably up to him to set his pitch counts at a progression that will have him ready on time.
While it’s going to be great to see him out there again, It’s worth holding a note of caution and keeping expectations in check. Verlander pitched really well in August and September last year. After some nagging injuries early in the season, the velocity returned after he was able to string together a bunch of starts in succession. He was sitting 94-95 mph consistently after being more in the 93-94 mph range earlier in the season. At times down the stretch he was reaching back for 97 and even 98 at one point when he wanted it. We might not see him really turn it loose to that level for a few more weeks at least.
So this is all pretty exciting, but we have to remember that he’s 43 years old and hasn’t put together a 3 WAR season since 2023. We all have hopes of late period Nolan Ryan, or something like Kenny Rogers leading the Tigers’ rotation to the World Series back in ‘06, but we shouldn’t be too greedy here either. Verlander is here to eat innings and be a steady presence after the big dogs, Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez, who will lead the rotation on the mound.
The spectre of an aging Hall of Famer, the greatest pitcher in franchise history, struggling to a 5+ ERA with diminished stuff and racked by injury, is presumably part of the reason the Tigers weren’t keen on signing for him last offseason. Scott Harris does not want to be the guy who has to potentially end Verlander’s career by cutting him during the season. There’s a lot of psychological weight in Verlander’s presence, but of course it goes both ways in this final stage of his storied career. We can’t necessarily assume he’s going to have a good, healthy season at this point in the story.
If Justin Verlander can give the Tigers 150 innings with an ERA under 4.50, that would be a win. They shouldn’t need more than that and expecting too much more is asking for trouble. Putting on a Tigers’ uniform again isn’t going to roll back the clock. There’s nothing wrong with hoping for a dream season. There will be something wrong if Verlander is just solid depth in a starting role and it isn’t enough for some fans.
Right now, it just feels incredibly fitting to have Justin Verlander a Tiger again. He no longer has to lead the way, but his presence on a team with postseason aspirations certainly means a lot of most of us. Let’s just enjoy the ride as long as it lasts.
TALKING STICK, AZ - OCTOBER 07: Luis Perales #91 of the Salt River Rafters pitches during the game between the Glendale Desert Dogs and the Salt River Rafters at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on Tuesday, October 7, 2025 in Talking Stick, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Luis Perales made his Nationals Spring Training debut in the 4th inning versus the New York Mets yesterday, recording a scoreless inning with one walk allowed. He allowed 3 hard hit balls, but none found grass, with 2 flyouts and a lineout to center allowed.
During his 24-pitch outing, Perales threw 33% fastballs and 67% cutters, another example of the anti-fastball revolution the Nationals pitching staff has embarked upon under the new regime. Interestingly enough, MLB recorded Perales as throwing 16 cutters during his outing, but others, such as Thomas Nestico of TJStats on X, tracked him as throwing 12 sliders and 4 cutters, with the sliders having just a little more break and a little less velocity. Nevertheless, Perales’ arsenal looked very impressive in the short outing.
Luis Perales made his Nationals debut!
It's no surprise that Washington was interested in Perales from the Red Sox this winter. His fastball sat at 100 MPH with elite ride which pairs with a strong pair of cutters and sliders. There is some relief risk, but the stuff is nasty! pic.twitter.com/ljj3LlPia2
While all 3 pitches looked sharp, the one that stands out the most is his 4-seam fastball, which he sat 99.6 MPH with and ran up to 100.5 MPH in his outing. Triple-digit fastballs aren’t exactly rare in today’s game, but what is is the movement he gets on the pitch. Perales’ fastball averaged 18.1 inches of vertical break in his outing yesterday, ranking in the top 60 in that category among all pitchers in the majors. Of pitchers who average at least 99 MPH on their heater, like Perales, only Brewers closer Trevor Megill had more IVB on average with his fastball.
It’s no wonder with the velocity and movement that Perales’ 4-seam has that his stuff+ rating on the pitch was a whopping 124, meaning it is 24% better than the average 4-seam fastball in baseball. Not only that, but according to Thomas Nestico’s stuff+ rankings on fastballs, Perales’ heater would have been the highest rated fastball in the bigs in 2025, eclipsing the aforementioned Megill at 119, Mason Miller at 118, and Ryan Helsley, Chase Burns, and Aroldis Chapman at 117. Pretty good company for your fastball to be in.
The fastball is ridiculously good, but the slider is extremely impressive as well, sitting low 90s with tight spin. It graded out with a 116 stuff+ according to Nestico’s formula, which would’ve ranked in the top 10 in the majors in 2025, just under Mason Miller’s slider and just above Jacob deGrom’s.
There are still issues to iron out for Perales, such as command issues and adding another pitch to his arsenal, but the stuff to be a high-end starter, or an elite reliever at least, is all there. The other key for him will be continued health, as he builds back further and further from his Tommy John Surgery. He will likely start the season in Rochester, where I am excited to see how he progresses throughout the year.
A TV camera at a 2023 Spring Training game at Scottsdale Stadium | | Allan Henry - Imagn Images
As you certainly know, the Cubs are televising very few games this spring.
The good news, such as it is, is that going forward there are just two spring games remaining that will have no TV or radio coverage — Tuesday, March 10 at the Rangers, and Wednesday, March 11 vs. the Royals at Sloan Park. Of the other 17 remaining games (including the minor league Spring Breakout game), 10 will be televised, 15 will have a radio broadcast, and eight will have both.
For a generation of baseball fans who have grown up expecting their team’s games to be broadcast on TV and radio, this obviously isn’t an acceptable state, even for Spring Training games. The Cubs and Marquee Sports Network got Cubs fans used to seeing nearly every spring game over the last five years, and so not having them this year has been kind of a shock.
The Cubs aren’t the only team that has cut back on spring TV. The Angels, for example, aren’t televising any of their Spring Training games. That’s largely because Angels TV broadcasts were part of the FanDuel Sports Networks, which collapsed this past offseason, with nine teams involved. The Angels didn’t get their TV broadcasts for the regular season organized until late February, and I suppose given that, it’s understandable that they didn’t do spring games.
The Brewers were in a similar situation, retaining their TV rights and creating “Brewers TV,” which will carry their regular-season games. You saw one of their broadcasts Wednesday, when the Cubs played them and Marquee carried that broadcast. Going forward, though, only five other Brewers spring games will be on TV, and two of those are the Spring Breakout games and one other is on MLB Network.
I’m not writing this to give the Cubs or MLB teams an excuse. They’ve created an expectation that their fans will be able to see all their games on TV. The last Cubs regular-season game that was not televised at all was more than 30 years ago, Monday, July 25, 1994. That was because MLB had created the “Baseball Network,” which carried a national game on Mondays and if your team wasn’t involved in those games, they were blacked out.
But that’s not the world we live in now. Fans want to see their team. MLB and its teams should consider Spring Training games as a “loss leader” of sorts. Yes, it’s relatively expensive to staff spring games with a camera crew and announcers, and there aren’t that many viewers on weekday afternoons in February and March.
Nevertheless, I believe MLB teams — part of an industry that had over $12 billion in revenue last year! — could afford some sort of simple bare-bones broadcast, something, anything that would get fans to tune in.
Thursday’s game at Sloan Park wasn’t televised — anywhere. But as you can see, there were two live cameras at Sloan Park, yes, not with camera operators and with what folks in the TV biz call “natural sound.” It’s not easy to follow the action that way.
But you know… people would watch that! There’s a graphic, as you can see, which shows the score, the count and the outs. Why couldn’t the Cubs just stream that? Absolutely people would watch — they could even sell between-inning ads on that feed to defray any streaming costs.
That’s what I would do. I don’t think Cubs management or MLB moguls realize how much their fans want to consume their Spring Training product. They should make it as accessible as possible.
Tonight, at least, there will be TV and radio coverage of the Cubs game vs. the Padres. It’ll be the Padres TV crew, available through MLB.TV and on MLB Network — no blackouts. There’s also a radio broadcast with the Padres radio announcers. That all starts at 8 p.m. CT.
And soon enough, the 2026 regular season will begin and every Cubs game (and every other MLB game) will be on TV and radio. MLB and its teams need to figure out a way to get every Spring Training game on TV and radio to fans who really do want to watch and listen.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 12: Tomoyuki Sugano #11 of the Colorado Rockies plays catch during a spring training workout at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on February 12, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Kyle Cooper/Colorado Rockies/Getty Images)
In 2025, Colorado Rockies starters had a combined 6.65 ERA, more than a full run higher than the next-worst Washington Nationals. It would be difficult to exaggerate how poorly this group performed over the past few seasons.
But it’s a new day.
The rotation enters 2026 having taken steps designed, not only to stop the bleeding, but also to foster experimentation in order to build a long-term identity.
The Locks
The Rockies spent more money on free agent starting pitchers this offseason than they had in any other since signing Jorge De La Rosa to a two-year deal (with a couple of option years) in 2010.
With that money, they secured the services of three veteran arms that are expected to — alongside rotation stalwart Kyle Freeland — provide the bulk of innings for the major league club in 2026. While the context that brought them here differs, Tomoyuki Sugano, José Quintana, and Michael Lorenzen enter the organization sharing a striking number of similarities as pitchers:
They have been consistently available to take the mound; as a trio the past two seasons they have averaged 26 ⅓ starts a year.
Each has a wide pitch arsenal ranging from Quintana’s five pitches to Lorenzen’s whopping eight.
They’ve all had playoff experience (Sugano’s coming in NPB where he was a three-time MVP).
None of them collects many strikeouts or even throws particularly hard (Lorenzen’s 8.07 K/9 and 93.5 mph fastball are both the high marks for the group).
All of this is also true of the only rotation lock that was present on the team last year: Kyle Freeland.
Now the franchise leader in career games started and bWAR, Freeland has managed to remain a major league quality pitcher for nearly a decade. It’s been years since hope of regaining his near Cy Young form from 2018 seemed reasonable, but the club clearly valued the sort of stability he provides enough to go get three more arms just like his.
There is one other thing everyone in this category has in common: They are in their mid-30’s, and their futures with the organization past 2026 is murky.
Sugano (36) and Quintana (37) are on one-year deals. Lorenzen (34) has a not-insubstantial $9 million club option for 2027. Freeland (32), has an option for 2027 that will vest if he reaches at least 170 innings pitched this year (a number he hasn’t reached in any of the past three seasons).
For this season, though, they will not be expected to shut down the competition, but simply to remain reliably competent.
Under consideration
Beyond those veteran arms that, barring injuries, will provide the bulk of starts for the club is an eclectic group of pitchers vying for the final rotation spot (or two) to start the year.
The front runners are Ryan Feltner, whose 2024 success is clouded by a 2025 lost to injury, and Chase Dollander, one of the most well-regarded pitching prospects in franchise history, who struggled mightily when at Coors in his rookie season.
They both spent their offseasons attempting to overcome the factors that kept them from succeeding last year: For Feltner, that meant gaining strength, whereas for Dollander, it took the form of making mechanical adjustments to be “more direct to the plate.” They both have at least five pitches in their arsenal, like the veterans at the top of the rotation, but they haven’t been able to harness them with consistency. What upside exists with this year’s rotation primarily comes from these two.
Tanner Gordon and McCade Brown (No. 18 PuRP) are in their mid 20’s (28 and 25, respectively), and both have gotten some chances with the major league squad over the past couple years (109.2 and 25.2 innings respectively). Neither is viewed as a future ace (though Brown has seen his stock rise after remaking his delivery last year), but both are arguably major league ready.
The likeliest outcome for Gordon, a finesse pitcher who had a 93rd percentile walk rate last year, is that he’s pushed into a long man/spot starting role. If Brown — who hasn’t pitched more than 102 ⅓ innings in a season — doesn’t make the rotation right out of the gate, he’ll likely see time back in the minors so he can build up to a starter’s workload.
Finally, we get to the two biggest question marks in this equation.
Jimmy Herget, with his funky side arm delivery, had a phenomenal 2025 season but has pitched from the bullpen his whole career. The same cannot be said for Antonio Senzatela who, having been a rotation mainstay when healthy since 2017, lost his spot last August. This was due, in large part, to an overreliance on his fastball, despite it being the worst in the league according to Statcast’s wFA (Fastball Runs above Average).
Both have, somewhat surprisingly, come into the spring being given a genuine chance to win a starting spot. For either to earn a spot in the rotation — and then perform well in it — would be a major win for the new coaching staff.
Regardless of who from this group ends up in the major league rotation on opening day, it’s likely that all of them (with the exception of Herget) will make starts for the Rockies at some point during the season. Injuries, regression, and/or trades will open up opportunities for them, the question is just which of them forces the team to keep them in that spot.
On the Farm
While the new front office made it a priority to bring in veteran reinforcements for the major league rotation, they have yet to put their stamp on the minor league side of things. They’ve inherited a system that has quite a few realistic back-of-the-rotation-type arms that could be ready to make their big league debuts over the next couple years.
It is, however, sparse when it comes to potential impact talent. The one arm within this group that has true top of the rotation potential is Brecht, but he hasn’t pitched above Low-A and has legitimate command concerns to work on.
That’s not to say this group is without future big leaguers — far from it. Guys like Sullivan, Hughes, and Brown are likely going to be in the majors soon and could end up as solid options for the foreseeable future. It remains to be seen, however, whether or not the new pitching development staff can find ways to pull something more than is currently projected out of anyone already in the system.
If not, this may be an area of the organization that sees quite a few new names added over the next year or two.
Closing thoughts
The main theme that has emerged with this group over the course of the offseason is this: depth.
That means depth in the number of arms Warren Schaeffer can feel comfortable turning to for any given game; depth in the number of pitch types that opposing batters have to think about when digging in against each of those arms; depth in experience with other organizations to pull from; and, finally, depth in the potential young replacements for when the veterans depart.
As things stand, there is no one in this group that a playoff-bound team would feel confident in handing the ball to in an elimination game. However, the Rockies are no longer counting on anyone to start for them that wouldn’t get a major league job with another team.
There is still a long way to go before anyone would call the Rockies rotation good, but it should no longer perform so poorly that it’s historically significant.
SURPRISE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 27: Leo De Vries #83 of the Athletics walks off the field during a spring training game against the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium on February 27, 2026 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Morning everyone and happy Friday!
This year’s Spring Breakout Game for the Athletics is quickly approaching. In just over two weeks we’ll see some of the Athletics’ top prospects take on the Milwaukee Brewers’ top prospects in some head-to-head action of what could be and ultimately is a peak into the future of both organizations.
The A’s announced a few of their players that will be participating in this year’s contest. In no surprise to any A’s fan, top farmhand Leo De Vries is set to don the Green & Gold against the Brew Crew. The 19-year-old shortstop is seemingly on the cusp of the majors after crushing the ball last year between Double and Triple-A. It’s important to remember he’s still extremely young for his age but that hasn’t seemed to faze him during his first camp with the A’s. So far he’s 6-for-16 this spring, though all singles. Encouragingly he’s also avoided the punchout with just three so far, which could be one of the things he’s been working on during camp.
Joining De Vries in the Breakout will be outfielder Henry Bolte, currently ranked #5 according to MLB Pipeline but #6 according to A’s fans. A top high school draft choice by the A’s in 2022, he was young when he joined the organization but has steadily climbed the minor league ladder over the past few seasons and is now also on the cusp of the big leagues. He’ll be joining De Vries in the Breakout Game, Triple-A, and before long they’ll be teammates on the Athletics hoping to lead us to the Promised Land. He’s also had a good camp so far with the A’s, going 7-for-20 (but also worryingly with six strikeouts).
Another notable prospect, but one that is much further away from The Show than the previously mentioned two, is two-way player Shotaro Morii. The 2025 international signee last year decided to skip the regular career path of Japanese players and decided to come directly over stateside at just 18 years of age. There was a lot of excitement when the A’s nabbed him, not only because he’s a two-way player but because he’s legitimately talented on both sides of the ball. The A’s promised to develop him as both a shortstop and a pitcher and that seemed to have been the deciding factor for him joining up with us last year. The club decided to slow-roll his development on the pitching side of things but plan to “unleash” him this coming season.
On the pitching side of things for the A’s in the Breakout Game, it should come as no surprise that left-hander Jamie Arnold will be getting the ball at some point in that contest. The Athletics’ first-round pick during the most recent draft looks like the real deal here in camp. It’s just spring and he’s likely to start on the lower end of the minor league ladder but he’s looked good in camp so far in short relief bursts. He won’t be the only top lefty though as he’ll be joined by Gage Jump on the roster. Like Arnold, the 22-year-old Jump has a high ceiling of a #2 or #3 starter on a contending team. Unlike Arnold however Jump is further along in his development and could be an option for the big league squad as soon as this summer. Exciting times to be a left-hander in the A’s system!
Here’s how the full preliminary roster for the Breakout Game looks:
PITCHERS (19) Jamie Arnold, LHP, No. 2/MLB No. 41 Corey Avant, RHP, NR Henry Baez, RHP, No. 14 Mason Barnett, RHP, No. 17 Samuel Dutton, RHP, NR Steven Echavarria, RHP, No. 16 Jackson Finley, RHP, NR Gunnar Hoglund, RHP, No. 18 Kenya Huggins, RHP, No. 24 Gage Jump, LHP, No. 3/MLB No. 57 Wei-En Lin, LHP, No. 4 Cole Miller, RHP, No. 25 Kade Morris, RHP, No. 12 Braden Nett, RHP, No. 6 Eduarniel Núñez, RHP, No. 22 Grant Richardson, LHP, NR Tzu-Chen Sha, RHP, NR Zane Taylor, RHP, No. 19 Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, RHP, No. 27
TWO-WAY PLAYERS (1) Shotaro Morii, SS/RHP, No. 13
CATCHERS (3) Cole Conn, C, NR Davis Diaz, C, NR Dylan Fien, C, NR
INFIELDERS (8) Bobby Boser, 3B/SS, No. 30 Leo De Vries, SS, No. 1/MLB No. 4 Colby Halter, , INF, NR Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, SS, No. 10 Luke Mann, INF, NR Edgar Montero, SS, No. 11 Drew Swift, INF, NR Tommy White, 3B, No. 9
Lots of other interesting and exciting prospects will be available for that game and it truly is a sneak-peak at the future. Just think: current Athletics Nick Kurtz, Luis Morales, Max Muncy, Denzel Clarke, and Gunnar Hoglund were all featured in last year’s Breakout game and finished the year with the big league squad. Which prospects from this year’s contest will be in the majors by season’s end?
In other news, the World Baseball Classic is officially underway! The A’s have six players participating in the tournament but so far none have gotten into official games. In the two exhibition games for Canada we saw Denzel Clarke go 1-for-5 with a walk and three strikeouts. In two Puerto Rico games outfielder Carlos Cortes has gone 3-for-3 and 0-for-2, respectively, while his teammate Darell Hernaiz has gone just 0-for-5 across the two contests.
The three A’s pitchers participating in the tournament meanwhile have been quiet. Starting pitcher and staff leader Luis Severino got two innings of work in for the Dominican Republic in an exhibition against the Detroit Tigers, getting touched up for three runs (including a solo homer to top prospect Kevin McGonigle). Teammate and fellow Athletic Elvis Alvarado made a scoreless appearance the next day with two strikeouts against those same Tigers in their team’s final tune-up. And righty prospect Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, on the Chinese Taipei National Team, has yet to make an appearance but likely will today.
Have a good weekend A’s fans. And enjoy the World Baseball Classic!
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 12: Andrew McCutchen #22 of the Pittsburgh Pirates looks on during the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on Friday, September 12, 2025 in Washington, District of Columbia. (Photo by Alyssa Howell/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
On his SiriusXM show on Mad Dog Sports Radio on Wednesday, a listener mentioned Grizzlies guard Ja Morant potentially being traded to the Bucks and Doc Rivers in the offseason.
Smith didn’t exactly shoot the idea down, but he interjected with some different news.
“It’s not gonna be Doc Rivers [coaching the Bucks next year] because Doc Rivers is gonna retire at the end of this season,” Smith said.
“Doc Rivers has been coaching for close to 25 years, this is it for him. He’s gonna step away.”
Stephen A. Smith briefly worked with Doc Rivers at ESPN before Rivers jumped to Milwaukee. NBAE via Getty Images
It’s unclear whether Smith’s claim has legs, but he did work with Rivers at ESPN for part of the 2023-24 season before the coach took on his role with the Bucks.
Rivers’ tenure in Milwaukee has been a nightmare, going 91-88 across two-and-a-half seasons and failing to make it past the first round of the playoffs.
This season, the Bucks are five games out of the Play-In Tournament in the Eastern Conference at 26-35.
With rumors swirling about a potential Giannis Antetokounmpo trade in the offseason, it looks like Milwaukee will begin a rebuild as well.
Rivers has never been a fan of blowing things up. He moved to the Clippers in 2013 after the Celtics started a rebuild earlier in his career.
Even though he’s under contract through next season, he could just retire instead of continuing, or Milwaukee could simply let him go.
Doc Rivers is just three games over .500 in his tenure with the Bucks. AP
Amid his 27th year as an NBA head coach, the 64-year-old Rivers owns a 1,188-851 career record across stints with the Magic, Celtics, Clippers, 76ers and Bucks.
He hasn’t won a title as a head coach since 2008 with Boston.
If he does retire, one option could be returning to ESPN with Smith.
In his brief stint behind the mic, Rivers was one of ESPN’s lead NBA analysts alongside Mike Breen and Doris Burke. Since then, the company has struggled to replace him.
But first, Rivers needs to prove Smith’s claim correct.
TOKYO, JAPAN - MARCH 06: Shohei Ohtani #16 of Team Japan tosses his bat back to the dugout after hitting a grand slam home run in the second inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool C game presented by dip between Team Japan and Team Chinese Taipei at Tokyo Dome on Friday, March 6, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Shohei Ohtani had three hits, including a grand slam and double to drive in five runs and Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings in Japan’s 13-0 drubbing of Chinese Taipei on Friday morning to open pool play in the World Baseball Classic.
Ohtani doubled to open the game in the first, then hit a grand slam and an RBI single in a 10-run second inning that put the opener to bed for Japan, the favorite to come out of Pool C in Tokyo.
After a perfect first inning, Yamamoto walked the leadoff batter in the second but immediately erased him on a double play. He got a groundout to open the third, followed by a throwing error by third baseman Kazuma Okamoto. That meant the strikeout by Yamamoto that followed didn’t end the third but rather was the second out.
He then walked the next two batters on 12 pitches to load the bases and was replaced on the mound by Shoma Fujihara, who earned a strikeout to escape the inning.
In all, Yamamoto threw 55 pitches in 2 2/3 innings in his third start this spring. He threw three innings and 52 pitches for the Dodgers last Friday against the San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale before leaving to join Japan.
Japan’s next game is Saturday morning at 2 a.m. PT against Korea, who is also 1-0 in Pool C. That game will be televised by FS1.
For the first time this season, the Montreal Canadiens will be taking on the Anaheim Ducks on Friday night. The California-based outfit is currently second in the Pacific Division, and it looks like it will qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 2017-18 season. Keen to help their playoff push, GM Pat Verbeek acquired veteran offensive defenseman John Carlson from the Washington Capitals for two draft picks early on Friday morning. The rearguard has 46 points in 55 games this season and will bring some veteran leadership to a young Ducks side.
This game will be the first duel between rookies Beckett Sennecke and Ivan Demidov. While the Habs’ rookie led the scoring race for most of the season, Sennecke recently overtook him and is now in pole position with 51 points in 61 games, while Demidov has 48 points in 60 games. The young Russian was outshone by the New York Islanders' rookie blueliner Matthew Schaefer when they faced off last week, and he will no doubt want to win his duel with Sennecke.
The Canadiens had a new look at practice on Thursday, not because Kent Hughes went out to get some reinforcements, but because Martin St-Louis decided to change his lines. Since coming back from the Olympics break, his second line had been ineffective, and he decided it was time to put red-hot Alex Newhook back with Demidov and fellow rookie Oliver Kapanen.
As a result, Juraj Slafkovsky went back to the first line, a welcome change for captain Nick Suzuki after having a revolving door on his wing since the big Slovak was moved to the rookie line. This also means that Kirby Dach is moving to Jake Evans’ wing alongside Zach Bolduc. Dach and Bolduc had shown some chemistry early in the season, and the reunion may be good for them. As for the Brendan Gallagher, Philip Danault and Josh Anderson line, it’s the only one that remains untouched.
After Thursday’s practice, St-Louis refused to confirm if there would be any lineup change on the blueline, simply saying “I don’t know” when he was asked if Arber Xhekaj would play. The gritty defenseman has been linked to the Calgary Flames in trade rumours, but he’s still a member of the Canadiens at the time of writing.
The Ducks have a 7-3-0 record in their last 10 games and have won their last game 5-1 against the Islanders, with Sennecke leading the charge with a goal and an assist and Ville Husso manning the net. Since he’s the backup, chances are the Canadiens will face Lukas Dostal on Friday night. The Czech netminder has a 2-1-1 record against the Habs with a 2.69 goals-against average and a .897 save percentage. Meanwhile, Husso has a 4-0-2 record against Montreal with a 1.95 GAA and a .929 SV.
As for the Habs, St-Louis has already confirmed that Samuel Montembeault would be in the net after Jakub Dobes lost his last game and gave up six goals against the San Jose Sharks. The Becancour native has a 2-5-0 record against the Ducks with a 2.89 GAA and a .894 SV. As for Dobes, he has never taken on Anaheim.
Up front, Gallagher is the Canadiens’ most productive player against the Ducks with 12 points in 15 games, followed by Patrik Laine, who has 11 points in 14 games but won’t play tonight. Suzuki comes in third place with seven points in nine games.
At the other end of the ice, veteran Alex Killord has 21 points in 42 duels against the Canadiens, followed by Ryan Strome with 17 points in 24 games and Frank Vatrano with 13 points in 21 games. Newly acquired Carlson has 28 points in 46 duels against the Tricolore, but it remains to be seen if he’ll be dressed on Friday after the trade went down during the night from Thursday to Friday.
The Canadiens have a 4-6-0 record in their last 10 games against the Ducks, and they lost their last meeting, 3-2 in Anaheim in February 2025. The game is scheduled for 9:00 PM ET, and you can catch it on Victory+, KCOP-13, TSN2, and RDS.
Forward Victor Eklund, whom the Islanders selected 16th overall, is untouchable or as close as you can get to it.
The 19-year-old, who has 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in 39 games with Djugardens in the Swedish Elite League, is planning to join the organization for the 2026-27 season, whether that's at the NHL or AHL level.
Don't be shocked if he cracks the Islanders' roster out of camp.
Defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson, whom the Islanders selected 17th overall, is crushing it -- figuratively and literally -- in the OHL with the Barrie Colts. He has 64 points (27 goals, 37 assists) in 50 games and was named February's OHL Defenseman Of The Month for a second straight month, setting the franchise record for points by a blue-liner.
Blueline boss. 👑@NYIslanders prospect Kashawn Aitcheson is your February #OHL Defenceman of the Month for the second straight month, setting a new @OHLBarrieColts franchise record for points by a defenceman.
The Los Angeles Lakers entered Thursday night on a three-game winning streak. The standings were tightening like a vise. One win over the Denver Nuggets and suddenly the Lakers would climb past them and into fifth place in the Western Conference.
A statement opportunity was in front of them.
A measuring stick game.
A chance to show that this version of the Lakers, fully healthy now for the first time all season, belongs in the same conversation as the conference’s real contenders.
After Thursday’s loss, the Lakers are now 14–19 against teams above .500. Against losing teams. AP
Instead, the Lakers walked out onto the floor at Ball Arena and played like a team that didn’t even realize the exam had already begun.
Denver sprinted out to an 11-0 lead before the Lakers had even broken a sweat. Seconds later the score was 15-2 and the Nuggets had already seized control of the game. They would go on to a wire-to-wire 120-113 win while the Lakers spent the rest of the night chasing shadows.
“I didn’t think we started the game with a sense of urgency,” Lakers head coach J.J. Redick admitted afterward. “We talked about the importance of this game pregame. It’s difficult against good teams to spot them 13 points.”
That may be the most polite way imaginable to describe what actually happened in this one.
The truth is more simple: the Lakers blinked.
When the lights got bright against a team that matters, and an opportunity to prove they belonged, they shrank.
And frankly, that has become the defining pattern of this season.
After Thursday’s loss, the Lakers are now 14–19 against teams above .500. Against losing teams. They’re a comfortable 23–6.
In other words, they feast on the league’s soft underbelly and stumble the moment they face resistance.
Remember that three-game winning-streak? Here’s how it went in a nutshell:
The Los Angeles Lakers entered Thursday night on a three-game winning streak. AP
Contenders do that in their sleep.
But when the Lakers see the real giants of the Western Conference — the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder, the rising San Antonio Spurs, the relentless Houston Rockets, the disciplined Minnesota Timberwolves, or the former champion Denver Nuggets — the result usually looks the same.
Close enough to tease hope.
The standings were tightening like a vise. NBAE via Getty Images
Not good enough to matter.
Thursday night followed that exact script.
The Lakers trailed by double digits for most of the game yet somehow clawed their way back into striking distance. With under two minutes left, Austin Reaves stepped to the free throw line with a chance to tie the game.
Miss.
One win over the Denver Nuggets and suddenly the Lakers would climb past them and into fifth place in the Western Conference. NBAE via Getty Images
Moments later, Marcus Smart got two wide-open three-pointers that would have tied it.
Miss. Miss.
Then came the final blow: a defensive rebound the Lakers absolutely had to secure — and didn’t. Nikola Jokic bullied his way to the basket for a layup that pushed Denver ahead by five, the final dagger in a game that felt lost long before the buzzer sounded.
JOKIĆ SCORES WITH 22.3 LEFT TO SEAL IT IN DENVER!
Another Joker masterpiece: 28 PTS, 12 REB, 13 AST.
“We gave a great effort. We had an opportunity at the end of the game. Credit to them,” said James.
Redick pointed to the details that mattered.
“The start was detrimental to our team… we missed five layups in the second half. We lost free throws by 14,” he said. “Both of those things really hurt us.”
Those are the kinds of numbers that expose a team’s margin for error.
Championship teams don’t give away those possessions.
They choke the life out of them.
To the Lakers’ credit, there were small flickers of fight buried inside the wreckage.
Jaxon Hayes was excellent filling in for injured center DeAndre Ayton, finishing 8-for-10 from the field and battling Jokic for 28 minutes.
A chance to show that this version of the Lakers, fully healthy now for the first time all season, belongs in the same conversation as the conference’s real contenders. NBAE via Getty Images
“I thought he was terrific tonight,” said Redick of Hayes, who likely will start at center on Friday on the second night of a back-to-back. “I definitely have a lot of confidence in him.”
Hayes, meanwhile, blamed himself for the loss and was honest about the mountain he had to climb in guarding the three-time NBA MVP.
“He’s 350 pounds and has the best footwork I’ve ever seen in my life,” Hayes said of Jokic. “He’s the best player in the world right now.”
Denver sprinted out to an 11-0 lead before the Lakers had even broken a sweat. AP
That last sentence might be the most honest moment of the entire night.
Because while the Lakers are still trying to figure out who they are, the Nuggets already know.
They are a machine built around one of the best players on planet Earth.
Jokic had yet another triple-double with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 13 assists. Jamal Murray had 28 too.
The Lakers, by contrast, are a team still learning how to fit the puzzle pieces of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and a 41-year-old LeBron James together.
That trio had the opportunity to prove why they belong in the championship conversation.
The Lakers, by contrast, are a team still learning how to fit the puzzle pieces of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and a 41-year-old LeBron James together. NBAE via Getty Images
Instead, the standings continue to whisper an uncomfortable truth.
The No. 6 seed might be this team’s ceiling.
They are clearly not operating in the same stratosphere as the Thunder or Spurs. They were humiliated by Houston on Christmas Day. They lost in five games to Minnesota in the first round of last year’s playoffs. And now they’ve come up short against Denver in a game that could have changed the entire narrative of their season.
Pretenders don’t always get blown out.
Sometimes they hang around just long enough to make you believe.
Then the final two minutes arrive — and the truth shows up.
The Lakers’ schedule won’t offer them much mercy, but it does provide them with more opportunities to prove they belong. Four of their next six games are against the Timberwolves, Nuggets again, and a back-to-back with the Rockets.
Win them all, and they’ll likely find themselves in third place in the standings.
Jaxon Hayes embraced the challenge.
“I like a challenge,” he said. “If you don’t like a challenge, then why are you here?
That’s admirable.
But liking the challenge and beating it are two very different things.
Right now, the Lakers are still learning that lesson.
And until they start winning these prove-it games, the Western Conference already has its answer.
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SARASOTA, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 12: Ryan Helsley #21 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches live during practice at Ed Smith Stadium on February 12, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Baltimore Orioles/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The last time the Orioles were in need of a closer in free agency before this past offseason, they signed Craig Kimbrel, who was once quite good but had his most recent season before that end in a memorable disaster. It didn’t work out. Needing a closer heading into 2026, the Orioles signed Ryan Helsley, who was once quite good but had his most recent season end in a memorable disaster. Maybe it’ll go better this time around.
One thing working in Helsley’s favor is that he’s not as old as Kimbrel was. This is his age 31 season and up to this point he’s maintained a fastball in the 99mph range. The Orioles signed him for $14 million this year and the same amount next year, although if he’s good, he can opt out of the contract. This kind of contract structure didn’t pay off for the Orioles when they signed Tyler O’Neill before last season. Maybe it’ll go better this time around.
Here’s what two of the big projection systems see on average from Helsley this season:
Neither system expects a return to the elite results Helsley was getting in the 2022-24 range. That’s not too surprising. Although a lot of attention is paid to his repeated meltdown games after being traded to the Mets, Helsley wasn’t that same elite guy prior to being traded by the Cardinals either. He had an ERA of exactly 3, with batters hitting him better than they’d ever done before.
If Helsley is around the above projected results, he’ll get some clutch saves where you were sure the Orioles were going to lose, and he’ll have some blown saves that make you wish Mike Elias signed someone better. With the chaos in the bullpen behind him, the Orioles could sure use some ninth inning stability.
What are you expecting from Helsley this year? Do you think he’ll still be around for 2027?
Peoria, AZ - February 23: Freddy Fermin #54 of the San Diego Padres bats during a spring training game against the Milwaukee Brewers on February 23, 2026 in Peoria, AZ. (Photo by K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune via Getty Images)
Walker Buehler made his first start as a member of the San Diego Padres organization against the Seattle Mariners at the Peoria Sports Complex on Thursday. That was supposed to be the lead story of the game as Buehler, JP Sears and Triston McKenzie, who are all battling for the final spot in the San Diego rotation pitched in the game. Instead, the Padres offense exploded with 27 runs and 28 hits in a 27-6 drubbing of the Mariners.
The entire lineup contributed to the end result with one of the top offensive performances coming from Freddy Fermin. The catcher recorded a single, a double and a home run. He also had six RBI and three runs scored. Sung-Mun Song hit his first home run as a Padres with a 430-foot blast. Other San Diego players to homer in the game were Jake Cronenworth, Jackson Merrill, Miguel Andijar, Tirso Ornelas, Bryce Johnson and Nick Schnell.
Buehler completed three innings in his Padres debut. He allowed two runs on two hits and recorded four strikeouts and allowed one walk. Sears also completed three innings and allowed two runs on two hits with three strikeouts, three walks and two home runs allowed. McKenzie completed 1.2 innings and allowed a run on four hits with two strikeouts three walks and one home run allowed.
With his breakout performance against the Mariners, Fermin who joined the Padres at the 2025 trade deadline, appears ready to be the primary catcher for San Diego handling all the duties and responsibilities that entails heading into the 2026 season.
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a grand slam in Japan's 2026 WBC opener Friday against Chinese Taipei at the Tokyo Dome. (Gene Wang / Capture At Media via Getty Images)
The last time Shohei Ohtani was seen wearing a World Baseball Classic uniform with "Japan" across his chest, he was striking out Mike Trout of the United States on a ninth-inning, full-count slider to give his country a victory in the championship game three years ago.
So much has happened in Ohtani's life between then and now. He has a wife and a daughter, a new interpreter, a new Major League team, two World Series championships and three more Most Valuable Player awards.
Yet unforgettable WBC memories continue. This time, he delivered from the batter's box instead of the pitcher's mound.
In the second inning of Japan's WBC opener against Chinese Taipei on Friday at the Tokyo Dome, Ohtani smacked a hanging curve a few feet over the right-field wall for a grand slam, triggering an offensive onslaught that resulted in a 13-0 victory.
"I thought it might land as an out, so above all, I really wanted to get the first run on the board," Ohtani told reporters afterward.
Ohtani led off the game with a double and singled in his second at-bat of the second inning, when Japan put up a WBC-record 10 runs. He added a run-scoring single in the third inning, giving him five runs batted in.
In 2023, Ohtani hit and pitched Japan to the WBC title, batting .435 with eight RBIs and allowing only two earned runs in 9 2/3 innings on the mound. This year, he will only bat, saving his pitching for the Dodgers, who begin their quest for a third consecutive World Series title in three weeks.
Japan's starting pitcher Friday was a decorated Dodger nevertheless. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, MVP of the 2025 World Series, threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings, walking three and striking out two while giving up no hits.
His command wasn't pinpoint — he threw 53 pitches, 33 for strikes — but it is still spring training, even though the atmosphere was electric for Japanese players competing in front of a crowd of 42,314 that included actor Timothy Chalamet and superstar Bad Bunny.
"I know there will be some tough battles ahead, but if the fans and the team can unite and everyone can help build the excitement together, it will really encourage us," Ohtani said.
