Category: Sports News

After two close ball games, the series between the Nats and Braves is tied at a game apiece. These are the two best offenses in the league, but pitching has ruled the day in this series. To close out this weather impacted series, the two teams will call on a pair of crafty lefties.

With a lefty on the mound, Blake Butera will make some changes. Andres Chaparro and Curtis Mead will both be back in the lineup. Jacob Young will also return to center field. That will move Dylan Crews to right field, James Wood to left and Daylen Lile to DH. After a pair of bumpy starts, Foster Griffin will look to get back on track.

The Braves are also making some changes with a lefty on the mound. Eli White and Ha-Seong Kim will be back in the lineup. Mauricio Dubon will move back to left and Ronald Acuna Jr. will be the DH. Veteran Sandy Leon will be back in the lineup behind the plate. Martin Perez has been an underrated arm for the Braves this year and he will take the ball today.

Game Info:

Stadium: Truist Park

Time: 4:10 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

Getting one game in Atlanta was my goal heading into the weekend. They did that, and got very close to taking both games. Now, they will go for yet another road series win. The offense has not been great with RISP lately, so hopefully that changes. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

Pirates 4Blue Jays 1

The worst parts about today’s game was that Dylan Cease and Vladimir Guerrero each left the game with injuries. Cease in the fifth, the Jays are calling it hamstring discomfort, which is about as good as the news could be. Vlad was hit on the inside of the right arm with a pitch and walked straight off the field. The team says that x-rays didn’t show a fracture, calling it a contusion. Also best case scenario.

This one was bad from the first pitch. Spencer Horwitz homered on the very first pitch. Then Oneil Cruz hit his home run on the second pitch of the second inning.

Other that that, Cease was good, 2 other hits, 1 walk with 8 strikeouts.

The pen?

• Mason Fluharty finshed off that fifth inning, giving up a single but getting two strikeouts.
• Chase Lee got the next five outs but gave up a two run homer. Esmerlyn Valdez getting his first MLB home run.
• Braydon Fisher pitched a quick eighth.
• Yariel Rodriguez got the ninth and got through it with just a hit batter. I hate playground justice when they were supposed to be adults. There was no intent on the ball that hit Vlad. The Jays are third from the bottom of the league in batters hit and third (well fourth now) in hitting batters. Why cause issues. solve things by winning. Jake Mangum, who got hit, stole second and went to third on a wild pitch, but didn’t score.

On offense? One run. Vlad walked, Yohendrick Piñango singled and Ernie Clement singled home Vlad. Andrés Giménez lined out (hit it hard, 101.4 mph, .390 expected batting average, but into a glove).

We only had five hits on the day, with five walks. Vlad got on 3 times (well, twice, Sosa pinch ran after the HBP) with two walks as did Brandon Valenzuela, two walks and a double. Kazuma Okamoto had a double off the right field wall (just a few feet short of a home run, out in 3 of 30 parks). I’m trying to see it as a good sign, but he went 0 for 3 with a strikeout in his other at bats.

We had a chance in the ninth. With one out, Giménez was hit by pitch and . But George Springer popped out and Daulton Varsho struck out (tough spot against a lefty spinning things away from hit).

I was thinking that the offense was coming around, but it didn’t look that way today.

Jays of the Day: Valenzuela (0.13, two walks and a double) and Vlad (0.12 WPA, on the two walks and hit by pitch).

Other Award: Lee (-0.19), Springer (-0.11, 0 for 4, walk), Varsho (-0.11, 1 for 5), Jesús Sánchez (-0.12, 0 for 3, 2 k) and Giménez (-0.09, 0 for 3, k).

Tomorrow the Marlins come to town, tor a three-game series. Janson Junk (2-5, 5.07) vs. Trey Yesavage (2-1, 1.07). A sweep would get us back to .500, but no pressure.

Three consecutive one-run games for the D-backs. That isn’t as rare as you might think. Indeed, it’s the third time this year alone, that Arizona has played three in a row decided by the narrowest of margins. It happened twice in April: from the 4th-7th, and then the entire series in Philadelphia from the 10th-12th was also one-run games. If today’s game is also decided by one run, now we’ll be talking. The D-backs haven’t had four consecutive one-run games since June 1st, 2019. Though even that’ll be some way from the franchise record. From May 30th through June 6th in 2010, Arizona played seven one-run games in a row, including an infamous pair of 1-0 losses in extras to LA.

The run has pushed the Diamondbacks back up the rankings for this year. Their 18 one-run games is most, by two, in the National League, and only behind the Mariners (19) in all baseball. It’s three times as many as the fewest in baseball: the Astros have only six. But the most successful team are the Rays, who are an impressive 9-1 in one-run games. The D-backs’ 10-8 is about what you’d expect, the general consensus being that one-run games are close to a coin toss. Though the fact we’ve been playing the team with the worst record in the NL so close is concerning. Still, a win today would make for a 6-1 homestand, and that’s hard to complain about.

Right now, the team are 1.5 games back of the last NL wild-card spot, and with no other teams between them. That spot is currently held by the slumping Cubs, who have lost seven in a row. Arizona has been getting it done against weaker opponents: their 19-8 record against teams with losing records, is behind just the Padres (20-8) in the NL. The upcoming road trip (San Francisco and Seattle) gives them a chance to continue that trend, before the schedule turns somewhat tougher. And, finally, we welcome BogoJoe to the list of guest recappers, making his debut there this afternoon. May his duties this afternoon be pleasant!

The forecast doesn’t seem great but there’s still scheduled to be baseball Sunday afternoon in Atlanta.

The rubber match of this weekend’s Braves-Nationals series is set for a 4:10 p.m. EDT start with Atlanta’s
Martín Pérez taking on Washington’s Foster Griffin in a southpaw clash.

Follow along and share your thoughts on what we can all hope will be an uninterrupted faceoff at Truist Park.

Preview

Lineups

A disappointing start to the Toronto Blue Jays' season took a darker turn Sunday, May 24 when the club lost slugger Vladimir Guerrero and No. 2 starter Dylan Cease to injury in the same game.

That's $710 million worth of salary departing their series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but the initial word on Guerrero was, at least, encouraging. He was struck on the right elbow by a pitch from Pirates starter Mitch Keller and left the game in the fifth inning, but X-rays were negative.

Cease, signed to a $210 million contract this past winter, departed in the top of the fifth inning with a mild left hamstring strain after giving up two runs to the Pirates. Cease has posted a 3.05 ERA in 11 starts.

Guerrero's 14-year, $500 million contract extension begins this year; he's batting .287 with three home runs.

The Blue Jays entered Sunday 25-27 and in third place in the AL East.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Dylan Cease both exit via injury in same game

Athletics (26-26) at San Diego Padres (31-20), May 24, 2026, 1:10 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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The A’s are down to their last chance to get a win in San Diego after losing the first two games of this weekend series. They’ve dropped back down to .500 and though they start the day in first place in the AL West their lead could drop down to just a half-game s if they can’t bounce back and get a win on getaway day this afternoon.

This afternoon’s starting pitcher for the Athletics will be right-hander Luis Medina, who is getting his first starting assignment this year. The former starter began this season in the Athletics’ bullpen as he continues to rediscover himself post Tommy John surgery. So far the Athletics’ slow-roll with him has yielded positive results as the 27-year-old has a solid 2.41 ERA in 14 relief appearances for the big league squad this year. The A’s have accumulated a lot of young, interesting pitching over the past couple of years but Medina was a highly-regarded arm as recently as 2024 and the team is ready to give him a shot to get back into the starting mix. Today will be a big outing for him going forward.

Here’s the Athletics’ starting nine for the series finale against the Padres:

The A’s will go with the same top three of the lineup as yesterday, though Shea Langeliers will get a half-day as he’ll DH while Jonah Heim is the backstop today catching Medina. He’ll be batting behind Tyler Soderstrom, who is batting cleanup. With Langeliers DH’ing that means Brent Rooker gets a day off but he’ll be available for a pinch-hitting appearance off the bench if needed.

The bottom half of the lineup is also mostly full of the current regulars. Gelof mans third again, McNeil is at his spot at the keystone, and Bolte will handle center field. The only major change in the starting nine is at shortstop where Alika Williams will draw his first start with the Athletics. The recently-acquired Williams has made it into five games for the Green & Gold so far but mostly as a late-game defensive replacement. He only has one at-bat for the A’s but he’ll be getting more this afternoon.

The lineup will be going against San Diego ace Michael King. The right-hander will be making his 11th start of the year for the Padre and he’s been his typical dominant self so far. He’s coming into today’s contest with a 2.31 ERA, which ranks 7th in the National League. He’s also in mid-season form as he’s allowed just two runs over his past three outings spanning 18 2/3 frames. The offense will need to take advantage of any and every opportunity they can scrounge together against the righty.

And the San Diego lineup:

Like the A’s, mostly the same top half of the lineup for San Diego this afternoon. Xander Bogaerts returns to the lineup after getting a day off yesterday while old friend Ramon Laureano is back in the lineup as well, replacing Nick Castellanos in right field.

Gotta get a win today to end the road trip on a high note. Would help to see a couple division rivals also lose today but we got to take care of our own business first and foremost. Who’s feeling the bounce back energy today? Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:

Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, KVMX 92.1/105.5, A’s Cast

It’s been three close games in the desert as the Colorado Rockies play in Arizona for the first time this season. All three games against the Diamondbacks have been decided by just one run. Unfortunately, the Rockies have now been on the wrong end of two of those games. They need a win today to avoid a series loss for the first time this month.

Making the start for the Rockies is left-handed veteran José Quintana. Quintana looks to continue his streak of five starts in which he has allowed three earned runs or less. Despite giving up five or more hits in his last three appearances, Quintana has done well to limit damage and has been one of the Rockies’ most reliable starters this season. His last time out against the Texas Rangers he went 5.2 innings and gave up three earned runs on seven hits with one walk and four strikeouts.

On the bump for the Diamondbacks is the right-handed Ryne Nelson, who enters today’s contest with a 5.19 ERA and 46 strikeouts over his first ten starts. Nelson is currently riding a three-game streak of Quality Starts where he has gone at least 6.2 innings. However, his last time out he was playing with fire. In seven innings against the San Francisco Giants he gave up eight hits—two of which were home runs—and two walks while only striking out three batters.

The Rockies have historically done well against Nelson. In three starts against them he has an ERA of 8.80 over 15.1 innings and has given up three home runs. His primary pitch this season is a four-seam fastball averaging 96.3 MPH and he backs that out with a slider as his main put-away pitch. He also throws a sinker, a cutter, and a curveball.

First Pitch: 2:10 PM MDT

TV: Rockies TV

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

Diamondbacks SB Nation site:AZ Snake Pit

Lineups:

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

A bullpen implosion for the South Siders Saturday led to the Giants tying the series at one, so the Good Guys will aim to bounce back today with a win to head home with a .500 record for their trip to the west coast (3-3). Lefthander Noah Schultz will be making his eighth start of the season, and so far he’s been a solid addition to the starting rotation outside a couple rougher outings. The 22-year-old uses a five-pitch arsenal, relying most heavily on his four-seamer, sinker, and sweeper, while still throwing his cutter a decent amount (17.2%), though his changeup usage is just under 9%.

Noah’s fastball is the most effective, averaging at 95 mph with a .154 opponent batting average along with a .196 expected batting average (xBA). Still, his sweeper has a 34% whiff rate while producing a .136 opponent average. He’s only tossed his changeup 52 times; it has seen the best weighted on-base average (wOBA) at .257, and the best whiff rate at 40.7% — if he can maintain control of it, perhaps it wouldn’t be the worst idea to throw it a bit more.

Today’s lineup for the White Sox might not be their Sunday best with Sam Antonacci getting a rest day, but lately, this team gives me near-delusional optimism to stay in games.

The top of the order is still looking pretty solid with Chase Meidroth, Munetaka Murakami, and Miguel Vargas leading us off, with new South Side legend Randal Grichuk posting up in the cleanup spot and Colson Montgomery adding more power into the five-hole. Since escaping the New York Yankees, Grichuk has slashed .333/.360/.833 (1.193 OPS) with four homers and eight RBIs in just 14 games (24 at-bats). Please, Randal, make yourself at home.

Here’s how Tony Vitello is lining the Giants up against Noah Schultz:

San Francisco has been on more of a hot streak offensively as a team over the last 15 days, ranking second in home runs and doubles, first in hits, and fourth in OPS in all of baseball. Both teams will be trotting out lefties, with Robbie Ray on the mound making his 11th start of the season. Ray holds a 3-6 record with a 4.28 ERA in 54 2/3 innings and has struggled in his last seven games, posting a 5.30 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP in 37 1/3 frames.

First pitch is at 3:05 p.m. CT. It’s set to be a beautiful day out in San Fran, with a high of 63 degrees and partly cloudy skies. Tune in to the TV broadcast on CHSN, or listen on the radio at ESPN Chicago AM 1000. Let’s grab a series win on the way back to Chi-Town!

After playing right field the last three days while dealing with a bone bruise in his left thumb, Ronald Acuña Jr. will serve as the Braves’ designated hitter for Sunday’s home series finale against the Washington Nationals.

Mauricio Dubon is back in the two-hole against left-handed starter Foster Griffin (5-2, 4.02 ERA) and Ha-Seong Kim is back at shortstop after an off day Saturday. Eli White replaces Acuña in right field and will hit seventh, while Sandy León is back at catcher and hitting ninth.

All of the Braves’ experience against Griffin comes from his start against them last month in Washington. The active Braves are 4-for-18 (.222) against him. Dubon was 2-for-3 with a double, Michael Harris II had a double and White homered off Griffin, who has two strikeouts and one walk against current Braves.

The Nationals will replace a pair of lefty hitters (Jose Tena at first and Jorbit Vivas at third) with righties (Andres Chaparro at first and Curtis Mead at third) against left-handed Braves starter Martín Pérez. Mead is hitting second and Chaparro is hitting third, sandwiched between James Wood and CJ Abrams in the top four spots of the lineup.

The Nationals’ current roster is a combined 4-for-16 (.250) against Pérez. Abrams (2-for-5) has half of those hits, including a solo homer. Wood (1-for-2) homered off Pérez in his relief appearance last month at Washington. The Nationals have struck out five times and worked no walks against Pérez.