With numerous arms down for the middle match of a three-game set with the White Sox on Monday night, Carlos Mendoza knew the Mets were going to have to piece this one together to get through the later innings.
Tylor Megill threw well despite not having his best stuff. The right-hander allowed a two-run homer to the second batter he faced and was forced to work around traffic for the majority of the night, toughing his way through five-plus innings before being pulled after issuing a pair of two-out walks in the sixth.
José Butto then entered and escaped a bases-loaded jam for the second straight night.
Butto returned for the seventh and found himself in some trouble of his own doing, as a pair of singles and a double resulted in two White Sox coming in to score, making it a one-run ballgame -- but lefty José Castillo bailed him out, striking out Edgar Quero on just three pitches.
“Honestly, I thought he was good today,” Mendoza said of Butto. “We got a groundball and couldn’t turn the double play, the inning was over there pretty much -- but he came in with the bases loaded again like yesterday and got out of it with one pitch.”
Castillo started the eighth, but was pulled after allowing a leadoff single to Austin Slater.
Reed Garrett then entered and continued his tremendous stretch of pitching -- striking out the pinch-hitter Luis Robert Jr. and center fielder Michael A. Taylor, before closing the door with an easy top of the ninth.
It was Garrett’s sixth career save, and his second in the last three days.
With another scoreless appearance, he’s now down to an incredible 0.76 ERA on the season -- which is good enough for the fourth-best among relievers in baseball.
“All of his pitches were working,” Mendoza said. “The cutter, the sinker, the split, really good -- he got swing-and-misses with all of his pitches. He got ahead and put them away, when he’s doing that he’s pretty nasty.”
As a group, the Mets continue to lead the majors with a terrific 2.80 ERA.
The left-handed hitting slugger hadn’t appeared in a big-league game since 2023 with the Chicago Cubs, but David Stearns decided to take a chance on him this offseason -- handing him a one-year split contract.
Young impressed during spring training, but an injury set things back.
The 29-year-old eventually worked his way back into the lineup at Triple-A Syracuse and showcased the big-time power he displayed so often last season while playing with the Doosan Bears of the KBO.
He earned a call-up to the big-league team earlier this weekend and found himself inserted right into the lineup as the designated hitter for a big three-game series against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Young was relatively quiet, but Carlos Mendoza said pregame Tuesday that the team was happy with the at-bats he’s been putting together, and they were just looking for him to get into a groove and do some damage.
A few hours later, he was able to do just that.
Young kept the Mets’ first inning rally going against White Sox righty Jonathan Cannon, crushing a middle-middle cutter over the right field fence for the team’s second two-run homer of the inning.
It was his third-ever long ball and his first MLB hit since October 2023.
Two innings later, he struck against Cannon again, this time lining a double just out of the reach of Michael A. Taylor in the right-center field gap to give him just the second multi-hit showing of his career.
He finished the night 2-for-3, bringing his OPS to 1.083 through five games.
“He’s getting an opportunity back in the big leagues after grinding,” Mendoza said. “Whether it’s minor leagues going up and down or going overseas -- getting the opportunity here in the States, here we are getting a chance and he’s taking advantage of it.
“Like I said pregame, I like the at-bats and it was good to see him get results today.”
With lefty DH Jesse Winker still having a ways to go in his recovery from an oblique injury, Young figures have an opportunity to continue showing what he can do at the big-league level over the next few weeks.
After just a few days, he feels right at home with this group.
“It’s awesome,” Young said. “Looking at this team from the top down, it’s pretty good ballplayers and winning a lot of games. To get thrown into it, I feel like I belong and I feel like it’s a good spot and a good fit. And hope we can just keep winning some ballgames.”
Even when the Mets’ star outfielder drives a ball, it somehow finds its way into an out.
Soto came up with one out in the bottom of the first and smacked an 0-1 changeup from White Sox right-hander Jonathan Cannon into the gap -- and Michael A. Taylor made a diving attempt to catch the liner.
Taylor trapped the ball as it dropped in for an extra-base hit, but Brandon Nimmo -- who had already rounded second on the play-- thought he was able to come up with the catch.
As Nimmo began quickly racing back towards first, Soto danced out of the base path to get out of his way and the White Sox threw the ball back in -- stepping on second to record the second out of the inning.
After the umps had a brief discussion, crew chief Sean Barber told the crowd that Soto was ruled out for passing Nimmo on the basepaths -- and it ended up going down in the books as a 354-foot unassisted lineout to the first baseman.
Juan Soto was called out after Brandon Nimmo passed him on the base paths on a hit that was trapped by Michael A. Taylor pic.twitter.com/SUgy5DuEbU
Nimmo explained postgame that he wasn't looking at the ump for a ruling when he turned around, and has been going off of instinct since the Mets' wrongly called triple play a few weeks ago against the Nationals.
“When Soto hit it, I thought that’s down for sure for a double or better,” he said. “I went to go around the bag and had my back to the play and then I heard the crowd act like the ball was caught, so I turned around and went to get back to first base -- that's what happened.
"I went and looked at the play afterwards -- probably shouldn’t be so aggressive, maybe just watch the play a little bit more, that’s the quick fix to it. But still, I looked at the play and he caught it short hop, so I can see where everyone was confused -- just one of those plays that's unfortunate.”
Luckily for Nimmo, the rest of the Mets’ offense was able to pick him up.
After his blunder, they went on to string together five consecutive two-out knocks against Cannon, including a pair of two-run homers from Pete Alonso and Jared Young to push themselves back in front for good.
“I mean, what a great inning,” Nimmo said. “I think almost the whole lineup had a hit, so that was fantastic. Definitely glad that Pete hit the home run there, but the whole offense did a great job there in the first inning -- it was a great start.”
The Mets have signed infielder David Villar to a minor league deal, MLB.com's Anthony DiComo reports.
Villar was designated for assignment by the San Francisco Giants last week before electing free agency after clearing waivers. Villar appeared in nine games this season for the Giants, going 4-for-20 with a double, one RBI and four walks.
The 28-year-old infielder does have major league experience beyond this year. For his career, he's slashed .200/.292/.391 with an OPS of .683 in 118 career games all with the Giants from 2022-25. While Villar's primary position has been at first base this season, he has experience at third and second base in his career.
Villar has done well in the minors this season, slashing .368/.439/.439 with an .878 OPS in 15 games in Triple-A.
The Mets pushed their winning streak to four games with a 6-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night at Citi Field.
Here are some takeaways...
- The White Sox jumped out to an early lead on a Miguel Vargas two-run homer in the first, but the Mets responded right back in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs, New York put together six straight hits, including two-run homers of their own from Pete Alonso and Jared Young to make it a 4-2 ballgame.
It was Alonso's 11th homer of the season and Young's first MLB hit since October 1, 2023, with the Cubs.
- Prior to the hit parade, there was even more craziness, as the Mets appeared to run themselves out of an inning when Juan Soto was called out after Brandon Nimmo passed him on the bases on a hit that was trapped by a diving Michael A. Taylor in the right-center gap.
Soto scorched the ball, but based on the scorer's ruling, he did not receive credit for a hit.
- Young followed up his homer with a hard-hit double in the bottom of the third. Carlos Mendoza said earlier in the day that the 29-year-old had been putting together some good at-bats; they were just looking for him to start doing damage -- he certainly responded well.
- After being handed the lead, Tylor Megill put together a scoreless inning, working around a double. He was helped out by his defense in the third, as Soto made a nice play to keep Chase Meidroth to a single, and Chicago's leadoff man was gunned down a few pitches later on a strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play.
Megill put together his first clean inning with a 1-2-3 fourth, and then worked around a one-out walk in the fifth. He struck out a pair to get to two outs in the sixth, but a single and back-to-back walks loaded the bases and brought his night to an end.
José Butto entered and escaped the jam for the second straight game thanks to a Jeff McNeil running grab in center -- closing Megill's line with just the two runs allowed on four hits while walking four and striking out six across 5.2 innings of work.
- Butto found himself in a jam of his own an inning later, and this time he wasn't able to escape. After the White Sox strung together back-to-back two-out hits, a wild pitch forced in a run and then Vargas crushed an RBI double off the left-field fence -- a mere inches away from a game-tying homer.
José Castillo was called upon, and he quickly put the go-ahead run on base with a hit-by-pitch, but just like he did in the series opener on Monday, he responded to punch out youngster Edgar Quero on three pitches.
- Castillo came back out for the seventh and allowed the leadoff man to reach on an infield single before turning things over to Reed Garrett, who punched out back-to-back batters, including pinch-hitter Luis Robert Jr., to end the inning. He then breezed through the ninth for his second save of the season.
- The Mets' offense was held in check after their early success -- managing just two baserunners after the third, but they were able to break through in the eighth. Three two-out hits from Jeff McNeil, Francisco Alvarez, and Francisco Lindor brought in a big insurance run -- that trio all reached base twice on the night.
- Brett Baty was bumped up to the five spot in the order because Mendoza likes how he's been swinging the bat of late. The youngster responded by getting two more hits and two runs scored -- he's now hitting just under .300 since returning from Syracuse.
- The Mets have now won four games in a row and are an incredible 21-6 at home this season.
Game MVP: Jared Young
Many were questioning why Young received his third straight start at DH, and he silenced them quickly.
Highlights
Juan Soto was called out after Brandon Nimmo passed him on the base paths on a hit that was trapped by Michael A. Taylor pic.twitter.com/SUgy5DuEbU
NEW YORK — The Chicago White Sox traded Matt Thaiss to the Tampa Bay Rays and reinstated fellow catcher Korey Lee from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday.
Chicago received minor league outfielder Dru Baker from Tampa Bay for the 30-year-old Thaiss, who hit .212 with a homer and eight RBIs in 35 games with the White Sox. He had a .382 on-base percentage and .676 OPS.
Thaiss spent his previous six major league seasons with the Los Angeles Angels. He was acquired from the crosstown Chicago Cubs in December.
“Very professional,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “Very positive guy that clearly has experience in this league and understands how to help a pitcher navigate tough lineups, understands how to have quality at-bats at the plate. Was just a total pro for us.”
The rebuilding White Sox have a strong catching pipeline, leaving no room for Thaiss. Edgar Quero is off to an encouraging start after making his major league debut on April 17. Kyle Teel, acquired in the Garrett Crochet trade in December, is playing well at Triple-A Charlotte.
“Excited about bringing Dru Baker in here. This opens up development time for some of our catchers," Chicago general manager Chris Getz said at Citi Field before the White Sox played the New York Mets.
"I didn’t love having Korey in Triple-A with Kyle from a development standpoint, playing-time standpoint, so we were able to free that up a little bit. And now Kyle can be the primary focus at Triple-A, where Edgar and Korey can make a solid tandem for us up with our major league club.”
Lee, 26, had been sidelined by a sprained left ankle. He is batting .333 (5 for 15) in nine games with Chicago this year. He was available off the bench Tuesday night against the Mets, with Quero in the starting lineup batting fifth.
Baker, 25, was a fourth-round selection in the 2021 amateur draft out of Texas Tech. He has been on the seven-day injured list since April 22 with a left adductor strain.
Baker batted .245 with a homer and three RBIs in 17 games with Triple-A Durham this season. Now in the White Sox system, he will be assigned to Charlotte.
“Dru Baker offers speed and defense versatility. He’s a plus defender in the outfield, he’s got some history as an infielder. To be able to create some depth in the outfield was something that we found attractive enough to execute the deal,” Getz said. “I would imagine that at some point this year he could help us at the major league level.”
The addition of Thaiss gives Tampa Bay another catching option behind Danny Jansen. Ben Rortvedt has struggled this year, batting just .100 (6 for 60) in 25 games.
“They've been on the hunt to improve their catching for the last couple weeks, and we're in a fortunate position here with the White Sox where we've got some depth,” Getz said. “Matty did a nice job for us as well. You look at his on-base percentage, how he handled games behind the plate - he caught their attention and we were able to match up on a deal.”
Rays outfielder Jonny DeLuca was transferred to the 60-day IL to create an opening for Thaiss on the 40-man roster. DeLuca is coming back from a right shoulder strain.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) Bryce Harper took a knee and grasped his right arm -- the Phillies' star slugger's elbow was bruised, more than 40,000 Phillies fans stomachs were in knots - and the worst was feared as he took off for the tunnel.
“Whenever your top hitters, or your best hitter, gets hit like that," Phillies manager Rob Thomson said, “there’s always some concern.”
Concern, yes. Just likely not a long-term one for the best team in the major leagues.
Harper left Tuesday night's 2-0 win over Atlanta in the first inning after he was hit near the right elbow by a 95.3 mph fastball from Braves starter Spencer Strider.
Harper sustained a bruise, and an X-ray was negative, the Phillies said.
A two-time NL MVP, Harper took a few steps from home plate, dropped to a knee and gripped his arm in pain. Phillies athletic trainers came out to check on Harper, and the first baseman - who wasn't wearing an elbow guard - headed to the clubhouse.
“I'm not a complete sociopath, so I have some empathy,” Strider said. “I do feel bad for him, to see a person in pain that I caused.”
Thomson said Harper was in a lot of pain after he was hit and will be evaluated again Wednesday morning.
“He's a tough guy, too," Thomson said.
Strider was voraciously booed by Phillies fans when he left the mound as the inning ended and the jeers grew even louder when he trudged off the mound after 4 2/3 innings.
“Certainly not trying to hit him,” Strider said. “I thought in the moment, I just assumed he had a guard on and was just pissed that I hit him. Saw him in pain. That was tough. I'm definitely relieved he's OK. He's one of the best players this century. He needs to be on the field. It's best for the game. It's good for us, good to compete against him.”
Harper is hitting .267 with eight home runs and 33 RBIs. He batted .323 (10 for 31) with three doubles, one homer and seven RBIs in seven games on the Phillies' recent trip.
Edmundo Sosa pinch ran for Harper and stayed in the game at third base. Alec Bohm moved to first base.
“I was anxious, but happy there's no break, for sure,” Thomson said.
Harper was 3 for 16 (.188) lifetime in the regular season against Strider. Strider made just his third start for Atlanta since returning from a strained hamstring strain.
The 32-year-old Harper had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow following the 2022 World Series and returned to the lineup just 160 days after the procedure. Harper, in the seventh season of a $330 million, 13-year contract, recently had his 1,000th career RBI and again played a key role in the Phillies' surge to the top of the MLB standings.
Harper missed 53 games in 2022 after he broke his thumb when he was also hit by a pitch.
With Harper on a hot streak, the Phillies remain atop the NL East with a 35-19 record and they had won nine straight games before dropping the finale of their road trip against the Athletics. They were set to play two more against Atlanta before a weekend home set against Milwaukee.
“These guys have been playing well for a while now,” Thomson said. “We've been doing it in different ways. We really pitched tonight.”
Michael Conforto reacts after hitting a home run in the sixth inning Tuesday. (David Dermer / Associated Press)
For a few weeks now, the Dodgers have been in the “treading water” portion of their season, trying to work through injuries in their pitching staff and inconsistencies in the lineup to remain atop the National League West standings.
On Tuesday, in a 9-5 win over the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field, two of their coldest hitters finally gave them some comfortable space to breathe.
In a game that was close until the final few innings, Michael Conforto and Max Muncy both showed long-awaited signs of life at the plate, each reaching base three times and each hitting late home runs to help the Dodgers pull away on a cool night in Cleveland.
“It’s big,” manager Dave Roberts said. “It adds the length [to the lineup] that we expected coming into this season.”
For much of this year, that length had been missing, the Dodgers forced to navigate around subpar production from both veteran sluggers — both at the plate and in the field.
Entering the night, Muncy had just three home runs and a .653 OPS. Conforto had only two long balls and a .562 OPS. Their defensive play had been glaring weaknesses, as well, with Muncy’s eight errors ranking second among MLB third basemen and Conforto’s negative-three mark in defensive runs saved 12th out of 15 qualified MLB left fielders.
It had made the pair the weakest links in the Dodgers’ star-studded lineup. And it had invited widespread scrutiny from the fan base, raising speculation about their long-term roles with the team.
“Sometimes this game can be brutal,” Conforto said. “There's a lot of failure.”
Late on Tuesday night, however, both finally enjoyed much-needed success.
After the Dodgers built an early 4-0 lead — they mounted a two-run second-inning rally and got a two-run homer from Shohei Ohtani in the fourth; his MLB leading 20th of the season and third-straight game going deep — the Guardians had gotten back within 4-3 by the time Conforto stepped to the plate in the sixth.
For the last several weeks, Conforto had slowly started turning his season around, hitting the ball harder and posting incrementally better results (not that things could have gotten much worse after he batted .134 in his first 36 games this season). This week, Roberts said the club’s hitting coaches were optimistic about Conforto’s recent cage work, as well, ever convinced the left-handed slugger was close to a more profound breakthrough at the plate.
It all came together in a full-count against Guardians reliever Hunter Gaddis, Conforto barreling up an inside fastball for a 406-foot drive to center that marked his first home run since April 5.
“To hit a ball hard and see it leave the park,” Conforto said, “it's kind of everything that we've been working on.”
Conforto also singled in the Dodgers’ two-run second-inning rally, and later drew a walk in the eighth, raising his OPS to .833 over his last 14 games.
When he returned to the dugout after his no-doubt blast, both Teoscar Hernández and Kiké Hernández were waiting at the top step, showering him with fistfuls of sunflower seeds.
“I heard Kiké as soon as I hit the ball, screaming,” Conforto said with a laugh. “He's been awesome and the rest of the guys have been awesome. They've kept it fun while it's been tough."
Muncy, too, continued his own recent turnaround at the plate.
In the second inning, the third baseman drew a walk, got a good jump against Guardians starter Tanner Bibee to steal second without a throw, then got a good read on Andy Pages’ flare single to right to score the night’s opening run. He also added an infield single in the eighth.
In the ninth, though, Muncy finally found an important missing piece in his offensive profile, hitting his first home run in almost two weeks on a three-run shot that had him bat-flipping out of the box.
“My swings have been feeling really good lately, and just haven't gotten the power results necessarily that I wanted,” Muncy said. “I've been getting hits. I'm hitting the ball hard. Just haven't been getting it to go where I wanted to go. So that swing felt really good.”
Mistakes were still in abundance for the Dodgers (34-21).
The team’s second-inning rally was cut short after Dalton Rushing, an at-bat after hitting an RBI single, failed to avoid a tag near second base on what became a double-play grounder from Tommy Edman (another slumping hitter in the bottom half of the lineup lately).
In the fifth, Teoscar Hernández was slow getting out of the box on a line drive off the wall in right-center, and was thrown out by a mile after making an ill-advised decision to still try for a double.
And in between that, starting pitcher Dustin May hit his lone speed bump in a five-inning, three-run, nine-strikeout start: Offering up a down-the-middle sinker with two aboard in the bottom of the fourth that Daniel Schneemann crushed for a three-run homer.
“The swing-and-miss was there, just one bad pitch,” said May, who has three consecutive starts with at least eight strikeouts but has also given up home runs in each of his last five outings. “The long ball has kind of got me the last however many starts. Gotta try and figure out a way to limit that going forward.”
Nonetheless, the Dodgers still held off the Guardians (29-25) to clinch a series victory. Jack Dreyer and Ben Casparius provided three key innings of relief. Conforto and Muncy’s contributions made the two runs Luis García yielded in the ninth irrelevant.
And a club that’s simply been trying to keep its head above water lately was able to avoid any further sinking, ensuring they go no worse than .500 on this tricky Eastern road trip.
“It's definitely been better,” Muncy said. "Offensive side has been great. Pitching has been great … And the bullpen came in and did their job. Not putting too much stress on those guys, that's the key for us on offense, is to kind of give them a little bit of a lead to work with. And we were able to accomplish that.”
For the first time in a long time, thanks to contributions from Muncy and Conforto.
The Mets have officially lost one of their lefty relief arms.
Génesis Cabrera is signing with the Chicago Cubs, according to numerous reports.
Cabrera was designated for assignment this weekend to make room for a fresh arm from Triple-A.
After clearing waivers and being outrighted back to the minors, the southpaw elected to once again hit the open market as a free agent -- and shortly after, he landed a deal with Chicago.
Cabrera signed with the Mets this offseason on a minor league deal, and he was impressive during spring training but didn’t land a spot on the team coming out of camp.
With the big-league club dealing with injuries, though, he was called upon to provide some help out of the bullpen and he threw relatively well -- pitching to a 3.52 ERA and 1.30 WHIP across seven appearances.
New York currently has José Castillo and Brandon Waddell as their only southpaws, with AJ Minter sidelined for the remainder of the season and Brooks Raley still working his way back from Tommy John surgery.
PHILADELPHIA — Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola said his return from the injured list with a sprained right ankle was progressing slower than expected and that he probably needed to make a minor league rehabilitation start.
“Taking a little bit longer than I thought it would,” Nola said ahead of Tuesday’s game against Atlanta. “Since I’m here, I want to get it right to where I don’t really feel anything and to go 100%.”
Nola is 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA in nine starts.
The Phillies chose to put Nola on the 15-day injured list on May 16 to avoid another injury cropping up while he was favoring the ankle. The 31-year-old veteran allowed 12 hits, nine runs and three homers - all career highs - in a 14-7 loss on May 14 against St. Louis.
Nola, who signed a $172 million, seven-year contract ahead of the 2024 season, was injured on May 8 during pregame agility drills when the Phillies played Tampa Bay at Steinbrenner Field.
Nola said he tried to pitch through the injury over his last two starts.
“I thought it would be a good after a couple starts,” Nola said. “It would progress and kind of ease off on its own. But it didn’t really, so I’m on the IL.”
In 11 seasons with Philadelphia, Nola is 105-86 with a 3.78 ERA.
The Phillies led the NL East at 34-19 and had a nine-game winning streak snapped Sunday against the Athletics.
Nola is eligible to be activated on Friday. He will instead throw a bullpen session later this week and, if the ankle feels better, could head out to the minor leagues for a start. Nola did not throw a planned bullpen last Saturday because of soreness.
“Hopefully, Thursday it feels really good and I can get on the mound and throw a decent amount,” Nola said.
Nola was drafted seventh overall by Philadelphia in 2014 and has been one of the most durable pitchers since his 2015 big league debut. Aside from a 10-day stint on the COVID injury list in 2021, Nola hadn't missed a start since 2017.
On the latest episode of The Mets Pod presented by Tri-State Cadillac, Connor Rogers and Joe DeMayo look back on a week of winning without much hitting, and also chat with pitching prospect Matt Allan about his long road back to the mound.
First up, the guys cover the dramatic series win over the Dodgers, the continued struggles of Juan Soto, the emergence of Brett Baty, and the balancing act between playing both Francisco Alvarez and Luis Torrens behind the plate.
Then, Joe catches up with prospect Matt Allan, who shares his story of a road back from multiple surgeries, and also talks about the changes he’s seen in the Mets organization, and what he’s now seeing from himself in Brooklyn and what could still be ahead for him in 2025.
Later, Connor and Joe answer mailbag questions about Jett Williams, Ryan Clifford, narratives around Juan Soto, and the overall issues of the offense.
Be sure to subscribe to The Mets Pod at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
The Phillies got right back to winning ways Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park.
Two days after having their nine-game winning streak snapped by the Athletics, the Phils opened a six-game homestand with a 2-0 victory over the Braves.
The 35-19 Phillies will go for a series win over the 25-28 Braves on Wednesday night.
Ranger Suarez shut down Atlanta and gave the Phillies a second consecutive scoreless start. He tossed six innings and allowed four hits and three walks. The 29-year-old lefty notched a season-high eight strikeouts.
After beginning last season 9-0, Suarez is 4-0 in 2025 with a 2.97 ERA.
The Phillies had a concerning bottom of the first.
Braves starter Spencer Strider hit Bryce Harper with a 95.3 mph fastball and the Phillies’ first baseman exited in clear pain. The team later announced that Harper was diagnosed with a right elbow contusion and X-rays on him were negative.
“One of the trainers came down and told me about it,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “I was anxious but happy there was no break for sure.”
The Phils jumped in front in the second inning. Max Kepler lined a double to right-center and Alec Bohm sprinted in from first.
From there, both Suarez and Strider were very effective. The Phillies didn’t manage a second hit until Nick Castellanos’ opposite-field knock against Enyel De Los Santos in the sixth inning.
Michael Harris II led off the fifth with a bloop single to shallow center and the Braves eventually loaded the bases. Suarez worked gutsily around the trouble, getting Matt Olson to whiff on a 2-2 high heater. He shrugged off a leadoff hit in the sixth, too.
“It was a very long inning,” Suarez said of the fifth. “I was just thinking about trying to get out of it as quickly as I possibly could. It got complicated for a second there, but we were able to fight through.”
Out of the bullpen, the Phillies turned to Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm and Jordan Romano. All three did their job well.
The Phillies summoned a two-out rally in the eighth inning, capitalizing on Daysbel Hernandez’s erratic control and providing Romano an insurance run. Bohm scored his (and the Phillies’) second run when J.T. Realmuto walked with the bases loaded.
Nola talks lingering injury
A few hours before first pitch, Aaron Nola stopped just short of the Phillies’ dugout steps and discussed his right ankle sprain with reporters.
Nola threw what Thomson called a “touch and feel” bullpen session Tuesday — lower intensity and lower volume than a usual bullpen, but Nola’s first time on the mound since being placed on the 15-day injured list.
Nola said he continued to feel “a little bit” of discomfort with “certain movements.” Though he hopes to ramp up further Thursday, Nola said he thinks he’ll “probably” need a rehab assignment before returning.
“Just taking it day by day right now and then hopefully, Thursday I feel good when I get on the mound,” he said.
Realmuto’s ‘got to play through it’
Thomson dropped Realmuto to eighth in the Phillies’ lineup and bumped Bohm up to fifth.
“J.T.’s trying a bunch of different stuff,” Thomson said pregame. “He’s working hard to maybe limit his leg kick a little bit … just get the timing better. So I just want to take a little pressure off him, move him down a little bit.”
With an 0-for-3 game, Realmuto’s season average is at .228. He went 2 for 14 and struck out six times in the Phillies’ series against the A’s.
Thomson indicated he doesn’t plan to increase Realmuto’s rest days.
“He’s got to play through it because he’s so important behind the plate to us and to our pitching staff,” he said. “(Rafael) Marchan does a great job as well, but J.T., he’s the captain out there. … I want him out there as much as we can.”
The Phillies got right back to winning ways Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park.
Two days after having their nine-game winning streak snapped by the Athletics, the Phils opened a six-game homestand with a 2-0 victory over the Braves.
The 35-19 Phillies will go for a series win over the 25-28 Braves on Wednesday night.
Ranger Suarez shut down Atlanta and gave the Phillies a second consecutive scoreless start. He tossed six innings and allowed four hits and three walks. The 29-year-old lefty notched a season-high eight strikeouts.
After beginning last season 9-0, Suarez is 4-0 in 2025 with a 2.97 ERA.
The Phillies had a concerning bottom of the first.
Braves starter Spencer Strider hit Bryce Harper with a 95.3 mph fastball and the Phillies’ first baseman exited in clear pain. The team later announced that Harper was diagnosed with a right elbow contusion and X-rays on him were negative.
The Phils jumped in front in the second inning. Max Kepler lined a double to right-center and Alec Bohm sprinted in from first.
From there, both Suarez and Strider were very effective. The Phillies didn’t manage a second hit until Nick Castellanos’ opposite-field knock against Enyel De Los Santos in the sixth inning.
Michael Harris II led off the fifth with a bloop single to shallow center and the Braves eventually loaded the bases. Suarez worked gutsily around the trouble, getting Matt Olson to whiff on a 2-2 high heater. He shrugged off a leadoff hit in the sixth, too.
Out of the bullpen, the Phillies turned to Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm and Jordan Romano. All three did their jobs well.
The Phillies summoned a two-out rally in the eighth inning, capitalizing on Daysbel Hernandez’s erratic control and providing Romano an insurance run. Bohm scored his (and the Phillies’) second run when J.T. Realmuto walked with the bases loaded.
Nola talks lingering injury
A few hours before first pitch, Aaron Nola stopped just short of the Phillies’ dugout steps and discussed his right ankle sprain with reporters.
Nola threw what Phillies manager Rob Thomson called a “touch and feel” bullpen session Tuesday — lower intensity and lower volume than a usual bullpen, but Nola’s first time on the mound since being placed on the 15-day injured list.
Nola said he continued to feel “a little bit” of discomfort with “certain movements.” Though he hopes to ramp up further Thursday, Nola said he thinks he’ll “probably” need a rehab assignment before returning.
“Just taking it day by day right now and then hopefully, Thursday I feel good when I get on the mound,” he said.
Realmuto’s ‘got to play through it’
Thomson dropped Realmuto to eighth in the Phillies’ lineup and bumped Bohm up to fifth.
“J.T.’s trying a bunch of different stuff,” Thomson said pregame. “He’s working hard to maybe limit his leg kick a little bit … just get the timing better. So I just want to take a little pressure off him, move him down a little bit.”
With an 0-for-3 game, Realmuto’s season average is at .228. He went 2 for 14 and struck out six times in the Phillies’ series against the A’s.
Thomson indicated he doesn’t plan to increase Realmuto’s rest days.
“He’s got to play through it because he’s so important behind the plate to us and to our pitching staff,” he said. “(Rafael) Marchan does a great job as well, but J.T., he’s the captain out there. … I want him out there as much as we can.”
Wednesday's series finale between the Mets and White Sox has been bumped up due to weather.
First pitch at Citi Field was originally scheduled for 7:10 p.m. but with showers expected in the area throughout the night, they game will now begin at 1:10 p.m. instead.
Gates will open at 12:10 p.m. now and parking lots will open at 11:40 a.m.
Griffin Canning (5-1, 2.88 ERA) is lined up to take the ball against right-hander Shane Smith (1-3, 2.36 ERA), a Rule 5 pick who has been spectacular thus far this season.
New York took the opening game of the set on Monday afternoon, rallying to score two runs in the eighth and ninth, walking it off on a Francisco Lindor sacrifice fly.
Tylor Megill faces off with Jonathan Cannon in the middle game on Tuesday night on SNY.
Prior to Tuesday’s first pitch, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza discussed some of his recent lineup decisions, as well as what makes Luisangel Acuña so valuable even on days when he’s not part of the starting nine.
Here’s what Mendoza had to say…
OnJared Young starting again at DH
Called up from Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday, Young will be making his fourth start as the Mets’ designated hitter on Tuesday night, hitting sixth against Chicago righty Jonathan Cannon.
Asked about Young, Mendoza cited the 29-year-old’s ability to put himself in good hitter’s counts, with the Mets hoping to see him capitalize on those opportunities as he gets more chances.
“We’ve seen it these past couple of days,” Mendoza said. “He’s got the ability to put himself in a good hitter’s count and that’s his calling card. He hit a 107 (MPH) to dead center the other day and I feel like he’s usually 2-0, 3-1. Now he’s just got to get into the rhythm and do some damage on some pitches.”
Young is 0-for-5 with a hit-by-pitch and a run scored in three games since his call-up.
Acuña’s veteran mindset paying dividends
Acuña is not in Tuesday’s lineup, as Brett Baty gets the start at second with Mark Vientos at third.
But the youngster has proven that he doesn’t need to start a game to have an impact, as evidenced by his last three games, entering the game in the seventh inning or later each time while stealing a bag on Sunday and scoring the tying run on Monday as a pinch-runner.
“This is a guy that doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low,” Mendoza said. “Pretty mature for his age and he has a really good understanding of his role right now and the impact that he brings to the team. He knows that even though he’s not in the lineup, there’s going to be an opportunity for him to come in and impact it in a good game, whether it’s by making a defensive play, by stealing a base, by scoring from first base on a ball in the gap, or by giving us a good at-bat, putting the ball in play. I think he obviously continues to develop. There’s a lot of tools there, but I like how he’s handled it so far mentally.”
On giving Mark Vientos more opportunities at third base
It’s undoubtedly been a rough start to the season for Vientos, who is hitting just .234 and has also struggled defensively, committing seven errors in 39 games at the hot corner, including four errors since the calendar flipped to May.
Since being called back up, Brett Baty has gotten the majority of the playing time at third base, with Vientos serving as the DH in eight of his last 14 appearances.
But Vientos will be at third on Tuesday night, and according to Mendoza, giving the 25-year-old more reps there is the only way to help him out of his defensive funk.
“For me, he’s just going through it right now,” Mendoza said. “It was really good to see him yesterday continue to put in the work. That’s how you’re going to get out of it. It’s like when you’re going through struggles offensively. You go out there and continue to work until you get the feeling back. Same thing.
“This is a guy that in the offseason worked really, really hard [on] his first step. And now he’s going through a stretch where it happens. But continue to work, continue to believe in yourself. We’re going to continue to give him chances. Here he is playing third base again. He’ll get through it, he’ll be fine, he’s a really good third baseman.”
