“Baseball Is Just Beautiful”: Pedro Martinez on MLB’s New Era, and Why the Sport Is More Than Math

Is Big Tech Too Bloated? • Chris Christie’s Savior Complex • Trump Grovels to Grand Jury

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“Baseball Is Just Beautiful”: Pedro Martinez on MLB’s New Era, and Why the Sport Is More Than Math

Good morning from the Hive newsroom! For Opening Day, Tom Kludt talks shop with MLB announcer and Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez, who weighs in on everything from steroids to big data and the league’s new slate of rules. “Baseball has changed,” Martinez tells Kludt. “There’s a lot of different brains now working with you.”

Zooming out to Silicon Valley, Nick Bilton probes how low the head count can go in Big Tech, where Twitter is somehow still functioning despite predictions that Elon Musk’s layoffs would sink the site. Elsewhere, Bess Levin has the latest on Donald Trump’s cringeworthy attempt to curry favor with the grand jury presiding over the Stormy Daniels hush-money probe. Thanks for reading.

“Baseball Is Just Beautiful”: Pedro Martinez on MLB’s New Era, and Why the Sport Is More Than Math

Fresh off an exhilarating World Baseball Classic, and with Opening Day now here, the sport’s most compelling commentator weighs in on the new pitch clock (he loves it), analytics (not so much), the Astros cheating scandal (“People need to move on”), and eternal Hall of Fame debates (let Pete Rose in!).

Big Tech Companies Are Testing How Far They Can Slash Staff

Even as Elon Musk has upended Twitter, the site, with thousands-fewer employees, is still functioning. Meta, Google, and Amazon are operating with dramatically scaled-back workforces.

Donald Trump Is One Day Away From Calling the Grand Jury Deciding His Fate the Most Beautiful Jury He’s Ever Seen

Maybe he’ll send them some expensive wine and chocolate, too.

Fox News’ Attempts to Keep Rupert Murdoch Off the Stand Don’t Seem to Be Convincing the Judge

The judge, citing Murdoch’s recent engagement and travel plans, told Fox News lawyers not to make him “look like an idiot,” as Fox tries to keep the executive off Dominion Voting Systems’ witness list.

Chris Christie Is Back—And He Apparently Thinks He Can Be Trump’s Worst Nightmare

As GOP donors cast around for an alternative to Trump, the former New Jersey governor says he is “actively considering” running for president, and has been making the rounds billing himself as the only guy who can stand up to the former president.