Nov 17, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) throws a pass beside Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley (4) in the first quarter at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images
In an article by Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor, he describes where the Cavaliers’ ‘brain trust’ lands on a potential trade centered around Evan Mobley for Antetokounmpo.
“The Cavs love Mobley, they believe in him and there are multiple members of the Cleveland brain trust that would be vehemently against a Giannis-Mobley swap…(Mobley) is viewed as not only a future star but also a proverbial safety net when it comes to another rebuild.”
There has been a lot of discourse around Mobley as the player to be moved if the Cavaliers want to reshuffle the deck. It would make sense if the Cavaliers were angling for a win-now mentality. With a soon to be 37-year-old James Harden and a will be 30-year-old Donovan Mitchell, you can’t have this two-timeline sort of mentality.
Everyone wants to point to the Golden State Warriors’ 2022 title and how they were able to navigate this, almost impossible feat. However, when you look at that championship from a 3,000-foot view, you would notice that in 2026, no one considered as a young building block really panned out. It was the old guard that made that title team who they were, Golden State would soon offload all those players (Jordan Poole, James Weisman, Jonathan Kuminga, etc.) to try and keep their core (Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green) relevant.
If the Cavaliers brass reportedly already is thinking about “safety net(s),” they may be setting themselves up to blow up this nucleus sooner rather than later. A half-in, half-out mentality will hamstring whichever direction the franchise would prefer to go.
To achieve either a rebuild or trying to improve their title odds, the Cavaliers need to go all in. By acquiring a veteran Harden at last deadline, there was a clear signal of going for the title now. If they decide not to move Mobley because they are thinking about the future, they’re likely not maximizing their current title window.
Miami (26-34) and Washington (31-29) meet for the second series this season as the Marlins won the first series, 2-1. The three-game series will be at Nationals Park and the final stretch of a nine-game road stand for Miami.
The Marlins enter on a season-long five-game losing streak. Miami has been outscored 35-11 in that span and scored one run in four out of five games. Miami is hitting .222 in those five games (22nd), while the pitching staff has a whopping 7.19 ERA (27th).
Washington has won two straight and six of the previous eight to stay afloat and over .500. The Nationals' pitching rotation has a 3.36 ERA over the last 13 games (8th), while the offense has the third-most home runs (20) in that stretch.
Let’s dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
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Game details & how to watch Marlins at Nationals
Date: Monday, June 1, 2026
Time: 6:45 PM EST
Site: Nationals Park
City: Washington, DC
Network/Streaming: MLB TV
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Odds for the Marlins at the Nationals
The latest odds as of Monday:
Moneyline: Washington Nationals (-144), Miami Marlins (+119)
The Nationals’ CJ Abrams is hitting .294 with 63 hits and 116 total bases over 214 at-bats
The Nationals’ Nasim Nunez is hitting .189 with 32 hits and 42 strikeouts over 169 at-bats
The Marlins’ Otto Lopez is hitting .326 with 75 hits and 105 total bases over 230 at-bats
The Marlins’ Kyle Stowers is hitting .221 with 30 hits and 44 strikeouts over 136 at-bats
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Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Marlins at Nationals
The Mets are 24-35 ATS, ranking fifth-worst
The Marlins are 26-34 ATS, ranking eight-worst
The Mets are 29-25-5 to the Under, ranking ninth-best
The Marlins are 36-21-3 to the Over, ranking second-best
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The AL West may have missed its chance to leave the Seattle Mariners behind.
Seattle has been under .500 for most of the season, but now the Mariners (31-29) lead the division after six straight victories. They’ve made this run without slugger Cal Raleigh, who was hitting .161 when he went on the injured list.
It doesn’t take much to shake up the standings in the AL West. The Mariners’ streak included a three-game sweep over the Athletics. The A’s were in first place, but have lost seven of their last nine. Houston has won eight of its last 12 to pull back into contention, just 4 1/2 games out of first place. The whole division is separated by 8 games, the top three teams by 2 1/2.
Despite Raleigh’s absence, the Mariners are fourth in the American League in home runs, but pitching is what has driven this recent run. Seattle has held opponents to two runs or fewer in five of its last six games.
The same five starters have made 57 of Seattle’s 60 starts. Bryan Woo (3.44), Logan Gilbert (3.69), George Kirby (3.77) and Emerson Hancock (2.78) all have ERAs among the top 25 in the AL. Luis Castillo (5.53) lags behind the other four starters, but lately Seattle has been using him in sort of a tag team with Bryce Miller, with one starting and the other coming out of the bullpen.
In a 9-2 win over the Athletics, Castillo pitched four scoreless innings and then Miller threw the last five. Against Arizona, Miller started and went five innings, then Castillo worked the last five and Seattle won 3-2 in 10.
Trivia time
The New York Yankees scored 13 runs in the third inning in their 13-8 victory over the Athletics. The Yankees actually went hitless in the other eight innings.
Anthony Volpe became the third player in the last 50 years to have two hits, two runs and two steals in an inning. Who were the other two?
Bonus question: Volpe nearly got to bat three times in the inning, but he was on deck when the third out came. Who was the last player with three plate appearances in an inning.
Performance of the week
Jacob Misiorowski struck out 12 in seven two-hit innings — throwing 57 pitches of at least 100 mph — as the Milwaukee Brewers beat St. Louis 5-1. Milwaukee went on to sweep three straight from the Cardinals, and the Brewers now lead the NL Central by 4 1/2 games over St. Louis.
Comeback of the week
The Orioles trailed by four with one out and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth. Toronto never got another out, with Jeff Hoffman allowing the next six hitters to reach base before Connor Seabold issued a bases-loaded walk to Adley Rutschman that tied the game. Pete Alonso followed with a single to give Baltimore a 6-5 win.
Toronto’s win probability was 99.3%, according to Baseball Savant, before Hoffman hit a batter and allowed a triple, a single, a double and two walks.
The Orioles went 7-3 on their homestand against Detroit, Tampa Bay and Toronto. That included a walk-off win over each of those teams and a three-game sweep of the AL East-leading Rays.
Trivia answer
Detroit’s Alan Trammell had two hits, two runs and two steals in the bottom of the first on Sept. 20, 1983, against Baltimore. Seattle’s Mike Cameron pulled it off in the top of the seventh on May 16, 2002, against Toronto.
Bonus answer: Boston’s Johnny Damon had three plate appearances in the bottom of the first on June 27, 2003, against Florida. He had a single, a double and a triple as the Red Sox scored 14 runs in the first.
Tanner and Maddie Scott attend Netflix Is A Joke Festival Presents: "Dodgers Comedy Night" at Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. (Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images for Netflix)
The Tanner Scott redemption story took a dark, twisted turn Saturday night.
Not because the Dodgers reliever gave up three runs in the eighth inning to the Philadelphia Phillies, blowing a save opportunity and getting tagged with his first loss of the season. Getting knocked around happens.
But comments directed toward Scott’s wife on social media afterward were beyond alarming. Maddie Scott reposted vile comments from one user in particular that threatened not only her and her husband, but also their newborn son.
“When did it stop being a game?” Maddie Scott wrote on an Instagram story that has expired but was captured by the New York Post. “I don’t speak out often. Ever actually. I promise you, you don’t know what it’s like unless you’re living it.”
The answer to her rhetorical question is layered. Maybe baseball stopped being a game when her husband signed a four-year, $72 million contract with the Dodgers before the 2025 season, elevating expectations.
Maybe the end came seven years ago when a Supreme Court ruling led to sports gambling becoming legal. Or maybe fun and games ceased some 20 years ago when Facebook, Twitter and Instagram launched and anonymous threats could be dispatched by anyone with an account.
Death threats directed toward athletes have become disturbingly frequent. Without giving oxygen to the threats by repeating them, Scott is hardly the first pitcher whose family has been targeted after a loss.
Scott took heat last year when he pitched poorly in his first season with the Dodgers. Expected to become the team’s closer, the left-hander had an MLB-high 10 blown saves and did not pitch in the postseason.
This year, however, Scott has bounced back admirably. Even after the loss Saturday, he has a sparkling 2.19 earned-run average and five saves.
RALEIGH, N.C. — The Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes looks even in a lot of ways, with very little margin for error.
Vegas has won 12 of 16 games in the playoffs, including a sweep of Colorado in the West final, while Carolina has taken 12 of 13. They’ve allowed the third-fewest and fewest goals against, respectively, while each scoring more than three goals a game.
So, what will make the difference in a series between NHL powerhouses? Look no further than special teams.
Stifling penalty kills
The Hurricanes’ penalty kill is clicking along at a 92.5% success rate, allowing four goals and scoring once shorthanded.
“Carolina’s been an elite penalty-killing team for years now and that’s part of their identity and that comes from their puck pressure and their sticks, their discipline — all that kind of stuff,” goaltender-turned-NHL Network analyst Cory Schneider said. “Vegas will have its work cut out for itself.”
Vegas has been elite itself. The Golden Knights allowed six power-play goals through three rounds and scored four times short-handed.
Brayden McNabb, who has been around since the team’s inaugural season in 2017-18, has been a key cog of that, logging more than 45 total minutes of ice time on the kill. Three other huge pieces are players general manager Kelly McCrimmon brought in midseason.
Goaltender Carter Hart, whose presence alone has been scrutinized, has stopped 64 of 70 shots while an opponent is on the power play. Defenseman Rasmus Andersson, acquired before the Olympic break, and center Nic Dowd, an addition on the eve of the trade deadline, along with McNabb have been among the first guys over the boards on the penalty kill.
It has been old reliable for the Hurricanes, with defensive defenseman Jaccob Slavin skating over 56 minutes short-handed. Coach Rod Brind’Amour’s team plays with a particular structure all the time, and this is where it is most effective as long as the three or four guys on the ice in front of goalie Frederik Andersen are on the same page.
Polarizing power plays
Vegas’ power play has scored 11 times in 46 opportunities, good for 24%. Captain Mark Stone and winger Pavel Dorofeyev have four apiece, while centers Jack Eichel and Tomas Hertl each have six power-play assists.
“I find the Vegas power play to be more threatening,” Schneider said. “Can Carolina quiet Vegas’ power play and force them 5 on 5 in order to beat them?”
The better question is can Carolina’s power play keep up? It is 7 of 56 in the playoffs, a 12.5% rate that has gotten the job done against Ottawa, Philadelphia and Montreal.
Vegas, as Brind’Amour said, is “a different animal.”
“Carolina’s got a good power play, don’t get me wrong, but I think that could be a bit of a wash and Carolina’s going to have to try to generate more 5-on-5 offense than rely on their power play like Vegas should,” Schneider said.
What to expect
Given these teams’ ability to put the puck in the net at even strength, there will be an emphasis on discipline. Stay out of the box and play 5 on 5, where the Golden Knights have scored 34 goals and the Hurricanes 30.
Vegas has averaged a little under four minor penalties a game to Carolina’s five. That makes every power play even more valuable, with much of the games becoming a test of two teams with demanding coaches who don’t let a lot of the details slip.
“They play the right way,” Slavin said. “They play a very similar style to us. It’s going to be who can do it better and who can stay on it longer? But it’s going to be an awesome series.”
The St. Louis Blues have signed goaltender Will Cranley to a one-year, two-way contract extension, Blues president of hockey operations and GM Doug Armstrong announced today.
The 24-year-old was a 2020 sixth-round pick of the Blues and has spent the past three seasons bouncing between the ECHL and the AHL, and was set to become a restricted free agent (RFA) on July 1.
The 2025-26 season was Cranley’s best season to date. In the AHL with the Springfield Thunderbirds, he posted a respectable .892 save percentage in 10 games, while in the ECHL with the Florida Everblades, he recorded a .915 SP in 18 games. He had previously never posted a save percentage above .900 in either the ECHL or AHL.
His AHL career numbers show a .890 SP in 13 games and a .896 SP in 74 ECHL games.
Prior to joining the Blues organization, Cranley was a netminder in the OHL, where he posted a .881 SP in 117 career games across five seasons.
While his numbers have never been eye-catching and often look rather disappointing, Cranley boasts a 6-foot-4 frame and is still quite young for a goaltender. He may never make it to the NHL, but organizational depth in the minor leagues is valuable, and retaining homegrown talent in that role is a necessity.
Cranley’s contract will see him paid $850,000 at the NHL level, with a minor league salary of $95,000, according to Puckpedia. Due to his age and lack of NHL experience, Cranley will become a Group 6 RFA at the end of the 2026-27 season.
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CLEVELAND — For one inning, it appeared as if all the breaks were going the way of Cleveland starting pitcher Tanner Bibee.
Despite giving up a leadoff homer for the second straight game, the right-hander left with a lead for the first time in 13 starts this season and finally got run support as the Guardians led the Boston Red Sox 4-3 going into the seventh inning.
Instead, Bibee had a front row seat as the bullpen had one of its worst innings of the year as Boston rallied for a 9-4 win.
That put Bibee at the top of a couple of lists no starting pitcher wants to join.
Boston’s six runs in the seventh inning en route made Bibee the 12th opening day starter since 1976 to make at least 10 starts and not earn a win before June, according to Sportradar.
He has the most starts without a win before June and is the fourth with at least 12. The others were Colorado’s Kyle Freeland (2025), Miami’s José Ureña (2018) and Atlanta’s Carl Morton (1976).
Bibee also is the first pitcher in Cleveland’s 125-year franchise history to go winless in his first 13 starts.
“I’ve said this in the past. I don’t have any control over it. All I can do is go out there, try to throw up some zeros and whatever happens, happens,” said Bibee, who is 0-7.
Bibee’s seven losses are tied for the second most among among the 12 opening day starters. His 4.57 is the fourth lowest.
“Wins and losses don’t matter for starting pitchers. It’s not a stat that means anything. So I know he’s not worried about it and we’re definitely not worried about it,” catcher Austin Hedges said.
Bibee bounced back after Jarren Duran connected on the fifth pitch of the game and drove it into the right-field stands, the fourth time he gave up a leadoff homer this season. He allowed only one hit in the second through fourth innings before the Red Sox loaded the bases with one out in the fifth. Mickey Gasper tied it at 2-all with a sacrifice fly to drive in Marcelo Mayer and Wilyer Abreu’s RBI single gave Boston a 3-2 lead.
However, the Guardians rallied.
Cleveland scored twice in the bottom of the fifth on José Ramírez’s RBI double after Boston left fielder Masataka Yoshida lost track of the fly ball in the sun. Chase DeLauter’s single drove in Ramírez. They loaded the bases with two outs when Stuart Fairchild struck out and unsuccessfully challenged the called third strike.
That left the Guardians without a challenge for the rest of the game, which would come back to haunt them.
Bibee retired the Red Sox in order in the sixth. He threw 90 pitches, including 62 strikes, and allowed three runs and six hits with five strikeouts and one walk.
The Guardians bullpen couldn’t hold the lead. Tim Herrin seemed poised to escape a bases-loaded jam with a fastball on the outer corner to Abreu on a full count, but home plate umpire Austin Jones called it a ball, allowing Connor Wong to score and tie it at 4-all.
The inning unraveled as Boston had three straight hits and added five more runs to take control of the game.
Cleveland has the third-worst challenge rate on ABS at 44.4% (59 for 133). The league average is 52.6%.
“I mean, it’s frustrating, but that’s on us. We shouldn’t have lost our challenges. It’s what they’re there for, and we’ve got to take accountability and be better at it,” Hedges said.
Bibee was a fifth-round pick by Cleveland in the 2021 amateur draft. He went 22-12 with a 3.25 ERA in his first two seasons in the majors and was second in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. He was also the third Cleveland pitcher since 2000 with at least 10 wins in each of his first two seasons in the big leagues. Hall of Famer CC Sabathia (2001-02) and Shane Bieber (2018-19) are the others.
However, Bibee is 12-18 with a 4.33 ERA in 44 starts since signing a five-year, $48 million contract during spring training last year.
“We haven’t scored a lot of runs when Tanner’s been on the mound, even in some of the starts in which he’s pitched exceptionally well,” general manager Chris Antonetti said. “I think as we look forward, we’ll start to see more of those outings in which he’s pitching more effectively than maybe some of those other hiccup.”
Bibee remains confident he can turn his season around. Manager Stephen Vogt said Bibee’s changeup showed improvement after he allowed seven runs in three innings against Washington.
He has six quality starts this season with the latest being the fourth in his past five games.
“You want to win games, but I feel like it’s important to know pitching; you’re playing a completely different sport than the other nine people in the field. So it’s just figuring out what the kind of self-evaluation of it,” Bibee said.
Since 1990, only one side had ever successfully defended the Champions League – Real Madrid, who won three in a row between 2016 and 2018. Paris Saint-Germain’s victory in the final on Saturday elevates them to a new tier of the pantheon. No bad side has ever won the European Cup or Champions League, but only great sides have ever retained it.
Arsenal pushed them much closer than Inter had in losing in the final the previous year, and there is always something slightly unsatisfying about a victory on penalties, but the quality of this PSG cannot be denied. They put six past Bayern in the semi-final – their superiority far greater than the one-goal aggregate margin would suggest. It was a similar story in the quarter-final, in which a 4-0 aggregate victory didn’t really reflect how much better they were than Liverpool. And while Chelsea may think they were slightly unlucky to lose the first leg of their last-16 tie away to PSG 5-2, the 3-0 result in the second leg was a devastating assertion of authority: three goals scored by an almost bored opponent apparently just as they felt like it.
This is an extract from Soccer with Jonathan Wilson, a weekly look from the Guardian US at the game in Europe and beyond. Subscribe for free here. Have a question for Jonathan? Email soccerwithjw@theguardian.com, and he’ll answer the best in a future edition.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 29: MJ Melendez #1 of the New York Mets celebrates his tenth inning game winning two run home run against the Miami Marlins at home plate with his teammates at Citi Field on May 29, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) | Getty Images
MONDAY
Nolan McLean became the first Met to allow 16+ runs in a two-start span since Jerad Eickhoff in July 2021.
TUESDAY
Juan Soto hit his fourth home run on a pitch at 97+ mph, giving him the most in MLB this season. (source: Sarah Langs / MLB)
David Peterson became the first Met to surrender 11+ hits in a game since Luis Severino against the Brewers during his first start as a Met on March 30, 2024.
WEDNESDAY
Eric Wagaman notched his first Met hit by blasting one of only six Mets home runs at 110+ mph and 415+ ft this season, joining one from Mark Vientos, one from Brett Baty, one from Ronny Mauricio, and a pair from Juan Soto.
FRIDAY
The Mets earned their seventh extra-inning win of the season in just their 57th game. The 1971 Mets are the only team in franchise history to record more extra-inning wins (9) through their first 57 games.
MJ Melendez became the first Met pinch-hitter to hit a walk-off home run since Jesse Winker against the Orioles on August 21, 2024.
Mark Vientos hit his 61st career home run before turning 27 years old, moving him into a tie for 13th place among Mets leaders before their 27th birthday. The man he tied? Lee Mazzilli, who was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame Saturday afternoon. Vientos doesn’t turn 27 until December, so he’s currently on pace to reach 8th place on that list by the season’s end.
The Mets scored four runs in the first inning, making it their second-biggest first inning of the year behind…well, their literal first inning of the year on Opening Day against Paul Skenes and the Pirates, in which they scored five runs.
SATURDAY
Christian Scott earned his first major league win in his 16th career start. No other pitcher in franchise history had gone more than 12 starts without a win, and no pitcher in baseball had gone their first 15 starts without a win since Liam Hendriks in 2011-12. Hendriks finally got a win in his 18th big league start.
Carson Benge recorded his fifth three-hit game in just his 55th career game. Only one Mets left-handed hitter recorded more three-hit games within their first 55 career games: Jeff McNeil, who had 7. TJ Rumfield is the only other rookie this year to have accomplished the feat, with one of his five three-hit games coming at Coors Field against the Mets on May 6. (If you’re curious, the modern era record belongs to Joe DiMaggio, who recorded three hits in 12 of his first 55 games.)
SUNDAY
Carson Benge became the fourth Met to hit a leadoff homer this season along with Francisco Lindor, Bo Bichette, and Juan Soto. It’s the first time the Mets have had four different players hit a leadoff homer since 2004, when Kaz Matsui hit five and Eric Valent, Jeff Keppinger, and Mike Cameron each hit one.
The Mets also became just the third team to have four different players hit a leadoff home run before their 60th game, joining the 2025 Yankees and the 2007 Rays. (source: Sarah Langs / MLB)
Juan Soto hit the Mets’ first grand slam of the season, and their first since he took Charlie Morton deep in Detroit on September 1, 2025.
Soto became the 14th Met to record nine home runs in a 15-game span, joining: Frank Thomas, Tommie Agee, Lee Mazzilli, Gary Carter, Darryl Strawberry, Jeff Kent, Robin Ventura, Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltrán, Lucas Duda, Yoenis Céspedes, Pete Alonso, and most recently, DJ Stewart.
The Mets swept the Marlins for the first time since July 29-31, 2022. It was the first time they swept the Marlins at Citi Field since a four-game sweep on August 5-7, 2019.
Miscellaneous Mets stat of the week:
The Mets are 13-11 on days when the Knicks are playing in the NBA Finals.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MARCH 20, 2026: Ryan Sloan #97 of the Seattle Mariners throws a pitch during the third inning of a spring training Spring Breakout game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Fields of Phoenix on March 20, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Bernacchi/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
Tacoma Rainiers
The Rainiers are in the midst of a major slide, dropping all six of their games this week after winning just one the week prior. Having now dropped eleven games under .500, Tacoma will have to bounce back in the second half if they hope to get a seat in the playoffs this fall.
After missing most all of the season thus far, Miles Mastrobuoni has officially returned to game action and has been rehabbing with the Rainiers this week. Though it’s unclear at the immediate moment if he’s a candidate to earn his way back on to the big league roster immediately following his rehab stint, because he is out of minor league options, the M’s brass will have to make a decision on whether they want to keep Mastrobuoni in the organization. Perhaps his positional versatility is preferable to Patrick Wisdom’s one-dimensional bat-first profile, but already with a glut of lefties, it’s possible the team will prioritize the handedness advantage Wisdom carries for this roster. It’s a storyline to monitor with big league ramifications.
A popular name amongst writers of the site, utility man Brock Rodden hit the IL this week with a hamstring injury. It sounds as though it’s relatively minor and he’ll be out for just a week or two, but already shorthanded offensively, the Rainiers will have to muster up some additional production at the plate if they hope to stop this skid they’ve been on the past two weeks.
Arkansas Travelers
The Travs dealt with some weather problems this week and only managed to squeeze in five of the six games this series, but with some truly dynamic pitching performances from the rotation’s top stars, the two wins they did manage to lock down were must-see TV. Tulsa’s six game win streak has knocked the Travs down to second place in the standings, but just a game and a half back, Arkansas is well positioned to reclaim their spot atop the division and clinch the first half title.
Ryan Sloan was unreal tonight. Final line: 6IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 11K, 18 whiffs, 61 pitches, 46 strikes. That was a pleasure to watch. pic.twitter.com/VTNI0OBGPG
Turning in his best start as a professional, Ryan Sloan worked six perfect innings against Frisco and tallied eleven punchouts, dominating opposing hitters from the very first pitch. The young righthander has been dialed in over his last four starts and features a sub-two ERA across those outings, commanding the zone beautifully and striking out a healthy amount of hitters. Having turned 20 in January of this year, Sloan’s age-adjusted success at Double-A is rather remarkable and makes him one of the best pitching prospects in all of baseball; if his past month is any indication of what’s to come, Sloan could easily pitch his way into the conversation of being a top-ten prospect leaguewide.
Kade Anderson was awesome again. Final line: 5.1IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 9K, 16 whiffs, 74 pitches, 53 strikes.
Rotationmate Kade Anderson was his usual self on Friday night, working five and a third innings of two-hit baseball. Anderson punched nine tickets on the afternoon and did not surrender any free passes, pushing his K:BB ratio up to a gaudy 67:7 mark for the season. Anderson is arguably the top lefthanded pitching prospect in baseball, and having the one-two punch of he and Sloan puts the Mariners in rarified air with regard to their minor league pitching talent. Most organizations would bend over backwards for one player of their caliber; having two elite pitching prospects waiting in Double-A after promoting an elite 20-year-old shortstop is bordering on an embarrassment of riches, and M’s fans should be incredibly optimistic about the future of this ballclub.
Everett AquaSox
Everett dropped the series four games to two this week, unable to muster up enough offense to best the lowly hops. Everett’s star studded lineup has been central to their success this season, but the usual suspects responsible for the production struggled to find their footing. Hopefully a return to form is in the cards for their upcoming series against a league-leading Eugene squad.
Slugging catcher Josh Caron has been torching the ball recently. Launching three homers in five games this week, Caron finished May with an even .900 OPS on the month and has raised his season mark to .866. Caron’s aggressive approach at the plate has led to him striking out far more than you’d hope to see at the Hi-A level, but if he’s able to maintain this level of pop on his ascent through the minor leagues, his positional value and albeit one-dimensional production might just be enough to get him to the majors in a backup role. It seems likely he’ll finish the season in Everett, but perhaps the M’s prefer to challenge the young backstop with an aggressive promotion to Double-A this summer.
Having officially taken to his new role of backend reliever, Christian Little has been superb for the Frogs this season, and it looks as though a promotion to Double-A is in his not so distant future. Laying claim to a 0.90 ERA on the year, Little worked four clean innings across two outings this week and got the Frogs out of some big spots. A hard-throwing righthander, Little is striking out 35.1% of the batters he’s facing and walking 11.4%, good for a 3.08 FIP. Having already lost Brock Moore to promotion, it seems likely the AquaSox will be losing yet another reliever to the Texas League in the coming weeks.
Inland Empire 66ers
The 66ers only managed to snag a single win this week, dropping the series convincingly to an excellent Lake Elsinore team. It’s been tough sledding for the 66ers in their first year as a Mariner affiliate, and though there have been some breakout performers mixed throughout the roster, it’s largely been a disappointing season.
Teddy McGraw is back on the mound! Joining the 66ers on his minor league rehab assignment, McGraw logged two clean outings this week as he builds his body back up. McGraw has an extensive injury history and will certainly be handled with an abundance of caution, but when he’s been on the mound, there are very few pitchers in this system that can match his raw ability. Hopefully a move to the bullpen is able to keep him healthy with some more frequency.
Mason Peters threw it well again. Final line: 3.2IP, 2H, 0R, BB, 6K, 12 whiffs, 71 pitches, 49 strikes.
In the first 9 professional starts for Peters: 1.56ERA, 34.2IP, 23H, 7BB, 51K. pic.twitter.com/h3JOMODx7C
Mason Peters continued his dominant 2026 season against the Storm, starting the lone win on the week for the 66ers. Working 3.2 innings and fanning six, Peters lowered his ERA to 1.56 and showed off his dynamic array of offerings all afternoon. His splitter was a true weapon for him and gives him an ideal pairing for his wide assortment of breaking balls. Everett is a tough place to pitch, but considering his level of dominance in the California League, it seems like a promotion is more than justified for the young lefthander.
ACL Mariners
Shortstop Nick Becker launched his first homer of the season this week and raised his OPS up to .846 across his first 20 games. Becker pairs a highly projectable frame with game-changing speed and sits second in the ACL with a flawless 15 bags thus far. Becker’s swing is a bit stiff and probably needs a bit of fine tuning to be fully maximized, but given his immense tools and young age, he remains one of the more tantalizing talents present in this system.
BOSTON, MA - MAY 28: Mauricio Dubón #14 of the Atlanta Braves prepares to bat prior to the game between the Atlanta Braves and the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Thursday, May 28, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Atlanta Braves are off to one of their hottest starts in franchise history and with no shortage of reasons for this early success.
Atlanta’s pitching staff weathered injury storms while a resurgent offense is once again among the best in Major League Baseball after a pair of challenging seasons in the run-scoring department.
While marquee players like Matt Olson, Drake Baldwin, and Michael Harris II have thrived over the first two months, a significant portion of the lineup’s overall success owes to roster construction and versatility – two areas that plagued the club in recent years.
No player better exemplifies those qualities than Mauricio Dubón.
“He’s really been a huge part of this early success,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said.
As Atlanta won 40 of its first 60 games, Dubón drew starts at five different defensive positions, serving primarily as Atlanta’s starting shortstop over the first six weeks while Ha-Seong Kim recovered from an offseason hand injury.
Acquired from the Houston Astros in exchange for slick-fielding but light-hitting shortstop Nick Allen over the winter, Dubón quickly established himself as an essential member of his new team and one of general manager Alex Anthopoulos’ savviest moves.
Dubón, who turns 32 in July, was already known for his excellent fielding, having won a pair of gold gloves at the more recently established utility position, a category introduced in 2022.
“I always told my wife that if I can just play one position, I know I can win a gold glove,” Dubón said. “Then Rawlings came up with the utility gold glove, and I ended up winning two of those. It’s something that I take pride in. For me, it’s always just trying to help the team win.”
Dubón’s knack for chipping in at the plate has also impressed the Braves over the first two months.
Though his season slash line of .250/.307/.370 may not jump off the stat sheet, Dubón has been at his best with runners in scoring position. He is batting .327 with a .920 OPS and 27 RBIs in those 54 plate appearances and quickly established himself as one of the team’s best clutch hitters.
Having a versatile player to plug in anywhere is a weapon that makes Weiss’ job that much easier. In addition to playing multiple defensive positions, Dubón has also started at least one game in every spot in the batting order except for third already this season.
“He just keeps performing regardless of where he’s at,” Weiss said. “That’s not easy to do. There’s a really short list of guys that can do what he does – a guy that can play major-league caliber, really gold-glove defense at shortstop, and then go do the same in center field or left field.”
In his career, Dubón has appeared in at least 20 games at every defensive position except for catcher, the one spot he has yet to see action. He’s played outfield the most, with 365 games, followed by 214 at second base, 137 at shortstop, 53 at third base, and 26 games at first base.
Though most players typically like to have a single position to call home, Dubón has moved around to great effect in his eight-year career with the Milwaukee Brewers, San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros and now with Atlanta. He has come to realize that the ability to play anywhere makes him one of the most valuable players on any team he suits up for.
“Early in my career, people told me that it has value, then the arbitration process comes and it shows that it doesn’t,” Dubón joked about his defensive versatility. “Then little by little you start playing, winning games and meaningful baseball, (and) it does matter. It’s something that I’m proud of. It’s pretty cool being one of the unique guys in the league that is able to do that.”
Building a well-rounded roster has opened more than a few doors for the 2026 Braves, giving Weiss plenty of levers to pull throughout the game. It is one of the many reasons the club has authored 20 come-from-behind wins, the most in MLB this season.
Dubón was picked up over the winter, the first of a series of moves to create a capable group of reserves. Atlanta then signed veteran outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year deal with the aim of improving a position group which was among the least productive in baseball a year ago.
Other newcomers include infielder Jorge Mateo, who is swinging the bat well and can play multiple positions while providing elite speed off the bench, as well as spring-signing Dominic Smith, who quickly showcased his value at the plate in the designated hitter spot.
Adding all of that up, the Braves are sitting on one of the best reserve pools since the days of Martin Prado, Omar Infante, Eric Hinske and the like from about a decade and a half ago.
Though Kim is back from injury and back in the fold at shortstop, his slow start at the plate continues to create opportunities for at-bats for Mateo. Dubón, meanwhile, has played more outfield with Harris and Ronald Acuña Jr. each hobbled by leg injuries at different times – and with Jurickson Profar unavailable thanks to a 162-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs, his second in as many years.
Weiss has done a fine job of finding opportunities to let his reserve and role players contribute this season. Unlike some of the others, Dubón isn’t as dependent on matchups and platoon splits because he can provide great defense wherever he plays. That along with his penchant for being involved in rallies will lead Weiss to be creative about keeping his super-utility guy in the mix somewhere.
“I’d imagine looking down the road that he’ll bounce around a little bit more, because I want to keep him involved,” Weiss said. “He’s a plus defender all over the field and there aren’t guys out there like that. And he’s gotten huge hits for us, clutch hits. Seems like every time he comes up in a big spot, he comes through.”
Beyond the tangible impact he is having on the Braves, the bilingual Dubón also comes highly regarded as a quality teammate and competitor – a player who helps keep the entire club connected. Those “glue guys” as they are known in the game are critical pieces of a winning team.
“It’s high energy every day,” Weiss said of what Dubón brings. “He’s very well-liked in there and language is never a barrier with him. He connects with all the groups, and that’s important. I talk about winning players and he’s certainly that. He’s got the winning pedigree. He was a big part of a championship team in Houston. I’ve said this before, but that goes a long way with me. He’s been a great addition.”
Dubón, who won the 2022 World Series with the Astros is a big proponent of the team culture the Braves have established and believes that an unselfish kind of baseball can pay serious dividends over the course of a long season.
“I think everybody knows each other and we’re playing for each other,” Dubón said. “We have fun going out there and that’s the biggest thing. Everybody gets along and everybody goes out there and is having fun right now. Everybody is pulling for each other. If one guy doesn’t do it, the other guy will… At the end of the day, we want to win, and we want to win a World Series. I think the biggest thing is trying to help each other out.”
May 30, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia (11) comes up with a leg injury during the seventh inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images | Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images
The 2026 Kansas City Royals are an indisputably bad baseball team. On pace for an eye-watering 102 losses, they have one of the worst bullpens and one of the worst offenses in baseball. They run into a bunch of outs on the bases. They have lost 16 out of their last 19 games one month after losing 11 of 13. This isn’t just a good team playing poorly. We crossed that Rubicon a long time ago.
The big question: why? Why is the team bad, especially when lots of people thought that the Royals would be competitive – maybe even a playoff team – this year? Well, after such a protracted string of losing, general manager J.J. Picollo finally talked to MLB.com about all the losing. And wouldn’t you know it, but no one’s at fault here. Everyone’s doing great. According to Picollo, the front office accomplished their goals in the offseason.
“We felt like there’s a core here that we could rely on for offense,” Picollo said. “Surrounding them with a deeper, better group and more balanced group was the goal. I think we did that.”
Oh, and it’s not the coaching staff at fault either, either. They’re doing a great job, and besides, changing staff in the middle of the year doesn’t do anything, silly.
“I have a lot of confidence in our staff,” Picollo said. “You can go back and look at all the historical research on changing coaching staffs. There’s not a lot of strong data on changing coaching staffs mid-season leading to what you need to do. It appeases the fanbase because you’ve made a change, but we have to be logical in our thinking.”
We’ve already established that the front office did a great job assembling the team, so player quality isn’t the issue here. What about player attitude and teamwork and camaraderie? The good news is that’s not a problem, either.
“Is the work getting done?” Picollo said. “Are the [coaches’] conversations productive with the players? Are they still eager to get to the ballpark and learn and work and play? Are they motivated? Right now, all of my observations are: Yes, they are. If anything, they’re saying, ‘I’ve got to be more accountable, I’ve got to be better. I’m the one not executing.’”
At this point, we’re getting pretty thin on reasons why the Royals are on a 102-loss pace in June. According to Picollo, it’s not the front office, it’s not the coaches, and it’s not the players. No one is responsible for the state of Royals baseball right now. So if no one is responsible, something else must be at fault. And I fear we are going to hear more and more excuses about this being an injury-bit season, especially after Maikel Garcia’s hamstring injury from Saturday’s game.
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 30, 2026
It is true that the Royals have had their fair share of injuries this season. Closer Carlos Estévez pitched one game this year and has been sidelined with injuries since. Second baseman Jonathan India had season-ending shoulder surgery at the end of April. Starting pitcher Cole Ragans first went on the injured list in early May and had a setback during rehab. Fellow starting pitcher Kris Bubic went on the injured list in mid-May, too. Newly acquired reliever Matt Strahm hit the injured list in mid-May, as did Nick Mears a few days ago. And though we don’t know how long Garcia could be out, hamstring injuries are fickle and he could be out anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months.
But I don’t buy this excuse and you shouldn’t either, even though I’m sure the team will use it for why they’re selling at the trade deadline and at the end of the year when the Royals finalize a 90-something loss season.
The main reason is that the Royals have had objectively fewer injuries compared to other teams. Spotrac keeps a list of total players, total days, and cash total per days missed for the injured list by team. Kansas City ranks 20th in total players on the IL (10, median of 14), 20th in total days missed on the IL (392, median of 518) and 19th in cash total per days missed ($8.49 million, median of $11.1 million).
And the other reason is that most of the guys who have landed on the injured list are players who the Royals should have expected not to stay healthy all year. Estevez is 33 and his fastball velo has been declining since 2022. Strahm is 34 and his fastball velo has also been declining since 2022. India’s shoulder injury was well known to the club, and he’s only averaged 131 games played per year prior to this season. Ragans only made 13 starts last year. Bubic only made 20 starts last year.
Are injuries a factor to this season? Yes they are. But the Royals don’t play in a vacuum; they are playing other teams who are also dealing with injuries, and most other teams have had more injuries. But the Royals have backed themselves into a corner here with answering the core question of why they’re bad. According to Picollo, the Royals may have the second worst record in all of baseball despite a solid roster, good coaching, and prepared players. It doesn’t add up.
RALEIGH, N.C. — A big smile filled Rod Brind’Amour’s face after he and the Carolina Hurricanes finally reached the Stanley Cup Final, busting through the roadblock that stopped them so many times in his first eight seasons as coach.
“Oh really? That’s surprising,” captain Jordan Staal said. “Just kidding.”
Across the country hours earlier, John Tortorella refused to answer a question about what he was like 22 years ago when he coached Tampa Bay to the Cup. The following day, he was in no mood to compare himself to Brind’Amour.
“No nostalgia, and I’m not talking about the other team,” Tortorella said.
Gruff in that setting, Tortorella is more understanding with Vegas Golden Knights players as their coach, and while he and Brind’Amour differ in age and experience levels, their similarities run far deeper. They are demanding and believe in a lot of the old-school elements of hockey that lead to success in the playoffs.
“John Tortorella, you have to block shots: If you’re not blocking the shot, you will not play,” said Mike Rupp, who played for Tortorella with the New York Rangers from 2011-13. “He doesn’t care who you are. You will not play. It’s the first thing he’ll tell you. I guarantee that the first thing Torts said is ‘You will block shots.’ I’m sure Rod would say the same thing.”
Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin has been around for Brind’Amour’s entire tenure and won Olympic gold with Tortorella on the U.S. coaching staff. That experience gave him a small glimpse of why players he talks to rave about Tortorella.
“Torts was an assistant coach there, so he was fairly quiet, so I don’t know his fully coaching style,” Slavin said. “But I do know he’s passionate about the game. He loves his players.”
Rod Brind’Amour
Two decades ago, Brind’Amour captained Carolina to the Stanley Cup. He played there four more seasons before hanging up his skates in 2010 and worked seven years as an assistant before getting promoted to head coach in 2018.
The Hurricanes have made the playoffs all eight seasons with Brind’Amour in charge and won at least a round every time. This is the furthest they’ve gotten since the ’06 Cup run.
“Roddy’s been unbelievable,” Staal said. “Talk about a guy that will never give up and will always stay with it. It’s been such a pleasure to play in front of him.”
It is not always a pleasure to play Brind’Amour’s style, which relies on being relentless, predictable and pressuring opponents. Not everyone fits the mold, which resembles the way the now 55-year-old conducted himself on the ice over 1,600 NHL games as a two-way center with faceoff prowess.
“Carolina plays to Rod Brind’Amour’s identity,” said retired goaltender Cory Schneider, who like Rupp is now at NHL Network. “He’s got their attention. It’s easy to tune a guy out. Playing that way is not fun all the time. It’s not easy. And these guys still do it for him, so I think that’s a great sign that his message isn’t growing stale and that they still buy in to what he’s preaching.”
John Tortorella
Tortorella is 67 and running a bench for a sixth NHL team. He is only two months into coaching the Golden Knights after the abrupt firing of Bruce Cassidy in late March.
They reeled off seven of eight wins to finish the regular season, with players saying Tortorella helped get their swagger back. Tortorella is enjoying working under general manager Kelly McCrimmon and for owner Bill Foley.
“How lucky am I?” Tortorella said. “Came to know the players better now, found a way to get through the three rounds and now playing for the Stanley Cup, just, I shake myself sometime. I’ve certainly pinched myself. When I wasn’t coaching when the season started to what the second half of the year has brought, I can’t thank the people enough that has given me an opportunity.”
Ray Ferraro, now an ESPN analyst after playing more than 1,300 games from 1984-2002, likened Tortorella’s evolution to parenting. Tortorella has adapted to modern players and what they need.
“I don’t know why anybody would think John would coach the same way as he did in Tampa,” Ferraro said. “The players today, the younger people want to know why. They just told us, ‘Go stand there,’ and you’d be like, ‘I don’t even really know what I’m doing here.’ But that’s what you would do because that’s what you were told. And now there’s so much more detail in the way that the game is coached, and part of that detail is the why.”
The Dodgers (38-21) and Diamondbacks (31-27) meet at Chase Field for the second series of the season between the two. Los Angeles swept Arizona to open the year and is 6.5 games ahead of the Diamondbacks for the NL West lead.
Arizona is on a three-game losing streak at the hands of Seattle to follow up a season-long five-game winning streak. The Diamondbacks were outscored 15-8 to Seattle and lost two of the three contests in extra innings. When the Dodgers and Diamondbacks teams met in March, Arizona was outscored 16-8. The Diamondbacks offense wasn't cooking then and isn't lately with a .196 batting average over the last five games (27th).
Los Angeles has won seven of the past eight games and finished May 18-10 overall. The Dodgers offense has been hot and outscored their opponents 56-21 over the last eight games. In the previous week (5 games), the Dodgers are hitting .317 as a team (3rd) with the most home runs (15) and third-fewest strikeouts (32).
Let’s dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game details & how to watch Dodgers at Diamondbacks
Date: Monday, June 1, 2026
Time: 9:40 PM EST
Site: Chase Field
City: Phoenix, AZ
Network/Streaming: MLB TV
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Odds for the Dodgers at the Diamondbacks
The latest odds as of Monday:
Moneyline: Los Angeles Dodgers (-168), Arizona Diamondbacks (+139)
The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani is hitting .280 with 58 hits and 102 total bases over 207 at-bats
The Dodgers’ Kyle Tucker is hitting .242 with 50 hits and 45 strikeouts over 207 at-bats
The Diamondbacks’ Corbin Carroll is hitting .287 with 58 hits and 108 total bases over 202 at-bats
The Diamondbacks’ Geraldo Perdomo is hitting .224 with 43 hits and 30 strikeouts over 192 at-bats
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Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Dodgers at Diamondbacks
The Dodgers are 32-27 ATS
The Diamondbacks are 35-23 ATS, ranking fourth-best
The Dodgers are 34-22 to the Under, ranking second-best
The Diamondbacks are 28-27-3 to the Over
The Dodgers are 17-11 ATS as the road team, ranking fourth-best
The Diamondbacks are 16-10 ATS as the home team, ranking fourth-best
Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Dodgers and the Diamondbacks
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Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Monday's game between the Diamondbacks and the Dodgers:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Dodgers on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Dodgers at -1.5.
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MESA, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 20: Denzel Clarke #1, Lawrence Butler #4 and Max Muncy #3 of the Athletics take batting practice during a spring training workout at HoHoKam Stadium on February 20, 2026 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Another year, another tough month of May that saw the Athletics struggle and knock us down in the standings. It wasn’t as bad as last year when the team lost pretty much every game that month but it was a tough month for the Athletics regardless. Big changes are on the horizon as the team needs to wake up and slap themselves out of this slump. Will they be able to do that now that the calendar has finally flipped to June?
The upcoming changes are hoped to provide the spark that can flip things around for this team. So what do we have to look forward to this coming month of June? Some questions to ask yourself.
1. How long of a leash does Lawrence Butler have?
The right fielder signed a massive contract extension last year that guaranteed him $65 million over the next five years. At the time he was coming off an impressive second-half of the 2024 season that saw him hit .302/.346/.597 with 20 home runs over the final 73 games that year. He looked like an emerging star and the A’s locked him in before he got any more expensive. He was the second recent A to sign an extension, just a couple months after Brent Rooker got his own deal.
His first full big league season did not go smooth however. While he made it into 152 games and became the first Athletic with a 20-20 season since Coco Crisp, his rate stats fell across the board. Perhaps some of that can be attributed to injury. He dealt with what was at the time diagnosed as a patellar strain in his right knee that ended up being a partial tear, and the stats bore than out. Pre All-Star Butler was hitting .251/.326/.433 but slashed just .203/.268/.351 post-break, and general manager David Forst said he was playing through that issue over the final weeks of the season. He ended up having surgery on that knee (as well as a PRP injection in his other knee) just days after the conclusion of the season.
The hope was that him getting an early start on his rehab and recovery would give him enough time to get ramped up for this season. Instead he was held out of action for the majority of Spring Training, only making it into just four games before the start of the season. He was reportedly facing pitchers and getting at-bats behind the scenes, but that isn’t the same as game action.
The short spring may be a big reason why Butler is hitting just .164 right now. It could be he’s trying to play through an injury to one or both of his knees again, or he just didn’t have a normal offseason so things are out of whack for him right now. Either way it’s getting harder and harder to see him in the lineup on a regular basis when he looks this lost at the plate right now. At the same time it’s hard to see a guy getting paid that much money ride the bench and the staff feel the only way out of this slump is hitting his way out of it. The A’s will need to make a decision one way or another, whether that be an IL placement or asking him to spend some time in the minor leagues to get his bat right. And the A’s would be smart to get to that decision sooner rather than later.
2. What happens at third base when Max Muncy is healthy?
Since injuring his hand back on April 25th after a HBP, the former first rounder has been on the shelf recovering from a fracture. He’s slowly begun to ramp up baseball activities in recent days and has officially begun his rehab assignment. The 23-year-old went 2-for-3 with a home run and 3 RBI on Saturday as the Aviators’ DH before an 0-for-2 showing on Sunday while in the field at third base.
While he’s been out the A’s have given the bulk of the playing time at third base to Zack Gelof, who has taken advantage of his opportunity at a brand new position. The former second baseman is hitting .259/.304/.432 with six home runs and six stolen bases. Perhaps the biggest change for him is he’s not striking out nearly as much as he did the past couple years. He dropped it from 45.5% last season all the way to 24.7%, which would be a career-low for the young infielder. On top of that he’s now got some outfield experience under his belt in addition to learning third base at the big league level. It’s been a successful start to his 2026 season and the A’s would like to keep his bat in the lineup some way.
The way things stand the A’s have a few options. Since both bat right-handed they don’t form a perfect platoon at third base. They could try to continue splitting reps at the hot corner, with Gelof filling in at other positions on days he’s not at third. But that just adds another thing for these young players to deal with.
Another option would be to just give the job to one of them on a full-time basis. Small sample caveat but Gelof has been the better hitter this year between the two. Neither have provided Chapman-esque defense at third so the A’s need production with the bat out of that spot. That said, Gelof is also much more positionally versatile; Muncy has experience at second base, but Gelof has that plus outfield experience now. It wouldn’t be impossible for Mark Kotsay to find spots in the lineup for both of them on any given day, should he so choose.
And a third, perhaps more extreme option would be to make a permanent change at the keystone. Offseason addition Jeff McNeil has had his moments but is only hitting .251/.323/.335 with two home runs this year and the left-handed hitter has predictably struggled against lefties this season. And they don’t make great platoon partners either. Gelof has actually fared better against right-handed pitching in his career. In fact, Gelof is really bad against left-handed pitching, hitting just .167/.244/.257 against them in his career versus a .250/.305/.449 line against same-handed pitching. They could still try out a platoon but history doesn’t indicate that’ll work.
If the A’s are getting ready to shake things up, getting Muncy back into the fold will come at a cost to someone else on the roster. How the A’s balance and juggle playing time on the infield will be fascinating to watch.
3. Can any other young pitchers make an impact for the staff?
The A’s have already promoted one of their top pitching prospects in Gage Jump. They’re set to promote another in Kade Morris, who looks like he’ll be making his major league debut this coming week in the series finale against the Cubs. Mason Barnett has already made his big league debut and pitched for the A’s this year.
The A’s are down two of their three veterans right now, just optioned Jacob Lopez, and are more or less being pressed into giving these younger options their chances. It’s not unheard of for the A’s to get great results from their young pitching that leads them to contention, but with the big bats in the lineup slumping right now the A’s are desperate to get production out of rookies more than usual.
They’ve gotten that and then some with J.T. Ginn, who is looking like he’s breaking out in a huge way for the Athletics. But while Ginn has been a surprising arm, so has fellow righty Luis Morales but for the wrong reasons. A member of the Opening Day rotation, he is now pitching in relief in Triple-A. That’s not the outcome anyone wanted but there’s still plenty of time for him to figure things out and the A’s will almost certainly need him again before this season is through.
Behind them the depth really begins to thin. Righty Jack Perkins has starting experience but has been in a relief roll all season, and not exactly thriving in it. Barnett certainly should be an option again soon enough. We shouldn’t hold our breath for a big promotion for Jamie Arnold. After all, he only has 10 starts in Double-A and while he’s flashed his potential he’s also showing some rookie growing pains. Perhaps he could be a left-handed option out of the ‘pen if the A’s are in contention but unlikely. A more likely name is someone like Braden Nett, who is finally healthy and pitching again for the Aviators. Or perhaps a forgotten name in Luis Medina, who is looking good in the bullpen but was once considered a building block for the rotation.
If the A’s are going to turn things around they’re going to have to do it short-handed for a while while Severino and Civale are hurt. The A’s have spent years accumulating this pitching talent just for this scenario. Now it’s time to see if any of these young arms step up to the challenge in the dog days of summer.
