Author: MLB Baseball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

What else is there to say about Cristopher Sánchez at this point? The streak may have ended at 50.2 innings, but he’s still the record holder for the longest streak as a left handed pitcher and is one of five pitchers ever to have a scoreless streak of at least 50 innings. We will likely never see something like this again in our lifetimes.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• We finally have some more clarity on Aidan Miller’s injury, except that its bad news, as Miller will undergo a back procedure and will be out of action for roughly 6-8 weeks.
• As may have been expected, Cristopher Sánchez has been named NL pitcher of the month for the month of May, beating out Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski.
• The Phillies are winning despite their poor offense thanks to pitching and the efforts of their big three lefty hitters in Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Brandon Marsh. ($)

MLB News:

• Well, it looks like Nick Castellanos won’t be getting his chance for a revenge game after all, as it was announced he was designated for assignment yesterday by the Padres.
• The Yankees are holding their collective breath as Aaron Judge sees a specialist for a bone bruise in his rib that is causing discomfort in his shoulder.
• Tarik Skubal figures to be the biggest name bandied about trade rumors this summer. Here are 7 possible locations he could get dealt to. ($)
• I regret to inform you, but it looks like the Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki is putting it all together.

Nick Loftin chose a really good time to hit his first home run on the season.

The Royals found their resilience to go with a few desperately needed bullpen answers Wednesday night at Great American Ball Park.

Nick Loftin belted his first home run of the season in a three-run ninth as the Royals claimed the rubber game of the three-game series with a 5-2 win over the Reds.

It was just the sixth series-finale win in 20 tries this season for the Royals, who won their first road series since sweeping the Mariners in Seattle from May 1-3.

Loftin’s home run came after Michael Massey’s 10-pitch at-bat that ended with a tiebreaking single to right, scoring pinch-runner Tyler Tolbert – who was attempting to steal third on the pitch – to make it 3-2. All three runs in the ninth came off Cincinnati fill-in closer Tony Santillan (1-3), who took the loss.

Lucas Erceg is finally being moved out of the 9th inning… somewhat

As a result, Royals skipper Matt Quatraro announced before the series finale Wednesday that he will be making a change to the closer’s role.

“I think there’s two separate answers to that. In the short term, we’re going to match up, just based on who’s available that night and where we think the best avenue for us to get the win is,” Quatraro said. “But in the long term, I do think Erceg is a guy that we’re going to use in the ninth.”

Quatraro was careful to frame Wednesday’s announcement, making it clear that he won’t hesitate using the right-hander in higher-leverage situations. It just likely won’t be in the ninth if he feels he can use him earlier in the game. Erceg is 3-3 with a 6.45 ERA and a 1.97 WHIP in 24 appearances covering 22 1/3 innings this season.

Yandel Ricardo is tearing it up in Columbia currently.

It’s telling when a player goes 1-for-23 over a seven-game stretch and still has undeniably an impressive month. That’s what happened for Ricardo with Single-A Columbia, where he ran hot from May 2-13 (.325/.372/.675) and picked up a full head of steam of late (.455/.520/.864, two homers in eight games since May 24). The switch-hitting shortstop has already doubled his career home run high with four through 45 games for the Fireflies and is gaining plenty of momentum in his age-19 season.

Also in Columbia, Kendry Chourio continues to dominate as well.

The Royals’ No. 2 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 77 overall, Chourio turned in 5 1/3 scoreless innings on Tuesday in a 3-1 win over Fayetteville at Segra Stadium. The stellar outing lowered his season ERA to 1.46.

It’s well known the Royals need to change it up in the bullpen, Kevin O’Brien of Royals Keep spoke on it.

Luinder Avila had his best MLB start on Monday, O’Brien also talked about how he may be vital for KC

The Royals got outfielder Matthew Lugo, Caleb Moody of Kings of Kauffman talked about the acquisition.

MLB.com insider Mark Feinsand talked about the Royals trade deadline intentions after the slow start

Shohei Ohtani lowered his season ERA under 1.00

Christopher Sánchez’s long scoreless inning streak finally was snapped by the Padres

All-Star Voting is already happening

Mauricio Dubón has an interesting charm, and it’s working lately

CBA talks with Rob Manfred are happening

Aaron Judge to get more testing on rib cage

The Knicks took game one of the NBA Finals in San Antonio against the Spurs last night

Today’s song of the day is Hells Bells by AC/DC

Hello, friends.

The short-lived winning streak is over. The Orioles have a remarkable talent this year of really putting up a crushing loss right after putting something positive together for a few days. They’ve yet to win more than three games in a row this season. That will continue to be the case for at best several days more. The latest three-gamer came to an end with last night’s 8-1 loss to the Red Sox. Check out Alex Church’s recap of the game for more of the not-so-lovely totals.

The game was a return to some of the rougher parts of this season. Starting pitcher Chris Bassitt labored through three innings; there was clear concern about something to do with his health. After the game, manager Craig Albernaz indicated that Bassitt was dealing with lower back tightness. I’m sure trying to pitch through that was tough. There have also been plenty of games this year where Bassitt pitched badly and there was no indication of any kind of injury.

There was no immediate sign from the team whether that might be an ongoing concern for Bassitt. If they think he needs the injured list, they’ll probably pull the trigger on that immediately, so they can get an extra reliever for the next few days and bring up somebody who might be within the window where they can’t come back to MLB except if replacing an injured player.

Another unfortunately familiar thing about last night’s game was the downsides of playing the infielder Blaze Alexander in center field. There was at least one supremely botched play from Alexander that led to further Red Sox offense within an inning. Stop putting infielders in the outfield! It shouldn’t be hard. But the apparent fanatical devotion to trying to press the platoon advantage has continuing downsides. At least Alexander is hitting a little better lately, so he’s not a total lost cause out there, only most of one.

All of this came while the offense was facing a left-handed starting pitcher in young Red Sox starter Payton Tolle. The Orioles broke the winless curse against lefty starters a while ago, but they haven’t gotten themselves back to a good place just yet. It doesn’t feel a whole lot better with the knowledge that, unlike many of the lefties who’ve worked the O’s over this year, Tolle has actually been good. He has a 2.28 ERA following last night’s outing. Must be nice to just draft a guy like that in the second round and have him turn into a solid major leaguer within two years.

After last night’s loss, the team is 7-14 when facing a lefty starter. This is another enduring challenge for the team, represented most dramatically in the person of Tyler O’Neill. The right-handed batting O’Neill is hitting .106 against lefties this year. It’s unreal. He sits at -1.1 bWAR through 92 games as an Oriole.

As with any other loss, last night’s setback was just one game. The Orioles have a chance to make us feel better as soon as today if they can play a better game. Taking a road series by winning today in Boston would ease the sting of what happened on Wednesday. The problem with hoping for this outcome is Trevor Rogers, who has spent the 2026 season getting punished for every bit of good fortune he had in 2025. Or, more likely, he just hasn’t been pitching well. The recent improvement from much of the starting rotation has left him behind.

Don’t show up at 7 o’clock for the game. It’s a 1:35 start time in the getaway day. As of this writing, there’s no listed Red Sox starting pitcher. They may use an opener or something. I don’t know. I try not to spend unnecessary time thinking about the Red Sox.

Orioles stuff you might have missed

Samuel Basallo says one plate appearance led to his breakout. Here’s how. (The Baltimore Banner)
In Basallo’s recounting, drawing a walk on April 20 was the start of something great. From that game through the start of last night’s game, he was OPSing over 1.000, so the story checks out.

“No elephants in the room”: Orioles players detail the value of Pete Alonso’s leadership (The Baltimore Sun)
I’ll feel better about the $31 million a year once he hits some more dingers. But, everyone seems to agree that this sort of leadership is what the Orioles were lacking, and that’s worth something.

Next step for the Orioles: Play better on the road (Steve on Baseball)
The Orioles are 19-15 at home, and after last night, are 10-18. If they were .500 on the road, they’d be 33-29 instead. Things would probably feel better if they’d managed four more road wins.

Frederick outfielder RJ Austin’s calling card is versatility (Baltimore Baseball)
The draft picks ahead of last year’s third rounder have understandably gotten a lot of attention. This Vanderbilt product could still make an impact.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

In their 62nd game last year, the Orioles lost to the Athletics, 5-4, leaving their record at 25-37 for the season. Dean Kremer gave up five runs in 5.1 innings, which meant home runs by Dylan Carlson and Jackson Holliday weren’t enough. The 2026 Orioles are currently 29-33. They continue to remain four wins better than last year’s team. They’re going to need more improvement eventually or this thing will end up at 79 wins.

There are a few former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2009-10 pitcher Cla Meredith, 2012 pitcher J.C. Romero, 1986 infielder Ricky Jones, and 1954 infielder Billy Hunter. Hunter passed away in Lutherville last year at age 97.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: revolutionary war loser George III (1738), actor Keith David (1956), and actress Angelina Jolie (1975).

On this day in history…

In 1411, French king Charles IV granted a monopoly to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon for the process of ripening cheese in nearby caves. The legally distinct Roquefort cheese continues to exist in European Union law today.

In 1745, Prussian monarch Frederick II led his forces to victory over the Austrians in the Battle of Hohenfriedberg, part of the War of the Austrian Succession. This decisive victory was one of those that led to Frederick getting “the Great” appended to his name.

In 1919, Congress approved the Nineteenth Amendment, which would guarantee suffrage to women. The amendment was then sent to the states for approval.

In 1942, Japanese carriers began to attack an American base at Midway Island, the start of a four-day battle where the American navy sunk all four Japanese carriers.

In 1989, protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square were violently suppressed by the Chinese army, leaving as many as 10,000 dead.

**

And that’s the way it is in Birdland on June 4. Have a safe Thursday. Go O’s!

Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders:W, 6-3 (7) and L, 2-13 (7) at Syracuse Mets

Game 1:

2B George Lombard Jr. 0-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
CF Spencer Jones 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
SS Oswaldo Cabrera 0-3, 1 RBI, throwing error
DH Tyler Hardman 2-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R
1B Seth Brown 3-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
C Ali Sánchez 1-4, 1 R, 1 K
RF Ernesto Martinez Jr. 1-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 2 K
3B Jonathan Ornelas 1-4
LF Duke Ellis 1-3, 1 R, 1 K

Rafael Montero 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 K
Carlos Lagrange 4 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 7 K (win) — stellar first outing in the ‘pen, though it was more of a bulk start
Bradley Hanner 1 IP, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K (hold)
Peter Strzelecki 0.2 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 K, 1 HR
Yerry De los Santos 0.1 IP, 0 R (save)

Game 2:

SS George Lombard Jr. 0-2, 1 BB
CF Spencer Jones 1-3, 1 2B, 1 K
RF-3B Oswaldo Cabrera 1-3, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 K, 1 SB
DH Ernesto Martinez Jr. 0-3, 2 K
3B-C Tyler Hardman 1-3
2B Jonathan Ornelas 1-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
1B Seth Brown 0-3
LF Kenedy Corona 0-3
C-P Edinson Duran 0-2, 1 BB, throwing error

Zach Messinger 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 4 K (loss)
Eric Reyzelman 0.2 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 4 BB, 1 K
Dylan Coleman 2 IP, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K
Danny Watson 0.1 IP, 4 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 1 K
Edinson Duran 1 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 2 BB — if there’s a game to wind up having to punt, a doubleheader where you already won the first game ain’t the worst

Double-A Somerset Patriots:W, 4-2 at Harrisburg Senators

LF Jackson Castillo 3-5, 2 2B, 1 RBI
CF Garrett Martin 1-5, 1 K, 1 SB, 1 SB
DH Nicholas Torres 1-5, 1 RBI, 1 K
RF DJ Gladney 1-3, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SB
2B Connor McGinnis 2-4, 1 R, 2 K
1B Abrahan Gutierrez 2-4, 1 RBI
C Miguel Palma 1-4, 1 RBI
3B Kevin Verde 1-4, 1 R, 1 K
SS Owen Cobb 0-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K, throwing error

Cade Smith 5 IP, 1 R, 7 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR (win)
Chris Kean 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 K (hold)
Matt Keating 1 IP, 0 R, 1 K (hold)
Michael Arias 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB (save)

High-A Hudson Valley Renegades:L, 3-10 at Frederick Keys

2B Kaeden Kent 1-5, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
SS Core Jackson 0-2, 3 BB, 1 SB
C Eric Genther 1-5, 2 K, throwing error
1B Kyle West 0-4, 1 BB, 1 K, fielding error
RF Wilson Rodriguez 2-5, 1 2B, 1 K, fielding error
DH Roderick Arias 1-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 SB
3B Enmanuel Tejeda 0-3, 1 BB, 1 K
LF Josh Moylan 1-3, 1 2B, 2 K
CF Camden Troyer 0-4, 1 R, 1 K

Luis Serna 3.1 IP, 6 R, 4 ER, 5 H, 5 BB, 6 K, 1 HR, pickoff error (loss)
Bryce Warrecker 1.2 IP, 0 R, 2 K
Tony Rossi 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K
Wilmy Sanchez 1 IP, 2 R, 2 H
Brandon Decker 1 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 1 K

Low-A Tampa Tarpons:W, 14-5 vs. Palm Beach Cardinals

SS Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek 3-6, 3 R, 2 K, 1 SB
3B Hans Montero 5-5, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 BB
C Luis Puello 2-4, 1 R, 1 BB
LF Logan Maxwell 2-4, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 3 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 2 SB
RF JoJo Jackson 0-4, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 SB
CF Willy Montero 1-5, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 K
DH Engelth Urena 3-4, 4 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SB
1B John Cristino 1-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
2B Luis Escudero 0-5, 1 K

Wyatt Parliament 4.2 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 2 BB, 6 K, 1 HR
J.T. Etheridge 3.1 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 5 K (win)
Jose M. Rodriguez 1 IP, 0 R, 1 K

Florida Complex League Yankees: Off-day

Dominican Summer League Yankees: Off-day

Dominican Summer League Bombers: Off-day

On Tuesday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates took down the Houston Astros 10-6 on the road. Third baseman Nick Gonzales was a huge part of the Bucs offensive success against Houston. 

Gonzales went 3-4 with 3 hits and walked once. He has done a great job getting on base and producing in the middle of the lineup. 

 Gonzales leads the team with 65 hits after getting two more on Wednesday night, inlcuding a homer. He also has a batting average of .314 which is sixth in the Major Leagues. Gonzales may not show the most power, but he’s hit impressively well and held down third base this season. He now has 2 home runs and 29 RBIs, but with the high batting average and an OPS of .759,he has been a sneaky massive piece for Pittsburgh.

Players like Oneil Cruz, Bryan Reynolds, and Brandon Lowe are getting a lot of attention, but Nick Gonzales has to be the most underrated player so far. The Pirates are 33-29 and tied for second in the NL Central, and Gonzales deserves credit so far. 

Gonzales recorded his second three-hit game over his last three contests and added a season-high three runs scored in the Tuesday victory. On Wednesday, he extended his hitting streak to a modest five games and is hitting .476 (10-for-21) during the stretch.

The Pirates haven’t really needed Gonzales hitting as many home runs, as their 73 home runs shows, thanks to players like Cruz, second baseman Brandon Lowe, right fielder Ryan O’Hearn, left fielder Bryan Reynolds, first baseman Spencer Horwitz and others.

Gonzales has stayed consistent with his approach at the plate, and the Pirates are good with him and his performance, which isn’t hard to understand why with his strong hitting numbers so far.

The 27 year old deserves a lot more credit for the success of the team. The Buccos’ offense is much better this year than last year’s team, and Nicky G is a big reason because of that. If the Pirates want to be a playoff team this year and snap that 11 year playoff drought, they need him to continue to produce. 

Toledo Mud Hens 10, Iowa Cubs 2 (box)

Max Clark homered for the second straight day and the Hens crushed the Cubs again with a strong effort from the bullpen as well.

Troy Watson made a short start and did quite well against a pretty good Cubs lineup. He blanked them on three hits and a walk over 3.2 innings of work with four strikeouts.

Tyler Gentry opened the scoring with a solo shot in the third. Eduardo Valencia launched home run number 11 on the year to open the fifth, and it was 2-0 Hens.

In the sixth, Max Anderson led off with a walk and stole second base. Hao-Yu Lee smoked a sharp single to left that scored Anderson and took second on the play. A Trei Cruz single plated Lee for a 4-0 lead.

Ricky Vanasco took over from Watson for four outs, striking out two. Woo-Suk Go followed that up with a pair of perfect innings and three punchouts of his own. Tyler Mattison handled the eighth without allowing a baserunner either.

In the seventh, Max Clark cracked a 420 foot shot to right that left the bat at 108 mph. Yesterday he homered off a lollypop from a position player, but this was a no-doubter and over the past two weeks Clark has started pulling the ball with more authority. Good signs from the top outfield prospect in baseball.

Hao-Yu Lee doubled in Ben Malgeri and Gage Workman in the eighth. After walks to Cruz and Valencia, Jace Jung doubled in two and scored on groundout later in the inning to make it 10-0. Scott Effross allowed two runs in the bottom of the ninth.

Lee: 2-5, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B

Clark: 1-4, R, RBI, HR, BB, K

Valencia: 1-4, 2 R, RBI, HR, BB

Watson: 3.2 IP, 0 R, 3 H, BB, 4 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:38 p.m. ET start on Thursday.

Erie SeaWolves 4, Richmond Flying Squirrels 2 (box)

Kenny Serwa put together his best outing of the season, but it took a late rally for the Flying Tigers to comeback and win this one.

Serwa gave up a run in the third, but otherwise the knuckleballer was in full control. He fired five innings of one-run ball with a walk allowed against seven strikeouts. Wandisson Charles handled the sixth and seventh innings without allowing a run.

The SeaWolves had the leadoff man on repeatedly in this one, but couldn’t break through until the eighth. Bennett Lee led off the inning with a solo shot that tied the game at 1-1. Seth Stephenson followed with a single and stole second base. Brett Callahan flew out, but John Peck reached on an error and Thayron Liranzo walked to load the bases. The Dragons’ Mitch White walked Justice Bigbie to force in a run, and a Peyton Graham single made it 3-1.

Tyler Owens wild pitched in a run in the bottom of the eighth, so it was 3-2 Erie heading into the ninth. Stephenson walked with one out, and the speedy center fielder had no trouble scoring on a Callahan drive to center that got down for a double. Luke Taggart struck out three in the bottom of the ninth to earn the save, but only after allowing a pair of two-out singles that brought the go-ahead run to the plate.

Stephenson: 2-4, 2 R, BB, SB, CS

Callahan: 2-5, RBI, 2B, 2 K

Graham: 1-3, RBI, BB, K

Coming Up Next: The series is tied up heading into Thursday’s 7:05 p.m. ET matchup in Richmond.

West Michigan Whitecaps 6, Dayton Dragons 4 (box)

Ben Jacobs had a rough outing, but the Whitecaps rallied with a three-run eighth inning to win on Wednesday and even the series.

Andrew Sears started things off with a rehab start. He gave up a run in the first, but only one hit and no walks, with four strikeouts over three good innings of work. He looks close to heading back to Double-A Erie soon.

Jacobs succeeded him, allowing three runs in five innings of work with six strikeouts. Jacobs wasn’t hit hard other than a Jacob Friend solo shot, but three walks and some wildness in the fourth especially helped the Dragons out quite a bit.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Whitecaps took advantage of leadoff walks to Jackson Strong and Luke Shliger. Cristian Santana struck out, but Juan Hernandez walked as well, loading the bases. Woody Hadeen singled in Strong, while Andrew Sojka singled in Shliger and Hernandez to make it a 3-3 game.

Dayton scored one in the seventh to take a one-run lead, but in the bottom of the eighth, Hadeen and Penngton walked and Bryce Rainer strafed an opposite field doubled to score Hadeen. That tied the game, and then the Dragons couldn’t handle a Clayton Campbell pop-up and Pennington scored. A Strong ground out allowed Rainer to score and make it 6-4 where it ended. Jalen Evans tossed a perfect ninth to earn his first save with the ‘Caps.

Hadeen: 2-3, R, RBI, BB

Sears: 3.0 IP, ER, H, 0 BB, 4 K

Jacobs (W, 1-0): 3 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 6 K, HBP

Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:35 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 11, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels 5 (box)

A six-run rally in the eighth blew open a close game as the Flying Tigers took down the Mighty Mussels on Wednesday.

They jumped out to an early lead in the first as Jordan Yost led off the bottom half with an opposite field single and took second on a passed ball. Jude Warwick walked, and with one-out, Edian Espinal smoked a drive into the right field corner for a two-run triple. Espinal remains a very interesting story as the Tigers teach him the catching position while he continues to rake, now holding a .915 OPS on the season. Jesus Pinto, the other fast riser in Lakeland, reached on an error as Espinal scored to make it 3-0.

Meanwhile, Cash Kuiper was crusing through three innings. In the fourth, he couldn’t quite corral a comeback from Enrique Jimenez, last seen being traded by the Tigers to the Twins for Chris Paddack. An error by Carson Rucker followed, and then Hunter Dobbins took a catchers interference call. Kuiper wasn’t hit hard, but a three-run inning for Fort Myers followed from those mistakes, including another one from right fielder Anibal Salas, tying the game. Fort Myers added one in the fifth as Kuiper’s outing came to an end.

The Flygers answered back in the bottom of the fifth. Salas singled, and Yost walked before Warwick tripled them both in to re-capture a one-run lead. Warwick got a little greedy heading down the third base line and got tagged out, but they had the lead. Jan Carabello allowed Fort Myers to tie things up again in the seventh, but in the eighth Lakeland took control for good.

Yost was hit by a pitch and stole second base to start the inning. Warwick singled, and Beau Ankeney doubled them both in after a pretty epic 10 pitch battle. Fort Myers went back to the pen, but the new reliever hit Espinal before striking out Pinto. Nick Dumesnil grounded out, moving both runners into scoring position, and Rucker walked. Hunter Dobbins followed with a grand slam to left center field to put this one in the bag.

Warwick: 2-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB

Yost: 1-2, 3 R, BB, SB

Kuiper: 4.2 IP, 4 R, 1 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, K

Coming Up Next: The series is even at a game apiece heading into a 6:30 p.m. ET start on Thursday.

Apologies for the old school Today on PSA, but the editing night ran into morning rather quick this time around. The Yankees gave us a classic “just out of reach the whole time” type of game, giving up a run and then clawing it back just to give up another and stay barely behind. The series might be lost, but they could still salvage the finale and get a little momentum back for their upcoming matchup with their archrivals.

We’ve got a busy morning with a matinee getaway game, so let’s get into what’s in store beforehand. Sam starts us off with a look at the best defensive plays the Bombers made in the field in May, and then comes back to go through the Rivalry Roundup as the Tigers delivered a surprise sweep of the Rays. Jeff gives Phil Linz his flowers on his birthday and remembers his infamous harmonica story, Jonathan examines Ryan McMahon’s play in the last month and where he’s managed to make improvements, and Peter has the At-Bat of the Week featuring Paul Goldschmidt.

Today’s Matchup:

New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians

Time: 1:35 p.m. EST

TV: YES Network, Guardians.TV

Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

Questions/Prompts:

1. Who outside of the usual top of the lineup candidates can step up with Aaron Judge out?

2. Will Big G be able to hit the ground running when he comes back, or are you expecting a slow start?

MLB.com | Jason Foster: We’re six weeks out from the 2026 All-Star Game, taking place at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The official voting opened yesterday, and the Yankees feature a trio of strong candidates to start in Aaron Judge (if he’s healthy), Ben Rice, and Cody Bellinger. A desperately weak second base field may even open up a spot for Jazz Chisholm Jr., despite his own best efforts (last night notwithstanding). Pitching isn’t chosen by the fans but it’s hard to argue that the Yankees won’t have at least one starting pitcher included in the group as well.

SNY | Ben Pawlak: The course is not yet clear for the Captain. Aaron Judge will undergo further imaging on his chest and ribs to best identify the course of treatment for this bone bruise that has upended his season. Suffice to say Judge will not be in the lineup for Thursday’s finale with the Guardians, and I would put his status for this weekend’s brush with the Red Sox in doubt too.

The Athletic | Brandon Kuty ($): The Yankees announced they were moving Carlos Lagrange to the bullpen for Triple-A Scranton on Tuesday, seeming to put him on a fast track to debut with the big league club this year. With the performance of the Yankee bullpen, especially the higher-leverage arms needed to navigate the seventh or eighth innings, Lagrange’s success as a reliever becomes more of a need than a want. Camilo Doval doesn’t seem to have the consistency necessary for a high-leverage spot, and while Lagrange can hit the same velo, hopefully he can be more reliable as he gets tuned up for MLB.

Evidently, Lagrange’s 2026 bullpen debut went quite nicely.

New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: In all our Gerrit Cole excitement, it’s worth remembering that Clarke Schmidt is also rehabbing from Tommy John, and the right-hander has begun throwing bullpens at Yankee Stadium. Schmidt underwent surgery on July 11th of last year and will likely be able to face live hitters before the 12-month anniversary of the procedure. What his exact role with the Yankees will be is to be decided, but you always need more pitching.

At the beginning of this series, Mark Grace remarked that the Diamondbacks needed to take advantage of the starting pitching matchups in the first two games because – on paper at least – they favored the D-Backs. The first game featured a resurgent Eduardo Rodriguez against youngster Emmet Sheehan while the second one pitted the reinvented Michael Soroka against journeyman Eric Lauer. Grace’s recommendation was certainly heeded in the first game when Rodriguez went six innings and allowed just one run, but Soroka wasn’t quite able to take the baton the next night even if he ended stronger than he started. Frustratingly, the script flipped on starting pitching beginning with Shohei Ohtani and his otherworldly 0.82 ERA going tonight while Justin Wrobleski and his excellent 2.87 ERA will round out the series. As expected, the D-Backs ran headlong into the buzzsaw that Ohtani has been on the bump this season while Zac Gallen labored through just five innings and gave up five runs. There were essentially no highlights for the D-Backs tonight, just lowlights. Seriously, if you’re a Diamondbacks’ fan, go read a book or talk to a friend instead.

The vibes for the night started off poorly with Ketel Marte being scratched from the lineup late with “full body fatigue” that was later clarified to be more focused on his hamstring as Torey Lovullo explained that he would prefer to give him a day off today than push him through the pain. They did not improve through the night. After a scoreless first, Mookie Betts leadoff the second inning by reaching on a slightly off-target throw from Geraldo Perdomo that was immediately cashed in on a mammoth home run from Kyle Tucker off a flat Gallen fastball that sat middle-middle. The third also started with a pair of leadoff base runners with a walk to Ohtani, a double from Andy Pages, and a two-run single from Freddie Freeman. Max Muncy would add another run on a single that somehow eluded Gallen and Perdomo to reach the outfield and allow Freeman to motor around for a fifth LA run. Brandon Pfaadt came into the game in relief and failed to provide much confidence in his role moving forward. After collecting a couple quick outs, he loaded the bases on a Muncy double, a Will Smith walk, and an Alex Call hit by pitch that was again quickly cashed in by an Alex Freeland single up the middle that once again eluded the infield defenders.

Meanwhile, the Ohtani show was in full effect tonight. He extended his no-hit streak another 3.2 IP until Gabriel Moreno broke up his no-hitter with a two-out double in the fourth – one of just two hits and three baserunners the Japanese ace allowed over six innings of work. The D-Backs would muster just two more baserunners for the remainder of the game with a two-out walk to Jose Fernandez and a fielding error on a ball Moreno put into play on the left side of the infield. They did little to generate any baserunners and continued to struggle to find any kind of offensive rhythm after their latest sweep of the Giants. The team is now just 1-5 since leaving San Francisco and looking for answers on both sides of the ball. Thankfully, regardless of how ugly a loss might be, they count the same as a a big blowout. Hopefully the boys are able to shower and relax before going for a series split tomorrow.

PHOENIX –– Shohei Ohtani isn’t supposed to be making it look this easy.

Not after a second career Tommy John surgery. Not in his first full two-way season in three years. Not with the eyes of the baseball world watching his every move, wondering exactly how long he can keep this level of dominance up.

And yet, there Ohtani was on Wednesday night at Chase Field, looking every bit the part of “the best player that’s ever walked this earth,” as catcher Will Smith put it.

In a 7-0 rout of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Dodgers’ unicorn talent continued what has become a magical campaign thus far. 

He delivered a scoreless six-inning outing on the mound that lowered his ERA to 0.74 through his first 10 starts –– third-lowest that deep into a season since earned runs first became a stat in 1913.

If that wasn’t enough, he also went 3-for-4 as a hitter while drawing two walks, pushing his batting average back above the .300 mark for the first time since opening day.

“I’m pleased with where I’m at right now,” Ohtani, understated as ever, said through an interpreter.

There’s no debating Ohtani’s status as the game’s preeminent superstar right now.

After Wednesday, the bigger question is whether he’s also baseball’s best current pitcher, as well.

Granted, he doesn’t have –– and will not finish the year with –– as many innings as some of the game’s other top arms. He is still technically below the minimum innings threshold to be considered a qualified pitcher, albeit by only one.

Still, no one is preventing runs as clinically as he is at the moment.

At no point this season has his ERA even reached 1.00.

“I’ve noticed with Shohei, every run is a premium,” manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s literally trying to throw a shutout every time out there.”

He did once again on Wednesday, mowing through the Arizona lineup in a two-hit, one-walk, six-strikeout gem.

The right-hander retired the first 11 batters he faced, extending his hitless streak to 9 ⅔ innings dating back to last week’s six-inning start against the Colorado Rockies. He stranded a double that Dbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno poked down the first-base line with two outs in the fourth, in one of his rare moments of stress all night.

The Dbacks wouldn’t put another runner aboard until the sixth, when Tommy Troy walked and Geraldo Perdomo hit a single. But then, as if dialed up on command, Ohtani got Corbin Carroll to immediately hit into a double-play grounded that ended the inning.

He punctuated his pitching performance with a calm fist pump as he walked off the mound for the final time.

“He just has a really good feel for the game,” Smith said.

All that, and Ohtani also reached base five times (all three of his hits were singles) on a night the Dodgers jumped to an early five-run lead on Kyle Tucker’s two-run blast in the second and run-scoring singles from Freddie Freeman and Max Muncy in the third.

It isn’t supposed to be this easy.

Ohtani is making it look so anyway.

“I don’t throw 100, so I can’t relate or know what he goes through,” Tucker quipped. “But he’s given us everything he has every single time he goes out there, every single day. So he’s done a phenomenal job.”

What it means

The Dodgers (40-22) have won 16 of their last 20 games, and are in position for a sixth-straight series win entering Thursday’s finale of this four-game set.

Unsurprisingly, that run has coincided with Ohtani’s best stretch of the season.

For all he’s done as a pitcher, the four-time MVP has also rediscovered his swing as of late.

With Wednesday’s 3-for-4 performance, he is now hitting .435 over the team’s last 20 games with 16 RBIs, 12 extra-base hits and an OPS of 1.254.

For the season, it has raised his batting average to .301 (ninth-best in the National League) and his OPS to .941 (representing the league’s third-best mark).

“Honestly, I think his at-bats the last three weeks have just been better in total,” Roberts said.

Who’s hot

Ohtani, obviously.

The only real question is whether that’s more true of his bat or his arm.

On the mound, Ohtani has still yet to allow more than two runs in any of his starts this year. Wednesday was the fifth time he didn’t give up any.

Even more encouraging this time was his improved command in an efficient 89-pitch outing, which was only cut short because the score had gotten so out of hand.

After eight combined walks in his three previous pitching starts, he issued only the one free pass on Wednesday.

“Today was definitely a lot better than last time,” he said.

Ohtani still didn’t even seem to be at his absolute best with his arsenal. He leaned mostly on fastballs and sweepers, and only got nine total whiffs.

No matter. With pitch speeds ranging from 100.4 mph all the way down to 68 mph, he kept the Dbacks (32-29) off-balance, out-of-rhythm and unable to do much of anything.

He might have company in the Cy Young race. But he’s already well on his way to another MVP honor.

Who’s not

This category had belonged to Tucker over the past few days.

But after a three-hit showing Wednesday, it no longer applies for now.

Tucker’s home run in the second inning came on what he said was his best swing of the year: A 424-foot blast over the pool in deep right-center with a season-best 107.6 mph exit velocity.

“That’s kind of the swing I’ve been searching for the whole time,” he said. “It’s good to get that off and kind of carry that over for a few at-bats after that.”

Indeed, he lined a single on a low curveball in the third inning, then another on a low slider in the fifth.

It marked Tucker’s fourth three-hit game of the year, and got his average up to .243.

“I just felt he looked much more comfortable tonight,” Roberts said.

Up next

The Dodgers conclude this four-game series on Thursday, when Justin Wrobleski (7-2, 2.87 ERA) faces right-hander Ryne Nelson (2-4, 4.82 ERA).

After a pair of wild games that went in their favor, the Colorado Rockies aimed to secure a series sweep against the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday evening. Unfortunately, another lackluster outing from their starting pitcher and an offense that struggled to get going left them trailing early and failing to catch up as they lost 11-4.

Another Rough Outing for Michael Lorenzen

All hopes for a bounce-back performance for Michael Lorenzen in his hometown venue were quickly dashed as the right-hander struggled once again.

Things started ominously as Lorenzen walked Jorge Soler to start the bottom of the first inning. It was apparent from the get-go that he didn’t quite have command of his pitches and struggled to find the zone. After allowing a one-out single to Wade Meckler, Lorenzen escaped the first inning unscathed to strand the two runners on base.

Then the second inning happened.

As Lorenzen continued to search for comfort, moving around the rubber and lengthening his extension, the Angels kicked things off with back-to-back singles from Donovan Walton and Nick Madrigal before Jose Siri laced an RBI double to left field. A wild pitch then allowed Madrigal to score, followed by an RBI single from Logan O’Hoppe to give the Angels a 3-0 lead.

Lorenzen finally got the first out of the inning thanks to an ABS challenge from Hunter Goodman that secured a strikeout of Soler.

Mike Trout then drew a walk, but Lorenzen got a strikeout out of Meckler for the second out of the inning. However, Vaughn Grissom placed a ground ball into left field for a hit that resulted in a run when a throw from Sterlin Thompson wasn’t handled by Goodman, giving the Angels a 4-0 lead, and allowing both trail runners to move up to scoring position.

Another wild pitch scored the Angels’ fifth run, followed by an Oswald Peraza single to make it 6-0. The inning finally ended on a flyout to center field from Walton.

Lorezen tossed 61 pitches through the first two innings, the highest number in his career, but manager Warren Schaeffer stuck with him in the hopes he could just eat some innings. Lorenzen tried to oblige with a quick third, but his night came to an early end when Grissom hit a two-run homer in the fourth to make it an 8-1 game.

“He was obviously behind in counts, left some balls up, and didn’t put the ball where he wanted to.” Schaeffer said after the game. “His command was shaky.”

Lorenzen ended up going just 3.1 innings, allowing eight runs on 10 hits while issuing just two walks and striking out five. He threw 85 pitches, 52 of which were strikes.

“He’s in a period of searching right now,” said Schaeffer. “I have extreme confidence in him that he’s going to come out of it. He’s done it before.”

Offense musters a couple of two-out knocks

It’s been a common theme for the Rockies’ offense to start slow this season, and tonight was another instance of that stereotype.

Facing rookie right-hander Walbert Ureña, the Rockies had a tough task getting things rolling. Through the first 4.2 innings, Colorado had no hits and just one baserunner. Finally, Goodman secured the first hit with a double to center field on a chest-high sinker. Troy Johnston then followed up with an RBI double of his own to get the Rockies on the board, trailing 6-1 at the time.

The Rockies continued trying to make the game interesting in the next inning. Edouard Julien drew a one-out walk, one of three that Ureña allowed. After Jake McCarthy struck out, Tyler Freeman delivered another clutch hit with two outs, tucking a two-run home run beyond the left field wall to make it 8-3. For Freeman, it was his third home run of the season.

That was all the Rockies could muster against Ureña, however, as he ended up allowing just three runs on three hits while striking out seven batters. The Rockies made him work, throwing 99 pitches, but they weren’t able to capitalize and do more damage against him.

After a scoreless seventh inning against former Rockie Drew Pomeranz, reigning NL Rookie of the Month TJ Rumfield got something started for the Rockies with a one-out double in the eighth inning. After Goodman moved him over to third on a groundout, Johnston delivered another two-out hit to drive in Rumfield to make it 11-4.

Aside from a two-out double by Julien, the Rockies went quietly in the ninth to end the game.

The Rockies managed seven hits, including four extra-base hits, but also went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position. They also struck out nine times and drew three walks.

Bullpen and defense clocks in

Keegan Thompson ended up replacing Lorenzen in that fourth inning as the bullpen clocked in to eat a bulk of innings.

He ended up working 2.2 innings, allowing five runs on three hits with three strikeouts, throwing 30-of-45 pitches for strikes. He left the game with the Rockeis trailing 11-3, but things could have looked much more dire had it not been for a couple of stellar defensive plays in the outfield.

The first batter he faced in the fourth inning lofted a ball deep to center field that would have been a triple at least if it had hit off the wall, but the speedy McCarthy tracked it down with a leaping grab.

The following inning, Trout sent a ball to left field that looked just high enough for a two-run home run, but Sterlin Thompson made a leaping grab to rob the hit and end the inning.

Seth Halvorsen fired a scoreless seventh inning, allowing one hit and recording a strikeout. He then gave way to rookie TJ Shook, who threw just five pitches for a 1-2-3 eighth inning.

In total, the Rockies’ pitching staff gave up 16 hits and had eight strikeouts against three walks. The bullpen alone allowed just three runs on six hits over 4.2 innings with three strikeouts and a walk.

Up Next

The Rockies head back home, where they will enjoy the day off on Thursday.

The Milwaukee Brewers come to town for a weekend series starting Friday with Ryan Feltner (2-1, 4.85 ERA) making his second start since returning from the injured list. Brandon Sproat (1-4, 6.24 ERA) takes the hill for the Brew Crew.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 pm MDT. See you then!

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Shohei Ohtani continued to dazzle on the mound, and the Dodgers gave him plenty of early run support as they shut out the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-0 on Wednesday.

The Dodgers started the scoring with a two-run home run for a second consecutive game, this time being Kyle Tucker launching his first home run since May 4 to give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning.

Freddie Freeman added another pair of RBI on an opposite-field single in the top of the third to make it a 4-0 lead. Freeman added another hit in the seventh inning and is now 5-15 (.333 average) with a home run and five RBI over the three games at Chase Field this week. Max Muncy drove home Freeman with a single up the middle to give the Dodgers their first three-run inning of the series and make it a five-run lead.

While the Dodgers didn’t score in the top of the fourth, they continued to make Zac Gallen earn every out. Gallen had tossed just six pitches in the first inning and 20 combined over his first two innings, but he combined for 70 pitches over his next three innings— 32, 24 and 14 pitches respectively. Gallen has now allowed nine runs (eight earned runs) over nine innings against the Dodgers this season.

As for Shohei Ohtani on the mound, he was perfect against the Diamondbacks lineup the first time around while racking up three strikeouts. He was one out away from 10 straight hitless innings since last week, but Gabriel Moreno spoiled the no-hit bid with a two-out, two-strike double down the right field line to give Arizona their first hit. Ohtani got out of the jam by getting Nolan Arenado to ground out.

Ohtani faced the most trouble on the mound in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he allowed a walk and a single to Tommy Troy and Geraldo Perdomo respectively to put two men on base for the first time on the night. Ohtani quickly got out of the jam, getting Corbin Carroll to ground into an inning-ending double play to give the two-way superstar another quality start.

Ohtani has now allowed just two hits and one run while striking out 13 over his last two starts, while Wednesday marked the fifth scoreless start of the year. Ohtani now lowers his ERA on the year to 0.74, the best among all starting pitchers with at least 60 innings.

While Ohtani dazzled on the mound, he reached base five times on a pair of walks and three singles. After May 11, Ohtani’s batting average stood at just .233, but since May 12, Ohtani has multiple hits in 11 of his last 19 games, raising his season average to .301.

Kyle Tucker added a pair of singles to accompany his two-run home run, giving him his first three-hit game since May 17 against the Angels.

Alex Freeland has been hitting well since being called back up from Triple-A, as he collected three hits and added two RBI on a single in the top of the seventh to make it a 7-0 Dodger lead. Freeland is now 6-17 (.353 average) with a home run and four RBI in six games back at the big league level.

With the San Diego Padres dropping their series against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Dodgers division lead now grows to seven games. The Dodgers now join the Atlanta Braves as the only two teams in baseball with at least 40 wins on the year.

Game particulars

• Home runs— Kyle Tucker (5)
• WP— Shohei Ohtani (6-2): 6 IP, 2 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts
• LP— Zac Gallen (3-5): 5 IP, 8 hits, 5 runs (4 earned runs), 2 walks, 1 strikeout

Up next

The Dodgers look to take the series as they wrap things up in Arizona on Thursday (6:40 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA) before heading back home for a three-game set against the Angels. Justin Wrobleski faces Ryne Nelson.

After a 3-2 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in the series opener, the San Diego Padres designated Nick Castellanos for assignment. They called up Samad Taylor from the Triple-A affiliate, the El Paso Chihuahuas.

No buzz, no headlines, but Taylor deserves the opportunity, as he is tearing up the minors. Before his call-up, he was hitting .319/.406/.500 with seven HR and 25 RBI in 51 games. 

Castellanos failed to produce

The Castellanos decision brings a sigh of relief to the Friar Faithful. He was expected to hit for average and drive in runs, but neither happened as the organization hoped. Castellanos struggled, as he batted .191/.221/.339 in 39 games. 

His career numbers (.270/.319/.462 with 24 HR and 88 RBI) suggested he could have a bounce-back season with the Padres. The organization should have taken a closer look at the significant production drop-off in Castellanos’ final season with the Phillies. Hitting .250/.294/.400 with 17 HR and 72 RBI in 147 games did not merit keeping his questionable outfield glove in the lineup.

Who is Samad Taylor, and what is his role with the Padres

The Cleveland Guardians drafted Taylor in the 10th round of the 2016 MLB Draft. He played in the Toronto Blue Jays organization before making his major league debut with the Kansas City Royals in 2023. Taylor also played in the majors with the Seattle Mariners in 2024-25. In January, he signed as a minor league free agent with the Friars. 

The Padres consider Taylor a versatile player, as his primary position is second base, but he can play the other infield positions and all three outfield spots. Plus, the organization believes the 27-year-old Corona, Calif. native can become an important late-inning base-stealing threat off the bench. Taylor has 282 stolen bases in 883 minor league games. 

The Friars’ lineup has too many holes to wait for Castellanos to get hot at the plate. The fit was never right. 

Out goes the former slugger, and in comes Taylor.

Sidelined with a calf strain since April 24, Giancarlo Stanton resumed live hitting Wednesday.

The 36-year-old Stanton took three at-bats against Angel Chivilli (right shoulder discomfort) for the first time since straining his right calf while running the bases during a game against the Astros earlier this season.

Only soft ground balls to the left side — outside of one foul ball — came off Stanton’s bat.

Outfielder Jasson Domínguez also participated in the pregame activity. Projected to begin a minor league rehab assignment Friday, Domínguez continues to work his way back from an AC joint sprain in his left shoulder he sustained May 7.

“Good to get the reps and get outside and do that,” manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees’ 5-4 loss to the Guardians. “Good day. I think we’re going to do that again Saturday with Giancarlo, with the expectation that Jason will start his rehab on Friday.”

The Yankees optioned Domínguez to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to start the regular season. After he was recalled April 27 in the wake of injuries to Stanton and Luis Gil, Domínguez suffered his own injury after crashing into the wall in left field and had to be carted off.

Both players’ progression is an encouraging development for the Yankees, who are still waiting on an official timeline for Aaron Judge’s return from a bone bruise in his upper rib cage.

The Yankees will miss their top slugger no matter how much time he misses, but Stanton’s return to the lineup would certainly help alleviate some of the offensive burden.

Stanton has exclusively been deployed as a designated hitter so far this season to manage his workload.

His .256 batting average is also ranked sixth on the team among players who have appeared in at least 20 games so far this season.

Carlos Lagrange, who was recently shifted to the bullpen at SWB and could potentially help the Yankees down the stretch, threw four scoreless innings, struck out seven batters and walked two during his first relief appearance Wednesday.

He hit 101.4 mph, according to YES Network.

Boone said Max Fried — out since mid-May with a left elbow bone bruise — will continue to ramp up his throwing program at 75 feet, progress to 90 and potentially be set for re-imaging later next week, which will determine if the lefty can progress to throwing off a mound.