The Cubs, as you know, have had multiple pitching injuries.
That list got a bit longer Wednesday when Edward Cabrera left the game with a blister. Fortunately, that’s not usually a serious injury. Maybe he misses a start, maybe not.
The Cubs are not alone in having many rotation starters injured. Look at the Blue Jays, for example — and Toronto has had a rough time of it, currently sitting tied for third place in the AL East, 11.5 games out of first place at 22-27. At least the Cubs are still well over .500 at 29-21.
In the comments in the recap to Wednesday’s debacle, BCB reader D98 reminded everyone that the Brewers acquired a starting pitcher early in the season last year (April 7, to be exact) who turned out to be pretty good.
That guy was Quinn Priester, who in 20 games for the Pirates (14 starts) in 2023-24, had posted a 6.46 ERA, 1.585 WHIP and allowed 19 home runs in 94.2 innings. He’d been so bad that the Pirates traded him to the Red Sox for Nick Yorke, a bench player who currently has a .555 OPS in 27 games for Pittsburgh. The Red Sox gave up on Priester after one start and sent him to Milwaukee for two minor leaguers, neither of whom has played above Double-A.
Priester — who was a former No. 1 draft pick — turned out to be really good in Milwaukee, posting a 3.32 ERA, 1.239 WHIP and 13 wins in 29 games (24 starts). He’s currently on the IL, rehabbing from thoracic outlet syndrome issues.
It’s my thought that no one could have possibly known Priester would be that good when he was acquired. In fact, after his first five Brewers appearances he had a 5.79 ERA, which included getting absolutely pounded by the Cubs in this game.
Obviously, he turned things around and was a key piece for Milwaukee, including in the postseason.
So now I’m asking you: Can you identify someone like this, under the radar, who the Cubs might be able to acquire now? Any pitcher with any sort of reputation (Freddy Peralta, for example) isn’t going to be available in mid-May.
And don’t say “Well, I don’t have access to the Cubs’ internal scouting reports.” That’s pretty obvious.
I’m asking you to speculate, think about guys who might turn it around if given a chance, who the Cubs could get right now for a couple of prospects similar to the ones the Brewers sent to Boston for Priester.
Basically, here’s a discussion topic for an off day. Have at it.
ATLANTA, GA - MAY 15: Spencer Strider #99 of the Atlanta Braves stands on the field during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Truist Park on May 15, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin D. Liles/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Back in 2022-2023, the pitching matchup in tonight’s Braves-Marlins series finale would’ve been heralded far and wide. Things are a little different these days, but that doesn’t mean that either team will have an easy path to a victory. The Braves can no longer lose this series after yesterday’s victory, but they can indeed still win it, and that’s what they’ll try to do as Spencer Strider faces off against Sandy Alcantara in Miami.
From 2021-2023, Alcantara was not just a workhorse, but a dominant hurler. He pitched 619 frames across 93 starts in that span, going from 4.3 fWAR in 2021 to 5.9 in 2022, before wearing down into something worse but still above-average in 2023 (3.0 fWAR). Part of that wearing down was his elbow ligament making a sad face late in 2023, as he missed most of September of that season, and all of 2024, with Tommy John Surgery and the associated recovery. Alcantara’s 2025 comeback campaign was a mixed bag at best — the righty had a career 78/90/94 line through 2023 (ERA-/FIP-/xFIP-), including a 73/82/85 line during the ‘21-’23 span mentioned. He stumbled around to a 126/103/101 line last year, giving the Marlins durability (31 starts) but less in the way of length (“just” 174 2/3 innings) or effectiveness.
In 2026, things are better for him in some ways, but not others. He’s once again pitching more deeply into games — 63 2/3 innings in ten starts — on the order of what he managed in 2021 and 2023 (but not 2022, where he averaged over seven frames per outing in his Cy Young-winning campaign). His ERA- and FIP- look better, both at 86… but his xFIP- is at 102. He’s running a career-low strikeout rate of just 16.9 percent at the moment, but riding high due to a teeny-tiny HR/FB.
He’s also been somewhat inconsistent in decently-long stretches. He had three nice outings to start 2026, including a complete game shutout of the White Sox, but then gave up four homers (the only four homers hit off him so far this year) in two starts, part of a bigger six-start stretch where he had a very blah 150/119/123 line. But, he then bounced back to dismantle the playing-very-good-ball Rays last Saturday, with a 6/0 K/BB ratio in what was arguably his best start since coming back from surgery, and perhaps his best start since winning the Cy Young Award back in 2022.
The Braves and Alcantara have a ton of history, as he’s made 16 starts against them in his career. His aggregate line includes a 3.99 FIP and 4.38 xFIP in 100 2/3 innings versus the Braves, which is notably worse than his performance overall. Even last year, facing a moribund team while perhaps still recovering himself, Alcantara’s performance wasn’t dominant: one good start, one okay start, and one where the Braves, diminished as they were, roughed him up.
On the flip side, the Braves will have Spencer Strider vying to suppress the Miami attack in the way that Chris Sale was able to on Wednesday. Strider’s three starts so far this season have also been a mixed bag: a struggle in his season debut at Coors Field, an evisceration of the Dodgers in Los Angeles, and then, most recently, a meh start against the Red Sox with a 4/3 K/BB ratio where he lasted 5 1/3 innings. On the season, Strider’s line is an appropriately-silly-for-three starts 60/90/101. I guess that makes this a pretty fitting matchup with Alcantara, as a battle of starters-that-are-currently-fortunate-to-have-a-low-HR/FB and who were once dominant, but are now working their way back to something more than mid-rotation candidates.
Strider has five career outings against the Marlins, though two were relief appearances in 2022. He completely obliterated them in two separate starts in 2023, and had a weirdly meh outing where he nonetheless went seven frames against them last season. There wasn’t much doubt about this, but Strider’s effectiveness in this one is going to be based on his own mechanics rather than any shared history.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Thursday, May 21, 6:40 p.m. EDT
Location: loanDepot (Stupid Capitalization) Park, Miami, FL
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 19: Starting pitcher Garrett Crochet #35 of the Boston Red Sox throws during the first inning against the Detroit Tigers at Fenway Park on April 19, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jaiden Tripi/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After throwing two simulated innings yesterday in a bullpen session, injured Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet has declared himself free of the shoulder inflammation that landed him on the IL. That’s great! What’s less great is that he also declared that his mechanics are out of whack. Crochet will take a few days off, throw another bullpen over the weekend, and likely be out until early June as he works out the kinks. “I feel like everyone that goes on the IL, it’s always a little longer than they want it to be. I’m not exempt from that,” he said. “It’s definitely taken longer than I had hoped it would when I initially went on the IL, but it’s part of it. Right now, I’m just trying to be a good cheerleader.” (Alex Speier, Boston Globe)
Barring any further injuries, Crochet’s return will likely mean that someone is going to get bounced from the Red Sox rotation. If the Sox base things purely on performance, that person would unquestionably be Brayan Bello, who, after two promising appearances in a bulk role following an opener, once again struggled as a conventional starter his last time out. Manager Chad Tracy said the Sox may go back to the opener strategy for Bello, but it will be decided on a case-by-case basis, depending in large part on the health and availability of the arms in the bullpen. (Justin Turpin, WEEI)
When Garrett Crochet does return, will he return to an improved offense? Jarren Duran broke out in a big way in Kansas City over the past three days, providing some hope that Willson Contreras and Wilyer Abreu might finally get some help in the lineup. “I’m trending in the upward direction, and I’m just trying to stay simple and do stuff to help the team win,” said Duran. (Ian Browne, MLB.com)
But his bat wasn’t the only thing Duran was handling well last night, he also made a great catch at the wall. “I’m willing to get hurt to make a play for my pitchers,” he said. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)
It’s great that Duran’s willing to go all out on defense, but getting hurt wouldn’t exactly help the Red Sox at this point. And, speaking of getting hurt, Trevor Story still hasn’t decided on whether he’s getting surgery, and seems to be doing a little opinion shopping in the meantime:
Red Sox SS Trevor Story went to Philadelphia for a third opinion on his sports hernia. "They're getting his opinion and still waiting on that and what he wants to do," Chad Tracy said.
With the way he was playing, an extended absence by Trevor Story wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. But it would be nice to get Roman Anthony back in the lineup, even though he may have been asked to do too much for this Red Sox team this year. (Chad Finn, Boston Globe)
LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 11: Austin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles the ball during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Round Two Game Four on May 11, 2026 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
It was a pleasant surprise to the Lakers that Austin Reaves was able to return earlier than expected from his oblique strain.
Thanks to his efforts to get back, Reaves helped the Lakers eliminate the Rockets and then played in the second round against the Thunder.
We don’t have all the details on how hard Reaves worked to return or what that entailed, but we did get more information thanks to a piece written by Yaron Weitzman for Yahoo Sports.
Apparently, Reaves’ rehab included working with the Dodgers.
Bolstering the performance staff appears to be Friedman’s and Zaidi’s other priority. “We’re working in collaboration with some of the Dodgers folks to bring in a biomechanics lab,” Pelinka told reporters. Until then, players may have to get used to working with the baseball group at Dodger Stadium. That, according to two league sources, is what the Lakers told Austin Reaves to do while he was rehabbing from an oblique injury during the playoffs.
With Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi having worked with the Dodgers for years and now serving as advisors to the Lakers, it’s no surprise they came up with this temporary solution.
As Lakers President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka has mentioned, the upgrades for the Lakers are coming this summer. Still, until then, they’ll have to get creative with solutions and it seems this was a good way to do that.
While it may seem odd that an NBA team is using MLB facilities, according to people with knowledge of those conditions, that’s not necessarily a bad thing when it’s the Dodgers.
“They’re known for taking care of players and being able to get the most out of them,” the MLB executive says. “The giant contracts obviously play a big role, but the way Andrew and his department are able to help players get the best out of themselves has become a major recruiting tool.”
Part of getting the best out of a player is to make sure they can be their best. The partnership and synergy between the Lakers and Dodgers have certainly helped in this instance. It got Reaves to return and gave the Lakers the best chance against OKC.
May 19, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers center fielder Matt Vierling (8) makes a sliding to catch against the Cleveland Guardians in the ninth inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
Detroit Tigers (20-30) vs. Cleveland Guardians (29-22)
Time/Place: 1:10 p.m., Comerica Park SB Nation Site: Covering the Corner Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network Pitching Matchup: RHP Casey Mize (2-2, 2.43 ERA) vs. LHP Joey Cantillo (3-1, 3.40 ERA)
SAN DIEGO — Shohei Ohtani returned to his full two-way form for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the results were formidable.
While pitching and hitting in the same game for the first time in four weeks, Ohtani homered on the first pitch of the night and then threw five innings of three-hit ball in Los Angeles’ 4-0 victory over the San Diego Padres.
After launching his eighth homer of the season and then lowering his ERA to a minuscule 0.73, Ohtani took satisfaction in doing it all even on a night when he didn’t feel sharp on the mound.
But in a series-clinching victory over the rival Padres, Ohtani still did enough in both areas to carry the back-to-back World Series champions yet again.
Ohtani said through his interpreter that he had “a lot of uncertainty coming into this outing, because the feel wasn’t great. And so the results were good, but as you saw, the process wasn’t that great. ... I have a pretty high standard in terms of performance, so it didn’t really match.”
Two-way superstardom is a burden unique to Ohtani, and he hasn’t been shouldering it as effortlessly as usual this season. While his pitching numbers are stellar — his ERA is now the lowest in the majors among pitchers with at least 25 innings of work — he fell into a slump at the plate in April and struggled into May, with his power production particularly languishing.
“Like we all know, he wants to win that Cy Young, and he wants to help us win games, and he wants to be a really productive offensive player,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “At this point in time, he’s doing all of the above.”
While Ohtani has snapped out of his slump at the plate with 13 hits over the past seven games, he hadn’t produced offensively this season in games in which he was also pitching, so Roberts kept the bat out of his hands in his past three mound starts.
The four-time MVP wasn’t thought to be particularly happy about the decision, and Roberts only had his pitcher back in the lineup at Petco Park because the Dodgers had an off day following.
Ohtani showed his approval of the return by immediately driving Randy Vásquez’s high fastball 398 feet to center field for his eighth homer of the season and his 27th career leadoff homer.
“I think that he’s very mindful of everything that’s said about him, and at times he uses that as motivation to prove people wrong, that he can do something,” Roberts said. “I think that he likes to contribute, and I know that he’s heard about (his struggles) on days that he pitches or days after he pitches. So for him to homer in that first at-bat, I think he was like, `OK, I’ve contributed on the offensive side.’ And then he took some good at-bats tonight.”
Ohtani is the only player in major league history to hit a game-opening homer as a pitcher, and he has now done it twice. The first time was in one of the greatest single-game performances in baseball history — his three-homers-and-a-pitching-victory classic in the clinching Game 4 of last fall’s National League Championship Series against Milwaukee.
This time, Ohtani the pitcher gave thanks to Ohtani the hitter for the early lead.
“The goal as a pitcher is not to give up the first run, so I was glad I was able to not do that,” Ohtani said through his interpreter. “I was glad we were able to score first.”
And that was all the run support he needed: Ohtani has allowed just four earned runs in 49 innings this season, holding his opponents scoreless in five of his eight starts.
His pitching performance in San Diego wasn’t smooth, but it was effective.
Although he retired the Padres’ first nine batters, Ohtani needed 52 pitches to do it, and he eventually made his shortest mound start of the season — the first with fewer than six innings of work — along with just 88 pitches, one more than his season low. Roberts gave him a short leash because Ohtani was also in the lineup.
“It’s just another case in point that it’s good for us to be mindful of the workload and just not take that for granted,” Roberts said. “But again, he’s pretty special.”
Ohtani had to escape jams in his final two innings, but he pulled it off.
After San Diego loaded the bases with one out in the fifth on two singles and a walk, Ohtani got Fernando Tatis Jr. to ground into a double play on his final pitch.
The superstar loved it, visibly roaring while exuding a joy he rarely expresses as a hitter.
“I loved the results, but I had walked the guy before, and that wasn’t quite exactly what I wanted to do there, so just the results were good,” Ohtani said.
May 20, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Trey Yesavage (39) delivers a pitch during the second inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
It is nice to get a one-run win for a change. They are 5-10 in one run games. I expect that to level off some.
There is a bunch of little bits of Jays news:
Braydon Fisher gets the ‘start’ today, playing the opener for Spencer Miles. Maybe they can get four innings from Miles? Fisher has gone two innings once this season. But, it is likely the bullpen is going to have to cover 5ish innings. And we have been testing those arms a lot lately. That’s what I don’t like about bullpen days, there isn’t much room for taking a guy out quick if he ‘doesn’t have it that day’.
They are saying that Jesus Sanchez got winded last night on that diving non-catch. It was very awkward, but then it seems most of his plays in the outfield are awkward. He’s on a nice little run, hitting .429 over his last dozen games. A bit more power would be ok, but we’ll take what we can get.
John Schneider called Andrés Giménez’s 11-pitch at-bat was the at-bat of the season. And he has done very well with RISP .371/.385/.600. With bases empty .181/.200/.289. Some one should tell him there are always runners on base. I remember that Ryan Goins had a season like that and I said something like ‘if you can hit like that, why not do it all the time.’ I mean Goins had a career as a utility infielder. If he could flip a switch and be ‘Babe Ruth’ why not do that? Who doesn’t want to be rich? I think he blocked me on twitter soon after that. Which is fair.
Trey Yesavage struck Aaron Judge out three times yesterday. Watching Trey pitch yesterday, you get the feeling he’s going to win a Cy Young at some point. Having him and Dylan Cease at the top of the rotation for the few years should be fun.
How many times do you get to see two starting pitchers who are at the top of their game face each other. I remember Dave Stieb and Jack Morris. Roy Halladay and A.J. Burnett? Well, Burnett wasn’t at the top of his game the time they faced each other.
Apparently, Cam Schlittle said the Jays ‘will BABIP the **** out of you’. He hasn’t watched them at all this season.
The Jays are still just 2 games back of a Wild Card spot which seems amazing. And more surprising, there are only three times to pass to get to it. The AL has been terrible this season, so far. But, really the Jays are going to have to get to .500 before we can seriously think about that. They are 5 games under .500 at the moment.
I had thought the strike zone was pretty big last night, but I was wrong, Sorry Brock.
Non-Jays, but wouldn’t this have been amazing:
Shohei Ohtani, Tampa Bay Ray? The proposed 2023 deadline deal that would’ve shocked baseball. Unlocked and free to read. https://t.co/l5qdrJWbKw
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 09: Braxton Ashcraft #35 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches against the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the first inning of a major league baseball game at Oracle Park on May 09, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pitching Matchup: Braxton Ashcraft (2-2, 3.09 ERA) vs. Dustin May (3-4, 4.81 ERA)
The Pittsburgh Pirates are on the road today against the St. Louis Cardinals looking to grab a win.
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SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 20: Freddie Freeman #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates after hitting a double against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Petco Park on May 20, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman doubled in each of his first two at-bats in Wednesday’s win over the San Diego Padres, finishing off a productive series at Petco Park. He now has 560 doubles in his career, tied for 30th all-time in MLB history.
He’s tied with Eddie Murray and Jeff Kent, both who like Freeman came to Los Angeles in the back half of their careers. Freeman and Murray were linked not only given their timing in joining the Dodgers, but by production as well. By similarity scores, Murray was the most similar player to Freeman for every age from 21 to 32. Murray and Kent are both in the Hall of Fame, and Freeman will join them one day in Cooperstown.
Freeman in his first four years with the Dodgers hit 180 doubles, the most in any four-year span in franchise history. He began the year tied for 34th all-time with Manny Ramirez, another former Dodger, and has since passed Alex Rodríguez and Freeman’s former Atlanta Braves teammate Chipper Jones.
Up next is Carlos Beltrán in 29th place with 565 doubles.
We are through 50 games of this Dodgers season, and Freeman has 13 doubles, putting him on pace for 42 this year. Freeman has five seasons with at least 40 doubles in his career, plus 39 doubles last season.
White Sox fans have seen it all, complained about most of it, and still came back for more. | (Patrick Gorski/Imagn Images)
Welcome back to our Discussion series. With an off-day to sit and ponder, today’s question focuses on the people who live and die with every pitch: what are the best and worst traits of our fan base?
South Siders are a cocktail of loyalty, humor, pure stubbornness, and survival instinct. This bunch has survived more rebuilds, fake turnarounds, and bullpen implosions than anyone should have to. Still, we show up and convince ourselves that the next batch of prospects is the answer. Pride? Sure. Baggage? Lots of it.
Some say White Sox fans are some of the sharpest and most passionate in the game. Others say decades of letdowns have baked in an expectation of disaster before hope can even stretch its legs. Is that hard-earned wisdom, or just pessimism that has become deeply embedded in the fan experience?
No trophies for ‘best fans’ here, and no need to air out the laundry. We’re just curious about what actually makes Sox fans tick. Is it the stubborn loyalty, the pitch-black humor, the endless Twitter brawls? Or is there something uniquely South Side that outsiders simply don’t understand?
Step up and sound off because if there’s one thing Sox fans never run short on, it’s opinions.
The New York Mets will try to salvage a series split as they take on the Washington Nationals this afternoon.
The Washington offense continues to roll night after night, and I like it to get a win and carry the Over in my Mets vs. Nationals predictions.
Read on for more analysis and to get my free MLB picks for Thursday, May 14.
Who will win Mets vs Nationals today: Nationals moneyline (+100)
New York Mets starter David Peterson has struggled to get back to the pitcher he was in early 2025. He’s 2-4 with a 5.40 ERA this season, and while he’s been better working behind an opener, his stuff still isn’t what it once was.
Mets vs Nationals Over/Under pick: Over 7.5 (-122)
The Nationals have been the best offensive team in the majors so far this season, scoring 5.58 runs per game. That might be more sustainable than many suspect, as Washington has a .331 xwOBA on the year, sixth-best in the league.
But the Mets offense is waking up as well. New York has averaged 7.0 runs per game over its last nine, and both Juan Soto and Bo Bichette have hit three homers in this series so far. These teams are putting up tons of runs, and the Over is the play tonight.
Ed Scimia's 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 9-13, -4.98 units
Over/Under bets: 7-13, -6.53 units
Mets vs Nationals odds
Moneyline: Mets +100 | Nationals -104
Run line: Mets +1.5 (-213) | Nationals -1.5 (+203)
Over/Under: Over 7.5 (-117) | Under 7.5 (+113)
Mets vs Nationals trend
The Over is 5-0-1 in six meetings between the Mets and Nationals this season. Find more MLB betting trends for Mets vs. Nationals.
How to watch Mets vs Nationals and game info
Location
Nationals Park, Washington, DC
Date
Thursday, May 21, 2026
First pitch
4:05 p.m. ET
TV
SNY, Nationals.TV
Mets starting pitcher
David Peterson (2-4, 5.40 ERA)
Nationals starting pitcher
Cade Cavalli (2-2, 4.05 ERA)
Mets vs Nationals latest injuries
Mets vs Nationals weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
CLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 23: Catcher David Fry #6 and Tyler Freeman #2 of the Cleveland Guardians celebrate a 4-1 win against the Boston Red Sox at Progressive Field on April 23, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Ron Schwane/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Stephen Vogt is a great manager, but we need to see some adjustment in how he uses David Fry.
Good news on David Fry! He appears to be a solid major league hitter. He has a 112 wRC+ this season and a 110 wRC+ for his career.
Bad news on Guardians’ catchers! The Guards have two amazing defensive catchers who cannot hit a lick – Hedges has a career 51 wRC+ and Bailey has a career 71 wRC+.
Good news! David Fry can play catcher, so he can be put in a catcher position to allow the team not to endure a Patrick Bailey or Austin Hedges at-bat with the game on the line.
Bad news! Stephen Vogt seems to have too much confidence in Bailey and Hedges as hitters (mistake!) and/or not enough confidence in David Fry as a catcher (he may be right!) to optimally employ this strategy. Notably, he can pinch-hit for Bailey or Hedges in the 7th or 8th and then get whichever defensive savant he wants in the game in the 9th to relieve Fry to reduce any defensive risks.
Last night, in the bottom of the fifth last night, Tuesday, May 20th, with right-hander Kyle Finnegan on the mound, Stephen Vogt pinch-hit Travis Bazzana for David Fry, who was in right-field at the time. I am really not sure why he did this, as Finnegan was clearly at the end of his appearance and Tigers’ manager AJ Hinch was likely to bring a lefty in to face a left-handed hitter, as he proceeded to do. Mostly, the issue with this move was the Fry was now unavailable to move to catcher if a pinch-hitter was needed for Patrick Bailey later in the game. This is not an isolated incident, nor is choosing to start David Fry at DH where moving him to catcher requires the team to lose the DH-spot.
Consequently, the worst possible outcome occurred later in the game. Needing one run to tie the game, Patrick Bailey took the most important at-bat of the game for the Guardians with only Petey Halpin and Austin Hedges available on the bench to bat for him. Bailey got the groundball to tie the game, but not without significant travail. Now, Bazzana did single ahead of Bailey’s at-bat to give the team the chance to tie the game, so maybe Vogt wins on this gambit. Yet, it doesn’t change the fact that Vogt and the team need to be clear on this strategem – if at all possible, Fry needs to be kept available to be used in the catcher spot so that Austin Hedges and Patrick Bailey do not have the fate of any game resting on their bats unless absolutely necessary.
Stop being confident in Bailey and Hedges to hit with the game on the line. There is AMPLE evidence that neither should be trusted to hit. Optimize David Fry’s presence on this roster by leveraging him into catcher at-bats late in close games. Please and thank you.
Baseball field, engraving, United States of America, 19th century. | De Agostini via Getty Images
On May 21, 1880, a strange thing happened in upstate New York. While playing at Riverside Park in Albany, Lip Pike — playing for the National Association team in Albany in between stints at the professional/semi-professional level — hit a fly ball over the fence in right field and into the nearby river. Outfielder Lon Knight, playing for the visiting Worcester Ruby Legs, hopped in a boat to chase the ball — because, despite the fact that the ball went over the wall, it was still technically a live ball!
These days, when the ball goes over the fence, it is out of play, and depending on whether it gets there on the fly or on a bounce determines whether it’s a home run or a ground-rule double (yes, it’s officially called an automatic double, but, well, old habits die hard). However—like everything in baseball—this rule wasn’t written down on golden tablets handed to Abner Doubleday/Alexander Cartwright/whichever semi-mythological figure you consider to be the founder of baseball, but one that evolved throughout the history of the game. Unfortunately, the Baseball Almanac’s list of rules changes does not give us an exact moment that this rule was created, but we can surmise that it came into existence prior to the National League’s creation in 1876, as on May 2nd of that year, Chicago White Stockings second baseman Ross Barnes hit the first home run in what would become Major League history. But even then, its story was not so simple.
If you have followed my history-of-early-baseball posts over the past few years, you already know that 19th-century baseball was organized very differently than the baseball of today. Rather than a centralized league imposing a particular ruleset, the home team determined the particular rule set the game was played under, with convention dictating the most basic rules, up until the creation of the NL. Indeed, even after the Senior Circuit came into existence, the home teams still had quite a bit of say in how the game was played, as the NL office in its early years focused less on the product on the field and more on bullying other leagues out of existence to ensure a monopoly over the sport (but that’s a story for another day).
We see hints of this still today, where individual ballparks have rules to determine home run/ground rule double/foul ball when the ball hits a catwalk, or gets stuck in the ivy, or any other random thing occurs that is unique to that ballpark. But in the 1800s, even fundamental rules, such as what happened when a ball went over the fence, depended on where the game was played.
Did Lon Knight actually grab a boat and chase down a ball in the river in order to get the ball and try to make a play? In truth, it sounds a bit ridiculous. How slow must the batter have been where hopping the fence, heading into a boat, and setting sail on the river seemed a perfectly reasonable solution? It’s not for nothing that the SABR biography of Knight says “there is undoubtedly some fictitious element to the story.” Since the teams had a limited amount of balls back in those days, it seems more likely to me that Knight hopped in the river not to continue the play, but to continue the game, and that over time, the story grew in its telling. What this story does reinforce, though, is the fact that these rules depended by and large on the ballpark; if a ball over the fence was always a home run, after all, this story could not have come into existence in the version described.
Naturally, some teams took advantage of this. In the early 1880s, the Chicago White Stockings played on a field with short fences (some sources place them less than 200 feet from home plate), and according to convention at the time, batted balls hit over a fence that was less than 250 feet were treated as doubles, not home runs. According to SABR, however, in 1884, Chicago changed their own ground rule so that everything that went over the fence was considered a homer, not a double, resulting in a season in which Ned Williamson hit 27 home runs, a record that would stand until Babe Ruth’s 29-homer season in 1920.
In time, to stop shenanigans such as this, rules surrounding batted balls hit over the fence were ultimately standardized. Originally, in addition to all fly balls that went over the wall being considered home runs, all balls that bounced just once before going over fell into this category, neatly paralleling the fact that, up until 1864 for fair balls and 1883 for foul balls, batted balls caught on one bounce were considered an out; only in 1931 was this rule changed, and the modern-day ground-rule double brought into existence. As such, these days, shenanigans about long fly balls are limited to non-professional games, such as your local little leagues or bar softball games — or, apparently, the Saarikenttä in Finland.
It’s a small MLB slate on Thursday, and things have been ice-cold lately—so it might be time for a little extra help to get these home runs and MLB player props back on track. I don’t usually go searching for it, but today feels like one of those days, and one matchup is drawing plenty of attention.
Along with a look at the Rockies-Diamondbacks game, I’m also eyeing slugging catcher Shea Langeliers to launch his 13th homer of the season when he faces José Soriano and a shaky Los Angeles Angels bullpen.
These are my favorite MLB home run predictions for Thursday, May 21.
First, it’s a small slate, but Goodman just saw E-Rod in his last start and did rope a 101-mph single off him. The Colorado Rockies also put nine balls in play at 95+ mph against the lefty in that series. Goodman posted a .969 OPS during it as well, including a homer off Merrill Kelly. The right-handed bat also owns the fastest swing on the team over the last two weeks at 75 mph.
The familiarity factor usually isn’t priced in, which gives this HR prop more expected value with a fair price around +380. The lefty starter has also pitched above both his career fly-ball and HR/FB rates, so some long-ball regression could finally be on the way.
With colder weather rolling in and pitcher-friendly winds showing up around the league, a controlled hitting environment may be the best place to hunt dingers on a small-slate Thursday.
Time: 9:40 p.m. ET
Where to watch: DBACKS.TV, Rockies.TV
Home run pick: Corbin Carroll (+445)
The Diamondbacks have a great hitting matchup today as the Rockies are rolling with call-up Zach Agnos, who hasn’t started a game this year and will hand things off early to a Colorado bullpen that owns the second-worst ERA over the last two weeks and ranks 28th in HR/FB rate over that stretch.
Corbin Carroll got the day off yesterday, but before that, he had ripped triples in back-to-back games and, three games ago, launched a pair of home runs against the Rockies and this bullpen.
It’s also nice to get a Top-10 bat sitting right at +EV with a fair price around +360. Over the last two weeks, Carroll ranks eighth in BlastContact, third in slugging, and second in ISO. On this small slate, he projects as the third-most likely player to go deep behind only Aaron Judge and Mike Trout.
Time: 9:40 p.m. ET
Where to watch: DBACKS.TV, Rockies.TV
Home run pick: Shea Langeliers (+350)
Jose Soriano has fallen out of form, allowing 15 runs over his last 22 innings. The command is wavering, the double-digit strikeouts are no longer showing up, and Shea Langeliers has been a major problem for him.
The BlastContact darling has already taken Soriano deep twice in 11 at-bats while posting a 1.765 OPS in the matchup. He hasn’t had the best series so far, but getting plunked twice yesterday could provide some added motivation for a hitter sitting on 12 home runs and batting .322. Only four players have a higher slugging percentage than Langeliers this season.
The Los Angeles Angels bullpen is also capable of cashing this HR prop. It owns the second-worst ERA on the season, and that mark has been even uglier over the last two weeks (6.60). It’s extremely fly-ball heavy, and its HR/FB rate also sits in the Bottom 3 in baseball.
Time: 9:38 p.m. ET
Where to watch: NBC Sports California, ABTV
Josh Inglis' 2026 Transparency Record
HR picks: 13-83, -15.94 units
Today’s HR parlay
Hunter Goodman
Bet Now +10600
Corbin Carroll
Shea Langeliers
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WORCESTER — About a month removed from one of the most tumultuous days in Boston Red Sox history, Chad Tracy is finding his footing as the club’s interim manager. Now, the question is, will he shed the interim tag?
On April 25, Tracy was named Alex Cora’s replacement after Boston fired the longtime skipper and several members of his coaching staff, including beloved ex-Red Sox captain Jason Varitek. The stunning news broke during Triple-A Worcester’s game vs. the Syracuse Mets. Tracy left the WooSox dugout upon hearing of his promotion and joined the Red Sox in Baltimore, taking the helm just 16 hours after Cora’s departure.
Iggy Suarez, Worcester’s third base coach at the time, took over Tracy’s managerial duties.
“It’s a shock, just how everything went down,” Suarez told NBC Sports Boston. “I’m not surprised that it’s Chad Tracy getting the opportunity. I’m happy for him. I’ve kind of been on his hip for the last year and a half, seeing how he goes about his process and what he does. It’s good to see how he works. There’s no better guy right now to be in that position.
“But when that all initially happened in that Saturday game, mid-game, it was a surprise, because you obviously never think something like that is gonna happen. It was a shock, and it took us a little bit to realize what was going down, but when the dust settled a little bit, we were happy for Trace. I’m glad he’s having the opportunity.”
Since then, Tracy’s Red Sox have posted a 12-10 record. They were 10-17 at the time of Cora’s firing, so they’ve taken a small step forward since their abysmal start.
As the season continues, there surely will be questions about who should assume the official Red Sox manager position. Tracy is expected to be a leading candidate, but there presumably will be several other interesting names — some with plenty of MLB managerial experience — considered for the role.
“The only way you gain experience is by someone giving you the opportunity to get it,” WooSox hitting instructor and former Red Sox catcher Rich Gedman told NBC Sports Boston. “I think if Chad just continues to be Chad and doesn’t change because it’s the big leagues, he’ll do just fine.
“He’s a solid baseball guy, he’s a solid man. He’s as good a guy as you’re gonna get. Hopefully, the players can play for him, and he reaps the benefits of the opportunity that he has.”
A ‘genuine’ approach
One player who has spent time with both Tracy and Cora is former top prospect Kristian Campbell. The 23-year-old made Boston’s 2025 Opening Day roster after soaring through the minor league ranks, but was sent back down to Triple-A — where he remains — after experiencing growing pains in the majors.
“They’re very similar. They’re both really good managers, in my opinion,” Campbell told NBC Sports Boston. “They both know how to manage the game, they both know how to relate to the players, and they’ve both played professional baseball, so they have a lot in common. From my point of view, I had a good time with both of them, and I think they did a really good job at their job.”
Tracy, the son of former manager Jim Tracy, played eight minor-league seasons but never reached the majors. He hit .265/.336/.453 with 127 homers over 857 games in the Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, and Kansas City Royals organizations.
So, what makes Tracy good at his job? We’ve seen enough of his in-game management to know he looks the part, but his clubhouse presence is perhaps even more important. Leadership is in short supply in this Red Sox clubhouse, so what does Tracy bring in that department?
“He’s just a genuine person,” Suarez said. “Baseball guy, gets it, been through the grind. Kind of knows how it is to be a player through those ups and downs, and being able to communicate is for him. He’s very up front, very honest, but again, it’s genuine. It’s nothing where it’s harsh and in your face, it’s just very honest.
“I think especially at this level and at the big-league level, that’s important. Especially now, going into the situation he’s in. I think the genuineness of establishing a relationship is what makes him a great manager.
Patience paying off?
Asked to share one quality of Tracy’s that he tries to implement in his job as a manager, Suarez didn’t hesitate.
“His patience, for sure,” he answered. “I’ve managed for quite some time in A-ball, and having patience is something as a manager that you grow to learn. You never stop learning how to be patient. So, seeing him kind of handle situations in-game and still be cool, calm, and collected — to see his patience and how he’s able to kind of think through it very calmly, is something that I admire from afar.”
Campbell seconded Suarez’s assessment of Tracy’s ability to communicate effectively with players.
“He does a good job communicating every day of what he wants from us,” Campbell said. “Everybody’s different, especially when it comes to baseball. There’s different roles and different tasks that we all need to get better at, and from a development standpoint in Triple-A, there’s a lot of stuff for us to work on. I feel like he let us know what it was from the get-go.”
When Campbell was demoted to Triple-A last year, Tracy helped him get back into the right headspace.
“He was just there for me, there to back me up. Anything I needed, I could go to him and talk to him about it,” Campbell said. “But from a communication standpoint, he did a good job of telling me what he needed me to do and what he wanted me to work on and improve on when it came to offense and defense.”
Gedman, who had worked alongside Tracy since 2022, raved about his leadership ability.
“I think he’s a wonderful leader. He leads by example, he’s a straight shooter, there’s no BS with him,” the two-time All-Star said. “He’s baseball through and through, but there’s a great person in there. He’s a seasoned vet, if you will.
“He’s a hard worker, he’s a good dad. I mean, all those things when you talk about the character of a good person, I’m not sure I have enough adjectives to do the justice he deserves, but he’s a special person and if anybody has a chance to settle this down, I think he’s the type of guy.”
NBC Sports Boston
Chad Tracy managed several key Red Sox players, including Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu, in Worcester.
Relationship with the young core
When Tracy is evaluated for the managerial role alongside more experienced candidates, he’ll have one significant advantage. During his time in Worcester, he had already built relationships with several key Red Sox players on their roads to the majors, such as Campbell, Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu, among others. Players might prefer that familiarity over starting from scratch with a new hire.
“Just being in this organization a couple of years, having some familiarity with the players already during spring training, that’s one thing that kind of made the transition a little easier for him and gives him kind of a leg up on other candidates,” Suarez said. “There’s relationships already established. Then it’s almost like, ‘OK, let’s just play the game. Let’s do what we’ve done our whole lives.’
“Still, the big-league level is very difficult, but I think that’s the one thing he has a leg up on. The experience with the young players coming up that we’ve had here in Triple-A, and just being able to have that relationship. That’s one thing that’s gonna help him hopefully get into a situation where he’s able to get the spot up there.”
With this year’s club, Tracy has his hands full. The Red Sox offense has been among MLB’s worst, ranking 29th in runs scored (181), 29th in home runs (36), and 26th in OPS (.680). Pitching has been a strength, but that only gets you so far when you can’t score.
Optimism around the club has been hard to come by, but you can find it in Worcester. Gedman, who experienced his fair share of ups and downs during his playing career in Boston from 1980 to 1990, believes Tracy & Co. can still right the ship.
“We have not seen the best of the Boston Red Sox yet,” Gedman said. “That could happen if Alex is there or not there. But the nice part is we get to talk about Trace, who gets the opportunity. Hopefully, he can steer the ship in the right direction. You get enough guys rowing in the right direction with him, they could become who they think they’re capable of being.”
Fresh off a three-game series sweep of the Kansas City Royals, the Red Sox (22-27) will look to stay hot when they begin a three-game set against the Minnesota Twins on Friday at Fenway Park.
COVERS INTEL: The 
Hunter Goodman
Corbin Carroll
Shea Langeliers
NBC Sports Boston