Category: MLB

If he didn’t have bad luck, he wouldn’t have any luck at all.

Pitcher Packy Naughton, in the midst of an MLB comeback attempt following multiple arm injuries, left his 2026 debut on Wednesday with the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate after just three pitches with another apparent injury.

Facing White Sox farmhand Korey Lee in the bottom of the sixth inning, the left-hander’s 1-1 pitch missed well outside the zone, and left Naughton in obvious discomfort.

The 29-year-old Naughton immediately grabbed at his left elbow and bent over in pain as Redbirds catcher Leo Bernal and the training staff tended to him.

Naughton then walked off the field with a trainer while clutching his left elbow.

“That’s never a good sign,” Charlotte Knights announcer Matt Swierad said during the broadcast. “Hopefully nothing too serious there, just something he was trying to be cautious about.”

Naughton was shaping up as a feel-good story in 2026 after missing most of the past three seasons.

Absolutely HEARTBREAKING stuff.

Packy Naughton throws the ball. He is hurt afterward. This poor young man. pic.twitter.com/fGaQfLtneu

— Kyle Reis, 58% Neanderthal (@kyler416) April 9, 2026

He logged a 1.29 ERA over seven appearances in a “resurgent” spring training with the Cardinals, ramping up to potentially making his first MLB appearance since 2023.

“Even after the first pitch, it was kind of a sigh of relief,” Naughton told St. Louis’ NBC affiliate KDSK during spring training about his return. “Elbow was intact, everything was good to go. All the work I’ve done; it paid off.”

The Boston native tore his flexor tendon after just four scoreless outings with St. Louis to begin the 2023 season, which sidelined him for the remainder of the year.

As he rehabbed in the Cardinals’ minor league system in July 2024, Naughton re-tore the flexor tendon while also tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow, requiring season-ending Tommy John surgery.

The injury and subsequent surgery also caused him to miss the entire 2025 season.

The Cardinals re-signed Naughton to a two-year deal in the offseason with the understanding he would miss all of 2025, but would hopefully be a factor in 2026.

During his time away from the field, Naughton got his real estate license, which he told STLSportsPage.com felt like “competing again.”

“I knew I was missing all of 2025 and I knew I needed to do something that wasn’t going to drive me crazy being in South Florida during the summer,” Naughton told the outlet about juggling baseball and his second job as a realtor.

Naughton was drafted by the Reds in the ninth round of the 2017 MLB Draft before being traded to the Angels in August 2020.

He made his MLB debut with the Angels the following season, but was designated for assignment after making seven appearances.

The Cardinals scooped Naughton off the waiver wire, and he made a career-high 27 appearances during the 2022 campaign.

In parts of three MLB seasons, the swingman sports a 4.98 ERA across 37 games.

Reynaldo Lopez might not miss his next scheduled start after all.

The Braves starting pitcher, after working things out with MLB, got his suspension for his role in Tuesday night’s benches-clearing brawl reduced from seven games to five, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Here’s an angle of the brawl where you can see Reynaldo Lopez land a blow on Jorge Soler with the baseball in his hand pic.twitter.com/dSucXM4T9c

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) April 8, 2026

That should keep him in line to pitch Tuesday against the Marlins, USA Today noted.

Lopez was in the middle of the fray in Anaheim last night when he threw a pitch high and inside that Angels designated hitter Jorge Soler — a former Braves teammate — took exception to.

Soler then charged the mound, throwing punches at Lopez, who threw punches in kind, but with a ball in his right hand, connecting on a blow to Soler’s helmet and face.

“It’s just a shame, the situation and how things unfolded,” López said through a translator, per MLB.com. “On my part, there was never any intent to hit him at any point. So, again, it’s just a shame.”

As things continued to escalate and Soler charged Lopez from the pitcher’s mound to the first base line, several Braves tackled the Angels DH, with Atlanta skipper Walt Weiss among those in the fray.

“I love Soler. We were teammates here,” Weiss told reporters. “But that’s a big man, and so I just felt I’ve gotta get him off his feet because he’s gonna hurt somebody. And so that was my instinct, just to get in there and get Jorge off his feet, yeah, because he was on a warpath.”

Soler was suspended for seven games, though he is appealing. On Wednesday against Atlanta, he homered for the second straight day in an 8-2 Angels loss.

Both players also received undisclosed fines for their roles in the brawl.

Lopez is off to a strong start in 2026 with a 1.15 ERA in three starts.

Another chilly day for a game in Minnesota (honestly, scheduling games before May in the midwest is really a fool’s errand, but that’s baseball for you). The Tigers, currently on a three-game losing streak, were looking to break up the bad luck with Framber Valdez on the mound. They’d be facing off against Bailey Ober for the Twins, whose only aim was to continue the Twins’ winning run against their division rivals.

The Tigers quickly went 1-2-3 to start the game. As things headed into the bottom of the first, Byron Buxton got a base hit immediately. Austin Martin was then hit by a pitch to put two baserunners on. Then, what should have either been a force-out or even a double play turned into a bases loaded scenario as Luke Keaschall reached on a fielder’s choice. A wild pitch from Valdez allowed Buxton to score. Ryan Jeffers then hit a ground out to score Martin. The inning continued to be a bummer, as Victor Caratini walked. Josh Bell then singled to get Keaschall in. A Matt Wallner double brought Caratini home. The cold weather must super power the Twins. Oh but this inning still isn’t over. Royce Lewis singled, scoring two more Twins runs. He then stole second.

In the second, the Tigers got an early baserunner in Kerry Carpenter, who took a leadoff walk. Dillon Dingler got lucky as Royce Lewis made a great infield grab but couldn’t turn around to get it to first, and Dingler arrived safe on base with a single. Despite the efforts, however, the Tigers couldn’t convert the baserunners to actual runs. Valdez started the home half og the second a lot stronger, with two outs back-to-back. Ryan Jeffers then singled. The Twins didn’t manage to add to their early lead, though.

The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the top of the third. Much to the relief of Valdez, though, the Twins did the same in the bottom of the inning.

The top of the fourth was another three-up, three-down for the Tigers, which isn’t the ideal result if they hope to come back from a six-run deficit. Things got worse in the home half. Buxton got a one-out single. Then, with two outs, Keaschall singled into center, there was no easy play, and Buxton scored. Keaschall then stole second, followed by a Ryan Jeffers walk. The Twins didn’t manage to convert any additional baserunners, but the score was now 7-0.

Heading to the fifth, Dingler reached on a throwing error by Brooks Lee. A Matt Vierling ground out then pushed Dingler into scoring position. Two more outs followed, however, leaving Dillon on base and the Tigers still scoreless. While Valdez continued to look more confident and dialled in as the innings progressed, in the bottom of the second, once again with two outs, the Twins got the better of him. Lewis hit a single, but thankfully they weren’t able to score any additional runs. Given how the first inning had gone, with 29 pitches, it was somewhat surprising to see Valdez get through five, but it was good to see his quality improve over the course of the game. While it’s certainly not the kind of start fans would want from someone who was touted to be such a good offseason score, it was still just one bad inning, when you really look at it, much of which was also on the fielders to shoulder blame for. So certainly not time to pull out any pitchforks just yet.

Colt Keith proved that the Tigers still had some motivation left to play this game as he hit a leadoff double. With one out, Gleyber Torres then singled. A Kerry Carpenter single finally got the Tigers on the board, bringing Keith home. With two outs, Dingler singled to score Torres, and that was it for Bailey Ober for the day. Justin Topa came out of the overworked Twins bullpen. Parker Meadows, pinch-hitting for Matt Vierling, came in and singled, loading the bases. Unfortunately a flyout ended the inning, but at least they were finally on the board. Valdez’s day wasn’t done after five, which was a bold choice despite all the nice things I said earlier. Byron Buxton hit a leadoff double. Austin Martin followed that with a single. That was it for Valdez, whose final line was 5.0 IP, 10 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 2 BB, 2 K on 87 pitches. Rough. Would have liked to see those strikeous a lot higher to feel really good about this one, but so it goes. Better luck next time. Emmanuel De Jesus came out of the Tigers pen to try getting out of the jam. With one out, Martin got picked off trying to steal second and was caught in a rundown for an out. Naturally, though, Buxton scored another run. Ryan Jeffers walked, and Caratini singled. Josh Bell then challenged a strike call and was rewarded when it was overturned but getting a walk to load the bases again. A strikeout finally ended the inning, though, with only the one run of damage.

Anthony Banda was the next reliever in for the Twins in the top of the seventh. Javier Baez got a leadoff single. Spencer Torkelson came in to pinch-hit for Keith and did little more than take a walk to the plate and then back to the dugout. Kevin McGonigle then singled. A Gleyber Torres double then scored Baez and McGonigle. Rally time? Sure! There was a brief delay onfield as the umpires assessed whether the Torres double was lodged, but since no one made a call on the field about it, the ball was considered live and both runs counted. Jahmai Jones came in for Carpenter, and a wild pitch from Banda allowed Torres to advance to third. Riley Greene then singled to score Torres.

The Twins had to dip into their bullpen again, a nightmare for them at this point given how overworked the pen has been this series. Cole Sands came out, and gave up a single to Dingler. With two outs the Tigers managed to have the tying run at the plate. A wild pitch scored Greene. While Meadows struck out to end the inning, the Tigers had come way, way back, and the score was now 8-6. Baseball is a wacky game.

In the bottom of the seventh the Tigers turned to Kyle Finnegan. Lewis got a leadoff walk. One out later, Buxton walked. A pinch-hitting Trevor Larnach hit into a double play, eliminating Buxton, thank goodness. That ended the inning and put the Tigers back in a position to turn things around even more.

Cody Laweryson was the next Twins reliever out. Baez got a one-out double, followed by Torkelson getting hit by a pitch for a free base. The effort was good, but a pop out and strike out ended the inning (though Torres did attempt to challenge one of the strike calls, it was upheld), another ABS call, this time from Jeffers, ended the inning as it was ruled to be a strike and not a ball. Brutal. Will Vest came in for the Tigers in the bottom of the inning. Vest had a much-needed clean inning getting the Twins out 1-2-3.

With one out in the top of the ninth there was a Cody for Kody swap, as Kody Funderburk came in to finish off the game. Riley Greene then walked. Dingler was then hit by a pitch to put two runners on. Parker Meadows grounded into a force out, eliminating Dingler but advancing Greene to third. While the Tigers made a valiant late effort at a comeback, it wasn’t enough to turn it around.

Final: Twins 8, Tigers 6

After seven pitches from Luis Severino and before they had recorded one out, the Yankees had tallied three hits and scored one run.

Over the next 153 pitches from Severino and four relievers, the Yankees recorded 27 outs and added just one hit — a fourth-inning single from Amed Rosario erased by a double play.

In the early weeks of the season, the Yankees have so often found a way, typically producing a timely hit that would swing a game in their direction.

On this night, that hit never arrived.

The Yankees bats made like the weather and froze, applying too much pressure to a bullpen that eventually cracked when David Bednar allowed the go-ahead run in the ninth in what became a 3-2 loss to the A’s in front of 38,147 shivering fans in The Bronx on Wednesday.

“That’s just baseball,” J.C. Escarra said. “We’ve had a lot of good games offensively. Today wasn’t one of them.”

The Yankees (8-3), who have fallen by one run in each of their losses, would have to take the rubber game Thursday afternoon to win a fourth series in as many tries this season.

The losing pitcher was Bednar, who had thrown 14 pitches to record a save Tuesday and could not pitch his way out of danger as he has so often.

After excellent, shutdown work from Tim Hill, Camilo Doval and Brent Headrick, the closer allowed hard contact to Nick Kurtz for a single and Shea Langeliers for a double before Brent Rooker lofted a sacrifice fly to score the go-ahead run.

In the bitter cold and after plenty of work in the World Baseball Classic, Bednar’s velocity has dipped a bit.

“I think once we get rolling into this, he’ll be fine,” manager Aaron Boone said of a closer who was not the problem.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

The problem was an offense that went silent. Nos. 4-9 in the order went 1-for-20.

Of particular note were Ben Rice (0-for-4 with four strikeouts) and Ryan McMahon (0-for-3 with a walk, two strikeouts and a double play that drew boos).

“Mac’s a good major league hitter,” Boone said of McMahon. “We’re 10 games in. … He’ll get it rolling.”

The Yankees got to old friend Severino immediately but never again.

In a long bottom of the first, the Yankees strung three hits together and scored quickly, the seventh pitch a looper down the left field line from Cody Bellinger. Later in the frame, Jazz Chisholm Jr. walked to load the bases before Escarra drew his own walk to push a second run across.

Rosario struck out with the bases loaded on Severino’s 32nd pitch, and Yankees hitters were not heard from again.

“The story was we just didn’t score when we had a chance to throw a knockout punch early,” Boone said after the Yankees went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position against Severino and wasted their few chances, including inning-ending double plays in the second (off Aaron Judge’s bat) and fourth (McMahon).

Severino walked Trent Grisham to begin his fifth and final inning, but bounced back and struck out Judge and later Rice, roaring off the Yankee Stadium mound like it was 2017.

“He’s got great stuff and he didn’t flinch,” Boone said of Severino.

Will Warren (4 ²/₃ innings, two runs on five hits and three walks while striking out five) was not sharp but kept the Yankees around.

Both runs the righty allowed came in the fourth, when the team that used to be from Oakland put together a two-out rally. Consecutive singles from Lawrence Butler, Max Muncy and Jeff McNeil — the last a shot through the left side of the infield that resulted in Butler diving home just ahead of a throw from Bellinger — scored one run. After Warren walked No. 9 hitter Carlos Cortes to load the bases, he dirted a curveball that bounced off Escarra, the wild pitch tying the game.

The best potential Yankees rally late arrived in the seventh, when a pair of walks brought Bellinger to the plate with two outs. He swung through a curveball and spiked his bat into the dirt.

“Couldn’t break through,” Boone said, “and then they held us down.”

It’s Wednesday night here at BCB After Dark: the coolest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Thank you for stopping in tonight. We’ve been waiting for you. There’s no cover charge. We still have a couple of good tables available. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last night I asked if you think, in response to the injuries in the Cubs starting rotation, that the Cubs should sign free agent Lucas Giolito. The question is complicated because we don’t know how much money that Giolito wants to sign, But with that in mind, 65 percent of you think it would be a good idea, considering the health issues of the team to start the season.

Here’s the part where we listen to music and talk movies. You’re free to skip ahead if you want.

Tonight we’re featuring Chicago and Rockford’s own Kurt Elling singing the Joe Jackson tune “Steppin’ Out” with the Bundesjazzorchester in 2o12.

I don’t have a movie essay for tonight, I thought I’d throw the floor open to you.

As a way of stimulating the conversation, tell us your favorite actor from the Golden Age of Hollywood. The American Film Institute put out their top 25 actors and actresses as part of an end-of-the-millenium TV special back in 1999. We’ll save the actresses for another day, so let’s concentrate on the actors tonight.

AFI’s cutoff point was that an actor had to have made their screen debut by 1950. That’s a good cutoff point for a “Golden Age” list, although it does exclude Jack Lemmon, who didn’t make his credited movie debut until 1954. (He had some uncredited roles before that.) Rock Hudson only had one bit part before 1950 and they didn’t spell his name right. I’m not sure whether they counted that.

You can see the complete top 25 at the link, but their top ten were:

1. Humphrey Bogart
2. Cary Grant
3. James Stewart
4. Marlon Brando
5. Fred Astaire
6. Henry Fonda
7. Clark Gable
8. James Cagney
9. Spencer Tracy
10. Charlie Chaplin

That’s a pretty good list to start. So tell us who is your favorite and which movies he did make you love him?

For me, the answer is easy. It’s Grant. There’s no one on this list whom I don’t think is terrific, but Cary Grant stands out to me. I’m not sure any actor of the era was as equally at home in drama and comedy, often in the same film. North by Northwest is a masterpiece. His comedies like The Awful Truth, Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, His Girl Friday and Monkey Business are great. But he also made a lot of great dramatic pictures such as Gunga Din, Only Angels Have Wings and Notorious are excellent too. Charade is fantastic spy drama in the same vein as North by Northwest. Yes, Grant appeared in some turkeys, as did every actor in the studio system. But I don’t think he was ever in a bad movie that wasn’t made a little better because he was in it.

Welcome back to everyone who skipped ahead.

The Cubs have made it clear that they expect that Seiya Suzuki will be activated for Friday’s game against the Pirates. Suzuki has been playing in Knoxville all week and every indication is that he’s ready to return to the majors.

That means someone has to go, assuming no one gets hurt between now and Friday. (The Cubs don’t think that Ian Happ will need a trip to the injured list.) Since teams must have 13 position players these days, the Cubs will have to remove one to activate Suzuki.

There are basically three choices of players who can be removed. I think at the beginning of the season there was a possibility that Matt Shaw, who has options, could go down to Iowa to make room for Suzuki, but I think Shaw is proving himself too valuable so far to go down. If you disagree (or you have some other candidate), you can vote other.

The three players, in reverse order of how likely I think they are to get removed, are:

Michael Conforto: Manager Craig Counsell certainly seems to like Conforto and he’s certainly had the most opportunity to play of the three choices. Conforto has played in seven games (and is in the starting lineup tonight as I write this) and is hitting .250 with a .438 on-base percentage. Sure, he’s yet to have an extra base hit yet and he was pretty awful for the Dodgers last year, but he’s definitely had the best career of our three choices. He was a pretty good outfielder for the Mets from 2o15 to 2021. He wasn’t terrible for the Giants for two years after that. But maybe you think that he’s about to turn back into what he was with the Dodgers last year.

Scott Kingery: You’d be forgiven if you forgot that Kingery was even on the Cubs. So far, all he’s done is pinch-run twice. His only stat is one stolen base. I don’t know the particulars of the minor league deal that Kingery signed with the Cubs over the winter, but he still has minor league options according to Fangraphs. Assuming that’s correct, the Cubs could send him down to Iowa and still have him in reserve

The only issue is that removing Kingery leaves the Cubs with five outfielders plus Matt Shaw, who has been playing outfield most of the year, and five infielders, with Shaw as the only backup. I suppose that Ian Happ could fill in at second or first in an emergency, but that’s not something the Cubs want to rely on. Sending down Kingery leaves the Cubs thin in the infield. On the other hand, it’s not like he’s playing at all right now.

Dylan Carlson: Carlson has barely played more than Kingery, despite Suzuki (and now Happ) being injured. He’s gotten one start and that was in game two of the doubleheader in Cleveland. He went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts in that game. He pinch-ran in game one and scored a run, which was his Cubs debut. He pinch-hit for Conforto in Monday’s game versus the Rays and flew out.

So basically, Counsell has barely used Carlson despite having ample opportunity to do so. Perhaps he would accept an assignment to Iowa, which would make the decision to take him off the roster easy. But he’d probably prefer to go somewhere where he might actually get an opportunity, since it doesn’t look like Counsell wants to give him one on the North Side.

But tonight’s question isn’t who will be removed from the roster, but rather who you would remove if you were in charge. So who’s your choice?

Thanks for stopping by tonight. Thank you to everyone who who has voted and commented over the past week. Or even listened to the music. Please get home safely. Recycle any cans or bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And joiin us again next week for more BCB After Dark.

The A’s and Yankees had a duel on Wednesday evening in the Bronx. One day after dropping a close game in the late innings, it was the Athletics’ turn as they beat the Yankees thanks to a top of the ninth RBI to win 3-2. Close but we’ll take it.

Right-hander Luis Severino was on the mound for the A’s facing his longtime former team. He entered tonight’s game with two horrible starts against the pinstripes in his career (both last season) so he was looking for a bit of revenge tonight.

Well it looked like early on that things wouldn’t go his way. New York put up two quick runs against the expensive righty, opening up with three straight hits. Sevy buckled down and got two much-needed strikeouts but then a bases-loaded walk brought in New York’s second run. He’d get another punchout to get out of the jam, doing a good job of limiting the damage against him.

The Yankees meanwhile sent fellow righty Will Warren to the bump to take on the A’s lineup. The bats haven’t quite gotten started yet as the A’s currently rank just 22nd in the entire league with a .654 OPS. Not the start A’s fans were hoping for but there’s signs things are heading in the right direction on offense.

The bats were quiet the first time through the order, with only a couple singles and a walk against the New York right-hander. That changed in the fourth though. After the first two batters of the inning went down outfielder Lawrence Butler, manning center tonight, began the rally with a single. Max Muncy followed him with his own hit, followed by the third in a row from Jeff McNeil, this one bringing in the Athletics’ first run of the evening:

He finished the day 2-for-4 with that RBI knock being his second in an Athletics uniform. Would be nice to get him going.

That wasn’t the end of the rally. Carlos Cortes, in the starting lineup in place of Denzel Clarke, worked a two-out walk to load the bases. Then the A’s got a little help from Warren as he uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Muncy to cross home plate and tie this game up at 2 apiece:

Sadly Nick Kurtz struck out to end the rally but at least the A’s had knotted things up.

Back to Severino, after that first inning the righty settled in. Over the next four innings Sevy only allowed one more hit with a couple walks sprinkled in there. He also racked up four more strikeouts as well, getting up to 7 on the evening. He was able to finish the fifth off the hook for a loss, but also without a chance for his first win of the season.

• Luis Severino: 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, 7 K, 100 pitches

Not a bad start from the 32-year-old. Considering his horrible appearances against his former team last year there was some apprehension of him going into New York but he held his own against a tough lineup. Next up for him will likely be the Texas Rangers at home next week.

Warren couldn’t finish the fifth as the A’s chased him with another scoring opportunity, one they wouldn’t be able to cash in on. It was now a bullpen game and whoever blinked first would likely lose.

Neither team bent during the later innings. Scott Barlow, Hogan Harris, and Elvis Alvarado all made appearances after Severino’s departure and did their jobs with scoreless outings, getting us to the ninth inning still tied up at 2.

Not looking to go into extra innings the A’s bats got to work. Going up against New York’s closer in David Bednar, Nick Kurtz started things off with a single, his second hit of the night. Catcher Shea Langeliers followed him up with a double to left field that put two runners in scoring position for the Athletics. After Tyler Soderstrom struck out there was fear that the A’s would waste this golden scoring opportunity but Brent Rooker stepped to the plate and came through with a productive out, a sac fly that brought Kurtz home and gave the A’s the late lead:

Now with a save situation to preserve, manager Mark Kotsay turned to the newest member of his bullpen in Joel Kuhnel. A strong start to his season in Triple-A earned him the first promotion of the year and he was thrown right into the fire tonight. Facing the bottom third of the lineup Kuhnel sat down every Yankee he faced, ending the game by getting Ryan McMahon to strike out swinging for his first save of the year and second of his career.

That was a bit stressful. The A’s turned the tables on the Yankees though and they were the team that had the late-game rally to steal the win. Sevy started a bit shaky but settled in and pitched well for the most part. The bats came through in big spots and the bullpen did it’s job with four scoreless innings of work. A well-rounded win if there ever was one.

The club is now 4-7 with the finale set for tomorrow morning. It’ll be a lefty-on-lefty starting matchup as Jeffrey Springs gets the ball for his third start of the year. He’s been the team’s best starter in this early going so the club will be hoping for that to continue. New York counters Springs with Ryan Weathers, their offseason acquisition who is off to a so-so start to his campaign. Will the A’s win their second series of the year and first on the road? Only one way to find out and that’s to tune in tomorrow bright and early for more A’s baseball!

Enough of the new season smell has worn off that we can all say this game was a bit miserable. The Yankees had a golden opportunity to blow the contest open in the first inning, and after the first three Yanks all reached base, barely a soul managed to do so for the rest of the game. David Bednar couldn’t hold serve in the ninth inning, getting himself into an immediate jam, and a solid Athletics lineup made him pay. New York dropped the second game of this three-game set, 3-2 your final.

The Yankees jumped on Luis Severino early, with both Trent Grisham and Aaron Judge starting the first inning with sharp singles. Cody Bellinger was up next and put his club ahead before an out had been recorded:

Sevy then had a hell of a back and forth with the strike zone, getting whiffs of Ben Rice and Giancarlo Stanton, before back-to-back four-pitch walks to Jazz Chisholm Jr. and J.C. Escarra, the second of those bringing in Judge from third base. Amed Rosario was also set down swinging to end the threat, and while the Yankees were up 2-0 by the end of the first, it felt like they could have gotten more out of it.

That somewhat-missed opportunity loomed large in the fourth, after Will Warren cruised through the first three innings. The Yankee right-hander began to bleed baserunners, with three-straight singles—all with two outs—bringing in the first run of the game forth the A’s. Warren would walk the bases loaded and then spike a ball that Escarra couldn’t corral, The Other Max Muncy broke for the plate, and the game was tied.

Warren doesn’t have the natural stuff that Cam Schlittler has, and he’s always going to be a little more of a project pitcher. He might even be pretty good — although he didn’t end up getting out of the fifth today. The problem is for me, he’s kinda good and an absolute slog to watch pitch:

When you don’t sit 98, you have to find strikes around the edges of the strike zone, and Warren just doesn’t have the command for that. Instead you get a lot of easy takes and it feels like he ends up spotting every single hitter one more pitch than he needs to. So he throws more pitches, they’re not very good pitches, and he forces us to watch while he does it.

Thankfully Tim Hill was somewhat more expeditious, needing just one pitch to finish the fifth, and working a sixth inning that saw an Athletics’ single and a real nice grab from Jazz:

Still, that first inning continued to cast a shadow, since after Severino threw 32 pitches in the frame, he actually settled down well to complete five innings on exactly 100 pitches. Luis Severino’s 2017 Cy Young finalist year is one of the single player campaigns I’ve most enjoyed covering while at PSA, and while he never was that good again I also couldn’t help but enjoy seeing him continue to pitch well enough — even if he could have left a cement mixer or two out.

The team continued to be flummoxed by a pretty paltry As pitching staff, especially when Mark Leiter Jr. wasn’t brought out. Trent Grisham did manage a two-out walk in the seventh inning against the lefty Hogan Harris, setting up a platoon-advantaged matchup against Judge, but he was swiftly walked. Cody Bellinger went down on strikes to continue the offensive futility.

Bednar was tasked with keeping the game tied in the ninth, and immediately allowed a single and double to the top of the Athletics order. The Yankee closer was able to get Tyler Soderstrom swinging for one out, but Brent Rooker’s sac fly brought in Nick Kurtz, and that would be all the A’s needed. The bottom of the Yankee order went down quietly in the ninth.

This has been a pretty blergh series, where outside of Amed Rosario’s heroics on Tuesday the Yankee offense has been awful quiet against a team not known for its pitching prowess. I think the hitters are largely too passive at the plate right now, taking a lot of strikes in hitters’ counts for no reason that I can see. A little more controlled aggression from the lineup would help them win this series tomorrow, where Ryan Weathers will start the finale against fellow southpaw Jeffrey Springs. First pitch will be at 1:35pm Eastern.

Box Score

The Yankees' bats went quiet after a strong first inning as they fell to the Athletics, 3-2.

Here are the takeaways....

-- The Yanks got on the board quickly with three straight singles in the bottom of the first inning as Cody Bellinger's bloop to right field scored Trent Grisham from second base. After former Yankee Luis Severino struck out two straight, New York found a way to tack on another run. Jazz ChisholmJr. walked to load the bases and J.C. Escarra followed with another walk to pickup the RBI, pushing the lead to 2-0.

-- Will Warren cruised through the first three innings before running into some trouble in the fourth. The right-hander let up three consecutive singles as Jeff McNeil singled to left field and Lawrence Butler beat Bellinger's throw home, making it a 2-1 game. Warren then issued a walk to load the bases and threw a wild pitch, scoring Max Muncy as the Athletics tied it up at 2-2.

Warren recorded two outs in the fifth inning, but with two runners on base and the lefty Butler coming up to bat, Tim Hill entered for the lefty vs. lefty matchup. His day ended after 4.2 IP and 85 pitches (48 strikes), allowing two runs on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks. Luckily, Hill needed just one pitch to get out of the jam and avoided adding on to Warren's line.

-- Starting at shortstop for the first time in the majors, Ryan McMahon got tested at the end of the first inning. He made a nice back-hand stop and got a little help from Ben Rice on the scoop at first base for the third out. McMahon looked more comfortable on his next three plays in the second and third innings, getting the runner at first each time. 

While McMahon was solid at short, Rice had some troubles at first base throughout the game, including a fielding error on a ball that bounced off his glove into foul territory. Rice also struggled at the plate, going 0-for-4 with four strikeouts.

-- Pitching coach Matt Blake was ejected by home plate umpire Carlos Torres for arguing balls and strikes in the top of the third inning. Nick Kurtz ended up singling later in the at-bat.

-- Hill, Camilo Doval, and Brent Headrick tossed 3.1 combined scoreless innings of relief to keep the score knotted at 2-2 through the eighth. However, David Bednar got into trouble in the ninth inning, allowing a single to Kurtz and a double to Shea Langeliers. Bednar struck out Tyler Soderstrom, but then gave up a sac fly to Brent Rooker as the Athletics took a 3-2 lead. The veteran managed to strike out Jacob Wilson to avoid further damage.

The Yanks went down in order in the bottom of the ninth, finishing with just four hits after having three in the first inning. Their last hit came in the fourth inning.

Game MVP: Luis Severino

Severino reminded Yankees fans that he's still got it, striking out seven over 5.0 IP. The right-hander allowed two runs on four hits and five walks, with both runs and three of the hits coming in the first inning.

Highlights

Cody Bellinger drops in a base hit to get the Yankees on the board! pic.twitter.com/YkHCePAkt8

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 8, 2026

J.C. Escarra walks in a run! pic.twitter.com/YhsMhaG0Wb

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 8, 2026

Matt Blake has been ejected pic.twitter.com/EjrZnulrLB

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 8, 2026

Jazz Chisholm Jr. at full stretch to deny a base hit! 🎷 pic.twitter.com/GXacWP3CA0

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 9, 2026

What's next

The Yankees wrap up their three-game series with the Athletics on Thursday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.

Ryan Weathers (0-0, 4.50 ERA) will take the mound against LHP Jeffrey Springs(1-0, 2.38 ERA).

Barring an injury to a starting pitcher, it doesn’t appear as if Sean Manaea will be joining the Mets rotation anytime soon.

Despite this stretch of nine straight days with a scheduled game for his team, manager Carlos Mendoza said Wednesday that he’s sticking with a five-man rotation. In spring training, Mendoza had indicated a six-man rotation was a possibility once the Mets got beyond their early off days in the schedule.

“We’re just going to keep guys with their routines,” Mendoza said before the Mets lost 7-2 to the Diamondbacks at Citi Field. “If we need to go that route, we will. But as I am sitting here, we are not planning on going to a six-man.”

With David Peterson removed after the fifth inning, Manaea was utilized in a second straight extended relief appearance.

He allowed two earned runs on five hits and two walks over four innings (70 pitches).

“Each day we’re turning in the right direction,” said Manaea, who was squeezed from the rotation at the end of spring training.

Manaea’s lagging velocity has been part of the issue.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND METS STATS

On this day he averaged 88.4 mph on his four-seam fastball. It was a dip from his previous appearance — he averaged 89.9 mph with that pitch last Thursday.

Manaea was asked for his reaction to hearing he won’t be joining the rotation as a sixth starter.

“No disappointment,” Manaea said. “I am here to help this team win in any way that I can. And right now this is my job to do what I have been doing and I’m very happy doing that.”

Mendoza said the manner in which his starting pitchers have recovered between starts is the biggest factor in wanting to stick with the five-man set.

“We wanted to be flexible and leave it open just in case somebody comes in and says maybe they can use an extra day, then you can always make that adjustment,” Mendoza said. “That was the idea coming out of camp, but here we are now.”

Carson Benge snapped an 0-for-24 with a ninth-inning single.

The hit was Benge’s first in April.

Through four innings, this was an enjoyable game.

Joe Boyle and Colin Rea took two different approaches attacking hitters as each limited the other side to just one run. Boyle made an early mistake missing his location on a putaway sweeper that Nico Hoerner converted into a leadoff home run, but then Boyle quickly rebounded to retire the next batter and then execute that first sequence to Alex Bregman. Boyle did not miss that time and got the well-disciplined veteran on a check swing to strike out. Boyle, for the next three innings, went on to show more growth as he looked to distance himself from his days of wildness mixing in his new sinker and improved sweeper while aggressively attacking the strike zone.

Then, the 5th inning happened and the rather enjoyable game evolved into another cavalcade of self-inflicted problems to completely change the tone of the game.

The fifth inning opened with Boyle being a bit wild inside with his first two pitches before finding the zone again until Carson Kelly tried to pull a Derek Jeter and milk a hit-by-pitch on a ball which clearly hit the knob of the bat. The Rays successfully challenged the play, but Kelly took what felt like a commercial break to redress with his acoutrements. The long delay between pitches may have gotten to Boyle as he missed high on the next pitch and then hung another slider which resulted in a leadoff double to Kelly. The next at bat was a five-pitch walk to Ballesteros with only one of the pitches in the zone which was followed by a similar at bat to Dansby Swanson that loaded the bases with no outs. Those three runners would quickly come around to score on the next pitch that Michael Conforto drove off the centerfield fence with some extra help from the Rays poor defensive execution:

The Rays were charged with two throwing errors on the play, but charging Fraley with a throwing error was questionable in the moment and I’m still not sure how that is an error on him as Taylor Walls did not exactly make himself big for a cutoff throw and the throw scooted by him. The throw at least ended up close to second base, but then Jonathan Aranda doubled down on the miscue throwing wildly by Hunter Feduccia at home in an attempt to nab Dansby Swanson trying to score. Boyle would be allowed to stay in and he retired Matt Shaw in an eight-pitch at bat before Nico Hoerner took a 99-mph fastball off the outer half the other way down the line for a double. Five pitches later, an infield dribbler by Michael Busch was thrown down into the Rays’ bullpen by Feduccia for the third throwing error of the contest leading to the fifth run of the inning and Boyle’s departure after 34 pitches that frame.

Jesse Scholtens would come in to finish the contest and looked as good as Boyle did the first four innings. The Rays offense disappeared in the middle of the game as Colin Rea, Hoby Milner, and Ben Brown retired 12 straight until an 8th inning single by Aranda, a wild pitch by Brown, and a single by Fraley brough in a late run in the 8th. Chandler Simpson got on in the 9th and promptly stole second, but inexplicably tried stealing third with no outs and was thrown out on a perfect peg and tag by the duo of Kelly and Bregman.

Tonight was the third time this month the Rays have committed at least three errors in a contest and the 5th time in their past 25 contests dating back to the late September weekend when they did so in consecutive games against Boston. That is simply unacceptable for any team, let alone one who plans on relying upon pitching and defense to keep them in games.

Losses heading into an off-day always feel doubly painful, and things do not get easier this weekend with the Yankees coming to town with the front of their rotation ready for battle.

It was one of the best games Ron Cey ever played in his MLB career.

And looking back more than 50 years later, he had Davey Lopes partially to thank.

Entering Game 2 of the 1974 National League Championship Series, Cey can still remember struggling to find a feel for his swing.

“I was kinda sluggish and just felt like I didn’t have a lot of energy,” Cey recalled in a phone conversation with The California Post. “I mentioned to Davey, ‘I just don’t feel quick. I don’t feel like I’m getting to the zone very well with bat speed and everything.’”

So, his longtime Dodgers teammate offered a suggestion.

“Back then, I had like a 34/35-ounce Louisville Slugger (bat) I was swinging,” Cey said. “So he reaches over and gives me one of his bats, which were a lot smaller. It felt like a toothpick.”

At first, Cey was hesitant.

“Well, this is almost too small,” the eventual six-time All-Star slugger told his speedy, contact-hitting, four-time All-Star teammate.

Lopes, however, was persistent.

“Just try it out,” he countered. “I’m pretty sure you’ll see a difference.”

Lo and behold, Cey proceeded to go 4 for 5 with two doubles and a homer –– keying an NLCS victory that helped those ‘74 Dodgers reach the World Series.

“I should have done that long before, but I was too stubborn,” said Cey, who switched to a lighter bat model for the rest of his career. “And he changed my mind.”

That was one of the many memories that came flooding back for Cey on Wednesday, after learning Lopes had died at the age of 80 following several years of declining health.

To the rest of the baseball world, Lopes will be remembered for his lengthy list of accomplishments: 1,671 hits, 614 RBI and (most notably) 557 steals over a 16-year playing career that also included one Gold Glove at second base and a 1981 World Series title.

But to those who played with him during a storied decade-long run with the Dodgers, Lopes’ legacy will transcend just his stats.

“He was the catalyst,” Steve Garvey, the 10-time All-Star and 1974 MVP winner, told The California Post in the wake of Lopes’ death. “He was a quiet leader.”

Lopes, Cey, Garvey and Bill Russell, of course, will forever share the closest historical link –– serving as the Dodgers’ starting infield for an MLB-record 8 ½ consecutive seasons from 1973 to their World Series title in 1981.

“When it’s all said and done,” Garvey said, “you could argue it’s the greatest infield in history.”

And it wouldn’t have been the same without Lopes, the undersized second baseman who set the table as the team’s leadoff hitter and menaced opposing teams with his speed on the basepaths.

“He controlled the game at times with his base-stealing capabilities,” Cey said. “He wreaked havoc on defenses … His contributions were immense.”

For all of Lopes’ on-field accolades, however, Cey spent just as much time Wednesday reminiscing on their lifelong friendship away from it.  

They originally met during spring training in 1969, as just a couple young prospects playing a game of pool at the team’s old Vero Beach, Florida, training facility. They remained close for more than half a century to follow, seeing each other in recent years at alumni camps and autograph signings.

As teammates with the Dodgers, Cey joked how “you’d see more of them guys than you do your own family.”

During the 8 ½ years the infield quartet was together, they took pride in a longevity that still hasn’t been matched.

“I think we probably made Tommy Lasorda’s and Walter Alston’s days a lot easier as manager,” Cey said. “Because we played every single day … We were the glue.”

During that time, they helped the Dodgers win four NL pennants, nearly 800 regular-season games and a long-sought championship in 1981.

But while triumphs will long be remembered, so too will the little moments like before that NLCS game in 1974.

“It was real special for all of us to be a part of that, to carve out our own little history and tradition,” Cey said. “We have a unique spot in Dodger history.”

As well as in each others’ lives.

California Post baseball columnist Dylan Hernandez contributed to this report.

Even after David Peterson allowed five runs in the first two innings of Wednesday afternoon’s 7-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, it would be fair to say the New York Mets starting rotation has largely inspired confidence this season.

Only five teams’ rotations have struck out more batters, and two of them have played a full game more than the Mets had as of late Wednesday evening. Nolan McLean has looked ace-ready. Kodai Senga has pitched with more power than he did in 2025. Freddy Peralta has yet to be at his best, and he has still been very good.

But if cracks are going to spread – and when it comes to major league starting pitching, they almost always do – Wednesday offered a glimpse into where they might find room.

After allowing a run on two hits in the first, Peterson was vexed with small ball and pummeled with hits in a four-run second inning before retiring 11 of the last 12 batters he faced. Inconsistency, not total ineffectiveness, has been his undoing: Since he worked in and out of traffic through 5.1 scoreless innings in his first start of the year, Peterson has allowed 10 runs over 9.1 innings in his last two, scattering 15 hits and four walks. His ERA is 6.14.

Two mediocre starts seem like far too small a sample to dislodge a pitcher who was an All-Star in the first half of last season, though Peterson did struggle in the second half. His manager confirmed as much after the game, when asked if he was considering making a change in the rotation.

“As I’m sitting here right now, no,” Mendoza said.

Exactly why Peterson is pitching less effectively seems to be a subject of debate. Mendoza suggested that Peterson was struggling to execute his pitches inside to right-handed hitters, leaving pitches meant to land on his glove side out over the plate.

“When he’s going well,” Mendoza said. “The two-seam comes in, the slider down and in to righties. And like I said, right now, he’s having a hard time.”

Peterson, meanwhile, admitted that while he did require mechanical adjustments after that troublesome second inning, he thought pitch selection, rather than execution, was his problem.

“I don’t think I’ve had a problem executing the pitch,” Peterson said. “I don’t think we’ve gone there enough. I think we’ve relied on the sinker and change-up too much and allowed hitters to sit over the plate. In my eyes, it’s more about usage than it is execution.”

Whatever the issue, Peterson seems likely to get plenty of time to address it. For one thing, none of his potential rotation replacements are currently applying pressure. As recently as spring training, the Mets rotation looked sturdy – maybe even deep. But in the weeks since, a series of worrying developments – none of them remotely catastrophic – have nonetheless whittled at its edges.

Sean Manaea’s velocity still hasn’t come back, and he is trying to rediscover his best stuff in the bullpen while also keeping his pitch counts high enough to start. He allowed two runs on five hits (unaided by a few defensive miscues) in four innings following Peterson on Wednesday, the second straight time he has followed his fellow lefty into a game. 

He said he felt better, that his secondary stuff felt sharper than it had in his last outing – the product, in part, of working on leaning over less so he can rotate through his delivery more easily.

“I thought he was aggressive. The way he was moving on the mound, threw with his delivery,” Mendoza said. “I thought he was good.”

Mendoza initially suggested they would consider reincorporating Manaea into the rotation after a few turns through the rotation. But Wednesday, Mendoza said they will stick with the five starters they have used so far instead.

“It’s just where we’re at right now with this turn, where everyone is at and how they’re bouncing back,” Mendoza said. “I think that’s the bottom line. We wanted to be flexible. We wanted to leave it open just to make sure that [if] somebody comes in and says, ‘Hey man, I might need an extra day,’ then you can always make an adjustment. That was the whole idea coming out of camp.”

Some of the Mets' less convenient would-be rotation options are not knocking forcefully at this exact moment, either. Christian Scott, who looked like an obvious first call-up after a strong spring training, allowed six earned runs in 3.1 innings in his first outing for Triple-A Syracuse. Jonah Tong walked three and allowed four runs in 1.2 innings in his second Syracuse outing, though of course, their samples are minuscule, too. 

Two or three starts do not make a season. The question Peterson will now answer is whether they will become a problem.

Zach Eflin’s season is over before it ever really got going. 

Eflin, 32, underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery, the Orioles announced Wednesday, after he made just one start for the ballclub this season. 

The right-hander threw just 3 ⅔ innings when he took the mound on March 31 against the Rangers before exiting the game with right elbow discomfort. 

He was placed on the 15-day injured list shortly after and underwent an MRI. He then flew to Texas to get a second opinion on imaging from Dr. Keith Meister, who ultimately ended up performing the procedure.

“I feel for Zach,” manager Craig Albernaz told reporters last week, according to the Baltimore Banner. “The whole coaching staff, the whole team, you just feel for him. Heart hurts for him. You never want to see anything happen to any player, especially someone like Zach.” 

It’s a tough break for Eflin, who saw his 2025 season hindered by three separate stints on the IL and didn’t pitch again after July 28.

He underwent back surgery in August. 

Eflin has spent parts of three seasons with the Orioles after arriving in Baltimore in 2024 via a trade with the Rays. 

This offseason, the Orioles re-signed Eflin to a one-year contract worth a guaranteed $10 million, which also included a mutual option for 2027. 

Eflin has spent 11 years in the major leagues, spending the first seven in MLB with the Phillies. 

He spent part of two seasons in Tampa.

During his time with the Orioles, Eflin has posted an 11-7 record with a 4.42 ERA and 104 strikeouts. 

He had a 5.93 ERA in 14 starts during the 2025 season. 

The Orioles are 6-6 and second in the American League East after winning three straight games against the White Sox.

Following the Mets' 7-2 loss to the Diamondbacks on Wednesday, manager Carlos Mendoza and the players spoke about the game...

Sean Manaea was once again tasked with saving the Mets bullpen after David Peterson struggled to get past five innings.

While it wasn't Manaea's finest outing, he was still effective and helped the get the final 12 outs of the game to save the relievers for Thursday's rubber game against Arizona.

"Each day is trending in the right direction," Manaea said after the game. "Changeup and sweeper were really good. Sinker, I kinda lost it there [in the eighth inning], but overall I thought things are trending in the right direction."

Thursday marked Manaea's 10th career relief appearance of at least four innings and his third overall this season. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks against the Diamondbacks. 

Manaea said that he's doing a lot of different drills to potentially make him feel better. He said that every day, there's a plan for him and he just executes it. 

Prior to first pitch, Mendoza said he doesn't plan to go to a six-man rotation. He reiterated that after the game, and was asked whether Manaea could replace a struggling Peterson in the rotation. The Mets skipper said that's not in his plan and they will continue to go with the same rotation they started the season with.

Manaea has learned to be comfortable in his new role.

"I’m here to help this team win any way I can," Manaea said. "My job is to do what I’ve been doing. I’m very happy doing that. Like I said before, we have five really good starting pitchers. I can help any way I can."

"[Manaea was] Good, able to keep us there," Mendoza said of his reliever. "Couple of plays we couldn’t make, gave up a couple of runs there. He was aggressive... I thought he was good."

Luis Robert Jr. unable to make the play

Those "couple play" Mendoza mentioned came in the eighth inning. 

First, Robert Jr. nearly made a sliding catch in center but trapped it, allowing Ildemaro Vargas to get on with one out. Three batters later, and with the bases loaded, Jorge Barrosa lined a pitch to centerfield. The ball continued to travel toward the wall and Robert Jr. seemed to have a bead on it, but when he put his glove up to catch it, the ball bounced off it and fell for a double. 

"He got there. Maybe that ball just kept on going and it went further than he anticipated," Mendoza said of the double. "He got there, he just missed it." 

The two plays cost Manaea and the Mets two runs.

Hip, hip, Jorge 🎉 pic.twitter.com/WWDQejO5OZ

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) April 8, 2026

Benge gets off the schneid

Carson Benge has struggled since Opening Day. He was 0-for-24 heading into the ninth inning of Wednesday's game. Benge got back on the hits board with a single through the right side.

"Yesterday, there were better at-bats. His work today was a lot better," Mendoza said of Benge. "Shorter, barrel going through the heart of the zone. The path was better. Good to see him get that hit right there. He’s going to be fine."

Benge has had a tough start to the season. He's slashing .108/.214/.403 with one home run and three RBI.