The Red Sox opened their Grapefruit League schedule on Saturday afternoon with Payton Tolleon the mound, looking to earn a spot in the back of the rotation for 2026.
For Tolle, it was the first spring training game of his career, which is rare considering he made his big league debut last summer and pitched in the postseason against the Yankees in October. Tolle, the organization’s top pitching prospect, threw 20 pitches in the outing, going 2 1/3 innings, allowing one hit — a home run to the Twins’ Royce Lewis— with one strikeout and no walks in Boston’s 7-2 win over Minnesota.
“I haven’t done the other one,” Tolle said to reporters after his outing. “We have a great clubhouse, so being able to come back this spring and be comfortable with everybody has been huge for me. I have better relationships with guys, can kind of be myself more, ask more questions, and I’m going to pitch my best whenever I’m comfortable.
“It’s exciting to be part of the club early (in the season), so now we’ll build relationships throughout the year. That’s when baseball gets really fun, when you’re playing with your homies.”
Payton Tolle struck out Matt Wallner on 3 pitches to start the second. First K of the spring. Good to see him record the final out of the inning on a changeup too. Gave up a solo shot to Royce Lewis in the first on a fastball down the middle. pic.twitter.com/iw1ToTkVae— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) February 21, 2026
Tolle threw nine four-seamers, three sinkers, three curveballs, two changeups, two cutters, and one slider. Of his two swings and misses, one was on a sinker, and the other was off a cutter.
“It was a process,” Tolle said of his offseason to reporters. “Changeups, curveballs, adding the sinker in there. Trying to prioritize those and really hammer in having things that are going to protect the fastball. So that’s going to be the big thing this year — trying to execute those along with executing the fastballs where I need to execute them. I’m excited about where I’m at with my stuff. Obviously, you can keep getting better.”
Tolle is looking to secure a spot in the back of the rotation behind Garrett Crochet, Sonny Gray, Ranger Suárez, and Brayan Bello, who are all locked into spots. His competition for the No. 5 spot in the rotation includes Johan Oviedo, who the Sox acquired from the Pirates in the offseason; Kutter Crawford, who is coming off a washed-out 2025 season; and fellow southpaws Connelly Early and Patrick Sandoval.
“I like to view it as a competition, just because that’s how we’re going to make each other better,” Tolle said. “Whether that’s with Kutter (Crawford) or Connelly (Early) or (Patrick) Sandoval, whoever it is, we’re all fighting for that fifth spot, and in the long run, that’s going to make us better.
“Everybody wants to be part of a starting five, so I’ll just try to do what I can, day after day. It’s a process that’s fun to be part of, and I think that’s what makes everybody better.”
If Tolle is going to be effective in the majors, he’s going to need to utilize his secondary pitches better, and his first spring outing was a step in the right direction.
“I didn’t feel like I had the (two-strike) kill that I wanted to,” said Tolle, who allowed a solo homer to Royce Lewis in the first inning before tossing a scoreless second. “I attacked the zone and had more feel for curveballs and changeups. I got ahead, but then I need to execute better.”
Tolle worked out at a facility in Oklahoma City called “PitchingWRX,” where all the required technology — plus some tutelage from the coaches there — let him know his progress in real time.
“I started off with having bad misses,” Tolle said. “I was pitching the changeup arm-side, yanking a curveball way down, floating a curveball. Now I’m to the point where I can diagnose my misses. If I push a changeup too high, I can now make the adjustment.”
Bello Added Muscle
Bello checked into camp at 205 pounds, the same weight he was last season, but looks bigger, having added muscle over the winter.
“I feel the same,” the right-hander said. “Maybe a little stronger.”
Bello, 26, is coming off a strong season in which he posted a 3.35 ERA while logging a career-high 166 2/3 innings. His 2025 campaign included a brief stint on the injured list due to right shoulder soreness, but once healthy, the right-hander showed extended flashes of effectiveness. From mid-June through August, Bello was dominant, posting a 2.42 ERA and 3.80 FIP while striking out 71 batters and walking just 22 over 14 starts.
Nine of those hits left the yard, but despite the modest strikeout totals, Bello remained effective by limiting damage and keeping his FIP under 4.00. That stretch included a July 8 complete game against Colorado, when Bello struck out 10 batters while allowing just one walk and five hits.
However, Bello’s postseason performance raised legitimate questions. In Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium, he struggled under the bright lights following Boston’s Game 1 win and a dominant outing from Crochet.
Brayan Bello strikes out Trevor Story pic.twitter.com/mei5h5RiC9— Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) February 17, 2026
In his first career postseason start, Bello cracked, lasting just 2 1/3 innings while allowing two earned runs on four hits and a walk. He did not record a strikeout. The right-hander ran into trouble immediately, surrendering a first-inning home run to Ben Rice, and threw only 28 pitches before Alex Coraturned to the bullpen.
The outing was particularly surprising given Bello’s prior success in the Bronx. Entering Game 2, he owned a 1.44 career ERA at Yankee Stadium, including seven shutout innings there in late August.
As Bello closes the book on 2025 and sets his sights on 2026, the righty added a curveball to his pitching tool belt.
He talked with pitching coach Andrew Baileyabout it late last season and went back to the Dominican Republic with instructions to work on the pitch. Bello averaged a career-worst 6.7 strikeouts per nine innings last season.
“The 91, 92 (mph) changeup last year was a bad sinker,” Cora said to reporters on Sunday morning. “And I think lefties took advantage of it. The velo right now is 87, 88. We’ll see what happens today. But he’s in a good spot."
His Baseball Savantprofile paints the picture of a contact-oriented, ground-ball–dependent starter rather than a bat-missing arm. Bello ranks in the 52nd percentile in Pitching Run Value, 78th percentile in Fastball Run Value, and 84th percentile in Ground-Ball Rate.
“With my fastball, it’s a good pitch,” he said. “It feels good to me.”
Bello will pitch for the Dominican Republic in the WBC.
Around the League
Clark Out
Tony Clark resigned as MLBPA executive director this week after an internal investigation revealed an inappropriate relationship with his sister-in-law, a union employee hired in 2023, according to ESPN.
Clark’s exit comes as the union navigates a still-open federal investigation by the Eastern District of New York into MLBPA finances and alleged improprieties, including nepotism.
The probe was sparked by a November 2024 whistleblower complaint filed with the NLRB alleging self-dealing, misuse of resources, abuse of power, and nepotism. Among the issues under scrutiny: the MLBPA’s Arizona office project, questions tied to OneTeam Partners profits, and Players Way, a youth baseball initiative that reportedly spent millions while staging only a handful of events.
After ESPN reported the EDNY investigation in late May, the MLBPA hired former assistant U.S. attorney Adam Bravermanas outside counsel to advise the union’s executive subcommittee. During that review, the relationship came to light and was viewed by player leaders as a red line, prompting Clark to step down after more than a dozen years leading the union.
Player reps voted on an interim replacement, with deputy executive director Bruce Meyer taking over for Clark. “The goal is to keep everything as stable as we can this year,” subcommittee member Brent Suter said.
Stability matters because the CBA expires Dec. 1, and owners are expected to push for a salary cap harder than at any point since 1994, when the fight over a cap helped trigger a strike that wiped out the World Series.
Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrickrecently hinted at a new financial model “from top to bottom,” pointing to widening payroll gaps — the Dodgers’ projected CBT payroll at $410.7 million versus Miami’s $83.1 million, per Cot’s — and suggesting MLB should study the cap structures used in the NFL, NBA, and NHL.
"Right now, it really is clear that we have a group of teams at the bottom and we have some teams at the top,” Kendrick said. “We are in neither of those groups, to be fair. A model that would allow those extremes to not be what they are, I think would be good for the fans, and honestly, I think it would be good for the players.”
Meyer, who has led the union’s bargaining since 2018 and now steps into the top job, has been clear on where the MLBPA stands.
“Salary caps in the other sports have not led to competitive balance,” Meyer told The Athletic, calling a cap a system that “punishes competition” and gives low-spending clubs an excuse not to invest. Meyer has also emphasized preserving salary arbitration — “a crucial right,” he said — as the union heads into what is shaping up to be the most contentious labor negotiation in memory.
Giolito Remains Unsigned
Former Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolitoremains unsigned as big league camps open and spring games get underway.
Giolito was a key piece of Boston’s rotation in 2025, posting a 3.41 ERA over 145 innings across 26 starts and helping form a strong front-end trio alongside Crochet and Bello.
Still, Giolito is among the best starting pitchers left on the market, waiting for an opportunity to join a camp and contribute in 2026. While the top of the rotation market has moved, veterans in Giolito’s tier have lingered — another example of a system that rewards the very top and leaves proven arms in limbo.
“You look at teams across the league that aren’t trying to win — I won’t name the teams, but OK, it makes sense they’re not gonna target a guy like that,” Crochet told reporters this weekend. “But it’s at the point where it’s like, ‘What even is his price range?’ Because for the value he’s providing, I would say he outplayed his (Red Sox contract). If you look at the two years, OK, I get it, he blew out. But if you just look at the one year for $18 (million), I’d say he outplayed that. Then, look at what top-end pitchers (like Framber Valdez) are getting, too.
“When you’re looking at the ceiling and the floor, there’s not a huge difference there. There’s a lot of pedigree and a lot of recent success.”
Lucas Giolito with his first strikeout in a Red Sox uniform. Nice to see him hitting 94 multiple times. pic.twitter.com/9I5Cj0ILTn— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) April 30, 2025
Giolito’s market is likely being shaped by health, years, and dollars. He finished last season with an elbow issue, which kept him out of the postseason, but he has been working out this spring and is expected to be fully healthy.
Boston did not push aggressively for a reunion, instead acquiring Gray and Oviedo via trade and signing Suárez to a five-year, $130 million deal.
All Rise
Aaron Judgewasted no time making noise in Grapefruit League play, launching two home runs in the Yankees’ 20-3 win over the Tigers at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Saturday.
Top prospect Spencer Jonesalso went deep, crushing the club’s first spring homer in the second inning. The blast left Jones’ bat at 111.7 mph and traveled a Statcast-estimated 408 feet — a number that felt light to the slugger.
Welcome to baseball season, Aaron Judge homered AGAIN pic.twitter.com/42CaZKfHkr— MLB (@MLB) February 21, 2026
Judge, coming off his third American League MVP season, looked midseason-ready as he gears up to represent Team USA in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
“Even going back to last year, I tried to get more at-bats early on so I could be ready in April,” Judge said. “I thought that worked out for us, and try to do the same thing we did last year. But also, the WBC, you don’t want to get exposed. You’re playing for your country. You’ve got to be ready to go.”
Quick Hitters
Orioles: Infielder Jordan Westburgwill miss Opening Day with a partial tear in his right elbow, adding to a growing list of injuries dating back to last spring.
Rays: Drew Rasmussenwill make his first career Opening Day start, the club announced.
Pirates: Former Pittsburgh great Bill Mazeroskipassed away at 89 over the weekend.
Blue Jays: George Springertook batting practice Sunday wearing a Team USA hockey sweater.
Off the Field and to the Ice
Team USA Hockey: The U.S. defeated Canada in an instant-classic Gold Medal game. Connor Hellebuyck was a brick wall in net, Matt Boldy opened the scoring, and Jack Hughesburied the overtime winner — sacrificing a few teeth along the way.
JACK HUGHES DELIVERS AMERICA'S GOLDEN MOMENT IN OVERTIME. pic.twitter.com/4foFDOri53— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) February 22, 2026
Following Team USA’s first men’s Olympic hockey gold medal in 46 years, the celebration carried a deeper meaning.
The team honored the late Johnny Gaudreau, who, along with his brother Matthew, tragically died after being struck by a drunk driver while cycling in New Jersey in August 2024. As players celebrated on the ice, they carried Gaudreau’s jersey with them — a quiet but powerful tribute to their fallen teammate and friend.
After the medal ceremony, members of Team USA invited the Gaudreau children onto the ice to be part of the celebration, creating one of the most emotional moments of the night.
The victory also came on the same day Gaudreau’s son turned two years old — a reminder of how sports can bring meaning, healing, and connection in ways that go far beyond the scoreboard.
Sometimes, the game gives back in ways that feel bigger than the result.
