MLB

7:15 AM ET When my little brother was at the very end of his teenage years, he stepped over the Vermont moat and joined me for spring training in Arizona. Eventually we made our way to Las Vegas for some exhibition games. As we drove down The Strip for the first time, bathed in its

9:22 PM ET This is the family that Freddie and Chelsea Freeman wanted: lots of siblings who will grow up playing together, loving each other, helping each other. But the Freemans never could’ve imagined how they would get to where they are now, with 4-year-old Charlie and his two baby brothers. After trying for pregnancy

2:25 PM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” Over the course of a 45-minute chat to a local Rotary Club in early February, Seattle Mariners CEO Kevin Mather disparaged a Japanese player for not learning English, belittled a star prospect

7:00 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” Over the winter, when Fernando Tatis Jr. was not working on trying to fulfill his goal of becoming the best baseball player ever, he exhausted his free time working on his farms

12:27 AM ET ESPN News Services Seattle Mariners president and CEO Kevin Mather apologized Sunday night after his wide-ranging comments to a rotary club earlier this month surfaced, including him calling the English-speaking capabilities of two members of the organization “terrible” and “not tremendous.” Mather’s comments were made to a Bellevue, Washington, rotary club on

5:35 PM ET ESPN News Services One by one, the Boston Red Sox have arrived at spring training spouting the same, stubborn message. From Eduardo Rodriguez — “Don’t sleep on us” — to Chris Sale’s — “We plan on going and making some noise” — there is optimism at the team’s complex despite the 24-36

7:30 AM ET In the days leading up to Friday’s podcast interview of Dr. Anthony Fauci, I canvassed team officials about what questions they might ask the infectious disease expert, and one staffer seemed to be looking for some help with the context leading up to the July 31 trade deadline. When does Dr. Fauci

8:24 PM ET ESPN News Services Chicago White Sox right-hander Michael Kopech, who opted out of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season after missing all of 2019 due to Tommy John surgery, said he has regained his motivation after two years away from baseball. Kopech cited multiple reasons for opting out when speaking to reporters on Saturday,

3:37 PM ET CHICAGO — Former Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta is happy to be back in the city where he had his greatest success, saying Saturday that with the Chicago Cubs is “where I wanted to be.” Arrieta, 34, signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the team he helped to a World Series

6:23 PM ET The New York Yankees and outfielder Brett Gardner have reached agreement on a one-year deal worth $4 million, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The contract includes a second-year player option that, if rejected, turns into a team option, sources said. Gardner, 37, became a free agent in November when New York declined

7:17 PM ET Marly RiveraESPN Writer Close Marly Rivera is a writer for ESPNdeportes.com and ESPN.com. TAMPA — Corey Kluber might be a three-time All-Star and a two-time Cy Young award winner, but he acknowledges that he is now just part of a group of aspirants for a spot in the 2021 new look Yankees

5:00 PM ET Dr. Anthony Fauci is cautiously optimistic about the prospect of fans returning to the stands for the 2021 MLB season, telling ESPN’s Buster Olney there’s a “pretty good chance” of it happening if the rate of COVID-19 infections continue to drop. “We could have a pretty good chance of having a baseball

10:00 AM ET Last week, I ranked the top 100 prospects and all 30 farm systems heading into the 2021 season. Now it’s time to go deeper with my team-by-team rankings, wrapping up with the National League following Thursday’s American League lists. A quick refresher on a key term you’ll see throughout the team lists:

1:22 AM ET Kenley Jansen watched from the bullpen as Julio Urias, a 24-year-old starting pitcher, preserved a two-run lead and recorded a save in the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ long-awaited championship clincher last fall. Jansen, a three-time All-Star, had proven too unreliable in the postseason, leaving outsiders to wonder if his reign as the Dodgers’

7:00 AM ET Last week, I ranked the top 100 prospects and all 30 farm systems heading into the 2021 season. Now it’s time to go deeper with my team-by-team rankings, starting with the American League. A quick refresher on a key term you’ll see throughout the team lists: Future Value, shortened to FV hereafter,

7:15 AM ET “Me next! Me next!” Hayden Parker could hardly believe it. On his screen was an Instagram direct message from one of his favorite Major League Baseball players, Chicago White Sox ace Lucas Giolito. Giolito had seen Parker’s work — a series of hilarious, creatively Photoshopped images posted on Instagram called MLB Minis,

9:45 PM ET Bradford Doolittle Close ESPN Staff Writer Sports reporter, Kansas City Star, 2002-09 Writer, Baseball, Baseball Prospectus Co-author, Pro Basketball Prospectus Member, Baseball Writers Association of America Member, Professional Basketball Writers Association David Schoenfield Close ESPN Senior Writer Covers MLB for ESPN.com Former deputy editor of Page 2 Been with ESPN.com since 1995

5:42 PM ET Associated Press DETROIT — This year, the start of spring training was meaningful in a different way for AJ Hinch. After winning a World Series and two pennants as Houston’s manager, Hinch spent last season serving a suspension in the aftermath of the Astros‘ sign-stealing scandal. Now he has resurfaced with Detroit,