MLB Spring Training 2024: Players, Teams, and Stories to Watch
The Story
MLB spring training 2024 opened with storylines led by Shohei Ohtani's arrival at the Los Angeles Dodgers on a record $700 million contract and Juan Soto's blockbuster trade to the New York Yankees.
Ohtani, limited to designated hitter duty while recovering from elbow surgery, piled up 11 hits and two home runs across his first 23 Cactus League plate appearances, signaling he was ready for the season opener in Korea.
Soto impressed the Yankees immediately, with manager Aaron Boone noting expectations that Soto would kill the ball every time at the plate and ace Gerrit Cole expressing enthusiasm watching him hit.
Breakout candidates included Atlanta's Reynaldo Lopez, who threw three hitless innings after signing a three year, $30 million deal, and Washington's James Wood, acquired in the 2022 Soto trade, who launched three spring home runs.
Among teams, the Arizona Diamondbacks looked underrated coming off an 84 win season and a World Series run behind young stars Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno, while the Padres and Mariners loomed as sleepers.
Position battles added drama, from the Dodgers weighing Mookie Betts at shortstop with Gavin Lux returning from a long absence to Baltimore prospects Heston Kjerstad, Colton Cowser, and Kyle Stowers fighting for outfield opportunities.
The spring set the table for a season in which star power and roster depth would define contenders across the league.
Ohtani, limited to designated hitter duty while recovering from elbow surgery, piled up 11 hits and two home runs across his first 23 Cactus League plate appearances, signaling he was ready for the season opener in Korea.
Soto impressed the Yankees immediately, with manager Aaron Boone noting expectations that Soto would kill the ball every time at the plate and ace Gerrit Cole expressing enthusiasm watching him hit.
Breakout candidates included Atlanta's Reynaldo Lopez, who threw three hitless innings after signing a three year, $30 million deal, and Washington's James Wood, acquired in the 2022 Soto trade, who launched three spring home runs.
Among teams, the Arizona Diamondbacks looked underrated coming off an 84 win season and a World Series run behind young stars Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno, while the Padres and Mariners loomed as sleepers.
Position battles added drama, from the Dodgers weighing Mookie Betts at shortstop with Gavin Lux returning from a long absence to Baltimore prospects Heston Kjerstad, Colton Cowser, and Kyle Stowers fighting for outfield opportunities.
The spring set the table for a season in which star power and roster depth would define contenders across the league.
Why It Matters
The spring of 2024 wondered whether Shohei Ohtani’s $700 million gamble would survive DH-only duty, and the season answered with history: a unanimous NL MVP, the first fifty homer, fifty steal season ever recorded, and a World Series ring with the DodgersMLB.com. Juan Soto’s spring audition ended with him carrying the Yankees to the World Series and then across town, where the Mets signed him that December for $765 million over fifteen years, the largest pact in team sports historyAP. Atlanta’s Reynaldo Lopez became an All-Star with a 1.99 ERA out of the rotation; Washington’s James Wood arrived in July and hit .346. Even Arizona’s underrated club won 89 games and still missed October.
Go Deeper
Read the original reporting at ESPN.
Read Full Story at ESPN →