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You can’t win if you don’t score.

For the second time this season, the Royals failed to score a run in a game. A 2-0 loss to the White Sox drops Kansas City to 5-8.

It’s the Royals’ third straight loss, and in that time, the offense has averaged a single run per game.

Tonight, the Royals faced lefty Anthony Kay, who came it having not yet reached five innings in an outing sporting a FIP near seven while not winning a Major League game since 2021.

He looked dominant tonight. Against left-handed batters, he retired all seven he faced with six strikeouts. He pitched 5-and-2/3 innings, allowing only three hits and two walks. His offense didn’t give him much against Seth Lugo, but tonight, Kay didn’t need much help.

Lugo continued his strong season with 6-and-1/3 innings while allowing two runs (only one earned) while striking out four. He allowed four hits and walked four.

He also benefited from some stellar defense from Maikel Garcia:

And from Bobby:

The White Sox scored their first run in the top of the fourth when Colson Montgomery doubled home Munetaka Murakami. Lane Thomas took a very curious route to the ball, not only failing to catch it but also allowing it to get by him and reach the wall.

The scored remained 1-0 until the seventh when Luisangel Acuna hit a sacrifice fly to right off John Schreiber, allowing Andrew Benintendi to come home.

Royals batters only managed five hits for the night, the best of them a 113-MPH line drive off the left field wall by Bobby Witt Jr. for a double. Another foot or so higher and it would’ve been a home run. Aside from that, the Royals managed four other hits—another by Bob, two by Garcia, and one by Thomas. They also managed four walks, including one to start the ninth.

In the end, the Royals stranded 11 baserunners while going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

Mother Nature pending, they’ll get another crack at the White Sox tomorrow night as they look to snap their three-game skid and even up the series.

For six-plus innings Thursday night, Nolan McLean dazzled at Citi Field. He allowed just a pair of hits and his stuff was especially filthy, as Arizona hitters were largely overmatched.

But lefty Eduardo Rodríguez was nearly as good for the Diamondbacks, and when McLean faltered in the seventh inning, Luke Weaver came in and got knocked around, as the Mets lost their second straight, 7-1.

McLean’s performance was about the only thing that went right for the Mets on another chilly night in Queens.

The right-hander faced just two batters over the minimum heading into the seventh before a leadoff walk to Geraldo Perdomo to start the inning. After a strikeout of Adrian Del Castillo, McLean’s eighth of the night, he gave up a single to Jose Fernandez and was yanked after a career-high 100 pitches.

And that’s when the game was lost, with the bullpen and defense falling apart late.

Weaver entered having allowed just three base runners in five innings over five appearances, but he gave up a game-tying double to right to pinch-hitter Gabriel Moreno that Brett Baty couldn’t catch up to. Baty, still new to right field, pulled up short of the fence in right and the ball hit off the fence.

“I felt I got a good read on it and tried to get back there [quickly] to find the wall,’’ said Baty, who added it was the first time he’s had a play like that. “I’m still working hard to get some experience with wall balls. … I think they’re extremely hard, but I’m gonna do everything I can to catch those. I’ll run through the wall if I have to.”

Hopefully it doesn’t come to that. But in this one, the inability to come up with a catch led to a loss, as Alek Thomas then grounded to first with the infield in and Mark Vientos made a poor throw home, which allowed Fernandez to score to give Arizona the lead.

A Tim Tawa sacrifice fly added another run, and Jorge Barrosa continued the rally with a triple to right to make it 4-1.

Weaver left to a chorus of boos following the four-run outburst.

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Luis García was even worse, as the right-hander gave up three runs in the eighth, with the Diamondbacks putting the game away.

The lineup didn’t give the pitchers any margin for error, mostly silent outside of one swing from Luis Robert Jr. in the bottom of the first. His two-out solo homer was the first earned run scored off Rodríguez this year — and the last the Mets would score on the night.

They threatened with two outs in the third when Bo Bichette singled and Robert walked. Vientos followed with a liner up the middle, but second baseman Ketel Marte was shaded that way and made the catch.

Another potential rally arose in the fifth. Tyrone Taylor opened with a double to left and moved to third on Francisco Lindor’s grounder to shortstop. After Bichette walked, Rodríguez got Robert looking and Vientos grounded out to third to keep it a one-run game.

Still, the Mets held the lead to open the seventh and had their high-leverage relievers ready to go. But Weaver and García combined to give up five runs while getting just three outs.

Weaver said his tough outing was more painful considering how well McLean pitched.

“It adds a little more sting,’’ Weaver said. “He deserved the win there.”

If Wednesday’s offensive disappointment was pinned on Ryan McMahon, who heard boos on a rough day during a rough start, Austin Wells might have been the face of Thursday’s frustration.

What amounted to the Yankees’ best rally of the game — putting two runners on base in the seventh inning, Giancarlo Stanton drawing a walk and Ben Rice connecting for the club’s first hit of the afternoon — ended with Wells flying out on an afternoon the Yankees fell 1-0 to the A’s in The Bronx.

The entire bottom of the order is an early problem for the Yankees, but the struggles of Wells stand out in part because he is not experimenting with a radically different stance (like McMahon) or serving as a fill-in until a reinforcement arrives (like José Caballero) or owning a stellar track record that suggests he will come around (like Jazz Chisholm Jr.).

Wells arrived in the majors a couple of years ago with a reputation as a strong hitter who needed to work on his catching defense. He has emerged as an excellent framer and game-caller, but his bat has only flashed the kind of hitter he can become.

Those flashes have not appeared in the early going this season. Since tallying two hits on Opening Day, Wells has gone 3-for-27 with two singles, a double, four walks and 11 strikeouts.

In a reminder that the season is still in its infancy, Wells shrugged off the slump and was happy with the process that he feels will yield results.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

“I feel pretty good [at the plate],” said Wells, who swung through a fastball for a strikeout in the third, grounded out in the fifth and made decent contact with his seventh-inning flyout. “Swinging at the right pitches. I’m just not getting much results. So, keep going.”

His manager, too, thought Wells’ swings were improving even if they were ending similarly.

“A little better, actually. He’s been one of those guys struggling a little bit,” Aaron Boone said after the Yankees were shut out for the first time this season. “The last AB there, where we had a couple runners on, I thought he put together a pretty good at-bat and got some good swings off.”

The Yankees are only about 7 percent of the way into their season, and early April numbers often are forgotten. Plus, the Yankees are generally winning and Wells’ mind and defense are significant factors in the club’s rotation excellence thus far.

But the Yankees also consistently praise what J.C. Escarra can become and insist that Rice could be a major league catcher. So if Wells does not hit, there are other options.

“I feel like there’s been some games where he’s had some quality at-bats,” Boone said, “but obviously we got to get it more consistent, start getting some results. Obviously, he’s a guy that drives the ball as well.”

Iowa Cubs

Rained out. Doubleheader starting at 5:08 tomorrow.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies knocked the Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels) out of orbit, 8-7.

The Trash Pandas jumped all over Smokies starter Luis Martinez-Gomez with two runs in the first, one in the second and two more in the third. The final line on Martinez-Gomez was five runs on five hits over four innings. He walked two, struck out one and gave up a two-run home run in the third inning.

Vince Reilly pitched the eighth and ninth innings and got the win. He did not allow a hit or a run, although he did walk one. He faced the minimum thanks to a fantastic diving catch and double play by third baseman Karson Simas. Reilly struck out two.

The Smokies trailed this game 7-0 after five and a half innings, but they scored three in the bottom of the sixth and five in the bottom of the eighth to stage an improbably comeback.

First baseman Devin Ortiz hit a three-run double in the sixth. He also chipped in an RBI single in the eighth. His final line was 2 for 4 with the double and four RBI. He scored once.

Shortstop Jefferson Rojas hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth to give the Smokies the lead. It was Rojas’ third home run this year. He was 1 for 4 with a walk.

Left fielder Jordan Nwogu went 2 for 4 with a triple.

Here’s the Rojas home run.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were demoted by the Peoria Chiefs (Cardinals), 5-3.

Kevin Valdez made his season debut tonight by pitching 3.2 scoreless innings to start the game. Valdez allowed three hits. He struck out five and walked two.

Ethan Flanagan’s season debut could have gone better. After Grayson Moore gave up two runs in relief and South Bend tied it back up, Flanagan gave up three runs on five hits over 2.1 innings. Two of the five hits were home runs. Flanagan walked two and struck out three.

Catcher Owen Ayers hit his first South Bend home run with the bases empty in the fourth. He also singled and scored in the eighth. Ayers went 2 for 3 with a walk and the two runs scored.

Second baseman Drew Bowser tied it up 2-2 with a solo home run in the seventh. Bowser went 1 for 4.

Third baseman Reginald Preciado went 3 for 4. He singled home Ayers in the eighth.

Here’s Ayers’ home run.

And here’s Bowser’s blast.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were hypnotized by the Columbia Fireflies (Royals), 1-0.

There were only three hits in this game, two by Columbia and only one by the Pelicans, and the one run scored without the benefit of a hit.

Starter Dominick Reid dominated the Fireflies for five scoreless innings. Reid gave up just one hit. He struck out five and walked no one.

Here are some highlights for Reid.

Rowell Arroyo came on to pitch the sixth inning and allowed a runner to go to third with one out after fielding a dribbler in front of the mound and throwing the ball down the right line. The runner would score the only run of the game on a fielder’s choice. The final line on Arroyo was one unearned run on one hit over two innings. He walked two and struck out one.

Second baseman Jose Escobar singled to lead off the sixth inning. That was the only Pelicans hit of the game. Escobar was 1 for 3.

Josiah Hartshorn had the night off, so that didn’t help the offense.

It seemed like a solo home run might be enough. With Nolan McLean already having put up six zeroes, the Mets had a 1-0 lead as the seventh inning began thanks to a solo home run by Luis Robert Jr. in the bottom of the first.

McLean was dealing at the time, but he appeared to tire a bit in the top of the seventh. He issued a leadoff walk, got his eighth and final strikeout of the night, and gave up a single to put runners on first and second. Carlos Mendoza turned to Luke Weaver, who immediately gave up a game-tying double to right field. If the Mets had an experienced right fielder at the position, there’s a chance the ball would’ve been caught. But Baty didn’t come close.

With runners on second and third, Alek Thomas hit a sharp ground ball to first base with the infield in. Mark Vientos fielded it nicely, but he absolutely butchered his throw home as the go-ahead run scored. If not for a great pick by Luis Torrens on the throw, another run might have scored on the play.

But a sac fly plated the Diamondbacks’ third run of the inning, and a Jorge Barrosa triple scored Arizona’s fourth run of the frame. Two of those runs were charged to McLean, while Weaver got full credit for the other two.

The Mets’ bats remained silent from there, but Mets reliever Luis Garía dampened spirits further by serving up three runs in the top of the eighth. Richard Lovelady threw a scoreless ninth and wound up being the only Mets pitcher who appeared in the game but wasn’t charged with a run.

With that, the Mets are 7-6 to start the season, and they’re set to host the don’t-call-us-Sacramento A’s for a three-game series this weekend.

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Win Probability Added

Big Mets winner: Nolan McLean, +28% WPA
Big Mets loser: Luke Weaver, -51% WPA
Mets pitchers: -28% WPA
Mets hitters:-22% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Luis Robert Jr. hits a solo home run in the first, +11% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Gabriel Moreno hits a game-tying double in the seventh, -28% WPA

Nolan McLeandelivered a brilliant start, but after exiting with two runners on base in the seventh, the bullpen couldn't hold a one-run lead as the Mets fell 7-1 to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night at Citi Field.

The young right-hander was tremendous through six scoreless frames protecting a 1-0 lead, but was charged with two runs as part of a four-run seventh inning as Luke Weaver had his first bad outing of the season and spoiled what had been a dominant showing. McLean's final line: 6.1 innings, two runs on three hits and two walks with eight strikeouts on 100 pitches (64 strikes).

McLean lost the rematch of the WBC final in what had been a real pitchers' duel as the D-backs’ Eduardo Rodriguez took the win, allowing one run over 6.0 innings on five hits and two walks, thanks to three strikeouts and holding the Mets to 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. And on a cold night, the Mets’ bats were colder, with just one hit (a single) over the final four innings.

New York fell to 7-6 on the year as Arizona improved to that same mark by taking the last two games of the series in Queens.

Here are the takeaways... 

- The final numbers really don't tell just how good McLean was to start the game. He got three-straight groundballs to the right side of the infield in a 12-pitch first that saw him throw 10 sinkers to good effect against the left-handed bats at the top of Arizona’s lineup. Jose Fernandez, the first righty McLean faced, got jammed on a 3-1 sinker that was off the inside corner but muscled it for a one-out double in the second. McLean stranded him, getting ex-Met James McCann fishing on a curveball and Alek Thomas to bounce out.

McLean made it five straight retired, adding a strikeout looking as he froze Jorge Barrosa on a sinker that saw the visitors lose an ABS challenge. A leadoff walk in the fourth ended that run, but was erased on a 1-6-3 double-play before McLean froze lefty Adrian Del Castillo with a sinker that moved over a foot right onto the inside corner. 

The 24-year-old added two more strikeouts in the fifth on six-straight pitches, first bambooziling McCann on a sweeper away and freezing Thomas on a sinker on the inside corner. A bloop single off the end of the bat opened the sixth and McLean dug deep as he battled and won. A flyout to center, a strikeout looking as the curveball at the knees wiped out Arizona’s last challenge, and then another nasty sinker in and at the knees got a roar from the right-hander as he bounded off the mound with his seventh strikeout on his 85th pitch of the game.

McLean’s night came to an end in the seventh as he walked the leadoff man and gave up a one-out single up the middle, a liner off the end of Fernandez’s bat. And that proved costly.

Through three starts of the season, McLean has allowed six runs (five earned) on seven hits, six walks, and one hit batter with 20 strikeouts (16.2 innings).

- Weaver fell behind pinch-hitter Gabriel Moreno, before a low-and-away changeup was driven off the wall in right field over Brett Baty's head for an RBI double. The ball was hit hard and carried on Baty might have been caught by a more experienced outfielder. The baserunners seemed surprised it got over Baty's head as both were ready to tag up on the play.

Arizona had the lead when Mark Vientos spiked his throw home after fielding a sharp grounder to first. After a sac fly, Barrosa turned on an inside fastball and yanked it into the right-field corner for an RBI triple to make it a four-run seventh.

- Luis Robert Jr. gave the Mets an early 1-0 lead, turning a 2-0 cutter on the inside corner for a towering 412-foot bomb to right field. Robert came into the game with six hits in his last 14 at-bats (all singles) before just smoking the Rodriguez offering 109.8 mph off the bat. 

After walking his second time up, his 11th free pass of the year, Robert got caught looking at a sinker at the knees with runners on the corners and one out in the fifth, losing the Mets’ first ABS challenge in the process. He finished 1-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.

- Francisco Lindor entered the night in a funk, 7-for-47 with three extra-base hits, zero RBI, and a 77 wRC+ through 12 games. He went hitless in three at-bats against Rodriguez before muscling a ball off his hands into right for a two-out single off reliever Taylor Clarke.

- Bo Bichette, entered the game 5-for-13 against Rodriguez with a .923 OPS, lofted a two-out single into center with two down in the third. He added a walk and finished 1-for-3.

- Marcus Semien, after striking out his first time up, lined a leadoff single into left to start the home half of the fourth, but was left out there. He finished 1-for-4.

- Baty, the lone lefty in the Mets’ lineup, hustled out an infield hit to first with two down in the second and then stole second base, but was left stranded. He was 1-for-4 with a strikeout.

- Vientos, who made a nice play at first to end the first, looked to have a two-out hit with two men on in the third, but second baseman Ketel Marte was perfectly placed to snag the liner. He stranded runners at the corners to end the fifth, with a groundout to third. He went hitless in four at-bats with a strikeout.

- Tyrone Taylor, after getting the benefit of the doubt on a close 2-2 pitch, ripped a double that one-hopped the wall in left to start the fifth. He went 1-for-2 before being lifted for pinch-hitter Jared Young in the seventh. (Young grounded out.)

- Francisco Alvarez, who was DHing, caught looking at a good Rodriguez changeup that just caught the corner low and away and flied out to the edge of the track in right on a well-struck ball in the fourth. He went 0-for-4.

- Luis Torrens went 0-for-4, including a hard-hit liner right at the left fielder.

- Luis Garcia got touched up in the eighth with a double into the right field corner and an RBI double that one-hopped the wall in left, sandwiched around a walk. After a run-scoring groundout, Moreno hammed a Garcia sweeper into the gap in left-center for his second RBI double in as many at-bats.

Richard Lovelady closed things out by getting all five batters he faced. 

Highlights

Luis Robert Jr. with his second homer of the year to get the Mets on the board! pic.twitter.com/xz2FVZydGz

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 9, 2026

Call confirmed!

Nolan McLean gets his second K of the night as Jorge Barrosa's ABS challenge fails pic.twitter.com/mjomPm93WE

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 9, 2026

A FILTHY sweeper from Nolan McLean to strike out James McCann

45" vertical break
22" horizontal break pic.twitter.com/rKf50UAEdJ

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 10, 2026

Nolan McLean DOTTED this sinker to strike out Alek Thomas looking to end the 5th pic.twitter.com/A2QEm9ASwR

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 10, 2026

Nolan McLean with his 7th strikeout of the night to finish off the 6th and he's FIRED UP 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/p4xSvsGHAP

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 10, 2026

What's next

The Mets open a three-game set againstJeff McNeil and the Athletics. 

Clay Holmes (1.42 ERA over 12.2 innings) gets the ball against right-hander J.T. Ginn (5.14 ERA in 7.0 innings) for Friday's 7:10 p.m. first pitch.

Red Sox rookie Tyler Samaniego had one thing on his mind during his stellar MLB debut.

Samaniego, who struck out the side in the eighth inning of Boston’s 5-0 win over the Brewers on Wednesday at Fenway Park, said he was thinking about his late father during his first big-league outing.

“I was thinking about my dad,” Samaniego told MLB.com after the game. “I lost him [at 65 years old] at the end of the ‘22 season, and he’s the one that introduced me to this game.”

While on the mound, Samaniego was seen sporting a glove with “Rip, Pops” stitched on its side.

“I know he was out there with me,” Samaniego said. “It was just awesome.”

The southpaw joined some rare Red Sox history in his debut, becoming the first pitcher since Don Aase in 1977 to record strikeouts for his first three career outs, ESPN reported.

“I probably can’t say it on the microphone, but he would be fired up,” Samaniego said on how his father might’ve reacted to his outing. “He would have been ready. He would have come out here behind the dugout and would have had a beer.”

Samaniego, 27, was called up from Triple-A Worcester just four hours before the Red Sox’s first pitch, and his family was unable to fly into Boston in time for his debut.

“It started off as a whirlwind,” he said. “I found out about like 9:30 this morning because we had the noon game in Worcester, so packed the locker up and headed straight here. It happened fast, but it’s been awesome.”

Before being called up on Wednesday, Samaniego held a 3.38 ERA for Worcester through 5⅓ innings of work.

Samaniego, who was originally drafted by the Pirates in the 15th round of the 2021 MLB Draft, was dealt to the Red Sox this past offseason in a trade involving right-hander Johan Oviedo being shipped off to Boston in exchange for top outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia and pitcher Jesus Travieso.

Colorado Rockies (6-6) at San Diego Padres (6-6), April 9, 2026, 6:40 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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The Colorado Rockies left Coors Field on Wednesday night on top of the world. At 6-6, the Rockies are at .500 at the latest point in the season since 2022, they’re riding a league-high four-game active win streak, and their offense came alive against the Houston Astros.

Now comes the test: can the offense stay alive as they travel down to the Marine Layer to take on the San Diego Padres? The Padres, also at 6-6, are tied for second place in the National League West with the Rockies.

The Rockies will be going with an opener tonight, and the man for the job is one Jimmy Herget. The “Human Glitch” has been excellent to start the season. In five appearances over six innings of work, he’s allowed just one earned run on four hits, struck out six batters, and has yet to issue a single walk.

Herget is expected to give way to right-handed pitcher Chase Dollander for bulk innings. Dollander has now pitched in a bulk role twice this season. His last time out against the Philadelphia Phillies he worked 4.1 innings and gave up just one earned run on four hits and a walk with six strikeouts.

On the mound for the swingin’ Friars is the right-handed Randy Vásquez. Vásquez is off to a good start this season with just one earned run given up over twelve innings in his first two starts with 11 strikeouts. Against the Rockies, Vásquez has had mixed results against the Rockies. He holds a 4.30 ERA over six starts and has given up five home runs over 29.1 innings of work.

Vásquez has a hefty seven-pitch arsenal to work with. His primary pitch is a low-to-mid 90s four-seam fastball and he supplements it with a bevvy of breaking pitches. His go-to secondary for the young season is a cutter, and he also throws a sinker, a changeup, a curveball, a sweeper, and a slider.

First Pitch: 7:40pm MDT

TV: Rockies.tv

Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM; KNRV 1150 (Spanish)

Lineups:

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Looking to salvage one game of their best of four in Minnesota, the Tigers got a good start from Jack Flaherty and they wasted it. In the process, an outfield collision late in the game sent Parker Meadows to the hospital, though early signs are that he’ll be okay though likely to miss some time, and the Tigers slumped to 4-9 on the young season.

Well, if you had the Tigers, Mariners, Blue Jays, and Red Sox on your bingo card as the American League bottom feeders, you did better than most. The Tigers will finally come home for an extended stay at Comerica Park this weekend and through most of next week, with a chance to get right against the Miami Marlins and Kansas City Royals.

While the offense has drawn most of the criticism early on, it’s really been the pitching that the Tigers expect to lean on that has been the problem. That wasn’t so on Thursday. Colt Keith led off the game with a walk against young Twins starter Mick Abel, and Gleyber Torres lined a single to right field to set the table for the middle of the order. Riley Greene whiffed on a first pitch fastball and then took two called strikes, the final one earned on a Victor Caratini challenge. Kerry Carpenter followed him down on strikes, and Spencer Torkelson hammered a ball to left that James Outman ran down to turn the Tigers away.

Jack Flaherty got into trouble in the bottom half with a one-out walk to Trevor Larnach and a Josh Bell single, but Javier Báez made a great snag on a Matt Wallner hotshot up the middle, stepped on second, and while his throw was errant, Torkelson picked him up by tagging out Wallner to end the inning.

Once again, the Tigers got themselves into good scoring position as Zack McKinstry walked and Javier Báez dumped a single into center field. Parker Meadows and Jake Rogers struck out, and Colt Keith grounded out to end the inning and send steam coming out of most of our ears.

It’s not your fault though, Colt.

Flaherty worked through the second with the help of a strikeout of Royce Lewis and Jake Rogers cutting down Kody Clemens trying to steal second.

The Tigers got another runner on base in the third on a one-out double from Riley Greene. You know what comes next. Carpenter lifted a fly ball out to left, and Torkelson hit another ball hard, this time to Buxton in center field.

It just went on like this for a while. Báez doubled to center with one out in the fourth, and they stranded him too. Flaherty gave up a solo shot to Josh Bell to open the bottom of the fourth, but he rallied from there to put together a nice 5.2 inning outing with just one run allowed. He just didn’t get much help other than some early defensive work as noted. He departed in the sixth after allowing singles to Bell and Wallner, and then getting Caratini to fly out. Tyler Holton took over and Kody Clemens drilled a ball to center that Meadows hauled in to turn the Twins away.

Garrett Acton took over from Abel in the top of the seventh. He clipped Rogers with a pitch with one out, and Keith singled back through the box as Rogers hooved it to third. A Torres sacrifice fly got the run in to tie the game 1-1, but the big hit did not arrive as Greene sliced a drive down the left field line, where Outman made a nice sliding catch heading into the close wall in the corner.

Holton got into a little trouble in the seventh and you could feel this thing teetering, but he punched out Larnach to preserve the tie. Rather than taking some momentum from that, the Tigers were set down in order by Acton.

Then, in the bottom of the eighth, Will Vest took over. Bell greeted him with a drive up the left center field gap. Greene hauled it in but he and Meadows had a communication breakdown and Meadows kept coming, ultimately looking like they banged heads as they passed. Greene had it all the way and made the catch, coming through unscathed. Meadows was shaken up pretty badly and visibly bleeding a little from his mouth. The real damage came when he hit his head on the turf tumbling to the ground after contact by the look of it. He remained motionless though responsive for a long time before they finally got him up and on the cart to come off the field. It was pretty scary and the Tigers players were shook.

Báez took over in center field, while Kevin McGonigle, who had his first full off day to this point, took over at shortstop. We’ll have to wait for word on a potential concussion, but it certainly looked likely that Meadows will need a little time on the injured list.

Vest walked Wallner and Caratini singled to left. Vest settled down and punched out Clemens, but Vest was also sitting 93-94 mph with his fastball, which didn’t feel great. Lewis pulled a slow chopper to third for an infield hit, and Brooks Lee followed with a two-run single through the right side. 3-1 Twins. Lawd. Brant Hurter took over to get the final out.

Báez and McGonigle flew out to Buxton in center and Dillon Dingler struck out to end it.

Time to come home and re-group, Tigers. It’s been a bizarre start to the year so far. Only three teams in the American League have scored more runs as of this writing, and obviously the season just got underway, but the pitching has been wildly inconsistent, and they haven’t gotten it done at all in big moments in games so far.

The A’s had some bad injury lucky during their series finale in The Bronx on Thursday. 

Star outfielder Brent Rooker left the A’s 1-0 win in the middle of his first at-bat during the opening frame with what the team is calling right flank discomfort.

Rooker, a two-time All-Star, fouled off an 0-1 pitch from the Yankees’ Ryan Weathers during the top of the first inning and immediately grabbed at his side. 

Brent Rooker leaves the game in the first inning after this swing pic.twitter.com/Wa9l22D9kV

— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 9, 2026

He was then replaced at the plate by Lawrence Butler. 

Rooker, 31, is a key piece in the A’s lineup, hitting 30-plus home runs in each of the last three seasons. 

In 2024, Rooker enjoyed the best season of his career, hitting 39 long balls and driving in 112 runs en route to winning a Silver Slugger award.

He was off to a slow start this season before the injury, hitting .150/.250/.300 with a pair of dingers. 

It wasn’t all bad news for the A’s on Thursday, though. 

The A’s took the series against the American League East-leading Yankees before they head to Queens to take on the Mets. 

A’s starter Jeffrey Springs held the Bombers hitless into the seventh inning before Ben Rice spoiled the no-no with a one out single. 

That would be their only hit of the contest. 

A day earlier, the Yankees were held to zero runs from the second inning on during the A’s first win of the series. 

The win moved the A’s to 5-7 and dropped the Yankees to 8-4.

Welcome back to Thursday baseball. The game hasn’t even started and yet we’ve had our fair share of Royals news already today.

First, the Royals, among other teams, unveiled their new City Connect jerseys. Okay, then.

Next, news broke regarding a plan for a potential downtown stadium for the Royals set to open in 2030. Okay, then!

Lastly, some moves to the bullpen as two relievers are up and two are down. Fine.

Now, get ready for Game No. 13! The Royals are 5-7 after their first dozen games. Don’t fret just yet, there are still 150 of these things left. But I’d sure like to see the Royals win, if not sweep, this four-game series against the White Sox, which Max previews here.

Tonight’s game begins at 6:40 p.m.

For the Royals, Seth Lugo is on the mound. Lugo has pitched very well over two starts this young season, one against the Braves and one against the Brewers, which makes this, oddly, his first start against an American League team.

Against the Brewers in his most recent outing, he lasted only five innings as he threw 103 pitches, allowing four hits, two walks, and two earned while striking out seven. After he left the game, the Royals’ offense broke it open. The team is 2-0 in Lugo’s starts.

The Pale Hose turn to lefty Anthony Kay, who spent the last two years pitching in Japan. Already this season he’s started one game and appeared in relief in another. He’s walked (six) more than he’s struck out (five) over nine innings with a ghastly 6.96 FIP. He last won a game in the Majors in 2021.

To the lineups!

Look at that, an actual outfielder in left field!

After catching consecutive games, Carter Jensen gets the day off. Glad to see Cags in there against a lefty this early in the season. Aside from Lane Thomas starting in right, I like this lineup a lot.

Hey, look, it’s former Royal Andrew Benintendi. Cool. Great guy. I’ve never written anything about him that argues otherwise, so don’t bother looking it up.

Anyway, it cracks me up that he has the largest contract in White Sox history. Or does he? Did Murakami break it? Let’s sleuth. [Types into Google machine] Yep, still Benintendi at 5/$75m though Murakami earns more per year with a 2/$34m deal.

See you all on the other side.

Very little going on today, except a couple of minor MiLB notes:

Trey Yesavage went 2.2 innings for Dunedin this afternoon. The surface results, 4 earned on 4 hits and a walk, aren’t great, but all four hits were singles. More importantly, he got 10 whiffs on 20 total swings and sat 94-96 all the way through the outing while commanding his pitches. That suggests that he’s close to ready to move up, and probably only a couple of turns away from being able to go 80+ pitches. The Jays will evaluate how he feels and make a decision about his next appearance later this week. We might yet see him with the big club this month.

In that same fame, Jojo Parker recorded his first pro extra base hit, on a lined ground rule double:

Austin Voth and Josh Fleming have reportedly both cleared waivers and elected free agency. Both were clearly short term stopgaps in Toronto, and with Patrick Corbin now up and starting in Cody Ponce’s spot for the foreseeable future and Joe Mantiply tapped for Brendon Little’s former lefty specialist role, they’ll move on to seek greener pastures. Farewell Austin and Josh, we hardly knew ye.

Also, the Yankees lot to the homeless A’s, which foe all this has been a rough start the Jays can at least say they have not done. So that’s nice.

we’ll be back with actual Blue Jays baseball tomorrow.

The latest news on the Houston Astros and from around MLB:

Astros making roster moves:

While it would be franchise malpractice not to put Cristian Javier on the IL after he left his last start after just one inning with shoulder pain, there is some encouraging news:

Tatsuya Imai’s slider is unique, and that is what makes it special:

Astros pay their respects to Davey Lopes. The former second baseman and manager passed away at the age of 80 yesterday from complications associated with Parkinson’s disease.

Today in 1965, the Astrodome opened it’s doors for the first time:

The Tigers and Mariners are off to very suboptimal starts:

The Athletics pitchers probably can’t wait to move to Las Vegas:

Also, the A’s just shut out the Yankees 1-0. They haven’t shut the Yankees out and won 1-0 in over 46 years.

While Yankee pitching has been tremendous…

The Yankee bats have gone cold…

He’s a World Champion as a player, a World Champion as a manager, a lock for the Baseball Hall of Fame, and now an author:

The NL Central has more teams with winning records than the American League. Read that again.

World Series losses are hard to get over, even for the nice people North of the Border:

You don’t see this every day, even if it didn’t happen quite like it does in “The Natural”:

Now, if you’ve never seen The Natural: A) Shame on you. B) Here is the clip I am referencing:

When you steal 3 HRs in one game, the Baseball Hall comes calling:

It seems a little odd, to have the game on getaway day start three hours later than the rest of the series. But, due to the rescheduling of the games on Tuesday and Wednesday, here we are. Though at least the D-backs don’t have far to go. Google Maps tells me that Citizens Bank Park and Citi Field are only 111 miles from each other by road – 117 if you want to avoid tolls. Though I think the closest parks, discounting those located in the same city like the Mets and Yankees, might be the Orioles and Nationals. Again per Google Maps, those two are 38 miles apart. There was a lengthy dispute when the Nats relocated, about them encroaching on the Orioles territory.

This is the rubber game of the series, after the teams split the first two, and give the D-backs a chance to climb above .500 for the first time in 2026. It’s the fourth opportunity they have had to do so. But they have gone 0-3 previously and been outscored 29-7 over those three games. The most recent and closest was the opener in New York, where they got walked off, and here we are again. If past form is any guide, they should be optimistic, with starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez yet to concede an earned run this year. Discounting opener types, the record such streak to start the season is four games, most recently by Chris Carpenter and Zack Greinke in 2009.

Though the most famous such is probably Fernando Valenzuela in 1985. He didn’t allow an earned run until the ninth inning of his fifth game – and two of the preceding ones were complete game shutouts. That gave him a 41-inning scoreless streak to start the year, before a Tony Gwynn home-run ended it, also giving Valenzuela a 1-0 loss. For the D-backs, E-Rod’s 12 innings is the longest by a starter to open the year since Merrill Kelly went 14.1 innings to kick off the 2022 campaign. Though for relievers, Shelby Miller went 13.2 without an earned run out of the bullpen last year. We’ll see how far Eduardo can go today!