MLB 2026 BEST BETS- NEWS THRU THE WORLD SERIES !

[Cnotes53]

Saturday’s 6-pack
— Knicks 93, Nets 92- Knicks have won 14 games in a row against the Nets.
— Pistons 115, Warriors 101- Jalen Duran scored 23 points for Detroit.
— Rockets 117, Hawks 95- Loss ends Atlanta’s 11-game winning streak.
— Celtics 117, Grizzlies 112- Celtics outscored Memphis 33-24 in 4th quarter
— Trail Blazers 108, Timberwolves 104- Jerami Grant hit 3-pointer with 0:22 left.
— Nuggets 121, Raptors 115- Denver is 8-8 since All-Star break.

Quotes of the Day
“Our team has had a heck of a journey. The quality of human beings that we have in our locker room, man, we’re everything that’s right about college athletics, in my opinion.”
Miami coach Travis Steele

Saturday’s quiz
Before the Giants moved to San Francisco in the 50’s, what ballpark did they call home in New York City?

Friday’s quiz
Stetson University’s sports teams are known as the Hatters.

Thursday’s quiz
Virginia/Purdue are the only #1-seeds who lost to a #16-seed in NCAA Tournament.

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Saturday’s Den: Wrapping up the first round of the NCAA’s​

— Kentucky 89, Santa Clara 84 OT
First game of the day was the best game of the day.
Both teams made a 3-pointer in last 0:10 of regulation.
Oweh scored 35 points, hit game-tying 3 at buzzer in regulation.
Bad beat if you had Santa Clara, +3.5.
Kentucky advances to play Iowa State Sunday.

— Utah State 86, Villanova 76
Aggies were 28-36 on foul line, Villanova 6-13.
Villanova led by 10 points early in second half.
Aggies shot 74.3% inside the arc.
Good win for Mountain West; Utah State is their only team in NCAAs.
Villanova was 3-4 in last seven games, after a 21-5 start.

— UCLA 75, Central Florida 71
Bruins were +9 (17-8) in turnovers.
UCLA has won five of its last six games.
Central Florida was only 5-16 on foul line.
Knights had 53-41 edge on the boards.
UCLA plays UConn Sunday.

— Kansas 68, Cal Baptist 60
Kansas led by 26 early in second half.
Cal Baptist got within six points in last 2:00.
Darryn Peterson scored 28 points; no one else had more than 12.
Dominique Daniels scored 25 for Cal Baptist.
Teams combined to shoot 8-36 on the arc.

— Virginia 82, Wright State 73
Wright State led 43-38 at halftime.
Virginia shot 13-26 on arc, scored 1.26 ppp.
There were 58 2-point shots in this game, 57 3-point shots.
Jacari White scored 26 points in 24:00; he didn’t start.
Virginia plays Tennessee Sunday.

— Iowa 67, Clemson 61
Iowa never trailed, had 40-27 edge on boards.
Iowa star Stirtz played all 40:00, was only 4-17 from floor.
There were 50 2-point shots in this game, 51 3-point shots.
Clemson wound up going 4-7 in last 11 games, after a 20-4 start.
Hawkeyes play defending champ Florida Sunday.

— UConn 82, Furman 71
Tarris Reed had 31 points, 27 rebounds for UConn.
UConn shot 67.5% inside the arc.
Huskies led 40-36 at halftime.
Huskies scored 44-23 edge on the boards.

— Miami 80, Missouri 66
Hurricanes led 27-26 at halftime.
Mizzou led by a hoop with 7:50 left in the game.
Miami had 46-30 edge on the boards.
Hurricanes have won their last three first round games.

— Famous birthdays, March 21st
Tom Flores, 89
Manny Sanguillen, 82
Gary Oldman, 68
Matthew Broderick, 64
Shawon Dunston, 63
Tony Horne, 50
Adrain Peterson, 41
Carlos Carrasco, 39
Frankie Montas, 33
Ahkello Witherspoon, 31
Sebastian Joseph-Day, 31
Masyn Wynn, 24

— Alabama 90, Hofstra 70
Alabama shot 64.5% inside arc, scored 1.29 ppp.
Hofstra led by 10 midway thru the first half.
Two guys on Hofstra played all 40:00.
Labaron Philon scored 29 points, had 8 rebounds, 7 assists.

— Tennessee 78, Miami OH 56
Volunteers led 51-32 at halftime.
Tennessee shot 56.4% inside the arc.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie had 29 points, nine assists.
Miami’s great season ends at 32-2; quite a run.

— Texas Tech 91, Akron 71
Red Raiders led only 40-35 at halftime.
Tech shot 69.5% inside arc, scored 1.39 ppp.
Tech never trailed; they shot 11-20 on the arc.
Akron’s excellent season ends with a 29-6 record.

— St John’s 79, Northern Iowa 53
Red Storm never trailed, led 47-28 at halftime.
St John’s had 45-29 edge on the boards.
No one on St John’s scored more than 14 points.
St John’s-Kansas will be an interesting game Sunday.

— Arizona 92, LIU 58
Damn, there were some bad games Friday
Arizona led this game 53-29 at halftime.
Wildcats had a 52-32 edge on the boards.

— Iowa State 108, Tennessee State 74
Cyclones lost big man Jefferson (sprained ankle) very early in game
Iowa State shot 11-24 on arc, scored 1.38 ppp.
Cyclones led 55-29 at halftime.
Tennessee State has to be happy; this was their first NCAA game since 1994

— Purdue 104, Queens 71
Purdue shot 65.9% inside arc, scored scored 1.54 ppp.
Game was only 45-33 at halftime.
PG Braden Smith became NCAA’s all-time leading assist leader.
Queens made NCAAs in only their 4th year in Division I

— Florida 114, Prairie View 55
Florida led 60-21 at halftime.
Game was actually tied 15-15 at one point.
Florida plays Iowa in the second round Sunday.

 

[Cnotes53]

Sunday’s 6-pack
Six best teams in country in eFG% defense (3-pointers count as 1.5 baskets made)
— Arizona
— Kansas
— Michigan
— Saint Louis
— Virginia
— Marist

Quotes of the Day
“I don’t think we ever want to sign up to be the Cinderella story, because we are the University of Texas, and what we represent in the SEC. There’s no easy game in the SEC. The league itself prepares you for the postseason. Sometimes the lessons you learned along the way strengthen you. We’re a much better team right now than we would have been a month ago.”
Texas coach Sean Miller

Sunday’s quiz
Where did Sean Miller play his college basketball?

Sunday’s quiz
Virginia/Purdue are the only #1-seeds who lost to a #16-seed in NCAA Tournament.

Saturday’s quiz
Before the Giants moved to San Francisco, they played home games in the Polo Grounds ballpark in New York City.

**********************************************

Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday…….​

Before Texas upset Gonzaga, 20 consecutive favorites had won SU. The NIL era has made it lot tougher for the smaller schools.

— Nebraska 74, Vanderbilt 72
Freshman F Frager scored winning hoop with 0:02.2 left.
Cornhuskers get to the Sweet 16 for the first time.
Vandy led by 5 with 5:34 left in the game.
Nebraska has won six of its last eight games.
Tyler Tanner scored 27 for Vandy; his half-court shot at the buzzer rattled in and out.

— Arkansas 94, High Point 88
High Point led by a point with 8:27 left in the game.
Darius Acuff scored 36 points, had six assists.
Acuff was 11-13 on foul line; High Point’s whole team was 10-11.
Bob Martin scored 30 points, had five assists for High Point
John Calipari is headed to the Sweet 16 for the 17th time.

— Texas 74, Gonzaga 68
Zags led by 8 with 4:29 left in first half.
Texas shot 57.8% inside arc; they won for third time this week.
7-0 C Vokietaitis scored 17 points, grabbed nine rebounds.
Teams combined to shoot 9-31 on the arc.
Gonzaga misses Sweet 16 for second year in row; they had made it eight of the previous ten years.

— Michigan State 77, Louisville 69
Jeremy Fears had 12 points, 16 assists for the Spartans.
Coen Carr scored 21 points, had 10 rebounds.
Louisville shot 13-37 on arc, 13-26 inside arc.
Spartans were 14-19 on foul line, Louisville 4-6.
Louisville star Mikel Brown missed the Cardinals’ last six games.

— Houston 88, Texas A&M 57
Houston had easy win; they led 46-28 at halftime.
Houston shot 59.5% inside the arc, scored 1.34 ppp.
Cougars had 19 offensive rebounds, had 46-29 edge on boards.
Teams combined to shoot 14-55 on the arc.

— Illinois 76, VCU 55
Illinois shot 55.9% inside arc, outscored VCU 41-27 in 2nd half.
VCU G Lewis got hurt in first minute, didn’t return.
Illini had 45-28 edge on the boards.
Illinois-Houston is an interesting Sweet 16 game.

— Duke 81, TCU 58
Duke’s lead was only 38-34 at halftime.
Blue Devils shot 71.4% inside the arc.
Duke had a 42-26 edge on the boards.
Duke was 20-23 on foul line, Horned Frogs 5-10.

— Michigan 95, Saint Louis 72
Michigan shot 60.5% inside arc, scored 1.35 ppp.
Aday Mara scored 16 points, had 4 blocked shots.
Wolverines outscored Saint Louis 47-33 in second half.
Michigan had a 42-27 edge on boards.

— Speaking of Saint Louis, what is a Billiken?
A Billiken is a mythical, good-luck figure created in 1908 by Missouri art teacher Florence Pretz, often representing “things as they ought to be”. It is supposed to symbolize good luck and positive vibes.

— Last 19 teams who won March Madness, they were 15-4 ATS in their first round game.

— Famous birthdays, March 22nd:
William Shatner, 95
Matthew Modine, 67
Shawn Bradley, 54
Marcus Camby, 52
Reese Witherspoon, 50
Marques Tuiasosopo, 47
Ike Davis, 39
JJ Watt, 37
Ernie Clement, 30
Grant Holmes, 30

Missed a birthday earlier this week; the great hockey player Bobby Orr turned 78 on Friday. He was really excellent, leading the Bruins to Stanley Cup titles in 1970, 1972. When he rushed the puck up the ice, which defensemen didn’t do a lot back then, the crowd would buzz.
In the mid-80’s, met Bobby Orr at a celebrity softball game; he’s a good guy. To this day, have my picture with him hanging in my living room.

— Apparently I spend too much time watching basketball; lady who lives across the street from me called and asked if I was OK, since I hadn’t been out of my house in three days.

— Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham will miss a while after he had a collapsed lung, which has to be kind of scary. He is scoring 24.5 ppg for the much-improved Pistons, who are 51-19 this year, two years after they were 14-68.

— Colorado Rockies starting pitchers had a 6.63 ERA last year, the worst of any team in the last 100 years. Not sure how you fix that, but four of Colorado’s five starters this year are 32+ years old, so they’re going with wily veterans to try and get guys out in high altitude.

— There were 11,209 fans at the Seattle Mariners exhibition game Saturday; teams must make lot of $$$ during spring training, with lot of fans seeking out warm weather.

 

[Cnotes53]

Monday’s 6-pack
Spreads for the Sweet 16 games this week:
— Purdue (-7.5) vs Texas
— Nebraska (-2.5) vs Iowa
— Arizona (-8.5) vs Arkansas
— Houston (-2.5) vs Illinois
— Duke (-6.5) vs St John’s
— Michigan (-10.5) vs Alabama
— UConn (-1.5) vs Michigan State
— Iowa State (-3.5) vs Tennessee

Quotes of the Day
“I’ll get back and get with family and visit and see what’s going on. I love what I do, I need to be able to do it where I’m feeling good and healthy to do it fairly well. I’ll get back home, and it’ll all be discussed.”
Kansas coach Bill Self

Monday’s quiz
Of all the active baseball players, which player has hit the most home runs as a visiting player in these three ballparks: Detroit, Kansas City, Chicago (White Sox)?

Sunday’s quiz
Texas coach Sean Miller played his college basketball at Pittsburgh.

Sunday’s quiz
Virginia/Purdue are the only #1-seeds who lost to a #16-seed in NCAA Tournament.

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Monday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Sunday……​

— Iowa 73, Florida 72
Gators become the first #1-seed knocked out of the tournament.
Florida led 65-61 with 5:38 left in the game.
Iowa shot 70.4% inside the arc.
Hawkeyes move on to play Nebraska in the Sweet 16.

— St John’s 67, Kansas 65
St John’s led by 14 with 8:08 left, needed last-second hoop to win.
Red Storm was +8 (16-8) in turnovers.
St John’s was 11-35 on the arc, 14-34 inside arc.
St John’s plays Duke in the Sweet 16 Friday.

— Purdue 79, Miami 69
Miami led 40-38 at halftime.
Boilermakers were 21-22 on foul line, Miami 8-10.
Purdue shot 8-14 on arc, scored 1.20 ppp
Purdue has won 7 in a row; they play Texas in the Sweet 16.

— Tennessee 79, Virginia 72
Volunteers scored 1.21 ppp.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored 21 points, had six assists.
Volunteers were 19-25 on foul line, Virginia 6-11.
Tennessee plays Iowa State in the Sweet 16.

— Iowa State 82, Kentucky 63
Cyclones outscored Kentucky 51-33 in second half.
Tamin Lipsey scored 26 points, had 10 assists.
Iowa State shot 57.6% inside arc, scored 1.18 ppp
Cyclones play Tennessee in Sweet 16 Friday.

— UConn 73, UCLA 57
Big man Karaban scored a career-high 27 points.
UCLA led by 6 midway thru first half.
UConn shot 60% inside arc, outscored Bruins 35-24 in 2nd half.
Huskies play Michigan State in Sweet 16 Friday.

—Arizona 78, Utah State 66
Wildcats were 27-39 on foul line, Utah State 8-11
Arizona won despite shooting 38.5% inside arc.
Arizona never trailed, had 54-26 edge on the boards.
Wildcats play Arkansas in Sweet 16 Thursday.

— Alabama 90, Texas Tech 65
Crimson Tide led 49-25 at half; Tech had nothing in this game.
Alabama was 19-42 on arc; Red Raiders were 4-25.
Tech wound up losing four of their last five games.
Alabama-Michigan play in Sweet 16 Friday.

— Famous birthdays, March 23
Bucky Pope, 85
Barbara Rhoades, 80
Pat Bourque, 79
Ron Jaworski, 75
Jason Kidd, 53
Mark Buehrle, 47
Maurice Jones-Drew, 41
Dellin Betances, 38
Gordon Hayward, 36
Clayton Tune, 25

— Conference breakdown, against the spread:
Big XII- 7-3F/3-1U= 10-4 ATS
Big 18- 9-4F/1-1U= 10-5 ATS
SEC- 6-4F/5-3U= 11-7 ATS
ACC- 2-6F/0-4U= 2-10 ATS
Big East- 2-2F/0-1U= 2-3 ATS
WCC- 0-3F/0-1U= 0-4 ATS
Favorites were 26-22 ATS this weekend.

— Good news/bad news for three college teams this month:
Good news: Siena, South Florida, Troy State all made the NCAA Tournament.

Bad news: This weekend, the coaches for those three teams all bolted for higher paying jobs.

Scott Cross goes from Troy to Georgia Tech
Bryan Hodgson goes from South Florida to Providence
Gerry McNamara goes from Siena to Syracuse.
Also, Ark-Little Rock hired Travis Ford, who last coached at Saint Louis in 2024.

— Boise State has played in most NCAA tourney games (10), without ever winning one.

— Was chatting with a guy who had posted that he had a certain pitcher on 14 of his fantasy baseball teams. I asked him how many leagues was he in— he said he had 26 different teams.

I’m in one fantasy league, a dynasty league that we’ve had for 21 years. Can’t even conceive of keeping track of 26 different leagues.
— Phillies signed P Cristopher Sanchez to a six-year contract worth $103M; that contract starts in 2027. Sanchez will earn $3.5M this coming season. Sanchez went 13-5 with a 2.50 ERA in 32 starts last year.

— Odd Note of the Day: Orioles OF Tyler O’Neill has hit a home run on Opening Day the last six years in a row, which is a record.

— Houston is going to be a busy place next weekend.
Angels @ Astros start the baseball season
Sweet 16 and Elite 8 in South Region take place in Houston
PGA Tour has their event in Houston this coming week.

 

[Cnotes53]

Tuesday’s 6-pack
Players with the most at-bats last season:
652— Julio Rodriguez
644— Francisco Lindor
629— Elly De La Cruz
626— Brett Rooker
625— Steven Kwan
624— Matt Olson/Pete Alonso

Quotes of the Day
“It was going to take a special situation for us to leave Saint Mary’s, and I am energized, driven, and focused on taking over Sun Devil Basketball, a program I am very familiar with and grew up watching.”
Arizona State’s new coach, Randy Bennett

Tuesday’s quiz
New York Mets have retired uniform number 36, to honor which retired pitcher?

Monday’s quiz
Of all the active baseball players, Jose Ramirez has hit the most home runs as a visiting player in these three ballparks: Detroit, Kansas City, Chicago (White Sox).

Sunday’s quiz
Texas coach Sean Miller played his college basketball at Pittsburgh.

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Tuesday’s Den: Nobody asked me, but…….​

— Straight-up records in NCAA Tournament, by conference:
Big 18- 13-3
SEC- 13-6
Big XII- 9-5
Big East- 4-1
ACC- 5-7
WCC- 1-3

— Creighton coach Greg McDermott is retiring after 16 years with the Bluejays; McDermott has a career record of 514-319 in 25 years as a head coach, at Northern Iowa, Creighton and Iowa State. Alan Huss is Creighton’s new coach; he had previously been head coach at High Point, and was “coach in waiting” with Creighton this year.

— Gonzaga’s move to the Pac-12 has already hurt Saint Mary’s; Randy Bennett has bolted from the Gaels to be the new coach at Arizona State. Bennett was in Moraga for 25 years, making 12 NCAA Tournaments; he got the Gaels to the Sweet 16 in 2010.
Arizona State has missed the NCAA’s five of the last six years.

— Saint Mary’s hired from within, replaced Bennett with assistant coach Mickey McConnell, who played for the Gaels and had been on the Saint Mary’s staff since 2019. Saint Mary’s figures to get a lot less national TV exposure now, with Gonzaga moving on.

— There are five coaches who have won a game in this year’s NCAA Tournament who at one time were head coaches at a Division II school:
Jerrod Calhoun, Utah State (off to Cincinnati today)
Grant McCasland, Texas Tech
Ben McCollum, Iowa (won 4 D-II national titles)
Ryan Odom, Virginia
Josh Schertz, Saint Louis

— Jerrod Calhoun has moved on from Utah State to Cincinnati; Calhoun was 55-15 in two years with the Aggies, but he is a Cincinnati alum who was a student assistant for Bob Huggins with the Bearcats in 2003-04, after playing at Cleveland State.
Next season, Utah State will have its 7th head coach in 12 years, and they’ve only had one losing season in the last 11 seasons. No one stays there, but they keep winning. Last four years, under three different coaches, Aggies are 109-31, 57-19 in Mountain West games, 2-4 in NCAA games.

— This past weekend, #2-seeds were 4-0 ATS in second round games of the NCAA’s, the first time that happened since 1991.

— Famous birthdays, March 24th:
Garry Templeton, 70
Scott Brunner, 69
Bruce Hurst, 68
Mike Woodson, 68
Kelly LeBrock, 56
Lara Flynn Boyle, 56
Steve Karsay, 54
Peyton Manning, 50
Aaron Brooks, 50
Jessica Chastain, 49
Chad Gaudin, 43
Chris Bosh, 42
— Robert Mueller passed away this weekend, at age 81; he was director of the FBI for 12 years, after being nominated by the older George Bush.
He was a Marine Corps officer during the Vietnam War, receiving a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. He went to college at Princeton, before going to Vietnam.
RIP, sir.

There are eight teams left in the NIT:

— Wichita State (24-11)- Shockers won nine of last 10 games; they beat Tulsa 2 out of 3 games this season, including the AAC tournament.
Wichita has #23 eFG% defense in country.

— Tulsa (28-7)— they’ve won eight of their last nine games, with their last two wins in OT.
Tulsa is shooting 38.9% on the arc, #5 in country.

— St Joe’s (24-11)- Hawks won nine of last 10 games, including NIT road games at Colorado State and California.
St Joe’s subs play #321 minutes, a potential problem in higher altitude.

— New Mexico (25-10)- Were 5-6 in last 11 Mountain West games, but won their first two NIT games, by 24-25 points.
Lobos drew over 9,000 fans for their last game, big crowd for the NIT.

— Illinois State (22-12)- Redbirds are 9-3 in non-conference games; they won at Wake Forest Sunday.
Illinois State is #45 in the country in experience, #13 in continuity.

— Dayton (25-11)- Flyers are 11-3 in their last 14 games, with all three losses to VCU.
Dayton won its first two NIT games on the road, at Bradley/NC-Wilmington.

— Nevada (24-12)- Long road trip for the Wolf Pack; last time they played outside of Nevada was March 3rd, in Wyoming.
Nevada gets 25.5% of its points on foul line, #3 in country.

— Auburn (19-16)- After going 3-9 in their last 12 SEC games, Tigers beat South Alabama by 11, Seattle by 6 in two NIT home games.
Auburn gets 24% of its points on foul line, #20 in country.

— There was a cool moment Monday night during the Royals-Rangers exhibition game; Texas had a pitcher named Carter Baumler on the mound. He gets a guy out and manager Skip Schumaker comes to the mound. Players start laughing during the meeting, Schumaker goes back to the dugout, Baumler stays in the game.

Turns out that Schumaker told the pitcher that he made the team, that he was a big leaguer for the first time in his career. Pretty excellent way to find out.

 

[Cnotes53]

Wednesday’s 6-pack
Players who have scored the most points for the Lakers:
33,643— Kobe Bryant
25,192— Jerry West
24,176— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
23,149— Elgin Baylor
17,707— Earvin Johnson
16,320— James Worthy

Quotes of the Day
“If you ever want to question my recruiting abilities, just look at my wife….…”
Providence’s new coach, Bryan Hodgson, whose wife is very attractive

Wednesday’s quiz
Which college’s sports teams are known as the Gauchos?

Tuesday’s quiz
New York Mets have retired uniform number 36, to honor retired pitcher Jerry Koosman.

Monday’s quiz
Of all the active baseball players, Jose Ramirez has hit the most home runs as a visiting player in these three ballparks: Detroit, Kansas City, Chicago (White Sox).

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Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings…….​

— Baseball season starts Wednesday night; Bronx at the Giants in San Francisco on Netflix, then a lot more games on Thursday/Friday. There are seven interleague series the first weekend this year.

— Tulsa 83, Wichita State 79
Tulsa led 30-6 early in the game.
Wichita led 72-70 with 4:54 left in the game.
Tulsa shot 12-29 on the arc, only 36.1% inside arc.
AAC rivals wound up splitting four games with each other this year.

— New Mexico 84, Saint Joseph’s 69
Visiting Hawks led 39-37 at halftime.
New Mexico was 22-28 on foul line, St Joe’s 8-11
Tomislav Buljan scored 27 points, had 11 rebounds.
St Joe’s was only 9-33 on the arc.

— North Carolina is firing basketball coach Hubert Davis, after the Tar Heels lost in the first round of the NCAA’s for second year in a row. Davis was 126-54 in his five years in Chapel Hill, 68-30 in ACC games, 7-4 in the NCAA Tournament.
The thing about North Carolina is that they’ve always hired alums/assistant coaches; this time, there is no logical replacement for Davis. Curious to see who they hire.

— Iowa Hawkeyes are in the Sweet 16; in their last ten games, their star Bennett Stirtz has sat out a total of three minutes, so he’s averaged 40.2 minutes/game in a sport where the games are only 40 minutes long.

— NIL budgets for teams in the Sweet 16:
$12M- Duke
$11.5M-Arkansas
$10.5M-Michigan, St John’s
$9.75M- Arizona

$9.5M- Alabama, Tennessee, UConn
$9M- Illinois
$8.75M- Purdue
$8.5M- Michigan State, Houston

$8.25M- Iowa State
$7.5M- Texas
$6.75M- Nebraska
$6.25M- Iowa

— Famous birthdays, March 25th
Joe Carollo, 86
Bonnie Bedelia, 78
Lee Mazzilli, 71
Avery Johnson, 61
Sarah Jessica Parker, 61
Tom Glavine, 60
Domenick Lombardozzi, 50
Kyle Lowry, 40
Pete Crow-Armstrong, 24

— Tennessee Tech hired Tobin Anderson as its new basketball coach; Anderson was at Fairleigh Dickinson when they upset Purdue in the first round of the 2023 NCAA’s, the second time a #16 seed upset a #1-seed. He then coached Iona for two years, going 33-34, 20-18 in MAAC games.
Tennessee Tech has had eight straight losing seasons; they haven’t been in NCAA’s since 1963.

— Tuesday night during the Dodgers-Angels exhibition, Dodgers TV had third base coach Dino Ebel miked for the whole game, and TV analyst Eric Karros asked him questions, so I learned a lot about the game, about coaching third base. Great TV that you can’t do during the regular season, but it was excellent TV.

— Monday night, Dodger P Roki Sasaki had a tough time against the Angels; he faced 14 hitters, didn’t give up any hits, but he walked six guys, hit two others, only got six outs. 66 pitches, only 32 strikes.

— Last year, Cleveland Guardians were 42-25 after the All-Star break, best record in the major leagues

— My godson is an assistant high school baseball coach on Long Island; apparently they use the pitch-com device during games, where the catcher presses a button on a device so the pitcher knows what pitch he is calling.
Surprised to hear that high schools use pitch-com, but they do.

— NFL updates:
Kansas City Chiefs signed TE Travis Kelce for three years, $54.7M
Seattle Seahawks signed WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba for four years, $168.8M.
Cincinnati Bengals signed 41-year old QB Joe Flacco for one year, $6M.

— About 10 years ago, I’m in Las Vegas for the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, I’m staying at the MGM Grand. It is the first game of the day, so its like 10am in Las Vegas, I was on my first Cherry Coke of the day.

I’m sitting next to three young guys; the game is about eight minutes in, and a kid hits a jumper to make the score 15-12, something like that. The three young guys explode, start hugging each other and giving each other high-5’s.

I ask the guy next to me, “Was that your brother who made that shot? Why you so happy?”
“First to 15 man!!! That hoop won our bet; we had Northern Iowa to get to 15 points first”

Turns out I had no idea you could bet on which team got to 15 points first in a game; I’m glad I didn’t know that, would’ve spent lot of time researching those numbers.

 

[Cnotes53]

2026 MLB Opening Day starter tracker: See every team's starting pitcher for Game 1​

Opening Day is almost here and the pitchers are set​

[IMG alt=" Dayn Perry
"]https://sportshub.cbsistatic.com/i/r/2016/05/04/c0a15597-4cff-47bb-af43-ba14438a7b1c/thumbnail/80x80/09cf3709d5e0d290889dd9558213baff/daynperry.png[/IMG]
By Dayn Perry
Mar 23, 2026 at 1:45 pm ET•12 min read

Getty Images
Opening Day and the start of a new Major League Baseball season are almost here and teams are lining up their rotations, starting with who will take the ball for their maiden voyage in 2026. Traditional MLB Opening Day is set for Thursday, March 26, for the 2026 season, though the Yankees and Giants will get the season started a day earlier with a matchup in San Francisco on March 25.
With that in mind, CBS Sports will use the space below to log every team's Opening Day starting pitcher decision. These things are always subject to change at a later date, be it because of injury or further roster move, but we'll keep this as current as the news cycle allows.
Before we meet this year's crop of Opening Day starters, here's a look at the pitchers who've made the most of these starts in MLB history:

1. Tom Seaver: 16
2. Steve Carlton: 14
3. Jack Morris: 14
4. Randy Johnson: 14
5. Walter Johnson: 14

Boston Red Sox: Garrett Crochet​

Crochet will be entering his second season with the Red Sox, and he'll be making his third consecutive (and third overall) Opening Day start. Crochet finished second in American League Cy Young Award voting after compiling a 2.59 ERA (159 ERA+) and a 5.54 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 32 starts. The Red Sox open the season in Cincinnati.

Detroit Tigers: Tarik Skubal​

Skubal, winner of two consecutive AL Cy Young awards, will make his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Tigers, tying him for eighth most in franchise history. It's possible this could be Skubal's final Opening Day assignment for Detroit. He's entering his walk year and is expected to receive a massive payday after accumulating a 3.08 ERA (135 ERA+) and a 5.17 strikeout-to-walk ratio over his first 137 big-league appearances. The Tigers will be in San Diego on Opening Day.

Houston Astros: Hunter Brown​

The Astros will start someone other than Framber Valdez (now a member of the Tigers) on Opening Day for the first time since 2021. Brown will receive the honors after managing a 2.43 ERA (172 ERA+) and a 3.61 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 31 starts in 2025. He and the Astros will host the Angels on Opening Day.

Miami Marlins: Sandy Alcantara​

It was Friday, Feb. 13 when the Marlins announced that Sandy Alcantara would again get the ball on Opening Day. This will be the sixth time in the last seven seasons that he opens the season for the Marlins with 2024 -- when he was recovering from Tommy John surgery -- being the exception. The 2022 Cy Young winner was 11-12 with a 5.36 ERA last season, but he seemed to finally pitch back to form late in the season. He was 5-1 with a 2.68 ERA in the last eight outings. The Marlins start the new season at home against the Rockies.

Arizona Diamondbacks: Zac Gallen​

The D-backs originally announced Merrill Kelly as their Opening Day starter, though he came down with an achy shoulder last month, and the team had to shift gears. The season opener will instead go to the recently re-signed Zac Gallen. It will be his fourth straight Opening Day start. Only Hall of Famer Randy Johnson has started more Opening Days in franchise history. The D-backs will face the two-time defending champion Dodgers in Los Angeles when the season begins.

Tampa Bay Rays: Drew Rasmussen​

The Rays will send Rasmussen to the bump to start this season March 26 in St. Louis. It'll be the first Opening Day start in the career of the Rays' right-hander. Last season marked the first full season since Rasmussen underwent an internal brace surgery on his right elbow and he made a career-high 31 starts. In those starts, he worked 150 innings, pitching to a 2.76 ERA and 1.02 WHIP with 127 strikeouts against 36 unintentional walks. He made the All-Star team for the first time and finished ninth in Cy Young voting, also accumulating a career-best 4.4 WAR.

New York Mets: Freddy Peralta​

The Mets acquired Peralta from the Brewers via a four-player trade in January, and the right-hander gives New York the reliable frontline presence it sorely needs. Last season, Peralta, a two-time All-Star, deservedly finished in the top five of the NL Cy Young vote. In each of the last three seasons, he's reached at least 30 starts and racked up at least 200 strikeouts, and over that span he boasts an ERA+ of 123. The start -- against the Pirates at Citi Field -- will mark Peralta's third straight Opening Day start.

 

[Cnotes53]

Cincinnati Reds: Andrew Abbott​

With Hunter Greene's elbow acting up, the Opening Day assignment will fall to Abbott, who is more than worthy. The 26-year-old went to the All-Star Game last year and has a career 3.42 ERA since being called up in June 2023. He finished eighth in the Cy Young voting in 2025. It will be Abbott's first career Opening Day start. The Reds have not had a pitcher earn consecutive Opening Days since Johnny Cueto started four straight from 2012-15. Abbott and the Reds will host the Red Sox to begin the new season.

Chicago White Sox: Shane Smith​

From Rule 5 Draft pick to Opening Day starter. Smith was an obvious pick for the ChiSox following his All-Star Game selection and 3.81 ERA in 29 starts as a rookie last season. Chicago took Smith from the Brewers in the December 2024 Rule 5 Draft, and last year he joined Dan Uggla as the only players to go to the All-Star Game the season after getting Rule 5ed. He will be the White Sox's fourth different Opening Day starter in four years. Smith and the ChiSox will open the new season in Milwaukee.

New York Yankees: Max Fried​

No surprise here: Fried will start the season opener for New York. He finished fourth in the AL Cy Young last season, his first with the Yankees. Gerrit Cole is on the mend from Tommy John surgery and is expected back in late May or June, so he wasn't an option. Because of Cole's injuries, the Yankees have had four different Opening Day starters in the last four years (Cole in 2023, Nestor Cortes in 2024, Carlos Rodón in 2025, Fried in 2026). They'll begin the season in San Francisco.

Washington Nationals: Cade Cavalli​

An impressive second-half return from Tommy John surgery last season has landed Cavalli the Opening Day start in 2026. Washington's first-round pick in 2020 had a 4.25 ERA in 10 starts after returning; six times in those 10 starts, he allowed no more than two earned runs. Cavalli will be the Nats' fourth different Opening Day starter in the last four years, joining Patrick Corbin in 2023, Josiah Gray in 2024, and MacKenzie Gore in 2025. The Nationals will open the season at Wrigley Field.

Chicago Cubs: Matthew Boyd​

The 35-year-old lefty in 2025 enjoyed one of the best seasons of his 11-year career, as he pitched to a 3.21 ERA/120 ERA+ with a 3.65 FIP and 154 strikeouts against 42 unintentional walks in 179 ⅔ innings. He also earned his first All-Star selection. For his career, Boyd has an ERA+ of 95 and a WAR of 12.2. His nod on Opening Day will be the 200th start of his MLB career. The Cubs will be home against the Nationals on Opening Day.

Baltimore Orioles: Trevor Rogers​

Last year's remarkable finish to the regular season (1.81 ERA in 18 starts) earned Rogers the Opening Day assignment in 2026. Despite making only 18 starts, Rogers finished ninth in the AL Cy Young voting. He will be Baltimore's fifth Opening Day starter in five years, joining John Means (2022), Kyle Gibson (2023), Corbin Burnes (2024), and Zach Eflin (2025). The O's will host the Twins to begin the season.

Toronto Blue Jays: Kevin Gausman​

The 35-year-old right-hander Gausman will get the nod for the defending AL champs. He's coming off a 2025 season in which he pitched to a 3.59 ERA (119 ERA+) with 3.78 K/BB ratio in 193 innings. He's been a stalwart in the Toronto rotation since 2021 and has made at least 30 starts in each of his four seasons with the Jays. Last season, José Berríos got the Opening Day start for Toronto, but he's dealing with elbow inflammation. The Blue Jays begin 2026 at home against the Athletics.

Texas Rangers: Nathan Eovaldi​

The 36-year-old right-hander and Texas native will be making his third straight Opening Day start for the Rangers. Eovaldi is coming off a 2025 campaign in which he put up a sparkling ERA of 1.73 across 22 starts and 130 innings. Over that span, he struck out 129 batters against 20 unintentional walks. If not for a rotator cuff injury that ended his season in the latter half of August, he likely would have been an AL Cy Young contender last season. Eovaldi and the Rangers will host the Philles to start the new year.

San Francisco Giants: Logan Webb​

No surprise here. Webb will start with his fifth straight Opening Day for the Giants. The five Opening Day starts tie Madison Bumgarner for third most in team history behind Hall of Famers Juan Marichal (11) and Carl Hubbell (six). Webb has led baseball in innings pitched each of the last three seasons, and he made two starts for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. The Giants will host the Yankees on Opening Day.

 

[Cnotes53]

Los Angeles Dodgers: Yoshinobu Yamamoto​

Yamamoto threw the final pitch of the 2025 World Series and he will also throw the first pitch for the 2026 Dodgers. It will be his second straight Opening Day start. Yamamoto threw 173 ⅔ innings with a 2.49 ERA last year and then earned World Series MVP honors thanks to his heroic relief appearance on zero days' rest in Game 7. He will be the first Dodger to start consecutive Opening Days since Clayton Kershaw started eight straight from 2011-18. The Dodgers start the regular season at home against the Diamondbacks.

Los Angeles Angels: José Soriano​

One of the game's most underrated pitchers, Soriano is a reliever-turned-starter success story. He has a 3.93 ERA in two years since moving into the rotation, and last year he led baseball in ground ball rate. Yusei Kikuchi, last year's Opening Day starter, spent much of the spring away from the Angels at the World Baseball Classic. The Angels go to Houston for their first series of 2026.

Colorado Rockies: Kyle Freeland​

For the third straight year and the fourth time overall, Freeland will start Game 1 for the Rockies. The Denver native is already the franchise leader in Opening Day starts and pitching WAR, and should finish the season as the franchise leader in innings. Freeland and the Rockies will visit the Marlins to start the new season.

Kansas City Royals: Cole Ragans​

Make it three straight Opening Day starts for Ragans, who joined Kansas City in the Aroldis Chapman trade with the Rangers at the 2023 deadline. A shoulder issue limited Ragans to 13 starts last year, during which his underlying numbers (2.50 FIP) were much better than his surface stats (4.67 ERA). He will be the first pitcher to start three straight Opening Days for the Royals since Gil Meche from 2007-09. The Royals visit the Braves to begin 2026.

St. Louis Cardinals: Matthew Liberatore​

After turning in 29 effective starts last year (and learning a new splitter this spring), Liberatore will get the Opening Day assignment for St. Louis. He came over in the Randy Arozarena trade with the Rays. Liberatore will be the first left-hander to start Opening Day for the Cardinals since Donovan Osborne in 1999. Liberatore will face the Rays, the team that drafted him, at home in the season opener.

Pittsburgh Pirates: Paul Skenes​

No surprise here, as Skenes is the reigning National League Cy Young winner and one of the brightest stars in the game today. The big right-hander goes into his age-24 campaign with a jaw-dropping ERA of 1.96 through the first 55 starts of his MLB career, and he's backed it up with an FIP of 2.40. The expectation is that Skenes, with his elite pitch mix and, thus far, excellent durability, will again be among the most valuable performers in the sport in 2026. The Pirates open the season in New York against the Mets.

 

[Cnotes53]

Seattle Mariners: Logan Gilbert​

For the second straight year, the right-hander Gilbert will be the Mariners' Opening Day Starter. The 28-year-old Gilbert is coming off a 2025 season in which he pitched to a 3.44 ERA and 3.35 FIP with 173 strikeouts and 31 walks in 131 innings. Gilbert boasts a wipeout splitter with which he got better than a 50% whiff rate in 2025. He also has a mid-90s fastball that plays even faster thanks to Gilbert's elite extension off the mound. The Mariners begin 2026 at home against the Guardians.

(Sacramento) Athletics: Luis Severino​

Owner of the largest free-agent contract in team history, Severino will make his second straight Opening Day start for the A's. He had a 4.54 ERA in 29 starts last season, which was split into a 6.01 ERA at home and a 3.02 ERA on the road. It is good then that Severino and the A's start the new season on the road in Toronto. Severino will be the first Athletic to start consecutive Opening Days since Kendall Graveman in 2017 and 2018.

Minnesota Twins: Joe Ryan​

With Pablo López injured, there was really no other choice for the Twins. This will be Ryan's second career Opening Day start (also 2022) after López had started the last three season openers. Ryan threw 171 innings with a 3.42 ERA last season and has been a very popular name in trade rumors the last year or so. He will start Game 1 for the Twins. Will he still be on the team come Game 162? We'll see. Ryan and the Twins will be in Baltimore on Opening Day.

Philadelphia Phillies: Cristopher Sánchez​

For the first time since Cole Hamels back in 2015, a lefty will start Opening Day for the Phillies. Sánchez was the obvious choice after his Cy Young runner-up season a year ago. Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia's Opening Day starter the last two years, is working his way back from thoracic outlet syndrome. He's expected to return a few weeks into the season. Sánchez and the Phillies will host the Rangers to begin 2026.

Cleveland Guardians: Tanner Bibee​

Gavin Williams had a strong case for the Opening Day start, but the Guardians will instead go with Bibee. Bibee was scheduled to start the opener last year, though an illness forced a late scratch. Ben Lively stepped in. Bibee made 31 starts with a 4.24 ERA last season. He and the Guardians will start the season in Seattle.

Atlanta Braves: Chris Sale​

To no surprise, Sale will make his second straight Opening Day start for the Braves. It will be his seventh career Opening Day start, tied for second most among active pitchers with Max Scherzer. Only Justin Verlander (12) has more. Last year Sale, the 2024 NL Cy Young winner, had a 2.58 ERA in 21 appearances around a rib injury. The Braves will begin 2026 at home against the Royals.

Milwaukee Brewers: Jacob Misiorowski​

Last year Misiorowski was named an All-Star after only five career starts. Now he will start Opening Day after only 14 career starts. Misiorowski had a 4.36 ERA with 87 strikeouts in 66 innings last season and there were many electric moments along the way. At 23 years and 357 days, Misiorowski will be the third youngest Opening Day starter in franchise history behind Bill Parsons (23 years and 242 days in 1972) and Ben Sheets (23 years and 258 days in 2002). The Brewers start the season at home against the White Sox.

San Diego Padres: Nick Pivetta​

After going 13-5 with a 2.87 ERA in his first season with the Padres, earning him a sixth-place finish in Cy Young voting, Pivetta gets the nod for his first Opening Day start. He didn't get the ball until the fourth game last season, following Michael King, Dylan Cease and Randy Vásquez. This time around, Pivetta starts the first game of the season and it'll come against the Tigers and two-time AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.

 

[Udog]

Wednesday’s 6-pack
Players who have scored the most points for the Lakers:
33,643— Kobe Bryant
25,192— Jerry West
24,176— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
23,149— Elgin Baylor
17,707— Earvin Johnson
16,320— James Worthy

Quotes of the Day
“If you ever want to question my recruiting abilities, just look at my wife….…”
Providence’s new coach, Bryan Hodgson, whose wife is very attractive

Wednesday’s quiz
Which college’s sports teams are known as the Gauchos?

Tuesday’s quiz
New York Mets have retired uniform number 36, to honor retired pitcher Jerry Koosman.

Monday’s quiz
Of all the active baseball players, Jose Ramirez has hit the most home runs as a visiting player in these three ballparks: Detroit, Kansas City, Chicago (White Sox).

****************************************************

Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings…….​

— Baseball season starts Wednesday night; Bronx at the Giants in San Francisco on Netflix, then a lot more games on Thursday/Friday. There are seven interleague series the first weekend this year.

— Tulsa 83, Wichita State 79
Tulsa led 30-6 early in the game.
Wichita led 72-70 with 4:54 left in the game.
Tulsa shot 12-29 on the arc, only 36.1% inside arc.
AAC rivals wound up splitting four games with each other this year.

— New Mexico 84, Saint Joseph’s 69
Visiting Hawks led 39-37 at halftime.
New Mexico was 22-28 on foul line, St Joe’s 8-11
Tomislav Buljan scored 27 points, had 11 rebounds.
St Joe’s was only 9-33 on the arc.

— North Carolina is firing basketball coach Hubert Davis, after the Tar Heels lost in the first round of the NCAA’s for second year in a row. Davis was 126-54 in his five years in Chapel Hill, 68-30 in ACC games, 7-4 in the NCAA Tournament.
The thing about North Carolina is that they’ve always hired alums/assistant coaches; this time, there is no logical replacement for Davis. Curious to see who they hire.

— Iowa Hawkeyes are in the Sweet 16; in their last ten games, their star Bennett Stirtz has sat out a total of three minutes, so he’s averaged 40.2 minutes/game in a sport where the games are only 40 minutes long.

— NIL budgets for teams in the Sweet 16:
$12M- Duke
$11.5M-Arkansas
$10.5M-Michigan, St John’s
$9.75M- Arizona

$9.5M- Alabama, Tennessee, UConn
$9M- Illinois
$8.75M- Purdue
$8.5M- Michigan State, Houston

$8.25M- Iowa State
$7.5M- Texas
$6.75M- Nebraska
$6.25M- Iowa

— Famous birthdays, March 25th
Joe Carollo, 86
Bonnie Bedelia, 78
Lee Mazzilli, 71
Avery Johnson, 61
Sarah Jessica Parker, 61
Tom Glavine, 60
Domenick Lombardozzi, 50
Kyle Lowry, 40
Pete Crow-Armstrong, 24

— Tennessee Tech hired Tobin Anderson as its new basketball coach; Anderson was at Fairleigh Dickinson when they upset Purdue in the first round of the 2023 NCAA’s, the second time a #16 seed upset a #1-seed. He then coached Iona for two years, going 33-34, 20-18 in MAAC games.
Tennessee Tech has had eight straight losing seasons; they haven’t been in NCAA’s since 1963.

— Tuesday night during the Dodgers-Angels exhibition, Dodgers TV had third base coach Dino Ebel miked for the whole game, and TV analyst Eric Karros asked him questions, so I learned a lot about the game, about coaching third base. Great TV that you can’t do during the regular season, but it was excellent TV.

— Monday night, Dodger P Roki Sasaki had a tough time against the Angels; he faced 14 hitters, didn’t give up any hits, but he walked six guys, hit two others, only got six outs. 66 pitches, only 32 strikes.

— Last year, Cleveland Guardians were 42-25 after the All-Star break, best record in the major leagues

— My godson is an assistant high school baseball coach on Long Island; apparently they use the pitch-com device during games, where the catcher presses a button on a device so the pitcher knows what pitch he is calling.
Surprised to hear that high schools use pitch-com, but they do.

— NFL updates:
Kansas City Chiefs signed TE Travis Kelce for three years, $54.7M
Seattle Seahawks signed WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba for four years, $168.8M.
Cincinnati Bengals signed 41-year old QB Joe Flacco for one year, $6M.

— About 10 years ago, I’m in Las Vegas for the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, I’m staying at the MGM Grand. It is the first game of the day, so its like 10am in Las Vegas, I was on my first Cherry Coke of the day.

I’m sitting next to three young guys; the game is about eight minutes in, and a kid hits a jumper to make the score 15-12, something like that. The three young guys explode, start hugging each other and giving each other high-5’s.

I ask the guy next to me, “Was that your brother who made that shot? Why you so happy?”
“First to 15 man!!! That hoop won our bet; we had Northern Iowa to get to 15 points first”

Turns out I had no idea you could bet on which team got to 15 points first in a game; I’m glad I didn’t know that, would’ve spent lot of time researching those numbers.

 

[Udog]

MLB
Weather Report

Wednesday, March 25

MLB
Dunkel

Wednesday, March 25

MLB

Wednesday, March 25

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Trend Report
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New York VS San Francisco
The total has gone UNDER in 12 of NY Yankees' last 17 games.
NY Yankees is 14-5 SU in its last 19 games.
NY Yankees is 10-3 SU in its last 13 games against San Francisco.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Yankees' last 6 games on the road.
San Francisco is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 6 of San Francisco's last 6 games against NY Yankees.
San Francisco is 13-6 SU in its last 19 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 6 of San Francisco's last 6 games when playing at home against NY Yankees.

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[Cnotes53]

Wednesday, March 25​

Game	Time(ET)	Pick	Units
NYY at SF	08:05 PM	SF +105***** U 7.0*****	+500 +500

 

[Cnotes53]

CNOTES BEST BETS MLB FOR MARCH 2026 !

03/25/2026...........................0- 2 - 0.........................00.00%.................- 10.50

 

[Cnotes53]

Thursday’s 6-pack
— New York 7, San Francisco 0- Max Fried throws 6.1 scoreless IP.
— Illinois State 61, Dayton 55- Redbirds never trailed, shot 66.7% inside arc.
— Auburn 75, Nevada 69- Auburn-Illinois State is one NIT semi-final.
— Celtics 119, Thunder 109- Loss ends Oklahoma City’s 12-game win streak.
— Hawks 130, Pistons 129 OT- Atlanta led this game by 18 at the half.
— Nuggets 142, Mavericks 135- Jamal Murray scored 53 points.

Quotes of the Day
“Believe me, I wish I was a guy somewhere, and I think teams are dumb for not having me be that guy. Not being one of those guys to go sign somewhere, yeah, it pisses me off a little bit. But at the same time, I’m very happy to be here.”
Joe Flacco, after signing with the Bengals

Thursday’s quiz
Who was the Pirates’ manager, last time they made the playoffs?

Wednesday’s quiz
Cal-Santa Barbara’s sports teams are known as the Gauchos.

Tuesday’s quiz
New York Mets have retired uniform number 36, to honor pitcher Jerry Koosman.

****************************************​

Thursday’s Den: An interesting person for each major league team…….​

National League

— Diamondbacks- Zac Gallen- Last year was his option year; he had a rough year, going 13-15, 4.83 in 33 starts, but he was 4-2, 3.48 in his last six outings.

He signed a one-year deal with Arizona, so its another option year for him. We’ll see if he can have a big year and strike it rich next winter.
— Braves- Ronald Acuna Jr- He played in only 95 games last year, coming back from knee surgery; he’s played in 100+ games in only two of the last five years. Atlanta had its first losing season in eight years in 2025; they’ll need Acuna to be productive to bounce back this year.

— Cubs- Alex Bregman- He’s played his whole career for Houston/Boston, where both home parks have a short porch in left field. How will playing 81 games in Wrigley Field affect his production? Statcast said that if he played for the Cubs last year, he still would’ve put up good numbers, since left-center in Wrigley can be inviting to hitters. We’ll see.

— Reds- Andrew Abbott- Cincinnati made the playoffs last year, but they haven’t won a playoff game since 2012, going 0-5 in three appearances since then. Reds will need someone to step up as an ace pitcher; Abbott was 10-7, 2.89 in 29 starts LY, so he would be the likeliest candidate.

— Rockies- Paul DePodesta runs the Rockies now; he is Jonah Hill’s character from Moneyball, who spent the last eight years working for the NFL’s Cleveland Browns (he played football in college at Harvard).
How much will the Rockies platoon players? When he was with the A’s, they platooned a lot. It’ll be interesting to see how things will be different in Denver this year.

— Dodgers- Kyle Tucker is getting paid $60M/year for the next four years; considering LA just won two World Series without him, it is a curious move, but Tucker is the Dodgers’ only position player star who is under 30 years old.
Tucker has a career OPS of .865, which should make the Dodgers even better.

— Marlins- In his last ten starts last year, Sandy Alcantara was 5-3, 3.70, as he came back from missing the 2024 season. He is a free agent after the 2027 season; will the Marlins hang onto him or deal him for prospects who make less money?
Marlins have had only two winning seasons since 2009, and they got swept in the playoffs both of those years, but their nucleus of position players is pretty good.

— Brewers- Jason Misiorowski- Milwaukee doesn’t pay its star pitchers, which is why Freddy Peralta plays for the Mets now. Misiorowski was 5-3, 4.36 in 14 starts as a rookie; can he pick up where Peralta left off and be an ace for the Brewers?
Milwaukee has made the players seven of the last eight years; Peralta will be missed.

— Mets- Mets dumped Alonso, Nimmo, McNeil, Marte; most of last year’s coaches are gone now too, after the Mets missed the playoffs. That would put the spotlight for 2026 squarely on Carlos Mendoza, who has managed the Mets for two years, going 179-158, 7-6 in playoff games.
Not sure why you dump several key players and most of your coaching stuff, but you keep the same manager? Lot of pressure on Mendoza this year.

— Phillies- Justin Crawford is starting this season as the Phillies’ center fielder; he is the son of Carl Crawford, who played 15 years in the big leagues. Will he hit enough to keep the job? Last year, Crawford hit .334 in AAA; he needs to defend well more than he needs to hit.

— Pirates- Two players here; Pirates added Marcell Ozuna/Ryan O’Hearn as Pittsburgh tries to spruce up its lineup with a couple older hitters, one from each side of the plate. Pirates haven’t had a winning season since 2018, haven’t made the playoffs since 2015.
Pittsburgh’s starting pitching is pretty good; if they hit more, they could contend for the playoffs.

— Cardinals- Chaim Bloom is the Cardinals’ president of baseball operations; Red Sox made the playoffs once in the four years he worked there (he traded Mookie Betts), now St Louis is in a rebuild, having missed the playoffs the last three years.
Cardinals haven’t missed the playoffs four years in a row since 1988-95; we’ll see how quickly the Cardinals get better. Fans there are used to winning.

— Padres- San Diego traded their best prospect Leo DeVries to acquire closer Mason Miller, who had 50 saves the last two years. There were murmurs that the Padres were going to make Miller a starting pitcher, but apparently that’s not going to happen.
Dylan Cease, Luis Arraez, Ryan O’Hearn aren’t in San Diego anymore; might be tough for them to equal last year’s 90-72 record.

— Giants- San Francisco hired a new manager, Tony Vitello, who managed the Tennessee Vols for eight years, winning the 2024 national title. Not many college managers become skippers in the big leagues; Pat Murphy in Milwaukee, Bobby Winkles back in the day with the Angels.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Giants fare with their new manager.

— Nationals- I watch a lot of podcasts about fantasy baseball; last couple of weeks, there was a lot of enthusiasm about Cade Cavalli, a pitcher who was 3-1, 4.25 in 10 starts last year.
Nationals’ leadership got A LOT younger this winter; curious to see how they do. Expectations are very, very low, that’s for sure.

— Famous birthdays, March 26th
Martin Short, 76
Catherine Keener, 67
Marcus Allen, 66
John Sotckton, 64
Kevin Seitzer, 64
Michael Imperioli, 60
Keira Knightley, 41
Von Miller, 37
Cristian Javier, 29
Jeremiah Jackson, 26

American League

— Orioles- Why did the Mets trade Pete Alonso? The last five years, Alonso missed a total of 20 games, playing 162-162 games the last two seasons. He hit 195 home runs those five years; he is a really good hitter, and should make the Orioles’ lineup a lot stronger.

— Red Sox- Boston made the playoffs last year, for only the second time in seven years; they did not re-sign Alex Bregman this winter, but added P’s Ranger Suarez, Sonny Gray and 1B Willson Contreras. It looks like Jarren Duran/Wilyer Abreu will play every day instead of platooning, but the AL East is tough. Can they make the playoffs again this season?

— White Sox- Lot of pundits have been praising Munetaka Murakami, Chicago’s new 1B who is supposed to be quite a slugger, but if he’s that good, why didn’t the big $$$ teams gobble him up, instead of the freakin’ White Sox?
Last three years, White Sox have lost 101-121-102 games; they should be a lot better this year.

— Guardians- Jose Ramirez is on his way to the Hall of Fame, but he’ll be 34 in September; how long can he keep being such an excellent hitter?
Cleveland has been in the playoffs seven of the last ten years; AL Central is wide open, for sure.

— Tigers- Last four years, Framber Valdez was 57-35 for the Astros; now he moves from a small Houston ballpark to a bigger one in Detroit, and figures to prosper there.
Valdez had issues with one of his catchers in Houston last year; his new manager in Detroit was a catcher (AJ Hinch) when he played. We’ll see how Valdez makes out in the Motor City.

— Astros- Houston has one too many infielders, which its better than one too few, but what are they going to do with their lineup? GM Dana Brown is under the gun; he added couple of new starting pitchers (Tatsuya Imai/Mike Burrows).
If they can keep Yordan Alvarez healthy this year, Astros should go back to the playoffs, after missing them last season for the first time in nine years.

— Royals- Kansas City moved the fences in at Kauffman Stadium this year; they also shortened some of the fences, so the question is this: how much will it help the hitters/hurt the pitchers?
Royals finished over .500 the last two years; there are expectations now.

— Angels- Angels are a big market team; they had Trout/Ohtani on the same team for several years, but somehow were paying Anthony Rendon more than either one of them. Owner Arte Moreno is the man in the spotlight here; Halos haven’t had a winning season since 2015, and Moreno has inferred that he doesn’t think their fans don’t care much about winning. Huh??
Trout will be 35 in August; the Angels are expected to miss the playoffs again.

— Twins- Fantasy baseball experts are touting young 2B Luke Keaschall; Twins have missed the playoffs four of the last five years and have a new manager in Derek Shelton, who used to be the skipper in Pittsburgh.
I’m still wondering why they didn’t put a dome on the Twins’ ballpark? The weather sucks there.

— New York- Brian Cashman is the GM in the Bronx; he hasn’t won a World Series since 2009, despite having the most $$$ in the sport, until the Dodgers’ spending spree the last few years. Funny part was listening to New York fans whine about the Dodgers; seriously? Welcome to my world, guys. I root for the freakin’ A’s, who made a movie about not spending money.

— A’s- Two more years in Sacramento, before the new ballpark (domed) opens in Las Vegas; A’s have stepped up and signed some of their good position players, so if their pitchers hold up in the hitter-friendly Sacramento ballpark, the A’s could contend for a Wild Card slot.
When the A’s get to Las Vegas, owner John Fisher better try to win, or he might wind up like Joe Pesci in the movie Casino.

— Mariners- Seattle brought in Brendan Donovan from St Louis to play 3B; he has a .772 OPS in four seasons. Mariners have excellent starting pitching; they lost the ALCS in seven games last year, could easily make the World Series this season.

— Rays- Tampa Bay had to play home games outdoors last year in a hitter-friendly minor league ballpark; this year they move back into the Trop, which should help pitchers, hurt the hitters.

How does this affect Junior Caminero? He hit 45 homers last year, had 110 RBI, but here’s the thing: Caminero had a .954 OPS at home, .743 on the road and now the Rays are playing their home games in a more pitching-friendly environment.

— Rangers- Texas traded Marcus Semien for OF Brandon Nimmo, who figures to bat leadoff for the Rangers. Nimmo is durable/productive, hitting 72 homers the last three years. If they can keep Corey Seager healthy, new manager Skip Schumaker should take Texas to the playoffs.

— Blue Jays- Toronto came thisclose to winning the World Series last year, but now Bo Bichette plays for the Mets, with Japanese import Kazumo Okamoto the new 3B. Dylan Cease/Cody Pence are new additions to the starting rotation; can their bullpen hold up?

 

[Udog]

MLB
Weather Report

Thursday, March 26

 

[Udog]

MLB

Thursday, March 26

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Trend Report
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Pittsburgh VS New York
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Pittsburgh's last 18 games.
Pittsburgh is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games.
Pittsburgh is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games against NY Mets.
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Pittsburgh's last 13 games on the road.
NY Mets is 7-13 SU in its last 20 games.
NY Mets is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh.
NY Mets is 6-12 SU in its last 18 games against an opponent in the National League.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Mets' last 5 games played in March.

Chicago VS Milwaukee
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Chicago White Sox's last 16 games.
Chicago White Sox is 3-12 SU in its last 15 games.
Chicago White Sox is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games against Milwaukee.
Chicago White Sox is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Milwaukee's last 6 games.
Milwaukee is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Milwaukee's last 7 games against Chicago White Sox.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Milwaukee's last 9 games at home.

Washington VS Chicago
Washington is 4-9 SU in its last 13 games.
Washington is 4-11 SU in its last 15 games against Chicago Cubs.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington's last 6 games when playing on the road against Chicago Cubs.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Chicago Cubs' last 9 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Chicago Cubs' last 9 games against Washington.
Chicago Cubs is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Chicago Cubs' last 6 games when playing at home against Washington.

Minnesota VS Baltimore
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Minnesota's last 9 games.
Minnesota is 6-12 SU in its last 18 games.
Minnesota is 6-0 SU in its last 6 games against Baltimore.
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Minnesota's last 7 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Baltimore's last 11 games.
Baltimore is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Baltimore's last 18 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Baltimore's last 6 games when playing at home against Minnesota.

Los Angeles VS Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of LA Angels' last 5 games.
LA Angels is 3-13 SU in its last 16 games.
LA Angels is 6-14 SU in its last 20 games against Houston.
LA Angels is 1-10 SU in its last 11 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston's last 6 games.
Houston is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Houston's last 7 games against LA Angels.
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Houston's last 10 games at home.

Boston VS Cincinnati
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Boston's last 7 games.
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games against Cincinnati.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Boston's last 8 games when playing on the road against Cincinnati.
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Cincinnati's last 20 games against Boston.
Cincinnati is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Cincinnati's last 8 games when playing at home against Boston.
Cincinnati is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games against an opponent in the American League.

Detroit VS San Diego
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Detroit's last 13 games.
Detroit is 6-14 SU in its last 20 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Detroit's last 11 games on the road.
Detroit is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against San Diego.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Diego's last 5 games.
San Diego is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of San Diego's last 7 games against Detroit.
San Diego is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games at home.

Texas VS Philadelphia
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Texas' last 8 games.
Texas is 2-11 SU in its last 13 games.
Texas is 0-6 SU in its last 6 games against Philadelphia.
Texas is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Philadelphia's last 8 games.
Philadelphia is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 7 games against Texas.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 6 games at home.

Tampa Bay VS St. Louis
Tampa Bay is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games.
Tampa Bay is 12-6 SU in its last 18 games against St. Louis.
Tampa Bay is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road.
Tampa Bay is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games against an opponent in the National League.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of St. Louis' last 6 games.
St. Louis is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis' last 5 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis' last 5 games against an opponent in the American League.

Arizona VS Los Angeles
Arizona is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games.
Arizona is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games on the road.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Arizona's last 5 games when playing on the road against LA Dodgers.
Arizona is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games against an opponent in the National League.
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of LA Dodgers' last 12 games.
LA Dodgers is 16-4 SU in its last 20 games.
LA Dodgers is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of LA Dodgers' last 5 games when playing at home against Arizona.

Cleveland VS Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Cleveland's last 20 games.
Cleveland is 15-5 SU in its last 20 games.
Cleveland is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games against Seattle.
Cleveland is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games on the road.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Seattle's last 6 games.
Seattle is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
Seattle is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games at home.
Seattle is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Cleveland.


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[Udog]

MLB
Dunkel

Thursday, March 26

 

[Cnotes53]

Thursday, March 26​

Game	Time(ET)	Pick	Units
PIT at NYM	01:15 PM	PIT +100***** U 6.5	+500 +500
CHW at MIL	02:10 PM	CHW +155***** O 8.0*****	+500 +500
WAS at CHC	02:20 PM	WAS +195***** U 8.0	+500 +500
MIN at BAL	03:05 PM	MIN +120***** U 8.0	+500 +500
DET at SD	04:10 PM	DET -130 U 7.0*****	+500 +500
BOS at CIN	04:10 PM	CIN +135***** U 8.5	+500 +500
LAA at HOU	04:10 PM	LAA +150***** O 8.0	+500 +500
TEX at PHI	04:15 PM	TEX +135***** U 8.5*****	+500 +500
TB at STL	04:15 PM	TB -125 O 7.5*****	+500 +500
AZ at LAD	08:30 PM	AZ +210***** O 9.0*****	+500 +500
CLE at SEA	10:10 PM	CLE +145***** O 6.5*****	+500 +500

 

[Cnotes53]

CNOTES BEST BETS MLB FOR MARCH 2026 !

03/26/2026....................8 - 7 - 0........................53.33%................+ 14.50
03/25/2026.....................0- 2 - 0........................00.00%.................- 10.50

TOTALS..........................8 - 9 - 0........................47.05%.................+ 4.00

 

[Cnotes53]

Friday’s 6-pack
Most TD passes in the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers:
418— Ben Roethlisberger
212— Terry Bradshaw
70— Kordell Stewart
68— Neil O’Donnell
66— Bobby Layne
55— Jim Finks

Quotes of the Day
“The term ‘dream job’ doesn’t do justice to how I feel about the opportunity to lead the Butler program,. Butler is an incredibly special place. As a player, I poured blood, sweat and tears into this program. No one appreciates both the responsibility and the potential that comes with this position more than me.”
Butler basketball coach Ronald Nored

Friday’s quiz
Who has hit the most home runs, in the history of the Boston Red Sox?

Thursday’s quiz
Clint Hurdle was the Pirates’ manager, last time they made the playoffs.

Wednesday’s quiz
Cal-Santa Barbara’s sports teams are known as the Gauchos.

******************************************

Friday’s Den: Wrapping up a very busy Thursday​

— Purdue 79, Texas 77
Purdue scored game-winning hoop on a tip-in with 0:00.7 left.
Purdue shot 61.9% inside arc, scored 1.30 ppp
Tramon Mark scored 29 points, had no assists for Texas.

— Iowa 77, Nebraska 71
Nebraska led by 10 in first half, 46-43 at halftime.
Bennett Stirtz played 40:00 for 11th time in last 15 games.
Iowa coach McCollum has won 4 national titles, at the D-II level.
Since 2011, #9-seeds are 5-0 ATS in Sweet 16 games.
Iowa was only the second #9-seed in the last seven years to make the Sweet 16.

— Arizona 109, Arkansas 88
Arizona led 54-43 at halftime.
Wildcats are in Elite 8 for first time since 2015.
Arizona shot 64% from floor, was 30-39 on foul line.

— Illinois 65, Houston 55
Illinois led 24-22 at halftime.
Illini was 12-21 on foul line, Houston 2-2
Making win more impressive is fact that game was in Houston.

— Will Wade has bolted NC State and will go back to LSU to coach.
This is his career path:
2013-15- Chattanooga
2016-18- VCU
2017-22- LSU (108-54/56-33 in SEC/3-3 in NCAA’s)
2023-25- McNeese State
2025-26- NC State
2026-???— back to LSU

— South Florida hired Chris Mack as its new coach, after Mack was 45-20 in two years at the College of Charleston. He previously coached at Xavier, Louisville.

— Butler hired Ronald Nored as their new coach; Nored played for Butler back when Brad Stevens was the coach, and led the Bulldogs to consecutive Final Fours. For the last three years, he’s been an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks.

— Boston College named UConn assistant Luke Murray its new basketball coach; you’ve probably heard of his dad, the great comic actor Bill Murray.
Boston College hasn’t been in the NCAA’s since 2009.

— Famous birthdays, March 27th:
Dick Ruthven, 75
Cliff Stoudt, 71
Randall Cunningham, 63
Quentin Tarantino, 63
Pauley Perrette, 57
Jake Odorizzi, 36
Buster Posey, 39
Brandon Nimmo, 33
Brycen Hopkins, 29
Tyler Kolek, 25

— Fantasy baseball is big business; there was a ballroom in Las Vegas last week, with seven different fantasy drafts going on at the same time. Big money leagues, from what I read.

— Red Sox 3, Reds 0
Garrett Crochet threw six shutout innings.
Game was scoreless after six innings.
Marcelp Mayer didn’t start, but was 2-2, scored twice.

— Mets 11, Pirates 7
Carson Benge homered in his first MLB game.
Francisco Lindor walked three times, scored three runs.
Pirates’ CF Oneil Cruz misplayed two fly balls in first inning, leading to five runs; he wasn’t wearing sunglasses, and didn’t wear them after that, either. Oy.

— Diamondbacks don’t have any lefties in their bullpen; unusual.

— Nationals 10, Cubs 4
Washington scored six runs in 4th inning, took at 7-2 lead.
Joey Wiemer went 3-for-5 with a home run.
Nationals bullpen got 16 outs, only gave up a run.

— Cardinals 9, Rays 7
Game was 1-1 after five innings.
Tampa’s bullpen gave up eight runs in three innings.
Alec Burleson went 3-for-4, hit a home run.

— Tigers 8, Padres 2
Detroit scored four runs in first inning, led 6-0 in third inning.
Rookie 3B McGonigle was 4-for-5, scored twice in his MLB debut.
This is one of seven interleague series this weekend.