Cooperstown to change Andre Dawson’s plaque
The Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown has always retained control over which team appears on a player’s plaque in the gallery following their election. The Hall used to make these decisions unilaterally until a policy shift over the last decade gave players a small measure of influence over the final choice. More notably, the Hall now (since 2014) offers a player the option to have a plaque with no team depicted on the cap for those who spend significant time with more than one club during their careers.
That option wasn’t available to Andre Dawson when he was elected by the BBWAA in 2010. Dawson spent the first 11 seasons of his 21-year career with the Montreal Expos, making the club a logical choice by the HOF when designing Dawson’s plaque.
Dawson called the choice “a little gut-wrenching” when it was announced ahead of his induction. He’d preferred his plaque represent the Chicago Cubs, the franchise he left Montreal to sign with and where he played for six seasons. Dawson has remained closely involved with the Cubs in the decades since.
Years later, the plaque still bothered Dawson, as did being left out of the decision, as he told Paul Sullivan at The Chicago Tribune in 2023:
“I just felt my preference all along was as a Cub, despite playing [11] years in Montreal. I had my reasons, and I think that should’ve been something we sat down and discussed. It’s hard for stuff to bother me, to a degree. But this has toyed with me over the years, for the simple reason that I was approached with the [decision] that was going to be released to the press to the press that I was going to wear an Expos emblem.
“I didn’t agree with it at the time. But for me, getting into the Hall was the most important thing. Over time, I’ve thought about it more and came to the [conclusion] I should have had some say so.”
More than two years after first petitioning the Hall to change his plaque, it appears it will happen. In a statement released on Wednesday, “the Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors voted unanimously to provide Andre Dawson with the option of having no logo on his Hall of Fame plaque”.
No other changes are planned for the recast plaque.
Naturally, Dawson was in the Cubs’ camp on Wednesday when the announcement was made, telling MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian, “It means everything. It means I finally had the opportunity to provide my input.”
Team USA makes several roster changes
Team USA announced several roster changes on Thursday ahead of the World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals. Several pitchers are leaving the team and will be replaced.
Tarik Skubal has returned to the Tigers after making his one planned start with Team USA. His intention was always to do so in order to focus on the season ahead, potentially his last in Detroit, as he tries to win a third-straight Cy Young Award.
Matthew Boyd was apparently given a fairly direct choice by Cubs manager Craig Counsell: stick with Team USA or take the ball on Opening Day. Boyd opted for the honor of starting the Cubs’ first game of the season.
Clay Holmes planned to remain with the US team, but the Mets “asked” him to return to camp to ensure he could raise his pitch count before the start of the season.
Michael Wacha (Royals) and Ryan Yarbrough (Yankees) also returned to spring training camps to ramp up for the season.
All five could potentially provide length for Mark DeRosa, but with the tournament shifting to a winner-take-all format, the team is better served by experienced relievers filling these roles. Will Vest (Tigers), Tyler Rogers (Blue Jays), and Tim Hill (Yankees) are just that. Joe Ryan (Twins) is also reportedly prepared to meet the team in Miami if they advance past Canada. Reports suggest he will take Clayton Kershaw’s spot on the roster following the game (if the US wins). He’s a candidate to potentially pitch in either the Semifinals or the Championship Game.
It’s unclear who the other replacement may be (though the others left in the “designated replacement pool” include Matt Strahm (Royals) and Jeff Hoffman (Blue Jays)).
Braiden Ward sets spring stolen base record
Minor league outfielder Braiden Ward is drawing plenty of attention this spring with the Red Sox. The 27-year-old picked up his 17th stolen base of spring training on Wednesday, setting a new spring training record (at least since 2006). Ward is 13-for-31 this spring, a .419/.526/.452 line, in 16 games. He’s in camp as a non-roster invitee.
A 16th-round pick by the Rockies in the 2021 Draft, Ward has hit .275/.395/.382 in nearly 1500 PA. He’s stolen 211 bases (and has been caught 30 times). Ward was acquired by Boston early in the offseason in return for left-hander Brennan Bernardino.
Lauren Shehadi, Matt Vasgersian land new roles as Netflix, NBC announce broadcast plans
After committing to a three-year, $150 million deal with MLB for the rights to the league’s season-opening game, the Home Run Derby, and other special events, the streaming giant is swinging big in assembling its broadcast team. Netflix announced the group on Wednesday. Their initial broadcast is slated for Wednesday, March 25, when the Giants host the Yankees.
Netflix’s first strategic move came late last season, when the streamer “poached” Elle Duncan from ESPN to serve as its lead host for sports coverage. Duncan had spent nearly a decade with the broadcast giant in several roles, including anchoring “SportsCenter”. News of Duncan’s departure from the network sparked a “stampede of on-air talent angling to fill her multiple marquee roles", according to a November report from Michael McCarthy at Front Office Sports.
Per Netflix’s announcement, Duncan will anchor pre-game studio coverage alongside MLB veterans Albert Pujols and Anthony Rizzo. Matt Vasgersian will handle play-by-play duties, with CC Sabathia and Hunter Pence in the booth with him. Lauren Shehadi has been added as a field reporter.
Shehadi remains one of the busiest sportscasters in the industry. She co-hosts “MLB Central” each morning throughout the season alongside Mark DeRosa and Robert Flores (the show was nominated for an Emmy last year). Shehadi works as a field reporter during TBS’s coverage. She’s also reportedly set to be a part of TNT’s March Madness coverage over the next several weeks.
Vasgersian was also announced as the play-by-play voice for NBC’s “MLB Sunday Leadoff” games, which will air on Peacock and NBCSN.
NBC announced last week that Jason Benetti will handle those duties for “Sunday Night Baseball”, with former MLB players Clayton Kershaw, Joey Votto, and Rizzo serving as pre-game analysts.
Parker Byrd collects another hit
Despite a verbal commitment as a high school freshman to attend his parents’ alma mater, East Carolina University, Parker Byrd was highly-scouted before beginning his collegiate career. The infielder was set to join the Pirates and start classes in Fall 2022, until a tragic accident that July changed things. Byrd was on a lake trip with some of his upcoming teammates when his legs were caught in the boat’s propeller, causing severe damage.
Byrd underwent 22 surgeries after the accident. Doctors, ultimately, determined that they needed to amputate his right leg below the knee.
Nearly two years later, with a prosthetic leg, Byrd made his first appearance for the Pirates. Fittingly, he’d earn a walk in his lone plate appearance.
Byrd has remained a part of ECU’s roster despite his limited ability to get into games regularly. He’s received seven total plate appearances over the last three seasons, collecting the second base hit of his career on Wednesday (in a 24-3 loss to William & Mary in 7 innings).
The 22-year-old plans to hang up his cleats after this season.
Around the sport ….
Pavel Chadim has seen unprecedented success in growing the Czechia baseball program, but he has no plans to continue managing the country’s national team. Chadim was asked by a Japanese reporter during the post-WBC media session how he plans to continue developing the Czechia team ahead of Olympic qualifiers, but surprised those in attendance by announcing his intention to retire after this fall’s Premier12 tournament. Chadim simply explained that he had met all his goals after being named Team Czechia’s manager; he’s happy and ready to move on.
Marlins right-hander Adam Mazur will miss the 2026 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on Wednesday. Mazur is 1-7 with a 6.22 ERA (69 ERA+) in 14 career starts (63.2 IP) for Miami over the last two seasons. He was likely going to at least start 2026 in Triple-A, but his loss is a notable hit to the team’s pitching depth.
Yankees minor league left-hander Brock Selvidge will miss the season after undergoing an internal brace procedure (instead of a full Tommy John surgery) on his left elbow. Selvidge previously had surgery on his left arm after a pinched nerve was discovered in his bicep in 2024. The 23-year-old was New York’s 3rd-round pick in 2021 and ranked No. 15 on MLB Pipeline’s updated team rankings ahead of the 2026 season, but he’s only thrown 167.1 IP over the last two seasons and will now miss the next year.
Monday’s game between the US and Mexico averaged more than 5.02 million viewers, making it the largest audience for a WBC game in the tournament’s history. The 2023 Championship between the US and Japan had held the previous high mark (4.97 million).
CSUB (Cal State University at Bakersfield) announced plans to upgrade its home stadium, Hardt Field, later this summer. The renovations will replace the existing dirt field with an artificial turf field, at a cost of nearly $1.1 million.