Category: MLB

All good things must come to an end. It had been 2 years and 2 days since Nebraska had last lost in Charles Schwab Field, and it continues that no team has ever won 3 Big Ten Tournaments in a row.

The usually potent Husker offense couldn’t come up with anything against one of their biggest nemesis of the season, Oregon starter Will Sanford had confounded Nebraska in Eugene and his rising fastball did the same tonight.

Oregon got things started quickly. Leadoff batter Ryan Cooney drove the second pitch of the game to the left-center gap. All Big Ten Defensive Team outfielder Mac Moyer read it perfectly and made a dive at the last minute but could just barely touch it with his glove. Cooney cruised into second for a double. Back to back groundouts behind him brought him in to score. Husker starting pitcher Gavin Blachowicz struck out the final batter to limit the damage to 1 run.

The Duck loaded the bases with one out in the 3rd on Blachowicz, with a couple of singles followed by a full count walk to All Big Ten 3B Drew Smith. Blachowicz got to an 0-2 count on the batter who slapped a ball right at a shifted Rhett Stokes playing up the middle. He stepped on 2nd and fired a strike to first base for a massive double play. The crowd roared to life trying to get some momentum on their side.

Will Sanford took the mound for Oregon. He struck out 12 Huskers in 6 innings the first time they faced each other and got off to a similar start in Omaha. Two strikeouts each of the first 4 innings, and 10 retired in a row.

Oregon added one in the 4th, a solo shot from Maddox Maloney. That doubled their lead to 2-0. Maloney is 3rd in career home runs at Oregon and was All Big Ten a season ago, but had been struggling to find consistency this year.

Nebraska finally reached base on Sanford in the 4th. Sanford lost control of his fastball for a time, walking Jeter Worthley and Dylan Carey with 1 out. Case Sanderson, who carried the team last night, just got under one for a fly out to deep center. Then Sanford bounced back with a strikeout on Drew Grego, and grabbed all the momentum back in the Oregon dugout.

Blachowicz had been having a great night, battling the potent Oregon offense. He looked to be controlling the 5th, getting to 2 outs quickly, but a solo shot that barely cleared the right field wall put Oregon up 3-0. Blachowicz exited after the 5th, striking out 9, and allowing 3 runs on 6 hits, with only 1 walk. More than enough to keep Nebraska in the game.

The Huskers looked to have something working in the 6th. Jeter Worthley snuck one past the first baseman into no mans land and wound up on 2nd for a double. Then Dylan Carey smashed a ball 103 mph off the bat, but right at the Duck short stop who was shifted way towards third base. He caught the line drive and tossed the ball to the second baseman who with the shift was only a couple steps from the base, doubling off Worthley. Another strikeout looking on Sanderson ended the threat.

Oregon opened it up in the 7th. It looked like Nebraska might get out of the inning with no harm done, after a Cooper Katskee strikeout to lead off the inning. He hit a batter, but then induced a ground ball up the middle. Carey tossed to Stokes at second who bounced a ball to first that Sanderson couldn’t come up with. A walk was followed by a 2 run triple to the deepest part of the park. Katskee then threw a belt high fastball right over the middle of the plate, and that ball ended up in the Husker bullpen. 7-0 Oregon.

Oregon added another run in the 9th to bring us to the final score of 8-0.

For an offense that doesn’t strike out a lot, gets lead off batters on at a high rate, and is one of the best at batting with runners on, none of the Huskers’ weapons were working tonight. Nebraska struck out 12 times, got 2 of 9 leadoff runners on, and hit 1-9 with runners on base, hitting into 2 double plays. None of those are a recipe for success.

Oregon will face regular season champion UCLA for the Big Ten Tournament title on Sunday at 2pm CDT.

Nebraska should be firmly in place as a regional host, so waiting for the teams who are coming to Lincoln should be all that the Huskers are waiting on come the selection show on Monday at 11am CDT. Corn Nation will keep you posted and give you all the regional previews and recaps you need.

“Sell the team” chants have echoed across Angel Stadium this week, as Angels fans continue to be disgruntled by the state of the team.

On Saturday, Angels fans protested owner Arte Moreno before the game against the Rangers, imploring him to sell the team.

With an hour and a half before first pitch, fans made their way down State College and stopped at the main entrance of the stadium on Gene Autry Way. Roughly 100 people were part of the group, with more piling in as they entered the stadium.

The movement originated when lifelong Angels fan Johnny Gonzalez created a flyer on his Instagram account, “Angelsboycott,” at the beginning of the month.

Gonzalez said the purpose of the protest was to get fans to unite and voice their opinions about Moreno as they want him to sell the team.

When Gonzalez created the graphic that enticed fans to protest the team, it quickly went viral, gaining more than 800,000 views and 22,000 likes on social media.

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Gaining such quick traction on the internet, Gonzalez said he heard from 500 people who were planning to attend the protest and show their support.

While the numbers initially weren’t what he was told, he said this was what he was expecting and called it the first event.

“This is the first time something like this has happened in Angels fan history,” Gonzalez said. “We’ve reached a boiling point, and you can see it. I’m just happy all the fans are here to support each other, make a message, and stand up for what’s right.”

Gonzalez added that the goal of this protest is to either force him to sell the team or start investing money into the organization.

“We’re not gonna stop,” Gonzalez said. “We’re having too much fun across the street for the Anaheim Ducks, and we want the same energy over here.”

Before Saturday’s protest, Angels fans protested all week during home games by taking off their shirts and waving them around their heads. They chanted “sell the team” for the most part but Thursday’s game took a turn when fans yelled “f— you Arte.” 

However, their biggest in-game protest of the week cam Friday night when they filled multiple sections of the stadium with fans chanting sell the team, Arte sucks, and winning matters.

Gonzalez said that their was over 500 fans that were in attendance participating in the chants during Friday’s game.

Angels going “tarps off” and the army keeps growing and growing. Plenty just walking there to take pics. pic.twitter.com/K2wF33D3hZ

— Jared Sandler (@JaredSandler) May 23, 2026

When Moreno purchased the Angels in 2003 for $183.5 million, they were fresh off winning their first — and only — World Series in franchise history and were perennial winners, reaching the postseason six times over 11 years.

But in the second act of Moreno’s ownership, the Angels have failed to reach the playoffs over the last 11 years and have not had a winning record since 2015.

“He was handed a winning organization,” Angels season ticket holder Joseph Sterling said when asked about Moreno’s time as an owner. “They cared about their farm system. They had an excellent scouting team.”

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On top of losing, the Angels have also been in the public eye more often than they would like for all the wrong reasons.

On Dec. 9, 2025, the organization reached a settlement with former pitcher Tyler Skaggs’ family after he passed away from ingesting a fentanyl-laced pill given to him by ex-communications manager Eric Kay.

The Angels also are showing signs they will miss the playoffs again, entering Saturday night with MLB’s worst record at 18-34.

While the Angels haven’t won much recently, fans have continued to support the franchise. The Angels rank eighth in attendance, averaging 34,659, and have consistently stayed in the top 16 over the last six years. From 2015-2019, they were among the top five for attendance.

Kristin Galagher has been a fan since 1990 and has been going to games with her husband who’s been a fan since 1967. The two of them said they have seen the change of the Angels and are disappointed in what Moreno’s let it become.

“He doesn’t care about the fans, he doesn’t care about the club. He cares about his bottom line. He cares about calling himself a Major League Baseball owner,” Gallagher said. “But you know, how pathetic is it to completely change their operations to insulate Arte from exposure.”

It was a pretty rough game for the Guardians offense as they were held to just three hits. We have faced two of the best pitchers in the league in back to back games so we shouldn’t be too upset about coming out of that 1-1.

As for the pitching staff it was a solid outing for Slade Cecconi. Limiting the damage to 3 runs in 5 innings is all you can really ask for in a #5 starter, which I think is what he is at this point. Festa and Pallette both struggled with their control in this one as they combined for 5 walks in just two innings pitched. Shawn Armstrong also tossed a scoreless inning of relief.

The Guardians will attempt to win the series tomorrow. It will be Parker Messick against Andrew Painter at 1:35 pm ET.

Box Score

The Milwaukee Brewers were following a familiar script on Saturday night, jumping all over the Dodgers starter for a crooked number in the first inning. The offense stagnated after that, but the Dodgers’ offense didn’t and scored 11 unanswered runs to win the game 11-3.

Milwaukee started the game with back-to-back doubles from Jackson Chourio and Brice Turang to very quickly grab the lead. Andrew Vaughn reached on an error that scored a run, Gary Sánchez walked, and then Sal Frelick singled, but Sánchez was thrown out heading to third to end the inning. An unforced mistake by Sánchez helped Roki Sasaki escape trouble, and after that, he buckled down.

The Brewers’ offense was only able to muster two hits after the first inning: A double by Jackson Chourio that just missed being a home run in the second inning and an infield single by Sánchez in the eighth.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers’ offense was able to get to Brewers starter Robert Gasser in the fourth inning as Freddie Freeman and Andy Pages had back-to-back doubles of their own. Kyle Tucker drew a walk, and it appeared Pages signaled the pitch grips that Gasser had to Teoscar Hernández from second base. Hernández promptly took an 0-2 slider deep to left field and off the foul pole for a three-run homer, propelling the Dodgers to a 4-3 lead.

“I think he got caught up and gave away some pitches that ended up hurting him. But you can’t give up 0-2 hits either way, you can’t throw 0-2 pitches down the middle,” Pat Murphy said.

The Brewers’ offense, despite being down just one run, could not muster a rally together. The Dodgers then continued to pile on with three more runs in the eighth inning and four in the ninth.

It wasn’t even a ton of hard contact and damage that the Dodgers did. The Brewers’ pitching staff gave up six walks in the final two innings alone, and five of them came around to score. They mixed in a couple of singles, taking advantage of the struggles of DL Hall and Jake Woodford.

The Dodgers had nine batters head to the plate in each of the final two innings. Mookie Betts made the last out each time and ended the day 0-for-6. His season batting average has dropped to .169. He did miss five weeks with an oblique strain earlier this year, but his struggles are still unusual for him. He was the only Dodger not to reach base in tonight’s game.

Robert Gasser finished with a line of 4 1/3 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, and 4 Ks. He was doing pretty well up until the fourth inning, facing just two over the minimum. Then he gave up some hard contact, gave up some walks, and couldn’t get through the fifth.

“I’m not pleased with it. This is a winning ball club, and I came in and was a part of two losses. It’s not ideal, just gotta minimize free passes and keep attacking the strike zone,” Gasser said.

The Brewers will still have a chance to win the series against the Dodgers on Sunday in the rubber match. Brandon Sproat will be on the mound for the Crew, while the Dodgers will have Yoshinobu Yamamoto. First pitch is at 1:10 p.m.

MILWAUKEE –– The Dodgers have had no problem beating the Brewers in the playoffs in recent years.

The regular season, however, had been a different story.

Entering Saturday’s game at American Family Field, the Dodgers hadn’t recorded a regular-season victory over Milwaukee since Aug. 13, 2024.

Nine straight times since then, they had lost to their smaller-market –– and much less-well-funded –– fellow National League contenders, their longest active streak against any opponent.

Finally, that rut finally ended with an 11-3 win Saturday, on a night the Dodgers came from behind early, pulled away for a blowout triumph late, and saw their bullpen make some club history along the way.

“Just across the board,” manager Dave Roberts said, “really good ball game.”

Down three runs straight out of the gate after a 35-pitch first inning from Roki Sasaki, the Dodgers surged in front with a four-run rally in the fourth; keyed by doubles from Freddie Freeman and Andy Pages, then a go-ahead three-run blast from Teoscar Hernández clanged off the left-field foul pole.

“The Teo homer was a big hit to get us a lead, when we were looking a little bit down and got behind early,” Roberts said.

It would be the start of a six-RBI night from Hernández, who matched his MLB career-high with a run-scoring single in a three-run eighth and a two-run single in a four-run ninth.

“I’m just hitting the ball in the air, hitting it hard,” said Hernández, who has busted out of an early-season slump by batting .388 over his last 14 games. “I think that’s what’s been the difference between the last two weeks.”

Overall, the Dodgers finished with 10 hits and a season-high 11 walks, including four from Freeman alone. It was their third time scoring double-digit runs in the last week.

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In between all that, the team watched Sasaki settle down to complete a five-inning outing without any further damage, then turned the lead over to their recently flawless bullpen the rest of the way.

With four more scoreless frames Saturday, the club’s relief corps has now gone 36 innings without giving up a run. That broke the franchise’s previous record-long bullpen streak, surpassing a 33-inning run from the club’s 1998 team.

It was also the 10th-straight game their bullpen went unblemished, a stretch that included a bullpen-game shutout against the Angels to start this nine-game road trip.

“They’re on a heater,” Roberts said. “It’s one of those things that, when it doesn’t go well, they get the blame, and when it does go well, they don’t get a lot of credit. But they are getting the credit now, and it’s earned. So really happy for those guys.”

What it means

Now that the Dodgers (32-20) have won a game against the Brewers (30-19), they can go for a series victory on Sunday. The club hasn’t had one of those against Milwaukee since July 2024, and hasn’t taken a series at American Family Field since May 2023.

Those stats, of course, ignore the Dodgers’ postseason dominance of the Brewers.

In October, they have won seven-straight games in the matchup, dating from last year’s NL Championship Series sweep to a pennant-clinching Game 7 triumph in the 2018 NLCS.

The win also marked the Dodgers’ eighth in their last 10 games, and improved their record on this three-city, nine-game road trip to 6-2.

“We’ve got a chance to cap it off with three series wins tomorrow,” Freeman said.

Either way, their (regular-season) curse against the Brewers has ended.

Who’s hot

Literally everyone in the Dodgers’ bullpen lately –– including Alex Vesia, Kyle Hurt, Tanner Scott and Jonathan Hernández on Saturday.

Vesia and Hurt entered the game in high-leverage spots, protecting what was only a 4-3 lead in the sixth and seventh innings. They both did so by stranding baserunners, with Vesia working around a leadoff walk and Hurt getting away with two free passes (one of which was intentional).

While Hurt’s 0.60 ERA is the best among the Dodgers’ bullpen (minimum three outings), Scott’s contributions have been perhaps the most important.

Since Edwin Díaz’s injury, he has become the most trusted arm at the back end of games. And after a scoreless seventh inning Saturday that included three strikeouts (with a single mixed in), he now has a 1.31 ERA on the season and 14 strikeouts in his current nine-appearance scoreless streak.

Who’s not

Max Muncy was still not feeling great Saturday, after exiting Friday’s game in the eighth inning when he was hit in the wrist by a pitch.

However, Roberts reiterated that he did not expect Muncy to go on the injured list, after Friday night X-rays on Muncy’s wrist came back negative.

Muncy did not play Saturday, and might not be back in the lineup until Tuesday as he works to alleviate swelling and soreness in the area he got plunked. While the X-rays were clean, Roberts said it is possible that Muncy could go for further imaging when the team returns home Monday.

The club won’t be in a rush to get Muncy back in the lineup, especially with Kiké Hernández set to come off the injured list Monday after missing the start of the season recovering from offseason elbow surgery.

“Obviously (an IL stint for Muncy) should be considered, depending on how he responds over the next couple of days,” Roberts said. “But I doubt it (will be necessary).”

Up next

The series rubber match will be on Sunday afternoon, when Yoshinobu Yamamoto (3-4, 3.22 ERA) faces Brandon Sproat (1-2, 5.75 ERA).

Kyle Leahy was very sharp through the 4th inning in Cincinnati, but it was the 5th inning that came back to bite him as the Reds scored 5 runs in the 5th. The Cardinals offense would come to the rescue late, but the Reds would eventually outlast St. Louis in extra innings.

Let’s start with the good news. Jordan Walker continued his hot weekend with a 2nd inning walk that was followed by a single by Nolan Gorman where he went first to third and then scored on a sacrifice fly from Masyn Winn giving the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Jordan would also double in the top of the 4th inning, but did not score as Gorman, Winn and Torres were unable to bring him around. Jordan’s biggest swing was yet to come, though. Wait for it.

Kyle Leahy’s great start would become less great in the 5th inning. Higgins started the bottom of the 5th with a single to left. Friedl laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Higgins to second. Blake Dunn then singled, but Higgins was held at third base, but it wouldn’t matter as Elly De La Cruz would unload on a Leahy 4-seam fastball for a 3-run homer to deep left center making it 3-1 Reds. Cincinnati wasn’t done. Sal Stewart asked for a successful ABS challenge to draw a walk. Lowe then crushed a homer to center field upping the Reds lead to 5-1.

The comeback Cardinals would come alive in the top of the 6th inning as Ivan Herrera was hit by a pitch yet again. Alec Burleson then ripped a double to right as Herrera advanced to third. It was then that Jordan Walker absolutely punished a pitch by starter Chase Petty launching it 427 feet to left-center for a 3-run blast immediately getting the Cardinals back in the game shortening the Reds lead to only 5-4. Boom!

Kyle Leahy’s final stat line was 5 innings allowing 7 hits and 5 earned runs with 8 strikeouts and 2 walks. If not for that 5th inning, what might have been? Manager Oli Marmol brought in Justin Bruihl to pitch the bottom of the 6th inning to keep the Cardinals within striking distance. That didn’t go well. Bruihl allowed a leadoff double to Steer. He was advanced to third by a sacrifice bunt by Higgins. Then Myers hit a double to nearly the same place that Steer hit his which gave the Reds a run back increasing their lead to 6-4. That inspired Marmol to bring in Gordon Graceffo to shut down the Reds and keep the Cards within 2. He did the job allowing no more damage.

St. Louis came charging back in the top of the 7th inning as JJ Wetherholt drew a walk and then went to third on a successful hit-and-run by Ivan Herrera. Unfortunately, Jordan Walker would temporarily slip back to old Jordan Walker and chase a disappearing slider for the last out of the Cardinals 7th.

Ryan Fernandez was the Cardinals relief solution in the bottom of the 7th inning. He started his outing with strikeouts of Stewart, Lowe and McLain. After the Cardinals failed to mount any kind of forward-moving offense in the top of the 8th inning, Fernandez returned to handle the bottom of the 8th which he did with no difficulty, but Victor Scott II deserves a honorable mention assist as he made a great play on a ball hit by Myers that he caught right up against the wall.

The Cardinals would again threaten in the top of the 9th inning as Jose Fermin turned around a Tony Santillan 4-seam fastball into a 373 foot home run to left cutting the Reds lead down to just 1 at 6-5. Victor Scott II walked on a questionable 3-2 no-swing call which brought up JJ Wetherholt as the potential go-ahead run. JJ just missed his pitch flying out to right-center for the first out. Ivan Herrera then struck out on 3 straight pitches for the second out. That left Alec Burleson as the Cardinals final hope. He walked on four pitches bringing up Jordan Walker. He put on his hero hat yet again and squeezed a single in between third and short as Victor Scott II raced home for the tying run. Nolan Gorman hit a weak fly ball to left to end the Cardinals 9th, but at least they had a fighting chance.

JoJo Romero was brought in with the mission to keep Cincinnati in check in the bottom of the 9th inning and send the game to extras. He made a great play on a bunt attempt by Dunn in front of home for the first out. Elly De La Cruz was up next. He reached on a weak single to left field that Torres was unable to get to as all the outfielders were playing deep. JJ Bleday watched as Elly De La Cruz was unsuccessful in trying to steal second base despite a challenge by the Reds and then struck out to send the game to extras.

The Cardinals top of the 10th would not go as planned. Thomas Saggese came into the game as the designated runner at second base. Masyn Winn would move him to third base by grounding out to third with just one out. Bryan Torres hit a ground ball that was handled cleanly by first baseman Nathaniel Lowe who fired the ball home to nail Thomas Saggese who ran on contact. The Cardinals would lose their challenge on the play at home plate and would score no runs after Yohel Pozo popped out to first to end the inning.

JoJo Romero stayed in the game long enough to intentionally walk Stewart as JJ Bleday was on second as the designated runner to setup a force play. Riley O’Brien was brought in to try and keep the Reds from walking off the game in the bottom of the 10th. He would face Eugenio Suarez and strike him out for the first out. He then got McLain on a dribbler in front of the mound for the second out. That brought up Spencer Steer. Yohel Pozo saved the game twice on two balls that were in the dirt on the first base side. O’Brien struck him out on a 3-2 pitch to end the Red’s 10th inning.

The Cardinals designated runner in the top of the 11th inning was Yohel Pozo. First man up Victor Scott II struck out. JJ Wetherholt moved Pozo to third base by grounding out to first for the second out. Herrera nearly gave the Cardinals the lead, but was robbed by a sliding catch by Dunn to end the St. Louis 11th.

Riley O’Brien answered the bell and pitched the bottom of the 11th inning. Higgins laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt for the first out moving designated runner Steer to third base. Dane Myers was walked as the Cardinals shifted to a 5-man infield. Blake Dunn then hit a ball up the middle that Masyn Winn fielded, but instead of trying to turn a double play fired the ball home. Unfortunately, the ball short-hopped Pozo as Steer slid underneath the tag giving the Reds a tough 7-6 victory which was confirmed on a crew chief video review.

The St. Louis Cardinals will conclude their stay in the Cincinnati area over the weekend as they’ll send Matthew Liberatore to the mound to take on the Reds Sunday afternoon. Cincinnati will counter with Brady Singer (2-4, 6.26 ERA, 34 SO) who will start for the Reds. First pitch at Great America Ball Park is 12:40pm central time. Game broadcast will be on Cardinals.tv.

The Brewers had a big first inning for the second night in a row, but this time the Dodgers had an answer. Teoscar Hernández drove in six runs to turn things around in a 11-3 win for Los Angeles on Saturday night at American Family Field in Milwaukee.

Roki Sasaki needed 35 pitches to get through the first inning, a frame that started with two doubles and was exacerbated by his own throwing error and a mistimed leap by Mookie Betts at shortstop on a single that scored the third run. After trailing 4-0 after an inning on Friday, the Dodgers were down 3-0 after one on Saturday.

Los Angeles had a runner on base in each of the first two innings, including a one-out triple by Kyle Tucker in the second, but he was stranded. One of the outs was a strikeout by Hernández.

More opportunities came, and Los Angeles finally cashed in during the fourth inning, first with consecutive doubles by Freddie Freeman and Andy Pages for one run. After a walk by Tucker, Hernández hit a towering ball down the left field line that hit off the foul pole for a three-run shot that gave the Dodgers their first lead of the series.

That’s the second home run this week for Hernández, and his third extra-base hit in four games.

After a double (off the yellow line in center field, just shy of a home run) and walk with two outs in the second inning, Sasaki escaped that frame and retired his final 10 batters face, getting through the next four innings on only 52 more pitches. He left with four strikeouts and a lead.

Two walks started the eighth for the Dodgers, who cashed them in with consecutive singles by Will Smith and Hernández, plus a squeeze bunt by Miguel Rojas for a three-run frame. Hernández added another two-run single in the ninth for a season-high six RBI.

After going three weeks without an extra-base hit, Hernández since May 11 is hitting .386/.440/.682 with seven extra-base hits in 12 games.

Going streaking

After Alex Vesia and Kyle Hurt protected a one-run lead in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, a warmed-up Tanner Scott entered with a four-run lead in the eighth and struck out three to work around a single. Jonathan Hernández got the ninth inning with an eight-run lead and retired all three he faced to finish the win.

Dodgers relievers have not allowed a run since May 12, and the bullpen’s 36 consecutive scoreless innings is the longest in modern franchise history (since 1901). On Saturday they surpassed a 33-inning streak from April 17-28, 1998.

Notes

• Eleven walks by Dodgers batters is a season high, two more than their previous best set last Saturday in Anaheim.
• Six RBI for Hernández match his career high, also done on June 13, 2021 with Toronto, on August 26, 2023 with Seattle, and on June 8, 2024 for the Dodgers at Yankee Stadium.
• Freeman’s double in the fourth inning was the 561st of his career, breaking his tie for 30th place all-time with Eddie Murray and Jeff Kent. Freeman, who has five extra-base hits in his last four games, is four doubles shy of Carlós Beltrán for 29th place.
• Freeman also walked four times, one shy of his career high set on June 17, 2024. He had two other four-walk games with Atlanta, in the regular season in 2019 and in Game 6 of the 2021 National League Championship Series.
• Shohei Ohtani singled twice and walked on Saturday, his ninth straight game reaching base at least twice, matching his own streak from April 3-12 as the longest by a Dodger this season. The last longer Dodgers streak was Freeman with a 10-game streak from April 20-30, 2024.

Saturday particulars

Home run: Teoscar Hernández (7)

WP — Roki Sasaki (3-3): 5 IP, 4 hits, 3 runs (2 earned), 2 walks, 4 strikeouts

LP — Robert Gasser (0-1): 4 1/3 IP, 4 hits, 4 runs, 4 walks, 4 strikeouts

Up next

The Dodgers and Brewers close things up on Sunday afternoon (11:10 a.m. PT, SportsNet LA), with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound against right-hander Brandon Sproat.

MIAMI — Jonah Tong’s strong work Friday has earned him a stay with the Mets.

The right-hander figures into the next rotation turn, either as a starter or in a bulk relief role, according to Mendoza, after he pitched three hitless, scoreless innings from the bullpen against the Marlins in his season debut.

With Tong in the mix, Zach Thornton was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse — allowing the Mets to add another reliever. That spot went to Jonathan Pintaro, who was recalled Saturday.

“[Tong] is a big part of the team and the organization, so we’re going to continue to give him opportunities,” manager Carlos Mendoza said before the Mets lost to the Marlins, 4-1.

“What we saw [Friday] was very encouraging and that is what we expect from him.”

Thornton allowed four earned runs over 4 ¹/₃ innings Wednesday against the Nationals in his major league debut.

Jared Young is progressing in his rehab and could rejoin the Mets during the next homestand, according to Mendoza.

The utilityman has been sidelined for the past five weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. MJ Melendez has filled the left-handed bat, outfield/DH role in Young’s absence.

A.J. Minter was rained out in his scheduled rehab appearance Saturday for Triple-A Syracuse.

The lefty reliever has been rescheduled to pitch Sunday, his potential final appearance before rejoining the Mets.

Kodai Senga will be with the Mets in New York this week to work out with teammates and under the coaching staff’s guidance.

Mendoza did not have the specifics on Senga’s next rehab start. The right-hander threw 63 pitches over 3 ¹/₃ innings for Single-A St. Lucie on Friday.

Tylor Megill and Reed Garrett, both of whom are rehabbing from Tommy John surgery in Port St. Lucie, were with the team Saturday at loanDepot park.

“It can be a lonely place when you are far away from your teammates and them going through what they are going through,” Mendoza said.

MIAMI — Sean Manaea is feeling as if much of his mojo has returned.

“I feel like I am going out there and attacking guys, not really falling behind on counts, not walking guys — that is the biggest thing,” the Mets left-hander said Saturday before the Mets’ 4-1 loss to the Marlins. “The velocity is up, and that is a plus. So I feel like I have a lot of quality weapons attacking guys.”

A night earlier, Manaea had a third straight solid relief appearance, allowing one earned run on four hits over 3 ²/₃ innings in the Mets’ 2-1 loss.

Maybe the worst is behind him. After an ugly April and beginning to May, he’s pitched to a 3.12 ERA with eight strikeouts over his past three appearances, spanning 8 ²/₃ innings. Overall, he owns a 5.81 ERA in 11 appearances this season.

In his latest outing, Manaea averaged 91.2 mph with his sinker. For the season he was averaging only 89.6 with that pitch.

Manaea credited the work he’s been putting in with assistant pitching coach Dan McKinney for paying dividends.

“He’s had some ideas on drills and mechanics and stuff we have kind of been implementing,” Manaea said. “But I also think that having more reps, feeling good in my body physically and ultimately more [work] have put me in a good place.”

Manaea was squeezed from the rotation near the end of spring training, with the possibility he would be utilized as a sixth starter. But after struggling early, he was essentially relegated to mop up relief.

His appearance in the second inning Friday, behind opener Tobias Myers, was among just a few higher-leverage opportunities this season.

“If it’s helping the team win, that is what I am here to do,” Manaea said. “It was a higher-leverage situation than being in a game down six [runs] or something.”

The Mets could use the continued contributions from Manaea, who isn’t even halfway through the three-year contract worth $75 million he signed before last season.

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Manaea’s first year of the deal was a complete bust — he strained an oblique in spring training and didn’t rejoin the club until July. In 15 appearances, he pitched to a 5.64 ERA.

Manaea’s best work with the Mets was in 2024, when he pitched to a 3.47 ERA in 32 starts and emerged as the de facto staff ace.

“He’s in a really good place,” manager Carlos Mendoza said before the Mets’ loss on Saturday. “Beginning with that outing against the Yankees [on Sunday when he allowed two earned runs over four innings] it was a really good sign and then [Friday].

“I thought just the way he is moving with his mechanics and the way the ball is coming out, I feel with like getting swings and misses with the fastball, especially at the top [of the strike zone] and just attacking, competing in the strike zone. There’s a lot to like right now and it’s good to see him being that guy, because we’re going to need him.”

Manaea was asked where he still feels there is need for improvement.

“It’s just like nitpicking, but just keep attacking guys,” Manaea said. “Not getting two balls before a strike and stuff like that, but ultimately I feel like I am headed in the right direction and feel good with where we are at.”

Chris Taylor has apparently mulled over his retirement decision and seemingly changed his mind.

The 35-year-old has been placed on the minor league's injured list, per MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger. The transaction was not officially listed on MiLB's official website as of Saturday evening.

Taylor was listed as retired on the same website on Friday, May 22.

Taylor had been playing for the Los Angeles Angels' Triple-A affiliate, the Salt Lake Bees. He fractured his left forearm after being hit by a pitch in the sixth inning of a minor league game on Wednesday, May 20.

He joined the Angels’ franchise after spending the majority of his career playing for the rival Los Angeles Dodgers. He spent a decade with the Dodgers and won two World Series titles.

Roster moves

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves. The D-backs’ 40-man roster is at 40.

• Selected OF Tommy Troy (No. 9) from Triple-A Reno.
• Placed on the 10-day injured list: OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (strained left hamstring)

The Age of Troy has commenced! Tommy Troy was out first round pick in 2023, going twelfth overall in that year’s draft, and with a signing bonus of $4.4 million. He’s the fifteenth player from the first round, including additional picks, to reach the majors, a class headlined by Paul Skenes and Wyatt Langford. Tommy progressed quickly through the farm system, reaching Triple-A at the beginning of August last season, not much more than two years after being drafted. Since then, he has played 82 games for the Aces, with a line of .301/.390/.440 for an OPS of .829. This season’s numbers are in line with that: an OPS of .846.

Troy was rated the #4 prospect in the farm system by MLB Pipeline.com. Their most recent assessment said, “He rarely misses on four-seamers or sinkers, and the bulk of his damage will come against such heaters. By comparison, he really struggled with contact against changeups at Triple-A. His overall swing decisions are solid too, and he’s generally at his best trying to shoot the ball up the middle of the field. He’s also generally a line-drive hitter more than an aim-for-the-seats type. Gap extra-base hits and the occasional homer (12-15 per season) will fuel his slugging ability in the bigs.”

His playing time for the Aces has been almost evenly split between second-base and left-field. Given he has been called up to replace Gurriel, I imagine he’s going to be seen most often in left, but he could be used to give Ketel Marte a blow, either at DH or resting entirely. However, it is worth noting this year was the first time he had played left-field as a professional, and in general has much more experience as a middle infielder than playing the outfield. So it may prove to be a work in progress. But hopefully he’ll fit in well, alongside his fellow rookie Ryan Waldschmidt. Welcome to the big leagues, Mr. Troy!

CINCINNATI — Four years after considering retirement, Bryan Torres made it to the major leagues at age 28 and homered for the St. Louis Cardinals in his debut.

“Eleven years to get to here,” Torres said, fighting back tears after helping the Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 in the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader. “I’m not a homer guy. Today, my debut, it just happened. I’ve been learning to manage the pressure. When the heart is going too fast, you have to slow things down. I felt a little pounding in my chest today.”

Torres, who first played minor league ball in 2015, hit seventh and played left field.

With dyed blond hair and wearing thick eye black, he worked a full-count walk from Chris Paddack (0-6) in the second, singled on a cutter in the fourth, grounded out in the sixth, flied out in the seventh and homered on a 95.2 mph fastball from Jose Franco in the ninth, driving the 2-1 pitch into the first row of the right-center field seats.

“There’s not many words to describe this moment,” he said.

Cardinals fans at the game, many of them waving their shirts, kept chanting his name and three batters later induced a curtain call.

“All those guys bring us some energy,” Torres said.

Torres became the third Cardinals player since 1900 with multiple hits that included a home run in his debut, the first since Bobby Smith at Cincinnati on April 16, 1957.

“Pretty neat, man,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “There’s moments throughout the year that you take a step back and get to enjoy. That’s one of them. You could tell, even in his first at-bat, there’s a calmness to him in the box.”

Torres signed a minor league contract with Milwaukee in 2015, was claimed off waivers by the San Francisco organization in December 2019, became a free agent after the 2021 season and spent two years with the independent Milwaukee Milkmen of the American Association.

“I’m not going to lie, at one moment, I thought I’d retire,” he said. “In that moment, I decided I wanted to give myself a chance, and if I did, give it 100%.”

He signed a minor league deal with the Cardinals in September 2023, hit .331 with 28 doubles, two homers, 56 RBIs and 33 stolen bases at Double-A Springfield, then was promoted to Triple-A Memphis and batted .328 with 16 doubles, nine homers 51 RBIs in 2025.

He was added to the 40-man roster last November and played for Puerto Rico in this year’s World Baseball Classic, going 2 for 6 with a double, three walks and three runs.

“I’m going to try to get him out there as much as possible,” Marmol said. “This is a left-handed bat who understands the strike zone, finds a way on base, a real pesky at-bat. I like his skill set.”

Torres was recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Friday after hitting .336 with 10 doubles, two homers, 16 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 36 games.

“I was in (the) clubhouse sitting in my seat and my manager, Ben Johnson, said: ‘I’ve got some good news for you. Bryan Torres is going to The Show,’” Torres recalled. “Everyone started yelling and jumping up and down. Some of them started crying with me.”

Several family members were at Great American Ball Park. His first call was to his mother, Lissette Crespo.

“Since I was a young kid, 4 years old, she lost all her weekends to bring me to the stadium,” he said. “During the week, she always (brought) me to the park to practice, to play.”

His parents traveled from Puerto Rico on Friday only for that night’s game to be rained out.

“It was very emotional. He was crying and when I received it I cried with him,” his mom said during the Cardinals’ telecast. ”That was a special moment.”

Torres took the roster spot of outfielder Nathan Church, placed on the 10-day injured list with a left shoulder strain. He became the oldest position player to debut for the Cardinals since catcher Alberto Rosario at age 29 in 2016. Left-hander Nick Raquet debuted last season for St. Louis, also at 29.

“It’s been a very long and tough road, and not the usual road,” Torres said. “Everything happens for a reason. My family is very happy. We’re living the dream, basically.”

After a late-inning rally, the Colorado Rockies will look to win back-to-back games for the first time in two weeks. After starting 14-18, the Rockies have gone just 6-14 in May, tied with the Los Angeles Angels for the second-lowest winning percentage in MLB. Only the Detroit Tigers have a worse record (4-16). They have also been outscored 124-77 during that stretch, and has been held to three or fewer runs in 10 of their last 20 games. If they win tonight, they have the chance to split and if they win tomorrow, they can potentially win their first series in May.

After Tomoyuki Sugano posted the Rockies’ first Quality Start since May 1 last night, right-hander Michael Lorenzen (2-6, 7.03 ERA) will look to continue the momentum. In his last start against these same Diamondbacks, Lorenzen only pitched 4.2 innings and allowed seven runs (six earned) on nine hits with five strikeouts and three walks with two home runs. It was the fourth time this season that Lorenzen has allowed seven runs in a start — the most of such outings in MLB this year — and the fourth-straight game in which he allowed multiple walks. The last time he did that was in 2024 when he allowed multiple walks in nine straight games.

Lorenzen has faced the Diamondbacks 11 times (three starts) and is 3-2 with a 3.77 ERA against them. Last time he faced them on the road was July 6, 2025 with the Kansas City Royals. In that outing, he threw seven scoreless innings and allowed two hits with one walk and seven strikeouts.

Lorenzen will face Dbacks’ right-hander Zac Gallen (2-4, 4.78 ERA). Gallen is currently in his eighth season with the Snakes, which ties a record for pitchers with teammates Merrill Kelly and Kevin Ginkel, as well as former pitchers Randy Johnson (1999-2004, 2007-2008) and Andrew Chafin (2014-2020, 2023). Only Ketel Marte has more time on the Snakes’ roster than those three on the active roster.

In his last start on May 18 against the San Francisco Giants, Gallen allowed just two runs on four hits across six innings with one walk and five strikeouts in the 12-2 victory. Today marks Gallen’s 19th start against the Rockies. He is 9-1 against them with a 3.41 ERA.

First Pitch: 8:10pm MT

TV: Rockies.TV

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

SBN Site:AZ Snake Pit

Lineups:

Texas Rangers @ Anaheim Angels

Saturday, May 23, 2026, 9:05 PM CDT (105.3 The Fan / Rangers Sports Network)

Angel Stadium

RHP Nathan Eovaldi vs. RHP Walbert Urena

Go Rangers!

On Saturday, news broke of Taijuan Walker signing with the Angels on a minor league deal. I’ve always felt the hate directed at Walker was a bit over the top. Sure, he wasn’t good, but he did have some stretches where he was an effective pitcher for the team. His time here was clearly up and they made the correct move in getting rid of him, but since they made that decision, something has changed.

That something is Zack Wheeler returning and being his usual, Cy Young caliber self.

It seems as though the season has turned on his return, which isn’t too surprising since going from Walker to Wheeler is quite the leap forward in talent. But it’s nights like tonight, where Wheeler didn’t have this top top stuff and was still able to carve up the Cleveland lineup. However, his offense was once again stymied by the Guardians starter, this time in the form of Slade Cecconi.

Cecconi was going through the Phillies lineup similarly to what Gavin Williams did last night. He was matched by Wheeler, perhaps even beaten, particularly in the fourth inning. In that inning, Chase DeLauter doubled to begin the inning, wobbling Wheeler a bit. He responded as pitchers of his caliber do by striking out the next two hitters and getting the third to ground out harmlessly to first to end that threat. Good teams respond to that by getting their starter some runs and that’s what the Phillies did.

In their half of the inning, with one out, Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm hit back to back singles to get things started. Brandon Marsh grounded out on a spectacular play by Kyle Manzardo to put the runners on second and third with two outs and Bryson Stott up, the team needing something to break their scoreless inning streak. Stott delivered and the Phillies were up, 2-0.

Wheeler continued dominating the Guardians, eventually going six innings and only allowing two hits and one walk, lowering his season ERA to 1.67. In the bottom of the sixth, Harper and Bohm got on to start things off, then were joined on a walk by Stott. J.T. Realmuto struck out for the second out to bring up the horrendously struggling Adolis Garcia. Somehow, he worked a walked and an insurance run was added, making it 3-0.

From there, the bullpen trio of Orion Kerkering, Brad Keller and Jhoan Duran were able to keep Cleveland off the board, only allowing one combined baserunner and never really being threatened. The losing streak of three games was snapped and the Phillies are back at .500. These two teams will be playing (maybe!) tomorrow in the rubber match to see who takes the series.