The Baseball Buffet for 3/9/2026

Australia 3, Japan 4 - It was odd that this one was so close, given that Australia’s pitchers had 12 BB and only 2K, while Japan’s pitchers had 0 BB and 12 K. COL SP Tomoyuki Sugano did well with 4 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, and BOS LF Masataka Yoshida went 1-3 with a walk and a 2-run HR.

Colombia 4, Cuba 7 - Cuba jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first inning, and then added three more in the sixth. Again, like the Aussie pitchers, Cuba’s eight pitchers allowed 10 walks, but in their case they walked away with the win.

Netherlands 1, Dominican Republic 12 - The lone run for the Netherlands came from a solo HR by Didi Gregorius in the second inning off ATH Luis Severino, who otherwise did well with 4 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. The DR hitters provided plenty of power, with homers by TOR 1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr., TBR DH Junior Caminero, NYY C Austin Wells, and NYM LF Juan Soto.

Great Britain 4, Italy 7 - For Great Britain, BOS CF Nate Eaton went 2-5 with 2 doubles, and NYY 2B Jazz Chisholm was 2-4 with a walk and 2 runs. But seven pitchers for Italy combined for 13 strikeouts, and they got homers from MIL 3B Andrew Fischer and LAA C J.J. D’Orazio.

Nicaragua 0, Israel 5 - BAL SP Dean Kremer did well with 4.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, and four other pitchers for Israel combined for a 2-hit shutout.

Panama 4, Canada 3 - CHC SP Jameson Taillon did well with 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, but Panama tallied 11 hits in this and put up three runs in the top of the sixth to take a lead that they would hold onto for their first win of this WBC.

Brazil 0, Mexico 16 - PHI SP Taijuan Walker did well with 3.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, and two Mexico relievers combined for a 3-hit, short-game shutout. And that is because the Mexico lineup put up 16 hits and 16 runs in just six innings, at which point the game was called. BOS RF Jarren Duran was 2-3 with a HR, a double, and 3 RBI, TOR C Alejandro Kirk was 2-3 with a HR, a double, and 4 RBI, and AZ CF Alek Thomas was 3-3 with a walk, a HR, and 3 RBI.

HOU SP Hunter Brown was outstanding with 9 K in 4 IP, with 0 H, 0 ER, and 2 BB. HOU RF Cam Smith went 2-3 with his first HR of the spring.

WSN SP Andrew Alvarez, who is competing for a depth rotation or bullpen roster spot, did very well with 4 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K.

PIT 3B Nick York went 2-3 with a HR, 3 RBI, and 2 runs, and PIT LF Billy Cook was 3-3 with a HR, a double, and 3 RBI

TOR SP Cody Ponce did well with 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, and in their other split-squad game TOR SP Kevin Gausman did well with 3.1 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, and TOR 3B Addison Barger went 2-3 with a HR and 3 RBI

PHI 3B Otto Kemp went 2-3 with his second HR of the spring

MIN SP Simeon Woods Richardson did well with 4 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, while MIN 2B Kody Clemens went 2-3 with a triple, a double, and 2 RBI

ATL SP Bryce Elder struggled with 3.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, but the Braves got homers from RF Ben Gamel, 2B Luke Williams, C Jair Camargo, and 3B Kyle Farmer

STL SP Andre Pallante did well with 4 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, giving up a HR to MIA RF Griffin Conine, his first of the spring

NYY SP Ryan Weathers struggled with 2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

NYM SP Freddy Peralta had 4 K in 3 IP, but also allowed 3 H, 1 BB, and 2 ER

AZ CF Jordan Lawler went 2-4 with his third HR of the spring

CIN SP Brady Singer did well with 3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, and the Reds’ hitters had four homers from RF Will Benson, DH Ryan McCrystal, SS Tyson Lewis, and 1B Zavier Warren

ATH SP Aaron Civale had 4 K in 3.2 IP, but also allowed 5 H and 2 ER, including a HR to LAA C Logan O’Hoppe, his third HR of the spring. Meanwhile ATH 3B Tommy White went 3-4 with 2 HR, and ATH RF Henry Bolte went 4-4 with a HR and 2 doubles

In another ATH split-squad game, 19-year-old SS prospect Leo De Vries went 2-4 with 2 HR, including one grand slam. ATH 3B Andy Ibáñez also went 4-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI.

LAD SP Justin Wrobleski did well with 3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, LAD LF Alex Call went 2-3 with a HR and 3 RBI, and LAD CF Andy Pages went 2-3 with a solo HR

CHC SS Dansby Swanson was 2-2 with a walk, a triple, and a double

The Giants got five homers from 3B Parks Harber, 3B Buddy Kennedy, C Eric Haase, CF Grant McCray, and DH Jesus Rodriguez

TEX SP Nathan Eovaldi stretched out with 5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, while TEX CF Evan Carter went 2-3 with a double and grand slam, and 2B Josh Smith was 2-2 with a walk and HR

KCR SP Noah Cameron had 3 K in 3 IP, but also allowed 3 H, 1 BB, and 2 ER, while KCR 2B Nick Loftin was 2-3 with a walk, a HR, and 3 RBI

CHW 3B Colson Montgomery and CHW RF Jarred Kelenic each hit their second HR of the spring

CIN SP Chase Burns had 4 K in 3.2 IP, but also allowed 4 H, 1 BB, and 4 ER, including a 3-run HR to SDP DH Gavin Sheets

SEA SP George Kirby did well with 3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, and SEA LF Brennan Davis had his fourth HR of the spring

Five Brewers’ pitchers combined for 16 strikeouts against the Mariners, including MIL Kyle Harrison with 8 in 3 IP, and MIL Jacob Misiorowski with 6 in 3.1 IP. Meanwhile, MIL LF Jake Bauers went 2-3 with a HR and a double, and MIL 1B Andrew Vaughn was 2-4 with 2 doubles

1981: The White Sox sign Carlton Fisk. “The Chicago White Sox sign prized catcher Carlton Fisk. The future Hall of Fame receiver was declared a free agent in February after the Boston Red Sox failed to mail him a contract by the deadline imposed under the Basic Agreement. Fisk batted .289 with 18 home runs for the Red Sox in 1980.”

1995: MLB owners approve the Diamondbacks and Devil Rays as the next expansion teams. “Major League Baseball owners unanimously approve two expansion teams: the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Each of the new clubs will pay a $130 million franchise fee and will begin play in 1998. The decision is taken even though the strike which ended the 1994 season abruptly is still unresolved.”

Hall of Famer

14-year major league career, spanning from 1932-1948, all with the Pirates and Dodgers

Nine-time All-Star, he received down-ballot MVP votes eight times, with two third-place finishes, and oddly came in exactly 23rd place in each of his first three seasons

Led the NL with a .385 average in 1935, led the league in walks three times, in runs three times

He had some pop, with a career-high 19 HR in 1935, and led the NL three times in triples, with a career-high of 19 triples in 1933

He played mostly SS, with his defense improving over time, and then shifted to 3B late in his career

He died at the early age of 40 due to accidental drowning while fishing with a friend

Overall had 96 HR, 128 triples, 118 SB, 1,173 runs, a .318/.406/.453 slash line, and a 136 OPS+

Hall of Famer (as a manager)

13-year major league playing career, spanning from 1913-1929, spread out with five different clubs

Was a capable batsman with over a .300 average in three full seasons, and also over .300 in a few other partial seasons

Had between 19-23 SB in four consecutive seasons, and had 10+ triples four times, including an NL-leading 14 triples in 1919

Overall had 138 SB, a .297/.359/.415 slash line, and a 111 OPS+

Was even more successful as a manager, which began with one season as a player/manager for the Cardinals in 1929, then returning to lead St. Louis from 1940-1945 which included three NL Pennants and two World Series championships. He then led the Boston Braves for parts of six seasons, including an NL Pennant in 1948.

19-year major league career, spanning from 1964-1983, mostly with the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, the Rangers, and the Angels

Seven-time All-Star as a good-fielding SS, receiving down-ballot MVP votes eight times

Had 30+ SB eleven times, including leading the AL in SB six times, with a career-high of 62 SB in both 1968 and 1969

Didn't have much power, never hitting more than 8 HR in a season, except in 1970 when he suddenly connected for 22 HR

He is one of only a half-dozen players to have hit 2 HR in his first MLB game, a feat he accomplished on July 23, 1964.

He also became the first MLB player to appear at all nine positions in one game. Although during his career he mostly played SS, on September 8th, 1965, he played all nine, including catcher and pitcher.

Overall had 649 SB, 1,181 runs, and a .259/.311/.342 slash line

11-year major league career, spanning from 1950-1961, as a RF with the Red Sox, Yankees, and Senators

Three-time All-Star, and won a Gold Glove Award in 1959

Won the AL MVP Award in 1958 after batting .286 with 35 HR and an AL-leading 122 RBI

Also led the AL with 116 RBI in 1955 and 112 RBI in 1959, and had 20+ HR six times

Had some speed on the bases with 15+ SB five times, including leading the AL with a modest 22 SB in 1954

As noted at Wikipedia, "Jensen announced his retirement from baseball in January 1960, primarily because of an intense fear of flying, but also the result of the long separations from his family. ... Jensen made a comeback attempt with Boston in 1961, but turned to hypnotherapy when his panic attacks at airports became unbearable. Frustrated by a sub-par season (.263, 66 RBIs), he retired again for good."

Overall he had 199 HR, 929 RBI, 143 SB, a .279/.369/.460 slash line, and a 120 OPS+

20-year major league career, spanning from 1986-2005, spending his first seven seasons with the Padres, and the rest spread across eight different clubs

Won the NL Rookie of the Year Award in 1987 after batting .300 with 18 HR, 79 RBI, and 21 SB

Five-time All-Star, and won three Gold Glove Awards as a catcher

Had some pop with 15+ HR five times, including a high of 30 HR in 1996

Overall had 217 HR, 920 RBI, 91 SB, and a .263/.307/.415 slash line

12-year major league career, spanning from 1997-2009, spending the first seven seasons with the Reds, and the rest spread across five different clubs

Mostly a 3B, he had 26 HR and 32 SB in 2002, and then was an All-Star in 2003 ending the year with a .267 average, 24 HR, 23 SB, 96 RBI, and 92 runs

Overall had 126 HR, 107 SB, and a .263/.326/.425 slash line

Has been the manager of the New York Yankees since 2018, leading them to 100+ win seasons in both 2018 and 2019, and an AL Pennant in 2024

Part of the Boone major league baseball family, he is the brother of Bret Boone, son of Bob Boone, and grandson of Ray Boone

11-year major league career, spanning from 1957-1967, spending eight seasons with the White Sox, and his last three seasons spread across five different clubs

Was an excellent defensive CF, winning five consecutive Gold Glove Awards

Had 15+ HR three times, and 19-23 SB five times

Overall had 93 HR, 139 SB, a .247/.344/.375 slash line, and a nearly even 99 OPS+

First-round draft pick (24th overall) in 1984 by the Giants

20-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1986-2006, playing for 11 different clubs

Had a career-high 16 wins in 1991, and then was an All-Star in 1993 and finished the season with a 12-9 record and 3.25 ERA

Threw a no-hitter for the Phillies on August 15, 1990

Overall had a 124-142 record and a 4.41 ERA

1 position battle still undecided for each team, by MLB writers, 3/8/2026

Baseball’s Hall of Fame Politicians, by Bill Pruden at Here's the Pitch: the IBWAA Newsletter, 3/9/2026

5 Baseball Cards that Meet Themselves Coming and Going, at Wax Pack Gods Newsletter, 3/8/2026