Category: Baseball

Monday night’s zany 11-10 walk-off win over the Angels will be remembered for the offensive heroics of both lineups far more than any pitching performance. However, there was a sequence from Will Warren right before his start got turned on its head that caught my eye. So, I’d like to share what I felt was a good illustration of the growth Warren achieved over the offseason in terms of stuff but also sequencing.

We join Warren in the top of the third with the Yankees already winning, 4-0, courtesy of a pair of two-run home runs by Aaron Judge and José Caballero. Warren is coasting to this point, only Jo Adell having reached on a hit-by-pitch. Warren’s collected a pair of quick outs in the frame on a Logan O’Hoppe groundout and Adam Frazier strikeout, but has to face the top of the order for the second time.

Warren has already struck out Zach Neto to open the contest — making him look silly on a sweeper down and away (though it did require a nine-pitch battle). In the first encounter he started Neto with a first-pitch sinker in on the hands that Neto swung through, so Warren feels he can achieve a similar result with a first-pitch four-seamer in the same location.

Similar pitch and an even more painful outcome, Neto fouling this pitch off his front foot and collapsing in a heap of pain.

After a result like that, the hitter might become a little gun-shy against future pitches inside. Warren leverages that hesitation with a front-door sweeper trying to steal a called strike two.

This is perfect execution of his pitch, Warren landing this sweeper right on the corner down and in. You can see Neto flinch slightly as it appears this pitch is heading right for his front kneecap and gives up early, only for the sweeper’s foot-and-a-half of horizontal break to bend it into the zone at the last moment. You don’t always want to throw your sweeper for strikes, but this is an encouraging development from Warren to be able to command this pitch to the corner rather than pigeonholing himself into throwing the sweeper only for chase.

In the blink of an eye, Warren is in the driver’s seat, 0-2. He has a wealth of options available to him — fastball above the zone, sweeper off the plate away, or he can even go back inside with a pitch running towards the hitter and away from the barrel. Warren elects the latter option given the success he’s had busting Neto inside so far.

Another excellent pitch from Warren, this sinker running viciously in on Neto’s hands. Neto is barely able to nub it foul with the handle of his bat to stay alive.

After three straight pitches inside, Warren has the situation perfectly set up to get Neto to chase a breaking ball down and away.

This is just a filthy pitch. The sweeper looks like a fastball down Broadway out of the hand, only to take a sharp left hand turn. Neto waves weakly at the pitch, his bat nowhere near making contact to give Warren five strikeouts through the first three innings. You might wonder why Neto is swinging at a pitch that ends up so far off the plate away. Not only is the command of this individual pitch just as Warren intended, it comes out of almost exactly the same tunnel as the sinker that immediately preceded it, a pitch that Neto also swung at. It’s truly the perfect two-pitch sequence given all the other pitches Warren had thrown Neto to this point.

Here’s the full sequence:

For as smoothly as Warren’s outing was going up until this point, it was abruptly derailed an inning later. The leadoff error by José Caballero certainly didn’t help, but you can’t let four of the next six hitters to reach the minute you encounter the first inconvenience of your start. That being said, I think we can still acknowledge the excellence of Warren’s first three innings this game. Warren recorded strikeouts on four different pitches — four-seamer, sinker, sweeper, and changeup — which to me is an encouraging sign given I feel he can become a little over-reliant on his four-seamer and sweeper in two-strike counts. I liked that he varied his approach with the sweeper, throwing it for called strikes and chase, and I though he tunneled pitches well on a handful of occasions. Obviously, the biggest adjustment is to not let a single moment derail his entire start, maturation in that department one of the keys in taking him from an MLB starter with question marks to a legitimate middle-of-the-rotation arm.

Well, another day, another embarrassing loss to the Cubs. Jesús Luzardo got shelled, the defense was a disaster, and the bats were silent against another lefty starter. There are 144 more games to go. Take that any way you want to.

On to the links.

Phillies News:

• Alec Bohm’s struggles could be the key to more playing time for Edmundo Sosa. ($)
• Zack Wheeler struck out 9 in his latest rehab start Tuesday night. He’s getting closer to a return to the Phillies.
• MLB umpire Brock Ballou was allegedly robbed and assaulted in Center City last week.
• It’s been ten years since Vince Velasquez’ 16 strikeout game. He’s still just as confident in his fastball as ever, despite it only being 92 MPH and him being in Triple-A. ($)

MLB News:

• The Detroit Tigers are the latest to get in on the prospect extension trend, giving Kevin McGonigle an 8 year, $150M contract.
• The MLB Players Association has fired two of its top executives following an internal investigation.
• Astros starter and big NPB free agent acquisition Tatsuya Imai is having trouble adjusting to life in America on and off the field. ($)
• MLB and the Twins have launched an investigation into Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran’s claim of what a fan said to him that prompted Duran to give the fan the middle finger.

Triple-A: Syracuse Mets (8-9)

SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE 4, SYRACUSE 1 (BOX)

Christian Scott was a hard-luck loser on the night. Scott, who is making a very strong case to be the first Syracuse Met called up to the big league squad if there is a need, surrendered just two hits in his five and one third innings of work, though both hits drove in a run for the RailRiders. He struck out five and walked just one.

Offensively, the Mets just did not have it going for them. No one had more than one hit, with the only run coming on a solo home run by Nick Morabito, which made a 3-0 deficit a 3-1 deficit.

• CF Nick Morabito: 1-4, R, HR (3), RBI, K
• RF-1B Ryan Clifford: 1-4, K, E (3)
• 2B Ronny Mauricio: 0-3, E (3)
• 1B Jose Rojas: 0-1
• RF Cristian Pache: 1-3, K
• DH Christian Arroyo: 0-1, BB, K
• PH-DH Yonny Hernández: 1-2, K
• SS Vidal Bruján: 1-4, K
• LF Ji Hwan Bae: 0-2, 2 BB, K
• C Hayden Senger: 0-3, 2 K, E (1)
• 3B Jackson Cluff: 0-3, K
• RHP Christian Scott: 5.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, L (0-2)
• LHP Alex Carrillo: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Ryan Lambert: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Joe Jacques: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

Double-A: Binghamton Rumble Ponies (5-5)

AKRON 3, BINGHAMTON 0 / 7 (BOX)

Binghamton and Akron played a rain-shortened affair, with the game only going seven innings and having a delay that was 43 minutes longer than the two hour game time.

Binghamton’s bats simply did not show up, collecting just one hit, a Kevin Parada single in the seventh. They did walk six times, so they had some traffic on the basepaths, but one hit just is not gonna cut it.

Zach Thornton pitched well, surrendering two runs in five innings, but had no run support.

• CF A.J. Ewing: 0-2, BB, K
• SS Marco Vargas: 0-2, BB, K, SB (4)
• 3B Jacob Reimer: 0-2, BB
• 1B Chris Suero: 0-1, 2 BB, K, 2 E (2, 3)
• RF Eli Serrano III: 0-3
• C Kevin Parada: 1-3, K
• DH JT Schwartz: 0-2, BB, K
• LF Matt Rudick: 0-3, 3 K
• 2B Wyatt Young: 0-3, 2 K
• LHP Zach Thornton: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 2 WP, L (0-1)
• RHP Ben Simon: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

High-A: Brooklyn Cyclones (3-7)

GREENSBORO 15, BROOKLYN 4 (BOX)

Well, 15-4 is pretty self-explanatory.

The game was close in the early stages, as the Cyclones and Grasshoppers were tied at one apiece after two innings, and Brooklyn trailed 3-1 after three. It completely fell apart in the sixth inning, where Brooklyn surrendered eight runs in the frame, with Tanner Witt wearing six of them. They gave up four more in the eighth but it was over and done with by then.

• 2B Mitch Voit: 0-5, 3 K
• SS Antonio Jimenez: 1-5, R, HR, RBI, K
• DH Daiverson Gutierrez: 1-3, R, 2 BB
• 1B Corey Collins: 1-3, R, 2B, 2 BB
• C Ronald Hernandez: 1-4, RBI, BB, E
• RF John Bay: 1-3, R, 2B, BB, K
• 3B Colin Houck: 1-4, RBI, 3 K, E
• LF Vincent Perozo: 3-5, RBI
• CF Kevin Villavicencio: 1-3, BB
• RHP Channing Austin: 3.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, L (0-1)
• RHP Cristofer Gomez: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K ,2 HBP
• RHP Tanner Witt: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 WP
• RHP Juan Arnaud: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 2 HBP
• LHP Gregori Louis: 1.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
• RHP Danis Correa: 0.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP
• RHP Trace Willhoite: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Single-A: St. Lucie Mets (5-6)

DAYTONA 17, ST. LUCIE 13 (BOX)

As the score would suggest, this was a wild one.

St. Lucie actually led this game handily at one point. Randy Guzman put them ahead 2-0 with a home run in the first. Elian Peña made it 3-0 with a straight steal of home, which was a really heads up play. Branny De Oleo doubled home a pair to make it 5-0 in the fourth, and they plated two more in the fifth on a Guzman triple and AJ Salgado sacrifice fly.

It all fell apart from there.

The St. Lucie bullpen surrendered five runs in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, turning a 7-0 lead into a 15-8 deficit in the blink of an eye (Sam Robertson drove in a run in the sixth but the timing of the RBI messes up the narrative flow of the 15 runs in five innings that were surrendered).

Daytona added two more in the eighth, making it 17-8. St. Lucie actually tried to answer back, coring five runs in the ninth, but the lead was insurmountable.

• SS Elian Peña: 1-4, 2 R, 2B, BB, 2 K, SB (5)
• 2B Sam Robertson: 2-4, 2 R, RBI, BB, E (1)
• 1B Randy Guzman: 3-5, 3 R, 3B, 2 HR (1, 2), 5 RBI
• DH Julio Zayas: 0-5, K
• RF AJ Salgado: 1-4, R, RBI, 2 K, 2 E (1, 2)
• CF Simon Juan: 1-4, 2 R, 2 K
• LF JT Benson: 1-3, R, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB
• C Chase Meggers: 0-1, R, E
• C Francisco Toledo: 0-2, R, BB
• 3B Branny De Oleo: 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI, E (1)
• LHP Nicolas Carreno: 3.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 1 WP
• RHP Tyler McLoughlin: 1.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 1 HBP
• RHP Omar Victorino: 1.0 IP, 5 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 2 WP, 2 HBP, BS (1), L (0-2)
• RHP Elwis Mijares: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
• RHP Jorge De Leon: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 2 WP
• RHP Joe Scarborough: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

Rookie: FCL Mets (0-0)

NO GAME (SCHEDULE)

STAR OF THE NIGHT

Randy Guzman

GOAT OF THE NIGHT

Omar Victorino

Hello, friends.

The Orioles are back down to .500. Monday’s exciting comeback win availed them of absolutely zero momentum, even though Trevor Rogers was the next day’s starting pitcher and Kyle Bradish was the guy the day after that. They lost an annoying one to the Diamondbacks yesterday to close out the homestand. Check out my recap of the extra innings 8-5 loss for more of the not-so-lovely totals.

For me, there were two stories of the game. One played out all through the game, and that was the outfield defense. An alignment that any idiot could have looked at and thought, “Hmm, I’m not sure that’s going to work” did not work. You cannot get by with a corner outfield consisting of Weston Wilson and Johnathan Rodríguez with a center field manned by Blaze Alexander. Maybe you could deal with one of those things at a time, but all three was asking too much and the O’s paid the price for it.

The other story is Tyler Wells, who has not been up to snuff in high-leverage innings so far this season. I thought he’d be able to do it. I figured the Orioles would be okay with him in the eighth inning. It’s not happening, or at least not so far. After yesterday’s 10th inning clunker, his ERA is up over 5 for the season. That’s barely worth having him as the guy who comes in the fifth inning when the starter got knocked out early by injury or ineffectiveness, let alone putting him in any kind of leverage spot.

Maybe Wells can turn it around. It’s early to give up on anybody. But the team can’t afford to have him out there in crucial situations like this. I think the Orioles know this. There’s a reason Wells didn’t come in until the tenth inning. The only guys left in the bullpen were Rico Garcia, who had pitched the two previous days and was probably unavailable, and Albert Suárez, who based on his own early-season struggles is below Wells on the depth chart. Yesterday’s game played out in a way that there was no hiding Wells and he showed us all why they were trying to hide him.

Cleveland awaits next. This is another team on the pile that’s hovering at or just around .500 so far this season. The Guardians are fresh off losing two out of three to the Cardinals. We don’t really know a lot about who’s for real and who isn’t yet. Anybody might fix some of their problems and anybody might have their problems continue or get worse. The 2026 season story continues at 6:10 Eastern tonight.

Orioles stuff you might have missed

“There’s no running away from it”: Wells on extra-innings loss (Baltimore Baseball)
“I asked for the fire,” said Wells on expressing that in spring training he said he wanted the leverage situations. He has been falling short, he knows. Can he fix it? Always the question.

Gunnar Henderson aims to curb frustration, says emotion has “just been me” (The Baltimore Sun)
There’s a fine line between being a “fiery competitor” and being an on tilt mess. Henderson is trying to stay on the right side of the line. He could help by working on his two-strike approach this season.

The Orioles can learn a lot from Samuel Basallo’s stint as everyday catcher. So can he. (The Baltimore Banner)
It would have been better if the Orioles didn’t have to find out in these circumstances, but here we are in them so hopefully he can make the best of them.

Mountcastle on frustration of fractured foot (School of Roch)
Ryan Mountcastle scootered along to speak with Orioles media before yesterday’s game and among the remarks confirmed that he suffered the broken bone in his foot while running between first and second base. What a freak injury.

For the first time since 2019, Frederick hosted a game as an Orioles affiliate (Steve on Baseball)
Orioles prospect expert checked in from the scene of the first Keys home game of the year. The affiliate has an exciting roster as their season begins – though who knows how long that will last before the strong performers start getting promoted.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

In their 18th game last year, the Orioles beat the Guardians, 6-2, to move to 8-10 for the season. Tomoyuki Sugano got the win while pitching seven innings with two runs allowed. Each of Gunnar Henderson, Ryan O’Hearn, and Heston Kjerstad homered in the game, with O’Hearn’s homer driving in three runs.

There are a pair of former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2017-20 reliever Richard Bleier, and 1972-73 catcher Sergio Robles. Today is Robles’s 80th birthday, so an extra happy birthday to him.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: Revolutionary War loser Henry Clinton (1730), aviation pioneer Wilbur Wright (1867), actor Charlie Chaplin (1889), author Kingsley Amis (1922), actor Martin Lawrence (1965), singer-songwriter Selena (1971), and actress Anya Taylor-Joy (1996).

On this day in history…

In 1746, Jacobite rebels in Scotland supporting the so-called Stuart Pretender were defeated by a British army led by the Duke of Cumberland in the Battle of Culloden. One consequence of the battle was that traditional Scottish tartan kilts were banned by an act of Parliament except for those in the military.

In 1917, the exiled Vladimir Lenin returned to Russian soil, having secretly been aided in his return by Russia’s World War I enemy, Germany.

In 1945, the Soviet Army launched an assault on German positions surrounding Berlin in the Battle of Seelow Heights. Over one million Russian men were involved in the attack, outnumbering the Germans nearly 9:1, in what proved to be the start of the final offensive of the European theater of World War II.

In 1963, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. penned his letter from the Birmingham jail. One of my college professors summed up this letter as a response to white clergy members who asked why he was in jail, with King offering this distilled reply: “Why aren’t you in here with me?”

**

And that’s the way it is in Birdland on April 16. Have a safe Thursday. Go O’s!

The Detroit Tigers extended their winning streak to five straight games on Wednesday night with a 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals at Comerica Park. They also improved to a robust 7-1 at home so far this season.

On Thursday afternoon, the Motor City Kitties have a chance to sweep their second straight series with a win over their American League Central rivals. On the topic of the division, Detroit (9-9) is currently third in the standings, with the Minnesota Twins (11-8) and Cleveland Guardians (10-9) ahead, respectively, while the Royals (7-11) and Chicago White Sox (6-11) trail behind.

On the hill for the Tigers is right-hander Keider Montero, who has looked sharp so far in his first two starts, while the Royals send lefty Kris Bubic to the bump. The last time K.C.’s southpaw faced the Olde English D, he tossed seven innings of one-run ball on four hits and two walks while striking out nine in a 1-0 loss on June 1, 2025.

Here is a look at how the two hurlers match up on Thursday.

Detroit Tigers (9-9) vs. Kansas City Royals (7-11)

Time (ET): 1:10 p.m.
Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
SB Nation Site:Royals Review
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 19: RHP Keider Montero (1-1, 1.74 ERA) vs. LHP Kris Bubic (2-1, 2.50 ERA)

MONTERO

BUBIC

It’s the three-week anniversary of the 2026 MLB season opener, with barely 10% of the grueling season completed, and at least six weeks before anyone can adequately evaluate their team.

Yet, in the world of talk shows, social media, gambling sites and plain ol’ rancor and hostility, it’s never too early to rush to judgment and overreact, right?

So, here we are, prematurely jumping to our own conclusions, and passing out labels for the biggest surprises and disappointments of this terribly young season.

Biggest disappointment: New York Mets

Remember when David Stearns went into his chemistry lab, threw on his goggles, whipped out the glass beakers, mixed up the solutions, and decided that he found the magical formula to turn MLB’s most expensive payroll into a winner?

Well, back to the lab.

The Mets are an absolute mess. They are in last place with a 7-12 record. They have lost eight games in a row. They have scored three runs in their last 38 innings. They went down in order 15 times in the three-game series against the Dodgers. They have already been shut out five times. They have the second-lowest batting average in the National League. And they’ve had four players who have endured hitless streaks of at least 20 at-bats.

All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor, their $341 million man, has one RBI. Third baseman Bo Bichette, their prized free agent with a three-year, $126 million contract, is hitting .228 with one home run and a .575 OPS. Second baseman Marcus Semien, who was swapped for Brandon Nimmo, is hitting .194 with a .526 OPS. And starters David Peterson (6.41 ERA) and Kodai Senga (7.07 ERA) have yet to win a start.

Yes, it’s ugly in Queens.

Although it’s hardly manager Carlos Mendoza’s fault, someone is going to have to take the fall if this continues much longer.

The modern Yankees are known at this point for their midseason slumps, but they also deserve credit for the late-season surges that those slumps necessitate. Last year, after going 25-27 through June and July, the club closed the season on an MLB-best 30-11 run.

That run was in part thanks to a midseason makeover that was forced by the team’s shoddy midsummer play. With the club slipping to five games back in the AL East, Brian Cashman imported seven players at the trade deadline, and though not all of them excelled in pinstripes, the stronger pickups, David Bednar, José Caballero, and Ryan McMahon, combined for over 3 rWAR, crucial contributions in a division race that came down to the final day.

As the Yankees limped through July, it was clear they needed major reinforcements, and the front office responded. It’s early days in 2026, but the Yankees have already shown their trademark inconsistency, and they again appear to have some major holes on the roster. So, do you think they will need another midseason makeover this year?

With such glaring holes in their infield at the moment, the answer to this question may seem like an obvious “Yes” to some, but let’s at least hear the optimistic case. For one, among the primary issues the Yankees had to address at last trade deadline was how left-handed heavy their lineup was, leading to the acquisitions of Amed Rosario, Caballero, and Austin Slater. In theory, this version of the team doesn’t need the same kind of augmentation, with a bench full of right-handed bats capable of stepping in against lefties (in practice, of course, the lineup has struggled thus far against southpaws).

Moreover, pitching is where so many contending teams look to add midseason, and the Yankees are loaded with it. Their starting rotation has paced the league, with Carlos Rodón, Gerrit Cole, and potentially Clarke Schmidt still on the way. Injuries very well may eat into the club’s depth and force them to add more arms, but should Cole and Rodón return healthy, the Yankees may be close to set on pitching. At full health, they’d have more talented arms than slots in the rotation, allowing them to address any bullpen weaknesses by shifting arms to relief, and that’s before even mentioning talented prospects like Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodríguez

That’s the optimistic case, but the more pessimistic case isn’t too hard to spell out. Ryan McMahon and Caballero have barely been playable as a starting left-side this year, and the bullpen cries out for reinforcements. Perhaps Anthony Volpe comes back healthy and productive, and maybe the Yankees’ excess of starting pitching helps them address their bullpen needs. Or, perhaps the Yankees need to find two starting caliber infielders at the deadline, and multiple capable bullpen arms, much like they did last year.

What do you think? Will another midseason roster makeover be necessary? Or will something more akin to the 2024 deadline, when the Yankees only made a couple of additions, be the path the club takes?

On the site today, you can get caught up on Wednesday night’s AL action with Kevin’s Rivalry Roundup, and read up on a Hall of Famer you probably didn’t know play for the Yankees in Matt’s profile of Paul Waner. Also, Peter’s sequence of the week highlights some quality work from Will Warren, and Andrés reviews another shaky from Luis Gil.

Today’s Matchup

New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Angels

Time: 1:35 p.m. EST

Video: YES Network, FanDuel Sports Network West

Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

The conveyor belt of top prospects to the major leagues has shown little signs of slowing – and plenty of young dudes are getting rich along the way.

Kevin McGonigle’s instant impact for the Detroit Tigers paired with the eight-year, $150 million deal he signed on Tuesday, April 15 epitomized a trend that’s touched both leagues and multiple levels of the game. No. 1 overall prospect Konnor Griffin was called up after just a week and shortly thereafter signed a nine-year, $140 million deal.

Meanwhile, rookies such as JJ Wetherholt, Chase DeLauter and Carter Jensen are influencing the game in multiple facets, showing a comfort level that belies the fact they played their first regular season games just three weeks ago.

So, who’s next?

USA TODAY Sports examines six top prospects off to hot starts in the minor leagues and - with the key April 20 checkpoint for clubs to save a year of service time looming – who might be next up on their way to the big leagues:

SNY | Chelsea Janes: For the first time since the 2025 postseason, Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe played a competitive baseball game. It happened to be with the Yanks’ Double-A affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, as he starts his rehab assignment after offseason labrum surgery. He said he felt great and called it a big milestone.

Regarding the next steps in his recovery process, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that he will play minor league games until at least next week. After resting on Wednesday, he will return for five-plus frames on Thursday and Friday, then take a day off Saturday, and play again on Sunday. After Monday’s offday, he’ll likely go to Scranton to continue his rehab. “Probably four or five games next week, then we’ll kind of evaluate and see where we’re at from there,” Boone said.

In the postgame following the Yanks’ exciting win on Wednesday, Boone dropped another nugget: Gerrit Cole will be joining Volpe on the rehab trail with Somerset. It’ll be his first pro start since underdoing Tommy John surgery in March 2025. Obviously he has a long way to go to build up, but it’s a significant milestone for the ace on his journey back to a big-league mound.

NY Daily News | Gary Phillips: After sending Yerry De Los Santos back to Triple-A late on Tuesday, the Yankees announced the promotion of Angel Chivilli on Wednesday to take a place on the roster and in the bullpen. He has pitched 8.1 perfect innings with Scranton so far after a rough spring. The 23-year-old had a 6.18 ERA over 73 MLB games in Colorado in the last two seasons, 2024 and 2025.

“We think there’s more room there for his secondary to become really good pitches for him,” Aaron Boone said. “For him, it’s about controlling the strike zone and command. If he can control counts, he’s got some swing and miss with his secondary stuff. The fastball is big. He’ll be in the mid-to-upper-90s with his fastball, but he needs his secondary.”

New York Post | Mark W. Sánchez: If you thought Ryan McMahon’s recent bunt attempt was bizarre, well, it appears to be part of a broader organizational focus on bunting. Before the Yankees’ official round of batting practice on Tuesday, José Caballero, Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Trent Grisham, and Ryan McMahon took turns to lay down bunts against a pitching machine. What does this mean for the Yankees and their 2026 approach? We don’t know, but Austin Wells successfully got on base with a bunt on Wednesday.

FanGraphs | Dan Szymborski: Even though he hasn’t played every day, Ben Rice is terrorizing the league already. Szymborski marvels at his 70 percent hard-hit rate and says he’s here to stay. “If you’re a fan of another team in the AL East, as I am (Baltimore Orioles), you’ve probably been waiting for Rice to come crashing back to Earth. Given how he’s hit in 2026, however, I fear we’ll have to pin our collective hopes on other sources of Yankees misfortune. Ben Rice’s power is real and it is spectacular,” he explained.

Yahoo Sports | Jake Mintz: This is a wonderful tribute to the 103-year-old Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, with a touching article praising her legacy on his day. Shared are stories of how they met, how they fell in love, and how she helped one of the most prominent figures in baseball history through thick and thin.

“Throughout Jackie’s most tumultuous times, Rachel was a rock, there by his side as he broke baseball’s color barrier,” Mintz wrote. It’s definitely worth a read.

The Mets' losing streak has hit eight games after their 8-2 loss to the Dodgers on Wednesday night.

It was a game filled with the offensive outage that has plagued this team for over a week now, a bullpen implosion and miscues in the field and basepaths that have become daily for this squad after the first 19 games of the season. All of that has led manager Carlos Mendoza, visibly upset, to state the obvious about his team after another lackluster defeat.

"We’re not playing good baseball right now," Mendoza said. "Everybody’s frustrated. We gotta use the off day tomorrow to regroup and get back at it because we gotta get going here. It’s not a good showing right now."

The Mets scored just two runs on five hits -- the second run coming in the ninth inning after the game was well in hand -- on Wednesday night. In the three-game series, New York scored just three runs and collected 12 hits. The Dodgers had 12 hits in Wednesday's game alone.

"I don’t really wrap my mind around it. It’s tough right now," Bo Bichette said of the team's losing streak after the game. "If we knew the answer, we’d do it. But we’ll keep working to try and figure it out."

Bichette, the biggest free agent signing on the offensive side this offseason, went 1-for-4 with a run scored in the series finale. He was just 2-for-11 in the series and is now batting .228 in the early going. But it's not just Bichette. With Juan Soto out with a calf injury, the Mets have simply not been able to get consistent offense.

During the eight-game losing streak, the Mets have scored just 12 runs. They've pushed across more than two runs just once in that span and have been shut out three times. It's something that no one who spoke after Wednesday's loss could understand, let alone explain.

"Guys just have to start playing better. It’s as simple as that," Mendoza said. "They’re too talented. But right now we’re not seeing anything on the field. It has nothing to do with preparation or the work they’re putting in. We just have to go out there and do it."

"I mean, it’s surprising, but you go through these things," Bichette said. "This is a bit extreme, probably, but it doesn’t help facing two of the best in the game the last two days. We could be swinging the bat well and running into [Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani], it’s like running into a buzzsaw. ...I don’t really got much to say other than I can’t explain it and will keep working on it to figure it out."

Clay Holmes, who held the Dodgers lineup to just two runs over five innings on Wednesday, repeatedly said that no one is pointing fingers in the clubhouse and that they all have their part to play in the losing streak. 

"It’s baseball. If we had an answer, we definitely don’t want to be in this spot," Holmes said. "It’s one of those things you go in those stretches where it’s tough. There’s no pointing fingers. Everyone has to take it upon themself to help the team win."

Holmes shared his optimism with the reporters in the clubhouse. When asked what makes him confident that the Mets will turn things around, he said that the players' history of playing well is there.

"What people have done in the past is way better than what we’ve done here," Holmes said. "Can’t just look at the last couple of games and that defines us. These stretches, there’s a history and a future where we know where we can go."

Speaking on the offense specifically, Mendoza explained what is frustrating him the most during this stretch.

"We’re not dictating at-bats," he said. "Getting beat by fastballs even though there was some good fastballs byOhtani today, we swung through a lot of them today. We have to be able to put pressure and be in attack mode. Right now, understanding what guys are going through is contagious. At the same time, nobody is feeling sorry for us. We got to be able to dictate at-bats."

Bichette, who acknowledged that the players are upset by what's going on, echoed what Francisco Lindor said after Tuesday's loss about the offense being more competitive, and perhaps they can use it as a springboard to get back in the win column.

"Last couple of games, we competed a lot better," Bichette said. "At the end of the day, the mindset is to compete, I don’t care what the at-bats look like as long as we’re in there fighting. Two great pitchers that beat us. Obviously, we got to be better. But the commonality is two great pitchers."

The Mets will get a reprieve before starting a three-game series against the Cubs in Chicago on Friday afternoon. New York has played nine straight games and the off day could do the team good. 

But make no mistake, the Mets are not happy with how the early season has gone, and that's exactly what the Mets skipper wants to see.

"They’re pissed. Frustrated. Not happy about it," Mendoza said of the mood of the team. "I want them to be pissed." 

We’re all still trying to figure out what went wrong in a game that the Mariners were winning handily for eight innings. Emerson Hancock was brilliant, giving up just one two-run homer over six innings of work. Luke Raley had his first ever four-hit game, and made a nifty catch in the outfield to boot. The Mariners did strike out double-digits (12), but also recorded double-digit hits (10) and took seven walks. And all of it didn’t matter, because the bullpen allowed a five-run inning in the ninth and the Padres walked it off, 7-6. The Mariners have now lost seven straight games on the road. They are back to three games below .500 after getting tantalizingly close to a winning record for the first time since March 30th. The good vibes, which roared to life after a four-game sweep against the Astros, are once again on life support.

Seriously, what the heck?

Things started off so well. Emerson Hancock was again fantastic, working through the sixth inning with the only damage against him a two-run homer from the impossibly hot-hitting Xander Bogaerts (also the only Padres hitter who had homered off Hancock previously). Hancock was untouchable over the first half of his outing, no-hitting the Padres the first time through the order before giving up a base hit to Bogaerts, who had two of the four hits the Padres mustered off Hancock. Hancock owned the strike zone tonight, throwing 20 of 23 first-pitch strikes and constantly working ahead of hitters, finishing with six strikeouts to just one walk. There were a couple of those wonky sweepers that strayed too far from the zone, but he also collected three of his six strikeouts on the pitch. He pounded the bottom of the zone with the sinker and sweeper, but also successfully changed hitters’ eye levels with his four-seamer up, staying out of the meaty part of the zone. It was a stellar performance from Hancock on Jackie Robinson Day; the two happen to share a hometown (Cairo, Georgia).

That is the story that should be told about this game – that and the performance of the offense, which scored six runs for Hancock. Dominic Canzone got the Mariners on the board in the second, as the scalding-hot Randy-Raley duo got on base (Arozarena with another walk, Luke with a nice single on a changeup); Canzone then torched the hardest-hit ball the Mariners have had all season, a 114 mph laser line drive that hit the foul pole that’s in play for some reason and rolled away from a bewildered-looking Nick Castellanos.

The Mariners could have gotten more in the third – Cal Raleigh recorded hit #500, a double, and then Jackson Merrill robbed Julio of a home run over the center field wall. Payback for all the homers Julio has robbed, I guess, but it sure feels unfair, especially considering how this game ended.

But the Mariners were only temporarily discouraged. The patience the hitters showed in the Astros series returned with a vengeance in the third; Cole Young and Leo Rivas both worked two-out walks, loading the bases (Randy had led off the inning with a double). The Rivas walk was especially impressive, as Rivas challenged a strike three call on a pitch clearly inside. That set up Brendan Donovan, who got himself into a hitter-friendly 2-0 count before lacing a ball through the right side of the infield for another two runs.

Cal Raleigh also worked a walk that inning, as the Mariners pushed Padres starter Randy Vásquez to 85 pitches in the fourth. Not that the Padres bullpen is any walk in the park, but after needing to use their leverage arms last night, that set up the Mariners well – something Luke Raley took advantage of against new pitcher Ron Marinaccio in the fifth, walloping this no-doubter two-run homer (scoring Randy, once again on in scoring position thanks to a single and a stolen base, his fifth already of the year).

This would also be a nice story to tell about this game: Luke Raley, risen from the specter of injury that haunted his 2025, hitting a new career milestone, on a night when his buddy Cal Raleigh also hit a career milestone and his other new buddy Brendan Donovan knocked in two runs of his own. A real power of friendship recap.

But unfortunately, it’s not the one we can tell, because the ninth inning happened. Backing up, because again, we’re all still trying to figure out what happened here: Eduard Bazardo pitched a perfect seventh inning, and Gabe Speier handled the eighth. Dan Wilson then called for Andrés Muñoz to come in for the ninth in a non-save situation. Muñoz hasn’t looked right this year, seemingly struggling with his slider command, but has managed to scrape out of some sticky situations. There would be no scraping out tonight, unless it was the scraping out of my eyeballs with a melon baller after watching the bottom of the ninth.

To be fair to Muñoz, he suffered some bad batted-ball luck, although he didn’t help himself out by walking Manny Machado to lead off the inning. Gavin Sheets then snuck a ball past Donovan at third, putting runners on at second and third with no one out. Muñoz was able to get Nick Castellanos swinging after a slider for the first out, but then suffered more bad luck on a Baltimore chop from Ty France that Muñoz couldn’t field cleanly, loading the bases and bringing up the tying run in the form of pinch-hitter Fernando Tatís. Tatís hit a sac fly, bringing in a run.

Okay. Not ideal, but okay. Two outs, still a three-run lead, an out at any base but third, and the nine-hole hitter coming up. But despite getting Luis Campusano in an 0-2 count, Muñoz went back to the slider for a third time and hung it, allowing a hard-hit single and turning over the lineup. It wasn’t a scoring play, but in retrospect, this was probably the breaking point of this game. Ramón Laureano would then hit another single, yanking a good pitch inside for a single because that’s what Laureano does, setting up the wunderkind Jackson Merrill for a walkoff winner off new pitcher Jose Ferrer. We can heap a little fault on Ferrer, even with Muñoz taking the loss, for going to the sinker for a third straight pitch in a 2-2 count and failing to put away his lefty hitter, and maybe to Randy Arozarena for dropping the transfer on Merrill’s double, eliminating any play at the plate (merciful, some might say, the some being recap writers), but this mess was of Muñoz’s doing. It’s the worst solution to a mystery story I didn’t want to write in the first place. Here’s hoping for a happier story next time.

On Jackie Robinson Day, it would be the A’s who’d strike first. Tyler Soderstrom’s opposite field double brought home Carlos Cortes.

This would be the first time in 2026 that the A’s filled the box score in the first inning. They were the only team who hadn’t done so this season.

Off the bat, it kind’ve looked like Ezequiel Durán had the play but he’d lose it on the jump at the warning track. A quick recovery from the Rangers’ left fielder prevented Soderstrom from advancing any further than second base. The A’s would strand him there to end the first inning.

In the top of the second, A’s starter J.T. Ginn was able to escape a little drama. A trio of walks loaded the bases but no damage was done, thanks to Joc Pederson striking out and Danny Jensen hitting into a double play.

Ginn doesn’t have the greatest track record against Texas. Yes, he secured the last ever win in Oakland against them back in 2024, but last season, in just around twenty innings against the Rangers, he offered up six home runs in around twenty innings!

He’d serve up another to shortstop Corey Seager in the third inning. After the A’s added a little insurance on a Denzel Clarke RBI single, Seager and the Rangers tied it right back up on a no doubter to deep right field.

From there, we’d find ourselves in a bit of a pitcher’s duel. Rangers starter Kumar Rocker provided a wipeout slider that had A’s batters struggling to resist, while the signature J.T. Ginn sinker kept the Rangers on the ground floor.

After a slight lull, Shea Langeliers would get ahold of one, ripping it down the third base line for a lead off double in the bottom of the fifth. Now this is where you could feel the A’s getting to Rocker. They had him on the ropes. A mound visit was called on Rocker’s behalf, after his walk to Tyler Soderstrom. He’d get Jacob Wilson to line out to Ezequiel Durán but that would be it for the big right-hander. His day would be over after 4.2 innings pitched, 4 hits, 2 ER, 4 BB, and 6Ks on 97 pitches. Lefty Jalen Beeks would be brought in to replace him. Despite walking Jeff McNeil to load the bases, he’d get out of the jam by striking out Max Muncy to end the inning.

What’s frustrating about THIS particular Muncy strikeout is that not only were the bases juiced, but he had a 3-1 count on Beeks when he decided to go hunting for a fastball up and out of the zone.

Ginn’s day would wrap up not too far behind Rocker’s. He’d give the ball to Hogan Harris after a one out single by Wyatt Langford. No damage done by the Rangers though as Harris was able to shut down Monday’s player of the game in Jake Burger.

Now we have to talk about Nick Kurtz.

In the bottom of the 6th, Kurtz came up to the plate with Lawrence Butler on second base. What did he do in this at-bat? Strikeout on a fastball right down the middle. His third of the game up to this point and quite frankly, a telling K. I know it’s early and we don’t want to have the conversation yet, but can we at least admit that Kurtz has not been the player we’ve needed him to be? His hitting woes actually run through the spring, where in 21 games he hit only .201 with 16Ks. In fact, if you go back to his performance at the end of last season, you’ll find that his September numbers took a noticeable dip. His slash in the final month was actually his worst. Even weaker than the April/May campaign that he was criticized for having.

So what do we make of Kurtz’s struggles? If we find ourselves in a similar situation by June, could a trip to AAA a la Lawrence Butler in 2024 be appropriate?

While you think on that, watch this…

Just like that the A’s were back in possession of the lead. According to statcast, Shea’s homer traveled 467 ft! At this time, that’s the longest home run of the 2026 season.

Jacob Wilson must’ve been jealous of how cool Shea Langeliers looked in the new elephant mask, because he’d send one for a ride in the bottom of the 7th.

But what would a middle of the week A’s game be without a little drama? Kotsay went to Mark Leiter Jr. in the top of the 8th and that third out just felt out of reach the entire time. He’d toss one Jake Burger’s way, who’d clobber it deep to left field for a three-run home run.

You thought a 6-2 lead in the 8th was safe? This is the 2026 A’s we’re talking about! They better keep hitting and hitting until the game’s over or their season will be over before playoffs begin in October.

Fortunately for us A’s fans, that would be the extent of it for the evening. Joel Kuhnel came in after Leiter Jr. and continued to pitch like he wants his own designated seat in the bullpen. There’s something very Kenley Jansen-esque in Kuhnel’s delivery that makes me feel safe. Sometimes all you need in the back end of the bullpen is a big boy with a cutter.

He’d get Andrew Mccutchen to strikeout to end the ball game. Kuhnel’s third save of the season and the first four-out save of his career.

It wasn’t an easy win but no one said it was going to be. For the first time since the 2021 season, the A’s are alone atop the American League West division. Tomorrow they’ll return, looking to take their fourth straight series win, their second of the year against a division rival, and hopefully the first quality start for Jacob Lopez in 2026.

LOS ANGELES — One dreadful plate appearance after another, the Mets got swept out to the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday and sank to the bottom.

Is this it? Is this rock bottom? It’s a question the Mets must ask with each new loss, hopeful for some ray of sunshine on which to latch.

Here’s one: They are finished with this series against the Dodgers. But maybe that’s not enough for this listless bunch.

Another night of offensive futility left the Mets with an 8-2 loss at Dodger Stadium that ran their losing streak to eight games. This was the seventh time during that stretch the Mets scored two runs or fewer.

“Everybody is upset,” Bo Bichette said. “You know why.”

It’s not just scoring: The Mets simply aren’t getting hits. They collected only five on this night and finished with 12 in the three-game series.

Shohei Ohtani was the chief tormentor Wednesday, pitching six dominant innings. A night earlier the Mets were stifled by Yoshinobu Yamamoto over 7 ²/₃ innings.

“It’s surprising, but you go through these things,” Bichette said. “This is a bit extreme, probably, but it doesn’t help facing two of the best in the game the last two days.”

This one turned into a runaway late, with the Dodgers receiving two homers — including a grand slam from Dalton Rushing against Devin Williams — in the eighth inning.

Clay Holmes, who departed his previous start with left hamstring tightness, gave the Mets a chance by allowing two earned runs on four hits and one walk over five innings. He was removed after 88 pitches.

“It’s one of those things where I don’t think you look around and point fingers,” Holmes said of the losing streak. “It’s not just the offense. Sometimes it’s going to happen and as pitchers we have got to be better and win games. Tonight I wasn’t good enough. You have got to look at how to win games as a team and lose them as a team.”

Hyeseong Kim launched a two-run homer in the second for the game’s first scoring. Rushing delivered a two-out double before Kim unloaded on a sinker, clearing the right-field fence.

It was the second homer Holmes allowed this season.

MJ Melendez’s first at-bat in a Mets uniform resulted in the team’s initial hit, a third-inning double. With two outs in the inning, Ohtani faced an 11-pitch at-bat against Francisco Lindor that culminated with a swinging strikeout on a 99-mph fastball that was well outside the strike zone.

Holmes received defensive help in the bottom of the inning as Luis Robert Jr. went full extension on a dive in center field to rob Freddie Freeman of an extra-base hit.

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Melendez’s RBI double in the fifth sliced the Dodgers’ lead to 2-1, but a base-running gaffe cost the Mets an opportunity for a larger inning. After drawing a leadoff walk, Francisco Alvarez, believing Carson Benge’s shot to left was caught by Teoscar Hernández, retreated to first base.

The ball was trapped by Hernández and Alvarez was thrown out at second base on a fielder’s choice. After Melendez’s RBI double, Lindor was retired by Ohtani to leave runners stranded on second and third.

“I just feel like we’re not dictating at-bats, and getting beat by fastballs” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Even though there were some good fastballs from Ohtani today I feel like we have got to be able to put pressure.”

Ohtani capped his night by striking out the side in the sixth. Ohtani allowed one earned run on two hits and two walks in the 95-pitch outing.

Tobias Myers surrendered a homer to Hernández leading off the bottom of the sixth, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 3-1.

Myers threw a four-seamer over the middle that Hernandez crushed to right center for his fourth homer this season.

Benge doubled in the seventh, but was left stranded at third when Melendez whiffed against Blake Treinen to end the inning.

Any chance of a Mets comeback dissipated in the eighth on Rushing’s grand slam against Williams.

The right-hander, pitching for the first time in eight days, allowed two singles and a walk to begin the inning before Rushing cleared the center field fence.

Williams recorded just one out in the inning before he was removed.

“They are pissed, frustrated, obviously not happy about it,” Mendoza said of his players. “I want them to be pissed.”

Even with a reliever warm for the sixth inning on Wednesday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts decided to ride with Shohei Ohtani.

On the rare night he wasn’t in the lineup as a hitter, the four-time MVP responded with a breathless exhibition of pure pitching dominance.

In the Dodgers’ 8-2 win over the New York Mets, Ohtani helped complete a three-game series sweep with six spectacular innings on the mound.

He gave up just one run. He allowed only two hits. And in a 10-strikeout exhibition, he saved his best stuff for the end of the night –– striking out the side in the top of the sixth with a swing-and-miss fastball, then curveball, then splitter.

Good morning, good afternoon and a very good night.

That was the story Wednesday, with the Dodgers (14-4) continuing their scorching hot start to the season even without the help of Ohtani’s bat.

As the two-way star continues to nurse a shoulder bruise he suffered on a hit-by-pitch Monday, the Dodgers decided to simplify his task, taking him out of the batting order so he could solely focus on his duties as a pitcher.

The move paid off perfectly, with Ohtani turning in perhaps his best start this year (despite allowing his first earned run of the campaign) while his DH replacement, Dalton Rushing, led the way offensively with a double and a grand slam.

“It was actually really good to watch him just focus on one thing,” manager Dave Roberts said of Ohtani. “I thought that just channeling all that energy into pitching was helpful.”

Indeed, in Ohtani’s 95-pitch gem, he had every arrow in his six-pitch quiver working.

His upper-90s mph fastball was dotted at the top of the zone. Big-bending sweepers and late-breaking curveballs and fall-of-the-table splitters helped complement it. 

And the few times he faced stress, he also back and dialed up triple-digit heat –– most notably, firing off four-straight 100 mph fastballs to strand runners at second and third after allowing his lone run in the fifth.

“That was a situation,” Ohtani said in Japanese, “in which I had to exert max effort to hold them.”

At that point, Roberts considered removing Ohtani from the game. After he threw 22 pitches in the fifth, the Dodgers had Blake Treinen ready to go for the sixth.

“I was thinking about potentially pulling the plug right there,” the manager said. “But once he finished that (fifth) inning, I wanted to give him the opportunity to go back out there for the sixth.”

Thus, Ohtani returned to the bump, put an exclamation point on his outing by striking out the side, then exited the game to a loud ovation.

“I mean, it’s Shohei,” Rushing quipped. “I don’t have too much more to say on top of that.”

“I think he’s arguably one of the best now,” he later added, “(especially) when you give him that opportunity to just solely worry about pitching.”

On the other side of the ball, it was Rushing who spurred the Dodgers’ offense in Ohtani’s absence, helping them take an early lead and then pull away late.

In the second inning, he lined a two-out, two-strike double that preceded a two-run homer from Hyeseong Kim. Then, after a Tesocar Hernández homer in the sixth extended the lead, the backup catcher delivered the knockout punch in a five-run eighth inning by belting his first career grand slam off Mets closer Devin Williams.

“Well, I’m not getting used to it, I’ll tell you that,” Rushing joked about replacing Ohtani as DH. “But he told me to hit a homer for him, and I guess it worked out in the end.”

What it means

The Dodgers completed their second sweep of the season, and have now won 10 of 12 games by finishing this homestand with a 5-1 record.

They are also 9-0 against National League opponents to this point, making easy work of a Mets team that –– prior to their dreadful 7-12 start to this season –– was thought to be their biggest competition for this year’s pennant.

During the series, Dodgers starters gave up just two runs over 21 ⅔ innings while striking out 19 batters.

They were also better defensively, with Wednesday’s highlights including a couple tough short-hoppers that Max Muncy cleanly turned at third base, then a diving stop from Kim at shortstop to end the eighth inning. 

Most of all, the bottom of their lineup remained productive, with Rushing’s 2-for-4 display highlighting a six-hit effort from their Nos. 6-9 batters.

Who’s hot

If Ohtani’s surface-line stats weren’t impressive enough, the way he navigated Wednesday’s start only added to the performance.

Several times, he seemingly toyed with a Juan Soto-less Mets lineup that has scored just 12 runs during an eight-game losing streak.

He used a slide step to finally strike out Francisco Lindor in an 11-pitch at-bat to end the third. He ran the pitch clock down against Brett Baty in the fourth before getting him to hit a harmless comebacker to the mound.

After spending much of the past two years recovering from a second Tommy John surgery, it was a further reminder that the 31-year-old is quickly getting comfortable again as a full-time pitcher –– helping him finish the night with a 0.50 ERA this season.

“I do think that he looks at (pitching) as an art,” Roberts said. “It’s not just trying to bully guys with the fastball. It’s kind of how you set guys up, front to back, east-west, and use your entire pitch mix.”

Who’s not

This was going to be Kyle Tucker, after he entered the eighth inning 0-for-4. But even the scuffling $240 million offseason signing salvaged his night with a stat-padding home run after Rushing’s grand slam.

Still, the Dodgers are waiting on Tucker to truly heat up, with his game-winning hit on Tuesday failing to snap him out of his early-season slump

Defensively, Tucker also had a forgettable moment in the fifth, when MJ Melendez plated the Mets’ only run off Ohtani with an RBI double that Tucker failed to get to in the right field corner.

Up next

The Dodgers are off Thursday, before starting a week-long road trip Friday with a four-game set in Denver against the Colorado Rockies. That will be followed by a three-game series in San Francisco against the Giants.

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