Mike McCann's Field of Fotos

Winding it back 15 years; it's March 2011 as the four-time defending NL East champion Phillies look to make it five in a row.  Getting ready for the season at what was then Bright House Field, the Phils brought back plenty of familiar faces, starting with pitching ace Cole Hamels . Outfielder Raul Ibanez takes a big swing. (Below:) Slugger Ryan Howard  -- on track for his 6th straight 100_ RBI season -- gets ready in the on-deck circle. Aiming for the opposite field... Howard plants one of the seats in front of Frenchy's Tiki Bar. Something you only see in Florida, as the game heads toward the late innings, you see some of the regulars -- especially the pitchers who had the day off -- leave early.  That's Roy Oswalt on your left, and Roy Halladay on the right. (Below:) Closers need work in the Grapefruit League.  Here's Brad Lidge , getting his throws in early.

...you share it with Edmundo Sosa .  The popular Phillies utilityman provides a spark coming off the bench and when platooned against  lefty pitchers.  A .276 hitter last season, with a career-best 11 home runs, he's a key for Panama's team in the World Baseball Classic. Francisco Cervelli will also be in this year's WBC.  The longtime Yankees and Pirates catcher will be Italy's manager, connecting with his father's birthplace.  He played parts of 13 seasons in the majors, highlighted by backing up Jorge Posada on the Yanks 2009 World Series champs.  

My spring training trip ten years ago was short but productive as I managed to catch both New York teams within three days.  Today, let's zoom in as the Yankees visit the Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium on March 8th, 2016.    CC Sabathia -- whose number 52 will be retired by the Yanks this summer -- got the start.  And this marked my first chance to see Aaron Judge in a Yankee uniform -- five months before he'd make his big league debut .  Could anyone have predicted that this tall kid from California would become one of the game's biggest stars?? Rob Refsnyder was also in the lineup that day.  He'd seen his first major league action the summer before --  where he was Judge's Scranton teammate for part of the season.  I liked this candid shot, entering the dugout together between innings.  A free agent over the winter, Refsnyder left the Red Sox to sign with the Mariners, while Judge gets ready for his 10th full season in the Bronx. Ichiro ...

  ...you share it with Matt Stairs , the Phillies reliable pinch hitter on their 2008 World Champions.  His standout moment was a pinch homer off the Dodgers' Jonathan Broxton in game four of the NLCS.   Yet Philadelphia was just one stop on his 20 year big league career, where he set the record as the most traveled position player of all time -- playing for 12 franchises in 13 cities (he was both an Expo and a National) and also suited up for Canada's other club, the Blue Jays. Stairs renewed his Phillies links in mid 2010s as one of their TV analysts, before getting back into uniform as the club's hitting coach.  I snapped the second image of him sitting just outside the dugout during a March 2017 exhibition game against the Braves.   And if you really enjoy baseball rarities: Stairs is one of four natives of Canada to play for both his country's MLB franchises.  The others are Denis Boucher, Rob Ducey and Shawn Hill.

With exhibition games underway across Florida and Arizona, it's time to tap my Wayback button.  We're in Jupiter, Florida ten years ago this spring to catch the Cardinals hosting the Mets.  Teams that now hold their camps about 45 minutes apart on the Atlantic Coast after spending a quarter century sharing facilities in St. Petersburg. (Below:) Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright gets ready for his start, with plenty of teammates looking on. Steven Matz , under the watchful eye of pitching coach Phil Regan, will work the first few innings for the Mets.  Matz had debuted for New York during the final weeks of the 2015 season, posting a 4-0 mark as the Mets won their first pennant in 15 years. (Below:)  Outfielder Michael Conforto  also impressed as a 2015 rookie -- capped by hitting .333 in the World Series, with a pair of home runs against the eventual champion Royals. Tommy Pham takes his lead off 3rd base. (Below:)  The Cardinals proudly honoring their 11 prev...

  ...you share it with future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander .  266 victories over 20 seasons, more than 3500 strikeouts, three Cy Young Awards and the 2011 AL MLP to his credit, the legendary pitcher comes full circle this summer, returning to the Tigers at age 43.  The goal, getting his original team back to the fall classic. He's been a bulldog over the years, leading the American League four times in innings pitched and five times in strikeouts.  Plus, he's been positive clubhouse presence -- who's appeared in nine League Championship Series and five World Series (earning rings with the 2017 and 2022 Astros).  While no player is a "given," especially at his age, Verlander's return to Detroit will likely make the 2026 AL Central race even more interesting.