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TAMPA — Ryan McMahon is entering his 10th season in the majors. He spent five-plus years in the minors.

In that time, he’s played a total of 9,451 innings at third base, nearly 2,182 innings at second base and 1,845 innings at first base.

And only a few more than you at shortstop.

With Aaron Boone eyeing his third baseman for the backup shortstop role to start the season, McMahon got much-needed reps at the position during the Yankees’ 11-1 exhibition win over Panama, but displayed the need for more while flubbing a relatively straightforward grounder.

With José Caballero set to start the season at shortstop — and Anthony Volpe still recovering from shoulder surgery — McMahon could provide the Yankees with roster flexibility as the backup. But before Tuesday, McMahon had only played three innings at shortstop as a pro, coming in 2020.

“It feels, it looks so much different for me,” said McMahon, who was pulled after five innings. “There’s a lot more space. I think I gained a little bit more respect for what these shortstops have to deal with on a daily basis. But it was fun getting out there. I botched one, but I feel like if I see that one a couple more times that would be no problem.

“I feel pretty comfortable out there. I think of myself as a baseball player. I think if I just take some more reps I’ll be able to handle it. I think I’ll get better at it.”

McMahon, who has received five consecutive Gold Glove nominations at third base, turned an inning-ending double play in the first, but fumbled a chance to end the fourth when he bobbled a grounder toward the middle. He then recovered to handle another opportunity in the fifth.

“It’s just getting reads off the bat,” said McMahon, who went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run. “The angles are different. You get so used to seeing it from the spot you’ve been at. You just step into a different area and I think that’s something reps can definitely fix. 

“It’s baseball … Just getting it to where it’s second nature. At third base I don’t think about it, I just do it.”

Boone plans to have McMahon, 31, work exclusively at shortstop Wednesday, then put him back there for Thursday’s spring training game against the Twins.

“It was good to get him out there,” Boone said. “The error kind of took a bad hop on him, although it’s one he’s probably gotta attack if you read it perfectly or you can give a little more ground, especially with his arm, and put yourself in a better position to handle that hop. But watching him in pregame on the back field, he looks really good there. I definitely think he can handle it. Obviously the arm really plays. He’s just so natural picking up a ground ball.”

Tigers owner Chris Ilitch had some rare comments on Tarik Skubal’s impending free agency this week. 

Asked by The Athletic whether the team might look to extend the two-time reigning American League Cy Young winner before he hits the open market this winter, Ilitch didn’t have much to add on the topic. 

“I would say Scott Harris is always looking to make smart baseball decisions,” Ilitch said. “Whether it’s acquiring players or investing in infrastructure. I hope it’s clear I want to support our team to make sure that we are a championship-caliber organization.

“So let’s let Scott evaluate and decide what he’d like to do, but I think I’m going to do everything I can to continue to support our team and make sure we’re a championship-type club. So let’s see how it all plays out.”

Skubal, 29, and the team have been far apart on extension talks all offseason, with The Post’s Jon Heyman reporting a jarring $250 million gap between the two sides in November. 

The southpaw is expected to garner a massive, perhaps record-setting, payday if he goes into free agency after the 2026 season. 

Ilitch’s comments come just weeks after Skubal earned a record-breaking $32 million salary for this season after a hard-fought arbitration process with the Tigers — who countered with a $19 million arbitration filing — that went the pitcher’s way. 

Skubal will take the mound against Great Britain in his lone start for Team USA on Saturday, although he is only expected to throw 55 pitches as he prepares for the MLB season. 

Over the last two seasons, Skubal has enjoyed historic success, posting a 2.30 ERA with 469 strikeouts in 387 2/3 innings, and has added two new trophies to his award closet. 

He will be joined by fellow left-hander Framber Valdez, who signed a three-year, $115 million free agent contract with the Tigers last month, forming one of the best 1-2 starting rotation punches in baseball.

In my game threads post I suggested that a fifteen run route of Team Brazil was one I very much desired. Fourteen runs later, the A’s walk away with a win, one run short of my predicted run total but just as offensively sweet.

Let’s get into it…

Aaron Civale took the bump today, for the first as a member of The Athletics. Last season was a bit of a let down for the righty. Sixty-seven innings with the White Sox left him haggard, his ERA bumping up against six (5.37). He’d be claimed off of waivers by the cross town Cubs where, in the small sample size of five games and thirteen innings – – he kind’ve got dirty with it. Most probably remember his four plus innings of no run baseball against the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS. Clearly David Forst and the A’s took notice because they threw him a one year contract of major league proportions (I’m assuming his other offers capped out at an invite to camp).

Things didn’t go great for Civale. Yes, it was his first outing but he was playing against a bunch of scrubs. Team Brazil got going early in the first. A pair of singles out of the gate, including one by Lucas Ramirez (son of 2012 A’s Spring Training legend Manny Ramirez), allowed for a Leonardo Reginatto sac fly to put the WBC club up early.

That lead, thankfully, would be short lived. In the bottom half of the first, Jeff McNeil turned on an off-speed pitch, pulling it down the right field line for a two-run home run and scoring shortstop Jacob Wilson in the process. The runs didn’t stop there. A batter later, Austin Wynns connected for a home run of his own. According to Statcast, Wynn’s solo pimp job traveled 433 ft!

A Brett Harris double made it 4-1. Tommy White’s ground out paired with a Ryan Lasko fielders choice brought in two more runs, making it 6-1 A’s, followed by another appearance by Jacob Wilson in the bottom of the first, in which he knocked in Clark Elliott on a sacrifice fly piece.

Wilson collected another RBI in the third inning, scoring outfielder Ryan Lasko who had just knocked in three via a triple.

The last gasp of life for Team Brazil took place in the fifth inning, when a Jack Perkins throwing error put runners in scoring position (second and third) with less than two outs. Lucas Rojo’s sacrifice fly made it 11-2 A’s. Perkins would walk Victor Mascal with two outs, setting up pinch hitter Gabriel Gomes for a bases clearing triple.

That would be it on the scoring end for Team Brazil and I have to say – – they got to Jack Perkins. This surprised me a little bit as the righty was coming off a pretty solid showing against the Rangers. Maybe the five day break in between appearances left him a little rusty? If so, I think that’s a great example of why he should be coming out of the pen. Let’s keep the kid hot and constantly in the loop.

Speaking of the pen, everyone after Perkins did a great job of holding down the fort. The newly acquired duo of Scott Barlow and Mark Leiter Jr. provided an inning and a third of shutout ball. No hits. One strikeout for Leiter Jr. Gambling icon Michael Kelly collected a pair of strikes of his own, including the two fastest pitches of the game (97.6 and 97.0).

The last three runs for the A’s all involved Bryan Lavastida as he’d get things going in the bottom of the fifth with a two-run single and score on Joshua Kuroda-Grauer’s base hit.

After seven innings of blow out baseball, we’d have ourselves a travel ball-style mercy rule.

“That’s ball game!”

“good game” “good game” “good game”

SCathletics pointed out in response to Banana Shoes’ comment regarding Joshua Kuroda-Grauer that he is currently five for eleven with zero strikeouts so far this spring. Yes, we’d have to go in and investigate who those hits were against and what the circumstances were but still – – at the very least it’ll breed confidence in the young prospect as he makes his way through the minors. Him and fellow 2024 draft pick Tommy White have been putting on a solid show. Something tells me we’ll look back fondly on that 2024 draft class and marvel at all the talent it brought us.

Weird to think that the last Oakland A’s draft class might’ve been the big one that set them up for success in Las Vegas.

No rest for the wicked! The A’s will be back at it against the Arizona Diamondbacks tomorrow afternoon. Same time. Same place. Let me know what other players you’re geeking on in the comments and if you’ve got any TV show recommendations. Because most of these games aren’t available to watch, I’ve been listening to them on A’s Cast whilst watching TV like a sicko. Today’s visual entree was that ridiculous Brent Shield’s romdram Cupid and Cate starring Mary Louise Parker (babe) and Peter Gallagher (zaddy). Maybe it’s because I was also listening to a full on A’s game but the whole movie felt like it was missing two innings. There’s that big fight between Mary Louise Parker’s dad and her and her sisters and then it just…ends? Aren’t we missing a few beats with the whole Gallagher storyline? I feel like we are! Whatever :/ Jokes on me for expecting more from a Hallmark Movie.

I, like Team Brazil, should be thankful they called it early.

TAMPA — The only thing louder than the recent hullabaloo regarding Giancarlo Stanton’s ability to open the snack of his choice was a baseball screaming off his bat at 114.3 mph.

The Yankees slugger could not do that at this time last year, when he missed all of spring training to deal with a painful bout of tendinitis in both elbows.

But he looked like himself in his spring debut Tuesday afternoon, going 1-for-2 with a hard single and a walk as he continued to chip away at his preparation for the regular season.

“A nice prototype first day,” said Stanton, who also tagged up from third to score on a sacrifice fly in an 11-1 win over Team Panama at Steinbrenner Field.

The Yankees had eased Stanton into Grapefruit League action, having him get his work in behind the scenes and on the backfields over the first week-plus of games as they continually try to find ways to keep the 36-year-old as healthy and fresh for as long as possible.

He has consistently said that the pain in his elbows is not going away as long as he is playing, but it has gotten to a point where it is now manageable.

That he was able to get into an exhibition on Tuesday showed how “different entirely,” he is feeling this spring compared to last, when he did not play in any spring games for the first time in his career.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

The tennis elbows — which date back to the 2024 season — made it impossible for him to do much in the way of baseball activities last camp, when he was relegated to daily treatment before making his season debut on June 16.

Asked Tuesday how many at-bats he needed this spring to feel ready for the regular season, Stanton quipped, “Last year I had about six, so more than that.”

He was slightly undershooting the 12 plate appearances he got on a rehab assignment before joining the Yankees midseason, and while that may have forced him to play catch-up early on, he still found a way to put together one of his most productive regular seasons in a while, batting .273 with a .944 OPS and 24 home runs in 77 games.

“You can’t look at it as, ‘Give me time to settle in,’ or whatever,” Stanton said. “You got to come in and make an impact. I just tried to be impactful right away, not worry about, ‘Hey, I only had this.’ Whatever. No one cares. Get it done.”

That attitude has been typical of Stanton during his time in New York, caring little for excuses and only wanting to talk about the black and white of whether he helped the team.


Of course, that is one of the many reasons why the former NL MVP is highly respected by his teammates.

“He’s just a great leader,” Max Fried said. “He’s someone that is very knowledgeable about the game. You’re not that good for that long just by accident. He has the physical tools but the mental game and the way he approaches it is extremely high-level.”

For that reason, Stanton appreciates that he should have close to a normal buildup this spring if he continues to bounce back well from game action. He likes that he can immediately make adjustments with his timing or his swing from one at-bat to the next in a game, or at least have something tangible to work on in the next day’s batting practice.

Stanton, who is likely to play again Thursday or Friday, has been getting at-bats in live batting practice, or off the Trajekt pitching machine (which mimics the speed and movement of pitches from real major leaguers). Aaron Boone said he could end up getting around 30 to 35 game at-bats if all goes well.

“Nothing, at the end of the day, is like seeing a live arm,” Stanton said. “Just being in a position in a game, fans, that extra — you can’t simulate it. You can visualize, but until you do it, it’s different.”

After striking out on a full count in his first at-bat Tuesday, Stanton smoked a 114.3 mph single — the 12th-hardest ball hit across the majors this spring — off Panama right-hander Erian Rodriguez. The exact exit velocity was not as important to him as simply hitting it hard.

“Just squaring up a heater tells me where I’m at, more than miles per hour,” he said. “Pulling a heater, it’s good. Good timing, good adjustment from a couple swing-throughs or foul-offs with heaters at-bat one and three. There’s still the seesaw that’s normal right now.”

The Atlanta Braves have officially released a statement on outfielder/designated hitter Jurickson Profar’s 162-game suspension for a second positive test for a performance enhancing substance.

The statement, which was issued on the team’s official social media account, expressed disappointment in the player but their support for MLB’s Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. The full statement is below.

We were incredibly disappointed to learn that Jurickson tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance and is in violation of MLB’s Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Our players are consistently educated about the Program and the consequences if they are found to be in violation. The Atlanta Braves fully support the Program.    

The news of his suspension was broken earlier this afternoon by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Major League Baseball also issued an official statement about Profar’s suspension, which begins on March 6, 2026.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball announced today that Atlanta Braves outfielder Jurickson
Profar has received a 162-game suspension without pay after testing positive for Exogenous Testosterone
and its metabolites, a performance enhancing substance, in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug
Prevention and Treatment Program.
The suspension of Profar will become effective on Friday, March 6th.

Profar, whom the Braves signed as a free agent prior to the 2025 season, was suspended during the first week of the regular season for a positive PED test and missed 80 games. The Braves will not have to pay his 2026 salary, or the tax associated with it, and he is also ineligible for the post-season.

This morning, MLB Pipeline released its list of the top 30 Brewers prospects in anticipation of the upcoming season. The full list can be found here.

I’m not going to overview each player on the list because BCB’s Dave Gasper just released his list of the top 50 Brewers prospects, complete with bios on each player. Pipeline also does its own write-ups on each of the prospects. However, plenty has changed since Pipeline released its last list at the midpoint of the 2025 season. Let’s take a quick look at some of the notable prospects who rose — and fell — since then.

The Top 10:

Despite a fair amount of movement further down in the rankings, Pipeline’s top 10 Brewers prospects have stayed relatively static since the end of last season. The top four (Jesús Made, Luis Peña, new acquisition Jett Williams, and Cooper Pratt) stayed exactly the same. Jeferson Quero (more on him later) fell from No. 5 to No. 8. Taking his place is another recent acquisition, Brandon Sproat. Andrew Fischer (who Pipeline recently ranked the No. 1 third base prospect in baseball), Logan Henderson, and Quero slot in behind Sproat. Rounding out the top 10 are Bishop Letson (also ranked No. 9 at the end of last season) and Marco Dinges (up two spots).

Risers:

Blake Burke is the biggest riser on this year’s list after altering his swing and approach late last season, discovering his power stroke in the process. Baseball America grades his raw power at 70, but it didn’t translate into home runs until late last season. Once Burke began “generating more loft and catching the ball out front,” the results began to speak for themselves. After hitting five home runs in 350 High-A at-bats, Burke ended up hitting 11 over just 140 with Biloxi.

Josh Adamczewski finished last season at No. 15, but he’s now just one spot from the top 10. Despite missing time with injuries, Adamczewski had a breakout season last year (.320 batting average, .910 slugging percentage) and impressed in the post-season Arizona Fall League — probably the main reason he slid up a couple spots. He’s 2-for-7 this spring with a double. Other notable risers include Tyson Hardin, Ethan Dorchies, and Robert Gasser, who all rose three spots since the previous list. Shane Drohan isn’t really a riser because he wasn’t in the Brewer organization until this offseason, but he finds himself sandwiched between Josh Knoth and Eric Bitonti at No. 25.

Fallers:

Quero’s standing as a top-five Brewers prospect was always mainly due to his defensive ceiling. His best tool behind the plate was always his rocket of an arm, but his arm strength hasn’t fully recovered from a labrum injury suffered early in 2024. Luke Adams also dropped three slots to No. 13, although that’s more due to the players above him — Dinges (No. 10), Adamczewski, and Luis Lara (No. 12) all impressed last season. Adams only hit .231 last year, but posted an OPS just north of .850 in 72 games.

Craig Yoho slid down the rankings from No. 18 all the way to No. 29. He struggled with command (and in general) in limited time with the Brewers despite consistently performing in the minors. Yoho’s given up three hits and an earned run in three innings this spring. With Milwaukee adding pitching depth over the offseason, he’ll need to impress to earn an extended look in the big leagues.

Bitonti finds himself down at No. 26 despite hitting 19 home runs last year in Low-A. Bitonti’s a super talented prospect with a lot of raw power, but he still has entirely too much swing-and-miss in his game. His 33.5% strikeout rate was the fourth-highest in Low-A. Bitonti will need to significantly improve that part of his game to make the big leagues. Brailyn Antunez, a top international signing just last year, fell off the list entirely after a rough showing in rookie ball (.215 AVG, .632 OPS).