PHOENIX -- After his competitive fire helped lead the Phoenix Suns to a comeback win they desperately needed, superstar Kevin Durant passionately criticized the reaction to a brief, heated exchange he had with coach Mike Budenholzer early in Tuesday's game.

TNT cameras caught Durant and Budenholzer barking at each other during a timeout in the first quarter of Phoenix's 119-117 win over the LA Clippers. After Budenholzer grabbed Durant's left forearm, an attempt to stop the 15-time All-Star so they could continue the conversation that stemmed from a disagreement regarding an offensive set, Durant jerked his arm away and continued walking toward the bench before turning around to exchange more words.

After sparking a rally from a 23-point deficit, Durant expressed dismay that the interaction became fodder for social media and created speculation about the issues for a Phoenix team that had lost 11 of 14 games before rallying to beat the Clippers.

"That's what usually happens when you don't know dynamics of the relationship," Durant said after scoring 19 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter. "You catch something on TV, you get a quote and now you pushing that narrative as if me and Bud don't do that s--- all the time. We [are] competitive as two individuals who want to see things done the right way, and sometimes my way ain't the way that Bud want to do it and vice versa.

"He allows me as a player on the team, a veteran on the team, to voice my opinion. If we both didn't care, we would never have stuff like that, you know what I'm saying? So I'm glad that the win is going to sweep all of that stupid stuff under the rug. Because people couldn't wait. Even some people in Phoenix, in here, couldn't wait to run with that and say, 'This is the reason why the team ain't playing well, because of that specific thing.' But come on man, that shows that me and Bud really care about trying to right this ship and trying to win basketball games."

As Durant noted, there have been several occasions this season when he has shouted at Budenholzer during games, and Durant said there will surely be more such instances. Durant said he wished the television broadcasts would highlight when Budenholzer and him are "smiling on the bench and we tapping each other in the chest and slap hands" after their discussions result in a solution.

"We're like old friends or whatever where we're always probably grabbing and talking to each other," Budenholzer said. "I thought actually his energy and his voice tonight was great. I think there was some kind of offensive play. He wanted something, I wanted something [else] and it's the beauty of basketball. But really from that moment, his voice and him talking -- feedback, ideas, suggestions -- was really I think a big part of the night."

The Suns trailed by 19 points entering the fourth quarter and took the lead for good when Devin Booker finished with a lefty layup in transition off a feed from Collin Gillespie. According to ESPN Research, it was the largest fourth-quarter comeback in franchise history.

Durant credited Budenholzer's adjustments for putting the Suns in position to pull off their largest comeback win of the season, topping a rally from a 21-point deficit, also against the Clippers, in an Oct. 31 road victory.

Durant specifically cited Budenholzer's decision to insert Gillespie, a guard on a two-way contract that the superstar praised as "a dog," into the lineup late in the third quarter. Gillespie didn't exit the game until there were 4 seconds remaining, contributing 10 points, 3 assists and several energy plays in 15 minutes, as the Suns outscored the Clippers by 21 with him on the court.

"Coach made a great adjustment throwing him in there," Durant said. "Coach was just perfect, to be honest. Every adjustment he made was incredible. He was catalyst for all of it."

Durant's emotion was on display during the Suns' comeback. After the Suns sliced the lead to 10 early in the fourth quarter, Durant stood near midcourt and waved his hand toward the crowd during a Clippers timeout, attempting to generate some energy from the PHX Arena sellout crowd that had peppered the Suns with boos earlier. When the fans didn't instantly respond, Durant stepped closer to the stands and waved both arms, eventually eliciting a roar.

"I mean, just looking around after we were down 20, it looked like they were having a terrible time, and I hate putting that type of product on the court," Durant said. "I know we should focus on the game and focus on the game plan and not look into the crowd and not engage with the crowd, keep it professional. All that s--- they tell us. But I survey the crowd and see, because we need them, we need that energy. So I looked around and it just looked dead and only way to spark it up is to make some plays. See the ball go through the rim, and we did."

The Suns (29-33), one of the NBA's most disappointing teams, remain in 11th place in the Western Conference standings. Phoenix is three games behind the injury-ravaged Dallas Mavericks for the conference's final play-in spot.

"I told the guys, man, we should not focus on the big picture," Durant said. "Everything should be right in the moment. That's what we focus on. The next possession should be the most important. We would love to say that this win is going to ignite us and push us to win some in a row and have a storybook ending of us going to [playoffs]. All that stuff, it sounds good to say, but for us it's about the next possession, next day matters.

"We can't focus too far down the line because we don't got that luxury to do that. So stay in the moment as much as we can, enjoy where we are and put your best effort in that moment and see what happens."

The Baltimore Orioles are "very, very hopeful" that star shortstop Gunnar Henderson (intercostal strain) will be ready for Opening Day.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters Wednesday that Henderson suffered a mild strain on his right side.

"I'm very, very hopeful. But we're going to not push a strain there, and we want to make sure that he gets it taken care of. It's one of those sensitive areas where we don't want anything to reoccur," Hyde said.

Henderson departed last Thursday's 11-8 spring training victory over the Toronto Blue Jays after the first inning with what the team termed "lower right side discomfort." Henderson made a leaping catch in the top of the first inning and apparently felt soreness after hitting the ground.

Henderson is batting .167 in six plate appearances so far this spring.

The 2023 American League Rookie of the Year earned his first All-Star nod in 2024 batting .281/.364/.529 with 37 home runs and 92 RBIs. He also stole 21 bases. He finished fourth in MVP balloting.

Henderson dealt with a left oblique injury during spring training in 2024 but recovered in time for the start of the regular season.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - New Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker was scratched from the lineup for a spring training game Wednesday because of soreness in his left oblique.

Walker missed more than a month last season with Arizona because of a strained left oblique muscle. He joined the Astros on a $60 million, three-year contract during the offseason.

In his first four spring training games for Houston, Walker was 4 for 8 with three doubles. He also had two walks.

Adding a first baseman over the offseason was a priority for the Astros after struggling Jose Abreu was released less than halfway through a $58.5 million, three-year contract.

Walker, who turns 34 on March 28, hit .251 with 26 home runs and 84 RBIs in 130 games for the Diamondbacks last season. He won his third consecutive Gold Glove at first base.

In 832 big league games, Walker has hit .250 with 147 homers. All but 13 of those games came with Arizona over the past eight seasons, after his MLB debut with Baltimore in 2014 and 2015.

Walker had two stints on the injured list because of right oblique issues in 2021. He played 160 games in 2022 and 157 in 2023, hitting 69 homers and driving in 197 runs combined over those two seasons.

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- The Hall of Fame made some small adjustments to its veterans committee system to limit people with relatively little support from repeatedly remaining on future ballots, a decision that could make it harder to gain entry to Cooperstown for steroids-tainted stars such as Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.

Any candidate on the eight-person ballot who receives fewer than five votes from the 16-member panel will not be eligible for that committee's ballot during the next three-year cycle, the hall said Wednesday. A candidate who is dropped, later reappears on a ballot and again receives fewer than five votes would be barred from future ballot appearances.

Bonds, Clemens, Rafael Palmeiro and Albert Belle each received fewer than four votes in December 2022, when Fred McGriff was a unanimous pick. Bonds and Clemens were on a hall ballot for the first time since their 10th and final appearances on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot. The rules change could limit reappraisals of their candidacies.

In addition, the historical overview committee appointed by the BBWAA that selects the ballot candidates must also be approved by the hall's board of directors. The hall said the decisions were made by its board during a Feb. 26 meeting in Orlando, Florida.

In 2022, the hall restructured its veterans committees for the third time in 12 years, setting up panels to consider the contemporary era from 1980 on, as well as the classic era. The contemporary baseball era holds separate ballots for players and another for managers, executives and umpires.

Each committee meets every three years: contemporary players from 1980 on will be considered this December; managers, executives and umpires from 1980 on in December 2026; and pre-1980 candidates in December 2027.

Dave Parker and Dick Allen were elected last December and manager Jim Leyland in December 2023.

Two-time National League MVP Bryce Harper is "more than open" to returning to the outfield -- where he played his first nine MLB seasons -- if the Philadelphia Phillies can significantly upgrade at first base.

"I talked to them this offseason about that," Harper told The Athletic in an interview published Wednesday. "Just in case a guy was available [at first] that we needed to have, needed to get. I'd be more than open to it, if we had a guy like that who was going to change our lineup or change the demeanor of our team. They like me at first base. But I'd go out there to have a guy who was going to play first base and hit 35 or 40 homers.

"When [Pete Alonso] was on the block still, I kind of sat there and was like, 'Hey, why not?' When we talked about it, I kind of just reiterated to [the Phillies] and Scott [Boras] that I'm willing to move out there if it's going to help us. I love playing first base. It's been great. But if it's going to help us win, I'd go back out there."

Alonso re-signed with the New York Mets, but he could again be available after this season if he opts out of his two-year deal. Slugging first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. also is scheduled to become a free agent after failing to reach an extension with the Toronto Blue Jays this offseason.

Harper, who played catcher and first base prior to entering the majors, moved to the outfield -- mostly playing right field -- after he was selected by the Washington Nationals with the first pick in the 2010 draft. He hasn't played the outfield since undergoing Tommy John surgery after the 2022 season -- his fourth with the Phillies.

He told The Athletic that he doesn't have a preference what position he plays, but it "would be awesome ... unbelievable" if he won his first-ever Gold Glove at first base.

The 32-year-old Harper, who is entering his 14th major league season, has 336 career home runs and is aware that 500 is within reach.

"You've got to stay healthy. You've got to stay strong. You've got to be on winning teams, too, I feel like," Harper told The Athletic. "Obviously, you can do it without that. But I feel like it just pushes you that much more to be great, being in an organization with a fan base that pushes you every day.

"Individual stats are great, but that one thing, man ... that World Series. That's what you want to do. All those things will take care of themselves if you're winning and if you're staying healthy. I'm not really too worried about it."

On the fictional St. Louis Wolves team in Abbott and Costello's famed routine, the third baseman's name is I Don't Know, which is appropriate because, for large stretches of baseball history, teams have tried, often without success, to find a quality third baseman. And yet, in 2025, it appears the search has shifted across the diamond. For one of the few times in major league history, we're asking, Who's on First?

First base is a position in flux. In 2024, major league first basemen batted .246, their lowest total since 1900. They also posted an OPS of .736, their lowest since 1968, the Year of the Pitcher (the highest OPS by first basemen in any season was .882 in 2000, during the steroid era, and a little more recently, .853 in 2006). A first baseman has won a Most Valuable Player Award 32 times, most of any position (right field is second), but last season marked the second time in 10 years that no first baseman finished in the top five of the MVP balloting.

"There are probably only five or six [starting first basemen in the game now] who fit the mold of a typical first baseman, but there are 24 or 25 who don't,'' said Pat Tabler, who played 444 games at first base in the major leagues from 1981 to 1992. "In my fantasy baseball league, if you don't get one of those five or six top guys, you got no chance. Now, you're just like, 'Whatever happened to the Eddie Murrays? Where are the Eddie Murrays today?'''

There is still talent at the position. Freddie Freeman, the MVP of the 2024 World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers, is a great player, a future Hall of Famer, as is the Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper, who is starting his second full season at first base. The Atlanta Braves' Matt Olson hit 54 home runs in 2023. The Toronto Blue Jays' Vlad Guerrero is one of the best young hitters in the game. The Houston Astros' Christian Walker, a brilliant defender, has hit 95 homers over the past three years. And since Pete Alonso made his New York Mets debut in 2019, the only player to hit more home runs is New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge.

But the turnover has been glaring. Half the teams this season will have a different primary first baseman than in 2024. The days of the classic first baseman such as John Olerud, Don Mattingly, Mark Grace -- long, rangy, great hitter, left-handed -- seem to be over for now.

We spoke to luminaries of the game -- those who have played the position, plus those who managed them -- to find out exactly what has changed and why.

"It's one of the important positions on the field,'' said Keith Hernandez, often considered the greatest defensive first baseman of all time. "The numbers don't lie. It's not as important, or as productive, as it was.''

"I look at the first baseman that I played with and against -- there were great first basemen everywhere,'' said former first baseman Mark Teixeira, who hit 409 home runs from 2003 to 2016. "I only made three All-Star teams. There were great first basemen for my entire career. It has almost turned into a throwaway position.''

"Scouts tell me that the least drafted position in baseball is first base. There just aren't any,'' said Princeton baseball coach Scott Bradley. "The players who end up there were moved from other positions, unless they are projected as a 40- or 50-home run guy. It has become a stopgap position, a last-ditch effort.''

"It used to be a mainstay position; it's not the same,'' Milwaukee Brewers veteran first baseman Rhys Hoskins said. "Power is always needed. Now we're seeing shortstops hitting 25, 30 home runs. There has been more of a focus to get athleticism in the middle of the diamond. First base has become more of a place to fill a gap.''

Perhaps it's cyclical. In 2024, first basemen such as Olson, Alonso and Paul Goldschmidt had subpar seasons. Maybe in five years, there will be multiple superstars at the position. Over the past five years, surefire Hall of Fame first basemen Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera (who was more productive at third base) retired, as has Joey Votto, who has a good chance to make it to Cooperstown on the first ballot. And with the universal DH being established two years ago, a good hitter in both leagues can now be used as a DH, perhaps reducing the production at first base. As for first basemen posting their lowest batting average since 1900, and their lowest OPS since 1968, the stuff hitters see today is stunningly good, and offensive numbers are down at most positions.

But the decline at first base has been steeper than most. First basemen have had the biggest drop in OPS among all positions since 2015, according to ESPN Research.

"These are strange times,'' said former major league manager Buck Showalter. "First base has become a one-dimensional place. How many prototype first basemen are out there? One of them, Pete Alonso, had trouble getting a two-year deal [as a free agent this winter]. If you have a good first baseman these days, it's gold."

Why have old-school first basemen become so rare?

"I think a lot of it comes down to body type,'' said former major league manager Bobby Valentine. "The increase in velocity has negated the skills of the slower, thicker-body guys. And the taller guys, too, with the bigger strike zone, that makes you easier to attack. We are looking for smaller guys, shorter guys to play first base these days. The slider-speed bat guys, there aren't many places for them in the game today.''

"You look at first basemen from back in the day and they look like football players and basketball players,'' Tabler said. "Those guys are now staying in football and basketball, because it's like straight to the NFL and the NBA. They're not playing baseball anymore. That's why I think there aren't as many [first basemen] as there used to be. In football, you go to college for a couple of years, and you strike it rich when you are 20. Or, you go play football, and you get paid in college now. These guys just aren't playing baseball.''

Teixeira said, "Maybe teams see all these injuries and understand that players are going to move around during a season, so the bigger first basemen aren't as valuable to a team anymore. Maybe, early in their careers, players stop lifting all the time. Instead of getting bigger and stronger, they think they need to stay light and agile to be able to play multiple positions. The old way of thinking was to put the biggest, slowest guy at first base. He happens to rake, and he can hit all day long. Maybe we're not taking a young player and just throwing him out at first base. You're working with him more to develop all his skills.''

And the defensive structure of the game has also changed the look of the position.

"The position is not about power,'' said San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin. "It's about defense.''

"In today's game, it should be about defense at first base,'' Brewers manager Pat Murphy said.

"I think the genesis of this was when the young GMs came to value on-base percentage and the shifting of the defense,'' Tabler said. "If you have three defenders on the left side, you need a first baseman who plays basically like a second baseman. There's no way Luis Arraez or Michael Busch could have ever played first base in the 1980s. But they do now because when they were moved over to first base, teams were shifting, and you needed a first baseman who could cover all that ground on the right side. That's where this started. Teams started to value defense more than home runs. We'll find power somewhere else.''

Teams are looking for power in traditional non-power positions. Thirty years ago, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz, who is 6-5, likely would have been a first baseman. So would Pittsburgh Pirates' shortstop-turned-center fielder, Oneil Cruz, who is 6-7.

"I had [Erubiel] Durazo [at first base], Travis Lee, Adrian Gonzalez, Don Mattingly, Chris Davis. I don't know if we're spitting out those type of guys anymore," Showalter said. "When you go to college, you won't see that guy. Everyone wants to be Bobby Witt [Jr.], a power-hitting shortstop/second baseman. The old baseball player development manual said, 'Make him play catch, short, second, center field until he shows he can't [do it] defensively. Don't ever just start at first base.' I used to tell [former Baltimore Orioles general manager] Dan Duquette that [Ryan] Mountcastle had no chance to play shortstop. Never. Never. Never. But Dan was so stubborn. Teams are so stubborn about that today. And Mountcastle ended up at first base.''

Tabler said, "GMs are so enamored with players who can play multiple positions because they want all those interchangeable parts, so you're working with a 32-man roster instead of 26. They are so enamored with mixing and matching, to have someone ready when they bring a lefty in in the sixth inning. So, a guy who is pigeon-holed, you're a first baseman, only a first baseman, they look at that and say, 'That's not good.'''

Alonso only plays first base. He is big, not particularly mobile and not particularly good defensively.

"He is the poster boy [for the changes in the position],'' Valentine said. "He had a hard time getting a contract.''

Anthony Rizzo, a free agent, only plays first base. He made $14 million last year during a down (and injury-filled) season and, for now, he has no job. There is, as there always is in baseball, a financial component. If you platoon at first base, or choose an agile defender who doesn't hit much, instead of a big, immobile one who might hit 35 home runs, you likely can pay that player less.

Even though some teams are stressing defense over power at first, "No one teaches defense at first base anymore," Showalter said. "Guys like Keith Hernandez and Mattingly were so valuable with their defense.''

Said Hernandez: "Defense used to be a major plus at first base. Other than the catcher and the pitcher, no one is more involved in the game than the first baseman. Defense just isn't as stressed as much today.''

Bradley said, "If you are designing the position, first base is a left-hander's position in every way. Holding runners on, the bunt play, the position is built for a left-handed thrower. John Olerud is what a first baseman is supposed to look like: tall, long, left-handed. After college, when he pitched, he never dabbled in another position, like the outfield. He was always a first baseman. There aren't any like him anymore.''

Indeed. Of the 30 primary first basemen in the major leagues, only four throw left-handed.

"I am stunned by that,'' Hernandez said. "It is a position best played by a left-hander.''

But Hernandez, a left-handed thrower, is different from today's first basemen. Instead of playing the outfield or third base or catching, then moving to first base, he started playing first at age 6, and played it full time at age 10. Now, very few are brought up that way. They play another position until they can't.

But there is hope that things at first base can, and will, change. Bradley, Princeton's baseball coach, has recruited a high school kid from California named Tomas Cernius, who is 6-3, 245 pounds, and bats and throws left-handed.

"He is a first baseman only,'' Bradley said.

Tabler said that now the shift has been outlawed to some degree, he's hopeful the position is going to change back to the old days of size, production and power.

"We're going to get back to sluggers like Triston Casas,'' Tabler said, referring to the Boston Red Sox first baseman, who is 6-5, 245 pounds, is exceptionally strong and only plays first base. "Give me a guy who hits 40 homers and drives in 125 and plays decent enough defense at first base. Hey, here's Pete Alonso, he's going to hit 40 homers and drive in 100 runs and answer the bell 150 plus times a year. What's wrong with that?''

Nothing.

But right now, that's not Who's on First.

Ireland scrum coach John Fogarty says the prospect of France choosing seven forwards on their bench in Saturday's Six Nations meeting will not change their own selection plan much.

The Springboks became the first tier-one side to adopt the 7-1 bench split during preparations for the 2023 World Cup, later doing so at the tournament in the pool stages against Ireland.

France adopted the tactic against Italy in the Six Nations last month and could do so again in Dublin this weekend when the top two in the championship go head to head.

"They've a lot of faith in their backs to stay fit. We know they interchange their backs and they've got some very useful forwards, so you understand it," said Fogarty.

"Were they trying it out for us? Maybe, I don't know, we're not too sure.

"It doesn't change our plan a huge amount. We haven't overly discussed it."

Fogarty said Ireland have "a lot of confidence" in their own "very fit group of forwards" and would not consider doing similar for fear of injuries disrupting their plans.

"It would spook us. It's something we wouldn't do," he added.

"They feel they can cover positions. They probably feel they have some forwards who can cover the backs as well.

"It does happen in a game, you lose players and it becomes difficult to play your game the way you want to play it. We haven't really gone there much."

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has said his team need to win the Champions League to be considered the best in Europe and insists they must be prepared to "suffer" against Paris Saint-Germain.

Slot's side are currently 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League and also finished top of the Champions League table, with PSG boss Luis Enrique having described them as the best team on the continent.

Liverpool play the French champions in the first leg of their round of 16 tie at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday before hosting the second leg at Anfield next week.

"It's a nice compliment to get, but the best team in Europe has to win the Champions League," Slot said in his pre-match news conference on Tuesday. "We are far away from that, starting with a very difficult game tomorrow and then all the difficult ones that are coming up because we have seen the draw.

"I think the best team in Europe at the moment is still Real Madrid as they won this competition last season. Someone else can say something different but, for us, we first have to win it before we can say it."

Reflecting on the quality of PSG, Slot added: "We could only have [faced] two [teams]: Benfica or PSG. Although I like Benfica a lot, everyone who has watched football in the last few months could have told you that maybe we would have preferred to play Benfica instead of PSG.

"But this is also a great fixture to play. It's a great stadium to play in. If you play at Liverpool, you want to play in big games and this is definitely a big game for us. We have to accept the draw and both teams are facing a very strong opponent.

"They are quite intense in terms of pressing. I think if there is one thing people will tell you about us it's that we are quite intense as well. Maybe not always going man v man all over the pitch like PSG, but we like to press aggressively. It's so difficult to judge before the game.

"Tomorrow, we have to see if they are on top of us and if they are we have to suffer like we did against [Manchester] City, or hopefully we can hold the ball very well and we can play a similar style to how we did in all other games apart from the City one and that's us dominating the ball."

Liverpool must wait to see if forward Cody Gakpo is fit to feature on Wednesday night after he picked up a knock in training earlier this week. The Dutchman returned to action as a substitute in the win over City last month after struggling with an ankle injury.

"He was close to being ready to play again but unfortunately yesterday he had to block a shot, and he felt a bit of pain again," Slot said. "We brought him with us to judge if he can be part of the squad, but it will be a close call."