NEW YORK — Baseball is changing at a dizzying speed in 2026 with the arrival of robot umpires, the return home of the Tampa Bay Rays and an alphabet soup of networks televising games in perhaps the last season before a labor shutdown.
New York Mets third baseman Bo Bichette runs out of the dugout at the start of a spring training game against the Houston Astros on Feb. 24 in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
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Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani of Japan throws against the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game on Wednesday in Phoenix.Â
Baltimore Orioles' Pete Alonso walks off the field after flying out during the first inning of a spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Feb. 25 in Sarasota, Fla.
Photos from Major League Baseball spring training
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Leahy throws during the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the Houston Astros Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Logan Eaton, age 9, plays catch in the outfield before a spring training baseball game between the Texas Rangers and the Colorado Rockies, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, in Surprise, Ariz. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Lively Hagauer, of Atlanta, with permanent marker on her face, yells out for autographs before a spring training baseball game between the Atlanta Braves and the Minnesota Twins in North Port, Fla., Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Atlanta Braves Drake Baldwin tries to catch pumpkin seeds as he is greeted in the dugout after hitting a solo home run in the third inning of a spring training baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in North Port, Fla., Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Tampa Bay Rays Carson Williams is tagged out at first base by Boston Red Sox first baseman Nathan Hickey on a double play to end the sixth inning of a spring training baseball game in Port Charlotte, Fla., Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Minnesota Twins outfielder Kyler Fedko warms up during a spring training baseball workout in Fort Myers, Fla., Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
An anole climbs on the batting cage netting during a Minnesota Twins spring training baseball workout in Fort Myers, Fla., Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill tosses a ball to fans during spring training baseball practice Monday, Feb. 16, 2026, in Peoria, Ariz. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
San Francisco Giants' Christian Koss works out during spring training baseball Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
A man walks through the concourse before a spring training baseball game between the San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026, in Peoria, Ariz. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Boston Red Sox's Braiden Ward scores past Minnesota Twins catcher Andrew Cossetti in the seventh inning of a spring training baseball game in Fort Myers, Fla., Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
New York Yankees fans, wearing powdered judge's wigs, watch Aaron Judge take batting practice during a spring training baseball workout Monday, Feb. 16, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
