TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 16: New York Yankees Infielder Anthony Volpe (11) listens to instructions during the spring training workout on February 16, 2026 at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, FL. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
NY Post | Greg Joyce: Anthony Volpe has reunited with the Yankees as they arrived in Tampa to play the Rays this weekend, the injured shortstop having taken an extended stay at the team’s complex while rehabbing from offseason surgery on his labrum. The time for a rehab assignment is nearing, and could come as early as Tuesday after meeting with the team physician for a final check-up, but once he’s fully ready to go what will his role with the team be? General manager Brian Cashman gave the strongest indication that he’ll be back as the starting shortstop that we’ve heard since the offseason, confirming “that’s always been the plan” when reporters asked. He did leave a caveat that “ultimately that’ll be the manager’s call” on starting Volpe, but there’s little doubt that the GM and manager will be in lockstep on this.
José Caballero had a chance to make this a more debatable choice with the starting gig wide open for the first month of the season, but his bat has been ice cold to start the year. A .135/.200/.162 triple-slash isn’t inspiring any confidence, and the team was already inclined to go back to Volpe once healthy after assessing the team in the offseason. Given how dreadful the bottom of the lineup has performed, an early season performer like Volpe could win a lot of favor back in his court by jumping back in with some timely hits.
NJ.com | Bob Klapisch ($): We’ve seen high highs and low lows with this 2026 team already, jumping out to a 7-1 start that was tops in the league with electric pitching just to watch as the bats have gone missing and been unable to support the staff amidst a 1-4 skid that’s mainly been punctuated by three consecutive losses. It’s early, yes, so the answer of what this Yankees team is likely falls somewhere between those two results, but some very real flaws have been exposed as stats begin to stabilize.
AP | Ronald Blum: The average salary of an MLB player rose for another year after Opening Day payrolls were made official, seeing a 3.4 percent jump from 2025 to a record $5.34 million. Overall, the growth of the game’s major-league side of the financials has been on a steady climb following the pandemic, recovering from a slow decline in the late 2010s, but the underlying concern is that the extreme spenders and thrifters have both gotten stronger: six teams paid out over $250 million this year instead of four last year, while eight teams spent under $100 million as opposed to five in 2025. The median salary also grew slightly, up to $1.4 million from $1.35 million, but it still hasn’t come close to the median record set back in 2015. With a lockout all but assumed to be arriving after this season concludes, these numbers paint a picture of the opening lines that the union and owners will set their trenches against, so it’s worth familiarizing yourself with them now.
MLB Trade Rumors | Charlie Wright: Former Yankee Mike Ford is taking on a front office role with the Tampa Bay Rays, which would all but confirm that the first baseman is electing to retire from the game after spending last season abroad in Japan. Ford had a sensational stint with the Yankees in 2019 filling in for an injured Edwin Encarnacion, hitting for a .909 OPS in 50 games, but his subsequent 2020 season didn’t fare nearly as well and he played only a minor role in that year as well as in 2021, leading to a trade that sent him to Tampa. Now he’ll get the chance to work with the Rays’ minor leaguers in a still-undefined role.
Apr 10, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena (56) hits a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
There’s an impenetrable, opaque blackness to this space. Devoid of the primary sense that humans rely on to orient themselves, you try to parse what information you can through your secondary inputs.
Unfortunately, other senses provides no more insight. It is so painfully, crushingly loud here that you can’t be sure of the source of the noise, can’t be sure of anything other than the fact that your eardrums are on the verge of rupturing. Or is it instead that this place is so silent that you’re being deafened by the unyielding cycle of your blood frantically THUD, THUD, THUDing its way through your blood vessels?
After an eternity of this, you finally hear it.
You were told what you should expect, but there isn’t any meaningful way to prepare yourself for how the velvety, telltale chuckle emerges from the void below you, starting at your age-appropriate New Balances, winding its way up your aging frame, slinking up into your ears before arriving at its destination.
His laugh and his voice finds easy purchase in your brain.
“Oh, well, isn’t this just sublime? You’re clever enough to know that you’re just my type, aren’t you?”
In this moment, you remember being a boy when your Paw taught you about viper’s fangs, how they’re hollow and hinged, a perfectly-designed poison delivery system. You swallow the knot in your throat.
“And a former catcher to boot, too. I’m spoiled today, aren’t I?” Another undulating laugh that feels like a scalpel against your brain stem. You say nothing.
He tuts. “Oh, come now, don’t be such a tease. I know you haven’t met me yet, but I know you. I know almost everything about you,” he croons. “And, since the second you replaced my dearest friend, I have been waiting, waiting, waiting for you to meet me here.”
“I know what you want. No one comes to my realm asking for anything else. He came here often enough, my friend, and for just the one thing. So, let’s get on to Hecuba,” he sighs. “You want my gift, and I’m willing to trade it. What else does a god want but tribute and worship?”
A fresh start can soothe many maladies. Leaving your hometown to escape the painful memories attached to your once-favorite places is a time-honored tradition of young adulthood. Or, if you’re feeling less dramatic but still need to cool the sting of heartbreak, may I interest you in a new haircut?
Or, what if you’re a troubled but lovable baseball team that finds itself predicted to win their division, and with the second-highest odds to make the World Series in the league, BUT, after 13 mind-numbing games you have found yourself scuffling along to the worst record in baseball? Could a fresh start fix that?
Yes.
The Seattle Mariners bullied the injury-ridden Houston Astros in a 9-6 win in front of a noisy crowd of nearly 45,000 last night. It was a welcome reprieve from a brutal 1-7 stretch characterized by a lifeless offense that averaged just 2 runs per game (and only 1.3 if you remove the 7-8 loss to the Angels).
Before the game, Dan Wilson said that he was looking to see his team return to their identity and do what they do best.
“What we do well as a team offensively when we’re going well is get on base, create traffic…create chaos, so to speak,” he said. “Drive guys in and drive balls out of the ballpark.”
The Mariners did a little of both tonight, taking advantage of the opportunities that Houston handed them and being aggressive on the basepaths, while also making their own luck.
The first inning was one for the books, an all-timer in Silliness. The Mariners scored three runs, each with their own little bit of pizzazz. A bases-loaded wild pitch, a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch and a ground ball that would have been a double play but for Randy Arozarena’s graceful sauté away from a tag chased Tatsuya Imai after recording just one out. The Mariners worked four walks off of Imai, some foreshadowing, perhaps, for the ten they would earn by the end of the game.
Chaos Ball is so 2022, and this iteration of the Mariners ought not to need to stoop so low as to rely on such bullpucky to win baseball games. That said, you won’t find me complaining about how the 4-9 team wins ballgames.
Because Mariners fans may have nice things on occasion provided they are at least somewhat complicated, Emerson Hancock interrupted an otherwise sterling outing with a somewhat tarnished second inning. Hancock gracefully noted that he “never met a pitcher who’s complained when guys are scoring runs for you,” but one must wonder if the lengthy bottom of the first played a part in him losing the handle on the sweeper in the second inning.
Two singles, a walk, and a double later, the game was quickly born anew.
Shaky second inning aside, Hancock put together another impressive outing tonight, earning his second win with 5 IP and 5 Ks while giving up 3 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks. He’s making his case for holding onto the fifth starter spot, impressing with his confidence and resilience.
“There were a couple of big messes for us on the sweeper [in the second inning], but I thought for us to refine it in the third, it was a big pitch for us in the third, fourth and fifth innings.”
The sweeper is probably Hancock’s best pitch, but the fastball was his most effective pitch tonight, racking up a 42% whiff rate while kissing 98 mph. The combination of the two can be deadly when the location is spot on, as it was on this hellacious punch-out of Jeremy Pena.
But, really, whether you know it yet or not, you’re here for the Randy home run. After about 4 more innings of 3-3 baseball and a frustrating at-bat, Randy decided to talk his talk and send this ball to the absolute moon, marine layer be damned.
There aren’t really words fit to describe this titanic blast, so why don’t you just go ahead and watch that one more time?
This game’s vibe is feel-good romp, so I’ll save the discussion of Randy’s outfield play for another article. Tonight, Randy delivered what he was traded for: the clutch, big-play, electric energy that can breathe the sparks of life into a team at risk of becoming flat, with a little bit of guitar playing to boot.
While he hasn’t been struggling as hard as the rest of the top of the lineup, Randy has had an uneven start to the season, notching just 3 extra-base hits coming into tonight’s game. He said that he’s been taking lots of extra time in the cage to improve his pitch selection, and that it was gratifying to see it pay off tonight.
“Obviously I’ve taken a lot of walks [this season], but to see it all come together after the work I’ve been putting in meant a lot.”
So, who cares if Wilcox let Alvarez do what Alvarez does best? A big fat three-run home run of their own doesn’t mean much if Houston’s bullpen is content handing runs to Seattle. 2021 Mariners Amalgam J.P. France did just that, giving up another bases-loaded wild-pitch to score Cole Young, and the real J.P. and Cal each got their own RBIs.
That’s nine runs, five of which can safely be considered hardly silly at all and four that are at least a little bit silly. Beggars can’t be choosers, so Seattle should take the runs where they can.
This was probably the game that’s been the most fun to watch this season – beating on the Astros will probably be uniquely joyful for another season, and Dave Valle’s halted explanation of how conversations work to Aaron Goldsmith gave me life after a long workweek.
But, more than just being fun, this game held suggestions that the Mariners’ bats are climbing their way out of the hole they’ve put themselves in to start the year. Each hitter reached base tonight; in fact, everyone but Julio reached base at least twice. The at-bats across the board looked much-improved, as though there was a game plan going into them beyond the “see ball swing bat at” approach we’ve seen thus far.
Combined with forcing Houston’s bullpen to put up 7.2 innings in the first of a four-game series, there’s good reason to hope that we might be in for a very entertaining and fulfilling weekend of baseball. If you have been waiting for the fun part to start, I think we might just be getting there.
Your boss claps you on the back as you make your way out of the locker room and into the grey bowels of the stadium. You smile as he congratulates you on a great game.
“Statistically, in terms of where our ship was headed, I knew it was probably a pretty likely outcome you would get this turned in a direction that we’re going to find productive. I feel that-”
“My name sounds so nice from your mouth, Danny,” he coos. It’s dark, unimaginably so. Your stomach feels like you’ve missed the last step on a long stairset that continues dropping out from under your feet. “I just love to see my song sung in front of the assembled press. Public tribute and worship feels so good, doesn’t it?”
“Anyways, this one’s is complementary, a gift for a friend well-met. I’m sure you have no plans to return – of course, Scott said the same thing the first time. And the second time, and, oh, every time after that. But you know where to find me. All you have to do is ask.”
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 10: Jason Adam #40 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Colorado Rockies during the eighth inning at Petco Park on April 10, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Right-handed bullpen stalwart Jason Adam, who has been recovering from quad tendon surgery since last September, returned to the San Diego Padres in a dramatic fashion during the Friday night game against the Colorado Rockies. Less than an hour before first pitch of the game where the Padres debuted their new City Connect uniforms and tried to maintain their momentum from the walk-off win on Thursday, Adam was reinstated from the IL and struggling Jeremiah Estrada was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow tendinitis.
Adam seemed ready to be with the team coming out of spring camp but the Padres choose to be extra cautious with the valuable eighth inning specialist from 2025. Adam finished last season with a 1.93 ERA in 65.1 innings pitched before injuring his left leg while on the mound. He has thrown five innings over four games with Triple-A El Paso, including back-to-back games and multiple innings, in order to ready himself for the rigors of an MLB season.
In his postgame presser after the Padres staged another dramatic walk off win on Friday night, Padres manager Craig Stammen stated the preference for a “soft landing” for Adam in his return to a major league mound. That wasn’t possible when reliever Adrian Morejon blew a two-run lead in the eighth inning and Adam was called on to get the last out to preserve a tie. Adam threw five pitches and got a groundout to end the top of the inning.
There has been much debate as to who would be demoted from the Padres bullpen in order to make room for Adam upon his return. In the end, it wasn’t a hard decision. Estrada has been laboring in most of his appearances this season. His velocity has been down across the board and his command has also not been up to his norm. Over seven innings pitched in seven games, Estrada has a 5.14 ERA. Stammen also reported on Friday night that Estrada threw in the afternoon and didn’t feel right, reporting discomfort while throwing. They believe it is tendinitis and hope rest and rehab will take care of it.
Matt Waldron
Padres right-handed pitcher Matt Waldron threw another scoreless outing with Triple-A El Paso on April 8. He is on a slow progression in his build up as a starter after missing almost all of spring camp recovering from hemorrhoid surgery. His latest start went five innings with two hits, no runs and three strikeouts. That was his third start with a total of 12 innings pitched without allowing a run. He has a true five-pitch mix while using his fastball, sinker and knuckleball predominately. In those 12 innings he has 12 strikeouts and one walk.
Even with the slow build, he should be ready to join the team at the end of his rehab window later this month. It seems unlikely that Waldron would clear waivers if the Padres tried to send him to the minors. He is out of options and must be put on the roster in order to keep him in the organization.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 10: Gavin Sheets #30 of the San Diego Padres celebrates after hitting a walk-off three-run home run against the Colorado Rockies during the ninth inning at Petco Park on April 10, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For the second tine in as many nights, and for the first time in the new City Connect 2.0 uniforms, the San Diego Padres walked off the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park. One night after Xander Bogaerts hit a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 12th inning, Gavin Sheets hit his second home run of the night with a walk-off three-run home run to right-center field in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Padres a 5-2 win over the Rockies.
Sheets hit his first home run of the game in the bottom of the fifth inning, which gave San Diego a 1-0 lead. He was followed later in the inning by Luis Campusano who also hit a solo home run to push the Padres lead to 2-0. It was fitting that the second home run of the night by Sheets ended the scoring and the game, giving the Padres two wins in the first two games of the four-game series against the Rockies.
The left-handed slugger got the chance to play hero in the bottom of the inning after Mason Miller worked the top of the ninth. The closer did hit part, striking out all three Rockies hitters to keep the game tied 2-2. Jackson Merrill opened the bottom of the ninth with a single. Manny Machado followed with a walk and Bogaerts hit a sacrifice fly that allowed Merrill to move to third to put runners on the corner with one out for Sheets.
All Sheets had to do was follow the lead of Bogaerts with a flyball to the outfield and the Padres would walk off the field with a win. Sheets did in fact follow the lead of Bogaerts, but it was the example he set the night before that allowed Sheets to connect on a game-winning home run.
Walker Buehler made the start on the mound for San Diego, and he was solid in what turned out to be his best and longest outing of the season. Buehler pitched six innings and allowed no runs on three hits with four strikeouts.
Colorado scored both of its runs against the San Diego bullpen and the rocky start to the season continued for Adrian Morejon. The left-hander allowed two runs on four hits in just 2/3 of an inning. Jason Adam made his season debut in relief of Morejon. With runners at second and third, Adam induced a ground ball to third base from Ezequiel Tovar and Machado made the play to end the scoring threat and the inning for the Rockies.
The Padres will go for their third win against the Rockies and their fourth win in as many games when they return to action at Petco Park on Saturday at 5:40 p.m.
Apr 10, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy (13) hits a solo home run during the second inning against the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Max Muncy hit his third home run of the game in the bottom of the ninth with two outs to secure a walk-off victory for the Dodgers (10-3) over the Rangers (7-6) immediately following the first blown save by Dodgers new closer Edwin Diaz.
Muncy homered thrice. The hero of the night collected a total of four hits, drove in three runs, and scored five runs. Andy Pages had another huge night at the plate as well. He drove in four runs on three hits to contribute to the Dodgers 8-7 win over the Rangers on Friday night at Dodger Stadium.
Old friends Corey Seager and Joc Pederson helped make it a back-and-forth contest. Seager drove in three runs, and Pederson had a key at-bat.
Muncy got the Dodgers on the board in the second inning with a solo shot to right center for the first of three acts.
The Dodgers went from one run up to two runs down after one swing on a Glasnow fastball from old friend Corey Seager in the third. After Josh Smith and Brandon Nimmo singled, Seager slugged a three-run home run on a two-out 3-2 count.
Muncy went deep for the second time against Rocker in as many plate appearances with two outs in the bottom of the fourth. The solo home run made it a one-run game.
The longest-tenured player on the Dodgers, Muncy, is now alone in third place in LA Dodger history and sixth in franchise history with 212 home runs.
The Rangers got back the run in the next frame thanks to a Wyatt Langford solo home run off a hanging Glasnow curveball.
Hyeseong Kim’s sac fly made it a one-run game once again. Ohtani singled to right field, and the Dodgers had Rocker on the ropes with runners at the corners and two outs. A four-pitch walk to Kyle Tucker loaded the bases for Will Smith. Smith’s bases-loaded double play ended the threat there to keep it 4-3.
In the sixth, the comeback vibes returned. Pages once again came up clutch with a two-RBI double against Texas reliever Robert Garcia to give the Dodgers a 5-4 lead.
Alex Vesia took over for Glasnow in the seventh and continued to pitch dominantly with three strikeouts in a scoreless inning. Glasnow nor Rocker were involved in the decision. Other than the two mistake pitches to Seager and Langford, Glasnow pitched well and struck out seven over six innings of work.
The Dodgers squandered another scoring opportunity when they cornered the Rangers again in the seventh. Freddie Freeman grounded into the third double play of the evening to end the threat.
Tanner Scott blew away Seager with a strikeout and pitched another scoreless inning out of the bullpen, another promising outing from the reliever.
Pages is playing on a whole different level and crushed his fourth homer of the season in the eighth, a two-run missile against right-hander Luis Curvelo for some insurance.
Andy Pages provides some insurance for the @Dodgers!
Sound the trumpets. Edwin Diaz emerged from the Dodgers bullpen to secure the series opener win, but things got sketchy quickly in the top of the ninth. Pederson struck out, but got it overturned on an ABS challenge. Joc subsequently singled. Evan Carter drove in Pederson on a two-run home run against Diaz to make it a one-run game once again.
Diaz intentionally walked Nimmo, but Ezequiel Duran singled home Sam Haggarty to tie the game at seven runs apiece in the top of the ninth. The save was blown, but the Dodgers still had an opportunity to walk it off in the bottom of the ninth.
Muncy saved us from extra-innings with a sweet bat drop after he hit his third home run of the night for a walk-off win.
LP — Jacob Latz (0-1): 2/3 IP, 1 hit, 1 run, no walks, 2 strikeouts (16 pitches)
Note: Will Smith now has 11 successful ABS challenges to lead major-league catchers
Up next
Emmet Sheehan (1-0, 8.00 ERA, 1.89 WHIP) makes his third start of the season for the Dodgers Saturday night (6:10 p.m.; SportsNet LA). Jack Leiter (1-0, 2.45 ERA, 1.00 WHIP) takes the mound for the Rangers.
Apr 10, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano (11) delivers during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
The Colorado Rockies battled all night, grinding through tough at-bats before finally breaking through with two late runs — making the walk-off home run that followed all the more painful. Juan Mejia gets tagged with the loss and Mason Miller picked up the win for the Padres.
Pitchers set the tone early
Tomoyuki Sugano and Walker Buehler traded control early, each working efficiently through the first few innings in a game that quickly took on a low-scoring, tightly contested feel.
Sugano delivered a solid six-inning outing, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out three without issuing a walk on 81 pitches (52 strikes). He mixed his arsenal effectively throughout the night, leaning on his splitter and varying speeds to keep Padres hitters off balance, while also inducing seven ground ball outs.
After navigating early traffic and escaping a key jam in the third, Sugano ran into trouble in the fifth, where two mistakes were both punished for home runs.
Those swings accounted for all of San Diego’s early offense and ultimately proved pivitol in a game with little margin for error. To his credit, Sugano responded with a clean sixth inning to keep Colorado within reach.
Buehler, meanwhile, was efficient and composed, holding the Rockies to three hits over six innings without issuing a walk while striking out four on just 68 pitches.
For much of the night, neither offense generated much impact. The Rockies, in particular, struggled to produce anything resembling sustained pressure, and their lineup felt notably lighter without Hunter Goodman in the starting lineup.
Colorado finished with eight hits — all singles — and no player recorded more than one hit. They struck out a manageable seven times but drew only one walk.
Padres strike first on the long ball
In a game defined by limited offense early, it was power that broke the deadlock.
Gavin Sheets opened the scoring in the fifth with a solo home run to deep right-center:
Those two swings accounted for all of San Diego’s runs through eight innings and highlighted a known challenge for Sugano, whose otherwise strong outing was undone by the pair of mistakes.
Rockies finally break through with scrappy eighth
After seven innings of quiet offense, the Rockies finally found life in the eighth — and did it the hard way.
Brenton Doyle sparked the inning with an infield single and was methodically moved into scoring position on a pair of groundouts from Brett Sullivan and Kyle Karros. With two outs, Goodman, pinch hitting, lined a single up the middle to score Doyle and cut the deficit to 2–1.
Tyler Freeman followed with another base hit, and the inning came full circle when Beck stepped to the plate. After being picked off earlier in the inning in what looked like a costly mistake, Beck delivered in the biggest moment, lining a two-out single to right field. Third base coach Andy González waved Goodman home, and he sprinted around third before diving headfirst across the plate just ahead of the tag to tie the game at 2-2 and cap a remarkable turnaround.
Antonio Senzatela followed Sugano with a strong initial inning, showcasing both velocity and a full pitch mix before running into command issues in the eighth. After recording a momentum-shifting strike-’em-out, throw-’em-out double play, he issued a walk and was lifted as the inning grew tense.
Adrián Morejón absorbed the eighth-inning damage for San Diego before Jason Adam recorded the final out. Miller then struck out the side in the ninth, overpowering the Rockies with triple-digit velocity.
Any momentum the Rockies carried into the ninth quickly disappeared against Miller, but the bottom half proved decisive.
After a leadoff single and a walk put immediate pressure on Juan Mejía, the inning quickly turned into a high-wire act. Mejía recorded a key out on a deep fly ball that allowed the winning run to advance to third, but the margin for error had vanished.
Moments later, Sheets ended it.
Sheets crushed a pitch deep to right-center for a three-run, walk-off home run — his second of the night — scoring Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado and sealing a 5-2 Padres victory.
Beck’s night encapsulated the volatility of baseball.
After a frustrating sequence earlier in the seventh inning that included a successful ABS challenge and a subsequent pickoff at second base, Beck found himself back in a defining moment — and delivered. His game-tying hit transformed what could have been a night defined by a mistake into one defined by resilience. Is it a step in the right direction?
In a game defined by fine margins, the difference ultimately came down to a handful of swings.
The Rockies showed resilience, clawing back with a scrappy eighth inning and getting contributions up and down the lineup. But three home runs from San Diego — including one final, decisive blast — proved too much to overcome.
Even in defeat, the effort was there: gritty, competitive, and just short of enough.
Up Next
The Rockies are back at it again against these same San Diego Padres tomorrow evening.
They’ll face former Rockie Germán Márquez at 6:40 p.m. MT, a familiar face now standing in the way as Colorado looks to respond after two painful finishes. The Rockies will counter with Ryan Feltner, making his third start of the season.
After back-to-back walk-off heartbreaks, the Rockies have shown they can fight. Now they have to prove they can finish.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 01: Miguel Andujar #41 of the San Diego Padres looks on before the game against the San Francisco Giants at Petco Park on April 01, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The San Diego Padres did not start the season well at home in their first six games versus the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants, facing excellent starting pitching and showing an anemic offense, the Friars went 2-4 at home.
The road trip to Boston to face the Red Sox for their home opener also featured a struggling Padres offense with four hits against Boston starter Sonny Gray. But then the tide turned and the Padres took the last two against the Red Sox in cold and rainy weather. They moved on to Pittsburgh, playing a Pirates team that had won five straight. Taking two of three from Pittsburgh, the Padres showed their grit and perseverance while again playing in cold weather.
With the Padres starters are having some uneven performances and the bullpen is showing some stumbles to start the year, the offense was finally able to put up some runs with timely hitting and a standout pitching performance from Germán Márquez.
Nick Pivetta and Michael King show that they are working to stabilize their early season command issues while Randy Vasquez has put up a 0.75 ERA through two starts and 12 innings pitched.
Walker Buehler remains the only starter not to show improvement, he has a 9.45 ERA over his 6.2 innings pitched in two starts.
Mason Miller
The Padres closer has wowed all of baseball with his dominance, carrying over from the trend he started last season. In five games and 5.2 innings pitched so far this year, Miller has four saves and 13 strikeouts while allowing one hit and one walk. Including last postseason, Miller has 26.2 innings of scoreless relief that began last August. He has a 64% strikeout rate since last August and has K’d 76 of the 119 hitters he has faced.
Miller was at his hometown park in Pittsburgh for the first time as a closer and manager Craig Stammen brought him in for the series finale, despite the team being up by six runs. He had family and friends there to see him pitch so a non-save situation was justified for the reliever. He topped out at 102.8 mph in his appearance, again featuring his wipeout slider and mixing in a changeup.
Bullpen issues
The Padres bullpen is expected to be a strength in 2026. It has not started out that way. In 12 games and 49.2 innings pitched, the Friar bullpen sits with a 3.44 ERA, 12th worst in baseball. Normally, Adrian Morejon is dominant in his appearances. In 2025 he finished the year with a 2.08 ERA, second only to Jason Adam with a 1.93 ERA for the full season.
He currently has five innings pitched over four appearances with a 10.80 ERA. His command has been way off so far, allowing 10 hits and seven runs with only five strikeouts.
In contrast, David Morgan has been quietly excellent. He has five appearances and seven innings pitched with five hits allowed and no earned runs despite allowing six walks to five strikeouts.
Offensive struggles
An inconsistent offense has been highlighted by the futility of the lead-off hitter for the Padres. In their first 12 games the Friars have used Fernando Tatis Jr. for five games at leadoff. He has three hits and one RBI. Ramon Laureano has hit leadoff in four games and also has three hits and one RBI. Jake Cronenworth has been leadoff against some right-handed starters and in three games he has one hit. Overall, the three current leadoff batters have a combined .140 average and .369 OPS, the worst in baseball.
Their team batting average of .213 is 25th and the team OPS of .618 is 26th.
The bright spot has been the bottom of the line up. Gavin Sheets, Miguel Andujar, Nick Castellanos, Luis Campusano, Jake Cronenworth and Freddy Fermin have mostly occupied the bottom of the order for the Padres.
Andujar leads all Padres with a .310 average and .823 OPS. Castellanos is second with a .261 average with five RBI. Gavin Sheets has four doubles and two RBI while Jake Cronenworth has delivered a couple timely hits with three RBI and Fermin also has two doubles.
Luis Campusano started the year slowly but went 3-for-9 against the Pirates with two doubles and two RBI.
The power has been slow to develop for the Padres over their first 12 games. They have seven homers with Jackson Merrill and Ramon Laureano having two each. Their slug has been slightly better due to the number of doubles they have so far this year (26) and they are tied for second in that category.
Injury updates
Joe Musgrove has continued to play catch since he began at the beginning of April. No timeline exists for his return to pitching and he has not graduated to the mound yet.
Jason Adam completed pitching in back-to-back games with El Paso on April 4 and 5 then was kept with the Chihuahuas to pitch two innings in their game on Wednesday. He threw two perfect frames after skipping a day from his back-to- backs. He has a total of five scoreless innings with El Paso. He should be joining the Padres for this homestand.
Griffin Canning started the first game of the doubleheader on April 4, going 2.1 innings with three hits and a run and four strikeouts in 51 pitches. He will be advanced slowly and should have a buildup similar to a spring training schedule.
Yuki Matsui has made two appearances and two innings pitched with two hits and no runs with two strikeouts. He will need to go back-to-back and maybe multiple innings before being ready.
Matt Waldron continues his buildup with El Paso with seven innings pitched and no runs allowed. He will make his third start April 9.
Sung-Mun Song has played in 10 games with 36 at-bats. He has appeared at short, second, third and DH. It seems the outfield experiment for Song was scraped when he reaggravated his oblique injury in spring camp. He is hitting .278 with a .656 OPS but has 13 strikeouts in his 36 at-bats with four walks.
New City Connect unis
The Padres unveiled their new City Connect uniforms on April 9 and will wear them for the first time on Friday April 10 against the Colorado Rockies. Seven MLB teams unveiled their new alternate uniforms for 2026 on April 9. The Padres’ unis feature a tribute to the 1998 team with the blue and orange theme as well as a nod to the bi-cultural location of the team with the La Catrina patch for Dia de los Muertos.
The jersey is pullover style all in blue with marigold trim and braiding as well as bone-colored pants with marigold braiding. The hat is bone with a blue brim and blue/marigold interlocking SD.
The new gear is available on line at the Padres.com shop and at the team store.
For the briefest of moments, Friday was in danger of becoming the ugliest night of the Dodgers’ young season.
Then, Max Muncy produced the campaign’s biggest early highlight.
In an 8-7 win over the Texas Rangers, Muncy hit three home runs for the second time in his MLB career. The first opened the scoring. The second chipped away at a mid-game deficit. And the last one sailed out to right for a walk-off drive in the bottom of the ninth –– saving the day after closer Edwin Díaz blew a three-run lead in the top half of the inning.
Muncy came up in the bottom half of the ninth and saved the day with one swing AP
Muncy’s walk-off was somewhat unexpected, coming in a 0-2 count in a left-on-left matchup against Rangers reliever Jakob Latz.
The result, however, set off pandemonium all around Dodger Stadium, culminating in a mob at home plate in which the veteran third baseman found himself at the center.
“It’s a special night,” Muncy said. “Coming up with a win’s the most important thing.”
The Dodgers (10-3) should’ve won the game much easier, of course, after erasing an early deficit on the back of Andy Pages’ 3-for-3, four-RBI outburst; continuing his surge as the hottest current hitter in the league.
Down 4-2 in the fifth inning –– after Muncy’s two opening solo blasts were negated by long balls Corey Seager and Wyatt Langford hit off Tyler Glasnow –– Pages drew a leadoff walk and scored on a Hyeseong Kim sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit to one.
Then, he flipped the score in the bottom of the sixth inning, lining a go-ahead two-run, two-out double the other way to give the Dodgers a 5-4 advantage.
Andy Pages’ big night was nearly wasted by Edwin Díaz’s first blown save as Dodgers closer. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Pages wasn’t done there, either. In the eighth, he belted a two-run homer that stretched the lead to three runs ahead of Díaz’s entrance in the ninth.
For the first time this year, however, the $69 million closer imploded, giving up a two-run homer to Evan Carter with no outs in the inning, then a pair of two-out singles to Josh Jung and Ezequiel Duran that leveled the score.
No matter, of course.
Not for these Dodgers, who already have six come-from-behind wins so far this year.
And not on Friday, when Muncy elevated the team’s hot start to an even more euphoric walk-off high.
“I’d say that’s a sign of a good team,” manager Dave Roberts said. “A good trait for our ball club.”
What it means
When the Dodgers finished their opening homestand last week, there were questions about what was then a sluggish lineup.
Now, their offense is firing on (almost) all cylinders.
And it has started, surprisingly, at the bottom of the order.
Entering Friday, the Dodgers were getting ridiculous production from the Nos. 5-9 spots in their lineup, leading the majors in everything from batting average (.315 –– almost 50 points higher than any other club) to OPS (.857 –– some 70 points higher than the next closest offense) to home runs (nine) and runs scored (38).
Those marks will only climb after Friday, in which Muncy went 4-for-5 from the five-hole, Pages went 3-for-3 while batting seventh, and the bottom-half unit as a whole combined for 12 total hits.
Because of that, it hasn’t mattered that Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Tucker, Will Smith and Freddie Freeman are all hitting under .275; nor that Mookie Betts remains sidelined with an oblique strain.
“That,” Roberts said, “is a good thing for us.”
Who’s hot
With all due respect to Muncy, there’s still no one swinging a hotter bat than Pages.
Entering Friday, Pages was coming off his first bad game of an otherwise breakout start to the season, having struck four times in Wednesday’s series finale in Toronto.
His response: Hitting an opposite-field single in the second, drawing a leadoff walk in the fifth to spark a rally, then delivering the two swings that helped flip the game with his double in the sixth and home run in the eighth.
As a result, Pages remains MLB’s batting leader with a .449 average through his first 13 games. He is now also tied for the most RBIs in the majors, joining Braves catcher Drake Baldwin with 16.
“You just can’t say enough about what Andy’s done,” Roberts said. “He’s going to be talked about a lot this year.”
Who’s not
Díaz had been a perfect 4-for-4 on save opportunities and given up only one total run in his first five outings of the season.
But even before Friday, neither his fastball nor slider looked as sharp as usual in his debut Dodgers season.
It finally caught up with him against the Rangers. His typically upper-90s mph heater was barely clocking 95. And, in Roberts’ view, he wasn’t “finishing” with a slider that got only two whiffs on 11 swings.
The inning still could’ve been different. Díaz, for example, had gotten a called third strike against his first batter, Joc Pederson, only for the punchout to be negated by an ABS challenge.
However, the performance was shaky enough for Roberts to be asked if there was any concern level with his new closer.
“No,” he answered declaratively. “I was talking to some of the (pitching) guys and they say that perennially that’s what he does. Starts a little slower and then the velocity starts to creep up. So not too much of a concern.”
Up next
The Dodgers and Rangers resume their series Saturday, when Emmet Sheehan will look to bounce back from two opening starts this season in which he has posted an 8.00 ERA and battled decreased fastball velocity. Jack Leiter will go for Texas, having struck out 17 batters with a 2.45 ERA in his first two starts.
Max Muncy, left, celebrates with teammates at home plate after hitting a walk-off home run in an 8-7 victory over the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on Friday night. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Everyone trusts Max Muncy to lay off bad pitches. The trick was to lay off carbs.
The Dodgers’ 35-year-old third baseman gave up bread and came into this season 17 pounds lighter. Older and quicker, healthy and ready to fight for a third consecutive World Series crown.
The best version of himself, having the best of games when the Dodgers needed it.
He hit three home runs Friday in an 8-7 victory over the Texas Rangers as the Dodgers improved to 10-3 and became baseball’s first team to achieve double-digit victories.
Muncy's third long ball — a two-out, no-doubt-about-it, 401-foot solo shot to right-center in the bottom of the ninth inning — was the game-winner. He's the first player with a three-home run game that included a walk-off homer since the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Jack Suwinski did it in 2022. He is only the second player in Dodgers history to have a walk-off homer as part of a three-home run game, joining Don Demeter, who accomplished the feat on April 21, 1959, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
Muncy’s first two home runs Friday — Nos. 2 and 3 this season — came in the second and fourth innings and were the 211th and 212th in his Dodgers’ tenure, tying and then surpassing Steve Garvey for third-most in the franchise's Los Angeles history.
“It's just special, any time you hit a home run in a big league game is special, let alone three,” said Muncy, who now has 20 multi-homer games and two with three home runs. “I still think about the first time I did, so it's just a special night, and to get the win on top of it was great."
Muncy and Andy Pages, the Dodgers’ scorching-hot seventh hitter, combined to go seven for eight and score seven runs, drive in seven runs and hit four home runs. Pages’ big league-leading batting average climbed yet higher, to .449.
Max Muncy hits a walk-off home run to lift the Dodgers to an 8-7 win over the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on Friday night. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Together, they kept the Dodgers afloat in a game that went back and forth, up and down, bobble-head style.
They found themselves playing from behind for the ninth time in 13 games, and coming back to win one of those games for the sixth time. And even though closer Edwin Díaz blew a save for the first time as a Dodger, he wound up with the win, thanks to Muncy’s final blast.
The closer served as something of a setup man — setting the stage for Muncy to save them in the ninth inning with his fourth career walk-off home run.
Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow pitched six innings, struck out seven and gave up four runs on five hits — including two home runs, one of them to former Dodger Corey Seager, whose 409-foot, two-run shot gave Texas a 3-1 lead in the third inning.
Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow delivers in the first inning against Texas on Friday at Dodger Stadium. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Relievers Alex Vesia and Tanner Scott both pitched a scoreless inning before closer Díaz entered in the ninth, with the Dodgers ahead 7-4.
Díaz gave up a single to former Dodger Joc Pedersen and then a two-run home run to Evan Carter that cut the lead to 7-6. Then Ezequiel Duran singled in Sam Haggerty to tie the score.
“I was talking to some of the guys and they say that perennially that's what [Díaz] does,” Dodgers manager Dave Robert said, acknowledging that his much-ballyhooed new closer isn’t throwing as hard as he has in the past. “Starts a little slower and then the velocity starts to creep up. So not too much of a concern.”
Neither is the Dodgers’ knack for falling behind, Roberts insisted.
“I would actually say that's a good sign in the sense that we keep fighting, and we can come back," he said. "That's the sign of a good team."
Teoscar Hernández tosses sunflower seeds at Andy Pages after Pages hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning against Texas on Friday night. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
With Texas leading 4-2 in the bottom of the fifth, Hyeseong Kim hit a sacrifice fly to drive home Pages, who had walked and advanced to third on Alex Freeland’s single to left, to make it 4-3.
Shohei Ohtani then singled to right to move Freeland to third — and, notably, to extend his on-base streak to 44 games, the longest such streak by a Japanese-born player and the fourth-longest in Dodgers history.
Ohtani — who went one for four with a walk and a strikeout Friday — has also reached base on all seven of his Dodgers bobblehead nights.
“He hasn't really got going yet,” Roberts said. “For us to win the games we've won, scored the runs we've scored ... and Sho isn't going? He's going to get hot. That's a good thing for us.”
This season, the Dodgers determined they needed two games — Friday and July 8 — to honor Ohtani’s “Greatest Game” with the bobblehead treatment.
On Friday, all 53,675 fans went home with a bobbling figurine of Ohtani at the plate, a memento honoring his performance in Game 4 of the NLCS last October. He not only pitched six shutout innings and struck out 10 in that 5-1 NLCS-clinching victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, but he also hit three home runs that traveled a combined 1,342 feet.
The Dodgers’ Miguel Rojas won’t take bereavement leave or travel back to his native Venezuela following the death of his father, Miguel Rojas Sr., Roberts said before the game.
“There’s a lot going on in Venezuela,” Roberts said. “And a lot of his family is kind of dispersed around the world, essentially. He just feels they’ve got a handle on it down there, so he’s going to stay with us.”
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - APRIL 9: Chelby Coley of Atlanta takes a photo of the new Texas Rangers City Connect jersey at Globe Life Field's Grand Slam Team Store in Arlington, TX, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images)
The Texas Rangers scored seven runs but the Los Angeles Dodgers scored eight runs.
The Rangers held leads of 3-1 and 4-2 in this game thanks to homers from Corey Seager (three-run blast in the 3rd) and Wyatt Langford (solo shot in the 5th, his first of the year) off LA co-co-co-co-co-co-co-co-co-ace Tyler Glasnow, but the Dodgers have inevitability on their side even though the Rangers made them work for it.
Despite a serviceable start from Kumar Rocker (5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K in 83 pitches), where he left with a 4-3 lead after five innings, Robert Garcia — demoted from the late innings — arrived once more to sully a game.
After Rocker had wiggled out of a jam to keep Texas ahead an inning prior, left-hander Garcia immediately walked left-handed batter Freddie Freeman and then allowed hits to three of the next four batters as Los Angeles scored two runs in the 6th to pull ahead.
The Texas bats needed to produce against a well-stocked Dodgers bullpen and didn’t get much done until Evan Carter hit a two-run home run off Los Angeles closer Edwin Diaz in the 9th for his first of the year. Unfortunately for Texas, red-hot Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages had already added insurance with a two-run home run off Luis Curvelo in the bottom of the 8th. Those runs proved to be quite critical.
Following Carter, the Rangers continued to rally against Diaz and eventually Ezequiel Duran tied the game with a two-out single that scored pitch runner Sam Haggerty. Duran was only even in the game because Langford left with a tight quad that he tweaked running hard initially before his homer cleared the fence.
With the game tied, Jacob Latz was called on for the bottom of the 9th and quickly got two quick outs before Max Muncy ended the game with his third home run of the game. Just like that Latz has an ERA and the Rangers have a loss to begin their first lengthy West Coast road trip of the season.
Player of the Game: Well, kind of obviously Muncy, yeah?
Up Next: The Rangers will get another crack at quieting the Dodgers with RHP Jack Leiter expected to pitch for Texas against RHP Emmet Sheehan for Los Angeles.
The Saturday evening first pitch from Dodgers Stadium is scheduled for 8:10 pm CDT and will be carried on the Rangers Sports Network.
Apr 10, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena (56) evades a tag by Houston Astros second baseman Isaac Paredes (15) during the first inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani passed Ichiro Suzuki for the longest on-base streak by a Japanese-born player on Friday night.
The Los Angeles Dodgers star singled in the fifth inning against Kumar Rocker of the Texas Rangers, extending his streak to 44 games. It was his 13th game reaching base in as many tries this season. His streak began on Aug. 24, and lasted the final 31 games of last season.
Suzuki reached base in 43 consecutive games in 2009 with the Seattle Mariners. Ohtani has said he admired Suzuki while growing up.
Ohtani had already passed the Hall of Famer in another category. In 2024, Ohtani’s 59 stolen bases broke Suzuki’s record for steals by a Japanese-born player in a season. Suzuki had 56 in 2001.
Game 1 of the first ranked on ranked series Nebraska has played in over a decade lived up to the billing and then some. Both heavyweights landed punch after punch and just when it seemed one was down for the count, they stormed right back. The team has to be happy with how they continued to respond to the adversity, but has a few opportunities to look back on and think they could improve upon. If we are going to get two more battles like this to decide the weekend, sign me up!
Big Ten hits leader, and former Duck, Mac Moyer got the Husker offense started by smacking a double into the right center gap. Freshman catcher Jeter Worthley shot a grounder behind Moyer to the 2nd baseman, moving the runner to third base. After a Case Sanderson strikeout, Dylan Carey singled through the left side of the Oregon infield, added to his Big Ten leading RBI total, and giving the Huskers the early 1-0 lead.
Huskers strike first. 💪
RBI single by DC plates Moyer and brings Miller to the dish.
Nebraska kept the pressure on Oregon starter Will Sanford in the 2nd and 3rd innings, but couldn’t add to their lead. Josh Overbeek singled, and Drew Grego walked to lead off the 2nd. But a groundout and back to back strikeouts ended that threat. Sanderson was hit by a pitch to lead off the 3rd, followed by another Carey single. But a double play followed by a strikeout again kept them off the board. They did however pile up the pitches on Sanford.
Ty Horn again climbed the bump for Nebraska on a Friday night. After 3 flyouts in the 1st, Horn backed himself into a corner in the 2nd. He walked the first two Ducks, then after a strikeout, threw a wild pitch to the backstop. Another big strikeout, and a weak grounder to Sanderson at first kept NU on top.
Oregon had been barreling up pitches from Horn, but hadn’t been able to avoid Husker defenders. That was until the 4th inning. Oregon 3rd baseman Drew Smith sent a full count slider from Horn into center field at 105 mph for a single. After an infield pop up, a 106 mph ball was hit right to Jett Buck for the 2nd out. Horn was visibly uncomfortable, but remained on the mound. After another single, a 111 mph double off the bat of Naulivou Lauaki put the Ducks up 2-1. Horn walked another batter and then had an odd balk to move the runners over, but was able to get out of the inning with no more damage.
Sanford meanwhile had hit his stride. He struck out 4 straight Huskers including striking out the side in the 4th. However, his first pitch of the 5th was taken deep and gone to the opposite field by Moyer. Mac was red hot in his return to PK Park. Unfazed, Sanford struck out the next two Huskers, and got Carey to fly out to end the inning with the score tied 2-2.
Tucker Timmerman relieved Horn to start the bottom of the 5th. His first pitch was pulled through the left side of the Husker infield, and two batters later, Drew Smith launched a 2 run home run that just barely missed the scoreboard over the left field wall. Timmerman hit the next batter, and gave up a double down the right field line. For some reason, the lead runner stopped momentarily at 2nd base, and therefore wasn’t able to score. That would come back to bite the Ducks at the time, as the next batter lifted a ball to left that Jettt Buck caught in foul territory and uncorked a perfect throw to Worthley who had plenty of time to snag it and tag the runner out at the plate to end the inning.
The game entered a 1 hour and 42 minute weather delay in the bottom of the 6th, ending the game for both pitchers. Braxton Stewart took the mound for Nebraska and he almost exclusively throws a slider, but it just wasn’t biting tonight. A double down the right field line was followed by back to back no doubter home runs on high hanging sliders. Both cleared the Husker bullpen on the other side of the left field wall. Just like that, the Ducks were up 7-2 and had all the momentum.
Oregon went to the bullpen and pulled out one of the best in the conference in Tanner Bradley. He made quick work of the Huskers in the 7th striking out 2.
Inexplicably, the Ducks put in one of their lesser used arms in Blake Crawford for the 8th. He has good stuff, but is incredibly wild. He really showed that by sending ball 4 to the backstop on the Huskers first batter, Case Sanderson. After a lengthy mound visit, Carey must have had a good feeling nothing but a fastball was coming and unloaded on Crawford’s first offering. An unknown NU reliever caught it on the fly in the bullpen, and Nebraska had cut the lead to 7-4.
Nebraska wasn’t done there. Oregon went with another wild reliever in Leo Uelman. He could barely keep the ball inside the batters boxes. He struck out Cole Kitchens on a slider, but it was so wide of the plate that Kitchens made it to first on the wild pitch. Preston Freeman came in to run for Kitchens and took 2nd on another wild pitch. Jett Buck somehow avoided being hit by two balls that were in his batters box and hit an RBI double to make it a 7-5 game.
The inning continued as Josh Overbeek was plunked and then year another wild pitch advanced both runners to 2nd and 3rd. Rhett Stokes hit an RBI groundout to short that cut the lead to 7-6 and put Overbeek on 3rd with 2 outs. The Ducks intentionally walked Mac Moyer, who slammed the bat down in frustration. In the middle of the Worthley at bat, Moyer broke for 2nd, drawing a throw from the catcher. Moyer had stopped and Overbeek broke for home on the throw. The infielder threw home and Overbeek was called out. A lengthy review seemed to show Beek avoiding the initial tag and getting his hand on the plate prior to the tag on his midsection, but according to the umpires, they couldn’t confirm his hand actually touched the plate. Out call stands.
After a wild zero from Kevin Mannell in the bottom of the 8th, Nebraska tried one more comeback in the 9th. Jeter Worthley beat out an infield single, and Dylan Carey had ball 4 glance off the top of his helmet. A wild pitch put them on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs, but Jett Buck couldn’t get them home, as he flew out to center field.
Early opportunities to put the ball in play with runners on and 2 outs could never quite come to fruition. This NU team has excelled at both hitting with runners in scoring position and hitting with 2 outs. You expect when you get 7 out of 9 innings where your leadoff batter reaches base, that you are going to score more runs and win the game. Today however, 16 strikeouts prevented them from moving runners over are well as they have become accustomed to in their multiple 10 game winning streaks.
The two teams are going to be back on the diamond Saturday, with a little earlier first pitch than originally scheduled to try and get in front of another rain storm. Mac Moyer will step into the left handed battter’s box to get things started at 2pm CDT.
South Bend Cubs infielder Reginald Preciado reacts to being called out at third base during a Minor League Baseball game between the South Bend Cubs and the Peoria Chiefs at Four Winds Field on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in South Bend. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
His brother may be off to the Marlins, but shortstop Alexis Hernandez joined the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.
Iowa Cubs
The Iowa Cubs were swept in a doubleheader by the Omaha Storm Chasers (Royals), 6-4 in nine innings and 6-1.
Will Sanders started game one and didn’t make it out of the second inning. Sanders finished with a line of three runs on four hits and four walks over 1.2 innings. Sanders struck out two.
Tyler Santana relieved Sanders with the bases loaded on two outs and walked in a run with the first batter he faced. But he settled down after that and allowed just one run of his own over 4.1 innings of relief. Santana allowed two hits, walked three and struck out one.
Ryan Jensen pitched the top of the ninth and got the loss. He allowed two runs, one earned, on one hit and one walk. He struck out one.
Catcher Christian Bethancourt cranked a two-run home run in the fifth inning. It was his third of the season. Bethancourt went 2 for 4.
First baseman BJ Murray tied the game up 4-4 with an RBI single in the sixth. He was 2 for 4 with a double.
Tyler Beede started game two and took the loss after he was knocked around for four runs on five hits over three innings. Beeded struck out two and walked no one.
Right fielder Justin Dean opened the bottom of the first with a single. He stole second and scored on an RBI single by BJ Murray. That was Iowa’s only run of game two.
Dean went 1 for 2 with a walk. Murray was 1 for 3.
Center fielder Kevin Alcántara was 2 for 3 with a double.
Starter Connor Schultz left the game in the first inning with some kind of injury. Before he left, he gave up two runs on two hits and two walks while retiring just one batter.
DH Alex Ramirez was 2 for 4 with a two-run double in the fifth. He scored one run.
Right fielder Carter Trice went 1 for 3 with a double and one run scored.
Nazier Mulé started and pitched well. Mulé allowed just one run on six hits over four innings. More promising, Mulé walked just one and struck out five.
Another flamethrower with a good outing tonight got the win. JP Wheat did not give up a run or a hit over two innings. Wheat did walk two and hit one batter, so it wasn’t all good. He had two wild pitches as well. Still that’s progress for Wheat. He struck out three.
Kenyi Perez came on to close out the game in the ninth, but he struggled and retired just one batter. He gave up four runs on two hits, four walks and two hit batsmen. Ethan Bell had to be summoned from the bullpen. Bell got a ground ball to get the second out (although Peoria’s sixth run scored) and then got a strikeout to end the game and collect the save.
The hottest hitter in the Cubs system is third baseman Reginald Preciado. Tonight he opened the scoring with a two-run double in the first inning. He finished the game 2 for 5. His batting average after tonight is .500.
DH Owen Ayers went 2 for 4 with an RBI single and a double. Ayers also walked once and scored one run.
Shortstop Angel Cepeda hit a three-run double in the sixth inning. Cepeda was 1 for 3 and was hit by a pitch.
Starter Eli Jerzembeck allowed a solo home run in the second inning and a two-run home run in the third and got the loss. Jerzembeck’s final line was three runs on four hits over four innings. He struck out three and walked just one.
Shortstop Ty Southisene went 2 for 3 with four stolen bases. He was also hit by a pitch. Southisene scored once.
Center fielder Alexey Lumpuy was 1 for 3 with two walks and three steals. He hit a two-run single in the third inning.
The Pelicans only had four hits, but stole nine bases.
Apr 10, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (28) celebrates with catcher Drake Baldwin (30) after a two-run home run against the Cleveland Guardians in the sixth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images
The Atlanta Braves started this weekend’s series out with a bang after Friday night’s 11-5 win over the Cleveland Guardians. Though it took a few innings for the offense to get going, the Braves’ bats came to life as the lineup racked up 15 hits. Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, and Michael Harris II joined in on the fun and each went yard.
The pitching staff was not as impressive as the offense, but nevertheless got the job done. Bryce Elder got the start and allowed two runs in 4.2 innings. The bullpen did not allow another Cleveland run until the eighth inning when José Suarez took over. In two-thirds of an inning, Suarez gave up three runs on four hits.
Luckily, the Braves piled on some more insurance and are now 1-0 when wearing the new City Connect jerseys. Atlanta goes for the series win tonight at 7:15 ET.
Headed to the game today? Find Demetrius, answer some trivia questions, and play for a Battery Power koozie!
More Braves News:
Sean Murphy was scheduled to begin his rehab assignment with the Gwinnett Stripers Friday night, but his start has been delayed due to a family matter. There is no further information at this time.
Thursday marked a tough day down on the farm, despite David McCabe’s home run. More in the minor league recap.
Dale Murphy was in the BravesVision booth during Friday’s game. While discussing the City Connect uniforms and ‘80’s night, he explained why Ted Turner should be a Hall of Famer.
Former Brave Kenley Jansen is tied for third in career saves with 478.
