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

It was a long day at Kauffman Stadium, but the Kansas City Royals completed the sweep, overcoming a 6-0 deficit to sweep the Angels, winning it 11-9. Lane Thomas played the hero, with the walk-off three run dinger.

Zach Neto flared the first pitch of the game into left for a single. Mike Trout followed that up with a two-run homer, just over the wall in left center.

In the top of the second, after two singles to start the inning, the Angels had first and second for former Royal Adam Frazier. After bunting two balls foul, Frazier smacked a double into the gap to make it 3-0. Neto doubled in two runs in the next at bat, 5-0 Angels. Other former Royal, Jorge Soler later singed in the final run of the inning to make it 6-0.

After Reid Detmers retired the first 10 batters, Bobby Witt Jr. tripled with one out in the fourth but would be stranded there. Nick Loftin doubled with two outs in the fifth and was driven in by an Isaac Collins single.

Lane Thomas led off the bottom of the sixth with a single and scored on Witt’s first homer of the season. A 427-foot bomb to left center field. 6-3 Angels.

Seth Lugo was very effective after the second inning but surrendered a leadoff double to Soler in the top of the 7th. Jo Adell singled him in after a groundout, 7-3 Angels. Lugo’s final line was 6.1 innings, 14 hits, 7 runs, 1 walk, 3 strikeouts. Eli Morgan got a double play ball to end the inning.

Collins led off the bottom half of the 7th with a home run off the right field foul pole. Collins second homer of the year and his first from the left side this season.

Michael Massey walked on four pitches and Lane Thomas singled on a swinging bunt to third. 7-4 LA, 1st and 2nd nobody out with Witt, Vinnie and Salvy coming up. But then the game was put into a rain delay.

After the nearly 2-hour delay, Witt hit into a fielder’s choice, making it 1st and 3rd with one out. Vinnie’s sac fly made it 7-5. But Perez grounded out to end the inning.

Nick Mears worked a 1-2-3 8th inning. The Royals got a pair of two out walks in the 8th, but Maikel Garcia fouled out to end the inning.

Alex Lange got the 9th inning. He gave up a leadoff single and a stolen base. After getting two outs, he walked Adell after a long at bat, 1st and 3rd, two out, Bryce Teodosio up. Lange allowed Adell to steal second, and then walked Teodosio, and on the play, Carter Jensen allowed a passed ball to make it 8-5. Lange then walked another, making it another bad outing for Lange. After loaded the bases with his third walk, Lange finally struck out Adam Frazier to end the inning.

The Royals had the top of the order come up in the bottom of the 9th. Lane Thomas led off, he and Witt grounded out. Pasquantino hit a two out triple, Perez singled him in and Jac Caglianone hit a game-tying two-run homer to tie it at 8.

Lucas Erceg pitched the 10th, he walked Neto to start the inning and then got Trout to hit into a fielder’s choice. But another passed ball on Jensen allowed the Angels to take a 9-8 lead. Erceg struck out the next two hitters to end the inning.

Loftin grounded out to first to start the bottom half of the inning, allowing Jensen to get to third. Collins struck out, and after a long battle, Garcia walked. 2 out, runners on the corners, Lane Thomas up. On a 3-1 pitch, Thomas hit a walk-off three run homer to left center. His first on the year, and the Royals first sweep of the year, on an 11-9 win after 5 hours at the ballpark.

The Royals improve to 11-17 on the season and go 4-2 on the homestand. They are off tomorrow and are on the way out west to take on the Athletics and Mariners next week.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs were battered by the Louisville Bats (Reds), 12-6.

Paul Campbell gave up five runs, including a grand slam, in the first inning and two more in the third and got the loss. Campbell’s final line was seven runs on seven hits over three innings. Campbell walked three and struck out three.

Reliever Zac Leigh had an immaculate inning in the top of the ninth. Leigh pitched two scoreless innings total and allowed one hit and one walk while striking out just the three.

First baseman BJ Murray was 3 for 4 with a walk. He scored once and drove in one.

Justin Dean went 3 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Pedro Ramirez left this game in the seventh inning with no apparent injury, but I-Cubs broadcaster Jason Kempf is reporting that it was purely a precaution and that Ramirez is on the bus to St. Paul.

Leigh’s immaculate inning.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies got into the eyes of the Chattanooga Lookouts (Reds), 7-2.

Vince Reilly was the opener for the Smokies and got tagged for two runs on three hits in the one inning he worked. Reilly struck out one and walked no one.

Nick Dean came out in the second inning, threw four scoreless innings and got the win. Dean allowed just two hits and did not walk anyone. He struck out five.

After Frankie Scalzo Jr. threw two scoreless innings, Luis Martinez-Gomez finished the game with the two-inning save. Martinez-Gomes allowed no runs and no hits. He struck out four and walked two.

Center fielder Alex Ramírez hit a two-run home run in the third inning that put the Smokies up for good. Ramírez had a big game, going 4 for 5 with the home run and three total runs batted in.

Catcher Ariel Armas was 3 for 4 with a double and an RBI single in the eighth. He also scored once run.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were flamed by the Dayton Dragons (Reds), 3-0.

Starter Ethan Flanagan made two mistakes that were turned into two solo home runs. Flanagan’s final line was two runs on four hits over four innings. He walked three and struck out three.

Kevin Valdez allowed just one unearned run and one hit over three innings of relief. He struck out one and walked one.

South Bend’s bats were silenced by a rehabbing Nick Lodolo for five innings. He allowed two hits, no walks and he struck out seven.

Third baseman Brian Halbach was 2 for 4 with a double.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were swept in a doubleheader by the Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Astros), 6-5 in ten innings in the completion of Sunday’s game and 6-2.

Mason McGwire started game one yesterday before the rains came. His first pitch was smashed over the right field wall. He retired the next six batters he faced, striking out three of them.

The Pelicans led 5-1 when the game was suspended in the middle of the third inning. Hayden Frank started today and tossed four scoreless, giving up just three hits. Frank struck out four, walked one and struck out four.

Things went south when Luis A. Reyes came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and he coughed up the lead, allowing four runs on two hits and two walks. One of those hits was a two-run home run. Reyes struck out two.

Braylon Myers relieved Reyes and retired the side in order in the eighth and ninth innings. But after the Pelicans failed to score in the top of the tenth, he allowed a leadoff single in the tenth to end the game.

The final line on Myers was one unearned run on one hit. He struck out one.

First baseman Josiah Hartshorn hit a three-run home run in the third inning on Saturday before the rains came. It was his third home run of the season. Hartshorn was 1 for 4 with two runs scored.

Shortstop Alexis Hernandez went 1 for 4 with a walk and two steals. He scored twice.

Hartshorn’s home run in game one.

Some Mason McGwire highlights.

Dominick Reid started game two today and got the loss after surrendering five runs on seven hits over three innings. One of the five runs was unearned. Reid struck out five and walked one.

Shortstop Ty Southisene tripled and scored on a balk in the top of the seventh. He was 1 for 3 and was hit by a pitch.

After Kodai Senga struggled for a third consecutive start, failing to get out of the third inning of the Mets' 3-0 loss in the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader, the right-hander’s role with the club is up in the air.

“I’m gonna have a conversation with David [Stearns], see what’s next,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “But, obviously, it’s not good enough.”

Senga allowed three runs on three hits and three walks and hit a batter in 2.2 innings, pushing his ERA to 9.00 and WHIP to 1.950 through 20 innings on the year.

“These past few games, I am not able to do my role as a starting pitcher, giving up runs early in the game,” Senga said, speaking through an interpreter, after New York dropped a third straight to Colorado.

Would the Mets see if Senga would agree to a minor league assignment as he did at the end of the 2025 season? 

“Like I said, we just got done, but I’m pretty sure we’re gonna have conversations. What are the options here?” Mendoza said. 

"I don’t know what’s gonna come,” Senga said when asked about his future. “But I know that the performance out on the field isn’t something where I can be like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna be in the rotation or this, and that is gonna happen.’ I don’t know what’s gonna happen.”

Asked if he would accept an assignment to Triple-A, Senga said, “I think that warrants a lot of discussions with a lot of different people. I can’t give you a yes or a no answer right now.”

An issue that could limit the Mets’ options with Senga and prevent him from moving to the bullpen is his rather regimented routine to build up to be ready to pitch and that could be difficult to translate to being in the bullpen. Asked if his routine could adapt to coming on in relief, he said, “I’ve done it in the past, so I don’t think that’s an issue.”

Senga, who had a decent start to the season – allowing four runs on nine hits over 11.2 innings with 16 strikeouts to five walks – after a solid spring training, said it is a mechanical issue rather than a mental one to explain his recent struggles.

Mendoza pointed to a “combination of a lot of things” to explain the right-hander’s recent struggles, but pointed to Senga losing velocity on his four-seam fastball as the main culprit.

During the spring, Senga was throwing the ball hard and in his first start of the year in St. Louis he posted an average fastball velocity of 97.4 mph, which was up 2.7 mph from his average velocity last season.

“We saw when he’s at his best, it’s 97 [mph] plus,” Mendoza said of the heater. “Today we saw a lot of 95, 96.”

Of course, Senga was effective in years past with his fastball at a bit lower velocity. Mendoza said there have been recent outings where there have been “too much nibbling with the cutter, with the sweeper as opposed to staying on the attack.”

That was an issue for Senga during his last outing in Chicago when he allowed seven runs (six earned) on six hits over 3.1 innings with three strikeouts and three walks. That wasn't the case on Sunday afternoon as he pumped in mostly forkballs and fastballs through the first two frames, as those two pitches accounted for 32 of his first 34 offerings.

“Today they got him on some of the fastballs that he threw,” Mendoza said.

On Sunday, Senga averaged 95.1 mph on his 30 four-seam fastballs, which was down 1.2 mph from his season average. And notably, the big hit came when Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman took a good low-and-away 94.4 mph fastball and smacked it 390 feet, 104.9 mph off the bat the other way to right-center for a two-run home run in the third inning.

“When the pitches don’t have as much life approaching the hitter, approaching the catcher, with how high the level this league is, that’s just how the results end up being,” Senga said of his struggles.

The Mets are signing veteran outfielder Austin Slater to a minor league deal, as confirmed by SNY MLB Insider Chelsea Janes.

Slater, 34, has appeared for six big league teams over his 10-year career and is seen as a good right-handed bat against left-handed pitching. 

He has a .263/.354/.423 slash line for a .777 OPS in 911 career at-bats against lefties with 30 home runs and 113 RBI.

Slater spent spring training with the Detroit Tigers, but was released from his minor league deal after failing to win a job on their Opening Day roster. He latched on in Miami on a minor league deal soon after and appeared in 12 games with the Marlins before he was DFA'd on April 23. He had four hits in 23 at-bats (.174) with nine strikeouts and four walks with the big league club.

This will be his second stint in New York after the Yankees added him ahead of the trade deadline last season in a deal with the White Sox. However, Slater struggled during his time in The Bronx. The bad run began with him sustaining a hamstring strain in his third game with the club. After returning from the IL, he didn't hit the ground running and was left off the Yankees' postseason roster. 

Overall, Slater had just three hits in 25 at-bats (.120) over 14 games with 16 strikeouts and no walks with the Yanks. 

He did have a solid start to 2025 with Chicago, slashing .236/.299/.423 for a .721 OPS (100 OPS+) over 51 games. Slater has a .247/.335/.381 slash line for a .711 OPS (99 OPS+) in 711 career big league games.

Slater's signing was reported on Sunday, soon after it was reported that the Mets designated veteran outfielder Tommy Pham for assignment.

The two moves came after New York lost both games of Sunday's doubleheader, managing just one run on 10 hits, as the Colorado Rockies completed a three-game sweep at Citi Field.

The Cardinals rotation has not performed particularly well. Individual games are quite good here and there, check out McGreevy’s line from his start today, but on the whole they are near the bottom of the league in many important pitching indicators.

We were joined by Benjamin Hochman of the Post-Dispatch to consider the rotation from an interesting angle. Given a “trust pie,” how would we divide the pie amongst the current starters for the Cardinals? This convo had it all: stats, vibes, insider info from Benjamin and, of course, pie!

Would certainly be curious to see how you all would divide your trust pie amongst the staff. I’ve put all the relevant links below, would be awesome if you could subscribe as you listen! We appreciate your time — and thanks for listening!

HOUSTON — It may only be for a few days, but Jasson Domínguez is headed back to the big leagues.

The Yankees are calling up Domínguez from Triple-A, a source confirmed on Sunday, with Giancarlo Stanton likely headed to the injured list ahead of Monday’s series opener against the Rangers in Arlington, Texas.

Aaron Boone said before Sunday’s 7-4 loss to the Astros at Daikin Park that the Yankees would make a decision on Stanton by Monday after the veteran DH injured his calf Friday night.

Domínguez, who was batting .326 with a .893 OPS at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, may only be up for a few days, until Anthony Volpe is ready to return from the IL. The shortstop was expected to need at least a few more rehab games as he finishes off a comeback from October surgery on his left shoulder, though it’s possible he could rejoin the Yankees as soon as Friday’s series opener against the Orioles in The Bronx.

In the meantime, Domínguez will likely get some action — either at DH or in left field — as the Yankees are scheduled to face a trio of right-handed starters against the Rangers.

After the Yankees re-signed Cody Bellinger and had Trent Grisham accept a qualifying offer this offseason, Domínguez came into camp needing an injury to open a spot for him on the big league roster. That did not happen, but he still had a strong camp and then went to Triple-A and continued to perform. That includes a quality showing against lefties — against whom he struggled last season — batting 7-for-18 (.389) with a 1.172 OPS against them.

Stanton, meanwhile, felt some improvement in his right calf Saturday but still spent the weekend getting treatment, as the Yankees played a man short trying to give him time to see how much he recovered. The Yankees believe they got Stanton out of Friday’s game before it became something more serious, but it was still likely to cost him some time.

As for Volpe, the plan was for the shortstop to play in a few more rehab games after finishing Sunday 8-for-26 across eight games — going a full nine innings in the field in two of them — in what is essentially his spring training.

“Still working on [timing], still getting there,” Boone said. “It’s only been two weeks of games. Still getting there, but I know he feels really good and feels ready to contribute too.”

The Mets have designated veteran outfielder Tommy Pham for assignment, according to multiple reports.

The move came soon after New York lost both games of a doubleheader, managing just one run on 10 hits on Sunday as the Colorado Rockies completed a three-game sweep at Citi Field. Pham went 0-for-2 with a strikeout in the first game, a 3-1 defeat.

A corresponding move had yet to be announced. New York is in the midst of a team-wide slump, and has scored one run or fewer in 10 of the first 28 games of the season, including both games Sunday.

The Mets signed Pham to a minor league deal in late March and called the 38-year-old up earlier this month. He appeared in nine games with the team and went hitless in 13 at-bats with one walk and seven strikeouts.

Pham first signed with the Mets in 2023, appearing in 73 games before he was dealt to the Arizona Diamondbacks ahead of the trade deadline, slashing .268/.348/.472 with 10 home runs and 36 RBI. Pham has always hit left-handed pitchers well, posting a career .802 OPS with 49 home runs against lefties. 

Pham played for 10 teams during his 13 big league seasons. In 449 plate appearances over 120 games for Pittsburgh last season, Pham slashed .245/.330/.370 for a .700 OPS (94 OPS+) with 10 homers and 17 doubles.

[Editor’s note] Due to an incorrectly constructed Google form, I don’t know whose responses are who! So enjoy this game of “Guess the Snakepitter”! LOLExcept for Mak. Thanks for still putting your name, Mak.

So what did the disappointing series against the White Sox tell us?

Response 4: I think it says more about the Chicago White Sox than it does about the Arizona Diamondbacks. The White Sox aren’t the historically bad team that they’ve been the last couple seasons is the main take home here. As far as the Dbacks go, I think this roster is going to need a revamping. You have three position players in Ryan Waldschmidt, LuJames Groover, and Tommy Troy who almost certainly could contribute more than some of the other position players on the roster. There are several veteran relief arms and a few pitching prospects I think it would be a huge improvement over some of the arms currently in the bullpen.

Makakilo: The White Sox series showed excellent batting will often prevail over average pitching.

Response 2: That the bullpen weaknesses we all feared really are still there. But it also showed that this team is more resilient than last season’s. Also, Merrill Kelly is still rusty.

Response 1: That the pitching is still Arizona pitching. And the offense needs to be more consistent. It also told us that Murakami is far more likely to be a Dodger in 2027/2028 than we would’ve thought 2 months ago.

Perhaps more importantly, what did it not tell us?

Response 4: I don’t think it tells us how either team’s 2026 season will go. The White Sox could very well slip and finish with a losing record, and that applies to the Dbacks as well

Makakilo: The White Sox series did not tell us anything about the Diamondbacks chances to reach the playoffs.

Response 3: It still didn’t tell us what sort of pitching we actually do have and it also is still looking like the team is not firing on all cylinders on offense. So what we still don’t know is how this offense is going to fare moving forward. Would the real versions of roster members please stand up?

Response 1: That the season is over. We had a bad series. Ok. Get up, shake it off, move on. Bigger fish to fry.

What is our level of concern with Merrill Kelly and Ryne Nelson?

Response 4: They’ll both be fine. Not going to stress about a sub-4 ERA in Merrill Kelly’s case, and an ERA barely over 4 in Ryne Nelson case. Even Paul Skenes has had a bad start this year, so it happens, and I wont stress or worry about it until this becomes an extended trend.

Makakilo: I’m optimistic that the problem can be fixed. Perhaps it was the mix of pitches. For reasons that are unclear, in their two recent starts, Kelly and Nelson pitched a much higher than normal percentage of four-seam fastballs (MLB com and Baseball Savant). Before he left the game, Kelly had about half four-seam fastballs, when a quarter is his normal. In his first four batters, Nelson pitched 8 four-seam fastballs and one slider, when 60% is his normal.

Response 2: With Merrill Kelly, right now it is around 3-4 out of 10. He looked mostly decent but rusty in his season debut. Oddities galore muddied his second performance where rust and said oddities led to the game spiraling out of control. But he needs to start looking sharper moving forward or that concern is going to escalate quickly. With Ryne Nelson, it’s somewhere around a 7 out of 10. When he is on his game, he is getting the swings and misses. But it really seems like he isn’t trusting his defense to make plays and is trying to strike everyone out, which is leading to him getting swatted around. It really looks like he is grinding through a bit of a confidence problem all around. Those can snowball into nightmare seasons in a hurry and he is still learning to adapt to the Majors. I would be less concerned if he had another full season of decent performance under his belt. If he has another blow-up or two in his next two starts, it might be time to look at piggy-backing a tandem starter situation with Pfaadt on days when Nelson would be the starter.

Response 1: Medium for both. Nelson was supposed to be the next Mainstay. And the old Mainstay is old. I trust and believe in both. Trust the process (and keep an eye on Reno pitching lines).

The Diamondbacks are playing in Mexico as this is being written. What are your thoughts on MLB’s attempts to grow the sport beyond the US/CA borders?

Response 4: I think MLB needs to do a lot more like this to grow the sport. Mexico has been a market that could be tapped into much more, so having series there is a start. I’d like to see more regular season games hosted in WBC countries. What MLB really needs to do though is get games back on free, over-the-air television. Games being broadcast on local television is what got me into baseball for the long haul. New fans arent going to plunk down money on a sport they aren’t even sure they like! If over-the-air TV isnt an option, then my suggestion is for MLB to broadcast a game each day, rotating so every single team gets a couple games available for free with no blackouts each season. THAT would do more to grow the game than having games in random non-American/Canadian countries.

Makakilo: Baseball Reference shows this season there are 8 players in the Majors who were born in Mexico. With two players, the Blue Jays have more than any other team. Baseball shows what team cooperation and healthy competition can look like. The world would benefit if more countries followed the model of baseball.

Response 3: I love the motivation for the Mexico City series. I am getting sick and tired of such international exhibitions costing AZ home games. At the same time, it puts AZ out there more than other teams. I expect the balls to be flying at that altitude, which could get interesting.

Response 1: It’s fine. I wish there was more of this. I’m confused why it’s two games with days off on either side though. I thought the excuse for why international series were so difficult was jet lag, but the series takes place in US Central time zone so that doesn’t add up. Neither does travel time since it’s closer than NYC to Phoenix. As for there only being two games… idk I guess this is just MLB being MLB. Honestly I just hope we fare better than when MLS teams have to go down to play “tournament” matches in Mexico. They almost always seem to get sick. For a soccer team that’s a minor blip on the schedule. For a baseball team? Huge ramifications for end of season record.

Last time the Athletics played the Texas Rangers, the teams split a four-game series in Sacramento. This time, the A’s emerged victorious in a best-of-three battle in Arlington. The two runs they scored in the first inning proved sufficient to win a game in which they overcame an injury to their starter and a 1-for-13 performance with runners in scoring position.

Facing Rangers right-hander Kumar Rocker, the A’s offense got going early. With two outs in the first inning, Rocker walked A’s left fielder Tyler Soderstrom and designated hitter Brent Rooker. Hot-hitting right fielder Carlos Cortes stepped up to the plate and promptly smoked his first triple of the season over the head of the Rangers center fielder Evan Carter, scoring those two runners to give his team an immediate 2-0 lead. That would be the first of three hits in this game for Cortes, who capped off an incredible week at the plate.

Athletics starting pitcher J.T. Ginn only needed to throw six pitches in a scoreless, shutdown first inning. After giving up a leadoff single, he got Joc Pederson to ground into a double play before retiring the dangerous Corey Seager on a line out snagged nicely by first baseman Nick Kurtz.

In the second inning, A’s center-fielder Lawrence Butler came close to hitting a two-run home run. However, it went just foul near the foul pole and he ended up lining into an unlucky double play. Rangers third baseman Josh Jung, who hit the go-ahead home run last night, led off the home half of that inning with a double. Ginn escaped the jam unscathed, striking out Texas’ catcher Danny Jansen to strand Jung and another runner on base.

The next inning, the A’s somehow went scoreless despite the final three batters smoking the ball. Soderstrom crushed a two-out double to the right-center gap, but was left stranded when third baseman Jung made a nice play to field Rooker’s hard-hit grounder and then threw him out.

With Ginn through three scoreless, the A’s sought to give him more of a cushion. Cortes and shortstop Jacob Wilson led off the fourth with back-to-back singles. Rocker got out of the jam by retiring the next three A’s hitters. He got some help from his first baseman Jake Burger, who made a diving stop to rob Butler of a hit.

With one out in the fourth inning, Ginn left the game with right arm soreness, abruptly ending his outing and forcing the A’s to turn to their bullpen earlier than expected. Reliever Joel Kuhnel came out of the bullpen on short notice and got the final two outs of that inning.

The Athletics wasted another scoring opportunity in the fifth. Catcher Shea Langeliers was left at second base after hitting a double down the left field line. Despite all of the baserunners he allowed, Rocker only gave up those two first-inning runs over six innings of work.

The team was planning to skip left-hander Jacob Lopez’s next turn in the rotation as right-hander Aaron Civale is scheduled to start the first game of the home stand against the Kansas City Royals. So, in the wake of Ginn’s injury, Lopez entered this game out of the A’s bullpen in the fifth inning.

Making his first relief appearance of the season, Lopez pitched a scoreless first inning. The sixth inning did not go as well. Jung hit a lead-off double and then Lopez fielded Carter’s bunt, but threw wildly to first, allowing Carter to reach safely and Jung to score the Rangers first run.

Right-handed reliever Justin Sterner replaced the rattled Lopez and came up huge! He pulled a Houdini to escape a bases loaded, no outs jam, striking out two-straight Rangers before getting right fielder Brandon Nimmo to fly out to end the inning.

Seeking insurance runs, the A’s got a two-out rally going against Rangers left-handed reliever Tyler Alexander in the seventh on back-t0-back singles by Kurtz and Langeliers. Unfortunately, Soderstrom flew out to end the inning and stop another scoring opportunity.

Following scoreless innings from Hogan Harris and Jack Perkins to maintain the A’s advantage, the A’s loaded the bases in the ninth looking to extend their lead. In that inning, Kurtz was intentionally walked, overtaking Rickey Henderson for the most consecutive games drawing a walk in franchise history. Alas, Rooker struck out on three pitches to send it to the bottom of the ninth with the Athletics still clinging to their one-run lead.

Perkins finished off the Rangers in the ninth, setting them down in order to complete his second two-inning save of the road trip and lock up the series win for the first-place Athletics.

As a result of their win, the team gets to enjoy a happy flight home and an off day tomorrow before beginning a new series against the Royals. On Tuesday, Civale will look to pitch better than he did in his first Sacramento start during the A’s previous home stand. He will be opposed by left-hander Kris Bubic, who is 2-1 with a 4.08 ERA through his first five starts this season.

If you had any doubt about the 2026 Mets being a terrible baseball team, surely it was erased this afternoon as the team scored just one run across two games of a doubleheader against the Rockies at Citi Field. In the second game, the Mets were shut out, a recurring theme early of a season that feels like it’s ending right before our eyes even though the calendar hasn’t yet turned to May.

As was the case in the first game of the doubleheader, the Rockies scored three runs, and it was once again more than enough as Colorado won by a 3-1 score. The fact that the Mets’ pitching staff only gave up three runs was a minor miracle, as Kodai Senga shit the bed for the third-straight start. He lasted just two-and-two-thirds innings, gave up three runs, struck out one, walked three, and allowed three hits. If not for admirable work by Carl Edwards Jr. in relief of him in the third, he might’ve been charged with more runs. And even with the assist that he got, Senga has a 9.00 ERA and looks like a pitcher who shouldn’t be getting major league starts.

Edwards wound up pitching three-and-a-third innings without allowing any runs, and Luke Weaver, Brooks Raley, and Devin Williams each threw a scoreless inning. You’d typically say that they kept the game within reach by doing so, but the Mets’ lifeless lineup really meant that three of the team’s high-leverage relievers were simply able to get some work.

As for those Mets hitters, they had six hits on the day, only one of which went for extra bases. The team is not competitive, and it’s hard to imagine that will change. The Mets are 9-19. Their season is very likely over.

You could look back at what we were writing here just shy of two years ago and point out that it’s possible to turn a miserable season around. It’s still only April, but barring a major turnaround, the Mets could get to mid-June with the worst record in baseball over the past twelve months. That is a massive failure for a team that spent over $300 million on its roster both last season and this.

Thankfully, the Mets are off tomorrow. They’ll begin a three-game series against the Nationals—their first series against a National League East opponent this year—on Tuesday night at Citi Field. Tickets are still available.

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Win Probability Added

WPA to follow

Rox bottom has never looked worse.

Any optimism the Mets carried into the weekend after snapping a 12-game losing streak and winning two straight was completely siphoned over six hours Sunday.

Manager Carlos Mendoza’s beleaguered bunch managed only one run over 18 innings in getting swept by the hapless Rockies in a Citi Field doubleheader.

The three-game series sweep by Colorado was complete with the Mets’ 3-0 loss in the nightcap. The Mets fell 3-1 in the doubleheader’s first game.

With Monday’s off-day, questions will continue to swirl about Mendoza’s job security. Mendoza isn’t the one swinging to weak contact at the plate, but Mets owner Steve Cohen can’t fire the entire team.

Chase Dollander and his 100 mph heat provided the resistance in the nightcap. It was quite the contrast to journeyman Jose Quintana’s assortment of junk in Game 1.

In the nightcap, Kodai Senga continued his free fall by lasting only 2 ²/₃ innings and allowing three earned runs on three hits with three walks. It was a third straight start in which the right-hander failed to complete even four innings.

Hunter Goodman’s two-run homer in the third that gave the Rockies a 3-0 lead suggested Senga might be facing short work. And after Senga walked two batters in the third inning, manager Carlos Mendoza removed him.

Carl Edwards Jr., in his Mets debut, gave the team a chance with 3 ¹/₃ scoreless innings in relief. Edwards, who struck out five, walked three batters without allowing a hit.

The Mets had a chance to rally in the fifth after Carson Benge and Ronny Mauricio delivered consecutive singles to begin the inning. But Tyrone Taylor’s ensuing line drive was snagged by first baseman TJ Rumfield and was turned into a double play.

The Mets took a shot at a late rally in Game 1, but it fizzled in the eighth. After Juan Soto walked to load the bases with one out, Luis Robert Jr. popped out and Mark Vientos struck out, eliciting boos from the crowd.

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Nolan McLean was removed after five innings in which he allowed two runs, one unearned, on five hits and two walks with seven strikeouts.

The start matched McLean’s shortest of the season — he also went only five innings against the Pirates in his initial outing.

McLean allowed an RBI single to Troy Johnston in the fourth, but the inning could have gotten much worse. With the bases still loaded and nobody out, McLean struck out Kyle Karros before getting Brett Sullivan to hit a soft comebacker that started a 1-2-3 double play. The rally started with two straight singles before Rumfield walked to load the bases.

Taylor’s homer leading off the bottom of the fifth tied it 1-1. Quintana had retired 11 straight batters before Taylor cleared the fence in left-center for his second homer this season.

Vientos’ throwing error helped the Rockies score an unearned run in the sixth. Vientos, at first base, fielded Rumfield’s grounder and attempted a throw to second to nail Mickey Moniak. But the throw hit Moniak, leaving the bases loaded and nobody out. Huascar Brazobán replaced McLean and induced a double-play grounder from Johnston, with the run scoring.

Brazobán surrendered an RBI single to Jake McCarthy in the seventh that widened the Mets deficit to 3-1. Sullivan’s double started the rally. Luis Torrens nailed McCarthy attempting to steal second before Jordan Beck reached on a pitch clock violation for ball four. Brazobán retired Edouard Julien for the final out.

Earlier today, the Yankees optioned Luis Gil to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after taking the loss in the series finale in Houston. In a corresponding move, the Yankees are reportedly calling up outfielder Jasson Domínguez from Triple-A.

A path to playing time for Domínguez opened up on Friday night when Giancarlo Stanton exited mid-game due to a calf injury. The Yankees haven’t placed Stanton on the injured list, but the 36-year-old DH will presumably still need some more time to recover even if he doesn’t ultimately hit the IL in the coming days, potentially giving Domínguez his first chance at major-league at-bats this season.

Domínguez had gotten off to an excellent start at Triple-A, posting a .306/.404/.471 slash line with three home runs and eight stolen bases. He may be the primary option to take over DH duties against right-handed pitchers for now, with Paul Goldschmidt on hand to enter the lineup against lefties.

It’s possible this isn’t a long stint back in the majors for Domínguez; his role in the organization at the moment seems to be to stay ready for times exactly like this, when a veteran goes down and the Yankees have a need for another bat in the lineup. Though this kind of job isn’t exactly what Domínguez or the club had in mind a few years ago as the outfielder shot through the minor league ranks, it’s representative of the depth the Yankees have right now that when injury hits, they can just plug in a competent young bat still with loads upside.

Update

The move is now official.

After rain bumped the Saturday matchup from the MLB schedule, the Colorado Rockies and New York Mets played two on Sunday afternoon at Citi Field.

Game 1: Rockies 3, Mets 1

The Rockies started the day with a victory to lock up a series win on the road.

Putting the ‘K’ in New York

Strikeouts were a key theme across the first few innings.

After Nolan McLean struck out two batters in a quick top of the first, the game got off to a dicey start for José Quintana. Walks have plagued Quintana in 2026 and he struggled to find control early, walking Bo Bichette before striking out Juan Soto and then walking Luis Robert Jr. to put runners on first and second.

A Mark Vientos single loaded the bases with one out. Quintana responded by striking out Marcus Semien. Brett Baty proved to be a difficult final out, working his at-bat to a full count. The sixth pitch was initially called a ball to walk in a run, but a successful Brett Sullivan ABS challenge overturned the ruling, sparing the Rockies with a third strikeout for Quintana.

McLean continued to pile up the strikeouts as well, including the 1,000th strikeout of his career. He matched his first inning total, striking out two more each inning in the second and the third. McLean looked sharp mixing his pitches for those six strikeouts, with two Ks coming on curveballs, two on four-seam fastballs, one on a sinker, and one on a sweeper. He also picked off Jake McCarthy at first base in the bottom of the third.

Ducks on the pond, only one gets home

The Rockies found their spark in the fourth inning. With only one hit through the first three innings, they got to work with three more.

Edouard Julien hit a line drive leadoff single, before Mickey Moniak moved him to third with a single of his own. McClean would then walk TJ Rumfield to load the bases with no outs. Troy Johnston seized the opportunity, hitting an RBI single to right.

Unfortunately, that would be all the Rockies could muster. McClean bounced back to strike out Kyle Karros, before fielding a Sullivan grounder to turn a 1-2-3 double play to get out of trouble.

The pitchers (mostly) settled in

Coming into the game, the question was how Quintana and McClean might respond after they both struggled in their last outings. The answer was a low-scoring pitchers duel, plenty of quick innings, and several jams navigated.

Getting out of his rough first inning, Quintana would cruise, sitting down 11 straight batters in a masterful performance.

Bad news: he couldn’t make it 12 straight. Tyron Taylor kicked off the bottom of the fifth with a solo homer to left center to tie things up at 1-1.

Good news: That would be the only run Quintana would give up all day.

The Rockies got to McClean in the sixth, ending his day by putting him in a pickle. A Julien leadoff double, a Moniak walk, and a throwing error to put Rumfield on first would load the bases and force the Mets to go to the bullpen. McLean’s day ended at 5.0 innings pitched, with five hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts.

Huascar Brazobán entered and gave up a run — charged to McLean — on a double play ground ball. He and the Mets would get out of the inning trailing just 2-1 after Karros hit a grounder for the third out.

Quintana would also call it a day in the sixth after 5.1 innings pitched, with one run given up on just two hits alongside five strikeouts and two walks.

Late ups and downs

Leadoff hits were a common theme for the Rockies today, and it worked out for some seventh inning insurance. Sullivan hit a double out to right field and was brought home by a McCarthy RBI single, giving the Rockies a 3-1 lead. Juan Mejia, who came in to relieve Quintana, kept things clean by sitting down Semien, Baty, and Taylor to end the inning.

Things got a little too close for comfort in the eighth. It was three straight outs for the Rockies offense in the top, followed by three straight baserunners for the Mets offense in the bottom.

Jaden Hill replaced Mejia and, after getting the first out, quickly found himself in trouble. He surrendered back-to-back singles to Francisco Alvarez and Bichette, before walking Soto to (once again) load the bases. But (also once again) the Rockies would prove resilient. Hill would get Robert Jr. to pop out on a 1-2 count and lock in to strike out Vientos, getting him to swing on a slider down in the zone.

Start spreadin’ the news!

The Rockies went on the road and secured their third series win of the season behind Quintana’s best outing of the year. Quintana’s first win in 2026 came with season-lows for hits and runs given up. He had more strikeouts today (five) than he had thrown all year (four across three games).

Both teams had plenty of chances, including multiple bases loaded opportunities, but neither could fully capitalize. Each team left 13 runners on base. The game ultimately was a classic Citi Field showdown, decided one run at a time in a low-scoring affair with the Rockies getting runs across when they needed them most.

Game 2: Rockies 3, Mets 0

Less than an hour after game one, the Rockies were back on the field to face the Mets again. With a series win already locked down, the Rockies rode a dominant day from their pitching staff to a sweep in Flushing.

Dominant Dollander

For the first time this season, right-handed pitcher Chase Dollander started a game. After operating largely as a bulk reliever with an opener through his first six appearances, Dollander was given the nod for the second game in today’s doubleheader.

He then made a case to stay in the rotation.

Dollander was a little shaky with his command early. However, he ended up only giving up two hits and two walks through his first three innings of work. He then settled into a powerful rhythm. Dollander ended up pitching seven shutout innings on 105 pitches while giving up five hits and two walks while striking out seven hitters. The seven innings were a career high for Dollander.

It looked like manager Warren Schaeffer was coming to get Dollander when he gave up a two out single in the bottom of the seventh. However, Dollander gestured to the dugout as if to ask for one more batter to end the inning. Dollander then induced a pop-out to end the inning.

With Ryan Feltner out for an unknown period of time with right ulnar nerve inflammation, it might be time for Dollander to take his place in the rotation.

Early offense sputtered out

The Rockies’ offense wasn’t exactly dominant, nor was it the real reason the Rockies won this game. In fact, the Rockies had just one total hit after the third inning. That hit came off the bat of Mickey Moniak, who extended his hitting streak to 11 games.

Tyler Freeman wore a pitch and TJ Rumfield drew a walk to set up the Rockies in the top of the second inning. Kyle Karros grounded into a force-out to advance Freeman to third, and Freeman then scored on a single off the bat of Troy Johnston.

In the top of the third, Edouard Julien singled to star the inning before Hunter Goodman gave the ball a ride over the fence for his seventh home run of the season.

Making things easy for the bullpen

Thanks to strong outings in the first game of the doubleheader and Chase Dollander’s seven inning start, the Rockies bullpen had just one job in this game: get it done in two innings.

Seth Halvorsen came in first, making his second appearance with the Rockies this season. He allowed no hits, but did issue a walk in a scoreless eighth inning. He then gave way to Zach Agnos, who gave up a double but kept the Mets off the board and earned his second save of the season.

Now the bullpen gets an additional day of rest tomorrow before the Rockies start their next series.

Up Next

The Rockies get a day of rest Monday before heading to Ohio for a three game series with the Cincinnati Reds. Tomoyuki Sugano (2-1, 3.42 ERA) and Chase Burns (2-1, 2.57 ERA) are expected to start the first game of the series on Tuesday at 4:40 p.m. MDT.

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The Mets once again failed to produce any offense, dropping the second game of Sunday's doubleheader, 3-0, to the Colorado Rockies at Citi Field.

Kodai Senga failed to get out of the third inning, surrendering three runs on three hits and three walks with one strikeout while getting eight outs on 50 pitches (30 strikes).

But the story of Game 2 was the same as Game 1: The bats failed to produce. The Mets left seven runners on base and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and have now scored one run or fewer in 10 of 28 games this season. Rockies starter Chase Dollander was the beneficiary, allowing just five hits and two walks as he struck out seven batters in seven shutout innings.

New York, which scored just one run in 18 innings on 10 hits Sunday, fell to 9-19 on the season. Colorado improved to 13-16 with the three-game sweep in Queens.

Here are the key takeaways...

- Senga collected his first strikeout of the day on a good forkball in an eight-pitch, 1-2-3 first. The second was less successful with a hit batter and a walk to start the frame. After a fielder’s choice, a Senga 0-2 forkball hung over the plate and was ripped into right for an RBI single. But a pair of flyouts to left field stranded two runners. Through two innings, Senga had been leaning heavily on his fastball and forkball, with those two pitches making up 32 of his first 34 offerings.

Senga started the third with a first-pitch curve, and Edouard Julien lined it up the middle for a single. Senga then got stung by Hunter Goodman staying on a down-and-away fastball for a two-run shot to right-center on a ball that carried 390 feet (104.9 mph off the bat). It wasn't a bad pitch; Goodman just crushed it. 

A four-pitch walk followed, and pitching coach Justin Willad was out for a visit. After a flyout, Brett Baty made a good play down the line at first for an out, but threw the ball into left field trying to do too much, putting a runner at third with two down. After a third walk of the game, manager Carlos Mendoza came out to grab the starter.  

Senga, who was working on eight days' rest as the Mets looked to reset him after a tough outing in Chicago, just didn’t find his groove after the first and saw his ERA balloon to 9.00 through his first five starts. He’s now allowed 21 runs (20 earned) on 26 hits (five homers) and 13 walks to 23 strikeouts in 20 innings for a 1.950 WHIP.

- The bullpen then did its job shutting down Colorado's offense: Carl Edwards Jr. entered in his Mets debut with runners on the corners and two down, and walked the first guy he faced, but got a groundout to stop any further damage. Edwards issued a one-out walk but struck out the side in the fourth, with all three going down swinging at the curveball. He followed with a walk and strikeout in the fifth before adding a 1-2-3 in the sixth with another strikeout.

Luke Weaver allowed a one-out single, but picked off Mickey Moniak at first to get a clean seventh, Brooks Raley added a strikeout in a 1-2-3 eighth, and Devin Williams struck out the first two on the changeup in a 1-2-3 ninth to keep the Mets in the game, but the offense never arrived. 

- The Mets had a chance in the first inning against Dollander. Juan Soto ripped a bullet one-out single up the middle (106.5 mph off the bat) and Baty, who had a tough time in Game 1 with three strikeouts looking, walked on four pitches to put two on and two out. But MJ Melendez popped out a 3-2 offering to the shortstop in shallow center. 

- There was something really cooking in the fifth as Carson Benge grounded a ball up the middle and Ronny Mauricio yanked one through the right side to put two men on. But Tyrone Taylor looped a line drive at the first baseman to double off Mauricio at first, and Bo Bichette grounded out to short. It ended up being a 13-pitch inning for Dollander, getting the last two batters on four pitches. 

- Bichette was hitless in his first two at-bats with a strikeout looking, thanks to a Goodman challenge on a 3-2 pitch that just caught the zone down and away. He was robbed of a hit with one out in the eighth when Ezequiel Tovar made a diving stop at short on a ball he smashed 109.2 mph to finish the day 0-for-4 with a strikeout. 

Bichette, who played shortstop in Game 1, made a great pick at third on a hard smash off Brenton Doyle's bat (100.9 mph) for the second out in the sixth.

- Benge put a good swing on a 1-2 pitch to poke the ball the other way for a two-out hit in the seventh. He went 2-for-4 as he has looked much better at the plate in recent games, but popped out to left to end the game.

- Melendez, who was hitless in his first three times up with a strikeout swinging, dropped a double into the left field corner with one out in the ninth to finish 1-for-4. He also made a nice running grab tracking down a ball in the corner in left to start the fifth.

- Soto finished 1-for-2 with two walks and a strikeout swinging on a 100.4 mph heater from Dollander to start the sixth, after losing the Mets’ final challenge of the game on strike one.

- Marcus Semien blistered a single up the middle to start the second inning, but was caught stealing second a few pitches later. He went 1-for-3 with a strikeout swinging.

He made a nice play to start the seventh, ranging to the shortstop side of the bag to backhand the ball and make a nice throw to get Goodman running to first.

- Francisco Alvarez went down swinging on a letter-high 99 mph fastball from Dollander in his first at-bat and went down swinging on a low-and-away Dollander slider in the sixth. He finished 0-for-4.

- Baty finished 0-for-3 with a walk and a smashed liner (102.1 mph) but right at the centerfielder to end the sixth. 

- Mauricio finished the day 1-for-3 with a strikeout swinging.

- Taylor was hitless in three at-bats.

Next Up

The Mets have Monday off before opening up a three-game set with the Washington Nationals. 

Clay Holmes (2.10 ERA, 1.033 WHIP in 30 innings) gets the ball for Tuesday's 7:10 p.m. first pitch in Queens. Zack Littell (7.56 ERA, 1.680 WHIP in 25 innings, who leads baseball with 11 home runs allowed) goes for the visitors.

Michael King was dealing in the second game of the Mexico City Series between the San Diego Padres and the Arizona Diamondbacks. The right-hander completed six innings and allowed two runs on three hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. King took a no-hitter into the bottom of the fourth inning and did not allow a run until the bottom of the fifth inning when Jose Fernandez hit a solo home run to make the score, 6-1. King allowed the second run of the game to Arizona in the bottom of the sixth inning when Ildemaro Vargas hit another solo home run. San Diego held a 7-2 lead when King walked off the mound after the final out of the bottom of the sixth inning, but that was when the game got interesting as the Padres bullpen imploded and the result was an 12-7 loss at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu on Sunday.

David Morgan took over on the mound for the Padres and recorded a flyout to start the bottom of the seventh inning. Morgan then allowed three singles to load the bases before Tim Tawa hit a grand slam home run to left field that made the score, 7-6. The reliever left the game after just 1/3 of an inning and Bradgley Rodriguez came on to try to get the final two outs of the frame.

Rodriguez had his own struggles and allowed a leadoff double before getting a groundout for the second out of the inning. With a runner on third base, Rodriguez walked Corbin Carroll to put runners at the corners. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. followed with a double to left that scored two runs and gave the Diamondbacks an 8-7 lead and robbed King of a potential win. Rodriguez got the final out of the inning when James McCann grounded out to second base, ending the six-run frame for Arizona.

Ron Marinaccio came on to pitch the bottom of the eighth inning for San Diego and allowed three consecutive singles to load the bases to open the inning. Tawa flied out to shallow left field, which prevented any movement from the runners and gave Vargas another opportunity to put runs on the board for Arizona. He did just that with a triple to right field which put the Diamondbacks ahead of the Padres, 11-7. Ketel Marte followed with a single to right field, which pushed the score to 12-7 and knocked Marinaccio out of the game.

Wandy Peralta was called on to get the final two outs of the inning for San Diego but allowed a single to Carroll to put runners on the corners with one out. Peralta then walked Gurriel Jr. to load the bases before he induced a ground ball off the bat of McCann that was fielded by Jake Cronenworth, who tagged the runner and threw to first base for a double play to end the inning.

The Padres brought the top of their lineup to the plate in the top of the ninth inning and Ramon Laureano led off with a single. Fernando Tatis Jr. followed with a lineout to right field and Jackson Merrill flied out to right field. With two outs and Laureano on base Manny Machado stepped to the plate and hit a line drive to third that was caught by a diving Nolan Arrenado to secure the win for the Diamondbacks.

Manny Machado was the offensive highlight of the game for both teams in the early innings. He hit a two-run home run in the top of the third inning and followed that with a three-run home run in the top of the fifth inning to give San Diego a 6-0 lead heading to the bottom of the fifth. The Diamondbacks got on the board in the bottom of the inning and the Padres answered in the top of the sixth when Luis Campusano hit a solo home run to push the lead to 7-1.

San Diego returns to Petco Park to take on the Chicago Cubs on Monday at 6:40 p.m.