After a wild baseball winter, spring training is in the air.

The Mets inked Juan Soto to the largest contract in MLB history -- and also brought back fan favorite Pete Alonso this week. The Dodgers had another busy offseason, including the addition of prized Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki. And the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros and New York Yankees were among the most active teams in a scorching hot trade market.

Now, with pitchers and catchers reporting across Arizona and Florida this week, we'll start seeing how those moves translate to the diamond. We've asked our ESPN MLB experts to get us ready for spring training with the stars and storylines they're most excited to see as baseball returns for the 2025 season.

What is the one thing you are most excited about as spring training begins?

Buster Olney: The Mets are a must-see stop in spring training, and will be must-watch all year. The Dodgers are baseball's Evil Empire in many fans' eyes and will be aiming to be the majors' first back-to-back champion since the 1998-2000 Yankees. But in many ways, the Mets will be the team under the most pressure this year, given their success last October, the record-setting signing of Juan Soto and that they have such a difficult challenge in the loaded National League East.

The major competitive question the Mets face is this: In the face of another rotation makeover, can they replicate the starters' production of 2024, when they ranked fifth in innings and 12th in ERA?

Jorge Castillo: Can the Mets reproduce some of their magic? The lineup is undoubtedly better than a year ago with the addition of Juan Soto, Mark Vientos coming off a breakout season and Pete Alonso back after a long winter for the slugger. The bullpen has been upgraded. The rotation has questions but so did last year's.

Beyond the talent, however, the 2024 Mets ran on vibes en route from a 22-33 start to reaching the National League Championship Series. Jose Iglesias, the infielder and part-time singer who helped establish the good energy upon joining the team in late May, is not around anymore. A few other key cogs in the vibes machine are gone, too. Asking the 2025 Mets to replicate the 2024 OMG, Grimace-powered Mets is unrealistic. Teams like that are rare. But vibes matter, and the Mets will need to generate some good ones as they head into a season with higher expectations.

Jeff Passan: Trying to figure out who in the American League is good. The Yankees lost Juan Soto - and gained Max Fried, Cody Bellinger, Devin Williams and Paul Goldschmidt. Their predecessor as AL champion, Texas, added Joc Pederson and Jake Burger, re-signed Nathan Eovaldi, refashioned its bullpen and has a healthy Jacob deGrom. Other playoff teams from last year - Cleveland, Houston, Kansas City, Baltimore, Detroit - still have playoff aspirations. As do the other four AL East teams, Seattle and Minnesota. It's a wide-open league -- again -- and spring training often gives little clues that when the standings have sorted themselves out make more sense.

Alden Gonzalez: Getting an up-close look at Roki Sasaki. We've been hearing so much about him for years, and he is finally in the major leagues, getting set to face the best hitters in the world. Though they'll monitor him closely, the Los Angeles Dodgers won't place any restrictions on Sasaki in his first season in the U.S. I want to see how one of the most lauded pitching development programs goes about extracting the greatness Sasaki clearly possesses. And I want to see how major league hitters react to his absurd splitter.

Jesse Rogers: Excited might be too strong, but I'm definitely interested in the use of automatic balls and strikes this spring. Barring a major breakdown in the system, we're probably a year away from robot umps -- at least for some calls -- becoming a permanent part of the game.

On the field, it's cool to see some of the sport's most well-known grizzled veterans changing teams while trying to drink from the fountain of youth. Can Justin Verlander help lead the Giants out of .500 hell? Same goes for Max Scherzer in Toronto. Their Hall of Fame-worthy stories are down to the final chapters. And please don't ask me for Dodgers spring training tickets. That's going to be a scene all spring.

Other than Juan Soto, which player who changed teams this winter are you most interested in seeing in his new uniform?

Olney: Alex Bregman, who seemingly is likely to land with the Red Sox, Cubs or Tigers soon, with sources in the Astros organization skeptical he'll return to Houston. If he goes to Fenway Park, he could pepper the Green Monster while relearning the nuances of playing in the middle infield. If he goes to Chicago -- likely on a short-term, Cody Bellinger-type deal -- he will have pressure to produce. And if he signs with the Tigers, it would be Detroit's de facto announcement that with Tarik Skubal two years from free agency, the team's window to win is now, and the expensive signing of Bregman would be an all-in move.

Passan: Corbin Burnes, who was the Diamondbacks' rejoinder to everything the Dodgers are trying to do. Arizona is a dangerous, dangerous team. It's easy to forget they swept Los Angeles in the postseason two years ago and reached the World Series without Burnes, who has the best ERA in baseball over the last five seasons. He joins Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez and Brandon Pfaadt in one of baseball's best rotations -- one that complements an offense that scored the most runs in baseball last year. The offseason after the signing of Jordan Montgomery went bad, Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick didn't allow the sour taste to keep him from trying to win, which is more than can be said for many of his contemporaries. If Burnes is his normal self, the Diamondbacks will be the best competition for the Dodgers in the cutthroat NL West.

Castillo: Four years ago, Walker Buehler, who signed a one-year, $21.5 million deal with Boston this offseason, was one of the best pitchers in the majors. The brash right-hander went 16-4 with a 2.47 ERA in 33 starts, tossing over 200 innings, for the Dodgers. Then, he got hurt, underwent a second Tommy John surgery, missed the 2023 season and struggled upon returning in 2024 before giving a gutsy postseason effort culminating with recording the final three outs of the World Series.

Buehler is talented, confident and a proven big-game performer. A return to his previous form could be the difference in the Red Sox vaulting from missing the playoffs to becoming a legitimate contender -- and result in Buehler receiving the payday expected during his peak next winter.

Gonzalez: Kyle Tucker, because I still don't think enough people realize how good he is. Only 14 players accumulated more FanGraphs wins above replacement from 2021 to 2023 than Tucker. He was on track to be even better -- much better -- in his age-27 season in 2024, He had an OPS of 1.175 by June 3 before suffering a shin fracture that kept him out for three months. Tucker has since been traded from the Houston Astros to the Chicago Cubs. Free agency is nine months away with a massive payday approaching. And Tucker might be my pick for NL MVP.

Rogers: It's a tie between Max Fried and Tucker. The former got paid, the latter is hoping for the same. Fried is venturing out from a comfortable situation in Atlanta where players aren't subjected to the same East Coast intensity that New York, Boston or Philadelphia brings. He'll feel that with the Yankees. Will he thrive under the bright lights?

Meanwhile, Tucker is leaving the only league, team and city he has known in his big league career -- just in time for his platform year in a place that is notoriously volatile for left-handed hitters because of weather patterns that vary from season to season. Wrigley Field is due for a good summer, which could turn Tucker into the next $300 million (or more) man next offseason.

Other than Roki Sasaki, who is one player from our top 100 prospects list you are most looking forward to seeing this spring?

Olney: After being dormant for a few years, the Red Sox appear to be on the verge of a breakout, fueled by some high-end prospects -- maybe none better than Roman Anthony, who will presumably make his debut this year. Folks in the Boston organization rave about his work ethic and focus, and for all the talk in recent seasons about fellow prospect Marcelo Mayer, Anthony could have an immediate impact once he lands in the big leagues. His slash line in the minors last year: .291/.396/.498. And he dominated in Triple-A after a second-half promotion, accumulating as many walks (31) as strikeouts (31).

Passan: Even before he reaches the big leagues, Chandler Simpson is already one of the most exciting players in baseball. A 5-foot-11, 170-pound outfielder chosen by the Tampa Bay Rays in the competitive-balance round of the 2022 draft out of Georgia Tech, Simpson is the best base-stealing prospect since Billy Hamilton. In his first full minor league season in 2023, Simpson stole 94 bases in 109 attempts. Last year, at High-A and Double-A, Simpson stole 104 bases in 121 attempts over 110 games. Most interesting is how Simpson hit last year. He very rarely strikes out, his left-handed swing devised for contact. At High-A, he batted .364 in nearly 150 plate appearances. He continued in Double-A, batting .351/.401/.407 and walking 29 times against 27 strikeouts in 358 plate appearances. It's a lot of singles. But it's also a lot of times on base that are near-automatic to wind up at second. Hitting to a .377 wOBA and 141 wRC+ means you're very good. And so while Simpson isn't nearly as lauded as some of the others here, he is a throwback, the sort who's impossibly fun to watch. Baseball will take all of that it can get.

Castillo: The Martian has landed in left field at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Jasson Dominguez, one of the most hyped prospects in recent memory, is slated to make the Yankees' Opening Day roster for the first time as the team's everyday left fielder. You're probably thinking, "It's about time!" But know this: Dominguez turned 22 on Friday. The shine might have dimmed from when he signed as a 16-year-old marvel out of the Dominican Republic, but he's younger than Travis Bazzana, last year's No. 1 pick. Last season, despite dealing with injuries, Dominguez slashed .314/.376/.504 with 11 home runs and 16 stolen bases in 58 games across three minor league levels before getting called up to the Bronx in September. He looked uncomfortable in the outfield and didn't produce enough at the plate for the Yankees to give him playing time in October, but his power-speed combo and getting leeway to find his rhythm should give New York an upgrade in left field over Alex Verdugo.

Gonzalez: Jackson Jobe, a 22-year-old right-hander who debuted with the Detroit Tigers late last season, got a taste of playoff baseball and might lock down a rotation spot this year. He's a great athlete who can easily access velocity, displays an excellent changeup and flashes a cool-looking sweeper. If Jobe makes the proper adjustments, he and Tarik Skubal in the same rotation could win the Tigers the American League Central.

Rogers: I'll go with Matt Shaw of the Cubs. How many teams rid themselves of every player who played a position during the previous season? That's what the Cubs did at third base this winter when they jettisoned seven players who saw time at the hot corner. Barring an Alex Bregman sighting, this has left the door open for Shaw to win the job. That's some serious faith in a guy who has shot up ESPN's Kiley McDaniel's prospect rankings, landing at No. 23 to begin the season, but has only 35 Triple-A games under his belt.

Which team are you far more interested in today than you were a year ago at this time?

Olney: The Reds. The oddsmakers have set the early over/under for Cincinnati's team win total at 78.5, just above the team's 77-85 record last season and that makes no sense. The Reds had easily the worst record in one-run decisions last year (15-29) meaning that if they played last season again with the same group, they'd probably improve by four or five wins -- and they should be better this season after bolstering their rotation and lineup. And new manager Terry Francona has demonstrated over and over in his Hall of Fame-caliber career that he is difference-making. In his first year as the Guardians' manager, Cleveland improved from 68-94 to 92-70.

Passan: The A's. As eye roll-inducing as it was to see A's owner John Fisher named to the league's executive committee (inviting the person most responsible for killing baseball in Oakland to the most powerful group in the game said all it needed to about the lack of regret for that decision) the team spending this season in Sacramento is better than the one that made a 19-game improvement to 69-93 last year. The A's spent $67 million on Luis Severino and traded for Jeffrey Springs to shore up their rotation. They added Jose Leclerc to their bullpen and Gio Urshela to their infield. They locked up slugger Brent Rooker long-term. A full year of Lawrence Butler and Jacob Wilson, a bounce back from Zack Gelof, improvement from JJ Bleday, the arrival of Nick Kurtz -- squint and you can see a pretty good core and a team that if everything breaks right could have October aspirations.

Castillo: The Red Sox. Fans in Boston aren't satisfied with the organization's offseason, but the Red Sox upgraded their biggest weakness (pitching) and might not be done. Acquiring Nolan Arenado or signing Alex Bregman would be quite the finish for a club that will have three top-25 prospects, including the consensus No. 2 prospect behind Roki Sasaki (Roman Anthony), waiting in Triple-A Worcester.

Garrett Crochet looked like an ace in 2024. Walker Buehler was one before his second Tommy John surgery. Patrick Sandoval might help down the stretch. The Red Sox finished 81-81 with a plus-four run differential last season despite a slew of injuries and a pitching dropoff in the second half. Triston Casas is healthy after playing in just 63 games. Trevor Story is healthy after playing in 26 games last season. Rafael Devers, plagued by shoulder injuries last year, should be healthier. Jarren Duran registered a breakout All-Star 2024 season. Wilyer Abreu had a great rookie year. The Red Sox have the talent to return to contention.

Gonzalez: The Giants. I don't know if they'll make the playoffs -- I see three National League East teams as near-locks, so it will be tough -- but Buster Posey has at least made them seem more exciting in his first year running baseball operations. I don't know how Willy Adames will age, but pairing him at the top of the order with a healthy Jung Hoo Lee should be fun. I don't know how much Justin Verlander has left, but inserting him in a group headlined by Logan Webb and Robbie Ray, who is expected to pitch his first full season in three years, is intriguing.

Rogers: Year-to-year, definitely the Mets. We knew nothing of what they would become last season when they opened camp in 2024. Carlos Mendoza was a first-time manager who proved his worth throughout a magical run in New York. After adding Juan Soto and re-signing fan favorite Pete Alonso, the sky seems the limit. But this time, they won't be just a fun story -- they'll have tons of added pressure. If they can keep it fun and loose like they did last year, the Mets will be a force again. That lineup could be scary.

Malaysias Sivasangari Subramaniam earned her first title of the 2024/25 PSA Squash Tour season after defeating No.2 seed Amanda Sobhy in a five-game thriller at the 2025 Cincinnati Gaynor Cup.

The Malaysian came into the match having taken out top seed and defending champion Olivia Weaver in the semi-finals, while US No.2 Sobhy claimed victory over Englands Jasmine Hutton.

She had gone close to winning titles on the Asian swing this season, but this proved the first time she had held aloft a trophy since triumphing in London last season.

Sivasangari was the more aggressive of the two players as the match began, forcing the American onto her backhand and stopping Sobhy from having control of the tempo of the rallies, which was rewarded with an 11-7 win.

The US No.2 came onto the court for the second game with a point to prove, making less errors and forcing her opponent around the court, ultimately storming to an 8-1 lead. The No.3 seed rallied, but it wasnt enough to overcome Sobhys early advantage as she claimed the game 11-6.

In a closely-contested third game, Sobhy held a narrow lead from 6-6 to take the lead for the first time in the match. Sivasangari regrouped in the fourth game, taking the game to the American in a similar manner than in the first game and forcing the match to a fifth game, the first in a Gaynor Cup final since 2017.

From 4-4 in game five, Sivasangari took control, scoring seven successive point to claim her first Silver-level title.

Speaking after the match, Sivasangari said: I feel great. Its a first title for this year and then my last title was London [Classic] and now to be winning this is a great feeling.

I think I had a tough couple of months. Being 2-0 up an losing matches, losing close matches and I think that was all the learning process that I had to go through to win today. It came from the experience that I had over the last couple of months.

Yesterday [beating top seed Olivia Weaver in the semi-finals] was a big win for me. Id never beaten Olivia and that was my first win. I kind of put that aside. Yesterday I told myself that the jobs still not done, I still have one more match. I dont put any pressure on myself, I know Amanda [Sobhy] is a good player I just tried to play point-by-point, focus on what I need to out there and that outcome will come with it and its great that it went my way.

The mixed-gender SDAT Squash World Cup will return to Chennai, India, this year with the event set for Dec 9-14.

The SDAT Squash World Cup is an international tournament overseen by World Squash in which National Federation squads of two men and two women play ties of four matches against each other, with each match being best-of-five games.

A number of innovative changes that were brought in for 2023, including scoring games to seven and sudden death tiebreaks when scores are at 6-6, will remain in place for this years World Cup, with fans praising the fast-paced nature of the scoring and the equal balance between male and female players.

At the last edition, Egypt claimed the title in an exciting come-from-behind victory against Malaysia in front of a sell-out crowd at Express Avenue Mall.

This years Squash World Cup will once again be sponsored by the Tamil Nadu Government and supported by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sport in India. The tournament will be will be played in Chennai between 9-14 December on the spectacular all glass show court inside Express Avenue.

World Squash President Zena Wooldridge said: Im so pleased to be able to announce the return of the Squash World Cup and my thanks to the Tamil Nadu government, the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) and everyone at SRFI for making the return of the World Cup possible.

The 2023 event was such an incredible success for fans and players alike, with those five dramatic days of squash capturing the imagination of the thousands of spectators inside Express Avenue and many more watching on WORLDSQUASH.TV, the Olympic Channel and JioCinema.

Squash is an innovative, forward thinking and ever-evolving sport and Im particularly delighted to see the continued and growing support for mixed gender events such as these as we continue to strive for gender parity in squash.

Mr N. Ramachandran, Patron of SRFI, expressed gratitude to the World Squash Board for their confidence in SRFIs capacity to host another world event. He also acknowledged the support of the Tamil Nadu Government, the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, and the Deputy Chief Minister and the Minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development of the Government of Tamil Nadu, Mr Udhayanidhi Stalin, for his unwavering support in underwriting this event.

Defending champions Ireland are next up, followed by Scotland at Murrayfield before a Cardiff finale against England on March 15.

If Wales win any of those games it will rank as a major surprise, with Warren Gatland's tenure as head coach looking more precarious than ever.

Gatland has overseen just six victories in 26 Tests since returning for a second stint in charge.

"You can't hide from the outcomes of what is going on," said Tompkins.

"When we say the preparation is going well, we're working really hard in training. I promise you it's not going undone.

"We have to keep going and keep trying, and hopefully something comes our way.

"I get there is frustration, but it's not as easy as saying it's one thing or the other. It's everyone together.

"All I can do as a player is keep trying and be better. That's what we can do. It's not as easy as saying this needs to change or that."

Sevilla president José María del Nido Carrasco hit out at Real Madrid on Sunday, accusing them of "trying to destroy Spanish football" with their complaints over refereeing decisions.

Madrid filed a formal complaint over the referee's handling of their 1-0 LaLiga defeat at Espanyol on Feb. 1, asking the Spanish football federation to release audio recordings of conversations between the on-field referee and VAR around two key incidents, including the decision not to send off defender Carlos Romero -- who later scored the winner -- for a foul on Kylian Mbappé.

Madrid's open letter called Spain's refereeing system "totally discredited," saying decisions against them represented "manipulation and adulteration of the competition," in language which was rejected by their fellow clubs in a meeting with LaLiga and the federation on Thursday.

"We have to differentiate two things: being able to modify the refereeing system and some aspects of refereeing, and Real Madrid's statement," Del Nido Carrasco said, speaking to broadcaster DAZN ahead of Sevilla's 4-1 defeat to Barcelona on Sunday.

"It's intolerable and unacceptable. It brings into question the honour of referees and the competition. The world of football should denounce, publicly and in the courts, a statement which goes against football's integrity."

Real Madrid have frequently criticised refereeing decisions using their club TV channel, including in Saturday's derby draw with Atlético Madrid at the Bernabéu, when the visitors were awarded a first-half penalty -- after a VAR check -- for Aurélien Tchouaméni's challenge on Samuel Lino.

"The worst of all is that Real Madrid are trying to destroy Spanish football, with Real Madrid TV, and in various other ways," Del Nido Carrasco said. "We can't tolerate that a club like Real Madrid try to destroy us ... First of all, we give our unconditional support to referees. We won't tolerate that their honour is being questioned. [Madrid] want to put pressure on them, so that they don't make decisions freely."

Madrid's 1-1 draw with Atlético, coupled with Barcelona's win, means that just two points separate the three teams at the top of the LaLiga table, with Madrid top, Atlético second, and Barça third.

Adana Demirspor chairman Bedirhan Durak announced his resignation on Monday morning, a day after the Turkish side walked off the pitch in protest during their Super Lig clash against Galatasaray.

"I now sadly see that we have reached a deadlock. For the sake of my club, my family, my loved ones, and my health, I hereby announce my resignation from the presidency," Durak said in a statement.

The resignation follows Adana Demirspor's decision to walk off the pitch 30 minutes into their Super Lig match at Galatasaray on Saturday night as they trailed 1-0 to a penalty. The game was later abandoned.

The decision to walk off was taken to protest against Turkey's referees committee and football federation, several club officials said.

Bottom side Adana Demirspor were losing to a 12th-minute spot kick by Galatasaray's Spanish striker Álvaro Morata.

Galatasaray coach Okan Buruk said in an interview after the visitors had walked off the field that the penalty could have been an incorrect decision.

In the aftermath of the incident, Fenerbahce vice-president Acun Ilıcalı has called for the "most famous and best referees in the world" to officiate the league derby at Galatasaray scheduled for Feb. 23.

"We definitely hope that there will be a foreign referee in the derby, but the federation will decide ... Our federation has such power," Ilıcalı said.

"They can bring one of the best referees in the world here. I am calling out to Galatasaray Club on behalf of Fenerbahçe Club: We followed your statements on the foreign referee issue. Let them apply on this issue, let us apply as well. And we want this derby to be managed by the most famous and best referees in the world."

"I think you prepare as best as you could when you go into a tournament. On that day, you play your best games. That's what I look to do, on every occasion"

Phil Simmons