Worldwide Sports News

Hello friends!

The Mariners’ slide continued yesterday as the bats slept in during a 3-0 series finale loss to the Rangers. The team has gifted us with an off-day today, which hopefully helps them reset before they face the similarly-struggling Astros.

Have you been keeping up with any other teams in the league so far this year? Since the M’s have been so unfun to watch, what squads have you enjoyed getting to see so far?

In Mariners news…

• In case you missed it, Victor Robles was placed on the injured list with a pectoral strain. The Mariners called up Connor Joe to take his spot.
• The M’s announced their full slate of OTA (over the air) affiliate-covered games for the 2026 season.
• Jeff Passan wonders if Emerson Hancock’s success will finally prompt the Mariners to trade one of their starting pitchers.

Around the league…

• In case you missed it, the Braves and Angels got into a good old fashioned brawl on Tuesday night when Anaheim outfielder Jorge Soler came swinging at Atlanta pitcher Reynaldo López.
• Angels right-hander Robert Stephenson had his 2026 season come to an end thanks to elbow surgery.
• Things keep getting worse for the Astros, who lost starter Christian Javier and outfielder Jake Meyers with injuries during yesterday’s game.
• Orioles righty starter Zach Eflin underwent Tommy John surgery, taking him out until mid-2027.
• Giants manager Tony Vitello revealed that the team has already had three clubhouse incidents since the season started.
• The MLB strike zone is taller and narrower than ever, wrote Bradley Woodrum at Baseball Prospectus. ($)
• Michael Baumann at Fangraphs dove into the incredible start to the season for Angels right-hander José Soriano.
• The Reds have DFA’d recent top prospect Christian Encarnacion-Strand. He does hit right-handed, just sayin’.
• Over at Fangraphs, Ryan Blake explained how bat speed changes with the temperature at the ballpark.
• Rockies to the moon!

• Well, I guess that’s neat.

Anders’ pick…

• Looking to waste some time? Check out the new MLBguesser game and test your photographic memory.
• The Seattle Storm is offering all Washington state residents 18 years and older two free tickets to a game on their birthday. If your birthday occurs during the offseason, your tickets are valid for a May contest.

All winter long, the buzzword about the Red Sox pitching rotation was “depth.” But a few weeks into the season, that depth hasn’t shown up yet, with the rotation looking top-heavy and overly reliant on Garrett Crochet and Sonny Gray. (Alex Speier, Boston Globe)

But if you have to be top-heavy in the rotation, it helps to have someone as good as Crochet at the top. He played stopper this week against the Brewers and, as one of the few Red Sox players who has heard “sell the team” chants before, he knew how to deal with the bad vibes at Fenway: “It’s weird because regardless of how you feel about the ownership group, the chants always come with you guys make an error, you guys walk a run in, you guys strike out with the bases loaded. They are (expletive) on us, but not saying it. It’s weird. It’s just passion, at the end of the day. We know when we’re doing bad. … I think it’s fair to want more and want us to get the job done and just play clean baseball. I don’t think that’s asking a lot of us to play clean baseball.” (Rob Bradford WEEI)

After Crochet and Gray, the next most reliable arm has been rookie Connelly Early. And the Red Sox are lucky to have him, considering that there’s a slightly altered universe wherein, as opposed to getting ready to face the Cardinals, Early would be getting ready to invade Kharg Island. That would be horrible for many, many reasons. (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)

Early’s not the only rookie arm on the Sox right now, though. Reliever Tyler Samaniego made his big league debut against the Brewers yesterday, striking out Lexington native Sal Frelick with the first three pitches he threw. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)

Samaniego is going to get plenty of chances to show he belongs. After a relatively healthy spring training, the inevitable pitching injuries are finally here. Johan Oviedo has avoided surgery for now, but he won’t be throwing for the next six weeks and will be out until at least June. The news with Justin Slaten isn’t quite so bad, but his oblique injury will sideline him for a couple of weeks. (Ian Browne, MLB.com)

While the Sox need more from the pitching staff, they also need more from the lineup, including vets like Trevor Story. Luckily, Alex Cora sees signs that Story is turning things around. (Hayden Bird, Boston.com)

Lots of things have gone wrong for the Kansas City Royals in 2026 so far. The bullpen has been a complete and abject disaster, with a 6.40 ERA in 45 painful innings. Power left-handed batters Jac Caglianone and Vinnie Pasquantino have combined for zero home runs and only three doubles in 93 plate appearances. Their pitching ace, Cole Ragans, has a 5.91 ERA across three starts of only 10.2 innings.

But the Royals are built to weather those sorts of things and still do well. They have excellent starting pitching depth and talent overall. They steal bases effectively. Their defense is still solid.

However, the Royals stand 5-7, two games under .500, because something is happening that the team is absolutely not built for, and that is for Bobby Witt Jr. to be in a prolonged slump.

Witt is, without a doubt, the Royals’ most talented and reliable asset. He’s on a Hall of Fame track, and displays a level of athleticism and poise that few professional athletes in general have. He’s great and Kansas City is lucky, beyond lucky, to have him.

Witt has also simply looked lost this year. Witt slugged .256 in 2024 and .205 in 2025, but it took him until his 12th game to get his first extra base hit, a double; he’s still searching for his first home run. His strikeout rate of 19.2% would be his highest since his rookie year.

Take a look at his Statcast dashboard and you’ll get a visual feel for what’s going on. Here’s his 2025 Statcast info:

And the same screen from his 2026 page:

Witt’s average sprint speed is a full mile per hour slower than last year, which isn’t great. But there are three real problems with Witt this year compared to last year: he’s not barreling the ball, he’s not squaring up the ball, and he’s not pulling the ball.

You can see pretty quickly that most of Witt’s hits this year have been on the opposite half of the field. Witt had a lot of hits to the opposite half of the field, but you can see that only four of his 23 homers were hit to the opposite half of the field in 2025. In other words, Witt’s most dangerous power is pull-side power, and he has simply not pulled the ball this year. Notably, Statcast doesn’t display same-day batted ball events, and you can see that his first extra base hit of the year was—you guessed it—a line drive to the pull side.

In the late part of the clip, Royals broadcaster Jake Eisenberg says that “That’s the thing about hitting the ball hard, you do it consistently, the more you do it, the more likely those results are gonna come.” And Eisenberg is right there, but he’s only partially right—you have to hit the ball hard at launch angles that result in the highest hit probabilities. Broadly speaking, Witt hasn’t been doing that, and his lower barrel rate shows that.

Witt hasn’t been totally useless, to be sure. Quite the opposite; Witt is an elite defensive shortstop and an accomplished base stealer. He’s also walked more often this year, too. That’s why he has a cool 0.4 Wins Above Replacement already (a nearly 5.5-WAR pace) despite an OPS safely below .700. He’ll start hitting home runs, and the Royals will start scoring more runs. That is inevitable.

The real biggest problem with Witt’s slump here to start the season is that it highlights just how shallow the team is. Kansas City simply does not have the offensive talent to compensate whenever its core cog isn’t rotating like it should. They have too many hitters that make too many outs, from Salvador Perez’s abysmal .281 OBP since the start of 2025 to Lane Thomas’ slightly-less-but-still abysmal .294 OBP since 2024. You’ve also got guys like Nick Loftin (career OBP of .296) and Kyle Isbel (career .292 OBP) and Michael Massey (career .283 OBP). Caglianone has an OBP of .250 so far in the big leagues. There’s not a lot of trust to go around, in other words.

When Witt isn’t hitting well, it just becomes uncomfortably obvious that the Royals have basically been a 75-win team with a league MVP talent strapped to it Looney Tunes-style. Consider: they won 86 games in 2024 when Witt was a 10.5 WAR player, and they won 82 games last year when Witt was an 8 WAR player. If you replace Witt with, like, Yuniesky Betancourt or Mark Teahen or whatever, there’s no way either of those teams end up with a winning record.

It’s not a bad thing to rely on superstars to do superstar things. That’s totally a reasonable roster construction strategy. It’s just that those superstars, when used correctly, are what takes a team from good to great. Right now, Witt is taking the team from bad to good. And that is an uncomfortable position for Witt and the team to be in.

The New York Yankees have seen hundreds of hurlers walk through the clubhouse doors. Some stayed for a long time and continued long major league careers elsewhere, while others saw the flame of their professional baseball dreams burn out quickly. For this edition of the Yankees birthday series, we’ll be taking a look at not just a World Series champion with the Bombers, but also someone who established himself with the organization and then went on to be a reliable pitcher for a long career with a handful of different teams: David Robertson.

David Alan Robertson
Born: April 9, 1985 (Birmingham, AL)
Yankees Tenure: 2008-2014, 2017-2018

“D-Rob,” as he is sometimes called, was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and played high school baseball there, working as a shortstop and a pitcher. After his high school days, he played college baseball for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide before being drafted by the Yankees in the 17th round of the 2006 MLB draft. After two seasons in the minors, Robertson made his MLB debut on June 29, 2008, at 23 years old. His first game would be against a team he would play for in the future and the Yankees’ crosstown rival, the New York Mets. He pitchedtwo innings, allowing four hits and an earned run with no walks and a strikeout.

Robertson pitched in 25 games that season and tallied 30.1 innings, a 4-0 record with a save, but a 5.34 ERA after what was an abysmal start to his career, as he was sent back down to Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre in August before being recalled in September.

In 2009, Robertson took on a much more prominent role for the Yankees out of the bullpen. He pitched in 45 games with 43.2 innings to his name and a 3.30 ERA as well, a major jump from his first year. His 130 ERA+ is well above the average, and he was not only a crucial part of the 2009 Yankees regular season, but in the five games he pitched during the Yankees’ postseason run that year, he did not allow a single run and gave up only four hits. He finished the year as a World Series champion, and his performance in the Yankees bullpen certainly showcased that he deserved it.

In 2010 with the Yankees, he took another jump in games played and innings pitched and remained under the 4.00 ERA mark. However, in 2011, he really shone in pinstripes despite being the eighth-inning setup guy for then-closer Mariano Rivera. At the halfway point of the season, Robertson had already tallied 55 strikeouts and made the American League All-Star team as a replacement for David Price. And through the rest of the year, he was just as fantastic. He finished the season with 100 strikeouts on the dot in 70 games played and 66.2 innings pitched. Not only did he also finish with a 4-0 record, but it was simply impossible for anyone to score a run against him, as he ended the season with a whopping 1.08 ERA and a 399 ERA+. As a result, Robertson finished 11th in AL Cy Young voting and 22nd in AL MVP voting in one of the best seasons for a reliever that has ever been played.

Over the next couple of seasons, which weren’t as impressive as 2011 but still very good, Robertson continued to establish himself as a premier relief arm for the Yankees and across MLB. After Rivera’s retirement in 2013, Robertson took over the closing role for the 2014 season, his final in that first stint with the Yankees, and he pitched well in the new role. He recorded 39 saves and returned to an ERA just slightly above 3.00 at 3.08 in 64.1 innings pitched. He also finished with the most K’s since that 100 strikeout season, with 96.

After 2014, Robertson joined the Chicago White Sox for three seasons from 2015 to 2017 after signing as a free agent. He posted a 3.28 ERA across those three years as Chicago’s closer and also pitched on Team USA’s gold medal-winning team at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

However, Robertson’s Yankees tenure wasn’t finished yet, as he was traded on July 18, 2017, back to the Bronx from the White Sox. He was in a package that also included Todd Frazier and Tommy Kahnle, while the White Sox received Blake Rutherford, Tyler Clippard, Ian Clarkin, and Tito Polo in return.

In those first 30 games during the 2017 season, he recorded a 1.03 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 35.0 innings. And in his final 69 games as a Yankee in 2018, he finished with a 3.23 ERA and 91 strikeouts — his fourth season with 90+ strikeouts out of the bullpen — in 69.2 innings pitched.

Following that last season in New York, Robertson moved around plenty. He played his 2019 season in Philadelphia for the Phillies before missing 2020 due to injury. In 2021, he put on the Tampa Bay Rays jersey only 12 times before playing for both the Chicago Cubs and heading back to Philadelphia in 2022 at the age of 37, finishing with a 2.40 ERA between the two squads.

In 2023, Robertson joined two new teams — the Mets and the Miami Marlins before playing 2024 with the Texas Rangers and recording his last truly excellent season. At the age of 39, Robertson posted a 3.00 ERA and 99 strikeouts, his first 90+ strikeout season since 2018 with the Yankees, in 72.0 innings.

In his final season at age 40, Robertson made his third return to Philadelphia and pitched in only 20 games before hanging up the spikes following his last game on the mound on September 28, 2025.

As we reach April and start to get closer to the 2026 MLB Draft, we have looked at the college players in this draft a couple of times this season already. Now it’s time to turn our attention to some of the high school options that the Atlanta Braves may want to select this year.

These are going to be in alphabetical order, with a focus on players who might be selected within the first 100 picks of this draft. It will also be focusing on guys the Braves could draft, so the top prep prospect, Grady Emerson, will not be included due to there being no chance he gets down to the team with the ninth pick.

Extended look at 2026 LHP Carson Bolemon. Showing the usual fastball coming out the hand with ease and a stead mix of slider/curveball. Has punched out eight in three innings of work.

Wake Forest signee@SabreBaseball

FB: 91-93 T94
SL: 82-83
CV: 79-80#DP2026pic.twitter.com/1gU9mzfSaO

— Diamond Prospects (@diamondprospect) March 30, 2026

Carson Bolemon, LHP, South Carolina HS – Bolemon is in the conversation for the top prep pitcher off the board this year, meaning the Braves would need to select him as #9 as he may not be there for #26. He hasn’t pitched a ton this spring, but does have 13 strikeouts in just five innings, while also putting up big numbers as a hitter. He has touched 94 MPH so far this spring, but shown a plenty of swing and miss with both of his breaking balls as he has three to four potentially plus pitches. He is a Wake Forest commit.

Eric Booth Jr. is one of the most exciting athletes in the 2026 class.

In his junior year, he hit .467 with six home runs, five triples, 12 doubles and 27 stolen bases.

See his scouting report: https://t.co/qww3iP8dtepic.twitter.com/V9GXXKiKlb

— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) February 23, 2026

Eric Booth Jr., OF, Mississippi HS – Booth has been rising over the past few months to the point where he is a potential Top 10 pick this year. The son of a former All Conference kick returner at Southern Miss, Booth is a power/speed combo center fielder with a feel for hitting. Booth will still be just 17 on draft day, but the Vandy commit is projected average or better in four tools – with his below average arm being the one exception. It is unlikely the Braves would even see him at #26.

‘26 Coleman Borthwick (FL) massive 6’6” 250 lb frame up to 97 mph x2 🔥. Devastating SL w/ sharp late two plane bite. Velo climbed

5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K

FB: 90-97 (2648)
SL: 79-85 (2697)
CH: 81-84 (1852)@AuburnBaseball recruit #MLBDraft | @ShooterHunt | @SowalBaseballpic.twitter.com/YEB2ogsIHy

— Cayden Hatcher (@CaydenHatcherFL) March 13, 2026

Coleman Borthwick, RHP, Florida HS – A potential first rounder, Borthwick has looked great so far this year. He is presently at 32.2 scoreless innings with 58 strikeouts in that time, despite a pretty tough schedule. He was recently seen hitting 97 MPH, and has also been a key piece of his team’s lineup. The U18 World Baseball Classic MVP is an Auburn commit, who could start to be an option for the Braves at 26.

Triples and homers. It’s all Blake Bowen (@blake_bowen10) does.

Smokes this one 380 feet to right-center at Dodger Stadium for a stand-up triple.

There’s no lulls in this kid’s bat. https://t.co/Cg2LxZqCXrpic.twitter.com/EpDXXGqMFD

— Over-Slot Baseball (@OverSlot_) February 1, 2026

Blake Bowen, OF, California HS – A riser over the fall and winter, Bowen is a physical former football player with plus grades on his power, speed, and arm. He started his rise as he showed some real improvement with the hit tool over the fall, and could project into a middle of the order bat now. Bowen is a likely first rounder, who could be in play for the second Braves pick of the round.

After making some noise at the plate he makes some noise behind it. 🔥🔥

‘27 Will Brick (@Willbrick99) makes INSANE back pick from his knees. Shows why he’s one of the top defensive catchers in the country. #TNTPG25 / / @EasleyBaseballC / / @ShooterHunthttps://t.co/X0ipvLbo33pic.twitter.com/C8uZOfbJLC

— Prep Baseball Tennessee (@PrepBaseballTN) May 28, 2025

Will Brick, C, Tennessee HS – The unquestioned top catcher in the prep class, Brick actually reclassified into the class from the 2027 class. His high end defense is the calling card, but he should be at least average with the hit tool and power. Brick is a potential first rounder, so the Braves would need to take him with #26 or their second round selection to get the Mississippi State commit.

Ceiling continues to grow for 2026 RHP Blake Bryant.

5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K; 22 whiffs (80% strikes)

FB: 91-95 T96; Carry, S/M
SL: 79-82; Tight, 2600+
CB: 75-78
CH: 82-86; R/R feel#PBAAG25 alum & @ClemsonBaseball commit.@PrepBaseballGA || @ShooterHunt#GAHS26pic.twitter.com/0uvOfMANLu

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) March 12, 2026

Blake Bryant, RHP, Georgia HS – Bryant checks a lot of boxes that the Braves like. He’s a projectable, athletic, local 6’5 pitcher with a quality fastball, potentially plus slider, and the makings of a potentially future average change, as well as a future average command grade. He also possesses an average change to deepen his arsenal. The Clemson commit is probably more of a second or third rounder as the fastball is more average to a tick above, though could turn into a plus pitch depending on how much he adds when he fills in his 6’5, 180-pound frame.

James Clark 📈

The @SJBoscoBaseball shortstop is one of the best pure hitters in the prep class.

He's a riser in our latest draft rankings: https://t.co/wcWCQUBXfcpic.twitter.com/S1VoUv8LcG

— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) March 27, 2026

James Clark, SS, California HS – A recent riser, Clark is a player who reminds me a bit of a prospect I liked last year in Kayson Cunningham. I was high on Cunningham and his similar skill set, a potential plus hitter with plus speed to go with power that is a tick below average and some questions about sticking at short – but would have a prospect like that a little further down the board in this loaded draft. Still he is a likely first rounder, and may not even be there for the Braves second first round pick. He just switched his commitment from Princeton to Duke to play with his twin brother, so he is very much a candidate to need an overslot deal.

Trevor Condon (‘26 GA)- deposits the 1st pitch he sees over the CF wall for a leadoff 💣. Tooled up OF with quick hands & barrel strength thru the zone from the @Vol_Baseball commit #PGHS@EtowahBaseball@PG_Draftpic.twitter.com/Zf4WS60Gcc

— Perfect Game Georgia (@PG_Georgia) March 25, 2026

Trevor Condon, OF, Georgia HS – Another local product, Condon is an old school leadoff hitting center fielder. His best tool is his 70 grade speed, but he is also a potentially plus hitter with plus defense in center. He brings a bit more power than the typical 80’s/90’s leadoff center fielder, though it’s probably just below average at maturity. Condon could potentially be a candidate at the back of the first round, but more likely in the second.

17-year-old Joseph Contreras, MLB's No. 47 Draft prospect, twirls a scoreless frame for Team Brazil in the #WorldBaseballClassic! 🔥

The son of 11-year MLB vet Jose Contreras blows a 97 mph fastball past three-time MVP Aaron Judge before inducing a double play. pic.twitter.com/Rca2F54mtP

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) March 7, 2026

Joseph Contreras, RHP, Georgia HS – The son of former big leaguer Jose Contreras, the Vandy commit has had as loud of a spring as any high schooler on this list. That’s all due to his performance in the World Baseball Classic for Brazil, getting to pitch against Team USA and holding his own as a high schooler. He’s a projectable arm on the younger side for the class, and has four potentially above average pitches, including a plus forkball to go with average command. The ceiling could be really high if he was able to add a little more movement to his fastball, which has been up to 98 MPH – but doesn’t quite play at that velocity due to lacking life on it. He will potentially come off the board somewhere after the middle of the first round.

LHP Sean Duncan
2026, @Langleyblaze@VandyBoys Commit

Dominant early season look at 🇨🇦’s top #MLBDraft prospect. Struck out 8/10 batters faced w/ 17 total whiffs.

FB 90-95
CH 82-84 | Darts
SL 79-80 | 2-plane; manipulates @ShooterHunt | @PB_DraftHQ | @SeanDBaseball08pic.twitter.com/izNgPj2cUX

— Prep Baseball BC (@PrepBaseballBC) March 1, 2026

Sean Duncan, LHP, Canada HS – The top Canadian prep prospect this year, Duncan is a projectable, younger for the class lefty with three average or better pitches plus solid command. The change is his best weapon, but like many cold weather arms, there is potential he is just scratching the surface. He is a Vanderbilt commit. Duncan could go in the second or third rounds.

‘26 C Sean Dunlap (@Seandunlap28) had some jaw-dropping moments at the Max Clark Slugfest.

Significant strides in lower half control while still providing vicious bat speed. Impressive length out-front.

Exits up to 115.8 👀😳

One of the top prep backstop for the 26 #MLBDrafthttps://t.co/HMYmqykMnapic.twitter.com/KylaA3NhqW

— Cooper Trinkle (@CTrinkle23) January 5, 2026

Sean Dunlap, C, Indiana HS – Dunlap is considered the second best catcher in this prep class, as the Tennessee commit has an interesting tool set for the position. Dunlap is most known for his power potential and great athleticism for the position, enough that outfield isn’t out of the question for him. He’s got some questions on the swing and miss in his game and will need to continue refining his defense, but this is a premium prospect who should go within the first four rounds.

‘26 Jared Grindlinger (CA @Vol_Baseball)

FB: 92-95 (ASR, shotgun)
SL: 82-86 (flash AA, firm)
CH: 78-83

Competitive look w/double-digit whiffs on FB. SL 📈up throughout especially back leg to RH. CH solid 3rd. Effort out front.

Youngest prospect in class. 👍👍#MLBDraftpic.twitter.com/yU2tSte2RA

— Shooter Hunt (@ShooterHunt) April 8, 2026

Jared Gridlinger, OF/LHP, California HS – You may remember Jared Gridlinger as the very recent reclassification from the 2027 class, as the best legitimate two way prospect since Tampa took Brendan McKay in the first round. The younger brother of 2025 prospect and current Tennessee catcher Trent Gridlinger, Jared has high upside both on the mound and at the plate. It’s tough to say where he will end up playing, and that will probably be determined by the team drafting him. That along with his later entry into this draft complicate the draft stock a little bit, but he has a chance to be drafted in the first round, even before the Braves come up at #26.

Brady Harris (‘26, FL) continues to hit w/ this backside knock to plate an RBI. Solid impact to oppo and uses whole field well. @tcabaseballjax#NHSI26#Florida commit. @Florida_PGpic.twitter.com/L02KXZbzeT

— Perfect Game Scout (@PG_Scouting) March 27, 2026

Brady Harris, OF, Florida HS – A potential five tool talent, depending on if he is able to hit enough, Brady Harris is a player who has long been on teams radars. His stock is also tough as it really depends from team to team on what they think of the hit tool. He could go as early as the second round, or make it to Florida next year.

8 K's over 5 no hit innings for Jensen Hirschkorn (2026). The 2025 PG All American worked/lived 91-93 throughout, needing just 53 pitches (42 strikes). SL 78-80 was main secondary showing the CH 83/84 later in the outing. @PG_Scouting@PG_Draft@KHSBaseball_1@PGAllAmericanhttps://t.co/4Q4PQ2ck01pic.twitter.com/C7q1zysI0M

— Perfect Game California (@California_PG) March 31, 2026

Jensen Hirschkorn, RHP, California HS – A projectable, athletic 6’7 prep arm up to 96 MPH already with above average command and a pitch mix that the Braves like (potential swing and miss slider, average curve) should have fans paying attention to LSU commit Jensen Hirschkorn. It’s thought that this multi-sport athlete has plenty of room to add on to his 205-pound frame. Hirschkorn would need to be drafted with the second first round pick or the early second rounder.

St. Ignatius SS/OF Archer Horn with some lefty-lefty crime, blistering a ball through the hole. Judah Ota (@Ota_Judah) came up firing to get the runner at home.

Some good baseball here early at Dodger Stadium. @ACBaseballGames pic.twitter.com/CDAkcskkLw

— Over-Slot Baseball (@OverSlot_) February 1, 2026

Archer Horn, SS/RHP, California HS – Horn is both another recent riser and two-way star, though most project him to end up playing every day. Horn, who is potentially average across the board as a hitter, is a Stanford commit. There are some questions on how his range would play at short, leading to some thought that he could move to third because of his strong arm. He also has a fastball that has been up to 95 MPH, giving him a fallback option for whoever drafts him. Horn could start to play a factor in the second round.

‘26 SS/P Cole Koeninger (TX @Vol_Baseball) on the barrel for a single through the left side after some dangerous swings earlier.

Adonis-like 6’2” 215 frame with premium bat speed and impact.

Impressive. #MLBDraft || @PB_DraftHQ@PrepBaseball_TXpic.twitter.com/04hrSpI2EG

— Shooter Hunt (@ShooterHunt) February 20, 2026

Cole Koeninger, SS/RHP, Texas HS – Yet another two-way guy, Koeninger may have some teams that like him as a pitcher – however he prefers hitting. There are some questions on his hit tool, but he could be a kid with four above-average tools including plus grades on his run and arm. As a pitcher he has touched 97 MPH and has what should be a plus curve to go with solid command and some flashes on a lightly used change. He is a Tennessee commit. Koeninger is a possible second or third rounder.

Didn’t take long for Jacob Lombard (‘26 FL) to announce his presence w/ a leadoff tank, clearing the wall in LC. Big time juice for the @CanesBaseball commit #PGHS@Florida_PG@PG_Draftpic.twitter.com/vO0ZW87UW4

— Perfect Game California (@California_PG) March 30, 2026

Jacob Lombard, SS, Florida HS – The son of former Brave George Lombard and brother of current Yankee top prospect George Jr., Jacob is an interesting prospect himself. Coming into last summer many saw him as a potential Top 3 pick this year, but then he started to struggle a bit with the hit tool in showcases. He came into the spring as a guy who would need to answer some questions, and the early returns from scouts have been very positive. He is starting to trend back towards the Top 10, and likely would need to be drafted #9 for the Braves to have a chance, that is if he even makes it that far as he is a potential plus power and speed guy who us expected to stick at short.

Bo Lowrance launched an absolute moonshot last night — a grand slam and his third homer of the spring.

Length, bat-to-ball skills, and power projection make for a really fun all-around offensive profile. He's up to No. 59 on our updated draft board. pic.twitter.com/78kL0AM4me

— The Prospect Porch (@prospect_porch) March 26, 2026

Bo Lowrance, 3B, South Carolina HS – A projectable prep shortstop, Lowrance is likely to have to move to third base as his 6’5 frame fills in. He is a guy who should have at least plus power and has some feel for hitting. He is likely to be a second or third round target, who will need to be bought out of a Virginia commitment.

Hard not to be all in on the profile for 2026 SS Rocco Maniscalco.

Impressive blend of hand speed and ability to rotate paired with innate feel for the barrel.

Impact glove on the left side of the dirt long-term.

And still just 16.4 👀@PrepBaseballAL@ShooterHunt || #PBAAG25pic.twitter.com/HEuDkFdABk

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) September 21, 2025

Rocco Maniscalco, SS, Alabama HS – Another reclassification originally from the 2027 class, Maniscalco is the son of a former minor leaguer. The Mississippi State commit, who doesn’t even turn 17 until May, brings five average or better tools, with his plus defense and arm at short being the carrying tools. There is some first round buzz around him, but he could start to really be an option in the second round.

3B Beau Peterson could have the some of the easiest pop in the 2026 class.

Zero wasted effort in a compact path w/ immense strength in the 6-foot-2, 205-pound frame.

Avg. EV 100.8
Max EV 107.8
Max Distance 419ft.@TexasBaseball commit.@PrepBaseballKS@ShooterHunt || #PBAAG25pic.twitter.com/n5yH91wExZ

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) September 23, 2025

Beau Peterson, 3B, Kansas HS – A rare Kansas prep star that is ranked highly, Beau Peterson is a two-way guy that projects best as a hitter. The Texas commit has big power and has shown that he could be a potential average or above hitter at maturity. There are some questions about him sticking at third base, as his foot speed is below-average, but with his big arm he should have one of the corner outfield spots as an option if he does have to eventually move off third. He would start to be an option at the end of the first round.

2026 INF/OF Kevin Roberts Jr.
Jackson Prep

The Florida Gators recruit finds the barrel on two different occasions for the Patriots while adding an rbi. @KevinRobertsJr5 || #MSHS26@jprepbaseball || @GatorsBBpic.twitter.com/bPvbQzQSgS

— Prep Baseball Mississippi (@PrepBaseballMS) March 12, 2026

Kevin Roberts Jr., OF, Mississippi HS – A high school teammate of Konnor Griffin, Kevin Roberts Jr. has been on scouts radars for a long time already. He’s super toolsy and is easily a four tool guy, though there are some questions about just how much the Florida recruit will hit. The power and speed each have the potential to be plus for him, and the glove is also an asset in center, but this three-sport, two-way star does have some questions to answer because of the hit tool. There is a wide variance to where he could be drafted because of that, but he is as toolsy as anyone in the class.

Gio Rojas (‘26, FL) 6’4-190 LHP. FB: 92-94 T95; heavy ASR + plays well above the hands. SL: 80; sweeping action w/ feel to spin (~2661RPM). Flashed a CH @ 80; generates chase down + out of the zone. Intriguing. #PGHS#PGDraft@canesbaseball commit. pic.twitter.com/Njkds0DAQg

— Perfect Game Florida (@Florida_PG) February 6, 2026

Gio Rojas, LHP, Florida HS – The other arm firmly in the running for the top prep arm in the class is Gio Rojas, out of Florida powerhouse program Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS. Rojas has a plus fastball up to 98 MPH, plus slider, and the makings of a solid change to go with above average command. This Miami commit is both athletic and projectable. To draft him the Braves would likely need to take him at #9, as it doesn’t seem especially likely that he would be there at #26.

Just an impressive AB here from 2026 SS Aiden Ruiz.

Spoils countless good pitches before hammering this backside for the RBI 2B on pitch #12

Top-of-the-class zone awareness with innate feel for the barrel.@VandyBoys commit. @PrepBaseballNY || @ShooterHunt@PB_DraftHQpic.twitter.com/CgfovFsoqu

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) February 24, 2026

Aiden Ruiz, SS, New York HS – While Aiden Ruiz isn’t the biggest prospect out there (5’10, 168) and projects to have below-average power, there is enough to like about him that he is considered to be a potential mid to late first round pick. The switch-hitting Vanderbilt commit is an elite defender at short, has a very strong hit tool, and has above average speed. He’s the kind of player that pitchers hate to face, because he is going to grind out tough at bats and put the ball into play. With a little more power, he’d be even higher on boards, but he still hits the ball plenty hard – just more into the gaps for doubles.

‘26 Logan Schmidt (CA @LSUbaseball)

FB: 91-95+ (2100, heavy @ times)
CH: 82-85 (1400, +pot)
CB: 74-78 (2000s, for K, dev.)

6’4” 220 durable frame. High front side w/ quick arm. CH stands out as best 2ndry. CB more depth late. Starter profile. M2C.#MLBDraft || @PrepBaseballCApic.twitter.com/XHBUJmY6jC

— Shooter Hunt (@ShooterHunt) March 29, 2026

Logan Schmidt, LHP, California HS – Yet another reclassification from the 2027 class, Logan Schmidt, is another prep arm who is likely to go somewhere in the first round. Schmidt is up to 97 MPH with the fastball, but it hasn’t always been a plus pitch for him. You could argue his slider is his best pitch, and he has the makings of at least an average change to go with a very good feel for command. The LSU commit, who will still be 17 on draft day, may need a little more development than Rojas and Bolemon, but has everything teams want in a prep arm.

Lucky #13 on April Fool’s Day.

2026 OF Martin Shelar extending his 🍑state-lead with his 13th HR in 21 games.

Hands explode through the zone w/ immense barrel feel that leads to some of the best power in the class.@HailStateBB commit.@PrepBaseballGA || @ShooterHunt#GAHS26pic.twitter.com/huYPcSM0Ey

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) April 1, 2026

Martin Shelar, OF, Georgia HS – One of the biggest risers from the prep ranks this spring is Martin Shelar, the Mississippi State commit from Marist HS. Shelar projects as a power hitting outfielder with some feel for the hit tool. He could be an option after the start of the second round, though might be more likely around the third round.

Savion Sims (‘26 TX) rolls through 3 on 10ks. Fastball opened 96-99 (2323 RPM) ⛽️ in the first. Sat 96-98 in second. 93-97 third inning. Slider 84-88 bullet like. Splitter 86-89 flashed topping and diving. Fastball produced 7 S/M. Slider produced 10 S/M. Overpowering and bullying… pic.twitter.com/oLQp8g7UUN

— Perfect Game Texas (@Texas_PG) February 10, 2026

Savion Sims, RHP, Texas HS – An ultra long and projectable arm, Sims is 6’8 and 205-pounds with a fastball already touching 97 MPH. The rest of his arsenal projects more average, with the command still a work in progress. Although he is listed as being from a Texas high school, he transferred there from an Oklahoma high school, and is committed to his home state Sooners for next year. He is also a bit older for the class, turning 19 before the draft. Still he is a lottery ticket type of talent and projection who could start to get interest in the second or third rounds.

Tyler Spangler offers one of the cleanest swings in the 2026 class.

But there are questions about what his upside potential is.

See where he falls in our Mock Draft: https://t.co/jdcrPlmno6pic.twitter.com/8HMeyJcQ0i

— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) March 9, 2026

Tyler Spangler, SS, California HS – Spangler is another potential first round shortstop, though with his 6’3, 195-pound frame there are some who wonder if he will eventually outgrow the position. Still he’s got all five tools with average or better grades, as a player who should hit for both average and power, and play above average defense over on the left side of the infield. The Stanford commit could be an option for the Braves as early as #9, though they may be hoping he could get to #26 as a possible overslot pick.

Did not take long for us to get on the HR train today, as Landon Thome (Jim's son) went yard off a 94 MPH heater. 101 EV/355 feet at a park that is tough on LHH.

Very polished swing with easy motions and bat speed. pic.twitter.com/qmoHAUwkVU

— Tyler Jennings (@TylerJennings24) August 7, 2025

Landon Thome, SS, Illinois HS – The son of Jim Thome is the teammate of 2025 second rounder Jaden Fauske. Thome is a prospect expected to hit for both average and power. He isn’t going to have the quickness for short as a pro, though his glove itself is solid. That leads to questions about quickness and arm strength for second and third base, with left field being a possibility. That is going to put some extra pressure on the Florida State commit’s bat, but it is a very strong bat. He could start to be a candidate late in the first round, into the second.

Extended look at RHP Kaden Waechter ‘26 (FL) from last night.

3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 6 K

76% K | 59% Whiff

FB: 93-95 (2609)
SL: 85-87 (2511)
CH: 84 (1961)@FSUBaseball recruit | #PBAAG25@JesuitBaseball | @ShooterHunt#FLHS26#MLBDrafthttps://t.co/cZs2vmgdlxpic.twitter.com/ffrtjwFBui

— Rocco Iervasi Jr. (@rocco_iervasi) February 14, 2026

Kaden Waechter, RHP, Florida HS – The son of former big league pitcher Doug Waechter, Kaden is athletic and projectable, pitching with a good four-pitch mix. The fastball already touches 96 MPH to go with a swing and miss slider and solid cutter. The change is a bit behind, but he has feel for it and it could turn into an adequate fourth offering with more reps. Command is also a selling point, as it could grow into above average in time. Waechter could start to become an option in the second round. He is a Florida State commit.

Toolshed profile on display this afternoon for 2026 OF Noah Wilson.

On-base 3x times. Multiple hard-hit barrels and infield 1B (3.91 H-1st 💨)

Plus glove shown in CF with effortless range in all directions.

2x #PBAAG alum & @VandyBoys commit.@PrepBaseballTN || @ShooterHuntpic.twitter.com/XkqC465Mjp

— Ian Smith (@IanSmittyGA) March 14, 2026

Noah Wilson, OF, Tennessee HS – Wilson is another player with helium this spring. The Vanderbilt commit is a two-way star who projects as a hitter at the next level with an interesting power/speed combination. Wilson could start to be considered at the end of the first round, but is more likely a second rounder.

The Detroit Tigers have struggled this week on the road against the Minnesota Twins, losing three in a row and four straight overall after an 8-6 defeat on Wednesday night.

Jack Flaherty takes the mound looking to end the pain while Mick Abel toes the rubber for the home team. Here is how they match up.

Detroit Tigers (4-8) vs. Minnesota Twins (6-6)

Time (ET): 1:40 p.m. ET
Place: Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota
SB Nation Site:Twinkie Town
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 13: RHP Jack Flaherty (0-1, 7.56 ERA) vs. RHP Mick Abel (0-2, 11.05 ERA)

Player	G	IP	K%	BB%	GB%	FIP	fWAR
Flaherty	2	8.1	18.6	18.6	34.8	5.23	0.0
Abel	2	7.1	16.7	16.7	20.0	4.96	0.0

FLAHERTY

ABEL

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here.

The New York Yankees are off to a hot start, and their series decider against the Oakland A’s headlines a light Thursday slate.

Across town, the New York Mets are also in action, and my MLB player props target both of those contests, as well as a wager on Seth Lugo to pepper the strike zone.

Check out my Top 3 MLB prop picks for Thursday, April 9.

Best MLB player props today

Brent Rooker 2+ hits + runs + RBI

Brent Rooker was one of the A’s heroes yesterday with a game-winning sac fly RBI in the top of the ninth, and I’m banking on him to make a splash again today.

The A's offense has been wildly erratic, but Rooker’s 2025 numbers suggest he can get to New York Yankees starter Ryan Weathers. 

Rooker had a .293 batting average against lefties last year, to go with a .885 OPS, and he blasted a home run off Weathers in a 2024 matchup during the pitcher’s time with the Marlins. 

Plus, the A’s DH has had some huge moments lately, most notably hitting two homers against the Astros on Sunday, including a three-run walk-off.

• Time: 1:35 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: NBC Sports California, YES

Bo Bichette Over 1.5 total bases

Things are looking up for Bo Bichette after a tough, strikeout-filled opening week that brought boos from New York Mets fans, and this is nice value for another busy day on the basepaths.

He’s posted a solid .286 batting average so far in April, and he’s coming off a pair of singles in yesterday’s 7-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Bichette is still searching for his first home run of the year, but he’s swinging the bat confidently, and I like the matchup today against Arizona starter Eduardo Rodriguez.

While Rodriguez has been terrific in his first two starts of 2026, Bo is 5-for-13 against the D-Backs lefty, including two homers and a double. I expect him to deliver good at-bats again here for a New York offense that’s still without Juan Soto.

• Time: 7:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ARID, SNY

Seth Lugo Over 4.5 strikeouts

After some bumps in the road last year, Seth Lugo is trying to rediscover his stellar 2024 form, which included a 3.00 ERA and 181 strikeouts.

The early signs are promising. The veteran racked up seven strikeouts in five innings of work against the Brewers over the weekend, and he also hit this Over in his final three starts last season.

Look for the righty to settle in today against an underwhelming Chicago White Sox lineup. Andrew Benintendi and Reese McGuire are the only White Sox batters with a career hit against Lugo, and Chicago is tied for the fourth-fewest runs per game this year (3.42).

I see Lugo cashing this Over, even if he doesn’t pitch past the sixth inning.

• Time: 7:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: CHSN App, ROYL

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Last season, overwhelmed by the pandemonium both on the field and in the world at large, I took a yearlong break from baseball. The scores were pinned to my home screen, but not a single full game was broadcast in my home. For the first time since 2003, I was tuned out. I got so much accomplished with my extra time, and was riding that dopamine dragon, fueled by my toiler to-do lists and my Capricorn moon (Aquarius sun, Leo rising, for those who know).

My dad and I joked about being bandwagon fans when we landed on the conclusion of taking a break, but qualifying anyone else’s fandom is peak cringe, and gatekeeping isn’t for me. Join the club, or don’t, it’s not my business. Still, it felt wrong to miss games, like I was abandoning a part of myself, my history and my city. I wouldn’t have been able to forsake the White Sox without my dad doing the same at the same time, and he also didn’t see a single game in its entirety.

It stressed us out.

Although I kept tabs on the White Sox and their offseason moves, I still felt an acute sense of dread when considering recommitting to my fandom. I used to love and defend this team, but I no longer could fall upon the sword, especially with the specter of Mike Clevinger casting a foul shadow over the organization. Watching games became an albatross, and obligation to something that fucking sucks is a death knell for creative energy. 

Sometimes, a trial separation can grant you the perspective that you otherwise wouldn’t gain while still embroiled in the madness. 

For the first time, I dove headfirst into the NFL. Before the baseball break, the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills were my teams, and I scheduled my days around their games. Without baseball, I needed more. I plugged the MLB-sized cavity with the gauze of NFL Sunday Ticket, watching every single game and every team. Bears in the living room, Bills in the den, and the rest of the simulcast games in the bedroom. Ten thousand steps a day, every Sunday, was accomplished just in the space of my home, walking between games. Unlike baseball, which tends to make a loner out of fans, every Sunday was an event: early morning gym with friends, come back to my place to make food, watch every single football game, and talk shit together. 

Is baseball boring? I asked myself. I watched every White Sox game for decades, whether writing about it or not, but game coverage was becoming unsustainable when covering a team I fundamentally took issue with.

Not to mention, almost none of my friends are baseball fans, except for one who used to work for the Cubs, still adores them, and throws me piteous glances when quietly answering someone about her team with an air of Pollyanaism. I deserve it.

Although I finally fell head over heels in love with the NFL, football doesn’t last forever. The baseball itch returned. No, no more White Sox. Not yet.

How about basketball? Take a look at my March Madness bracket points. I am an embarrassment to the world of sports, and about 30 people were making fun of how poorly I did in a group chat I wasn’t even a part of. I deserved it.

Options exhausted, and itching for baseball, I studied to get my boating license and completed the course. That’s Captain Di to you, matey.

(I don’t own a boat, by the way.)

Determined, I found a new sport: marble racing. You can watch sentient marbles racing on Youtube with an announcer calling play-by-play, teams with rivalries, and once, there was even a streaker marble stopped by security. I called my friends over and forced them to watch it with me. I finally won. Go Hazers!

Who was I fooling? Opening Day loomed. My fingers itched. My mind returned again and again, haunted by the ghost of the White Sox.

I needed to come home.

Back in 2024, I wrote an article about a sentient campfire milkshake, who was granted the gift of foresight after being struck by lightning during a rain delay, and who was interviewed by me after I snuck into the White Sox locker room. True story. It wasn’t the first, and far from the last time I expressed my interest in any and either of the Ishbia brothers taking ownership of the White Sox. 

So, as soon as I got the news about Justin Ishbia, I knew I’d be dropping by this season at least a few times, even if the ownership transfer date is coinciding with the total collapse of the global climate and I’ll probably be a charred skeleton by the time it finally happens. I won’t bore readers with the career minutiae of why I’ll be here less than I was, but please know that I’ve missed everyone on the staff, who work tirelessly to make South Side Sox a place you can come to commiserate with fellow fans, and share your misery and joy without being subjected to censorship.

Oops, almost forgot. Happy Thursday, White Sox fans. I’m back.

The world has changed in my time away. AI has taken way too high of a priority in peoples’ lives. With the complacency paradox, the brain rot, and its overall impact on the environment it is no longer an amusing novelty. So it’s banned for me, even for things like crude images. It’s good old-fashioned Photoshop from here on out.

For all the changes, some things are evergreen. John Schriffen still makes my eye twitch. I had come into this season with a resolution to give him a break, but then, the other night, I heard, “Tanner Murray in his big league bay-bue!” 

Since then, I’ve heard four other gaffes. Hey, quick question, how does one go about stopping an eye from twitching?

We’ve got a new roster, and inexplicably, Andrew Benintendi is still here, and is scoring. Good ol’ tomato boy. Just being himself. Sitting there. Yep.

Davis Martin had already won my heart, so seeing him more often has given my faith a shot in the arm, especially with his impressive start this season. It’s easy for some to be on camera, but it’s challenging for trained athletes, whose attentions are forced to be myopic, and who usually aren’t media-trained until after retirement. Martin’s charisma sparkles during interviews (please don’t be problematic, please don’t be problematic, please don’t be…). That level of grounding and focus can make a difference in day-to-day performances, and man, I hope it does. I may be huffing the copium, but you are as well. That’s why we’re all here.

I’ve had an eye on Shane Smith, our Rule 5 diamond in the rough, and despite his violent fluctuations from hot to not, I doubt he’ll end up pulling an Esteban Loaiza. Yesterday, Smith was sent back to Charlotte after just three starts that were on par with what we’ve had to deal with as current-era White Sox fans, but he’s dedicated to improving, and his attitude is optimistic. Plus, he reads actual books. Hey, watch out for that bar on the floor, by the way. 

I can’t help but root for the underdog. My March Madness bracket is proof that sometimes we believe with our hearts and not our minds. There’s only one bigger underdog than the White Sox, but moves are being made. The tide is turning. Dark shadowfiend domestic abusers have been removed from the roster. Jerry Reinsdorf is running out of children’ s souls to prolong his life with, and the transfer is set in stone.

Kyle Teel will heal. Chase Meidroth may look at the pitcher like he’s trying to see what’s hidden in the Magic Eye poster, but he can play. Munetaka Murakami is a potential superstar enjoying a powerful start to his major league career, and he’ll adjust challenging high velocity pitches. Miguel Vargas is underrated as hell, and this season, he’ll prove it to everyone. The team is young. Anything can happen.

The gears are moving. The machine is being oiled. Like the reigning American League Champion Toronto Blue Jays enduring a series sweep against the reigning second-worst team in Major League Baseball, maybe the other teams won’t see the White Sox coming.

Introduction

Last week we went over the bottom half of the Dbacks top hitting prospects, this week we look at the top five.

5) Demetrio Crisantes

Fangraphs|Baseball-Reference| MLB Pipeline

A native Arizonan from the borderown of Nogales, Demetrio Crisantes was drafted by the Diamondbacks in the 7th round of the 2022 draft with the 198th overall pick. Crisantes has done nothing but absolutely rake at every level. In 29 games in his professional debut in the Arizona Complex League, Crisantes hit .347/.417/.465 with a 126 wRC+. He’d return to the ACL for another 29 games to begin his 2023 season and hit an even more robust .355/.431/.521 with a 141 wRC+. He made significant progress with his underlying statistics, raising his BB% by 2.2% and lowering his strikeout rate by 3%. He also was much better on the basepaths, getting caught stealing once as opposed to twice the previous season, on top of upping his stolen base total from two to ten. The biggest driver in his increase to his slugging percentage was the four extra triples he hit compared to the previous season, as his other extra base totals remained the same. That earned him a promotion to the A ball level Visalia Rawhide, where he put up even more robust stats. In 63 games he’d hit 333/.429/.478 with a 146 wRC+. Although his strikeout percentage ticked up slightly by a half a percentage, he increased his BB% by an additional percent. In addition he doubled his HR rate, hitting three times as many as he had combined in the Complex League. Crisantes would earn another promotion to the A+ Level Hillsboro Hops, where he would hit 252/.358/.415 with a 111 wRC+ in 34 games. Unfortunately, Crisantes had a posterior labral tear in his left shoulder, which prematurely ended his season in May. Crisantes has been assigned to the AA level Amarillo Sod Poodles, but is currently on the 7 day injured list. Once he is activated, the plan is for him to be the everyday second baseman.

Crisantes just might be one of the best pure hitters in the Dbacks Farm system, with great contact ability, plate discipline, on top of also having intriguing power and speed. The real issue is the injuries and that he appears to be somewhat injury prone so far in his professional career. Some scouts are skeptical that he’ll be able to keep up with the better fastball he’ll face as he climbs through the farm system, but I personally don’t have any reason to believe that is the case.

On the defensive side of things, Crisantes is a capable, above-average fielder who has the chops to stick at second base. If his bat further develops, he might be just be a good enough hitter to provide above average production from some of the more offensively minded position further down the defensive spectrum.

4) Tommy Troy 2B/OF

Fangraphs|Baseball-Reference| MLB Pipeline

Tommy Troy was drafted 12th overall in the 2023 draft out of Stanford University. Originally a shortstop, Troy has been moved to second base, where he looks like an above average fielder. In his debut season in 2023, Troy was assigned to the Arizona Complex League for four games before he was reassigned to the A+ Level Hillsboro Hops for 23 games to finish out the year. In the 27 games between the two levels, Troy hit .271/374/.469 with a 126 wRC+. A solid debut, which unfortunately didnt carry over into his 2024 season, though that was more likely a result of playing through an injury. In 65 games with the Hops, Troy hit .227/319/ .347 with a below average 91 wRC+, while also spending part of the season on the IL. He’d have much better results in his seven game rehab stint in the ACL, where he would hit .318/.308/.545, which only amounts to a 95 wRC+. 2025 would go much better for Tommy Troy. He’d get assigned to the AA level Amarillo Sod Poodles and hit .286/.382/.461 with a 121 wRC+ in 87 games. The Dbacks would promote him to the AAA Reno Aces, where he hit .295/.381/.429 with a 98 wRC+ in the 38 games he played.

Tommy Troy was assigned to AAA to start the 2026 season, where’s he gotten off to a hot start in his first week but cooled down in his second week to a triple slash line of .326/.388/.372 with a 97 wRC+

3) Jansel Luis SS/2B

Fangraphs|Baseball-Reference| MLB Pipeline

Much like Cristofer Torin, Jansel Luis signed as an international amateur free agent in January of 2022, while catching my eye with his spectacular debut as a teenage prospect in the Dominican Summer League. In 47 games split between the two DSL teams, .345/.399/.414 with a 123 wRC. That would be good enough to earn a promotion to the Compex League for the 2023 season. He’d appear in 25 games, hitting 297/.381/.495 with a 117 wRC+, which earnes him a another promotion, this time to the A ball level Visalia Rawhide He’d appear 36 games for the Rawhide and hit .257/.310/.417 which amounts to just a 96 wRC+ due to the offense boosting enviroment of the Cal league. bat In a combined 62 games, Luis would hit .269/.335/.441 with a 102 wRC+. (That includes one game with the other ACL Dbacks team, going 0-3 at the plate) While that doesn’t seem particularly impressive, it’s worth pointing out that he was just 18 years old in a league with his peers having an average age of 19.5 years old ( the ACL), and even younger than his peers in the Cal League who averaged 22.5 years old. Luis would return to Visalia to repeat the A ball level for 2024, where He’d spend the entire season. In the 109 games Luis played for the Rawhide in 2024, he hit .265/.337/.414 with a 102 wRC+. He nearly hit the impressive mark of double digits of each type of extra base hit: 29 doubles, 10 triples, seven homeruns, in addition to swiping 20 stolen bases (but was caught stealing 10 times). 2025 would see Jansel Luis promoted to the A+ Level Hillsboro Hops, where he’d appear in 102 games and hit. .304/.342/.422 with a 106 wRC+. He actually hit so well in the four games he played in the Complex League that it brings his offensive line up to .311/.347/.435 with a 110 wRC+, which is somewhat impressive.

Luis has been assigned to the Dbacks AA level MILB affiliate, the Amarillo Sod Poodles. They just started their season on April 3rd, so they’ve only played five games as of this article’s publication. He’s currently got a 54 wRC+ and is only 4 for 18 in his first 23 plate appearances.

2) Slade Caldwell

Fangraphs|Baseball-Reference| MLB Pipeline

Slade Caldwell might be almost as divisive as Cristofer Torin. Caldwell has been ranked as high as the #2 Dbacks prospect, or conversely ranked as low as #21. Caldwell fits the mold of the undersized outfielder a la Corbin Carroll and Jorge Barrosa that the Hazen FO has favored over nearly the last decade.

Caldwell blew past A ball level Visalia in his first full season, hitting .294/.460/.454 with a 161 wRC+ in 48 games. He’d hit the metaphorical wall after being promoted to A+ Level Hillsboro, hitting .238/.370/.311 with a 97 wRC+ in his 66 games in the Northwest League.

As I expected, Caldwell started his 2026 season back in A+ Hillsboro. He’ll need to put up above average numbers to earn a promotion to AA level Amarillo, but he’s already off to a good start with a 122 wRC+ in his first four games going 4 for 15 with a double, though he’s struck out eight times and has been caught at stealing in his lone stolen base attempt.

1) Ryan Waldschmidt – OF

Fangraphs|Baseball-Reference | MLB Pipeline

It should come as no surprise that Ryan Waldschmidt is the Arizona Diamondbacks top prospect, considering he is both the team’s top prospect according to literally every publication, and a consensus top 50 prospect overall as well. Drafted with the Diamondback’s first pick in the 2005 draft, 31st overall, Waldschmidt raked at every level of the minors in his professional debut. In 14 games in A ball level, Waldschmidt hit .273/.485/.318 which works out to a 143 wRC+ or 43% better than average. In his 68 games at A+ Level, he hit .268/.415/.447, which works out to a 141 wRC+, or 41% better than average. Finally, in 66 games for the AA level Amarillo Sod Poodles, he hit .309/.423/.498 with a 143 wRC+. Waldschmidt begins his 2026 playing for the AAA level Reno Aces. In his first 11 games, he’s hitting .238/.396/.381 and a 106 wRC+. Breaking that stat line down, he’s got 10 hits in 42 at bats, with four doubles, a triple, and 10 walks. The walks are doing the heavy lifting for his offensive stats, with Waldschmidt currently running a BB% 2.8% higher than last season. On the downside, he’s got 16 strikeouts which has pushed his SO% up from 17.6% to 30.2%, while he’s been caught stealing once in his two attempts.

Unlike the short king outfielders that team has favored under GM Mike Hazen like the aforementioned Slade Caldwell as well players currently on the roster like Corbin Carroll, Waldschmidt is 6’0 tall, with the kind of build you’re used to seeing in an MLB caliber outfielder. While he doesn’t have any standout, plus-plus tool, Waldschmidt has above average tools in every facet of his game. I wouldn’t go so far as to call his defensive tools below average, but I would say that Waldschmidt’s fielding and throwing arm strength are the weakest aspects of his game. That’s really only in comparison to his other tools, as they both grade out to a 45+ on the 80 grade scouting scale at worst.

Next week: We look at the hitters I forgot, and start looking at the pitchers in the Dbacks Farm system.

The San Diego Padres had a happy flight home from their first road trip of the season after an 8-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday. That win capped a six-game road trip through Boston and Pittsburgh that saw the Padres take two games from the Red Sox and two games from the Pirates. The 4-2 road trip means San Diego will return to Petco Park to host the Colorado Rockies with a .500 record at 6-6 on the season.

The Padres did not look good at home to start the year losing both series and finishing the homestand with a record of 2-4. San Diego has four games against Colorado starting today and the Rockies could be just the opponent for the Padres to get right at home. If they can win the series, San Diego would at least finish with a .500 home record, and a sweep of Colorado would go above that.

The Padres will try to get the series started on the right foot with Randy Vasquez taking the mound. The pitcher opposing him has not been announced at the time of this writing, but if Vasquez continues his stellar start to the season, the other pitcher will not matter. San Diego hosts Colorado today at 6:40 p.m.

Padres News:

• Michael King turned in a quality start against the Pirates and helped the Padres win the final game of the series with six innings pitched. He left the game with San Diego up 4-0 in the bottom of the seventh inning, after Nich Castellanos hit a two-run double and Jake Cronenworth hit a two-run home run in the top of the inning. King was replaced by Kyle Hart after allowing a leadoff single and a double to the first two batters of the seventh. Hart allowed a sharp line drive to left field to pinch hitter Konnor Griffin, which was caught on a difficult play by Ramon Laureano making it a sacrifice fly, which allowed one of the inherited runners to score. Hart then allowed an RBI-single and the other inherited runner scored to cut the Padres lead to 4-2. Hart issued a walk before getting the final two outs of the inning, one of which was on another diving play in left by Laureano off the bat of Ryan O’Hearn. San Diego tacked on four more runs in the top of the ninth inning to cruise to an 8-2 win.

• Mason Miller made his first professional appearance at PNC Park in Pittsburgh when he entered yesterday’s game in the bottom of the ninth inning. He recorded back-to-back strikeouts to start the inning before a ground out ended the game and his 11 consecutive strikeout streak.

• Padres manager Craig Stammen stayed true to his word that Manny Machado would get more time off this season than in years past. The San Diego third baseman was out of the lineup Wednesday on his first gameday off of the season.

• Jason Adam is close to making his return to the Padres bullpen, but the organization would like to see him pitch one more time at the minor league level and see how he recovers before he is added back to the roster according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

• Jase Bowen continues his torrid start to the season at the Triple-A level hitting another home run. Teammate Samad Taylor, who had a solid spring, also connected on a home run for the El Paso Chihuahuas.

• Dennis Lin of The Athletic released his second installment of Padres mailbag questions and covered various topics including Fernando Tatis Jr., the catching position and the offensive struggles for the Padres.

• Former Padres first base coach Davey Lopes died at the age of 80.

Baseball News:

• Jordan Walker hit his fourth home run in five games and helped the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals, 6-1.

• Rob Refsnyder robbed a home run in Arlington, Texas and received a hat tip from his teammate Seattle Mariners pitcher Bryan Woo. The Texas Rangers won the game, however, and completed a sweep of the Mariners for the first time since 2023.

• Boston Red Sox reliever Tyler Samaniego drove 44 miles to make his major league debut at Fenway Park and recorded three strikeouts in an inning of work.

• Atlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo Lopez and Los Angeles Angels slugger Jorge Soler were both suspended seven games for their roles in the fight between the two teams on Tuesday. Soler appealed the suspension and hit another home run off Braves pitching.

• Konnor Griffin and the Pirates agreed to a nine-year extension, keeping the 19-year-old in Pittsburgh through 2034.

• The 2026 season came to an end for Baltimore Orioles pitcher Zach Eflin after one start. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery which will keep him out for the remainder of the year.

• Michael Lorenzen helped the Colorado Rockies sweep the Houston Astros for the first time since 2012 after he allowed just one run en route to a 9-1 win.

It was far from Brady Singer’s finest evening on Wednesday in Miami. The veteran righty was smashed for 10 hits and 6 runs (5 earned) in just 2.2 IP, his own arm contributing a pair of errors that further dented his cause on the night. The end result was a 7-4 loss for the Cincinnati Reds to the Marlins, and that now leaves the club searching for the series victory on Thursday.

The honors of steering that ship will fall to Rhett Lowder, who’ll get the starting nod in the series finale of this four-game set with the opportunity to give the Reds yet another series victory to begin the 2026 season. Cincinnati’s rookie righty was simply brilliant in his most recent outing, firing 6.0 IP of scoreless, 3-hit ball against the Texas Rangers back on April 4th while leaning on his patented repertoire of hitting spots and mixing breaking balls to keep his opponents off-tilt.

Ke’Bryan Hayes is on the bench to begin this one, as Eugenio Suarez gets the start at 3B. Nate Lowe is in the lineup at DH with RHP Max Meyer on the bump for the fish, though Dane Myers will get a rare start against the RHP as TJ Friedl slides over to LF (and Spencer Steer starts in RF over Will Benson).

First pitch in the series finale is set for 12:10 PM ET. Here’s how the Reds will line up:

Let's go win a series.

Powered by @PNCBankpic.twitter.com/83EEKKUQpA

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) April 9, 2026

Here's what happened in Mets Land on Wednesday, in case you missed it...

---

• David Petersonput the Mets in an early 5-0 hole in an eventual 7-2 loss to the Diamondbacks at Citi Field
• There is no rotation shakeup coming despite Peterson's early struggles
• A surgeon explains: How might Juan Soto's calf injury impact him upon his return, and what's the reinjury risk?
• The Mets are not going to a six-man rotation in the near future
• Sean Manaeasaved the bullpen in relief of Peterson
• Jonah Tong had a bounce back start for Triple-A Syracuse, retiring the final 13 batters he faced
• J.D. Martinezthinks this year's Mets are "more talented than the 2024 team by far"
• Jeff McNeilis expecting an emotional return this weekend when the A's visit Citi Field