The Mets' bullpen has been great this year, but one of their best arms had to leave Saturday's game against the Nationals.
A.J. Minter was called upon in the eighth inning and after getting the first out, was in a 2-1 count to Nationals slugger James Wood when he threw a ball but seemed to tweak something coming off the mound.
Manager Carlos Mendoza and the athletic training staff approached Minter, and after a short conversation, he was pulled from the game.
The Mets announced Minter left with left triceps tightness.
"Felt it on the pitch there," Mendoza said after the game. "He's going to get an MRI tomorrow and then we'll see what we're dealing with."
Mendoza said that it's likely Minter will go on the IL, just because it involves a pitcher's throwing arm.
"When you have a pitcher coming out of the game because of an arm, even if we get good news, you have to be careful. I don't want to get ahead of myself, we have to wait and see what we're dealing with here."
"I can't remember what pitch it was, but about two pitches or a pitch before you can see me move my tricep a little bit, it tightened up," Minter said afterward. "I'm just glad it wasn't my elbow. That's what I was 'happy' about. We're probably looking at an IL stint. Come back, get this thing fixed and continue to help the team."
Minter said he's never had a triceps injury before, so it's all new to him, and that's "super frustrating" considering how well he was throwing and how well the team is playing.
The inevitable loss of Minter will deal a big blow to the Mets' bullpen. Entering Saturday, Minter had a 1.69 ERA in 12 appearances with 13 strikeouts over 10.2 innings.
A.J. Minter leaves the game with the Mets' athletic trainer in the 8th inning pic.twitter.com/T57KqeHL4K
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins acquired infielder Kody Clemens from the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday.
Clemens, the 28-year-old son of seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, was designated for assignment by the Phillies on Wednesday. The Twins were in need of another infielder after rookie Luke Keaschall broke his forearm in the first inning of Friday’s game against the Angels.
Minnesota is expected to use Clemens as a backup at first and second base, but he also has played third base and both corner outfield positions in the majors.
“We can move him around on the field and ask him to do a lot of things,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “I’ve seen him do that before with other clubs, but that’s the way that I see us using him right now.”
Clemens played 56 games with the Tigers in 2022 before spending parts of the last two seasons in Philadelphia. This year, he was hitless in six at-bats in limited playing time with the Phillies.
“I had a really good spring, and then didn’t really get any chance to play,” Clemens said. “It made sense with the roster construction they have - I’m not dumb to that. I’m just super excited for this opportunity here.”
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said he sent a text message to Clemens on Saturday morning, and he wishes him all the best.
“It's too bad we couldn't have given him more of an opportunity here,” Thomson said. “It was just the fit, you know, because he's a good player. He's a big league player. ... He's a great teammate. He's a great human being.”
Clemens is a career .197 hitter with a .611 OPS and 14 home runs in 402 plate appearances.
ST. LOUIS — The Milwaukee Brewers placed center fielder Garrett Mitchell on the 10-day injured list Saturday.
After an MRI, Mitchell was diagnosed with a left oblique strain.
Mitchell started in right field Friday night. He left the game, a 3-2 Milwaukee loss to St. Louis, after the fourth inning. After the game, Mitchell said he hurt it on one of his swings in his lone at-bat in the second inning when he grounded out to shortstop Masyn Winn.
The Brewers have selected the contract of left fielder Daz Cameron from Triple-A Nashville.
Cameron, 28, was acquired by the Brewers from Baltimore on April 7. In 10 games with Nashville, Cameron is hitting .372 with five homers, 16 RBI, nine runs scored and three steals.
Cameron is the son of former major leaguer Mike Cameron, a former Brewer. In his 16-year career, the elder Cameron also played for the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners, New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals.
The Brewers also transferred center fielder Blake Perkins from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injury list. Perkins is out with an injured right shin.
After the start of Saturday afternoon's game between the Mets and Washington Nationals at Nationals Park was delayed due to inclement weather, the matchup between NL East teams did not get far before it was stopped because of rain.
Originally a 4:05 p.m. start time, the game was pushed back to 4:30 p.m.. However, with one out in the bottom of the first, rain began to pour at Nationals Park, forcing the umpires to stop play and the grounds crew to come out with the tarp. The game was just 13 minutes in when the stoppage occurred.
The rain delay lasted about 45 minutes and resumed at 5:30 p.m.
After the Mets' bullpen blew the save on Friday night in the team's 5-4 loss, New York will look to bounce back with Clay Holmes on the mound. The former closer made his sixth start with the Mets this season, and looks to put up another quality outing. In his last two starts, Holmes has allowed just two runs over 11 innings while striking out 14 batters.
Saturday will see Jeff McNeil, who just returned to the team on Friday after starting the season on the IL, playing in center field for the first time since 2023. With McNeil starting in the outfield, Luisangel Acuña got the start at second base.
Francisco Alvarez, who also returned to the team after an IL stint on Friday, started for the second straight game.
CHICAGO — The Phillies hadn’t homered in five days and knew it would be extremely difficult for either team to hit one out of Wrigley Field on Saturday afternoon.
It was 47 degrees at first pitch and the wind was blowing in 15-20 mph from left field, making it even more important for both lineups to focus on passing the baton. The Phillies finally did, rallying for six runs in the fourth inning and three in the sixth of a 10-4 win over the Cubs.
“It might take a bloop hit at some point and then it kind of just explodes,” manager Rob Thomson said Friday evening after the Phillies’ losing streak reached five.
Those words were prescient because it was Max Kepler’s bloop into no-man’s land in shallow left field that scored the Phillies’ first run Saturday and reloaded the bases ahead of an Alec Bohm RBI single, Johan Rojas sacrifice fly, Bryson Stott RBI single and Bryce Harper two-run double.
“I don’t remember what the last week was like but that fourth inning was great,” Kepler said. “Started off, me and J.T. (Realmuto) had some duck-fart knocks and then, yeah, we opened it up. That’s the game of baseball, you don’t really have to square ’em up every time but just try to make something happen to rally around.
“That’s what we’ve been looking for, to rally together. When we try to do the small things, big things happen. That inning started with some not-so-impressive hits but they got the job done and got us where we needed it to be.”
The Phillies have put a ton of runners on base this season and have a Top 3 team OBP but the explosions have been few and far between. A big hit with men on base has eluded them since Sunday. The situational struggles have been exacerbated by them hitting just one home run in a span of 296 plate appearances before Kepler went deep in the seventh.
The fourth inning Saturday was the Phillies’ best of the season. Facing Ben Brown, the former pitching prospect they traded to Chicago for David Robertson in 2022, the Phils had five hits with a runner in scoring position, their most in any inning since last August 15 against the Nationals.
Jesus Luzardo followed with a 1-2-3 bottom half and the 14-13 Phillies won for the first time in a week.
Luzardo has exceeded all expectations through six starts with a 1.73 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. He’s kept the Phillies squarely in each game and been a godsend to a rotation that hasn’t yet had Ranger Suarez or an effective Aaron Nola.
“He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet until he gets on that hill, and then he turns into a different guy,” Thomson said. “He’s been outstanding. Looking at him from across the field, I think I appreciate him more now that I can see him every day and what he does, the stuff that he has, the way he goes about his business.”
Luzardo did not allow a hit until the bottom of the fifth, a strong performance in his first start against the Cubs since their reported decision to back out of an offseason trade for him. The Cubs had concerns about Luzardo’s back and elbow, according to The Athletic, and the Phillies swooped in to do the deal themselves.
“Oh, he’s been dealing,” Kepler said. “You see his name on the sheet for the upcoming game and it gives you a reassuring feeling.”
Luzardo’s only troublesome frame was the fifth when Trea Turner committed a two-out error with nobody on base, which led to two Cubs runs and forced the lefty to throw 19 additional pitches. Turner has had a couple of rough moments in the field in this series. He whiffed on a tag at second base when Realmuto had a base-stealer out by a wide margin on Friday and committed his third error of the year in the middle game.
The shortstop did make up for it, though, with an RBI single up the middle the half-inning after his miscue. Turner crushed the ball over 104 mph in both his third and fourth at-bats, potentially a good sign for a player who’s hitting .245 with just five extra-base hits.
Kepler seems to be finding a rhythm at the plate. He went 3-for-5 with a solo home run to right field, the only location a ball had a chance of leaving the yard on Saturday. The left fielder is 10-for-26 (.385) with two doubles and a homer over his last seven games.
“Starting to see it, starting to believe in what I work on in the cage,” he said. “Just taking my swings, not trying to reach for balls or poke. Just hunting my zones.”
It’s just a 13-game sample but Kepler has done major damage at Wrigley Field, hitting .391 with four homers, three doubles and 10 RBI. He hadn’t even realized.
“I didn’t even know that, usually I’m freezing my ass off and just trying to get a quick game in,” he said. “But it’s a great place to play, it’s like Fenway, it’s magical. It’s an honor to stand in one of these ballparks.”
The Phillies go for the series win on Sunday Night Baseball. It should be about 10 degrees warmer at first pitch but will be another chilly night for Nola to try to find his command.
CHICAGO — The Phillies hadn’t homered in five days and knew it would be extremely difficult for either team to hit one out of Wrigley Field on Saturday afternoon.
It was 47 degrees at first pitch and the wind was blowing in 15-20 mph from left field, making it even more important for both lineups to focus on passing the baton. The Phillies finally did, rallying for six runs in the fourth inning and three in the sixth of a 10-4 win over the Cubs.
“It might take a bloop hit at some point and then it kind of just explodes,” manager Rob Thomson said Friday evening after the Phillies’ losing streak reached five.
Those words were prescient because it was Max Kepler’s bloop into no-man’s land in shallow left field that scored the Phillies’ first run Saturday and reloaded the bases ahead of an Alec Bohm RBI single, Johan Rojas sacrifice fly, Bryson Stott RBI single and Bryce Harper two-run double.
“I don’t remember what the last week was like but that fourth inning was great,” Kepler said. “Started off, me and J.T. (Realmuto) had some duck-fart knocks and then, yeah, we opened it up. That’s the game of baseball, you don’t really have to square ’em up every time but just try to make something happen to rally around.
“That’s what we’ve been looking for, to rally together. When we try to do the small things, big things happen. That inning started with some not-so-impressive hits but they got the job done and got us where we needed it to be.”
The Phillies have put a ton of runners on base this season and have a Top 3 team OBP but the explosions have been few and far between. A big hit with men on base has eluded them since Sunday. The situational struggles have been exacerbated by them hitting just one home run in a span of 296 plate appearances before Kepler went deep in the seventh.
The fourth inning Saturday was the Phillies’ best of the season. Facing Ben Brown, the former pitching prospect they traded to Chicago for David Robertson in 2022, the Phils had five hits with a runner in scoring position, their most in any inning since last August 15 against the Nationals.
Jesus Luzardo followed with a 1-2-3 bottom half and the 14-13 Phillies won for the first time in a week.
Luzardo has exceeded all expectations through six starts with a 1.73 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. He’s kept the Phillies squarely in each game and been a godsend to a rotation that hasn’t yet had Ranger Suarez or an effective Aaron Nola.
“He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet until he gets on that hill, and then he turns into a different guy,” Thomson said. “”He’s been outstanding. Looking at him from across the field, I think I appreciate him more that I can see him every day and what he does, the stuff that he has, the way he goes about his business.”
Luzardo did not allow a hit until the bottom of the fifth, a strong performance in his first start against the Cubs since their reported decision to back out of an offseason trade for him. The Cubs had concerns about Luzardo’s back and elbow, according to The Athletic, and the Phillies swooped in to do the deal themselves.
“Oh, he’s been dealing,” Kepler said. “You see his name on the sheet for the upcoming game and it gives you a reassuring feeling.”
Luzardo’s only troublesome frame was the fifth when Trea Turner committed a two-out error with nobody on base, which led to two Cubs runs and forced the lefty to throw 19 additional pitches. Turner has had a couple of rough moments in the field in this series. He whiffed on a tag at second base when Realmuto had a base-stealer out by a wide margin on Friday and committed his third error of the year in the middle game.
The shortstop did make up for it, though, with an RBI single up the middle the half-inning after his miscue. Turner crushed the ball over 104 mph in both his third and fourth at-bats, a good sign for a player who’s hitting .245 with just five extra-base hits.
Kepler also seems to be finding a rhythm at the plate. He went 3-for-5 with a solo home run to right field, the only location a ball was leaving the yard on Saturday. The left fielder is 10-for-26 (.385) with two doubles and a homer over his last seven games.
“Starting to see it, starting to believe in what I work on in the cage,” he said. “Just taking my swings, not trying to reach for balls or poke. Just hunting my zones.”
It’s just a 13-game sample but Kepler has done major damage at Wrigley Field, hitting .391 with four homers, three doubles and 10 RBI. He hadn’t even realized.
“I didn’t even know that, usually I’m freezing my ass off and just trying to get a quick game in,” he said. “But it’s a great place to play, it’s like Fenway, it’s magical. It’s an honor to stand in one of these ballparks.”
The Phillies go for the series win on Sunday Night Baseball. It should be about 10 degrees warmer at first pitch but will be another chilly night for Aaron Nola to try to find his command.
SAN FRANCISCO — When he’s right, Giants closer Ryan Walker is one of the best baseball players in the world, but he doesn’t necessarily realize it. Walker doesn’t consider himself a diehard fan, and he often has no idea when he’s facing one of the game’s best hitters when he’s out on the mound.
One day earlier in his career, Walker and teammates were talking about their first big league strikeouts. That first outing is one that nearly every pitcher can recite pitch-for-pitch, but Walker couldn’t quite remember the name of a Minnesota Twins star that he struck out in his second game as a big leaguer. Teammates laughed when they looked it up and discovered it was Byron Buxton.
A few weeks into his rookie season, Walker made a statement by freezing Nolan Arenado with a slider in the eighth inning of a game in St. Louis. Asked about it later, he shrugged. He had no idea that Arenado had done so much damage against the Giants over the years.
“I try to treat every hitter the same,” Walker said this spring. “Whether it’s Ohtani or someone off the bench, everyone is here for a reason.”
There are times, though, when it’s harder to take that approach. Walker was well aware that he would face Joc Pederson in the ninth inning Saturday, and not just because they were teammates in 2023. Pederson’s eye-popping struggles this season came up in a scouting meeting before the series, and while Walker didn’t know he had just one RBI on the season, he did know Pederson had gone hitless over 41 at-bats recently.
That only meant one thing when Walker watched Pederson stroll to the plate with two runners on in a tie game.
“He’s due,” Walker thought. “That man is due.”
For Pederson, the breakthrough will have to wait. But Walker and the Giants are hopeful that the right-hander’s came in the ninth inning of a 3-2 win over the Rangers.
Walker threw a 97-mph sinker past Pederson to strand both runners. When Patrick Bailey walked it off in the bottom of the inning, Walker had his first win of the year, and a nice confidence boost at the end of what has been the worst week of his big league career.
“It’s huge. I think it gives him back his confidence,” Bailey said. “I know it’s been a few rough outings in a row, but the stuff has been there all year. It happens, it happens to the best of them — and he is one of the best of them.”
Walker was part of a theme Saturday. The Giants got off to a slow start after celebrating Brandon Crawford, but Willy Adames, who is hitting just .205 through his first month in orange and black, tied the game with a two-run single. Bailey is down at .171, but he was sent up to hit for Sam Huff with two runners in scoring position and poked the first pitch into right for his fourth career walk-off hit.
For Adames and Bailey, the first few weeks of the 2025 MLB season have been a grind. But there is no spotlight greater than the one in the ninth inning, and there’s no worse feeling in the game than being a closer who coughs up what looked to be an easy win.
Walker did that Sunday in Anaheim, allowing four runs in a gut punch of a loss. Three days later — when he gave up three hits, plunked a batter and allowed two runs — Bob Melvin pulled him for Camilo Doval, who got the save.
Doval is a former MLB All-Star, and it would have been easy for Melvin to ignite a closer controversy by saying he would ride the hot hand, or give Walker a break for a few days. But the manager said repeatedly this week that he would throw Walker back into the fire, and when the Giants trailed by a couple of runs late Friday, Walker struck out a pair and looked more like his old self.
Melvin never wavered, viewing it as just two bad outings in a career that thus far has produced a 2.72 ERA in 137 appearances. Walker was going to pitch in a big spot if it came Saturday, and Melvin stuck with him against Pederson, even though lefty Erik Miller was loose. He figured Bruce Bochy would counter with Adolis Garcia if he made a move, and he liked Walker’s chances against Pederson.
The former Giant jumped on a two-strike slider and yanked it over the arcade in right, but it was well foul. A pitch later, Walker blew him away with a sinker. The normally calm closer pumped his fist and yelled as he walked off the mound.
“I think it’s the last week, all that kind of stuff just boiling up,” he said. “Finally finding a groove brought out all that emotion.”
The last week has been difficult, but Walker took a lot away from it. He had been 15-for-15 in save opportunities before last Sunday, and teammates and coaches reminded him repeatedly that he was still a good pitcher. When he went home, he was able to get away by spending time with his young daughter and chatting with his wife, who is a counselor.
“A lot of guys have been talking me through it and helping me realize it’s two games out of 162,” he said. “It’s not something to fret about. It’s really, I feel like, brought me closer to the team, which is really cool. Seeing everybody support me is awesome.”
Walker also found a mechanical fix in recent days. He had been standing too upright and said that was leading him to be “more rotational” as he went down the mound. He tightened up his mechanics and found that his old stride length and arm path were back. He no longer was worried about missing arm-side, a huge issue in those two rough outings.
Walker felt good when he took the mound Saturday, but a pair of singles put a sellout crowd in a nervous state. A popped-up bunt helped everyone relax a bit, and Walker struck out Josh Smith ahead of the Pederson at-bat. That final out set the stage for the latest round of ninth-inning heroics.
There will be other speed bumps over the course of the next five months. That’s life as a closer, and when you fail, there’s no safety net. But over the last two games, Walker has looked like his old self.
“It helps out a lot, that’s for sure,” Walker said. “The biggest thing, though, is I’m not going to get too high. There’s plenty of baseball left. I’ll enjoy these two and continue to move forward with the progression.”
SAN FRANCISCO — A sellout crowd showed up Saturday to honor Brandon Crawford. Patrick Bailey made sure they went home happy.
The catcher pinch-hit in the bottom of the ninth and dropped Jacob Latz’s first pitch onto the right field grass, giving the Giants a 3-2 win over the Texas Rangers at Oracle Park. With the victory, the Giants are guaranteed of having a winning record during this stretch of 17 games in 17 days.
The lineup got shut out Friday, and for most of their next game things weren’t looking much better. They gave off some 2024 vibes until Willy Adames broke through in the fifth with a two-run single up the middle that tied the game.
It stayed tied into the ninth, when manager Bob Melvin turned to struggling closer Ryan Walker. He gave up a pair of singles, but Rangers catcher Kyle Higashioka did him a favor by popping up a bunt. After striking out Josh Smith, Walker stayed in to face pinch-hitter Joc Pederson, despite the fact that lefty Erik Miller was warmed up in the pen. Pederson hit a long foul ball and then swung through 97 mph to end the inning as Walker pumped his fist and screamed.
With Erik Miller ready, Bob Melvin stuck with Ryan Walker against Joc Pederson. He struck him out to strand a pair. A huge out for a guy who has had his worst week in the big leagues: pic.twitter.com/1JlTV4TpTC
Heliot Ramos ignited the winning rally with a leadoff single in the ninth. After a walk by LaMonte Wade Jr., Christian Koss advanced both runners with a bunt. Bailey hit for Sam Huff and ended it quickly.
Ray Day
Robbie Ray said after his last start that it was the closest he has felt to his 2021 Cy Young form in years, and he certainly looked like a top-of-the-rotation arm on Saturday. The lefty went a season-high seven innings and struck out eight. It was his first time recording at least 21 outs since Aug. 28, 2022, which was before his Tommy John surgery.
The Rangers had plenty of traffic early, but Ray limited the damage to a pair of sacrifice flies. With the two earned runs, he lowered his ERA from 4.07 to 3.73.
Ray was extremely fastball-heavy in his last start, but he showed a four-pitch mix Saturday. He threw each of his pitches at least a dozen times and tossed his new changeup a career-high 20 times. Ray got 23 swinging strikes (a season-high for the Giants) including five on his changeup.
Revenge Game
Bruce Bochy isn’t the only familiar face in the other dugout in this series. The Rangers’ hitting coaches are Donnie Ecker and Justin Viele, and their roster includes Joc Pederson, Nick Ahmed, Kevin Pillar and Luke Jackson.
The biggest blow against former teammates came from Huff, though. The former Rangers catcher ignited the game-tying rally with a long double to Triples Alley. It would have brought Koss home, but the infielder slipped going around third. Both players scored on Adames’ single a few minutes later.
Huff’s double went 375 feet and would have been a homer in six ballparks. Throw in a homer in Anaheim last weekend, and the Giants finally are starting to see the power they expected when they acquired Huff on a waiver claim this offseason.
The Usual
It’s been a wild week at the back end of Melvin’s bullpen, but he has absolutely no question marks in the eighth. Tyler Rogers is off to a dominant start, and he kept it going Saturday by throwing a scoreless inning.
Rogers lowered his ERA to 0.63, which is sixth in the NL among relievers with double-digit appearances. Last year’s appearances leader is tied for first in the league in that category, too, and he has thrown up a zero in 14 of his 15 outings. Rogers has allowed just eight hits in 14 1/3 innings. He’s making Melvin’s life very easy when games reach the eighth inning.
SAN FRANCISCO — Brandon Crawford was in a checkered suit Saturday, but No. 35 was still represented at Oracle Park, and not just with the thousands who came to watch the best shortstop in franchise history get honored. Justin Verlander, Friday night’s starter, is wearing the number this season after an offseason conversation with Crawford.
It wasn’t hard for Crawford to sign off on giving the number to a future Hall of Famer, but Saturday’s ceremony was a reminder that the organization has some difficult decisions to make down the line.
The front row of guests for the ceremony included president of baseball operations Buster Posey, former manager Bruce Bochy and longtime Giants ace Matt Cain. The Giants have no intention of ever letting anyone wear No. 28 or No. 15 again, but Cain’s No. 18 has been worn by eight players since he retired, including Curt Casali and Donovan Walton last year. So, what are the Giants going to do with No. 35 when Verlander is done in orange and black?
“We haven’t gotten there. Today is a thank you for Brandon, the soonest we could thank him and show gratitude for his career as a Giant,” team president and CEO Larry Baer said. “That [number decision] can be considered later.”
The best shortstop in franchise history is part of a group of teammates who are franchise legends, but also unlikely to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, which traditionally has been the standard for the Giants to retire a number. The Giants changed their thinking to honor Barry Bonds, who was left out of Cooperstown by the Baseball Writers Association of America, and that opened the door to also retire Will Clark’s No. 22.
Brad Grems, who is in charge of the clubhouse, has followed Mike Murphy’s lead in not giving out No. 55 (Tim Lincecum) or No. 40 (Madison Bumgarner). But at some point the Giants will have to decide where they draw the lines for longtime Giants who will go on their Wall of Fame but also could be in consideration to have their numbers retired.
“We’ll try to honor that group. We haven’t only [retired numbers for] Hall of Famers, but it has primarily been Hall of Famers,” Baer said. “We’ll have to come up with a philosophy. There are other guys in his era whose jerseys have not been retired, too. We have to think it through.”
The Giants already have retired 11 numbers, plus No. 42, which is retired across the game for Jackie Robinson. Bochy and Posey will be inducted into Cooperstown in the next few years and join that list.
Regardless of the future standard, Crawford has at least one more big day coming at Oracle Park. He’ll soon be back to go on the organization’s Wall of Fame, which honors former Giants who played at least nine seasons, five seasons with at least one MLB All-Star selection, or won three rings. Brandon Belt would clear the bar, along with Lincecum, Bumgarner, Pablo Sandoval and Joe Panik, who flew in from New York to attend the Crawford ceremony.
Panik soon will visit Double-A Richmond as an instructor and plans to work with players at one affiliate every month. With Posey now in charge, others from the championship era are expected to return to the organization in some capacity, but Crawford reiterated on Saturday that he plans to take this full year off. That was always the plan in retirement, and it’s not like he has much free time anyway.
The Crawfords have five children, four of whom are very active in school and youth sports and a fifth who is only a year and a half old. After giving his speech, Crawford said he’ll potentially join the Giants down the road in an official capacity, but for now he has his hands full.
“It’s been busy,” he said, smiling. “Even busier than baseball seasons, to be honest. But it’s been a lot of fun.”
CHICAGO — Rob Thomson texted Kody Clemens early Saturday morning to wish him the best. After three years in the Phillies organization, Clemens is moving on to Minnesota. The Phils traded him to the Twins late Friday night for cash.
Clemens had been designated for assignment on Wednesday when the Phillies activated right-handed-hitting Weston Wilson. Clemens saw very little playing time through three weeks, going 0-for-6 with a walk and just six innings on defense — four in left field, two at second base. His left-handed bat wasn’t an ideal fit on the Phils’ bench because the primary positions he’d back up are also occupied by left-handed hitters.
“It’s too bad we couldn’t have given him more of an opportunity here,” Thomson said before the Phillies’ middle game at Wrigley Field. “It was just the fit because he’s a good player, he’s a big-league player and I’ve said that all along. He’s a great teammate, he’s a great human being. I texted him this morning and wished him all the best because I really like him a lot. They like him a lot.”
Clemens was acquired by the Phillies with reliever Gregory Soto in January 2023 from the Detroit Tigers for outfielder Matt Vierling and utilityman Nick Maton. Clemens appeared in 97 games as a Phillie, hitting .220/.265/.394 with 16 doubles and nine home runs in 275 plate appearances. He was 2-for-5 with a double in last year’s NLDS.
The Phillies’ bench currently consists of Edmundo Sosa, Wilson, Cal Stevenson and Rafael Marchan. Brandon Marsh (hamstring strain) is two games into a rehab assignment with Triple A Lehigh Valley and will likely take Stevenson’s place on the roster once he’s ready to return.
Marsh played seven innings in center field on Friday and is scheduled to DH Saturday. He is eligible to be activated on Sunday but the Phillies might keep him at Triple A for another few days.
“I want him to make sure that his swing’s back and that he’s ready to go,” Thomson said Saturday.
It’s not the worst thing in the world for Marsh to be able to find his timing in the minors right now, away from all the attention. Negativity is justifiably swirling in the Delaware Valley over the Phillies’ 13-13 start.
“I think it’s good for him, sure, because you could see the sawdust coming out of his hands as he was up at the plate,” Thomson said. “He was just trying to do too much. It’s a process and it takes time.”
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Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivers the ball from the mound against the Pirates Friday at Dodger Stadium. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
Billed as a matchup between the National League’s best arms, Friday night's pitchers duel lived up to expectations.
Enter 22-year-old flamethrower Paul Skenes. He grew up in Fullerton. He began his meteoric rise at nearby El Toro High.
Coming off his rookie of the year campaign, in his second start at Dodger Stadium, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander harnessed the “plus-plus stuff” — emphasized by his 99.4-mph first-inning strikeout of Freddie Freeman, dazzling curveballs and stand out “splinker” — that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts marveled at before the game.
Skenes, the No. 1 selection in the 2023 draft, tossed 6⅓ scoreless frames to send the Dodgers to a 3-0 loss on Friday night. The Dodgers never drummed up run support for their ace, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, succumbing to a shutout for the second time and falling into a three-game losing streak for the first time since last August.
“I think that he's one of the best in the game,” Roberts said about Skenes, who generated 18 swings and misses. “Tonight we really couldn't muster much."
Freeman hit Skenes’ only mistake of the day — a hanging curveball over the center of the plate — into the right field corner for a double in the fourth inning. Freeman advanced to third on an error on the play, but being 90 feet away from home didn’t matter. Skenes set the next three batters down.
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes gets high-fives in the dugout after throwing 6⅓ scoreless innings against the Dodgers on Friday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
In the fifth inning, after Andy Pages reached on a double for the second time in the game, Skenes struck out Shohei Ohtani on a full-count curveball that sent the Dodgers star into a twisting, off-balance backswing and had Pirates catcher Henry Davis pumping his fist toward the mound in celebration.
Skenes, a highlight for the struggling Pirates (11-16), simply walked back to the dugout — his performance was business-like, giving up five hits, while striking out nine and walking zero over 108 pitches. Roberts said the Dodgers (16-10) wouldn’t be able to “paper-knife” Skenes, pointing at how difficult it is to rally hits against the 6-foot-6 right-hander.
And Roberts was right. Pages had three hits and Freeman two, but the Dodgers tallied just one more against Skenes.. The Pirates bullpen gave up just one hit during the final 2-2/3 frames.
“Certain nights, we just can’t put a complete ballgame together with starting pitching, hitting, timely hitting, all that stuff,” Roberts said. “It just hasn’t been synced up.”
Michael Conforto, who ended the night 0 for 4 with three strikeouts — two of which came against Skenes — said the Dodgers need to stretch together a hitting run to get out of the team’s funk — now 8-10 since starting the season 8-0. Conforto is hitting .187 after hitting .237 for the Giants a year ago.
"We've definitely had our struggles,” Conforto said, adding that he believes hitting is contagious and that the lineup will begin to rally. “There's a lot of great hitters in this lineup. A lot of us haven't gotten it going yet, and it's only a matter of time before it all starts clicking."
It wasn’t so long ago that Yamamoto was in a similar position to Skenes.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani fails to connect on a pitch by Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes in the third inning at Dodger Stadium Friday. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
Three days after he turned 19 years old, the Orix Buffaloes thrust Yamamoto into big-league action. Much like Skenes in Pittsburgh, his youth did not hinder his success — Yamamoto building a trophy case that included three Triple Crowns of pitching and three Sawamura awards (the Japanese equivalent of the Cy Young) before heading to the U.S.
“The bottom line is that he has shown to be the best pitcher in a particular league multiple times,” Roberts said before Yamamoto toed the mound.
But Yamamoto didn’t have his best stuff against the Pirates. He struggled with command, issuing four walks for the first time since Aug. 2, 2022 — against the Seibu Lions in Japan — and lasted five innings and 94 pitches (54 of which came in the first two innings).
Roberts said Yamamoto’s outing was "uncharacteristic," pointing to the Japanese right-hander’s struggles with locating his fastball against Pirates — leading to hard contact on get-me-over offspeed pitches such as the one Oneil Cruz lined for a 117.6-mph RBI single to make it a 2-0 lead in the fifth.
“I think tonight, overall, he just typically has great command and tonight he just wasn't as pinpoint,” Roberts said.
Both of Pittsburgh’s fifth-inning runs, however, were unearned. Third baseman Max Muncy sailed a ball wide to first base after collecting a ground ball near the foul line, enabling Davis to advance to second. Three hits later, the Pirates were up three.
“In a game like this, there is a reason,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter when asked about his command. "I was feeling I'm getting better, actually, as a matter of fact, in the early phase of the game. But today, I couldn't bring it back to my normal stuff."
Yamamoto still struck out five and kept the Dodgers in the contest despite being below his best. His earned-run average rose a few points but remained at an NL-low 1.06, second to only Texas Rangers right-hander Tyler Mahle.
Injury updates
Roberts said the pitching staff “dodged a bullet” with Blake Snell's latest injury update. Snell, shut down from his throwing program Wednesday, underwent an MRI on Thursday morning — which came back with no new findings of damage in his left shoulder.
Snell’s next steps likely will include an injection, Roberts said, before he resumes a throwing program. Before heading to the 15-day injured list on April 6, Snell held a 1-0 record with a 2.00 ERAthrough two starts.
“I don't know the extent of the length of time,” Roberts said, “but just knowing that there's no damage is certainly a big relief."
Roberts also provided updates on bullpen arms Blake Treinen and Michael Kopech. Treinen (low-grade right forearm sprain) has yet to begin a throwing program, while Kopech (right shoulder impingement) — who joined the Dodgers last year in a trade-deadline deal with the Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals — tossed a 30-pitch bullpen session Thursday and will do the same Monday before a potential minor-league rehab assignment.
In what was a wacky game on Friday night between the Mets and the Washington Nationals, perhaps the strangest play happened in the fourth inning. Something that hasn't happened to New York in 15 years.
With runners on first and second and nobody out after back-to-back singles by Brandon Nimmo and Mark Vientos, the Mets were on the verge of a potential big inning against Jake Irvin, who had a 2-0 lead and was pitching well up until that point.
Instead, Jesse Winker lined a ball to first base that was caught by Nathaniel Lowe. At least, that's what was called on the field by first base umpire Alfonso Marquez. With both baserunners trying to advance, the Nationals threw to second and first base for the force outs, which resulted in a triple play.
Threat over.
However, on instant replay, it was clear that the ball hit the dirt before going into Lowe's glove which should've negated the triple play. Unfortunately for New York, that play is not reviewable and could not be challenged by manager Carlos Mendoza.
"It’s frustrating, obviously, because we all saw what happened," the skipper said after the game. "And I’m not blaming Alfonso because he’s the one behind the play, but I think the other three [umpires], somebody’s got to see that play. Tough break for us there.",
After the call on the field, Mendoza went out to argue that the umpires should at least get together to talk about what they saw. His request was to no avail as all four umpires apparently saw the same thing as Marquez.
"They said that if somebody saw it, somebody would have just called to Alfonso, and that was my frustration there. We all saw it in the dugout," Mendoza said.
While having a wrong call go against you is undeniably frustrating, especially in this day and age of replay review, what had Mendoza and the Mets most annoyed was how crucial the call was at that point in the game.
Already down 2-0 and unable to get anything going against Irvin, New York's golden opportunity to do some damage against the right-hander was stripped away in the blink of an eye.
"That’s just frustrating – a play like that with so much impact, not only in that inning but in the game, it’s first and second, nobody out and before you know it, you’re out of the inning and there’s nothing you can do about it," Mendoza said. "I was asking for them to get together and it was just a pretty frustrating play."
Following the game, Nimmo and Vientos were asked about what they saw on the play.
While Vientos called it a baserunning mistake on his part for not freezing and going back to first base on the sharp liner, Nimmo said he made a split-second decision while acknowledging that it's a tough play.
"I thought I saw a little skip [of the ball] before the glove and so I decided to go [to third base]," Nimmo said. "But you’re also kind of in no-man’s land when it’s hit hard at [someone] like that and it’s a close play on the ground…
"Just unfortunate timing there and one of those plays where unfortunately on the base paths you’re kind of in no-man’s land and you just gotta make a decision and see what the umpires end up saying."
Perhaps most frustrating of all is the fact that that specific play can not be reviewed. If MLB has the capability to review close plays, why not extend that power to all plays to ensure every call is correct?
It's an answer Mendoza, Nimmo and the rest of the Mets are still searching for.
"I do think it switched momentum big time," Nimmo added.
NEW YORK (AP) — Alejandro Kirk hit a go-ahead two-run double in the ninth inning off Yankees closer Devin Williams and the Toronto Blue Jays beat New York 4-2 on Friday night, snapping a five-game losing streak.
Williams (0-2), who has an 11.25 ERA in his first 10 appearances, failed to retire a batter and blew his first save in five chances.
After allowing a leadoff single to George Springer and hitting Andrés Giménez, Kirk lifted a 1-0 changeup over the had of center fielder Trent Grisham and Williams was pulled by manager Aaron Boone.
Kirk’s big hit came after he threw out Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Cody Bellinger at second on stolen base attempts in the sixth.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered in the sixth and Addison Barger added an RBI single in the ninth off Mark Leiter Jr. to give the Blue Jays a 4-2 lead.
Austin Wells hit a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Oswaldo Cabrera hit a tying single in the seventh, but the Yankees stranded two in the seventh. New York stranded 11 runners and were 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position.
Mason Fluharty (1-0) earned his first win by keeping the game at 2-1 in the eighth.
Toronto starter José Berríos allowed five hits in 5 1/3 innings for his first scoreless start since Aug. 31 at Minnesota. Berríos struck out four and walked two.
New York starter Carlos Carrasco allowed three hits in five scoreless innings.
Key moment
Jeff Hoffman stranded Ben Rice by retiring Paul Goldschmidt for his sixth save in as many chances.
Key stats
Opponents are 6 for 22 (.273) against Williams’ changeup. Last season, Williams allowed six hits in 37 at-bats (.162) off the pitch.
Up next
Toronto RHP Kevin Gausman (2-2, 3.16 ERA) opposes New York LHP Max Fried (4-0, 1.42) on Saturday.
