Los Angeles, CA - April 12: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) walks back to the mound after a pitch during the third inning of an MLB game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, April 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Ronaldo Bolaños/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The Dodgers close out their homestand on Wednesday night against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium, on the 79th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s debut with Brooklyn in 1947. All uniformed personnel on Wednesday will wear number 42.
Shohei Ohtani, who has not allowed an earned run in 12 innings so far this season, starts on the mound on Wednesday night. Right-hander Clay Holmes starts for the Mets.
The Mets are dealing with another potential IL situation on their roster.
Before Tuesday's game against the Dodgers, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza was asked why he decided to go with Mark Vientos over Jared Young at first base, and the skipper revealed that Young is dealing with a knee injury.
"Jared is dealing with some left knee discomfort. Happened Sunday after the game," Mendoza said. "Didn't get better yesterday, so we have to see what we're dealing with here.
When asked if an IL stint is possible, Mendoza said it was but that they have to wait and see the results from imaging they had done on Tuesday.
"Yea we have to see what we're dealing with and see what we got," Mendoza said of a potential IL stint for Young. "Have to check in to see if he's available today. And then we'll go from there."
Young has appeared in 11 games so far this season, mostly off the bench, but has been effective in his handful of starts. This year, he's 7-for-20 with two doubles, two RBI with a .391 OBP.
In Young's last game, Sunday against the Athletics, he went 1-for-2.
The Mets are dealing with a few injuries on their roster. Of course, Juan Soto is on the IL and they just placed reliever Joey Gerber on the IL with a blister. Jorge Polanco is dealing with Achilles tendinitis and has been in and out of the lineup -- and unable to play first base.
The injuries are a part of the Mets' early-season struggles, along with their lack of offense. Mendoza has changed his lineup a bit in recent games to try and get a spark from his bats.
For Tuesday's game, Mendoza moved Vientos down in the lineup and explained that he just liked Francisco Alvarez's at-bats right now.
"Just continue to move guys around and continue to get guys going," Mendoza said.
One aspect of the lineup he won't change, for the time being, is moving Francisco Lindor out of the leadoff spot.
"Not at this point," Mendoza said of the proposition. "He's too good of a hitter. I haven't considered that."
After a hot stretch, Vientos is just 2-for-24 over his last seven games. Lindor's slump has been season long. The shortstop is slashing .176 with an OBP of .291 and has not recorded an RBI yet.
Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe made his first rehab start on Tuesday night, playing for Double-A Somerset and it was a bit of a mixed bag.
Volpe finished the game going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts, but he was going up against one of the best pitchers in the league, Zack Wheeler.
The Phillies ace was making a rehab start of his own, and the right-hander struck Volpe out swinging on three pitches. In Volpe's second at-bat, he put up more of a fight. Volpe worked the count full and fouled off a couple of pitches before Wheeler finally got the young infielder to strike out swinging on a nasty sweeper.
In the field, Volpe made every play hit to him at shortstop. Rehabbing from offseason shoulder surgery, Volpe is showing no effects of the injury that hampered his offensive and defensive performance in 2025. He was eventually pulled after five innings.
Volpe had his worst statistical season last year, batting .212 with 19 home runs and a career-low .272 OBP. He also had a career-high 19 errors in the field.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Volpe will play about three to five innings in his first couple of starts before building him up. The Yankees skipper said that Volpe has had more than 50 live at-bats in the Yankees complex in Tampa and has put in a lot of work at shortstop, so he considers Volpe ahead of where players are at when spring training begins.
Anthony Volpe fields his first chance in his first rehab appearance for Somerset pic.twitter.com/mi70G9ozE7
Yankees top prospect George Lombard Jr. was also playing in Somerset on Tuesday and started at third base to pair with Volpe. Lombard was a victim of a Wheeler strikeout in the first inning, going down in six pitches. But the second at-bat, he launched a 3-1 pitch deep to right-center field, but the ball died at the wall and was caught for the first out of the fourth inning.
Lombard has had a hot start to his Double-A season. He entered Tuesday's game hitting .464 with five doubles, two home runs and four RBI in seven games.
England captain Ben Stokes has dismissed suggestions of a collapse in his relationship with coach Brendon McCullum, although not everyone is convinced that is the case.
SARASOTA, FLORIDA - MARCH 04: Colton Gordon #61 of the Houston Astros delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles during a Grapefruit League spring training game at Ed Smith Stadium on March 04, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Astros (6-11) return home tonight to begin a 3-game series vs. the Colorado Rockies (6-10) as they seek to end an 8-game slide.
LHP Colton Gordon will make his first start of the season as he takes on Rockies RHP Michael Lorenzen.
TONIGHT’S ASTROS STARTER: LHP Colton Gordon will make his first start of the season for the Astros tonight…Gordon began the 2026 season with Triple A Sugar Land, where he was 1-1 with a 1.76 ERA (3ER/15.1IP) in three starts while posting an 0.98 WHIP. His last start was on April 8 vs. Ta- coma (5.1 IP, 0 ER).
Gordon, who was the Astros 8th pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, made his ML debut last season, appearing in 20 games (14 GS) for the Astros (6-4, 5.34 ERA)as a result of a rash of injuries, Gordon finished T-3rd on the Astros staff in both starts (14) and innings pitched (86.0).
He recorded his 1st ML win on June 6 at CLE (5 IP, 5H, 0 R, 5 SO). He was a member of Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
NEED A WIN: The Astros need a win to snap an 8-game losing streak, which is their longest since ending the 2013 season with a 15-game losing streak (Sept. 14-29).
VS. THE ROCKIES: The Astros were swept by the Rockies last week in a 3-game series at Coors Field (April 6-9). HOU was 4-2 vs. COL in 2025 and has a 110-90 record vs. the Rockies all-time.
ROCKING THE ROCKIES: Christian Walker has enjoyed facing the Rockies throughout his career, posting a .330 avg. (120×364) vs. them with 28 HR and 75 RBI with a 1.009 OPS. His career avg., RBI and OPS vs. COL are his best vs. any club (min. 10g) while his 28 HR are 2nd to his 29 HR vs. the Dodgers.
Walker was 5×13 (.385) with a HR in his three games at Coors Field last week.
HOME-COOKIN: Tonight is the first game of a 6-game homestand for the Astros. On the stand, HOU will host COL (Mon-Wed.) and STL (Fri.-Sun.), respectively. The Astros enter tonight’s game on a 5-game home winning streak. HOU is 5-2 overall at Daikin Park in 2026.
REMEMBERING PHIL: Prior to tonight’s game, the Astros will play a tribute video followed by a moment of silence for former player/manager Phil Garner. Sadly, Garner passed away over the weekend after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.
As manager in 2005, Garner led the Astros to their first World Series appearance, famously rallying that club from a 15-30 start after 45 games.
ROSTER MOVE: The Astros have added RHP Spencer Arrighetti to the Taxi Squad.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Tuesday, April 14, 7:10 p.m. CST
Location: Daikin Park, Houston, TX
TV: Space City Home Network
Streaming: SCHN+
Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 19: Brock Stewart #41 of the Los Angeles Dodgers poses for a photo during Los Angeles Dodgers Photo Day at Camelback Ranch on February 19, 2026 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Mike Christy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
LOS ANGELES — If the nine Dodgers pitchers on the injured list, Brock Stewart is the closest one to returning to the majors. But up first for the veteran right-hander is a minor league rehab assignment, which starts Tuesday night for the Class-A Ontario Tower Buzzers, about 42 miles east of Dodger Stadium.
Stewart resumed throwing late in spring training, and threw a simulated game at Dodger Stadium on March 27, during the first homestand of the season, before continuing to rehab at Camelback Ranch in Arizona. Pitchers are allowed up to 30 days on a minor league rehab assignment, and Stewart will probably need the majority of that time to build back up a number of games before getting activated.
“You’re sort of looking at a spring training, and how many outings a reliever takes,” manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday, “That’s probably what it’s going to take.”
A few veterans who got off to late starts in Cactus League play during spring training might have something close to the template Stewart might follow on his rehab assignment. Tanner Scott’s first game in camp was February 28, and he pitched 10 games in 24 days. Blake Treinen’s first game was February 26, and he pitched nine games in 25 days.
As for whom Stewart might replace in the Dodgers bullpen, there’s still plenty of time to work that out. Will Klein (1.17 ERA, 2.02 xERA in 7 2/3 innings) and Edgardo Henriquez (5.40 ERA, 3.71 xERA in five innings) have done pretty well but have also pitched in the lowest-leverage innings, on average, relative to the rest of the relief corps. Ben Casparius was pitching in nearly league-average leverage before getting placed on the injured list on Monday, with Kyle Hurt called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
“When he gets closer, certainly that will be a conversation. I hope we have that, it means everyone is healthy and then hopefully it’s a tough conversation,” Roberts said. “With [Stewart] being out, with other guys being out, it’s a good opportunity to see some guys. I’m happy Kyle Hurt is here, and obviously we get a longer look at Edgardo and guys like that.”
The good news for the Los Angeles Kings is that they clinched a playoff spot following their win against the Seattle Kraken on Monday. That secured their ticket to the post-season for the fifth straight year, despite a far-below-average start to the campaign.
The bad news is that they are in line to play against the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the playoffs if L.A.'s position in the standings doesn't change.
So, with how impressive and dominant the Avs have been all season long, how do the Kings match up against the league leaders?
This also doesn't help their case, but the Kings lost all three meetings against the Avalanche during the season. The last game on March 2 ended 4-2 in favor of Colorado.
Alex Laferriere (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
In terms of the playoffs, the last time the Kings played against the Avalanche was in the 2001 post-season. The two teams met in the Western Conference semifinals, and Colorado got the best of Los Angeles, taking the series 4-3.
The Avalanche went on to win the Stanley Cup for the second time in franchise history.
Looking at the Avs of this year, they could very well go on to win another Cup. The power and skill of Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Martin Necas, Devon Toews, Brock Nelson, Nazem Kadri, and others is more than the Kings can handle on paper.
Los Angeles isn't going to beat Colorado player-for-player in terms of talent, and interim head coach D.J. Smith knows that.
However, in the playoffs, there's more to each contest than beating your opponent in a skills competition. And that's where the light can shine on the Kings.
Since coach Jim Hiller was replaced by Smith, the Kings have been one of the most physical teams in the league. From March 1, Los Angeles has the fifth-most hits at 525 in 22 games.
Hitting isn't everything, but when a team is physically imposing on the opposition and heavy on the forecheck, like the Kings have been since Smith stepped in, that can wear on the Avalanche's stars.
Another aspect in which the Kings can hang around with the Avalanche is their ability to shut down their opposition.
In addition to the Kings being fourth in the NHL in fewest goals against, they have the fifth-most shutouts this season with six on the year. Though the Avalanche are slightly above them in those categories, too, it's key that the Kings print out the details on how to stop Colorado's stars.
Even Necas is tied for seventh in scoring and is just one point away from notching his first career 100-point campaign.
And for Makar, not much needs to be said about how dynamic and how much of a revelation he's been among defensemen in the NHL.
Of course, the Avalanche are heavy favorites in this series if there is no change in the NHL's seeding from now to the end of the week.
But as they say about the Stanley Cup playoffs, you just need to get in. After all, the Kings did win the Stanley Cup in 2012 as the eighth seed in the Western Conference, a comparison to this year's team.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 08: Michael McGreevy #36 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on April 08, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The St. Louis Cardinals will try again Tuesday as they will take their 8-8 .500 record up against the Cleveland Guardians at Busch Stadium. According to MLB.com, Michael McGreevy will take his 1-1, 2.16 ERA to the mound for the Cardinals while the Guardians will have Joey Cantillo make the start. He’s 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA so far this season.
Astros closer Josh Hader took an important step toward a return to action by throwing a live batting practice session before Tuesday’s game against the Colorado Rockies.
Facing hitters for the first time since August, the six-time All-Star threw 20 pitches to Taylor Trammell and Brice Matthews. Hader hasn’t pitched this season due to left biceps inflammation after a left shoulder strain kept him out of action for the final seven weeks of 2025.
“I got through it. That’s a positive thing to note,” Hader said.
Hader estimated he threw 15 pitches in the bullpen before taking the mound at Daikin Park. His fastball velocity ranged from 91-93 MPH, which is what he expected the first time out.
“Feeling good. Feeling strong,” Hader said. “Throwing relatively hard and commanding the baseball in the zone. Commanding the slider, getting good whiffs on it. Ideally, that’s what you want.”
Hader is approaching his buildup the way he would approach the ramp up to a season. He’ll throw a bullpen in the next few days and then another live BP. The goal is to shorten the gap between the two, but he did not put a timetable on when he could expect to go out on a rehab assignment.
“I take it day by day. Try and build my shoulder, bullet proof it, get it strong, and I feel like I’ve been able to do that.”
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - APRIL 12: Cedric Mullins #31 of the Tampa Bay Rays scores against the New York Yankees during the second inning of a baseball game at Tropicana Field on April 12, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Apr 11, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Martin Perez (33) throws against the Cleveland Guardians in the second inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Former Atlanta Braves starter pitcher Martín Pérez has cleared waivers after the team designated him for assignment on April 12, 2026. The team optioned him to Triple-A Gwinnett, but the veteran lefty elected free agency.
Pérez, who made two starts and three appearances with Atlanta after his contract was selected in the first week of the regular season, was signed as a minor league free agent this past off-season. The 35-year-old has pitched in 328 games – including 281 starts – since debuting with the Texas Rangers in 2012.
Atlanta is currently working with a four-man rotation but will not need a fifth starter until April 21. Should Pérez opt to return to the organization, it is possible he could be in-line to make a start the next time the Braves need a fifth starter. Injured starting pitcher Spencer Strider is on a rehab assignment and likely won’t be ready within the next week.
Pérez tossed 14.1 innings for Atlanta, striking out six with a 0.910 WHIP and 3.14 ERA and 3.86 xERA. His xFIP of 4.51 in 2026 is an almost exact match with his career 4.52 xFIP.
Unger Sorum, 20, has made quite the jump in his second year in North America, more than tripling his point production from his rookie year in the AHL.
The Swedish winger led the Chicago Wolves in scoring with 16 goals and 63 points in 69 games.
The 2023 second-round pick is a cerebral playmaker who excels with the puck on his stick. He has tremendous vision and is able to create time and space with ease.
While not the biggest player, he's unafraid of going into the corners either and has proven that he's capable of elevating his game in North America.
Stay updated with the most interesting Carolina Hurricanes stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - APRIL 03: Josh Smith #8, Josh Jung #6, Evan Carter #32, Sam Haggerty #0, and Andrew McCutchen #4 of the Texas Rangers stand for the National Anthem before the home opener against the Cincinnati Reds at Globe Life Field on April 03, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Texas Rangers lineup for April 14, 2026 against the A’s: starting pitchers are MacKenzie Gore for the Rangers and Jeffrey Springs for the A’s.
MacKenzie Gore looks to continue his early success against the A’s this evening. With former Ranger great Jeffrey Springs, a southpaw, on the mound, we have an odd looking lineup, though one that does feature Wyatt Langford, who is back in the lineup after missing the past three games with a quad issue. Langford is at DH, though, and looking at the outfield, I hope Gore generates a lot of ground balls.
The lineup:
Nimmo — RF
Langford — DH
Seager — SS
Burger — 1B
Haggerty — CF
Jung — 3B
McCutchen — LF
Jansen — C
Duran — 2B
8:40 p.m. Central start time. Rangers are -135 favorites.
Bisons are seen on a farm in Mecklenburg-Lower Pomerania, Germany, on February 16, 2026. (Photo by Emmanuele Contini/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images
6pm CT on ESPN+.
Just got home from work… let me put this up now and then edit, so you have something to comment on.
On the Mound (I’m guessing…)
Tuesday @ 6:00pm ESPN+
Vanderbilt #45 Fr. RHP Connor “The Canadian” Hamilton (1-0; 4.07 ERA)
ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Minnesota Wild (45-24-12) is back in action tonight for its final game of the regular season against the Anaheim Ducks (42-32-6).
Minnesota dropped its last game 6-3 in St. Louis on Monday. In that game, the Wild rested eight regulars.
The Ducks have two more games left in the season and are just one point up on the Los Angeles Kings for the third spot in the Pacific. They are also only three points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for first in the Pacific and one point back of the Edmonton Oilers for second.
Although the Ducks have clinched a playoff spot, they still have a lot to play for, like home ice in the playoffs.
The Wild, on the other hand, don't. It is already official that they will face the Dallas Stars in round one, with the first two games being in Dallas.
On that note, the Wild will again use this game to rest the same guys.
Kirill Kaprizov, Ryan Hartman, Mats Zuccarello, Joel Eriksson Ek, Matt Boldy, Quinn Hughes, Brock Faber, Marcus Foligno and Jared Spurgeon.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
