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Yankees fans got some good news on Tuesday morning, learning that rehabbing ace Gerrit Cole would grace our television screens on Wednesday against the Red Sox in a one-inning cameo. He’s still probably two months (or more) off from a regular-season appearance, but it’ll be a great sign. He and All-Star lefty Carlos Rodón will start the year on the injured list, so while we can dream of a potent rotation in the summer, the Yanks will have to survive April and May in the meantime.

One player who will have a lot to play for in those opening weeks will be Will Warren, coming off an up-and-down rookie season that did see him lead all rookies in innings pitched. Still, with all the talented arms on the roster, his rotation spot is hardly guaranteed when Rodón and Cole are healthy.

While spring training results never mean too much, a young starter making strides is still encouraging, and that’s what Warren has done. He’s allowed just three earned runs in 20.1 innings this spring, including a strong four-plus inning outing in Tuesday’s 3-2 win over the Rays. JC Escarra provided much of the offense through eight innings, but minor league infielder Coby Morales played hero after both teams emptied the benches in the ninth.

Trent Grisham got off to a good start in this one, lining a first-pitch single to right field off Ryan Pepiot. The Rays’ starter would rebound to retire the next three, all on flyouts, with Ben Rice narrowly missing out on a two-run homer after pummeling a ball foul. Warren got off to a strong start for the Yanks, striking out Yandy Diaz and inducing a pair of groundouts to get through a quick, 1-2-3 frame.

The second would be much shakier for Pepiot, who, after inducing a groundout from Paul DeJong, gave up a moonshot to JC Escarra, who’s making a tremendous case for the Opening Day roster as the backup catcher. 438 feet, 108.4 mph off the bat, and a 1-0 Yankees lead. Pepiot would allow another pair of baserunners, but the Escarra homer was the only real damage.

Warren walked Cedric Mullins to open the bottom half of the second on six pitches, but rebounded to retire the next three in order, dialing the fastball up to 95.6 mph to get Hunter Fedducia swinging to end the inning. Pepiot had a clean third, cutting through the heart of the order. Diaz would get the game’s first hit off of Warren with two outs in the third, but would be stranded after a filthy 1-2 changeup got Jonathan Aranda to chase.

The top of the Yankees’ order was jumping all over Pepiot once he got to the third time through, but the balls kept finding gloves. After a Grisham walk, Rice hit a 104.4 mph lineout, and Jasson Domínguez hammered a long flyball that died on the track thanks to swirling winds.

Warren’s outing took a bad turn in the fifth, where the good luck he got to start the game reversed itself with two sub-85 mph hits that put runners on the corners with nobody out, chasing the 26-year-old for Rule 5 pick Cade Winquest. He jumped ahead of Williamson, but yielded a run after a Baltimore chop forced the Yankees’ defense to settle for a forceout, allowing Gavin Lux to score. Winquest was able to get out of the jam from there, blowing a 96 mph fastball by Aranda to end the inning.

Jake Bird took over for Winquest in the sixth and put his filthy arsenal to work, striking out Caminero on a sweeper and Mullins on a curveball. While a third strikeout was overturned to a walk by ABS against Ryan Vilade, he powered a cutter past Lux to finish off the inning one batter later.

The Yankees offense largely went quiet as the day wore on. They threatened in the eighth, putting two baserunners on against Joe Boyle, but stranded them both. Escarra finished his day 2-for-4 with a home run and some loud outs, an impressive day for him. Yovanny Cruz got the ball in the eighth and lit up the radar gun, throwing six pitches in triple digits in an impressive inning that saw him strike out Diaz and Richie Palacios.

Jorbit Vivas replaced Grisham in the leadoff spot and drew a leadoff walk in the ninth before stealing second. Rice, the lone starter left in the game, roped a single to right to set up runners on the corners with nobody out and chase Boyle. Hunter Bigee was tasked with getting out of the jam, but he could only strike out Cole Gabrielson before allowing a two-run single to High-A infielder Coby Morales to make it 3-1 Yankees.

Kervin Castro, who’s turning heads as a dark horse to grab a bullpen spot, pitched the ninth and was greeted by a Chandler Simpson special: a Baltimore chop that goes over the third baseman’s head because he was playing for the bunt. The trouble didn’t stop there, with Castro plunking Vilade and allowing an RBI single to Raynel Delgado to cut it to 3-2.

Just when the walls seemed to be closing in on Castro, a humpback liner from Daniel Vellojin stayed in the air long enough for Morales to leap in the air and save a run with an outstanding catch before doubling off the tying run at second. Castro struck out the next batter, Logan Davidson, to end it.

The Yankees return to George M. Steinbrenner Field tomorrow for maybe the hottest ticket of the spring. We might not see Aaron Judge back in the lineup so quickly after the WBC Final, but we will see the 2026 debut of Gerrit Cole, who is scheduled to throw one inning against the rival Red Sox at 1:05 pm. Connelly Early will get the ball for Boston. Catch the game on YES or MLB Network.

Box Score

* cracks knuckles *

Well, here goes, the first recap of the 2026 season, even though these games don’t count for anything other than an intellectual exercise. On a windy St. Patrick’s Day, cool for central Florida in March — a laughable sentiment for those of us dealing with snow — a meaningless game ended with a meaningless score, 1-1.

Grizzled veteran Young right-hander Justin Verlander, just a kid at 43, took the mound for the third time this spring. It was a Tale of Two Halves for Verlander with the Giants last year: first half, .786 OPS-against, 10 home runs given up, .273 batting average-against. Second half, .685 OPS, 6 dingers, .247 batting. Does Verlander still have a good season left in the tank? Unlike earlier in his career, he doesn’t have to be Number One in the rotation; heck, if he’s a solid third-best starter on this team behind Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez, that’ll be a fine return on the investment.

Chris Bassitt, the former Blue Jay, took the hill for the Orioles. He’s been ultra-dependable, making 30 or more starts for the past four years, and over that time he’s also achieved pretty respectable results, with an ERA of 3.77, a WHIP of 1.271, and roughly one home run surrendered per nine innings. He’ll be a welcome addition to an Orioles team who, last year, had trouble getting anybody out.

Verlander looked good early, occasionally touching 96 mph with his fastball. He also mixed in a slow curveball and a bit of the sweeper he developed last year, because apparently old dogs can learn new tricks. Kevin McGonigle, not at his traditional shortstop position, made a sensational, off-camera play on a grounder; since it wasn’t on TV, this is as good as we can get:

A real pitchers’ duel unfolded as the game progressed, both teams only notching two hits apiece through four innings, and one of the Tigers’ hits was a bunt single by Jahmai Jones. The Orioles finally broke the seal in the fifth with a solo home run by Bryan Ramos into the wind to left field, ending Verlander’s day after 4 2/3 innings: three hits, one run and no walks. Jorger Petri, a 20-year-old who spent last year in Lakeland, got the final out of the fifth.

Kenley Jansen, possibly the Tigers’ new closer, pitched the sixth and gave up a walk and a hit but with no damage surrendered. Bassitt’s day ended with two outs in the bottom of the sixth and was relieved by Joe Glassey, and I immediately thought of “Glass Joe” from (Mike Tyson’s) Punch-Out!! for the NES, and if you did too, you’re also older than Justin Verlander, pal.

Burch Smith, one of the veterans on which the Tigers took a chance this offseason, pitched the seventh. He bounced between the majors and minors for a few years before spending 2022 in Japan and 2023 in South Korea; he spent this past offseason in the Dominican Winter League and had great results, so who knows? He gave up a couple of hits but squeezed himself out of a first-and-third jam with two outs by striking out Samuel Basallo on a fastball. Non-roster invitee Ricky Vanasco, who got into a pair of games with the Tigers in 2024, pitched an uneventful top of the eighth with a strikeout.

Max Clark walked in the bottom of the eighth; so long he gets on base, he could be wearing Flavor Flav’s clock around his neck for all I care. He advanced to second on a Jace Jung goundout, to third on a wild pitch, and then scored on another wild pitch, tying the score at one. Hey, it’s Spring Training, we’re all figuring stuff out this time of year.

Konnor Pilkington gave up a double to Ramos with two outs in the top of the ninth but stuck out Luis Vázquez looking to send it to the bottom of the ninth. Would the minor-league Tigers walk it off and avoid the tie?

Well, with one out, Peyton Graham walked and Austin Slater singled, putting two runners on. Max Burt walked to load the bases, but Corey Julks hit a grounder to third for the ol’ 5-2-3 game-ending double play. So, no, there were no ninth-inning heroics — but we had some classic Verlander and a little bit of drama at the end, didn’t we?

Final Score: Tigers 1, Orioles 1

Notes and Observations

• The Tigers didn’t wear their traditional green uniforms on St. Patrick’s Day, but they did have a green Olde English D on their hat. Bring back the green, I say.
• What we did have, though, was a stupid orange-on-orange battle. Springs-past have featured plenty of navy-on-navy, which is also stupid. Home teams should wear white and away teams should wear grey, and get off my lawn.
• Today is the day which celebrates the death — to the best of anyone’s knowledge — of Saint Patrick, the main patron saint of Ireland. He was born in Roman Britain late in the 300s, and came to Ireland as a missionary early in the 5th century CE. Did he use a shamrock as a Christian symbol? Did he really rid Ireland of snakes? Did he enjoy a green beer now and then? To borrow a phrase from Nelson Muntz, “Records from that era are spotty at best.”

It’s split squad action today in Peoria and at Salt River Fields. Both games are televised, so choose wisely.

Don’t get too attached to this Josh Naylor graphic; he was a late scratch. Luis Suisbel is now in the lineup, batting ninth and playing first base.

Also scheduled to pitch in this game: José A. Ferrer, Carlos Vargas, Casey Legumina, Andrés Muñoz

And in split-squad action:

Also scheduled to pitch in this one: Casey Lawrence, Yosver Zulueta, and probably some JIC-ys.

Injury updates:

J.P. Crawford is away from the team having his shoulder looked at by Dr. Meister. That sounds ominous, but Justin Hollander says the visit is evaluative not diagnostic, making sure everything is continuing to trend well for an Opening Day start.

No word on Josh Naylor’s absence, but a quick look at the weather in Peoria – 91 en route to 95 degrees – might suggest why Naylor, who’s been away at the WBC for several weeks, is being granted an off-day.

Roster updates:

The Mariners re-assigned LHP Kade Anderson to minor-league camp after his start on Friday; yesterday they re-assigned INF Michael Arroyo, RHP Charlie Beilenson, OF Jonny Farmelo, C Jakson Reetz, RHP Michael Rucker and RHP Ryan Sloan to minor-league camp. That doesn’t mean you’ve seen the last of them – Beilenson in particular will likely pop up in a few more big-league appearances this spring – but it is a signal that the Mariners are getting their main players back from the WBC and things are getting closer to Opening Day and the 26 players they’ll be bringing to T-Mobile Park.

Game information:

Home game:

TV: Mariners TV

Radio: 710 AM Seattle Sports (delayed? It doesn’t say so in the game notes but they were talking about basketball when I checked my radio. Anyway, live on Gameday or the Seattle Sports app.)

Away game:

TV: MLB TV

The Atlanta Braves faced off against the Boston Red Sox as spring training is winding down with Reynaldo López taking the mound against arguably the best lineup he has faced since his injury.

The Red Sox brought in most of their starters, and the Braves brought mostly hitters fighting for final bench spots.

The Braves got the scoring going in the third, but almost had it started earlier in the second if it was not for this great play made against Camargo.

Three of the players that seem to have at least a small chance to make the Opening Day roster now that Profar will not be on the team are Kyle Farmer, José Azocar, and Brett Wisely. They were all responsible in the third inning for scoring the go ahead runs. Azocar led off the inning with a walk, and after Mateo doubled, Wisely knocked in Azocar. Kyle Farmer then continued his hot spring by having a single of his own to knock in a run.

The Braves were able to load the bases in the fourth, but this was not due to the players mentioned to keep your eyes on. Azocar lined out right after Sonny Gray was replaced, and Wisely grounded out for the third out with the bases loaded.

There was virtually no other offense of note by the Braves until the ninth inning other than a few singles and a double by Jair Camargo that led pinch runner Steel getting to third. Yes the pinch runner was Jake Steels, who will go down as one of the best pinch-runner names of all-time. In the ninth the Braves’ backup squad squeaked in another run, but it was still too short to win the game.

On the pitching side of things, López was clearly a guy to keep an eye on. Unfortunately, he struggled in this one. He gave up a walk and a single in the first inning but was able to get out of the inning by getting back-to-back strikeouts, but it was clear he was not having his best stuff. In the second inning he had a clean inning while picking up two more strikeouts. He gave up a triple in the third inning to Trevor Story, but got out of the inning unscathed.

The fourth is when the wheels fell off for López. He gave up a double to new Red Sox third baseman Caleb Durbin, followed by a walk. He was able to pick up his sixth strikeout, but then gave up a single to load the bases. After a groundout that produced a run, and a single that scored two, he was replaced by Dylan Dodd after 3.2 innings. He ended the day with five hits to include a double and triple, three earned runs, and two walks with six strikeouts.

Hopefully today was just an off day or him just working on specific mechanics. He has been fantastic before this outing, but this is the first time he faced a mostly MLB roster this spring.

On the good news side of things Dylan Dodd was able to relieve López and put in 1.1 innings of work without giving up a hit. He struck out one and walked one. The Braves did give up another, but it was by Kyle Nelson who will likely not make the Opening Day roster or even be brought to the MLB club at all this season.

Ultimately the Braves fell short 3-4 in a game that had only a few players of note to keep an eye on.

As a side note, Spencer Strider also pitched today, but was not an official spring training game.

The Braves will face off against the Phillies tomorrow in North Port at 1:05 ET. Martín Pérez will take the mound in hopes of earning a rotation spot on the Opening Day roster. At the time of this writing, the Phillies have not announce who will pitch for them.

The Mets tied the Marlins, 5-5, on Tuesday as their spring training slate continued.

Here are the takeaways...

- Sean Manaea got the start and tossed four perfect innings while striking out four -- a big improvement over his rough outing last Thursday.

Manaea used his fastball liberally and kept the Marlins' hitters off balance with a steady diet of secondary offerings.

While the results were encouraging, Manaea's fastball velocity was still down -- it maxed out at 89.9 mph and sat mainly around 88. 

During his start last week, Manaea's fastball topped out at 90.4 mph.

Last season, while dealing with multiple injuries, Manaea's fastball averaged 91.7 mph.

Manaea's two-seamer averaged 92.4 mph in 2024, while his four-seamer that season averaged 92.2 mph.

- Francisco Lindor, playing in his second Grapefruit League game since returning from hamate surgery, lined a single to right field while batting left-handed his final time up. He finished 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.

- Bo Bichetteripped a two-run double down the left field line his second time up. In the seventh inning, Bichette lofted a three-run, opposite-field homer -- his first of the spring. 

- Brett Baty went 1-for-4 and has a .967 OPS this spring.

- Marcus Semien had a big day at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a walk.

- Tobias Myers,whose spot in the bullpen is locked up, worked 1.1 innings while allowing one run on one hit as he walked two and struck out three. HIs ERA in Grapefruit League play is 1.86.

- Mike Tauchman went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. 

Tauchman has been in competition with Carson Benge for the starting right field job, though it seems that gig will be going to Benge. There's a chance Tauchman still cracks the Opening Day roster, though, especially if the Mets opt to not carry a backup shortstop.

- Craig Kimbrel wasn't sharp in his inning of work.

The right-hander gave up a run on one hit and one walk and also allowed two stolen bases. His fastball velocity topped out at 92.6 mph.

Kimbrel, who is on a minor league deal, is competing with Bryan Hudson and others for the final spot in the Opening Day bullpen.

Highlights

Six up, six down so far today for Sean Manaea pic.twitter.com/VBpfeIPu8T

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

Bo Bichette drives in two with a double off of Sandy Alcantara! pic.twitter.com/4mXyq21RCg

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

Four perfect innings for Sean Manaea! pic.twitter.com/WrTs8hsdfm

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

Brett Baty lines a base hit the other way

He's batting .375 this spring pic.twitter.com/p6lbJ4y6ei

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

Francisco Lindor lines a single the other way pic.twitter.com/tun8q29NdF

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

BO'S FIRST HOMER AS A MET 💥

Bo Bichette smacks a three-run shot and has driven all five Mets runs today! pic.twitter.com/Ww5rIEbZbW

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 17, 2026

What's next

The Mets are off on Wednesday.

They travel to face the Astros on Thursday at 6:05 p.m.

Also on Thursday, Mets prospects will take on the Rays prospects in the annual Spring Breakout game at 7:10 p.m. on SNY.

The Yankees defeated the Tampa Bay Rays by a score of 3-2 on Tuesday afternoon.

Here are the key takeaways...

-- J.C. Escarra, likely to make the Opening Day roster as the backup catcher, blasted a 438-foot solo home run in the second inning to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead.

Escarra went 3-for-4 at the plate and also threw a runner out trying to steal second base in the bottom of the seventh inning.

-- Will Warren continued his strong spring on the mound. The right-hander cruised through his first four scoreless innings, allowing just one hit. But he allowed a pair of singles to start the fifth, and with his pitch count in the mid-60s, his day ended there. 

Cade Winquest allowed one of those inherited runners to score, so Warren's final line read 4.0+ innings, one earned run on three hits, four strikeouts, and one walk. His spring ERA is still very impressive at 1.77.

--It was a quiet day overall for the Yankees offense, until the ninth. Ben Rice, serving as the DH, went 0-for-4 with three runners left on base in his first four at-bats, but in a rare fifth spring at-bat, he ripped a single to give the Yankees runners at first and third with nobody out in the ninth inning. Coby Morales, a non-roster player, would drive in a pair to put the Yankees up late.

-- Jasson Dominguez went 0-for-3 with a walk. Ryan McMahon, starting at shortstop, went 1-for-4.

--Oswaldo Cabrera, continuing his recovery from last season's devastating ankle injury, went 0-for-2. He remains hitless this spring in eight at-bats.

Highlights

438-ft blast for J.C. 💥 pic.twitter.com/lqTh2Awykz

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) March 17, 2026

What's next

The Yankees host the Boston Red Sox at 1:05 p.m. on Wednesday, with Gerrit Cole expected to make his spring debut.

We spoke with St. Louis Cardinals manager Oli Marmol recently about the state of the team now including the progress of Nolan Gorman, challenges with Jordan Walker, the impressive Spring for Joshua Baez and his goals for the 2026 team.

The St. Louis Cardinals made manager Oli Marmol available to us for over a half-hour late last week which included about a dozen online writers and podcasters representing multiple brands. During that time we and others asked him numerous questions which included the progress (or not) of prospects, the expectations for the pitching staff and what Oli would consider a successful season for 2026. Here are a summary of all the questions and a snapshot of his answers to each. He started with an opening statement which included this:

“Our audience experiences our team…a lot of it through the work that you guys do and I feel like when you put out work…I want to give you guys the opportunity to have direct access…rather than sometimes guessing as to how we’re thinking about things or how I’m thinking about things.”

How excited are you about the young Cardinals arms you have and how do you balance opportunity with allowing young players with enough runway to make adjustments?

“We almost have to take the approach we did with Libby with some of these guys where he wasn’t looking over his shoulder every start trying to figure out if I’m going to make my next one and I think that helped him see it as I have enough of an opportunity…there’s always gonna be urgency. None of these guys are taking the mound thinking…I have plenty of time to figure this out. But, it is nice for them to know that as I’m working towards becoming the best version of myself, I have the ability to make mistakes and then correct them…I really do believe that’s what helped Libby because he had to work through some things last year that weren’t easy and him knowing that if he had a bad outing that he was going to have a bullpen session two days after and be able to work on it and give it another shot…I think when you look at someone like Leahy who I really do want to see in the rotation because I think he can fit a little bit of what Libby did where because of how diligent he is with it and I mean when I say this dude is thoughtful in his preparation…it’s impressive.”

What type of things have you been doing with Nolan Gorman that have led to less strikeouts and better at-bats?

“He’s an interesting case because there has been opportunity, but it has been broken up at times because of having to give others opportunity…and bounce back and forth there based on having Arenado here and some others. It hasn’t panned out exactly the way you would want it laid out, but it has been broken up by injury…just having that real opportunity where it’s not choppy and you can see what he’s capable of doing. When you talk about what we’re doing with him and what he’s doing in order to prevent that from changing…more contact, not doing that at the expense of bat speed. You have to start somewhere and that’s why I wanted to lay that out last year….the bat speed is going to drop a little bit while we try to figure out how to get him through the zone and impacting the baseball at a higher rate. We saw bat speed drop. We saw contact go up. As he gets comfortable with that new move, then that allows for him to make more contact while still impacting the baseball…that’s what we’re seeing in Spring. It is more walks, more contact, but it’s not at the expense of him swinging the way he wants to swing…the counting stats…I don’t look at it in Spring as much…because you’re looking under the hood at the things you name that lead to sustainable success…are you controlling the strike zone? When you swing, are you making contact and are you hitting it hard?…You can be fooled in Spring Training by someone that has really good numbers, but it’s not sustainable.”

We know this is a different type of year and you’ll try to win every game, but how will you balance that with player development?

“It’s gonna be tough, but that’s part of the gig. If we’re trying to make decisions based on…we need to look long term, but we’re not giving anything away today. I think that’s how you build a winning culture…when I was coming up through the minor leagues…all the way through. We always talked about developing winning players. When we think about this group that is young and hungry…you’re going to have times where you have to make decisions that isn’t strictly to win that game, but it is to teach them what winning habits…look like. The goal is you do that often enough, then you just start winning. We could put a timeline on this and say…we’re gonna be good in 2028 or 2029…(but) try to be good today. I don’t know the timeline…these guys may come out and surprise the heck out of people…they may not. We’ll find out a lot about who can and who can’t. Our job is to create a framework for them to operate in, do it really well…hold them accountable and hold our staff accountable to it and move this thing as quick as possible in the right direction…our staff is in the mindset that it’s today.”

Who are some prospects that have really impressed you this Spring behind the scenes?

“I think you would agree with…Baez…that was fun to watch and not just because of the skill set. His demeanor…sometimes guys come up here and you can tell that they are putting on a front as far as looking confident when they’re really spinning inside and they’re just trying to control it. This dude had a quiet confidence to him that was pretty impressive. The way he carried himself in the clubhouse was really good. The way he communicated with the staff was really good…his overall presence on the field is felt. That’s not always the case. He’s one of the ones that you can get pretty excited about what’s to come…and the way he’s working now…there’s an urgency to it. He knows it’s close.

What about the issues with Jordan Walker?

“This has been one that…keeps us up at night. We have to figure it out. When I say I’m committed to it, I need to think of a stronger word to make sure that this dude figures it out…with us…because there’s a real skill set there, but I do feel like we missed some time in getting to where we’re at now. I wished we would have gotten to this point sooner. What I mean by that where there’s real vulnerability of what has actually happened…how do we feel…how are we gonna get on the other side of this to create real change…not just say we’re working on something, (but) six months later it looks very similar. I feel like we’re finally at a point where that’s happening. It could be a month before we feel good about it…it could be three months before we feel good about it…I may feel good about it in 3 hours….I don’t know. I like where we’re at with what’s taking place. There’s a real responsibility on both ends here…on mine, on Brownie and that whole hitting department…to unlock what he’s capable of…and there’s real responsibility on (Jordan’s) end, too…of carrying the work that he’s doing into the game. We’re doing everything possible for that to be the case…but this is one that has not gone well and we need it to go well. All hands on deck for this one.”

Big thanks to Oli Marmol and the St. Louis Cardinals for allowing us direct access. We’re assured that this will happen again more frequently moving forward so we can get the thought process of the President of Baseball Operations and his team and the manager as they navigate the St. Louis Cardinals forward through this rebuild of what we hope will be a team that returns to its winning ways sooner rather than later.