If the NFL season started today, one Bills player would be the team’s biggest fantasy bargain, another would be the biggest fantasy bust, and a third would be the biggest fantasy wild card.
On a team with (currently) high-end production at QB and RB, the market will have the most trouble sizing up Buffalo’s receivers. Dalton Kincaid won’t get the fantasy love of proven top-10 TEs. But that doesn’t mean he’s not a worthwhile bet to clear the top 10. I’m anticipating an ADP around TE12-15 based on subdued 2025 numbers. With Dawson Knox a cut candidate, Kincaid should finally realize his full potential in 2026.
My “bust” call comes straight from data analytics—specifically, the recent history of NFL RB careers following low-volume college careers. My homegrown spreadsheet includes every running back who’s entered the league since 1997: what they did in college and what they did in the pros.
Low-volume college RBs rarely have produced great fantasy seasons. This makes James Cook a fantasy unicorn. How long will his dominance last? History suggests not much longer, especially after a career-high 385-touch campaign (including the playoffs). The market assuredly will overvalue him.
The wild card is Khalil Shakir, Buffalo’s alpha WR by default. I expect this franchise to invest in a field-stretching wideout to pair with Shakir and Keon Coleman. How the market responds will be a good indicator of whether Shakir is a bargain or a fade.
HANOVER, N.H. (AP) — Fadima Tall, Madison St. Rose and Emily Eadie each scored 13 points to help No. 25 Princeton rout Dartmouth 97-47 on Friday night.
Princeton (22-3, 10-2 Ivy League) has won 19 of its last 21 games — with both losses coming against Columbia. The Tigers improved to 31-1 against the Big Green since the 2009-10 season.
Princeton pulled away by outscoring Dartmouth 32-12 in the third quarter. Toby Nweke and Grace O’Sullivan made back-to-back 3-pointers, and Skye Belker scored on two straight possessions to cap Princeton’s 25-4 third-quarter run for a 65-30 lead.
Princeton added a 13-2 run to begin the fourth for an 85-40 lead.
Belker and Nweke each scored 12 points and Taylor Charles had 10 points and 10 rebounds for Princeton, which did not have a double-digit scorer until the fourth quarter. Nweke made five of Princeton’s 20 steals. The Tigers shot 57% from the field and outrebounded the Big Green 40-23.
Dartmouth (10-15, 1-11) was led by Zeynep Ozel and Jacalyn Myrthil with nine points apiece. The Big Green turned it over 26 times and attempted 29 less field goals than Princeton.
Up next
Princeton: Stays on the road to play Harvard on Saturday.
Dartmouth: Hosts Pennsylvania on Saturday.
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PEORIA, ARIZONA – FEBRUARY 19: Luis Castillo #58 of the Seattle Mariners poses for a portrait at Peoria Sports Complex on February 19, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) | Getty Images
As Spring Training hits its stride and the Mariners move past their first week of games, Luis Castillo — La Piedra — takes the rock for the first time in 2026. Castillo, despite an up-and-down regular season, was an absolute hero during the postseason and we are all looking forward to seeing what he has in store in 2026!
It’s an interesting-look starting lineup for the M’s tonight, with the only real MLB players being Victor Robles in center, Josh Naylor at first, Miles Mastrobuoni at third, and Leo Rivas at short. This writer is especially excited to see how Cole Young performs under the lights tonight at second base.
Likely pitchers to follow Luis on the mound include Casey Lawrence, Carlos Vargas, José Ferrer, Tyler Cleveland, and Josh Simpson.
The Snakes are sending out Ryne Nelson (first Stanek now this guy? Someone has to teach pitchers how to spell “Ryan”) to the mound first tonight. Nelson has been a fixture for Arizona over the past three years, and set a career best ERA of 3.39 in 2025. It is also Nelson’s first start of the spring.
First Pitch: 5:10pm PT
Watch: Mariners.TV, Mariners.com, and (if you’re outside the PNW like our esteemed Kate Preusser) MLB Network
Listen: Seattle Sports 710AM
As a reminder, we’re hoping to build our community before Opening Day for what promises to be an exciting 2026 season and we’d love to have you with us. If you haven’t yet, sign up (it makes the site function much better for you, as a bonus) and jump on in to the conversation! This is especially helpful on radio-only games to keep the conversation flowing. And don’t worry about making a mistake – it’s spring training for all of us.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA – MARCH 16: Jeffrey Springs #59 of the Athletics delivers a first inning pitch against the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game at Scottsdale Stadium on March 16, 2025 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The A’s can’t seem to get many wins this spring but luckily these games don’t count just yet. Still would be nice to see another win sometime soon as the Athletics dropped another game on Friday afternoon, losing to the Royals 7-6 and dropping their meaningless record to 1-5.
The A’s jumped out to an early lead this afternoon. A pair of walks put two runners on for Max Muncy. Looking to put some distance between himself and Darell Hernaiz for the starting third base job, Muncy took a fastball down the middle and drove it into center field for a double and bringing in both runs, giving the A’s the first lead.
Left-hander Jeffrey Springs got his first action today, taking the ball to start against KC today. While the stats don’t matter today still wasn’t a great first outing for the 33-year-old considering his early-game struggles last year. Springs had an easy first inning but got hit hard in the second, allowing four runs to score capped by a Bobby Witt Jr. three-run home run that wiped away the A’s early lead. That would chase him from this game after getting up to 39 pitches, which is probably around where the coaching staff wanted him as they slowly ramp the veteran lefty up for the long season ahead.
The A’s got one of those runs back in the next frame thanks to a Carlos Cortes double and a pair of productive groundouts to bring him in. Then the A’s got the big hit they were looking for in the fourth. Shortstop Jacob Wilson came to the plate with a runner on first and blasted a 429-foot home run to left field, his first long ball of spring and one that tied this game up a 5 apiece. The A’s would then take the lead the very next inning, courtesy of Muncy’s first home run of the spring.
The Royals would battle back late however. Lefty Brady Basso began the seventh and didn’t have his best stuff today. A double and a pair of walks loaded the bases and while he was just one strike away from getting out of the jam, a two-run double bit him and gave KC back the lead.
The A’s put together a scoring threat in the eighth thanks to a couple hits from some prospects (including Leo De Vries!), but couldn’t manage to knot this game up, falling 7-6 to finish the afternoon off.
Not great but the offense has really picked it up after a slow start to spring. We do this all again tomorrow, with the San Francisco Giants coming to Hohokam Stadium for another afternoon matchup with our A’s. Right-hander Luis Morales is set to get the ball for his second appearance this spring. He allowed a run on a couple hits in a couple innings of work earlier this week but will be getting his first starting nod. The Giants will go with veteran righty Tyler Mahle for his first appearance of camp. Hopefully the A’s can get another one of those currently-meaningless wins.
Notes:
Muncy finished the day 2-for-3 with three RBI’s. It’s a super small sample but he’s 4-for-10 so far with one walk and one strikeout.
Hernaiz isn’t making the coaching staff’s job easy though. He went 0-for-1 today but also drew a pair of walks. He’s 5-for-11 this spring. Does a big showing in the upcoming WBC do him any favors with the coaching staff?
Jamie Arnold sighting! The A’s most recent first-round pick made it into his first game action for the A’s. He pitched a scoreless inning, allowing a hit and a walk while also collecting two punchouts. A nice little spring debut for the left-hander.
Center fielder Denzel Clarke has had a rough go of it at the plate to start camp, but he finally collected his first hit this spring today. He doesn’t need to do much offensively to have value for the A’s this coming season but he also can’t be a complete black hole in the lineup.
Top prospect Leo De Vries went 2-for-2 today, a positive showing for the young shortstop who is nearly in the big leagues. He won’t be breaking camp with the club but a strong showing in front of the coaches during camp doesn’t hurt.
Righty reliever Elvis Alvarado had a second scoreless appearance this afternoon, while fellow relief pitcher Michael Kelly gave up a run in his inning of work. These two could be closer options for Mark Kotsay this coming year.
DETROIT (AP) — James Harden sat out the Cleveland Cavaliers’ game against the Detroit Pistons on Friday night as he recovers from a fractured right thumb.
Harden was injured Tuesday against New York. He’s averaging 18.9 points in seven games for the Cavaliers following a trade with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Cleveland also was without Donovan Mitchell. He strained his groin against the Knicks.
Feb 27, 2026; North Port, Florida, USA; Atlanta Braves right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (13) warms up before the start of the game against the Boston Red Sox during spring training at CoolToday Park. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images | Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
Good evening! I hope your week has gone well and that the weekend treats you just as well. The floor is now yours and here’s a random clip:
Former Major League Baseball pitcher Dan Serafini was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Friday for the 2021 first-degree murder of his father-in-law and attempted murder of his mother-in-law in Lake Tahoe.
Serafini, who pitched for six MLB teams during a 22-year professional career that ended in 2013, killed Gary Spohr, 70, and seriously injured Wendy Wood during a burglary of their home on the west shore of Lake Tahoe.
He was convicted in July after a six-week trial and made two unsuccessful appeals, denied a new trial only a week ago. During his ruling, Placer County Superior Court Judge Garen J. Horst said Serafini, 52, was a “liar, manipulator, arrogant and someone who has a loose relationship with the truth.”
The jury also found Serafini guilty of first-degree burglary and found the special circumstance allegations of lying-in-wait and felony murder, as well as related firearm allegations, to be true.
Serafini broke into the Spohr’s home while the couple was boating with their grandsons and daughter Erin Spohr — Serafini’s wife. He waited in a closet until his family left and shot them both in the head upon their return, according to prosecutors.
Wood took her own life in 2022 at age 69. After a year of rehabilitation after the shooting, she had regained her ability to read and write, as well as to hike and ride a bicycle, according to her daughter, Adrienne Spohr. But she battled disability and depression.
Samantha Scott, a nanny employed by Serafini and Erin Spohr to watch their two young children, pleaded guilty to being an accessory to the crimes. She testified in 2025 that she drove Serafini to the crime scene, believing it was for a drug deal.
Scott also testified that she saw Serafini with a gun and a silencer made of PVC pipe in his backpack. She testified that she dropped him off near the Spohr’s home and later saw him discard items from his backpack after they crossed the Nevada state line.
“When I learned that my sister’s husband Daniel Serafini and sister’s close friend Samantha Scott were arrested for the shooting of my parents, I was shaken to my core,” Adrienne Spohr said in a statement to the court. “This was a heinous, calculated crime. My parents had been incredibly generous to Daniel Serafini and Erin Spohr throughout their marriage.”
The Minnesota Twins made Serafini their first-round draft pick in 1992 out of Junipero Serra High in San Mateo, Calif., the same school that all-time home run king Barry Bonds attended. Serafini made his big-league debut in 1996 with the Twins and pitched with the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies.
Serafini pitched in Japan from 2004 to 2007 before returning to the United States. He was suspended for 50 games in 2007 for using performance-enhancing drugs that he blamed on medication he took in Japan. He also pitched for Italy in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
Serafini’s bar in Sparks, Nev., was featured on an episode of “Bar Rescue” in 2025. The bar’s named was changed from the Bullpen Bar to the Oak Tavern as part of the makeover, but not before Serafini’s financial woes were described: He blew through $14 million in career earnings and took a $250,000 loan from his parents.
Prosecutors said Serafini’s crimes were driven by anger and financial distress. Evidence was presented that he made threats and spoke about wanting his in-laws dead for many years. He and Gary Spohr also had disputes over a $1.3 million loan intended for Erin Spohr’s horse ranch business.
CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 24: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the game against the New York Knicks on February 24, 2026 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
DETROIT — The Cleveland Cavaliers had arguably their most impressive win of the season on Tuesday against the New York Knicks. They followed this up by having two of their best players miss the next pair of games, as James Harden (thumb) and Donovan Mitchell (groin) are unavailable for Friday’s matchup against the conference-leading Detroit Pistons.
The team hasn’t released an update on Mitchell’s groin injury, however, head coach Kenny Atkinson doesn’t expect this to be a long-term issue.
“I hate speculating, I just don’t like to do that,” Atkinson said. “We don’t love soft tissue injuries. … The feedback I’m getting is that it’s not a long-term thing, so that’s good. It’s not like, man, it’s going to be four weeks, you know, a month or a month and a half. It’s none of that.”
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Even though it’s not a long-term injury, Atkinson doesn’t quite know when Mitchell is going to be returning to the court. They don’t want to rush him or any of their other injured players back, even though they would like a better opportunity to evaluate the rotations after the drastic changes they’ve made to the roster at the deadline.
“We’re not going to rush anybody,” Atkinson said. “That’s against what I believe in, what Steve [Spiro, Cavs head athletic trainer] believes in. What our organization believes. But you know, you do feel a little sense of urgency.”
Cleveland’s moves at the deadline were done to give this team a better chance to win a title this year and next. They will need to be healthy in the playoffs to do so, but Mitchell and Harden would ideally like to have more than a handful of games played together before heading into the postseason.
The Cavs do have a rare four-day break coming up next week. The team will be off from Wednesday to Saturday, which could give everyone time to get rested up and recover for the stretch run.
Injuries are a part of the game, but they aren’t exactly coming at a convenient time for a team that was starting to play its best basketball of the season. Fortunately for the Cavs, it doesn’t seem like Mitchell will be out for too long.
MESA, Arizona — Friday was Edward Cabrera’s first outing in a Cubs uniform and it was a great success. Cabrera retired all six Guardians batters he faced, striking out three. He threw 20 strikes in 31 pitches and had six swings-and misses.
The bullpen did a good job, too — well, with one exception, I’ll get to that — and Dansby Swanson homered and singled and drove in three runs as the Cubs defeated the Guardians 8-6.
Ryan Rolison, Daniel Palencia, Collin Snider and Jacob Webb all threw scoreless innings in relief of Cabrera. Those four combined to allow just two hits and struck out four.
Swanson’s RBI single in the sixth made it 3-0 Cubs, and things looked good … until Porter Hodge entered the game in the seventh. Hodge again struggled with command, issuing two walks. He also got hit pretty hard, allowing three hits — and remember, these were basically all Guardians minor leaguers. Hodge got charged with five runs and Cleveland led the game 5-4 after seven. Scott Kingery had homered for the Cubs in the seventh.
I’m not sure what’s up with Hodge but he now sports a 31.50 ERA with four hits, seven walks and seven runs allowed in two innings of work this spring. That’s a 5.500 WHIP which, yikes. I suspect Hodge is going to wind up starting the year at Triple-A Iowa.
The Cubs scored four in the eighth to take the lead. The big blow was a bases-clearing double by Leonel Espinoza, an outfielder who split 2025 between Myrtle Beach and South Bend, where he stole 31 bases in 116 games.
Gavin Hollowell entered for the save opportunity. He did give up a pair of hits and a run, and it might have been more except for a really slick play by Pedro Ramirez at short. Ramirez, who was added to the 40-man roster this winter, might wind up at Iowa this year. He’s only 21 (turns 22 in April). Even if he doesn’t hit much, that glove plays in the major leagues.
Attendance watch: 11,217 attended Friday afternoon’s contest at Sloan Park. That makes the season total 56,039 for five dates, or 11,208 per date.
A note on Friday afternoon’s weather: It was 86 degrees at game time and as of 2 p.m., the temperature in Phoenix was 92 degrees, which tied the record high for both the date and the entire month of February. It’s not supposed to be this hot in the Valley in February — the average high right now is 73. It’s forecast to be in the mid-90s for at least the next three days.
Saturday, the Cubs head west to Glendale to face the Dodgers. Colin Rea gets the start for the Cubs and Justin Wrobleski will go for L.A. Game time is 2:05 p.m. CT and the game will be televised via the Dodgers channel SportsNet LA.
Feb 27, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Shane Drohan against the Chicago White Sox during a spring training game at American Family Fields of Phoenix. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The Milwaukee Brewers stayed hot in sunny Phoenix on Friday afternoon, taking down the Chicago White Sox for their fourth consecutive win to move to .500 at 4-4 in Cactus League play. The Crew did it behind a balanced offensive attack and some solid bullpen work late.
Right-hander Brandon Sproat, one of Milwaukee’s acquisitions in the Freddy Peralta trade, made his spring debut in this one. He allowed a leadoff single in the first before striking out the next two hitters. After Chase Meidroth stole second, catcher Edgar Quero singled him home to make it 1-0 early. Sproat would pick off Quero at first base, but the Brewers faced an early deficit.
Milwaukee went down 1-2-3 against Sean Burke in the first, and after Sproat recorded a strikeout of Jarred Kelenic, he allowed a walk and a single. That marked the end of Sproat’s day, as he went 1 1/3 innings with three strikeouts and a run allowed on a walk and three hits.
Kaleb Bowman worked around a passed ball to finish out the inning with the score still 1-0.
After once again going down 1-2-3 in the second, Abner Uribe got the ball in the third. He allowed a run on a walk, a sac bunt, and a double as Quero picked up his second RBI of the day.
With the score now 2-0, Luis Rengifo cut that lead in half to lead off the third, slugging his first homer of the spring 345 feet over the wall in right. Milwaukee wasn’t done there either.
Garrett Mitchell followed with a walk, Joey Ortiz singled, and Jackson Chourio singled to tie it up at 2-2. Brice Turang then flew into a 7-5-6 double play as Ortiz was thrown out on the basepaths, and William Contreras popped out to end the rally.
Shane Drohan, one of Milwaukee’s acquisitions in the Caleb Durbin trade, made his spring debut in the fourth and proceeded to strike out the side (all swinging).
The Brewers took the lead in the fourth against new pitcher Tanner McDougal, as Jake Bauers doubled and was brought home by Rengifo to make it 3-2 entering the fifth.
Drohan’s fifth inning didn’t go quite as well as the fourth, as he allowed a single and hit Meidroth with a pitch before recording an out. He was able to induce a pair of groundouts — including a fielder’s choice at the plate to cut down Oliver Dunn — and Quero lined out to end the inning with no damage done.
Milwaukee tacked on another in the fifth, as Ortiz singled, stole second, and later scored on a Brice Turang double to make it 4-2.
Most of Milwaukee’s starters were substituted in the sixth and seventh, as Chourio, Mitchell, Sal Frelick, and Turang were all removed before Bauers and Rengifo exited the next inning.
The Brewers were able to tack on one more run in the seventh, as Ortiz, Jacob Hurtubise, and Contreras all singled to make it 5-2.
The White Sox nearly mounted an eight-inning rally against Drew Rom, as Rom walked the bases loaded before his replacement, Will Childers, was able to get a called strike three upon review (initiated by catcher Darrien Miller) to escape the inning unscathed.
Both teams went down in order in their final at-bats, and the Brewers locked up another win to push them to 4-4 this spring.
Ortiz and Rengifo were the big hitters offensively, as Ortiz went 3-for-3 with three singles, two runs scored, and a steal, and Rengifo went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored on his homer. Five other Brewers collected hits in the win, including doubles from Bauers and Turang.
Shane Drohan picked up the win in his Brewer debut, pitching two scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Blake Holub got the save with three strikeouts in the ninth, while Bowman, Easton McGee, Rom, and Childers also had scoreless outings. The two runs went to Sproat and Uribe.
The Crew will look to make it five straight and move over .500 tomorrow, as they’ll stay home to take on the Reds. First pitch in that one is at 2:10 p.m. CT on Brewers TV and the Brewers Radio Network.