After a chaotic offseason, which included a lockout and pushing back Opening Day, baseball is almost back.
With a new collective bargaining agreement in place, two new playoff spots up for grabs and plenty of big-name player movement, it is shaping up to be an enthralling MLB season.
The defending champion Atlanta Braves may have improved, despite losing star Freddie Freeman to the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Yankees' position as the best team in New York could soon be under threat.
With so many storylines, the most logical place to begin is right at the very top.
Can the Braves go back-to-back?
As is often the case, the World Series race is wide open, but Atlanta is at least in the mix as far as the pre-season odds go.
Some would consider the Braves' run last season a fluke – they won 88 games in the regular season, while the 91-win Toronto Blue Jays and 90-win Seattle Mariners missed out on playoff berths entirely.
However, they were missing superstar Ronald Acuna Jr for a large chunk of the year, and made meaningful additions at the trade deadline including Eddie Rosario, Jorge Soler and Joc Pederson, and their playoff surge indicated that the record was not an accurate reflection of their talent.
While they lost franchise legend Freeman to the Dodgers, the Braves are arguably getting an upgrade at first base in the form of Matt Olson, who is four years younger and was a two-time Gold Glove winner with the Oakland Athletics before being traded for a four-player package of young Braves prospects.
Max Fried and Charlie Morton comprise a stout top of the rotation while Mike Soroka is out injured, and they have some strong bullpen arms including Tyler Matzek and Collin McHugh.
The Braves are a team without a clear weakness and will be full of confidence, so expect them to be fighting it out at the top of the NL East against the second-most expensive team in baseball, the New York Mets, as they bid to become the first team to win consecutive World Series since the Yankees in 1999 and 2000.
Are the Mets the best team in New York?
Since 2001, the New York Mets have only finished with a better record than the Yankees twice, in 2015 and 2016.
During that span, the Mets have never had a more expensive payroll than their local rivals – until this year.
The Mets are projected to come into Opening Day trailing only the Dodgers with the second-highest payroll in the league at $251million, while the Yankees are third at $239m.
It represents more than just deep pockets for second-year owner Steve Cohen, it shows that the Mets are no longer the 'little brother', and are willing to spend what it takes to be taken seriously against the most decorated franchise in major league history.
Buck Showalter will be the man tasked with turning the money into wins in his first year in the role, the former three-time AL Manager of the Year known for maximising talent on a limited budget with the Baltimore Orioles from 2010 to 2018, a stint that included a playoff series win over the Yankees.
Ultimately, what the Mets' season will hinge on is the health of their starting pitchers, with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer (who turns 38 this season) comprising the best one-two punch in baseball after Marcus Stroman left as a free agent to join the Chicago Cubs. DeGrom has already been sidelined for four weeks with a shoulder injury.
The rotation also includes 2021 All-Star Taijuan Walker, who tailed off late last season, but showed impressive ability when fresh.
Francisco Lindor remains the young jewel of the franchise – now two seasons into a 10-year, $341m contract extension – and along with power-hitting Pete Alonso and rangy center-fielder Starling Marte, there is plenty of quality stepping into the batters' box.
The Yankees will have one of the highest-ceiling batting line-ups when they roll out sluggers Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Joey Gallo, but they also play in the league's toughest division in the AL East, and could be candidates for regression after losing pitcher Corey Kluber and trading away bats Gio Urshela and Luke Voit.
Did the best team in baseball not make the playoffs in 2021?
It may be hard to believe, but given the meat grinder that is the AL East, the Toronto Blue Jays are bookmakers' second-favourite to win the World Series despite not making the playoffs this past season.
The Blue Jays were top three in runs scored in 2021 and should again be one of the most explosive teams in the league this time around.
Toronto will also be able to enjoy a homecoming season, returning to Rogers Centre after the Blue Jays were forced to play their 2021 home games in Buffalo due to pandemic restrictions.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr and Bo Bichette are franchise cornerstones, last year's big signing George Springer was enormous in an injury-shortened debut campaign, and they have the luxury of adding Matt Chapman this season, who has two Platinum Gloves to his name as one of the best defensive players in the league.
Pitching remains the question mark in Toronto, with AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray departing for Seattle in a serious blow to a rotation with plenty to prove.
Nobody should be surprised if the Blue Jays jump up from fourth in their division all the way to the top, and are one of the teams with real World Series aspirations this season.
Which top prospect will establish themselves as a star?
There will be some elite prospects finding their way in the majors this season, but will any of them burst onto the scene as a star?
In 2017, Judge did more than just win Rookie of the Year, he led the AL in home runs and finished second in AL MVP voting.
While there is always a chance that an unheralded rookie emerges as the premier prospect, there is a relatively clear top-tier consisting of three players entering the season.
Kansas City Royals infielder Bobby Witt Jr, Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman and Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez.
Rutschman will hit for average from both sides of the plate while projecting as an elite defensive catcher, Witt is the five-tool stud who will make eye-popping plays with his glove at shortstop, and Rodriguez is the big, power-hitting corner outfielder.
At 24 years old, Rutschman is the senior of the class, while the other two are considerably younger at 21, but all three will have a chance to prove themselves early in the year as franchise-altering stars – and potentially become the biggest story of this season.
Tigers, Royals, Padres finish sweeps and Brewers even series
Andy Ibáñez hit a tiebreaking three-run double in Detroit's four-run eighth inning, and the Tigers finished a sweep of the Houston Astros with a 5-2 victory in Game 2 of their AL Wild Card Series on Wednesday.
Parker Meadows homered as Detroit ended Houston's run of seven consecutive appearances in the AL Championship Series. It was a sweet moment for Tigers manager A.J. Hinch, who led Houston to a championship in 2017 and was fired in the aftermath of the Astros' sign-stealing scandal.
Next up for the wild-card Tigers is a trip to Cleveland to take on the AL Central champions in a best-of-five AL Division Series. Game 1 is on Saturday.
Kerry Carpenter sparked Detroit's eighth-inning rally with a one-out single off Ryan Pressly, who converted his first 14 postseason save opportunities. Carpenter advanced to third on a single by Matt Vierling and scored on a wild pitch, tying it at 2.
Pressly departed after Colt Keith reached on a two-out walk, and closer Josh Hader walked Spencer Torkelson to load the bases.
Hinch then sent Ibáñez up to hit for Zach McKinstry, and Ibáñez lined a 1-2 sinker into the corner in left for a 5-2 lead.
Hader, who signed a $95 million, five-year contract with Houston in January, allowed three hits and walked two in 1 1/3 innings.
Detroit used seven different pitchers a day after ace Tarik Skubal won the series opener. Sean Guenther pitched 1 2/3 innings for the win in Game 2, and Will Vest handled the ninth for the save.
Just making it to the playoffs seemed improbable before Detroit went 31-13 down the stretch in the regular season.
Padres finish off Braves
Kyle Higashioka ignited a five-run second inning with a solo home run and the San Diego Padres held on for a 5-4 victory over the Atlanta Braves to complete a sweep of their NL Wild Card Series.
Manny Machado added a two-run double with the bases loaded, and Jackson Merrill followed with a two-run triple as the sellout crowd of 47,705 - the largest in Petco Park history - roared.
The Padres head up Interstate 5 to face Shohei Ohtani and the NL West rival and top-seeded Los Angeles Dodgers in a National League Division Series starting Saturday night. San Diego eliminated the 111-win Dodgers in a 2022 NLDS.
Jorge Soler hit a solo homer in the fifth and Michael Harris II had a two-run shot in the eighth, but Robert Suarez pitched a perfect ninth to seal the one-run victory.
Both starting pitchers exited early.
Atlanta left-hander Max Fried was done after two innings after he was hit on his left hip by a comebacker from Fernando Tatis Jr. two batters into the game. He stayed in and got out of a bases-loaded jam. He then allowed five runs on six straight hits with two outs in the second.
Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove departed in the fourth with right elbow tightness. He had two stints on the injured list this season with right elbow inflammation.
Royals complete sweep of punchless Orioles
Bobby Witt Jr. beat out an infield single to drive in the go-ahead run and send the Kansas City Royals into an AL Division Series with a 2-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles for a two-game sweep of their Wild Card Series.
With two outs and runners at the corners in the sixth inning, Witt hit a grounder to the edge of the dirt behind second base, where Jordan Westburg made a diving stop and threw to first. Witt was already there after zooming 90 feet in 4.14 seconds, allowing Kyle Isbel to score from third.
It was the second consecutive game in which the AL batting champion provided the decisive hit. Witt's RBI single Tuesday in Game 1 plated the only run in a 1-0 victory.
Kansas City, which endured two seven-game losing streaks over the final month of the season, advances to face the AL East champion New York Yankees. Game 1 is Saturday in the Bronx.
Baltimore got its only run of the series on Cedric Mullins’ fifth-inning home run off starter Seth Lugo.
Five Kansas City relievers allowed one hit over 5 2/3 scoreless innings, with Lucas Erceg working a perfect ninth for his second save of the series.
The Orioles went 1 for 13 with runners in scoring position in the series and struck out 22 times.
They have lost 10 straight postseason games for the longest active streak in baseball. Only three teams in MLB history have lost more postseason games in a row than the 2014-2024 Orioles.
Brewers rally to force Game 3
Jackson Chourio tied it in the eighth with his second homer of the night and Garrett Mitchell delivered a two-run shot later in the inning to give the Milwaukee Brewers a 5-3 victory over the New York Mets that evened their NL Wild Card Series.
The teams will play a decisive Game 3 on Thursday night. The Brewers will attempt to become the first team to rally to win a best-of-three Wild Card Series after losing the opener since MLB went to this expanded playoff format in 2022.
Milwaukee trailed 3-2 when Chourio led off the eighth by homering off Phil Maton, making his fourth appearance on the mound in five days. The 20-year-old rookie also opened the bottom of the first with a drive to right, becoming the youngest player to hit a leadoff homer in the postseason.
After Blake Perkins singled and William Contreras hit into a double play, Willy Adames kept the eighth inning alive with a single. Mitchell then sent a first-pitch curveball just over the wall in right-center to send the American Family Field crowd into a frenzy.
Joe Ross pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win and Devin Williams retired the side in order in the ninth to earn the save.
MLB: Tigers, Royals, Mets, Padres win playoff openers
Michael King matched a season high with 12 strikeouts over seven innings and Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a two-run homer on his first playoff swing in four years as the San Diego Padres defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-0 in an NL Wild Card Series opener on Tuesday night.
King was stellar in becoming the first pitcher to have 12 strikeouts with no runs and no walks allowed in his first career postseason start. He joined Kevin Brown and Sterling Hitchcock as the only Padres pitchers with double-digit strikeout games in playoff history. He allowed five hits and walked none.
Jason Adam struck out the side in the eighth and Robert Suarez pitched the ninth.
Tatis' 415-foot shot landed in the second deck in left field at Petco Park and sent the towel-waving, sellout crowd of 47,647 into a frenzy. The 25-year-old star, who missed just more than 2 1/2 months this season with a stress reaction in his right thighbone, watched the ball fly away, tossed his bat aside, gestured toward the home dugout and did his signature stutter-step around third base.
Game 2 in the best-of-three playoff is Wednesday night. If the Padres win the series, they'll face their biggest rivals, the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers, in the National League Division Series. The Padres eliminated the 111-win Dodgers in a 2022 NLDS.
Kyle Higashioka homered in the eighth and had a sacrifice fly in the second. He is 3 for 30 against Atlanta, with three homers.
The Braves clinched a playoff berth by winning the second game of a makeup doubleheader against the New York Mets on Monday in Atlanta. They are without NL Cy Young Award favourite Chris Sale for this series. The left-hander was scratched from the late game Monday with spasms.
Skubal pitches Tigers past Astros for 1-0 series lead
Tarik Skubal tossed six shutout innings in his postseason debut, and the Detroit Tigers held on to beat the Houston Astros 3-1 in Game 1 of their best-of-three AL wild-card series.
The win was the Tigers’ first in the playoffs since 2013.
Skubal, a heavy favourite to win the AL Cy Young Award, struck out six, allowing four hits and a walk in his first taste of the MLB playoffs.
Detroit scored all their runs with two outs in the second inning, with Jake Rogers, Trey Sweeney and Matt Vierling each hitting RBI singles off Houston starter Framber Valdez.
Valdez was saddled with the loss after allowing three runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings.
The Astros’ bats were held quiet for most of the afternoon until a ninth-inning rally that ultimately came up short.
Yordan Alvarez led off the ninth with a double before being subbed out for pinch runner Zach Denzenzo, who scored on a Yainer Diaz single off Jason Foley.
Beau Brieske entered with one out and walked the bases loaded before forcing Jason Heyward to line out to end the game.
Witt delivers as Royals blank Orioles
Bobby Witt Jr.’s RBI single off Corbin Burnes broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning, Cole Ragans pitched six strong innings, and the Kansas City Royals edged the Baltimore Orioles 1-0 in a wild-card Game 1.
The defeat extended Baltimore’s postseason losing streak to nine games, dating back to the 2014 ALCS against Kansas City.
Witt slapped a single into left field with two outs in the sixth inning, driving in Maikel Garcia for the game’s only run.
Witt spoiled an otherwise sterling performance from Burnes, who gave up five hits – all singles – over eight innings.
Ragans allowed four hits over six innings while striking out eight, throwing 60 of his 80 pitches for strikes.
Sam Long, Kris Bubic and Lucas Erceg allowed just one hit out of the bullpen over the game’s last three innings.
Cedric Mullins and Ramon Urias hit doubles for the Orioles, who managed just five hits.
Mets ride momentum to opening win
Mark Vientos highlighted a five-run fifth inning with a two-run single to lead the indefatigable New York Mets to an 8-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in an NL Wild Card Series opener.
The Mets didn’t earn a playoff berth until they rallied late from a three-run deficit to win the opening game of a makeup doubleheader in Atlanta on Monday, one day after the regular season was supposed to end.
Now they’re a win from heading to Philadelphia for an NL Division Series.
Since Major League Baseball went to the current postseason format in 2022 that features four best-of-three Wild Card Series, the Game 1 winner has gone on to advance in each of the eight series. Only one of those eight series even made it to a winner-take-all third game.
Milwaukee has lost 10 of its last 11 playoff games, a stretch that began with its Game 7 home defeat against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2018 NL Championship Series.
Jesse Winker and pinch-hitter J.D. Martinez each drove in two runs for the Mets. Winker, who batted .199 with a .567 OPS for the Brewers last year before bouncing back this season, drew a chorus of boos each time he batted and appeared to exchange words with Milwaukee shortstop Willy Adames after hitting a two-run triple in the second.
Luis Severino allowed four runs and eight hits over six innings and Jose Butto and Ryne Stanek combined to pitch three hitless innings with four strikeouts in relief.
Brice Turang had three hits and William Contreras had two hits and two RBIs for the Brewers.
Controversial MLB legend Pete Rose dies at 83 years old
Major League Baseball career hits leader Pete Rose, who was banned from the game and barred from the Hall of Fame for gambling on his sport, has died. He was 83 years old.
A spokesperson from Clark County, Nevada, confirmed Rose’s death on Monday. A cause of death has yet to be determined.
Starring for his home-town Cincinnati Reds in the 1960s and ‘70s, Rose was the heart and soul of the “Big Red Machine” and helped them win two World Series titles and four National League pennants.
A 17-time All-Star, “Charlie Hustle” was an unquestioned fan favourite on the field, known for his relentless play and passionate demeanour. Playing in 24 major league seasons, Rose accumulated 4,256 career hits, long considered one of baseball’s most unbreakable records.
Rose broke the previous hits record in 1985, surpassing Ty Cobb’s mark of 4,191 hits to nationwide adulation, and he even received a call from President Ronald Reagan.
Rose’s sterling legacy, however, was tarnished just four years later by one of the most infamous scandals in sports history.
On March 20, 1989, Major League Baseball opened an enquiry into gambling allegations against Rose, who had taken over as the Reds’ manager. The Commissioner’s Office found that Rose placed bets through bookies and friends on baseball games, including ones involving his own team.
MLB’s enquiry found that “accumulated testimony of witnesses, together with the documentary evidence and telephone records, reveal extensive betting activity by Pete Rose in connection with professional baseball and, in particular, Cincinnati Reds games, during the 1985, 1986, and 1987 baseball seasons.”
In August 1989, Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti announced Rose’s lifetime ban from baseball. “One of the game’s greatest players has engaged in a variety of acts which have stained the game, and he must now live with the consequences of those acts,” Giamatti said.
In 1991, the Hall of Fame ruled that Rose’s transgressions made him ineligible for induction.
Rose initially maintained his innocence and downplayed the ban, believing that he would one day be reinstated.
As time passed, however, he changed his tune. In a memoir released three months after his ban, Rose admitted to gambling on baseball, but legally.
In “Play Hungry,” a memoir published in 2019, he seemed to admit to all the allegations.
“I don’t think betting is morally wrong. I don’t even think betting on baseball if morally wrong,” Rose wrote. “There are legal ways, and there are illegal ways, and betting on baseball the way I did was against the rules of baseball.”
Rose’s banishment would go on to serve as a precedent, with certain voters refusing to vote for some players who played in the “steroid era” of the 1990s and 2000s.
As Rose aged, his disgrace gradually faded from public consciousness, and there were some who lobbied for the ban to be lifted, believing that four decades of ostracisation was punishment enough.
While Rose never got to see his bust in Cooperstown, he is represented by several pieces of memorabilia in the Hall of Fame, including the cleats he wore when he became baseball’s hits king.
Rose was voted the 1973 NL MVP, and a helmet from that season also resides in Cooperstown, a reluctant nod to one of baseball's iconic players.
While Rose played stints with the Philadelphia Phillies and Montreal Expos, he played more than 18 seasons with the Reds, sharing the field with Hall of Famers like Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan and Tony Perez.
The switch-hitting Rose was the lead-off hitter and tone-setter for the Reds’ feared Great Eight lineup, and Cincinnati inducted him into the team’s Hall of Fame in 2016. A year later, the club retired his No. 14 and unveiled a bronze statue outside of Great American Ballpark.
His fans will remember Rose for his enthusiasm and competitiveness as much as for his measurable achievements.
Rose was known for giving full effort to the game he loved, and he earned his “Charlie Hustle” moniker for running to first base even after walks.
In so many ways, Rose embodied everything baseball fans have loved about the game for over a century, but that legacy will forever be coupled with his wrongdoings and public fall from grace.
Rose was a career .303 hitter who retired with more walks than strikeouts. He holds MLB records for games played (3,562) and plate appearances (15,890), and his 44-game hitting streak in 1978 is the longest in National League history.
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