Welcome to Pinstripe Alley’s coverage of the 2026 World Baseball Classic! We previewed Pool A, Pool B, Pool C, and Pool D in the linked articles. Since the first several days of the WBC feature a bevy of games, we’ll be recapping them in batches. Enjoy!

Friday marked the first full slate of World Baseball Classic action after a few appetizers in Tokyo on Wednesday and Thursday. The early batch of games lacked any major upsets, but just because the games went to chalk doesn’t mean they weren’t full of exciting moments and intriguing storylines. Let’s take a gander at the first four contests in a jam-packed day of around-the-globe baseball.

Pool C: Japan (1-0) 13, Chinese Taipei (0-2) 0

The defending WBC champs entered the fray on Saturday night in Tokyo with a mighty roar in their home ballpark against poor Chinese Taipei, a squad already fighting an uphill battle with the loss of their captain Chieh-Hsien Chen in their tournament-opening loss to Australia. Who else would light the fire in the second inning but the biggest star in the sport? Shohei Ohtani strode to the plate with the bases loaded against Hao-Chun Cheng and did what baseball superheroes do: he hit a grand slam to right field.

That blast was the first blow in what would become a 10-run inning for Samurai Japan. Red Sox DH Masataka Yoshida, new MLB addition Murataka Murakami, and the rest of the lineup added on before Ohtani came right back up and smacked a single to plate that 10th and final run. He almost hit for the cycle in just a few innings before departing early with the game well in hand. I’m not sure Yoshinobu Yamamoto needed quite that much run support, but he did his job, pitching around three walks to log 2.2 scoreless innings in his first taste of competitive ball since his 2025 playoff masterclass.

Japan added three more runs i the third to polish off the blowout victory, which ended in a shutout thanks in part to a close call in the fifth. With Hiroya Miyagi pitching, the Guardians’ Stuart Fairchild clubbed a high drive down the left-field line which easily reached the seats, but was ruled foul. The call on the field stood after review. This one’s about as close as it gets; I’m sure the umpires were relieved they didn’t have to make this decision in a close game.

Pool A: Cuba (1-0) 3, Panama (0-1) 1

The first Classic game to take place in Puerto Rico since 2013 was a tight, well-pitched affair between two Latin American rivals. Cuba, a tournament semifinalist in 2023, faced off against José Caballero and Panama, the team that recently played against the Yankees in a pre-tournament scrimmage. The Cubans struck first in the second on a line-drive homer to right from Yoelkis Guibert to break the seal. Then in the third, the Angels’ Yoán Moncada took Cleveland’s Logan Allen deep to left for a two-run homer, extending Cuba’s lead to 3-0.

Cuba’s pitching staff, led by 2025 Pacific League MVP Livan Moinelo and Toronto’s Yariel Rodríguez, held the Panama offense at arm’s length. Former Braves infielder Johan Camargo finally managed to get his squad off the schneid in the seventh inning, but a costly baserunning mistake from the Phillies’ Edmundo Sosa an inning later defanged a potential rally. In the ninth, Yomiuri Giants star closer Raidel Martinez retired the side in order to seal the victory. As a Yankees-related postscript: no hits, one walk, and a few slick plays at shortstop for Caballero in the loss.

Pool D: Venezuela (1-0) 6, Netherlands (0-1) 2

Team Venezuela returned to Miami, the site of their greatest heroics from the last WBC, to host old friend Didi Gregorius and the Dutch contingent in the first game of Pool D, which has a case as the “Pool of the Death.” Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. got the party started for Venezula with a leadoff double, and then a Luis Arraez single past a drawn-in infield gave them an early 1-0 lead.

The Netherlands responded quickly to tie the score thanks to a two-out RBI hustle double by D-backs prospect Druw Jones off Ranger Suarez—making his father (and manager) proud. But the Venezuelans would not allow the tie to hold for long. Who better than a Miami Marlin to tee off in his home ballpark? While Javier Sanoja is not a household name, he put himself squarely on the radar with this go-ahead homer.

That 2-1 scoreline held up until the fifth inning, when the Dutch pitching staff—and defense—faltered. Venezuela got the first two men aboard before Maikel Garcia laid down a sacrifice bunt … and easily raced to an uncovered first base. Arráez made them pay with a bases-loaded walk, then a Willson Contreras two-run single rubbed salt in the wound. Wilyer Abreu kept the Venezuelan drum circle going with one last RBI of his own, and the big inning allowed their staff to keep the beat all the way to victory. A Jones sac fly in the sixth marked the only tally afterward.

Pool B: Mexico (1-0) 8, Great Britain (0-1) 2

This game has a misleading final score; it’s a classic case of an underdog team pushing a superior opponent to the limit before the wheels fall off at the very end. Mexico could not feel comfortable with a narrow 1-0 lead bestowed by a homer from Nacho Alvarez Jr., and indeed that lead vanished in the sixth thanks to the Nationals’ Harry Ford—who had his coming out party in the previous Classic, when he was still a Mariners prospect. This solo shot tied the game and put everyone on upset watch.

But Panama was not the only team to suffer from self-inflicted wounds today. Later in the inning, the Brits got two aboard with two out for third baseman Ivan Johnson, who smacked a single to left. But an overaggressive send from their third base coach gave Seattle’s Randy Arozarena just the opportunity he needed to announce his return to the international stage. He easily cut down Matt Koperniak attempting to score from second and kept Great Britain at bay.

At last in the eighth, the sun set on the British empire. A strong outing from delightfully-named Rays prospect Gary Gill Hill quickly went sour, giving the heart of the Mexican order a big opportunity. Fellow Ray Jonathan Aranda greeted new pitcher Tristan Beck with an opposite field three-run home run into the Crawford Boxes to untie the score for good.

Mexico put the finishing touches on a surprisingly tough victory in the ninth thanks to run-scoring hits from Alek Thomas, Joey Ortiz, and—of course—Arozarena. Here’s Yankee-related postscript number two: Jazz Chisholm Jr. was another Bomber who suffered defeat in his tournament debut. Jazz went 0-for-5 as the leadoff man for Team GB. He’ll look for a better performance against Aaron Judge and Team USA tomorrow night.

Here are the games that still lie ahead tonight. We’ll have the recap for this quartet in the morning!

Puerto Rico vs. Colombia (Pool A)
Pitching matchup: RHP Seth Lugo vs. LHP Jose Quintana
Time: 6:00 p.m. ET
TV: FS1
Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, PR

Nicaragua vs. Dominican Republic (Pool D)
Pitching matchup: RHP Ronald Medrano vs. LHP Cristopher Sánchez
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FS2
Venue: loanDepot park, Miami, FL

United States vs. Brazil (Pool B)
Pitching matchup: RHP Logan Webb vs. RHP Bo Takahashi
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: Fox
Venue: Daikin Park, Houston, TX

Chinese Taipei vs. Czech Republic (Pool C)
Pitching matchup: RHP Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang vs. LHP Jan Novak
Time: 10:00 p.m. ET
TV: FS2
Venue: Tokyo Dome, Japan

The Dodgers are under the lights for a second straight night at Camelback Ranch, hosting the Colorado Rockies on Saturday.

Landon Knack makes his third start of spring, and is expected to be backed by Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, Jack Dreyer, and Ben Casparius, all of whom pitched often in the bullpen last season.

Left-hander Sean Sullivan starts for the Rockies.

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs Rockies
• Ballpark: Camelback Ranch
• Time: 5:05 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market)
• Radio: AM 570

As the programs of the Mountain West continue to run through the non-conference portion of the season, we here at Mountain West Connection want to highlight a marquee matchup each weekend until conference play. This week, we will discuss San Diego State’s upcoming series against Saint Mary’s

The Rundown

The Aztecs have had a good season one month in, and it has not been an easy road for them. Just in the last week, San Diego State took on then No. 1 UCLA in a one-game pit stop, Washington in a four-game road set and Long Beach State back home for one match. SDSU went 4-2 in that span, beating the best team in the nation 4-3, splitting the series against the Huskies while losing in run total 16-21 and bouncing back against the Dirt Bags in a 13-10 slug fest.

While San Diego State was climbing the hill of power four teams, Saint Marys had a weekend date with SDSU conference rival San Jose State. The Gaels, who entered last weekend 4-3, took the series against the Spartans in a dominant, 3-1 fashion. Saint Mary’s only lost the third game of the series, getting skunked 8-0 while winning the other three games by a combined 20 runs. They then went back home to take on the UC Davis Aggies, beating the future Mountain West member 7-2.

Both teams are on winning streaks and carrying a lot of momentum heading into Tony Gwynn Stadium, both trying to build up their resumes a bit more before conference play kicks off next week for SDSU and in two weeks for Saint Marys. It should definitely be a good weekend for baseball fans in San Diego.

Saint Marys (8-4) vs San Diego State (8-5)

Location: Tony Gwynn Stadium in San Diego, Calif.

Dates/Times:

Friday, March 6: 6:00 p.m. PST

Saturday, March 7: 5:00 p.m. PST

Sunday, March 8: 1:00 p.m. PST

Broadcast: Mountain West Network

History: San Diego State is 4-8 against the Saint Mary’s Gaels, with the last series being in 2025 when the Aztecs got swept by the Gaels in three straight games from Feb. 28, 2025-March 2, 2025.

Three key questions to the series

1. Can the Jabin Trosky show continue to put up bangers?

SDSU infielder Jabin Trosky has been tearing it up through the first month of the season, Toting a .377 batting average and a .930 OPS, the redshirt junior who transferred in from Oregon State has mounted 20 hits (most on team), five doubles (second most), a triple and 11 runs (third most) with 27 total bases (best on team). Trosky also has the second most stolen bases, successfully making it three times. When you factor everything, it is no wonder that Trosky made the Brooks Wallace Award (best college shortstop) watch list.

Trosky will have to bring it this weekend, as the Saint Mary’s pitching staff will not make it easy for him or the rest of the Aztecs’ lineup (which will be discussed shortly). However, if the redshirt junior can catch fire and energize the San Diego State bench, there will be some highlights added to his film reel.

2. Will San Diego State be able to rain on the Saint Mary’s fireworks show?

The Gaels have not won two-thirds of their games because of flukes. Saint Mary’s has had a great showing at the plate so far, with seven players boasting a .350+ batting average (two with .400 or better) and five with a 1.000 or better OPS. Saint Mary’s junior outfielder Tanner Griffith poses the biggest threat to the Aztecs’ pitching rotation, as he is going into this weekend’s series with a .515 batting average and a 1.491 OPS. His batting average is currently one of the best in the nation, sitting behind Miami outfielder Derek Williams (.535) and Iowa infielder Gable Mitchell (.521) in third place. 

San Diego State does have great pitching, with two great options in Drew Talavs (2.81 ERA, 16 IP) and Rohan Lettow (2.70 ERA, 16.2 IP) and Alec Belardes (5.51 ERA, 16.1 IP) as starters and multiple relief pitchers sitting below the 3.00 ERA mark (four of them have an ERA below 1.00). However, there are also multiple pitchers in the bullpen that are currently above 4.00 ERA, so the disparity is there. If the Aztecs are able to calm the extremes and pitch solid, there will be no problems. But if the Gaels are able to get to the pitching staff, SDSU will have a hard time keeping up.

3. Will the Aztecs get through the tough pitching onslaught from the Gaels?

It is safe to say that Saint Mary’s has been able to get the most out of their pitchers this year. The program has a team ERA of 4.17, with three starters staying below a 4.00 ERA while pitching at least 12 innings each. Graduate student Jake Hilton has been the ace of the troop, standing atop the Gaels’ starting pitching staff with a 1.50 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 14 strikeouts. The bullpen has also rocked so far, as three of the four relief pitchers with at least seven innings pitched boast an ERA at 4.50 or lower. 

Saint Mary’s performance has kept their opponents in check, as the combined opposing team batting average is at a .246. San Diego State’s team batting average is .262 at the time of writing, so they are not far off from the Gaels’ opposing average. There is work needed to be done to even the playing field, but if the Aztecs can rally behind its leaders and take care of business at the plate despite the uphill climb, they can win this weekend’s series.

MADRID (AP) — Spanish soccer team Celta Vigo is desperately seeking Madonna as it goes in search of a 36-year-old soccer shirt the pop star wore during a 1990 concert at its Balaidos stadium.

Madonna appeared on stage wearing the club’s true blue colours during her Blonde Ambition tour in July 1990.

She delighted locals who claimed the material girl as one of their own and brought unexpected attention to defender Jose Manuel Espinosa, whose No. 5 shirt she wore.

However, the whereabouts of the cherished garment are unknown and, after searching fruitlessly for decades, Celta is asking the 67-year-old Madonna to help find it for the club’s archive.

“Although ours was not the only football shirt you ever wore on stage, this iconic image has grown to shine differently as years have passed,” Celta president Marián Mouriño Terrazo wrote in an open letter to the American icon.

“Over time we came to better understand what you stood for back then: questioning established norms and standing up to those who try to tell you what you can or cannot do. At our club we recognise ourselves in this line of thought. That is why we hold on to the hope of finding the garment you once wore.

“Do you have it? If you know where it may be, or if you would like to join us in the search to retrieve it, please contact us via private message.”

The appeal caused a commotion on social media after it was published on Wednesday and the club doubled down before Friday’s 2-1 home league defeat by Real Madrid, playing Madonna’s songs before kickoff and putting her picture on the field and on social media.

Mouriño Terrazo told local media he was hopeful the repercussions would reach the pop star.

“I imagine that the letter reached Madonna and that she will reply,” he said.

Madonna burst on the scene in 1983 with the hit Holiday and followed that with a run of top-10 hits that included “Like a Virgin”,” Papa Don’t Preach” and “Ray of Light.”

She remains one of the most successful recording artists in history.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Milwaukee picked up its second straight spring win today behind strong showings from several of their top prospects. Jesús Made, Mike Boeve, Luis Lara, and Eric Bitonti all had RBIs as the Brewers defeated the Diamondbacks, 6-2.

Arizona got on the board in the first inning against Brewers starter Chad Patrick. Jacob Amaya hit a leadoff single immediately followed by an Oscar Mercado double. That put runners on second and third with no outs, but Patrick bore down: striking out Jordan Lawlar for the first out. LuJames Groover grounded out to second for the second out, but merely putting the ball in play was enough to score Amaya for the first run of the game. Patrick then struck out Aramis Garcia to end the inning, but Arizona would take a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the first.

Milwaukee quickly tied the game up in the bottom of the first. Leadoff hitter Jake Bauers failed to reach, but Brandon Lockridge singled and stole second to put a runner in scoring position for Christian Yelich — who struck out swinging. Akil Baddoo, however, did not — lacing a single into centerfield to score Lockridge from second.

The first batter that Patrick faced in the top of the second was Manuel Peña. With a 2-1 count, Patrick threw Peña a fastball up in the zone, and Peña sent it 433 feet to give the Diamondbacks the lead once again. Patrick would end up going three innings, allowing those two earned runs and five hits while striking out five.

Neither team would score again until the bottom of the sixth, when David Hamilton reached on a one-out single. Luis Lara, Milwaukee’s No. 12 prospect per MLB Pipeline, smoked a double into right field to score Hamilton and tie the game. The next batter up was Jesús Made, who hit a hard ground ball just out of reach of Diamondbacks second baseman Demetrio Crisantes — scoring Lara from second to give the Brewers a lead they would never relinquish.

The Brewers would tack on another two runs in the bottom of the seventh courtesy of an Akil Baddoo walk that preceded a two-out home run off the bat of prospect Mike Boeve. Milwaukee’s minor leaguers would add on another insurance run in the bottom of the eighth. Made, leading off the inning, beat out a ground ball to Adrian Rodriguez at shortstop, then took second on a Rodriguez throwing error. After Brady Ebel struck out, Eric Bitonti smoked a line drive that deflected off of first baseman Modeifi Marte’s glove and bounced into right field for a single. Made scored from second for the Brewers’ sixth and final run of the game.

As someone who follows the Brewers’ minor league system, it was really fun to see so many of the Brewers’ top prospects show up today. Made, Lara, Bitonti, and Boeve are all ranked as top-30 Brewers prospects by MLB Pipeline, and their efforts were the reason that the Brewers won this game. Milwaukee’s pitching staff also did a great job of shutting down the Diamondbacks’ offense. Patrick was the only pitcher to allow a run — Jared Koenig, Peter Strzelecki, Brian Fitzpatrick, Will Childers, Mark Manfredi, and Blake Holub all put together scoreless outings in relief of Patrick.

The Brewers will attempt to win their third straight contest against the Los Angeles Angels tomorrow. First pitch is slated for 2:10 p.m.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of a rare four-day break between Tuesday’s game against the Detroit Pistons and Sunday’s game against the Boston Celtics. That layoff is coming at a good time, as it may provide an opportunity for some of the injured Cavaliers, including Donovan Mitchell, to return to the lineup.

Head coach Kenny Atkinson confirmed after the team’s practice on Friday that Mitchell was a full participant.

This is encouraging. Atkinson mentioned that Mitchell’s injury wasn’t expected to be a “long-term thing” and that if Tuesday’s game against the Pistons was a playoff game, Mitchell could’ve gone.

Mitchell has missed the Cavs’ last four games. They’re 2-2 in that stretch. On the season, Mitchell is averaging 28.5 points and 5.8 assists per game.

Atkinson also said that Max Strus — who is yet to play this season as he’s recovering from a Jones fracture in his foot he suffered during an off-season workout — was at “90%” participation and “could’ve gone more,” but they didn’t want to push it.

There isn’t a timetable yet for Strus to make his season debut, but Atkinson has said that he anticipates that happening in the regular season, which has just over a month left. He’s excited about what Strus could add as a connector offensively and believes that bringing him back will be like adding a free agent to this team.

The Cavaliers have also been without Dean Wade for the past three games due to an ankle injury. Along with Mitchell, he was also a full participant in practice on Friday.

Wade is averaging 5.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

Jarrett Allen was removed from Tuesday’s game in the third quarter with a knee injury. He was not a participant in Friday’s practice, but he did do cardio work and received treatment. Atkinson did say that Allen’s injury was “not long-term at all.”

Allen is averaging 15.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game this season.

The status for all four players ahead of Sunday’s matchup is unknown at this time, but there is a chance that Mitchell, Wade, and Allen could be available.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James won’t be available Friday night when the team takes on the Indiana Pacers at crypto.com Arena. The Lakers ruled James out for the contest due to an elbow injury he sustained late in Thursday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets.

James, 41, injured his elbow on a hard fall with a little over four minutes left in Thursday’s game. 

Following that fall, James was briefly taken out of the contest. He was able to sub back into the game with 2:05 remaining, though was taken out with 22.3 seconds left and the Lakers down five points due to the issue. He did not return before the end of the game, which the Lakers lost 120-113. 

After the contest, Lakers coach JJ Redick said James was removed in the final minute of the game due to discomfort in his elbow. James was spotted icing his elbow after the game, and reportedly wore a compression sleeve on his left arm during the flight back to Los Angeles, per ESPN. 

James said he felt “pretty sore” after the game, but classified himself as day-to-day moving forward. 

“We’ll see what happens over the next couple of days,” James said. “Hopefully, I’ll wake up [Friday] and it doesn’t feel too much worse than it is now. Or if it feels better, that would be great. So it’s day-to-day. We’ll see what happens.”

Up until the injury, James was in the midst of an historic performance. In the first quarter of Thursday’s game, James set the NBA’s all-time record for field goals made over a career. James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the honor. 

James finished the contest with 16 points after going 7-for-11 from the floor. With those seven made shots, James now has 15,842 field goals made in his career. 

The Lakers have not announced a timetable for James’ return to action. Given his comments following Thursday’s game, and the fact that he doesn’t always play in back-to-backs, it’s possible James could return to the court when the Lakers take on the New York Knicks on Sunday at home.