Something I’ve noticed among the younger crop of front-office executives in casual conversation is that some of them talk about their teams putting “points on the board.” Note that this is not a confused misnomer. They are all well aware that baseball is oriented around runs, not points. They know

Pitching is precarious, which means predicting pitching is precarious. (Almost as precarious as trying to say, “Predicting pitching is precarious” five times fast.) But let’s do it anyway, in our annual look at the top 10 pitching staffs* in MLB, following Friday’s announcement of all 30 team’s Opening Day starters.

Everywhere I go, people stop me on the street and say: “Big AC [that’s what they call me on the street], how can you be so wrong so often and still keep making baseball predictions?” What can I say? Consistency and durability are essential in the grueling world of MLB,

MIAMI – Eugenio Suárez flung his head back and looked up into the rafters. The sound bouncing off loanDepot park’s steel roof washed over the Venezuelan designated hitter as he held out his arms and motioned for more. More noise. More love. More joy.

MIAMI -- It was one of the most talented, accomplished baseball lineups ever assembled. And it managed two hits against Eduardo Rodriguez.

MIAMI -- The delicate balance between going for the gold and getting ready for the regular season impacted Team USA’s pitching plans for the World Baseball Classic final. And it will be fascinating to watch how manager Mark DeRosa and the Americans try to piece together the 27 outs that

MIAMI -- When the United States assembled its super team for this World Baseball Classic, the selections were skewed toward established stars not just because of their talent but because of the guaranteed contracts that make them more prone to participate.

MIAMI – When Venezuela starter Keider Montero walked consecutive lefty batters in the second inning against Italy, manager Omar López knew he was going to have his work cut out for him in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic on Monday night. “That,” he said, “was a red flag

MIAMI -- Outside, it was one of those relentless South Florida rains. But still, the hundreds of Venezuelan baseball fans who remained long after the last pitch of the World Baseball Classic semifinals had been thrown were in ecstasy. Thoroughly soaked but swept up in the moment, they sang, danced,

MIAMI -- When MLB instituted its current postseason format in 2022, there was no longer a need for coin flips or tiebreaker games, because a new, mathematical tiebreaker system was instituted. But lovers of the coin toss will be pleased to know it can still happen in the World Baseball

MIAMI – The game met the hype. And the Americans met the moment. In a semifinals matchup rife with many of baseball’s biggest names and a game rife with the kind of tension that makes the sport great, Team USA outlasted the Dominican Republic, 2-1, on Sunday night at loanDepot

HOUSTON -- The afternoon start time at Daikin Park was conducive to a new, beautifully bizarre reality out in Italy. There, the locals could gather in the evening hours Saturday and converse not just about “calcio,” or soccer, while sipping on their espressos and digestivi but also lock in on

In the pages of the New York Times in the spring of 2005, a just-announced tournament to be known as the “World Baseball Classic” was being touted for one particular potential pairing. “Baseball’s first world cup will probably be decided,” David Leonhardt wrote, “by a matchup between one of the

HOUSTON – Team USA has definitely “punched its ticket” this time. And it’s a ticket to a real heavyweight bout. After a tumultuous couple of days emanating from a regrettable MLB Network interview segment for manager Mark DeRosa and a lamentable loss to upstart Italy, the American dream in this

HOUSTON -- Clayton Kershaw has hung ‘em up. Again. Team USA’s 5-3 win over Canada in the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic on Friday night at Daikin Park served as Kershaw’s final game on an active roster. He’ll be replaced prior to the semifinals against the Dominican Republic by

HOUSTON -- Yadier Molina has made no secret of the fact that he hopes to manage in the Major Leagues. Same goes for the former Cardinals teammate with whom he is often associated, Albert Pujols. With both greats having managed their respective clubs -- Molina with Puerto Rico and Pujols

HOUSTON -- Members of the United States’ World Baseball Classic team were still in their Spring Training camps when Jack Hughes scored the game-winning goal in overtime versus Canada to capture the country’s first men’s hockey Olympic gold since 1980. “I was actually doing an interview with some Japanese media

HOUSTON -- Leave it to Team Italy to come through for a guy named DeRosa. Team USA manager Mark DeRosa returned to Daikin Park for his club’s World Baseball Classic workout Thursday afternoon, having survived the public backlash over comments he made on MLB Network earlier in the week that

HOUSTON – After their enormous upset of the U.S. on Tuesday night, the members of Team Italy were just like the rest of us, learning about the mathematical tiebreakers that might decide their fate if they lost to Mexico the next night. The calculations came in and confirmed that Italy

HOUSTON – For a week, he had been the heart and soul of an upstart Italian squad, brewing up post-homer espresso shots in the dugout, kissing his teammates on the cheeks, arranging a spontaneous after-hours dip in the hotel’s lazy river and passing out celebratory bottles of wine to team

HOUSTON – A shortstop flop benefited Team Italy early in a pivotal matchup with Mexico in Pool B play on Wednesday night. The Italians were ahead, 1-0, with one out in the bottom of the third when Mexico’s Joey Ortiz singled. Jarren Duran hit a fly ball to shallow left-center

HOUSTON -- The United States assembled its best roster yet for this World Baseball Classic. But its fate will now come down to the rosters of Italy and Mexico. “It’s out of our control,” Team USA captain Aaron Judge said. “Now we just need a little luck, and we’ll see

HOUSTON -- A big night for Team Italy catcher Kyle Teel ended abruptly, as the young White Sox backstop injured himself running the bases in World Baseball Classic pool play in an 8-6 victory over Team USA on Tuesday night at Daikin Park. A day later, White Sox general manager

HOUSTON – They came here singing canzones. Not Dominic Canzone (though he was there) but Italian “canzones.” As in, songs.

With in-market, blackout-free streaming subscriptions available for 22 of MLB’s 30 clubs and with ESPN having acquired the rights to sell the popular MLB.TV streaming service, fans have more flexibility in how they consume baseball broadcasts. Watch select Spring Training games on MLB.TV all spring long. For a list of