Category: Baseball

Per Wilner:

Lukes isn’t having a great season, slashing .250/.286/.327 (a 73 wRC+) in 56 PA before he went down with a hamstring injury. To be fair, though, he was hampered by some strange issues with vertigo in the first three weeks of that time. In 21 PA since seeing a specialist to work out a treatment plan for that issue, he had notched 10 hits including four doubles. Hopefully that means that the Lukes we’ll see is closer to the guy who was a solidly league average hitter in 2025.

Davis Schneider takes the fall to make room. It’s been a rough start for him, with a .127/.295/.211 line through 89 PA. He’s not barreling the ball up as often as he usually does, accounting for the collapse in his power production, and while he still works an absolute ton of walks it hasn’t been enough to overcome a nearly 35% strikeout rate. He’s shown no signs of breaking out of his slump, either, with May numbers worse than what he posted in March and April. Hopefully some everyday time in Buffalo gets him straightened out. It’s worth remembering that he’s been prone to horrific slumps for his entire career, and has always bounced back eventually to post solid overall production, so there’s every reason to hope he can get right.

I’m not sure I agree with Wilner that Lenyn Sosa would have been the alternative. It’s true that he’s somehow been even worse, with a 29 wRC+ on the season and 25 since he became a Blue Jay, but he’s out of options and this front office is loathe to give a guy up for nothing if they have any belief in him left at all. I can’t say I have any faith in a guy who’s below replacement level through four and a quarter MLB seasons, but the Jays just acquired him and I’m not surprised that 76 horrendous PA aren’t enough for them to give up on whatever they think they see there.

In other minor news, it’s the first roof open night of the year:

And Today In Injuries: Dylan Cease told John Schneider he expects to make his next start before going in for an MRI on the sore leg that knocked him out of yesterday’s game. He also apparently told Vladimir Guerrero jr. that he thought it was just a cramp. I’ll believe it when I see it, and obviously everything is up in the air pending the results of the MRI, but it still seems like they probably avoided a major injury here.

Regarding Vlad, the same story notes that x-rays on his elbow were negative. He came out of the game because he couldn’t feel his hand, but apparently experienced the same feeling after a similar HBP last year and played the next day. He’s not in tonight’s lineup, but hopefully it won’t be more than a day or two.

Texas Rangers lineup for May 25, 2026 against the Houston Astros: starting pitchers are Kumar Rocker for the Rangers and Tatsuya Imai for the Astros.

The Rangers return home and will try to break a three game losing streak. Josh Jung is still sitting due to his shoulder issue.

The lineup:

Pederson — 1B

Osuna — LF

Nimmo — DH

Duran — 3B

Carter — CF

Foscue — 2B

McCutchen — RF

Jansen — C

Helman — SS

6:05 p.m. Central start time. The Rangers are -125 favorites.

What started out as a good week for the Yankees turned into a tossup, as they opened with two straight wins against the Blue Jays before dropping the next two to split the series and then opened their second meeting with the Rays in embarrassing fashion blowing the lead late. They got rained out on Saturday prompting another chance to force a split and they took it, but not before going through eight scoreless innings of play that had everyone wondering where the offense was. Thankfully, Aaron Judge took it upon himself to end it, crushing a two-run walk-off homer to finally get one on Tampa Bay.

The Yankees did get some undeniably good news this week, getting Gerrit Cole and José Caballero back from the IL on Friday. Cole jumped back into the rotation and proved that he didn’t need one more tuneup, tossing six innings of shutout ball before the inevitable bullpen blowup. Can they rely on Cole to be the ace of old right away, and will they need him to be with the way the offense has been frozen over of late? Will Judge’s blast end up kicking him out of his stupor at the plate? If you have questions like these, or anything else on your mind, send ‘em in for a chance to be featured in our Yankees mailbag.

Answers will run on Friday afternoon. All questions received by the night of May 28th will be considered. You can leave your submissions in the comment section below or by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.

The Nationals have won 3 of their last 4 series and have taken over 2nd place in the National League East as we enter the end of May. After coming excruciatingly close to sweeping the Atlanta Braves, they now finish their quick road trip with a 3-game set against the Cleveland Guardians.

Cleveland has been dominating the middling American League Central, sitting 9.0 games over .500. They’ve gone 8-1 over their last 9 contests, and their pitching staff has been absolutely on point. Opposing offenses haven’t been able to string together anything of substance, and their offense has continually done just enough to close out a victory.

Game 1 – Monday 6:10 PM EST

WSH: RHP Zack Littell (3-4, 5.83 ERA)

CLE: RHP Tanner Bibee (0-6, 3.75 ERA)

Littell will look to finish his month of May on a high note, after posting an impressive 2.55 ERA in his last 4 starts. His season-long mark has dropped over 2 full points since the start of the month, and he’s looked much more like the steady veteran the Nationals signed in the offseason. Chasing whiffs hasn’t been his pathway to success, with just 7 strikeouts in 17.2 innings in May, but limiting hard contact has fueled a healthy stretch of productive outings. PJ Poulin will actually open this one, but Littell will get the bulk of the action

Don’t let the record fool you, Bibee has been a more-than-serviceable pitcher through 11 appearances. While he has racked up a few more Ks, he’s another contact-first arm who seems to never get shelled. He’s coming off the best start of the season to date, throwing 8.0 innings of 1-run ball against the Detroit Tigers on May 20th, allowing just 4 hits and 1 walk in the process.

Game 2 – Tuesday 6:10 PM EST

WSH: RHP Cade Cavalli (2-3, 3.86 ERA)

CLE: LHP Joey Cantillo (4-1, 3.05 ERA)

Similar to Bibee, the best Cavalli has looked all year came the last time he was on the mound. He ripped through the New York Mets’ lineup on May 21st, cruising through 7.0 innings with just 2 runs surrendered and 9 total strikeouts. The stuff continues to come in waves for the righthander, and it’s impossible not to continue to believe in the ceiling he has. He’s still looking for his first scoreless outing of the season, and a weaker Cleveland lineup could give him the chance to do just that if he can replicate the success of his arsenal last time around the rotation.

Cantillo was a reliable swing starter for the Guardians in 2025, and he’s taken it to the next level in 2026. He’s parlayed a 2.70 ERA in April with a 3.16 ERA in May, allowing 1 or fewer runs in 3 of his 5 starts this month. When he’s been beat, teams have capitalized on the few hits he tends to give up, making timely hitting of utmost importance for the Washington lineup in Game 2.

Game 3 – Wednesday 1:10 PM EST

WSH: RHP Miles Mikolas (1-3, 6.17 ERA)

CLE: RHP Gavin Williams (7-3, 3.25)

I don’t think anyone is fully gung-ho on Mikolas quite yet, but the redemption arc has certainly been exciting to watch. The ERA remains above the 6.00 mark, but it had sat around the 8.00 range for a handful of starts earlier in the year. He’s been attacking hitters with well-timed sequencing of his pitches, and his command has looked far better with just 3 walks this month. He doesn’t quite inspire confidence, but if the results can continue to come, the Nats’ rotation would benefit in a major way.

Aside from a rough run where he gave up 5 or more runs in 3 of 4 starts, hitters haven’t figured out Williams on a consistent basis. He delivered one of the best starts of any pitcher against Philadelphia a couple of days ago, outdueling Cy Young candidate Cristopher Sanchez with 8.0 shutout innings and 11 strikeouts. Unlike their other arms, when hitters make contact against him, it’s usually around the barrel. His Average Opposing Exit Velocity, Barrel%, and Hard-Hit% are all under the 10th percentile, something the Nats will need to capitalize on.

MLB vs FIFA.

To write a preview when you have not even one day between the previous series and the upcoming one, on a weekday, definitely adds to the time pressure. Luckily for me, the opponent for the next series is the San Francisco Giants. We saw them just a couple of days ago. That, in general, is no fun for a series preview, even less for a weekday series, but it definitely gives me a bit of stress relief: we saw them a couple of days ago, so there is no news there, and no one is going to read this preview anyhow, given the opponent and the weekday schedule.

So, with your approval, I will keep this series preview short.

I was a bit surprised to see that San Francisco will host some soccer World Cup matches this summer, but it makes all sense, of course, because it is a major city.

My memories of the 1994 World Cup, that was organised in the USA, is limited to watching a weird shirt of Germany, seeing a country like Bolivia play, first time I saw the US soccer team and Alexi Lalas and getting up in the middle of the night to see The Netherlands struggle in their group, for example against Saudi Arabia. It wasn’t the best of performances of the Dutch, but the quarter finals against Brazil were a terrific match, with an, in The Netherlands, legendary commentary when we scored the equalizer after being down 2-0, but we lost anyhow. I still hate Bebeto and his swinging arms. Brazil had eliminated a fiery fighting US the round before. I am sure you join me in my everlasting hatred.

San Francisco got to see Brazil in 1994 four times, because they were the group head and had their fixed seat in the group phase in San Francisco. I did not remember that. This year, though, I am inclined to say that the Bay Area has not been spoiled with matches: Paraguay (twice), Qatar, Switzerland, Austria, Turkey, Algeria, Australia and Jordan (twice) will play a match at the 49ers stadium. Cheapest tickets can be bought from 200$ and up. Holy crap, that is a lot of money for watching some second/third category teams.

I am sure most people in San Francisco prefer to see Major League Baseball and why not the Arizona Diamondbacks.

After being tarred and feathered on their way out of Arizona, the San Francisco Giants received the Chicago White Sox. The White Sox are surprisingly playing around .500 this season and was therefore not a guaranteed redemption effort for the struggling Giants, but they came out on top.

On Friday evening the Giants had a catastrophic 4th inning and were then down 9-0, losing the match eventually with 9-4. On Saturday a 5th inning grand slam from Harrison Bader propelled the Giants to a 10-3 win. On Sunday it was Rafael Devers doing the same in the 5th inning and he launched the Giants to another win, 8-5.

Those 22 runs in 3 games might do wonders for that struggling offence. It certainly has boosted their confidence, so the Arizona pitching corps better be warned.

Matchups.

Game #1 Mon 05/25 2:05 PM MST, Merrill Kelly (ARI) vs Landen Roupp (SFG).

• Merrill Kelly. 7 GS, 41.0 IP, 4 W-3 L, 5.71 ERA, 5.62 FIP, 1.51 WHIP, 27/18 K/BB. $18,000,000.
• Landen Roupp. 10 GS, 55.0 IP, 5 W-4 L, 3.27 ERA, 2.59 FIP, 1.15 WHIP, 61/21 K/BB. $800,000.

Oh, in the end I do feel time pressure on me because why on earth are they playing the Monday game at 2PM????

Said Imstillhungry95 in his preview: Loupp has had a pretty decent season thus far. Through his first six starts in April, he only gave up more than three runs once. It was a seven run beat down against the Mets in his second start of the season. He had settled down fairly well, though, until the end of the month. Since the calendar has turned to May, he’s pitched three times, and he’s given up four runs twice. This could be a situation of catching a pitcher at the right time.

Well, Roupp went strong against the Diamondbacks and pitched 6 innings, giving up just 1 run. Unfortunately for him, so did Ryne Nelson go strong in that game and it came down to moments. In this case it was Ketel Marte who decided that Arizona was going to win.

Merrill went strong as well in his game against the Giants, giving up 3 runs in 6 innings, but enough for the win, and the sweep.

Game #2 Tue 05/26 6:45 PM MST, Eduardo Rodriguez (ARI) vs Tyler Mahle (SFG).

• Eduardo Rodriguez. 10 GS, 60.1 IP, 4 W-1 L, 2.24 ERA, 3.66 FIP, 1.19 WHIP, 43/23 K/BB. $21,000,000.
• Tyler Mahle. 10 GS, 51.2 IP, 1 W-6 L, 6.10 ERA, 4.73 FIP, 1.57 WHIP, 54/21 K/BB. $10,000,000.

Said Imstillhungry95 in his preview: That’s a stat line for Mahle that looks like it would fit right in with the Diamondbacks pitching staff. It’s been very much a coin flip for Mahle and the Giants as to what sort of performance he is going to put up. He’s started nine times. Three times, he has held his opponent scoreless. Once he gave up two runs. The other five starts? He’s given up five runs or more. Combine this with an offense that sporadically likes to beat up on pitchers, this could be a very beneficial matchup for the Diamondbacks.

Well, Mahle definitely tried but he gave up 6 runs in 5 innings in that matchup against Merrill Kelly, and was tagged with a loss. Said Tyler Mahle after the game: “It’s a bad one, I mean, five innings, six runs is never considered a good start. I don’t think anything was off, just made some bad pitches in some key situations and they capitalized on it. I’ve not given us a chance to win every day [I start]. So that really doesn’t help our record at all.”

Except for a couple of hiccups, E-Rod has been very good so far this season (knocking on every piece of wood I can find at my home). His latest performance was 7 strong innings at Coors Field, allowing 4 hits and a walk, without any damage. As a Diamondback, Eduardo Rodriguez has faced the Giants 4 times and got 1 win. That was last season, in September. 14 runs in 20 innings isn’t a great overall performance against San Francisco since wearing Sedona Red, so time to make a statement.

Game #3 Mon 05/27 12:45 PM MST, Michael Soroka (ARI) vs Trevor McDonald (SFG).

• Michael Soroka. 10 GS, 55.0 IP, 6 W-2 L, 3.27 ERA, 2.94 FIP, 1.26 WHIP, 57/14 K/BB. $7,000,000.
• Trevor McDonald. 4 GS, 22.2 IP, 2 W-1 L, 4.76 ERA, 3.43 FIP, 1.02 WHIP, 21/4 K/BB. $596,453.

Unfortunately the Diamondbacks couldn’t get Soroka a win despite going 6 strong innings, allowing just 1 run. That was already the third time where you’d say the Canadian should have gotten a win. Soroka has seen the Giants just 3 times in his career as a starting pitcher, the last time last year, when he gave up 3 runs in 6 innings and got the loss, as a Washington National.

Trevor McDonald was called up to the major leagues about a month ago after Logan Webb hit the IL. Webb is on his way back though and the biggest question is whether McDonald will stick in the rotation. He did well against Padres, Dodgers and Athletics, but his first non-West coast team knocked him around pretty hard: the White Sox scored 4 runs on him, after hitting two batters and issueing a walk, an anormality for a pitcher who can be proud of his command and control. McDonald was off and not helped by some defensive errors and Borucki allowing two inherited runners to score. Unless Webb makes a surprisingly fast comeback to the majors, it could be McDonald’s final outing in the rotation at the moment, though he has pitched better than his ERA might show.

Philadelphia Phillies (26-27) at San Diego Padres (31-21), May 25, 2026, 3:40 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

Please remember our Game Day thread guidelines.

• Don’t troll in your comments; create conversation rather than destroying it
• Remember Gaslamp Ball is basically a non-profanity site
• Out of respect to broadcast partners who have paid to carry the game, no mentions of “alternative” (read: illegal) viewing methods are allowed in our threads

Ahead of the start of the Mets’ three-game series with the Reds, manager Carlos Mendoza offered a number of injury updates in his pre-game press conference.

Most pressing for this series is that Juan Soto is still feeling week and has a fever, and so isn’t playing today and his status for the rest of the series is still unknown. Jared Young and A.J. Minter are both set to rejoin the team this week, with Young likely on Tuesday and Minter either Tuesday or Wednesday.

In a rare bit of Mets’ good news, Francisco Lindor has started doing baseball activities and so is on the road back to playing. Similarly, Francisco Alvarez is already running and doing catching drills and may be ahead of the initial eight-week assessment for his return.

Jorge Polanco will “hopefully” start a rehab assignment this week, which is a situation that truly needs to be seen to be believed. And finally, Kodai Senga will throw a bullpen today and make his second rehab start on Thursday.

As frustrating and inconsistent as this season has been for Astros fans, one question is becoming impossible to ignore: how much trust should this fan base have in general manager Dana Brown between now and the end of the season?

The timing of that question matters because, despite early struggles, injuries, and inconsistent play, the Astros remain within striking distance. Sitting just four and a half games out of first place and hovering around playoff contention, this team is still very much alive. For all the disappointment surrounding the season to this point, the reality is that meaningful baseball is still on the table.

That creates a complicated situation for the organization because Brown is operating in the final year of his contract.

Many fans have already reached the point where they would welcome a change, arguing that ownership should move on immediately and begin searching for a replacement. But from an organizational standpoint, the timing simply does not make sense.

The Astros are approaching one of the most important stretches of the baseball calendar: the amateur draft and the trade deadline. Both are critical to the immediate and long-term health of the franchise. Maintaining leadership continuity during this period matters, especially for a team trying to remain competitive while simultaneously rebuilding depth in a thinning farm system.

The draft alone makes an in-season move difficult to justify. A franchise that has relied heavily on player development to sustain championship contention cannot afford instability when evaluating and adding young talent. The farm system desperately needs reinforcements, and getting those decisions right could shape the next era of Astros baseball.

Then comes the trade deadline, perhaps the most important checkpoint of Brown’s tenure.

Between now and that moment, Brown has the opportunity to improve a flawed but talented roster and position this team to compete for another postseason run. But there is also a legitimate concern attached to his current situation: desperation.

History has shown that general managers operating as “lame ducks” can sometimes make short-term decisions with long-term consequences.

When a general manager knows he may not be around to see draft picks develop or prospects mature, the temptation can be to prioritize immediate survival over organizational sustainability. That often means sacrificing younger talent for veteran help in an attempt to save a season — or save a job.

And that is the balancing act Astros fans should be watching closely.

Would Brown make calculated, disciplined moves to strengthen the roster? Or could pressure force the organization into mortgaging future assets for temporary fixes?

Complicating the conversation even more is Brown’s overall track record.

What Astros fans may never fully know is how much autonomy Brown has actually had. How many decisions were truly his, and how many were influenced, or restricted, by ownership?

At times, the moves that were not made stand out more than the moves that were.

Questions continue to linger around roster construction, depth issues, and player acquisitions. For a roster talented enough to compete, there have been glaring holes left unaddressed. Injuries have also fueled frustration, particularly when projected recovery timelines have repeatedly shifted or failed to materialize.

Communication has become part of the criticism as well.

Too often, timelines have felt unclear, expectations have been reset, and fans have struggled to get consistent answers regarding player availability and organizational plans. Whether fair or unfair, much of that scrutiny lands at Brown’s feet.

Even his perceived strength, talent evaluation, has come under increased examination.

Take Brice Matthews, for example. While there is still time for development, he has yet to become the player many envisioned. Prospect growth is never linear, but patience becomes harder to maintain when the organization is searching for impact talent.

Then there is Cam Smith.

Brown deserves credit for finally turning an expiring veteran asset into future value instead of simply watching a player leave in free agency. That kind of proactive decision-making matters. But if Smith was the centerpiece of the return, fans are understandably watching closely as he struggles to establish himself consistently at the major league level.

Which brings us back to the uncomfortable reality facing the Astros.

This organization is stuck in something of a catch-22.

You cannot realistically move on from your general manager in the middle of a season when playoff hopes remain alive, the draft looms, and the trade deadline could determine how far this team goes. Stability matters too much.

At the same time, it is fair to question whether a general manager on an expiring deal can separate job security from long-term organizational health.

The Astros need smart, disciplined decisions over the next several months, moves that improve the team without sacrificing the future.

Because the biggest concern is not whether Dana Brown can save this season.

It is whether the pressure to save his job could influence decisions that impact the franchise long after this season ends.

The AL Central 4th place 22-31 Royals play at home on Memorial Day against the 31-22 Yankees, who are in 2nd place in the AL East behind the Rays.

I was at the game yesterday and got to see all the good parts. I skipped the bad parts at the end to go home. In my head, they beat the Marinaras 8-3. Yes, Marinaras. That’s what my 8-year-old and 5-year-old called them. Let’s hope today is full of the good parts and none of the bad parts.

The Royals will put up Michael Wacha on the bump to start against Will Warren. Wacha has continued to pitch like himself – just reliable and steady. He’s had four quality starts in a row; in fact, 8 of his 10 starts have been quality starts. He started with four in a row, had two blips, and now has another four in a row. I’m hoping we can count on that today against the Yankees.

Warren’s first full season was last year, and he has followed it up well so far this year. He’s improved the FIP metrics – strikeout rate, walk rate, and home run rate. It’s a good pitching matchup today.

The game starts at 2:40pm US Central. It is a nationally-televised game on ESPN. You can also listen on 96.5 The Fan or the Royals Radio Network.

Lineups:

Mets Lineup

1. Carson Benge – DH
2. Bo Bichette – SS
3. Mark Vientos – 1B
4. Marcus Semien – 2B
5. A.J. Ewing – CF
6. Tyrone Taylor – RF
7. Nick Morabito – LF
8. Brett Baty – 3B
9. Luis Torrens – C

Nolan McLean – RHP

Giants Lineup

1. Blake Dunn – CF
2. Elly De La Cruz – SS
3. JJ Bleday – LF
4. Sal Stewart – 3B
5. Eugenio Suarez – DH
6. Nathaniel Lowe – 1B
7. Spencer Steer – RF
8. Tyler Stephenson – C
9. Matt McLain – 2B

Nick Lodolo – LHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 4:10pm EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: WEPN 1050AM, Audacy App 92.3 HD2

The Yankees got out of town at a good time. Aaron Judge’s walk-off home run salvaged the tail-end of a lackluster (not to mention rainy) homestand for the Bombers, who will spend their Memorial Day in a much warmer neck of the woods. The forecast calls for sunny skies with game-time temperature somewhere in the low-80s at a ballpark where the Yanks have generally had success in prior seasons: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. The Royals, who the Yankees swept in a three-game set last month, enter this series at 22-31. However, their starter in tonight’s opener is a familiar and pesky foe.

Michael Wacha has faced the Yankees 13 times in his MLB career, posting a 3.12 ERA across 69.1 innings, posting 70 strikeouts against only 22 walks. He took a turn in the rotation in that April series, completing six quality innings with two earned runs on three hits, striking out six and walking three. The Yankees still won the game 4-2, but the veteran righty has demonstrated a knack at blunting the Bombers. He’s having a terrific start to his season overall, posting a 2.70 ERA through his first ten starts.

Will Warren, though, was not to be outdone. When he faced the Royals on April 18th, he took their lunch money. In seven full innings, he struck out 11 batters to tie his career-high without allowing a single walk, with two runs allowed on five hits in a 13-4 blowout victory. Warren’s progress has slowed a tad this month, but with a 3.01 FIP entering action, he is still doing enough to win ballgames more often than not. And hey, he has a 6-1 record to prove it. No matter how obsolete wins are as a stat, pitchers still value them; and you can’t totally bumble your way into winning six games before the end of May.

Warren and the Royals offense are evidently a good match for the Yankees’ purposes; though in all fairness Kansas City has had little success against AL pitching across the board. The encouraging strides they took to make it to the Bronx for a playoff series two years ago have slowed substantially. Bobby Witt Jr. remains a can’t-miss star, but the supporting cast has been quite unimpressive. There’s still a gaggle of younger hitters who are trying to prove themselves, such as Jac Caglianone and Carter Jensen; they’re both a little above-average, trying to offset the lack of production from guys like Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquantino.

Put another way, the slumping Yankee offense needn’t move heaven and earth to succeed in this series. It wouldn’t hurt, though.

The lineup will start like yesterday’s, with Trent Grisham in the leadoff spot ahead of Aaron Judge and Ben Rice. Cody Bellinger will clean up ahead of Paul Goldschmidt and Jazz Chisholm Jr. The bottom third of the lineup will see Anthony Volpe inserted at shortstop, with J.C. Escarra taking the day behind the dish and José Caballero shifting to the hot corner.

Seeing as today is Memorial Day, this game will be broadcast on national TV! ESPN has the rights to this one, and it’ll start at a strange 3:40 pm time slot. But hey, that’s what holidays are for.

How to watch

Location: Kauffman Stadium — Kansas City, MO

First pitch: 3:40 pm ET

TV broadcast: ESPN

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | 96.5 The Fan, Royals Radio Network (KC)

Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

Prior to the first game of a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza gave some updates on the team...

Soto dealing with a fever

Juan Soto missed Sunday's series finale against the Miami Marlins due to an illness and will remain out on Monday.

"He developed a fever again last night, still weak," Mendoza said. "We just got to wait the next few hours, how he develops, and hopefully there's some type of availability there. Who knows, we got to wait."

With Soto out of the lineup, MJ Melendez served as the DH on Sunday and Carson Benge will slide into that role Monday afternoon.

Mendoza had said Sunday that there was "kind of like a flu going around" the clubhouse, as it appears to still be affecting Soto.

Lindor starting baseball activities

On the bright side, Mendoza noted that Francisco Lindor has started doing baseball activities as he works his way back from a calf injury that has sidelined him since April 22.

"He started running and doing baseball activities. Now hitting in the cages. He's going to take ground balls," Mendoza said. "So now, we got to that phase where there's baseball involved."

The manager made it clear there is still not a timetable for Lindor's anticipated return, but he is progressing.

"I think we just go day-by-day, week-by-week. The good thing is he's already in that phase where he's doing baseball. But again, it's hard to put a timetable. He's still got to check a lot of boxes."

Additionally, Mendoza gave a positive update on catcher Francisco Alvarez, who underwent surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee on May 14.

"Alvarez, I mean this guy is unbelievable. He's already hitting, he's already doing catching," Mendoza said. "We were talking about eight weeks, I'm not sure about that now, this guy is built different... There's a lot of positive from him too."

Knocking on the door

Mendoza was optimistic on Saturday about Jared Young being ready to return during the team's six-game homestand and it sounds like Tuesday may be the day. 

Veteran reliever A.J. Minter also appears to be in a similar situation and could be activated Tuesday or Wednesday.

"Jared Young, there's a good chance that he'll be active tomorrow. He's going to go through a workout today," Mendoza said. "Same thing with A.J. Minter. He's going to go through his throwing progression today. Hopefully either tomorrow or the next day."

Mendoza added that he sees Minter has a "big part of our bullpen" once he returns.

Young has been on the IL since April 13 due to a torn meniscus in his left knee, while Minter last pitched in the majors on April 26, 2025 as he missed the remainder of the season following surgery for a torn left lat muscle.

Upcoming rehab assignments

Kodai Senga, who threw 58 pitches into the fourth inning on Friday in his first rehab appearance for St. Lucie, is expected to pitch again on Thursday. Mendoza said they are unsure if that rehab appearance will be in Double-A or Triple-A, but the right-hander will get another start before they determine the next steps.

"Senga's throwing a bullpen today and the goal is for him to make another rehab outing on Thursday. Whether that's Double-A or Triple-A, that's TBD, we're monitoring weather and all that. That's the plan for him."

Meanwhile, Jorge Polanco could also play in a rehab game later this week as he recovers from Achilles bursitis.

"Polanco, another good day yesterday, he got some at-bats in Port St. Lucie," Mendoza said. "He's go gonna through a full workout today. Hopefully, he starts a rehab assignment at some point this week."

When Polanco returns, Mendoza said they will likely use him as DH instead of inserting him back at first base.

"The way we see it is gonna be a lot of DH, to be honest with you," Mendoza said. "Hopefully we can get him a game or two at first base, but try to keep him off his feet as much as possible. He'll play some first base once he starts going through his rehab assignment, but probably looking more like DH and try to keep his bat in the lineup as much as possible."

Toledo Mud Hens 8, Indianapolis Indians 4 (box)

Toledo won the final game of the series against Indianapolis on Sunday, 8-4, to tie things at three games apiece.

It was a good day for the offense, with Max Clark doubling and homering. Jace Jung did the same, and Max Anderson also doubled. Clark got the scoring started in the first inning with a solo shot to right field. It was a no-doubter into the second deck.

Jung opened the second with a double, and Corey Julks homered right after to make it 3-0.

Meanwhile, Dylan File put together his best start of the season. File only allowed one run on two hits and no walks while striking out four through five innings. He drew 10 whiffs on 40 swings and touched 96.6 with his fastball. He used six distinct pitches, according to Baseball Savant’s data, and was effective with each of them.

File retired the lineup in order his first time through, but leadoff man Ronny Simon got to him for a double in the fourth. Billy Cook singled in Simon two batters later, but those were the only baserunners File gave up on the day.

Beau Brieske took over in the sixth and erased a leadoff single with a double play, but he walked the next batter and gave up a game-tying home run after that. Woo-Suk Go was much more efficient in the seventh, working around a one-out walk, and that’s when the offense came back to life.

Clark and Anderson hit back-to-back doubles with one out, and Eduardo Valencia stole the RBI train going with a single. Jung capped off the five-run frame with a two-run homer.

Go came back out for the eighth and struck out the side, and Yoniel Curet closed things out in the ninth. Curet gave up a run, but he still got the job done.

Clark: 2-4, 2B (13), HR (2), 2 R, 2 RBI, BB

Anderson: 2-4, 2B (3), R, RBI, BB

Jung: 2-4, 2B (10), HR (6), 2 R, 2 RBI, K

File: 5.0 IP, 2 H, R, ER, 0 BB, 4 K

Coming Up Next: It’s a rare Monday game to open the home series against Columbus, starting at 11:05 a.m. ET.

Altoona Curve 8, Erie SeaWolves 6 (box)

Erie dropped the series against Altoona 4-3 on Sunday with an 8-6 loss.

A brutal 6-run third inning all but doomed the SeaWolves. Sean Hunley was cruising until a one-out walk and catcher’s interference put two men on base. A double started the bleeding, and it was hard to stop from there. Hunley exited the game after hitting the next batter, but Yosber Sanchez didn’t fare much better.

Sanchez gave up a pair of RBI singles to the first batters he faced, and a bases-clearing double made it 6-0 before the end of the inning.

Erie answered with two runs in the top of the fourth, courtesy of Andrew Jenkins, who tripled in John Peck (reached on error) and Justice Bigbie (walk).

Lael Lockhart kept Altoona at bay for three innings of no-hit work. Unfortunately, Erie didn’t do anything significant offensively during that period.

The SeaWolves added another two runs in the seventh. Jenkins started off a string of four straight singles, followed by Peyton Graham, E.J. Exposito and Bennet Lee, who got the RBI. Brett Callahan drove in the other run with a sacrifice fly.

Lockhart left the game after that, and his replacement, Tyler Owens, immediately got into trouble with a one-out double. A disengagement violation moved the runner over to third, and an RBI single made it a three-run game, whic his significant because Erie wasn’t done scoring.

Thayron Liranzo led off the eighth with a single, and Altoona’s pitching staff walked the next three batters to bring him across. Exposito drove in another run with a sacrifice fly, which would have been the tying run if not for Owens’ troubles. Either way, Lee grounded into a double play after that, so the comeback was dead anyway.

Johan Simon got the eighth. He hit the first two batters he faced and gave up an RBI single before getting yanked. Moises Rodriguez got cleanup duty.

Liranzo: 1-5, R, 3 K

Jenkins: 2-3, 3B (2), R, 2 RBI, BB

Callahan: 2-4, RBI

Lockhart: 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, BB, 4 K

Coming Up Next: Erie is at home next week against the Chesapeake Baysox, starting Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. ET.

South Bend Cubs 5, West Michigan Whitecaps 4 (box)

West Michigan finished its series against South Bend with a 5-4 loss, the fifth-straight defeat for the 14-31 Whitecaps.

This was a weird one for West Michigan. The Whitecaps only had one hit and two baserunners through six innings and four hits on the day, but a four-run seventh inning gave them a brief lead.

Jackson Strong had two of those base knocks, including an RBI single in that eventful seventh inning. Samuel Gil drove in the second run, and Strong scored the tying run on a ball thrown into center field by the catcher. Luke Shliger got the go-ahead, pinch-hit RBI with a base hit into left field, and everyone was happy for a bit.

Let’s rewind, though, because it’s a miracle West Michigan wasn’t trailing by a lot more at that point. Gabriel Reyes walked SEVEN batters in his 4 1/3 innings of work, and somehow only two of them scored. A pair of double plays and two clutch bases-loaded flyouts got Reyes there, but there’s still no excuse for seven free passes.

Reyes gave up a pair of runs in the first inning after a leadoff error from Cristian Santana at third and (you guessed it) a walk set him for a rough opening frame. South Bend didn’t score its third run until the fifth, when Carlos Lequerica took over with a runner on base. A two-out double brought that one around.

Okay, back to that brief lead in the seventh. Ethan Sloan relieved Lequerica in the top of the seventh and worked around a leadoff base hit and one-out walk, but the long inning didn’t do him any favors. A pair of one-out singles set up a two-run single, and just like that the Whitecaps are losing again…

West Michigan blew all of its energy in the seventh, so a quick eighth inning kept the momentum on South Bend’s side. Bryce Rainer struck out for a third time on the day with Ricardo Hurtado on base to send the game to the ninth.

CJ Weins worked around a leadoff single in the top of the ninth, but there was no magic in the bottom half of the inning. West Michigan went down 1-2-3 to take the loss. Womp womp.

Rainer: 0-4, 3 K

Shliger: 1-1, RBI

Reyes: 4.1 IP, H, 3 R, 2 ER, 7 BB, 2 K

Coming Up Next: West Michigan is in Lansing next week, starting Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. ET.

(F/5) Bradenton Marauders 3, Lakeland Flying Tigers 1 (box)

What was supposed to be 14 innings of baseball down in Lakeland ended up being just five, which is probably a good thing since the Flying Tigers were getting no-hit. Despite the 2-1 loss on Sunday, Lakeland still won the series 3-2, with the rest of the doubleheader cancelled due to wet grounds.

Even though Lakeland had no hits through the five innings played in this game, the Flying Tigers led for a bit. An error, hit-by-pitch and walk loaded the bases in the bottom of the second, and a wild pitch brought Jesus Pinto home for a 1-0 lead.

Caleb Leys got the start, but he only went three innings. Three hits and no runs is a good day, but three walks led to a high-ish pitch count of 68. Jose Guzman took over in the fourth and immediately gave up runs. The inning went: leadoff double, single, popout, three-run homer.

Preston Howey got the fifth. He retired all four batters he faced, and then the rain came. Oh, well.

Leys: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 K

Coming Up Next: Lakeland is in Palm Beach next week, starting Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. ET. I’ll be at some of the games for some live coverage, so stay tuned!

The Royals will shut down starting pitcher Cole Ragans for a few days after he experienced discomfort with his elbow in his rehab start for Omaha. Manager Matt Quatraro addressed the setback with the media today, telling them, “He did not recover well from his start, so he’s gonna be shut down for a couple days.”

Quatraro said that Ragans experienced the same elbow symptoms he experienced in his last MLB start. The team will shut him down from throwing and reevaluate after a few days.

Ragans started on Saturday for the Storm Chasers and made 68 pitches over 4.1 innings, giving up just one run on a solo home run with a walk and three strikeouts. He last pitched for the Royals on May 6 when he went just three innings against the Guardians.

Ragans had struggled this year with a 4.84 ERA in eight starts, with 45 strikeouts in 35.1 innings. His walk rate has spiked signficantly, to 5.9 per-nine-innings this season. Injuries have plagued him during his career – he has twice undergone Tommy John surgery and he missed three months last year with a rotator cuff injury.

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Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesus Sanchez has been hitting the ball well, and with Janson Junk on the mound for the Miami Marlins, the matchup should favor the slugger to keep his bat hot tonight.

Read on to see why in my Marlins vs. Blue Jays predictions and MLB picks on Monday, May 25. 

Marlins vs Blue Jays predictions

Marlins vs Blue Jays best bet: Jesus Sanchez Over 0.5 hits (-145)

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesus Sanchez has been red-hot, eclipsing his hits total in 10 of his last 12 games, posting a .433 batting average in this stretch.

With a little extra motivation, taking on a Miami Marlins team that traded him last season, I expect him to keep his hot streak alive, especially with Janson Junk on the mound. 

Junk has struggled mightily over his last three starts, giving up 19 runs on 25 hits. This can be chalked up to a pedestrian fastball that ranks in the 45th percentile in velocity, as well as a putrid 18.7% whiff rate that ranks in the ninth percentile.

The righty regularly gets squared up, and Sanchez is batting just under .300 against right-handers.

COVERS INTEL: Sanchez ranks in the 92nd percentile in expected batting average this season.

Marlins vs Blue Jays same-game parlay (SGP)

Trey Yesavage has gone Over tonight’s 5.5 strikeout total in four straight starts, averaging 6.5 per. I expect him to do it again against a team with a 33% strikeout rate against the splitter, Yesavage’s put-away pitch.  

Overall, the Jays will win by multiple runs. There’s a lot of juice in the Jays’ moneyline, but the run line still has value as they’ve covered it in four of their last five victories.

Additionally, the pitching matchup should allow Toronto to keep Miami at bay while putting up offense against Junk.

Marlins vs Blue Jays SGP

• Jesus Sanchez Over 0.5 hits
• Trey Yesavage Over 5.5 strikeouts
• Blue Jays -1.5

Marlins vs Blue Jays home run pick: Daulton Varsho (+450)

The Jays offense has picked up recently, but we’re still waiting on consistent power, so we’ll make this a half-unit wager. 

Junk has surrendered six home runs over his last four starts and gives up fairly hard contact to lefties, who have 17 extra-base hits off him for a .888 opponents' OPS. 

The lefty in the Jays lineup I’m banking on to homer tonight is Daulton Varsho, who owns a 59% hard-hit rate against the four-seamer, which Junk throws most often to lefties.

Marlins vs Blue Jays odds

• Moneyline: Miami +140 | Toronto -160
• Run line: Miami +1.5 (-150) | Toronto -1.5 (+130)
• Over/Under: Over 7.5 (-110) | Under 7.5 (-110)

Marlins vs Blue Jays trend

The Toronto Blue Jays have covered the 1st Five Innings (F5) Run Line in 9 of their last 10 games (+7.90 Units / 68% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Marlins vs. Blue Jays.

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