LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 11: Brandon Nimmo #24 of the Texas Rangers reacts after hitting a two-run home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the sixth inning at Dodger Stadium on April 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Texas Rangers lineup for April 13, 2026 against the A’s: starting pitchers are Nathan Eovaldi for the Rangers and Luis Severino for the A’s.
Texas begins a series against the Athletics of California, with whom they are tied for first place in the American League West. Wyatt Langford, who left Friday’s game due to a quad issue, is still out.
The lineup:
Nimmo — RF
Carter — CF
Seager — SS
Burger — 1B
Pederson — DH
Higashioka — C
Smith — 2B
Jung — 3B
Duran — LF
8:40 p.m. Central start time. Rangers are -130 favorites.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 04: Yainer Diaz #21 of the Houston Astros bats against the Athletics in the top of the third inning at Sutter Health Park on April 04, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The 6-2 defeat at T-Mobile Park completed a 4-game sweep by the Mariners, the first time they have swept the Astros in a 4 game series since August 2018.
Two things have hallmarked this season for the Houston Astros thus far: injuries and pitching woes. Both were on display this afternoon when the Astros fell to the Mariners 6-2 at T-Mobile Park. The loss concluded a 4-game sweep by the Mariners and extended the Astros losing streak to 8 games. Houston went 1-9 on it’s 10 game road trip that included Sacramento (Athletics) and Colorado.
Before the game today, the Astros placed both SS Jeremy Pena (10-day) and SP Tatsuya Imai (15-day) on the IL. They optioned reliever Jayden Murray to Triple A. The recalled SP J.P. France, SP Colton Gordon and UT Shay Whitcomb from Triple A as well.
Then in the first inning, SP Mike Burrows, who looked incredible all spring, continued his regular season struggles. He allowed a 3-run homer to struggling Josh Naylor, who entered the game hitting just .102 this season with a .197 OBP and a .299 OPS, in the first inning to put Houston in an early hole.
Burrows threw a 95.8 MPH fastball right down the middle that Naylor hit for his first HR of the season 365 feet to right centerfield.
It didn’t get any better the second time he faced Naylor in the 3rd inning either.
Naylor would take Burrows deep again, on a nearly identical pitch in nearly the identical spot. A 95.6 MPH fastball, just slightly to the outside of the middle of the plate, and mid-thigh, that Naylor blasted 111.5 MPH and 433 feet to center for his second homer of the season to make it 5-0.
The Astros would try to claw back in the top of the fifth. Cam Smith led off with a single to right, followed by a single to left by Taylor Trammell. With 2 on and no out, Yainer Diaz laced an RBI single to center to get the Astros on the board, scoring Smith. Trammell would score when Nick Allen bounced into a double play to make it 5-2. That is as close as the Astros would get.
In the bottom of the fifth, Luke Raley would get a run back for Seattle with an RBI single to score Julio Rodriguez to make it a 6-2 game.
While J.P France held the line in the 7th and 8th innings, the Astros offense could not respond any further on this day.
While before today’s game the Astros listed all 3 starters for the upcoming series at home against Colorado as TBD, Colton Gordon will get the start for Houston tomorrow.
The Atlanta Braves and their scorching hot offense are taking on the surprisingly good Miami Marlins tonight as they look to extend their division lead.
The Braves are scoring runs at a pace that only three teams in MLB are doing at a higher rate, and only the Dodgers have hit more HRs. No Braves player has more than six at-bats against the Marlins’ starter Eury Pérez, yet have four HRs against him in that limited action. Tonight is primed for another offensive explosion, but we know these Braves can be feast or famine at times when it comes to offense.
Grant Holmes is on the mound for the Braves, and has looked great so far this season. The Braves are in a good spot to win tonight. These are the exact type of games they need to win if they want to re-claim the division crown this season.
TORONTO, ON - APRIL 11: Trevor Larnach #9 of the Minnesota Twins reacts after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning of a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on April 11, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) | Getty Images
First Pitch (CT):6:40 PM TV: Twins.TV Radio: TIBN/830 WCCO/102.9 The Wolf /Audacy App Know Yo’ Foe: Over the Monster
You’re not going to believe this, but the Twins are facing a left-handed starter once again. Even more suprising: it’s once again one of the best starters in the sport. The good news is the Twins have already conquered Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez in the past week, so how much harder could Garrett Crochet be?
The other good news: your Minnesota Twins are in first place, tied atop both the AL Central and American League standings with the dreaded Cleveland Guardians. Sure, every team in the AL has between six and nine wins, but this is about two weeks later than I thought the Twins would be able to claim a top spot in the standings. They’ll look to keep the good vibes going tonight!
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 08: Will Warren #29 of the New York Yankees throws against the Athletics during the first inning at Yankee Stadium on April 08, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Caean Couto/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There’s a lot of good and bad to the length of MLB’s 162-game season. On one hand, it can be long and arduous, making games at the beginning and end of the year feel much further apart. The season can feel endless if your team is down in the dumps. The benefits are that there’s always something to watch every day, and that individual games over the course of the season are too minuscule for it to make or break a season early on.
It also means that teams will go on hot streaks where they look unbeatable and cold streaks where you wonder if they will ever end. It’s usually an emotional roller coaster for every team with any aspirations (except the Dodgers, to an extent). With the Yankees on a five-game losing streak, looking as decrepit as possible, it serves them well to get off the schneid at some point. Getting away from a longtime house of horrors and returning home to a nice, warm day in the Bronx might do the trick.
Will Warren will get the ball for his fourth start of the young season to open the series with the Angels. Through three starts, it’s been very Warren-y, as he’s pitched under five innings per start with a good 3 ERA (135 ERA+) and 4.03 FIP. All of his starts have followed a trend, where he’s looked dialed in for two or three innings at a time before unraveling. In his most recent start against the A’s, he fell apart in the fifth after being dialed in through four innings. He’ll look to rectify that and get deeper into tonight’s game, although the bullpen has been in better shape with recent lengthy starts from Max Fried and Ryan Weathers.
Yusei Kikuchi has spent his entire career in the American League, and with that, has plenty of experience against the Yankees. The 34-year-old left-hander is coming off a serviceable 2025 with the Angels, but has struggled to start 2026, with his best start being 4.1 innings of two-run ball against the Astros, while allowing eight hits. This will be his 17th career game against the Yankees, entering with a 3.27 ERA in 74.1 innings. I always remember his first start against them in 2019 for Seattle, where there seemed to be a foreign substance on his cap that the umpires didn’t do anything about in the midst of a brilliant, 7.2-inning outing.
Even as he nears his 35th birthday, Kikuchi’s fastball remains a mid-90s offering, even if he has drastically reduced its usage over the last two years at the expense of throwing more changeups and adding a new cutter. After throwing more sliders than ever in 2025, he’s toned it down in 2026 after it yielded a lot of damage. He’ll lean on his curveball and changeup against righties and look to generate soft contact. His location has been subpar to start the year, and he’s allowed a lot of hard contact, so the Yankees should be looking to swing early and often.
With a lefty on the mound, all the lefty-killers are in the lineup, although none have them have really done damage against southpaw pitching yet. Paul Goldschmidt leads off, playing over the red-hot Ben Rice, followed by Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, and Giancarlo Stanton. Amed Rosario will start over Ryan McMahon and bat fifth over Jazz Chisholm Jr., while Randal Grichuk gets another start as he looks to finally get a hit. José Caballero and Austin Wells swung the bat better in Tropicana Field, so let’s hope it sparks something at the bottom.
It’s a lot of hot and cold in the Angels’ lineup. Zach Neto leads off, followed by future Hall of Famer Mike Trout, who’s cooled off after a blisteringly hot start. Nolan Schanuel and the sorta-suspended Jorge Soler follow, along with Yoan Moncada, Jo Adell, former Ray Josh Lowe, Logan O’Hoppe, and Adam Frazier, who I am just now learning is still in the league. Old friend Oswald Peraza is available off the bench.
Apr 12, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras (40) wears the green monster mask after hitting a two run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
The Guardians and Cardinals begin a three game series in St. Louis today. Let’s see what we should expect.
The Cardinals are 8-7, 19th in wRC+ at 95, 14th in baserunning at 0.6, first in Defense at 8.0, and 28th in pitching ERA at 5.10 (5.43 FIP).
The Guardians are 9-7, 12th in wRC+ at 101, 24th in Baserunning at -0.9, 10th in Defense at -0.5, 17th in pitching ERA at 4.05 (4.04 FIP).
Matchups:
7:45PM ET Monday – Williams vs. Liberatore
7:45PM ET Tuesday – Cantillo vs. McGreevy
1:15PM ET Wednesday – Cecconi vs. May
Quick write-up today – watch out for Jordan Walker, he’s figured out how to hit.
GOODYEAR, ARIZONA - MARCH 4: Christian Encarnacion-Strand #33 of the Cincinnati Reds bats during the sixth inning of the World Baseball Classic exhibition game against Team Cuba at Goodyear Ballpark on March 4, 2026 in Goodyear, Arizona. (Photo by Mike Christy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Christian Encarnacion-Strand era of Cincinnati Reds has come to an unceremonius close. The slugging 1B was designated for assignment back on April 8th as a way to get PJ Higgins onto the roster for catching depth in the wake of Jose Trevino’s injury, and the Reds revealed today that CES did not, in fact clear waivers.
Instead, the Reds struck a deal with the Baltimore Orioles for his services, accepting cash considerations as the return. Mark Sheldon of MLB.com relayed the news on Bluesky on Monday afternoon.
CES joined the Reds at the 2022 trade deadline, doing so alongside pitcher Steve Hajjar and Spencer Steer in the deal that sent Tyler Mahle the other way to Minnesota. It was part of Cincinnati’s latest massive firesale as the Reds dealt away Luis Castillo, Sonny Gray, Eugenio Suarez, and Jesse Winker in other deals that calendar year (while also finally buying out the remainder of Mike Moustakas’ albatross contract). The hope was that CES would be the team’s 1B of the future with Joey Votto’s deal running down, and for a time that looked like a very real possibility.
After reaching the bigs midway through 2023, CES hit the ground running. He smashed 13 homers in just 63 games, and his 112 OPS+ led to him opening the 2024 season as the team’s 1B. It was soon revealed that he was actually trying to play through a small fracture in his wrist that had originally been overlooked, and the hope was his awful start to the year (.513 OPS in 123 PA through May 7th) was 100% due to just that. However, he’s struggled immensely ever since at the big league level as teams realized they didn’t have to throw him strikes to get him to swing, and his time with the Reds looked increasingly doomed as Sal Stewart (among others) jumped him on the right-handed hitting depth chart.
Now, though, he’ll join a Baltimore organization that just placed longtime 1B Ryan Mountcastle on the 60-day IL with a broken foot. Pete Alonso is obviously now there, but with Adley Rutschman, Heston Kjerstad, and Jackson Holliday all also out at the moment with injuries there could well be a path to some PA at the big league level through DH duties in the near term for CES.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - APRIL 11: Joey Ortiz #3 of the Milwaukee Brewers tags out Daylen Lile #4 of the Washington Nationals attempting to steal second base i6 at American Family Field on April 11, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Nats are coming into Pittsburgh riding high after a sweep over the Brewers. However, they will be greeted by one of baseball’s premier arms, as Paul Skenes takes the bump. With the way the Nats offense is rolling, this will be a strength against strength matchup. Skenes will be their toughest test yet.
To match up with Skenes, Blake Butera is loading up his lineup with lefties. CJ Abrams will hit third tonight, the highest he has been in the lineup all season. Butera has tried to spread out righties and lefties, but today he has four lefties at the top including reigning NL Player of the Week James Wood in the lead off spot. Brady House will get the day off, which means Jorbit Vivas will be at third base. The hot Jacob Young is all the way up in the 5 spot. Nats ace Cade Cavalli will be on the bump tonight.
So far, the Pirates offense has been much improved. Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn have been great additions for them. Those two will be hitting second and fourth. Bryan Reynolds will be in between them at DH. Marcell Ozuna has not been hitting, so he is not in the lineup. Oneil Cruz has also been red hot at the top of the Bucs lineup. Nats fans will get their first look at the Pirates 19 year old shortstop Konnor Griffin. He has been cold to start his MLB career, but he is a phenom. As we mentioned up top, Paul Skenes will be on the mound.
This should be a fun four game set between two teams on the rise. The Pirates have elite young arms, and the Nats have an up and coming offense. That sets the stage for a really exciting matchup. I can’t wait to see what this offense can do against Skenes. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats.
SARASOTA, FL - FEBRUARY 18: (EDITORS NOTE: A special effects camera filter was used for this image.) Dean Kremer #64 of the Baltimore Orioles poses for a photo during the Baltimore Orioles photo day at Ed Smith Stadium on Wednesday, February 18, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Ladies and gentlemen: Dean. Is. Back.
After a two-week banishment to Triple-A Norfolk to start the year, Dean Kremer is back in Baltimore and ready to make his Orioles season debut tonight. It ends one of the more bizarre sagas of the Orioles’ early 2026 season, in which Kremer — who hadn’t pitched in the minors since 2021, aside from rehab assignments — was left out in the cold when the O’s set their Opening Day rotation, then made two starts without being called up even after Zach Eflin’s injury. The Orioles had both Brandon Young and Cade Povich make major league starts before summoning Kremer (although, considering those two each delivered excellent outings, maybe that wasn’t such a bad idea).
But now he’s back. Tonight, Kremer will slide into the rotation in Eflin’s place. And poor Povich, who delivered a gem against the Giants yesterday on his birthday, has been demoted back to Norfolk, just as Young was before him. It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.
Kremer worked 4.2 innings in each of his two starts with the Tides, but his second outing (zero runs) was much improved over his first (three runs). His first major league opponent of the year is not one he’s had success with. He’s faced the Diamondbacks twice, once in 2024 and once in 2025, and gave up 12 runs combined. Ouch. However, no current D’Backs hitter has more than six at-bats against him.
Arizona counters with righty Ryne Nelson, making his second career start against the Orioles. If Pete Alonso is going to continue the momentum of his two-hit day on Sunday, this is the perfect guy to do it against. He has demolished Nelson with four home runs in 11 career at-bats. In other roster news, the O’s placed Ryan Mountcastle on the 60-day IL with a left foot fracture, so the poor guy, who had already had to fight for playing time, is now gone for the next two months at least. The O’s called up utility guy Weston Wilson from Norfolk to take his place.
An Orioles win and a Yankees loss tonight would move the O’s into sole possession of first place in the AL East. That’d be neat! Let’s do it, guys.
Orioles lineup:
SS Gunnar Henderson LF Taylor Ward 1B Pete Alonso C Samuel Basallo DH Dylan Beavers CF Leody Taveras RF Colton Cowser 2B Jeremiah Jackson 3B Blaze Alexander
RHP Dean Kremer
Diamondbacks lineup:
2B Ketel Marte RF Corbin Carroll SS Geraldo Perdomo C Adrian Del Castillo DH José Fernández 1B Ildemaro Vargas 3B Nolan Arenado CF Alek Thomas LF Jorge Barrosa
Mar 26, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Garrett Crochet (35) pitches against the Cincinnati Reds in the third inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images
After a ruff start, the Sox are still a sad 6-9 but are only two games out of first place. Tonight, we ball behind Garrett Crochet to help close that gap in a wide-open AL East (and AL in general). Game’s at 7:40 p.m. and the Sox will face Bailey Ober, who’s had a tuff start to the season himself. Here are the lineups:
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 4: Hunter Barco #45 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the sixth inning during the game against the Baltimore Orioles at PNC Park on April 4, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Pittsburgh Pirates used a unique strategy with their young starting pitchers in 2025.
The team called up top pitching prospects Braxton Ashcraft and Bubba Chandler to make highly anticipated debuts — Chandler more than any rookie in the organization last season — but out of the bullpen.
To get acclimated to MLB hitters, Chandler and Ashcraft were used in bulk relief roles before entering the rotation at the back end of the season.
It worked for both pitchers, who are now fixtures in the current Pirates rotation.
The same can’t be said for Hunter Barco. Just because the strategy worked for some doesn’t mean it will work for all.
Prior to Monday night’s series opener against the Washington Nationals, the Pirates demoted Barco to Triple-A Indianapolis.
Left-handed bullpen arm Evan Sisk is joining the club for the first time.
Barco allowed at least one run in three of his four relief appearances. He allowed one in the seventh inning against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday as a part of the Pirates blowing a three-run lead when the ‘pen took over. The Pirates led 5-0 after the second.
Barco allowed one hit, walked two, and struck out one in 1.2 innings in the series finale. In seven total innings, Barco has allowed seven runs (five earned), walked five, and recorded five strikeouts.
He allowed three home runs in four games, totaling a 6.43 ERA and 2.14 WHIP.
Barco, 25, has the stuff to be a viable left-handed starting pitcher in the Major Leagues.
The former second-round pick only allowed three earned runs over 11.2 spring training innings and struck out 15, but also walked eight hitters.
Don Kelly told the media on Monday that the Pirates went to lengthen Barco as a starter. The Pirates are also running thin on innings and need a fresh arm, calling up the fellow lefty Sisk to fill the spot.
Kelly said the Pirates still view Barco as a starter, but he could come back to the MLB team this year in either role. Barco hadn’t pitched since April 4 until Sunday, and wasn’t pitching consistently.
In 27 games (23 starts) between Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis in 2025, Barco finished 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA.
He very impressively didn’t allow a run in 25.2 innings over six starts at Double-A. Barco earned a 3.79 ERA and 1.37 WHIP over 73.2 innings in Indianapolis.
Sisk, 28, made his MLB debut with the Kansas City Royals before being acquired in the Bailey Falter trade.
In 14 outings with the Pirates, Sisk allowed six runs over 12.1 innings, walked five, struck out 14, and posted a 1.30 WHIP.
He allowed two runs (one earned) over 7.2 frames with the Indians this year before receiving the call.
The Pirates host the Nationals for the first of a four-game series at PNC Park, with Paul Skenes on the mound at 6:40 p.m.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - MAY 31: An aerial view of Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine on May 31, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images ) | Getty Images
Today’s Lineups
DIAMONDBACKS
ORIOLES
Ketel Marte – 2B
Gunnar Henderson – SS
Corbin Carroll – RF
Taylor Ward – LF
Geraldo Perdomo – SS
Pete Alonso – 1B
Adrian Del Castillo – C
Samuel Basallo – C
Jose Fernandez – DH
Dylan Beavers – DH
Ildemaro Vargas – 1B
Leody Taveras – CF
Nolan Arenado – 3B
Colton Cowser – RF
Alek Thomas – CF
Jeremiah Jackson – 2B
Jorge Barrosa – LF
Blaze Alexander – 3B
Ryne Nelson – RHP
Dean Kremer – RHP
The “One Big Inning” has become part of the D-backs’ collective psyche since Opening Day in Los Angeles. There, a pair of four-run frames represented the entire Dodgers offense in an 8-2 loss. Since then, it seems as if we’ve had the movie on repeat. A starter cruises, then the wheels come off. Or they get smacked about before they can settle in. Or a member of the bullpen has a really bad day. It’s not just fan bias. The Diamondbacks have allowed four or more runs in an inning nine times already. That’s most in the majors: the MLB average is only 3.4 OBIs per team. It’s an average of 4.9 runs per inning in those for Arizona, and OBIs represent 63% of all runs allowed by the D-backs. The average elsewhere? 0.2 runs per inning.
But it hasn’t actually hurt the Diamondbacks too much. There have been seven games where a severely crooked number has unfurled – two had more than one, the Opening Day contest and the 17-2 clobbering by Atlanta. But Arizona’s record in those is a reasonable 3-4. That’s a lot better than you would expect. Last year, we went 6-32 in such games, and the overall win percentage in the majors was a similar .154. That’s due to the “O” element this year. As samath noted in the comments on yesterday’s recap, the D-backs have put up a higher percentage of zeroes than anybody else. And in each of those three wins (9-6 and 7-5 vs DET, plus 5-4 vs PHI), Arizona didn’t concede a single run outside the OBI.
It also didn’t hurt that in two of them, the Diamondbacks’ offense had an inning of their own which was even bigger. They put up a six-spot in the 7-5 win over Detroit and, as I’m sure you remember, delivered Phillie cheese-steak tacos in the fifth inning on Friday. Those effectively canceled out the opposition’s productive frame. So far, the D-backs haven’t been quite as good on that side of the equation, posting only four big innings of their own. However, they have made them count, winning all of those games this season to date. Let’s hope we don’t have anything like the infamous Chicago game last year, where Arizona scored ten in one inning, and still lost…
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 14: Nick Gonzales #39 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrates with teammates after scoring a run against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Nationals Park on September 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Pittsburgh Pirates are at home hosting the Washington Nationals this evening at beautiful PNC Park, where they hope to raise the Jolly Roger.
Please remember our Game Day thread guidelines.
Don’t troll in your comments; create conversation rather than destroying it
Remember Bucs Dugout 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
The commenting system was updated during the summer. They’re still working on optimizing it for Game Day Threads like ours. If you don’t like clicking “Load More Comments”, remember that the “Z” key can be your friend. It loads up the latest comments automatically.
BD community, this is your thread for today’s game against the Washington Nationals. Enjoy!
SARASOTA, FLORIDA - MARCH 11: Ryan Mountcastle #6 of the Baltimore Orioles reacts during the sixth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a spring training game at Ed Smith Stadium on March 11, 2026 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Along with near-daily injuries suffered by the Orioles comes daily roster moves. The team made another flurry of moves to keep a healthy set of players up on the MLB roster ahead of Monday’s game against the Diamondbacks, with two players landing on the 60-day injured list, one getting selected from Norfolk to MLB, and another being acquired from outside the organization and sent to Triple-A.
The full set of moves:
Ryan Mountcastle placed on 60-day injured list
Weston Wilson contract selected from Triple-A Norfolk
Christian Encarnacion-Strand acquired from Reds for cash considerations and optioned to Norfolk
Yaramil Hiraldo transferred to 60-day injured list
Mountcastle going straight to the injured list due to his broken metatarsal shows that the team knows he will be out for quite a while. It’s uncommon even for serious injuries to have a guy go straight onto the 60-day, but in this case the team needed to make room on the 40-man roster just to add any infielder into the mix.
Wilson, 31, has appeared in parts of the last three seasons with the Phillies, playing a variety of infield and outfield positions while batting .242/.328/.428. It’s not a bad overall batting line, though his worst season was last year, the year that he played the most. He made enough of an impression in spring training for the Orioles to give him the chance here. Since he has a bit more defensive flexibility than Mountcastle, he might even play a bit more often. He was not hitting well in Norfolk at the time of this roster move.
Encarnacion-Strand, 26, was in “DFA limbo” after having been cast off by the Reds. He has also appeared in parts of the last three seasons, totaling a .233/.275/.404 batting line. In this instance, the Orioles probably grabbed him just to have a semblance of infield depth in case there’s another freak injury, because with Wilson in Baltimore, there’s basically nobody down there worth bringing up. Not that either Wilson or Encarnacion-Strand are guaranteed to prove to be worth bringing up.
Hiraldo had been on the 15-day injured list since April 5 due to shoulder inflammation. Moving him to the 60-day injured list opens up a spot on the 40-man roster, which they needed to bring in Encarnacion-Strand as infield depth. The 30-year-old righty had a rough first few outings this year before landing on the injured list.
Additionally, earlier on Monday, the Orioles recalled Dean Kremer from Norfolk and optioned Cade Povich to Norfolk. Everyone can stop wondering why Kremer is still in the minors now. Tough luck for Povich, who pitched quite well yesterday. It seems the team is not planning to do a six-man rotation after all.
One player who did not get added to the active roster is catcher Sam Huff, who is around on the taxi squad from Norfolk. It probably does not matter all that much whether Huff or Maverick Handley is the backup catcher for as long as Adley Rutschman is out.
MESA, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 28, 2026: Bo Davidson #91 of the San Francisco Giants takes a lead at first base during the eighth inning of a spring training game against the Athletics at Hohokam Stadium on February 28, 2026 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Bernacchi/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
It’s that time again: the mega roundup to recap Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates. There will be a lot of words, so proceed with caution! Monday is an off day in the Minors, so all four teams will get back in action on Tuesday.
All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.
News
Only one piece of news: AA Richmond RHP R.J. Dabovich was placed on the 7-Day IL. That’s a big bummer, as injuries have really hurt the career of the 2020 4th-round pick. Dabovich, who is 27, had a healthy 2022, but has pitched just 18.1 innings since.
AAA Sacramento (9-4)
Friday: Sacramento River Cats beat the Las Vegas Aviators 11-0 [box score]
When all was said and done, Sacramento ended up playing just 1 game this “weekend,” and no games during the actual weekend. The storm that blew threw Northern California postponed Saturday’s game to Sunday, and then cancelled that doubleheader altogether. So it goes.
The River Cats made the most of their solo game, though, earning their 2nd consecutive shutout — a very impressive thing anywhere, but especially in the Pacific Coast League. That gave them a sweep in their truncated series against the A’s affiliate, and ran their winning streak to 6 games. Good times on the feeder team!
It was a boisterous day with the bats, as the River Cats bashed 16 hits and drew 7 walks. All eyes in Sacramento are on designated hitter Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL), and I’m pleased to report that he had the best day of them all. Eldridge has started to catch fire, and that certainly was on display on Friday, when he went 4-5 with a double and a strikeout.
The contact was extremely loud for Eldridge, as his hits were, in order, a 99.2-mph single, a 109.4-mph single, a 101.9-mph double, and a 103.6-mph single. Goodness gracious!
Eldridge had a little bit of a slow start to the season, but in his last 3 games, he’s hitting 9-14 with 3 extra-base hits, which has pumped his OPS up to 1.012, and his wRC+ to 182. Will that be enough for the Giants to bring him up to help an offense that is on life support? I still think the answer is likely “no,” especially since Casey Schmitt is hitting so well while DH’ing in San Francisco. Ultimately, the Giants likely want to see Eldridge’s contact improve a little before he comes back to the Majors: he has a 30.2% strikeout rate, a 16th-percentile whiff rate, and a 19th-percentile in-zone contact rate.
Speaking of giving a boost to the Major League offense, the Giants sure are struggling to find hits from their outfielders. It seems unlikely that a roster move is going to be the fix there, since the team isn’t going to bench Harrison Bader, Jung Hoo Lee, or Heliot Ramos anytime soon, but right fielder Will Brennan just keeps hitting in Sacramento. On Friday he hit 3-5 with a double and a strikeout, which boosted his OPS to .938 and his wRC+ to 148. Brennan is certainly staying ready in AAA and is on the 40-man roster, though he is a 28-year old with a large MLB sample of being a below-average hitter, so I’m guessing the Giants are proceeding with caution there.
Second baseman Nate Furman (No. 39 CPL) and first baseman Jake Holton both had 3-hit days, with the former bopping a double and the latter drawing a walk. Each player is off to a tremendous start to the year in their debut AAA seasons: Furman has a .996 OPS and a 182 wRC+, while Holton is sporting a .929 OPS and a 177 wRC+.
But the biggest swing of the bat belonged to veteran catcher Eric Haase, who only hit 1-5 with 3 strikeouts, but drew a walk and smashed a 3-run home run.
Suffice to say, the Giants are not going to be looking to replace Daniel Susac (No. 20 CPL) with a more veteran option anytime soon, but the next team that only uses 2 catchers in a season will probably be the 1st, so Haase is great depth.
Another rough day for center fielder Grant McCray, who shockingly doesn’t have a hit since April 1, though he did draw 2 walks and steal a base in this game, while going 0-4 with 2 strikeouts. Since that April 1 game, the lefty is 0-20 with 9 strikeouts, though he’s drawn 8 walks.
It was a great pitching game, as the score would suggest, and it was entirely handled by players who are either on the 40-man roster, or were in play to make the Opening Day roster. Kicking things off was RHP Carson Seymour, who had a tremendous showing, tossing 4.2 shutout innings while allowing just 2 hits and 1 walk, and striking out 2. Seymour needed just 63 pitches to get his 14 outs, and threw 43 of those for strikes.
The typical strikeout stuff hasn’t really shown up for Seymour this year in his 1st 3 starts, as he’s K’d just 7 batters in 10.2 innings. But more importantly, he’s only allowed 6 baserunners (3 hits and 3 walks) during that time, and is still rocking a pristine 0.00 ERA. Given the Giants noted hatred of issuing walks, it’s fair to wonder if Seymour has temporarily surpassed LHP Carson Whisenhunt (No. 8 CPL) on the 6th starter depth chart, as Whiz has walked 9 batters in 11.2 innings.
Then it was RHP Spencer Bivens, who had a dynamic bullpen outing, throwing 2.1 scoreless innings with 2 hits, 0 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Bivens has just a 3.52 ERA and a 6.23 FIP through 5 appearances, but this was his 2nd straight excellent game, so perhaps he’s finding the stuff that landed him on the MLB roster for the entirety of the 2025 season. Notably — and very impressively — Bivens threw 25 of 31 pitches for strikes.
Finishing out the game was the duo of LHP prospect Juan Sánchez (No. 41 CPL) and veteran RHP Michael Fulmer. Each tossed a scoreless inning with a strikeout.
Like their big brothers in Sacramento, the Squirrels entered Friday’s game with a 5-game winning streak, scored 11 runs, and pushed that winning streak to 6. Unlike their big brothers, they played again on Saturday and Sunday … and extended the streak to 8 games (the poor Pirates’ affiliate, on the other hand, fell to 0-9 on the year).
It was not without drama, though, as Richmond ceded 2 runs in the top of the 10th inning on Saturday, before mounting a rally in the bottom half of the inning, which ended in a walk-off Dayson Croes fielder’s choice. Anything for the win!
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) April 12, 2026
The weekend was well-balanced for Richmond, with almost all their players contributing in some form or fashion, and nobody really having a star weekend. There was a star game, however, which came from the top prospect suiting up for the squirrels: center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL).
Davidson had an utterly dynamic Friday, hitting a solo home run in the 7th inning, and following it up with a 3-run blast just 1 inning later. Talk about a big day!
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) April 11, 2026
BO DID IT AGAIN!!!
THE FIRST TWO FLYING SQUIRRELS HOME RUNS AT CARMAX PARK BELONG TO BO DAVIDSON 💣 pic.twitter.com/CZHbwYPcnz
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) April 11, 2026
The undrafted lefty didn’t do too much over the weekend other than those big flies, as he went 4-12 with a sacrifice fly, an outfield assist, and 2 strikeouts … but that’s still a mighty fine weekend, and one that gives him an .854 OPS and a 113 wRC+ through 6 games this year. So far he’s picking up where he left off last year, and that’s a tremendous sign … doesn’t hurt that he can play defense pretty well, too!
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) April 12, 2026
Davidson wasn’t the only player to have a multi-XBH day, as his fellow outfielder Scott Bandura carried the team to victory on Sunday, hitting 2-3 with 2 doubles, a sacrifice fly, and a strikeout, while accounting for 50% of their hits, 100% of their extra-base hits, and 100% of their runs batted in.
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) April 12, 2026
Bandura, a 7th-round pick in 2023 out of Princeton, has been fairly tied at the hip to Davidson in terms of where they’re playing, as they were promoted at the same time last year. Their performance is mirroring each other, as well: after a 5-9 weekend that also included a stolen base, the 24-year old has an .804 OPS and a 120 wRC+. Will we see that pair handling the Sacramento grass at some point this season?
Speaking of outfielders, Turner Hill had yet another nice game, as the speedster attempts to play his way into the Major League depth chart in a Jared Oliva-esque role. The just-turned 27-year old UDFA, who played both corners this weekend but also can handle center well, hit 4-7 with 3 walks, a hit by pitch, a stolen base, and a strikeout.
It does feel like Hill, a lefty, will get a cup of coffee at some point, though he has to be a little frustrated that he’s still grinding away in AA. He posted a 107 wRC+ in 222 plate appearances at the level back in 2024, and then raised it to a 114 wRC+ in 314 plate appearances last year, with more walks than strikeouts. He’s back in Richmond for a 3rd stint and, for now at least, would seem to be the next man up if the River Cats need another outfielder.
One other note on Richmond’s hitters: Aeverson Arteaga started at third base twice, in addition to a game at shortstop. Once considered the best defensive shortstop in the system, Arteaga is now ceding much of the time at the position to Maui Ahuna (No. 33 CPL). That’s because Arteaga had a miserable 2025 and Ahuna is now just a better prospect, but it’s also worth noting that Arteaga took some steps backwards defensively a year ago.
Thankfully, Arteaga’s having a bounce-back year so far, as he went 3-9 with 2 hit by pitches and 2 strikeouts over the weekend, bringing his batting average to .286, his OPS to .730, and his wRC+ to 124. Great numbers? No. But after having a .189 average, a .508 OPS, and a 49 wRC+ a year ago, certainly a welcome sight. Arteaga’s story is far from being complete: he only just turned 23 (he’s a full year younger than Ahuna), so there’s plenty of time for him to recover from his miserable 2025.
On the pitching front, it was all about Sunday’s starter, RHP Darien Smith. A 26-year old undrafted free agent in just his 2nd pro season, Smith was utterly dynamic in his 2nd Richmond appearance, throwing 4.1 no-hit innings, while striking out 9 batters.
It was a case of being effectively wild for Smith, as he largely lived outside of the zone, with just 38 of 60 pitches going for strikes. Yet despite that, he only issued 1 walk … though that walk scored when LHP Cesar Perdomo gave up a rally after coming into the game, so Smith was left with the unfortunate 0-hit, 1-run outing.
Smith took a little bit of time to get his feet wet last year in Low-A, but really exploded in High-A, where he had a 2.59 ERA and a 3.12 FIP in 7 games, with 9.6 strikeouts and just 1.9 walks per 9 innings. The Giants have used him in a hybrid role throughout his brief tenure, and it doesn’t seem outside of the realm of possibilities that he could make the Majors in a year or two as a long reliever, especially if he can keep suppressing walks so gracefully.
The other starters had fairly uninteresting days. On Friday it was LHP Joe Whitman (No. 26 CPL), who gave up just 5 hits, 1 walk, and 2 runs in 5 innings of work, with 5 strikeouts. Pretty solid all around, though 3 of the 5 hits went for extra bases, including a home run. Still, that’s an encouraging outing for Whitman, who threw 44 of 65 pitches for strikes, as the 69th overall pick in the 2023 draft looks to pitch his way out of AA, after spending all of 2025 there. Through 2 starts, the 24-year old has just a 6.23 ERA, but a 3.24 FIP …. that’s not unusual for Whitman, who last year had a 5.29 ERA and a 3.61 FIP.
As was the case a year ago, Whitman’s issue is with giving up too many hits: he has 12 strikeouts against just 2 walks in 8.2 innings this year, which is phenomenal. But he’s allowed 9 hits, 4 of which have gone for extra bases.
On Saturday it was RHP Trystan Vrieling, who allowed just 2 hits in 5 innings, but walked 4 batters and gave up 2 runs, with 4 strikeouts. That set the stage for a funny day for the Squirrels pitchers, who only gave up 5 hits in the 10-inning game, but issued a dozen walks.
Like Whitman, Vrieling — the 100th pick in 2022 by the Yankees — is trying to work his way out of AA after spending (virtually) all of 2025 there. Not a great start to his 1st full year in the organization, though, as he has a 6.75 ERA and a 5.20 FIP through 2 starts.
Really nice relief appearances by a pair of older arms that the Giants signed out of indy ball: RHP Dylan Hecht, signed last season, threw 2 perfect innings with 2 strikeouts, while RHP Mitch White, who was signed this past offseason, gave up 1 walk in a shutout inning, with 2 strikeouts.
High-A Eugene (7-2)
Friday: Eugene Emeralds beat the Vancouver Canadians 6-5 (10 innings) [box score] Saturday: Eugene Emeralds beat the Vancouver Canadians 3-2 [box score] Sunday: Eugene Emeralds lost to the Vancouver Canadians 8-5 [box score]
The Emeralds won 2 of their 3 weekend games, though it was fairly mild-mannered. The team was lacking in standout days and didn’t hit a home run … blame that cold Northwest air!
There was a really strong performance on the mound, thanks to Saturday’s starter, RHP Yunior Marte (No. 25 CPL). The 22-year old, whom the Giants acquired last year in the Mike Yastrzemski trade, made his 2nd High-A appearance and it went swimmingly, as he tossed 4.2 no-hit innings with 5 strikeouts. Marte was fairly wild, which has been a little bit of an issue for him in his short career: he walked 2 batters and also hit someone, while throwing just 46 of 74 pitches for strikes. That, combined with an error by his defense, put an unearned run on his ledger.
That certainly points to an area where the Giants will want and need Marte to improve, but it’s also abundantly clear that his fastball/slider combo plays very well. He’s not the most touted prospect that the Giants grabbed at last year’s deadline, but he sure was a nice addition who could end up being a really intriguing arm.
The other starters really struggled. LHP Luis De La Torre (No. 14 CPL) is hitting some bumps in the road as the 2025 breakout arm adjusts to a higher level. He pitched on Sunday and couldn’t find the strike zone, with just 33 of 64 pitches being strikes, while issuing 3 walks in as many innings. Still, LDLT showed off some of what makes him one of the top arms in the system, as he only allowed 2 hits (both singles) while striking out 4 batters in his 3 innings, though he gave up 2 earned runs.
Continuing the theme — or starting the theme, given that he pitched on Friday — RHP Hunter Dryden threw just 33 of 59 pitches for strikes, while allowing 3 walks and a hit batter in just 2 innings of work, though he only allowed 1 hit and 1 run, and struck out 3. Needless to say, there are some adjustments to make for the pitchers trying to tackle High-A for the 1st time!
A few relievers had nice games: RHP Trey Dillard, a 27-year old Minor League free agent, threw 3 no-hit innings with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts, while RHP Cade Vernon, a 10th-round pick in 2024, struck out 2 batters in 2.2 no-hit, no-walk innings, though 3 baserunners reached while he was on the mound, all via errors. RHP Austin Strickland pitched a perfect inning with 2 strikeouts, as the Giants hope he can blossom into a quality reliever so that they have something to show from the Joey Bart era. Unfortunately, RHP Liam Simon once again struggled to find the strike zone, as he gave up 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 hit batter, and 2 runs in an inning of work. Through 3 outings this year, Simon has allowed 7 walks, 2 hit batters, 10 runs, and 7 earned runs, while recording just 6 outs. He just can’t find his command following a string of injuries.
In the batter’s box, the stars were a pair of fairly unheralded infielders with 80-grade names: shortstop/second baseman Zane Zielinski, and second baseman Zander Darby. Zielinski, a 9th-round pick in 2024 who is repeating High-A after spending his entire debut season there, hit 5-10 with 1 double, 2 walks, 1 sac fly, 2 strikeouts, and 2 errors. After having a .642 OPS and an 89 wRC+ with Eugene last season, the 24-year old is sporting an 1.101 OPS and a 199 wRC+ through 7 games this year.
As for Darby, a 23-year old who was taken in the 12th round in 2024, he went 3-10 with 2 doubles, though he struck out 4 times. The left-handed hitter spent most of 2025 with Low-A San Jose, and struggled mightily during his month with the Emeralds. That’s not the case this year, however, as he’s rocking a 1.033 OPS and a 175 wRC+ through 7 games.
Quiet weekends for the top hitting prospects at the level, and they each got a day off. Shortstop/designated hitter Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL) hit 3-9 with a double, a sacrifice fly, and 2 strikeouts, and now has an 1.101 OPS and a 183 wRC+; center fielder/designated hitter Trevor Cohen (No. 15 CPL) went 0-8 with 2 walks and 1 strikeout, dropping his OPS to .628 and his wRC+ to 81; and center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) hit 2-8 with 1 walk, 1 strikeout, and 1 stolen base, moving his OPS to .797 and his wRC+ to 105.
Low-A San Jose (7-2)
Friday: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 5-2 [box score] Sunday Game 1: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 3-2 (7 innings) [box score] Sunday Game 2: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 4-2 (7 innings) [box score]
Like Sacramento, San Jose had their Saturday game rained out … but unlike Sacramento, they were actually able to play the Sunday doubleheader.
Still, it was a relatively mild weekend, as the 7-inning doubleheader deprived us of 4 additional innings and, most notably, shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL) didn’t play at all. No word on what’s going on with Level though, thankfully, Roger Munter makes it sound like there’s likely nothing at all to worry about.
In Level’s absence, the standout offensive weekend belonged to first baseman/designated hitter Jeremiah Jenkins, who had one hell of a run over the 3 games, hitting 3-8 with a home run, a double, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts.
A 14th-round pick in 2024, Jenkins — who turns 23 next month — struggled in San Jose last year, though he did a great job limiting his strikeouts. He’s off to a red-hot start this year, and has really been showing off his power, with 4 extra-base hits in 6 games.
Center fielder Andy Polanco had a nice weekend, continuing his strong start to the season. The soon-to-turn 21-year old, who was an 11th-round selection in 2024, hit 4-7 with a stolen base and 2 strikeouts, and now has a .924 OPS and a 145 wRC+ through 7 games. That’s quite a nice start given that he only had an 85 wRC+ in the Complex League last year in his debut. Critically, Polanco plays strong defense (though he committed an error on Friday), and has 4 stolen bases on the year.
Andy Polanco drives in a pair with a single up the middle, and the Giants take a 3-1 lead! pic.twitter.com/4dbPjulsVQ
But the star performance came on the mound, where RHP Argenis Cayama (No. 13 CPL) had his best performance since a late promotion to San Jose last year. Cayama took the mound on Friday and showed why the organization — and people outside of it — are so high on him, as he tossed 4 innings with 4 hits, 0 walks, 1 run, and a whopping 8 strikeouts. It was a tremendous display of strike-throwing, as Cayama threw 44 of his 55 pitches for strikes.
Cayama broke out in the Complex League last year with a brilliant 10.3 strikeouts and just 3.4 walks per 9 innings, numbers that took a huge hit upon his promotion to the Baby Giants. But this year? Through 2 starts he has 12 strikeouts in 7.2 innings …. and 0 walks. He did get hit hard in his 1st outing of the year, but that will happen occasionally. The Giants have to be thrilled with this start to the season for the hot prospect.
Argenis Cayama struck out 8 over four innings of work to pace San Jose to victory over Visalia on Friday.
But while Cayama’s performance was the most exciting long-term, the most meaningful in the short term came on Sunday, when Major League LHP Sam Hentges kicked off a rehab appearance. You can’t really learn anything about someone rehabbing in Low-A, but it’s always better to be … well … better, and Hentges did that, retiring all 3 batters he faced, needing just 10 pitches, and recording a strikeout. San Francisco’s bullpen will look better when he’s in it, that’s for sure.
Finishing off the weekend was RHP Alix Hernandez, who had another fantastic game, striking out 4 batters in 2.1 no-hit innings, while issuing 1 walk. Hernandez, a 21-year old who was signed in 2022 out of Venezuela, has some mesmerizing stuff, but has struggled with both command and health. He’s off to a great start this year, with 8 strikeouts against 1 walk in 5.1 innings, and a clean 0.00 ERA through 3 outings.
Home run tracker
2 — Bo Davidson x2 — [AA] 2 — Jeremiah Jenkins — [Low-A] 1 — Eric Haase — [AAA]
