Padres welcome Tigers to Petco Park for Opening Day
MLB Opening Day is finally here, Padres give Jesse Agler a multi-year extension, San Diego Wave have turned things around in a hurry, baseball on Netflix was not a great experience, and more!
Yesterday, I wrote about the San Diego Padres. Today, the Padres play a meaningful baseball game that be reflected in the team’s record books for the rest of time.
I keep telling people that I am excited for the start of this Padres season in particular, but I’m not sure they have fully grasped why. It’s not because I believe that I’ll be watching a lot of high-quality winning baseball. It’s because I have literally no idea what to expect.
The 2026 Padres season could turn into anything, great or terrible or in between, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all. That goes for on the field, off the field, short-term and long-term. Now, the show is starting. Time to find out how it’s going to play out.
Now, onto the links…
San Diego Padres
Padres finalize roster: Marinaccio, Rodriguez win ‘pen spots - MLB.com
They finalized that roster on Wednesday, a day before their season-opener against the Tigers at Petco Park. Ron Marinaccio and Bradgley Rodriguez earned the final couple spots in that bullpen. Meanwhile, right-hander Yu Darvish was placed on the restricted list, which cleared a 40-man roster spot for Ty France and Walker Buehler to have their contracts selected. (Both were in camp on Minor League deals.)
One reason to bandwagon every MLB team in 2026 - The Bandwagon
The Padres are handing their superstar-heavy roster over to Craig Stammen after Mike Shildt walked away from the team. Stammen, a middle reliever for the Padres as recently as 2022, has never managed at any level. If they are able to make the playoffs again, it could open up a world of opportunities for recently retired relief pitchers.
Padres notebook: Opening day roster set, TV details announced - San Diego Union-Tribune
Most Padres games will stream on Padres.TV again this year. In addition, the team has announced that games will be available to watch on Cox (Channel 83), DirecTV (Channel 694-3), AT&T Uverse (Channel 781 or 1781) and Spectrum (Channel 305 or 443).
Additionally, 10 regular-season Saturday games will be available on CBS 8 (KFMB) and the CW as “over-the-air” simulcast. The first such game is April 11 against the Colorado Rockies.
Additional national broadcasts of games will land on ESPN, AppleTV+, Fox, ESPN and NBC/Peacock.
Yu Darvish agrees to go on restricted list, potentially creating space for Padres additions - The Athletic
As part of an agreement with the San Diego Padres, veteran right-hander Yu Darvish went on the restricted list Wednesday, a move that should save the team significant money and perhaps create enough flexibility for it to pursue Lucas Giolito, the top remaining starter in free agency.
Ty France is returning to the San Diego Padres this season; SDSU alumnus reflects on his journey - 10 News San Diego
France was drafted out of San Diego State University by the Padres and called up to the major leagues in 2019. He played for San Diego until he was traded to Seattle.
“It’s exciting, you know, I’m still really close with the core group here,” Ty France said.
“I mean, it’s just this was home for a long time, so I’m excited to be back,” France said.
Padres Extend Radio Voice Jesse Agler With Multi-Year Deal. - Inside Radio
The San Diego Padres have signed radio play-by-play announcer Jesse Agler to a multi-year contract extension, the team announced.
Agler, who is entering his 13th season calling Padres games on radio, joins television analyst Mark Grant as recent members of the broadcast team to receive new deals, the San Diego Union Tribune reports. The club announced Grant’s extension last week.
Pistons’ Tom Gores among bidders for Padres, which could sell for more than $3.5 billion: Sources - The Athletic
Gores and his Beverly Hills, Calif.-based private equity firm, Platinum Equity, bought the Pistons in 2011 for $325 million. Four years later, Gores purchased Platinum Equity’s stake to become the sole owner of the NBA franchise. In October, Forbes estimated that the Pistons’ value had grown to $3.65 billion, while Sportico appraised it at $4.17 billion.
Gores also is a part-owner of the Los Angeles Chargers, having acquired a 27 percent stake in 2024. His president of basketball operations with the Pistons, Trajan Langdon, was the Padres’ sixth-round draft pick in 1994 and spent three summers in the organization as a minor-league third baseman.
San Diego FC / San Diego Wave FC
Wave beat Portland Thorns at home, have won two in a row - San Diego Union-Tribune
On a short week, the San Diego Wave found their offensive identity for the second straight game, defeating the Portland Thorns 3-1.
It marked their first home victory of the young season at Snapdragon Stadium. San Diego entered the match coming off a 2-1 win in Utah. It second victory in four days avenged last year’s National Women’s Soccer League playoff loss to the Thorns in Portland.
Bryan Zamble leads the way as a generation of African soccer talent heads for San Diego - The Athletic
Zamble’s rapid progress at Nordsjaelland was one of several reasons that he became the first player to choose the new alternative of moving to San Diego. RTD prioritise their academy prospects to such a degree that, if there is a player coming through in a certain position, Nordsjaelland will hold off buying a starting player in order to make space for them. But with the San Diego roster to fill, RTD can assess which club may be more in need of a specific profile.
Odds & Ends
Netflix Baseball Looks Like Shit - Defector
The Yankees would win 7-0, without any intrigue.
This turned out to be a blessing, as it is unclear how Netflix would have handled juggling an interesting game with its planned content: advertisements, and self-promotional crossover plugs, and live interviews (with players, managers, and commissioner Rob Manfred), and advertisements, and FanDuel Daily Dinger, and advertisements. Among the self-promotional content was an an inning-long undertaking of Jameis Winston, who had a stadium-exploration montage and interview sitting in the stands, while flanked by WWE wrestlers.
Aaron Judge becomes first reigning MVP to post golden sombrero in season opener - Yahoo Sports
The Yankees’ superstar donned the golden sombrero in the team’s season-opening win over the San Francisco Giants, going 0-for-5 at the plate with four strikeouts. Judge was the only member of the Yankees’ lineup to go without a hit.
“There’s No Basketball Case”: Why the NBA Is Expanding Anyway - The Ringer
Is there enough talent, especially high-end talent, to support two more teams? How will the talent dilution affect the quality of play? Especially now, at a time when a third of the league’s teams are barely competitive (some, but not all, by design)? Will adding two more franchises exacerbate the tanking crisis? Will struggling small-market squads have an even harder time attracting players when there are two glimmering new teams in two glamor markets? Has the league studied any of this? And if so, what did those findings indicate?
If the league has answers to any of these questions, it has yet to provide them.
Mac McClung Drops 59 with Windy City Bulls to Become Top Scorer in G League History - Sports Illustrated
The Chicago Bulls’ two-way guard just etched his name into the G League record books. Spending the majority of his time with the Windy City Bulls this season, McClung put up some ridiculous scoring numbers. He has averaged 29.5 points on 51.5 percent shooting over his 40 games played. Not only does this make him the league’s leading scorer for the 2025-26 season, but it has also moved him into the top spot on the all-time leaderboards.
Max Verstappen ejects journalist from Japan F1 media session over Abu Dhabi question - The Athletic
After Verstappen, 28, sat down to begin his pre-race weekend media briefing with the written media in Red Bull’s hospitality unit on Thursday at Suzuka, he interjected before the first question could be asked.
“One second — I’m not speaking before he’s leaving,” Verstappen said, gesturing towards a journalist from The Guardian stood at the back of the room.
When the reporter asked if he was being serious, Verstappen replied: “Yep.”
He then confirmed it was over a question the journalist had asked following last year’s season finale in Abu Dhabi over an incident at the Spanish Grand Prix with George Russell.
“Yep. Get out,” Verstappen told the reporter, who was picking up his dictaphone from the table in front of the Red Bull driver.
“You’re really that upset about it?” asked the reporter, to which Verstappen again replied: “Yep, get out.”