Monday's win against the Pittsburgh Pirates was about as complete of a team-win as the Mets could have asked for.
It had everything -- defense, pitching, baserunning, coaching, all resulting in Pete Alonso's walk-off sacrifice fly to improve the team's home record to 16-4 this season. Four of those wins have come in walk-off fashion.
Let's start with the defense.
In the eighth inning, with New York having just taken a 3-2 lead, Brandon Nimmo made a leaping catch at the wall in left field to rob Joey Bart of a game-tying home run against Dedniel Nuñez. It was Nimmo's second home-run robbing catch of the season as the outfielder has made a habit of thievery during his Mets career, especially at Citi Field.
"I knew that if I could get a really good jump on it I would have a great shot of catching it," Nimmo said. "I think that relative comfort with your home field, it helps you to be able to go and make those plays."
For how impressive Nimmo's catch was, it wasn't the only great defensive play New York made in the field. Brett Baty made a beautiful snag to his left at third base and threw the runner out at first to keep a run from scoring in the fifth and the Mets turned a pretty double play in the top of the ninth to end the inning and keep things tied.
What about pitching?
On a night facing off against one of the game's best young pitchers in Paul Skenes, David Peterson matched him and went six terrific innings to keep New York in the game as the two starters were locked in a pitcher's duel.
"I think it’s always fun when you go up against someone’s best and you get into a pitcher’s duel," Peterson said. "It’s fun when you’re just trading blows like that and the offenses are grinding...
"In games like that it’s kind of a matter of us as the pitching staff holding it together where it is and giving the offense the opportunity to finally break through and be able to score enough runs to win the game."
Speaking of the offense, that brings us to baserunning.
Down 2-1 entering the bottom of the seventh inning, the Mets got to work with the lower part of the lineup proving crucial. Pinch-hitter Tyrone Taylor got on thanks to a hit-by-pitch and then stole second base. Luisangel Acuña followed with an infield hit, outhustling the pitcher to the first base bag on a grounder to the first baseman, to put runners on the corners.
After Taylor scored to tie the game on a groundout, Acuña also came around after the ball deflected off the Pirates' third baseman's glove on a single. Unaware at first of how far the ball had trickled away, Acuña was sent home by third base coach Mike Sarbaugh who read it all the way. Coaching? Check.
"I’m always trying to impact the game in my defense, in my baserunning and anything I can do," Acuña said through an interpreter.
"His speed is electric," added Alonso, whose single deflected off Ke'Bryan Hayes' glove. "He causes a ton of havoc on the base paths. He’s a burner and having that skillset is huge for us. Any time he’s on base he causes so much pressure on the defense."
Even when things didn't go as planned for New York, like Huascar Brazoban blowing the save opportunity in the ninth, the team still found a way to rebound almost immediately.
Francisco Lindor, after his error in the top half of the ninth led to the tying run to score, reached thanks to an error by the Pirates. But given just a little bit of leeway, the Mets have made teams pay this season which is what happened when Juan Soto singled to put runners on first and third before Alonso's sacrifice fly won it.
"We don’t give up. We’re a scrappy bunch," Alonso said. "Yeah we got guys who can drive the ball out of the yard, we got guys who can put up some good numbers offensively and hit the ball a long way and stuff like that, but at the end of the day our identity is we’re just a scrappy team. We fight til the last out and that’s just who we are."
"I think we did a lot of good things today," Mendoza added. "... As a whole, yes we’re a good team but we’re a good team not just because we’ve got good players, we’re going out there and we’re executing."
The Mets won in walk-off fashion on Monday night, beating the Pittsburgh Pirates by a score of 4-3 thanks to Pete Alonso's sacrifice fly.
Here are the takeaways...
-New York got a taste of last year's NL Rookie of the Year in Paul Skenes, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft who entered the contest with a 2.77 ERA, and the 22-year-old lived up to the billing.
Even with Skenes not at his best, particularly early in the game, the right-hander was still able to hold the Mets to just one run over six innings, despite dealing with traffic on the bases in five of those innings. In fact, New York got the leadoff man on three times in the first four innings but couldn't do more damage against the youngster.
-The Mets broke through in the fourth inning after Brandon Nimmo led off with a screaming double off the wall in right-center before trading places with Jeff McNeil who hit his first double of the season down the right field line to tie the game at 1-1.
-Coming into the game, David Peterson was likely going to need to match Skenes for New York to have a chance and the left-hander did just that.
After a solo homer by Isiah Kiner-Falefa in the second inning, Peterson retired the next 10 hitters in a row before Jared Triolo ended that streak with a double in the fifth. A two-out single would put runners on the corners, but Peterson struck out Bryan Reynolds to end the inning and let out a burst of emotion heading off the mound as the game remained tied.
-A pitcher's duel for most of the night, things got hairy once the bullpens were deployed. It started in the top of the seventh inning afterPeterson began the frame by walking the only batter he faced following a 10-pitch at-bat. Manager Carlos Mendoza turned to Jose Buttó after that, but he wasn't able to strand the runner.
With a runner at second following a stolen base, Buttó was playing close attention and after throwing over twice he disengaged a third time without getting the baserunner who was then awarded third base. After a walk, Reynolds hit into a force out that scored a run that wouldn't have had the runner stayed at second base.
-The Mets returned the favor in the bottom half of the inning, scoring the tying and go-ahead run thanks to three close plays that all went their way. First, after pinch-hitter Tyrone Taylor was hit by a pitch, he immediately stole second by getting his hand on the base just before the tag. Luisangel Acuña followed with an infield hit, beating the pitcher to first base by a hair, to put runners on the corners.
A Juan Soto groundout tied the game before Pete Alonso singled on a ball that was deflected by third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes. With Acuña running, the speedster kept going after the deflection and slid into home plate before the catcher was able to slap the tag which gave New York its first lead of the night.
-Dedniel Nuñez pitched the eighth inning and was saved by Nimmo who robbed Joey Bart of a home run at the left field wall to start the frame. Nuñez ended up pitching a 1-2-3 inning in his third appearance since returning from the IL.
-Without Edwin Diaz, Mendoza turned to Huascar Brazoban for the final three outs, but the right-hander allowed a run on two hits and an error by Francisco Lindor. With runners on the corners, the Mets turned an inning-ending double play to keep the game tied.
-Right after making a costly error in the top half, Lindor reached base in the bottom half thanks to an error by Kiner-Falefa, Pittsburgh's shortstop. That allowed New York's offense to get to work with Soto hitting a single to put runners at the corners for Alonso who hit a sacrifice fly to give the Mets their fourth walk-off win of the season.
Game MVP: Luisangel Acuña
Even with just a 1-for-4 night, Acuña's speed changed the game and allowed the Mets to come back the first time before Alonso won it for them in the ninth.
It’s been a long road back for DJ LeMahieu, but it appears he’s officially ready to return.
The veteran infielder is expected to be activated from the injured list prior to Tuesday night’s game and he’ll be back in the Yankees' lineup for Wednesday’s series finale against the Mariners, manager Aaron Boone said.
LeMahieu is with the team in Seattle, but they’ll wait one more day to officially activate him.
“I think he’s in a good spot,” Boone told reporters pregame Monday. “I feel like his ramp-up’s been good. He’s had a pretty good long runway of build up. I feel like he’s ready to go and hopefully ready to contribute.”
The oft-injured LeMahieu has missed the first 40 games of the season due to a left calf strain he suffered during his second spring training at-bat.
He's been progressing well over the past couple of weeks and has impressed during his recent minor league rehab appearances -- going 12-for-27 with a pair of extra base-hits while playing the full game in the field.
The expectation is that he'll see the bulk of the playing time at second until Jazz Chisholm returns from injury, and then he'll share duties with Oswaldo Cabrera at the hot corner, as long as he can stay healthy.
"The biggest thing is health,” Boone said. "DJ can fall out of bed and hit. The biggest thing that’s tripped him up over the years is just the different nagging injuries that have popped up on him and have slowed him.
"Obviously, he’s a little older now, but I always feel like guys that can really hit like him, if you’re healthy you can usually really hit late in your career. So hopefully he can come and be a real contributor for us."
SAN FRANCISCO — Justin Verlander probably is tired of being asked about it. And for good reason.
For the fifth time this season, the 42-year-old pitched well enough to earn his first win in a Giants uniform. And for the fifth time this season, he was denied the decision.
After nine starts, Verlander (262 career wins) still sits 38 wins away from the exclusive 300-win club. Now in his 20th MLB season, the three-time Cy Young Award winner is running out of time to notch Ws, and his team isn’t doing him any favors.
Verlander (L, 6 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, BB, 5 K) once again pitched well in the Giants’ 2-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday at Oracle Park, and once again, local media found themselves asking San Francisco manager Bob Melvin a similar version of a question he’s been asked a handful of times already this season.
“Again, it’s about losing the game,” Melvin said when asked how frustrating it was not to reward Verlander with a win. “I think it’s just when you keep pitching well, literally it was just two balls off of [Corbin] Carroll’s bat. Other than that, he pitched into the seventh inning, so he’s given us quality starts the last four times or so.”
Verlander did surrender nine hits, so he wasn’t his sharpest, but two of those hits, solo home runs off the bat of Carroll in the third and fifth innings, were enough to earn an “L” next to his name.
That’s typically not the case for a starting pitcher who surrenders two or fewer runs over six innings of work, but for Verlander, that’s how the cookie, or the Giants’ lineup, has crumbled for him.
“It’s one of the tough things about being a starting pitcher, you know? You want to win baseball games,” Verlander said postgame. “You have the exact same outing and you win, you feel really good when you go home, versus this one you don’t feel nearly as good.”
Despite not recording a win himself, Verlander has been able to celebrate team wins (May 6 vs. Chicago, April 9 vs. Cincinnati, April 4 vs. Seattle) after some of his outings. That first winning decision, though, will feel different. Even if his routine afterward remains the same, regardless of a win or a loss.
“Go home, watch a TV show, have a glass of wine,” Verlander said of his post-start routine. “Get ready for tomorrow. Come in early, start getting ready for my next start.”
Pitcher wins, for the majority of fans, and even players, hold very little value in the year 2025. And for good reason. For Verlander, however, that’s not the case.
All he can do moving forward is give his team a chance to win. Which he’s done time and time again this season. Eventually they will reward him.
SAN FRANCISCO — The Arizona Diamondbacks called up top prospect Jordan Lawlar on Monday as they fight for position in the National League West division.
The D-backs also reinstated reliever Kendall Graveman to the active roster. The veteran right-hander hasn’t pitched this season because of a strained right lumbar.
The 22-year-old Lawlar likely will play a variety of positions for Arizona, including second base, shortstop and third. He was hitting .336 with six homers, 31 RBIs and 13 stolen bases at Triple-A Reno.
The Diamondbacks had a 21-20 record entering Monday’s game in San Francisco, which was fourth in NL West behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Giants.
Lawlar played in the big leagues briefly in 2023, helping the Diamondbacks in a limited role during their surprise run to the World Series. He hit .129 in 31 at-bats.
The No. 6 overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft missed much of last season with injuries.
To make room on the roster, the D-backs designated infielder Garrett Hampson and reliever José Castillo for assignment.
SAN FRANCISCO — The only thing colder than a summer night at Oracle Park is the Giants’ offense right now.
Manager Bob Melvin made some noticeable adjustments to his starting lineup on Tuesday in an effort to jumpstart San Francisco’s struggling offense, but the result was more of the same, as the Giants lost 2-1 to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Giants sent Justin Verlander to the mound against Diamondbacks righty Merrill Kelly (W, 7 IP, 8 H, ER, 0 BB, 8 K) as they looked to snap a three-game losing streak. Spoiler alert: They did not.
Here are three takeaways from the Giants’ fourth consecutive loss that drops them to 24-18:
Doing Everything He Can
Verlander (L, 6 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, BB, 5 K), who continues on his unlikely journey to 300 career wins, has pitched well enough to earn at least three wins so far this season, but the Giants have continued to find creative ways to spoil each one.
He toed the rubber against a Diamondbacks team that he historically has pitched well against throughout his career.
Verlander was 5-2 with a 3.14 ERA with 58 strikeouts and a 1.13 WHIP in 48 2/3 career innings pitched against Arizona, and that trend continued on Monday.
Outside of two solo home runs off the bat of Diamondbacks star Corbin Carroll in the third and fifth innings, Verlander, as he has been over his last five starts, was excellent.
Different City, Different Team, Same Ramos
Heliot Ramos has been just about the only bright spot on offense for the Giants lately. He has been on fire since April 26, batting .419 with 11 runs, three doubles, four homers, nine RBI, five walks and a 1.267 OPS over his last 13 games.
He showed no signs of slowing down in the series opener on Monday, recording three hits in his first three at-bats against Kelly. He very easily could have had four hits in the game if not for an absurdly acrobatic catch by Arizona left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the bottom of the eighth.
Not only has he been on fire offensively, but Ramos has been excellent defensively after making minor adjustments to his approach in left field. After making two impressive diving catches in Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Twins, Ramos made perhaps his best catch of the season in the top of the eighth.
Unfortunately for the Giants, one player only can do so much.
They Tried, It Didn’t Work
Melvin strayed from his and the team’s consistently harped-on theme of roster continuity this season.
Matt Chapman, who primarily has hit fourth, moved up into the second spot in the lineup, previously held by Willy Adames, who moved down to the six hole. Ramos, usually in the fifth or sixth spot, moved up to third in the order, while Jung Hoo Lee, usually third in the lineup, moved down to cleanup.
Meanwhile, utility man Wilmer Flores started at first base in place of the struggling LaMonte Wade Jr., who, according to Melvin, just received a day off.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying, but Melvin’s adjustments didn’t result in much offense.
There was a two-week period in March when it looked like Matt Strahm might not be ready for Opening Day. He was dealing with an impingement and bone bruise in his left shoulder which explained why his fastball velocity was down from a 93.6 mph average last season to just above 91 early in the spring.
The Phillies backed off Strahm and he didn’t pitch in Grapefruit League games after March 5. Surprisingly, though, he was ready for the March 27 opener in Washington D.C. and pitched that evening, closing out a win with a scoreless 10th inning.
Strahm wasn’t charged with a run until his eighth appearance of the season but hasn’t pitched well over the last month, allowing six earned runs (eight total) in 9⅓ innings with a .341 opponents’ batting average. That is not the Matt Strahm the Phillies have come to know since 2023. He excelled in multiple roles his first year with the Phils then was one of the best late-inning relievers in baseball last season, earning an All-Star nod along the way.
The Phillies turned to Strahm in the seventh inning of a tie game Monday night in their series opener against the surging Cardinals. Strahm retired the first two hitters he faced with a strikeout and lineout but missed a spot belt-high and over the middle to Masyn Winn, who homered on an 0-1 count for the game’s deciding run. The pitch was a 91 mph fastball. Strahm pounded his glove immediately, knowing it was gone.
The Phillies lost, 3-2, to a Cardinals team that has won nine in a row.
Strahm was behind the eight-ball to start the year and acknowledged last week in Tampa that he hasn’t felt quite like himself.
“Still working through things,” he said Thursday night. “It was obviously a weird spring for me but it’s getting too late to make excuses.”
It’s not like the overall performance has been poor — Strahm has a 3.24 ERA on the year and has allowed two of five inherited runners to score. He’s been able to record outs even without his best stuff. But the difference in reliability has stood out when combined with the early-season shakiness of Orion Kerkering (seven runs in his last nine innings) and Jordan Romano, who has ripped off five straight scoreless appearances after having four blow-up outings in his first nine.
“Velocity’s down a little bit and he left that pitch Winn hit out up and over the plate so he missed a spot,” manager Rob Thomson said. “Velocity’s down a little bit but I thought overall, his stuff and his execution was better other than that one pitch.”
The Phillies are 24-17 and brought five straight series wins into a homestand against the Cardinals and Pirates, but there have been times this season when they’ve been too dependent on their starting pitchers and Jose Alvarado. They need the other relievers to be effective for more than a few games in a row, especially if they want to keep their most important arms as fresh as possible for October.
Long-term, the Phillies need to get the bullpen right, though Monday’s loss was more about the offense. The Phils had nine hits and scored only twice, going 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Their only extra-base hit was a one-out double in the fourth inning from J.T. Realmuto, who scored the Phils’ first run and drove in their second with a groundout with runners on the corners in the sixth.
Former Phillies reliever JoJo Romero picked up one of the game’s most important outs, popping up Bryson Stott on two pitches to end the eighth inning with the tying and go-ahead runs on base. Romero was traded to the Cardinals for Edmundo Sosa at the 2022 deadline. Ryan Helsley closed it out. He’s been a popular trade candidate connected to the Phillies but St. Louis might be playing too well to deal him this summer.
The Phils are 1-3 against the Cardinals this season. They’ve hit .177, scored six runs total, haven’t homered and averaged under two walks per game. They face St. Louis’ top arm, Sonny Gray, on Tuesday night. Asked postgame if the Cards are attacking the Phillies any differently than other teams have, Kyle Schwarber referenced the depth of their pitchers’ arsenals and penchant for being around the zone. Thomson agreed.
“They’ve pitched well,” Thomson said. “They have a group of guys that keep you off balance, they’ve got good secondary pitches and that’s what they do, they throw strikes. They’re not going to give you free passes, so we have to make the adjustment.”
Mets left-hander Sean Manaea continues to progress well from his right oblique strain after experiencing discomfort while ramping up his throwing that caused him to be shut down for two weeks.
Manaea threw off the mound for the first time in his recovery process, getting up to 15 pitches, manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters before Monday's game between the Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates.
It's a huge step toward a return to the big league club for Manaea, who signed a three-year, $75 million deal to return to New York during the offseason.
Meanwhile, Paul Blackburn is also nearing a return to the Mets as the right-hander will pitch again on Friday for Triple-A Syracuse, per Mendoza.
"I think he was four [innings], 65 [pitches]," Mendoza said. "I’m not sure what’s the pitch count, we’re waiting to check with him when he gets in here today and tomorrow. But the plan is for him to make another rehab [start] on Friday."
Blackburn is coming off his second rehab start for Triple-A on Sunday where he allowed three earned runs on four hits in three innings. He walked three and struck out two.
When asked if Friday's start will be the last one before Blackburn returns to the majors, Mendoza said "we'll see."
"We gotta see how he’s feeling today and the next couple of days and then we’ll go from there," the skipper added.
Featured in this week’s MLB Power Rankings, Tarik Skubal is close to perfect, Jasson Dominguez makes history, the Cardinals and Twins are streaking, the Jung brothers square off on Mother’s Day Weekend, and the Pirates and Rockies change managers.
Let’s get started!
(Please note these power rankings are a combination of current performance and long-term projected outlook)
**Rankings are from the morning of Monday, May 12**
1) Los Angeles Dodgers
Last week: 1
Freddie Freeman is the hottest hitter on the planet right now. Despite an ankle injury that isn’t 100 percent, the 35-year-old is hitting .475 with five homers and 22 RBI over his last 16 games. He has 10 multi-hit games during that span and has raised his season batting average from .250 to .376 along the way.
2) San Diego Padres
Last week: 2
On Saturday night, Stephen Kolek threw a shutout at Coors Field as the Padres crushed the Rockies 21-0. It was the largest margin of victory for the Padres in franchise history and one of the most lopsided shutout wins of all-time.
largest wins in a pitcher’s individual shutout:
8/21/1883 Old Hoss Radbourn 28-0, Providence Grays 6/28/1887 Charlie J. Ferguson 24-0, PHI 5/27/1885 Mickey Welch 24-0, NYG 7/6/1883 Will White 23-0, CIN Today Stephen Kolek 21-0, SD 8/13/39 Red Ruffing 21-0, NYY (8 inn) 9/15/1901…
After running away with the Cy Young Award last season, Tarik Skubal has been even better so far this season. The southpaw owns a 2.08 ERA through eight starts and carried a perfect game into the sixth inning in his most recent start against the Rangers on Friday.
Tarik Skubal generated 32 whiffs today - the most by any pitcher in a start this season! pic.twitter.com/ihatlZH4if
New York sports talk radio was having a cow over the first few weeks of the season, but it turns out that Juan Soto is going to be just fine. What a concept! Soto is slashing .282/.383/.718 with five homers through 10 games this month.
5) New York Yankees ⬆️
Last week: 8
Joe DiMaggio was the youngest player in Yankees history to hit three home runs in a game…until Jasson Dominguez pulled off the feat against the Athletics on Saturday.
First career 2-homer game ✅ First career 3-homer game ✅
The Cubs have cooled a bit over the past week having lost back-to-back series. Their high-powered offense has been held to two runs or fewer in three of out their lost four games, but the back-end of the bullpen is the real concern here.
7) Philadelphia Phillies ⬆️
Last week: 9
I already deemed Freddie Freeman as the hottest hitter on the planet, but Kyle Schwarber is in the middle of something special right now. After his two-homer game on Sunday against the Guardians on Sunday, he’s now reached base in 46 consecutive games. That’s the longest such streak by a Phillies player since Bobby Abreu from 2000-2001.
The Giants were swept by the suddenly red-hot Twins over the weekend despite Heliot Ramos’ best efforts. The 24-year-old has homered in back-to-back games and is slashing .419/.500/.767 over his last 13 contests.
9) Cleveland Guardians ⬆️
Last week: 10
Awesome moment from the Mother’s Day edition of the Sunday Night Baseball broadcast, as Stephen Vogt’s wife, Alyssa, asked him a very important question.
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) May 12, 2025
I so felt that pause and momentary panic from Mr. Vogt. Also, how cool is it that the manager also gets the sunflower seed treatment from his players/coaches? It’s good to be humbled.
10) Kansas City Royals ⬆️
Last week: 12
The Royals remain one of the hottest teams in the majors despite dropping back-to-back games to the Red Sox to close out the weekend. Led by a pitching staff with the second-lowest ERA in the majors, Kansas City is 16-4 over their last 20 games.
11) Seattle Mariners ⬇️
Last week: 7
The Mariners were swept by the Blue Jays over the weekend, including another distressing start from Bryce Miller. The good news is that George Kirby is inching his way back to the Mariners’ rotation as he returns from shoulder inflammation. He made his second rehab start on Saturday and could be back with the Mariners next week.
12) Boston Red Sox ⬆️
Last week: 13
In the wake of his very public and awkward rejection of playing first base, Rafael Devers is 9-for-15 (.600) with two homers and eight RBI over his last four games. He slugged an absolute bomb of a go-ahead homer on Sunday as the Red Sox cooled down the Royals.
13) St. Louis Cardinals ⬆️
Last week: 23
Our biggest riser of the past week, the Cardinals have won eight straight to surge into second place in the NL Central, just one game behind the Cubs. Victor Scott II has been right in the middle of it, as he’s hit safely in 11 straight games. With his elite range in center field and his top-tier speed, the Cardinals have found themselves a keeper.
14) Arizona Diamondbacks ⬇️
Last week: 11
It was great to see Corbin Burnes bounce back after his recent shoulder scare, but the biggest news to start the week is that top prospect Jordan Lawlar is reportedly on the way to join the big club. The 22-year-old has been quiet with the bat this month in Triple-A, but still owns a healthy .336/.413/.579 batting line with six homers and 13 steals across 37 games on the year. He’ll presumably bounce around the infield to start, giving breathers to Ketel Marte, Geraldo Perdomo, and Eugenio Suárez.
15) Atlanta Braves
Last week: 15
The Braves have had a couple of chances over the past week to reach the .500 mark, but have fallen short. Still, they are 19-14 since that 0-7 start to the season.
16) Minnesota Twins ⬆️
Last week: 24
The other big riser of the week, the Twins have also won eight straight to climb over .500. Am I a jinx for saying that Byron Buxton is on pace for a 30-30 season? Unfortunately for the Twins, everyone else in the AL Central (outside of the White Sox, anyway) have also been playing well.
17) Houston Astros
Last week: 17
The Astros have yet to be more than three games over .500 or two games under .500, so they continue to sit in the middle of the pack. Getting a healthy Yordan Alvarez back could help push them back into contention. Alvarez, who is working his way back from a muscle strain in his hand, could potentially return from the injured list this week.
18) Texas Rangers ⬇️
Last week: 14
In a fun scheduling quirk, the Jung brothers (Rangers third baseman Josh Jung and Tigers infielder Jace Jung) squared off on Mother’s Day weekend. The brothers were both playing third base on Saturday, so naturally they played a game of Tic-Tac-Toe. Josh homered on Mother’s Day, so he gets the edge this time.
After giving up seven runs or more in all three games against the Yankees this weekend, the Athletics now have a 5.81 ERA (28th in MLB) at home this season as opposed to a 3.74 ERA (sixth-best) on the road.
20) Milwaukee Brewers ⬇️
Last week: 19
In a 4-for-39 slump going into Sunday’s action, Christian Yelich decided to switch it up by using a pink bat to honor his mom. And sure enough, he went yard. Sources say that if he doesn’t keep using it, he’s grounded.
Christian Yelich hit an opposite field solo homer with his pink Mother’s Day bat with his mom’s name, Alecia. pic.twitter.com/Fb77MhmwHG
The Blue Jays might have something in Addison Barger. While it isn’t apparent from his results so far, the 25-year-old hits the ball extremely hard. Among players with at least 25 batted ball events, he ranks third among hitters in average exit velocity, behind Shohei Ohtani and Oneil Cruz, and ahed of Aaron Judge, Rafael Devers, and Pete Alonso. Not too shabby.
The Reds have lost seven out of nine, as well as their ace Hunter Greene due to a groin strain. Fortunately, the injury shouldn’t keep him on the shelf for long.
23) Tampa Bay Rays ⬇️
Last week: 20
Give the Rays some credit for their creativity. They gave out commemorative ponchos for their first-ever rain delay on Saturday.
The Rays took two out of three from the Brewers this weekend, giving them their first series win at home since April 11-13.
24) Washington Nationals
Last week: 24
While the final line didn’t show it, Michael Soroka pitched well in his return from the injured list last Wednesday against the Guardians, striking out eight before running out of steam late. This week, he’ll face the Braves (his former team) for the first time in his career.
25) Baltimore Orioles
Last week: 25
Things aren’t looking a heck of a lot better here even after taking two out of three form the Angels over the weekend, but one bright spot has been the recent progress from 21-year-old Jackson Holliday. With a recent change in his batting stance, he’s hitting .324 with two homers and a double over his last 11 games. He’s starting to earn a more prominent place in the order for a team who needs a boost in the worst way.
26) Los Angeles Angels
Last week: 26
No team has struck out more often than the Angels this season (27 percent). And making matters worse, they also have the lowest walk rate (six percent) in the majors.
27) Miami Marlins ⬆️
Last week: 28
Sandy Alcantara has been speculated as an obvious trade candidate this summer, but the results haven’t been there so far. He actually looked great on Sunday against the White Sox until serving up a go-ahead three-run home to rookie slugger Tim Elko. Still, a step in the right direction for the former Cy Young Award winner.
28) Pittsburgh Pirates ⬇️
Last week: 27
Derek Shelton took the fall last week for the Pirates’ miserable start to the season. The failure goes well beyond anything Shelton did, but ownership can’t fire themselves. The club took two out of three from the Braves over the weekend under interim manager (and former bench coach) Don Kelly, so the Pittsburgh-area native is off to a good start.
29) Chicago White Sox
Last week: 29
The White Sox have Pope Leo XIV on their side, which should provide some hope to fans, no?
Before he became the Pope, he was cheering on the White Sox at Game 1 of the 2005 World Series on FOX pic.twitter.com/7I3GROAXYR
The Rockies made a managerial change of their own this weekend, as they parted ways with longtime skipper Bud Black. The change comes on the heels of an embarrassing 21-0 loss to the Padres on Saturday night, though at least Black got to go out as a winner on Sunday.
Its Monday, May 12 and the Rockies (7-33) are in Arlington to take on the Rangers (20-21). Chase Dollander is slated to take the mound for Colorado against Tyler Mahle for Texas.
The Colorado Rockies won yesterday, ending their game losing streak. The nine runs the Rockies scored yesterday are the most since the middle of April.
The Rangers won their series against the Tigers 2-1 with a win yesterday. Nathan Eovaldi was phenomenal on the mound. He didn't give up a run in the 7.0 innings he pitched and only walked one batter, and struck out seven.
Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
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Odds for the Rockies at the Rangers
The latest odds as of Monday:
Moneyline: Rockies (+228), Rangers (-281)
Spread: Rangers -1.5
Total: 8.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Rockies at Rangers
Pitching matchup for May 12, 2025: Chase Dollander vs. Tyler Mahle
Rangers: Tyler Mahle, (3-1, 1.48 ERA) Last outing (Boston Red Sox, 5/7): 5.0 Innings Pitched, 2 Earned Runs Allowed, 4 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 0 Strikeouts
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Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Rockies at Rangers
The Rangers have won 3 straight home games against the Rockies
The Rangers have failed to cover in their last 3 games against the Rockies
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Rockies and the Rangers
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Monday's game between the Rockies and the Rangers:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Texas Rangers on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Colorado Rockies at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 8.0.
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San Diego Padres manager Bud Black, right, on the field with Angels manager Mike Scioscia in 2015. Black, the Angels' pitching coach when they won the World Series in 2002, was fired on Sunday as Colorado Rockies manager. (John Cordes / Getty Images)
When Bud Black was fired as manager of the Colorado Rockies on Sunday, the last limb of the acclaimed Mike Scioscia coaching tree was snapped off and stacked on the mulch pile.
Joe Maddon remains out of work after being fired by the Angels in 2022. Scott Servais was canned by the Seattle Mariners last year. Ron Roenicke hasn't managed since 2020.
Black, who managed the San Diego Padres for eight-plus seasons before lasting another eight-plus seasons with the mostly hapless Rockies, boasts his own coaching tree. And one particular branch has become strapping and sturdy: Dave Roberts.
Black mentored the Dodgers manager from 2011-2015 as a Padres coach, and they remain close friends.
But the winds of change in Colorado caused this particular branch in Blue to rattle and sway.
“I'm bummed. I'm disappointed. I don’t think Casey Stengel could change the outcome of that ballclub,’’ a perturbed Roberts told reporters Sunday. “That’s not the manager’s fault. Obviously, they felt they needed a change in voice or direction, but for me, there’s not many people that are better than Buddy Black. It’s very disappointing. It’s certainly not his doing.’’
The Rockies sent Black out a winner, defeating the Padres 9-3 on Sunday, but remain historically bad, posting a 7-33 record that includes three eight-game losing streaks and projects to a finish of 29-133 that would be the worst by any team since 1899. Only four other teams lost 33 of their first 40 games: the 1904 Washington Senators, 1928 Philadelphia Phillies, 1932 Boston Red Sox and 1988 Baltimore Orioles.
Roberts disparaging the Rockies was a bit surprising because it was akin to someone telling Mother Teresa to take a hike. A visit from Colorado cures ills. Struggling pitchers are revived. Slumps stop. But Roberts' mentor and friend had devolved over two decades from Angels' World Series champion pitching coach to Dodgers punching bag.
Case in point: The Dodgers hosted the Rockies for a three-game series in mid-April after they'd lost six of the previous nine games, including an embarrassing 16-0 defeat to the Chicago Cubs two days before Black and Co. arrived. Et voila! The Dodgers won all three, jump-starting a 16-8 stretch that continues with a homestand beginning Tuesday.
They don't play Colorado again until June 24, when presumably Warren Schaeffer — the Rockies' third-base coach until today — will remain interim manager. It is doubtful that his purple-clad charges will be much better than they were under Black.
Black, 67, led the Rockies to playoff berths in 2017 and 2018, but they haven’t had a winning season since and are well on their way to a third consecutive 100-loss season. They are already 19.5 games behind the first-place Dodgers in the NL West, and their minus-128 run differential is nearly double that of the next closest team. They are batting a dismal .219, and the ERA of the starting rotation is an MLB-worst 5.77.
“Our play so far this season, especially coming off the last two seasons, has been unacceptable. Our fans deserve better, and we are capable of better,” Rockies owner Dick Monfort said Sunday in a statement.
Some of the underachieving Rockies players don't blame Black, whose even-keel temperament, attention to detail and empathetic communication skills made him a respected leader. And everyone knows the first to go in troubled times is the manager.
“It’s tough, I don’t think it was Buddy’s fault, much,” Rockies infielder Ryan McMahon told the Denver Post. “We didn’t play to our capabilities, but this is the direction the organization decided to go, so we’ll roll with it. …
“Hey, it might be a kick in the ass. Like, heads up! We’re in a spot where we need to make some moves and start doing some stuff, or things like this are going to happen.”
Black had a strong track record when he took the Rockies reins in 2017. He was the Angels' pitching coach when they won their only World Series in 2002 and made the postseason three times in his six years. He was the National League Manager of the Year in 2010 with the Padres. A left-handed pitcher for five teams in 15 years, posting a 3.84 earned-run average over more than 2,000 innings, he won a World Series with the Kansas City Royals in 1985.
Colorado made the postseason in Black's first two years as manager, but did not come close to .500 since then. He approximated his mentor, Scioscia, in managerial longevity but not in accomplishments. Scioscia, the Angels manager for 19 seasons, stepped down in 2018 and hasn't returned to a major league dugout, although he was head coach of the bronze-winning USA team in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Nobody can adequately explain why so few pitchers become managers, let alone successful ones, but Black lasted longer than just about any other. Dodgers legend Tommy Lasorda is easily the most decorated. California native Bob Lemon won a World Series with the Yankees.
Black's tally stands at 649-713, a .477 winning percentage. He didn't address the media on Sunday, but his players ducked into his office one by one to say goodbye. Left-handed starter Kyle Freeland was probably closest to Black; his rookie year in 2017 coincided with the manager's arrival.
“I have a lot of different emotions right now,” Freeland said, referencing fired bench coach Mark Redmond along with Black. “I have been with Buddy and Red my entire career. Both are great guys, and they have been in my corner my entire career. I love both those guys."
A pair of Mets top prospects are taking home some hardware, as Rumble Ponies right-hander Jonah Tong and first baseman Ryan Clifford have been named Eastern League Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively.
Tong, 21, earned his second Pitcher of the Week award after delivering 6.2 spotless innings in what turned into a combined perfect game on Saturday against Reading. Tong, SNY contributor Joe DeMayo’s No. 7 overall prospect in the Mets’ system, struck out 13 batters and leads all Eastern League pitchers with 51 punchouts on the season.
Tong now has a 2.57 ERA over his six starts this season, in what has been his first taste of Double-A ball.
As for Clifford, the mashing first baseman went 9-for-19 in the series against Reading, launching three home runs with nine RBI, five runs scored, and a 1.500 OPS over the five games.
Clifford, SNY’s No. 4 Mets prospect, now has six home runs on the season, tied for fourth most in the Eastern League.
Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers’ wild week ended with a reminder that he remains one of MLB’s premier sluggers.
On Monday, Devers was named the American League Player of the Week. The three-time All-Star has gone 10-for-21 at the plate with two home runs, eight RBI, and a 1.386 OPS over the last seven days.
Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman earned the honor in the National League.
While the plan is to keep Devers at DH for the foreseeable future, Breslow and manager Alex Cora have left the door open for Devers to make the switch. The club has yet to find a permanent solution for the void at first base.
After taking two out of three against the Royals, the Red Sox will begin a three-game set in Detroit on Monday night.
Its Monday, May 12 and the Angels (16-23) are in San Diego to take on the Padres (25-14). Yusei Kikuchi is slated to take the mound for Los Angeles against Michael King for San Diego.
The Padres are coming off a 9-3 loss to the Rockies yesterday, but won the series 2-1. Nick Pivetta struggled last night. He gave up six earned runs on seven hits and two walks in 4.0 innings pitched.
The Angels lost yesterday 7-3 to the Orioles and fell in the series 2-1. Tyler Anderson wasn't bad on the mound. He only gave up one earned run in 5.0 innings pitched. Despite his efforts, the Angels still lost.
Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long.
Game details & how to watch Angels at Padres
Date: Monday, May 12, 2025
Time: 9:40PM EST
Site: Petco Park
City: San Diego, CA
Network/Streaming: Padres.TV, Fanduesl Sports Network West
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the Angels at the Padres
The latest odds as of Monday:
Moneyline: Angels (+181), Padres (-219)
Spread: Padres -1.5
Total: 7.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Angels at Padres
Pitching matchup for May 12, 2025: Yusei Kikuchi vs. Michael King
Angels: Yusei Kikuchi, (0-4, 3.83 ERA) Last outing (Toronto Blue Jays, 5/7): 6.0 Innings Pitched, 1 Earned Runs Allowed, 5 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 6 Strikeouts
Padres: Michael King, (4-1, 2.22 ERA) Last outing: (New York, Yankees, 5/6): 6.0 Innings Pitched, 2 Earned Runs Allowed, 3 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 2 Strikeouts
Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Angels at Padres
The Padres have won 4 straight home games against the Angels
Each of the last 3 matchups between the Angels and the Padres have stayed under the Total
The Angels have covered in their last 3 games against the Padres
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Angels and the Padres
Rotoworld Best Bet
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Monday's game between the Angels and the Padres:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the San Diego Padres on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Los Angeles Angels at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 7.0.
Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
"I just think he's relentless," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Freddie Freeman, above, after Sunday's game. (Darryl Webb / Associated Press)
It was the night the Dodgers were coldest offensively this year that Freddie Freeman’s swing first started to get hot.
On April 25, when Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates mowed through the Dodgers in a 3-0 shutout at Dodger Stadium, the veteran first baseman remembers something clicking in a sixth-inning at-bat, when he dumped a down-and-away splitter into center field for a base hit.
At the time, Freeman’s swing didn’t look like much, a seemingly nondescript single on a night the Dodgers generated little else against the reigning National League Rookie of the Year. As Freeman pulled into first, there was no sign he’d just experienced some sort of long-awaited breakthrough, with the 35-year-old slugger still grinding through a slow and injury-hampered start to his season.
Sixteen games later, however, that’s what Freeman now cites as the origin point for one of the most productive stretches of his entire career — the moment when, after more than a year of sensing his mechanics at the plate were slightly off, his simple swing finally felt once again on-line and in-sync.
“It was a changeup away, and I was able to stay through it and hit a line drive up the middle,” Freeman recalled. “That’s when I kind of figured things were working … That’s when my confidence in my swing kind of skyrocketed, was after that hit.”
In hindsight, the demarcation line couldn’t have been more clear.
Entering that game against the Pirates, Freeman was batting just .250 this year, with a .911 OPS inflated mostly by a flurry of early home runs.
Since then, he has gone on a tear that, even by his former MVP and eight-time All-Star standards, stands out statistically: Over his last 61 at-bats, he is batting .475 (29 hits) with six doubles, one triple, five home runs, 22 RBIs and a 1.374 OPS.
In all of Major League Baseball, no one this side of Aaron Judge has been so good.
"I just think he's relentless,” manager Dave Roberts said of Freeman on Sunday, after his four-for-four performance in Arizona raised his season batting average to .376 and OPS to 1.170 — marks that both rank second in the majors (among hitters with 100 at-bats) behind only the New York Yankees star.
With a look of amazement, Roberts added: “I can't remember him being this good, for this long."
To many others around the Dodgers, Freeman’s early surge has come as a pleasant surprise. They know the sprained right ankle he played through in last year’s playoffs is still giving him problems, even after he had a debridement surgery on it this winter. They know the week he spent on the injured list in early April, when he re-aggravated his ankle after slipping in the shower, got him nowhere near back to 100% health.
Every day, Freeman said he gets “about an hour and a half” of pregame treatment on his ankle. In games, he tapes it up for stability and wears heel lifts in his cleats to prevent it from getting jammed as he runs.
Freeman has assured the team he still feels “good enough” to maintain an everyday playing schedule. This past road trip, he started in each of the Dodgers’ 10 consecutive games despite some brief conversation about finding him a day off.
“He's been ailing,” Roberts said. “But he’s moving really well. And he’s doing a really nice job of sort of playing with a governor, managing it, knowing when to pick his spots, manage his work, all that."
Perhaps by the All-Star break, Freeman has been told by the team’s training staff, his ankle will be back to relative normal — or, at least, to the point where “I might not have to do as much treatment,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to that,” he added with a laugh.
In the meantime, however, more of Freeman’s focus has been on building off his mechanical rediscovery; trying to maintain feel for a swing that had eluded him for so long.
Since late in the 2023 season, Freeman had what he derisively refers to as a “cut swing” in the batter’s box. His hips would open early. His bat would cut across the strike zone. He struggled to stay in rhythm and squared up to the ball.
It’s a flaw Freeman has battled off-and-on for years. So much so, he developed a meticulous routine of batting-cage drills to call upon every time the issue arose.
But last year, nothing Freeman tried seemed to remedy the problem. His .282 batting average and .854 OPS, while still good enough to make him an All-Star, were his lowest since the 2015 and 2014 seasons, respectively. And despite his October heroics, he came into 2025 still seeking a solution.
“There’d be spurts last year where it was good, and then it’d go away,” Freeman said. “Even at the beginning of this year, it was still a little cutty.”
That’s why, when Freeman golfed Skenes’ down-and-away splitter to center field last month, he started to feel hopeful.
“The previous two weeks, I would probably have rolled that over,” Freeman said. “But that pitch in that location, and how I hit it off Paul in that at-bat, I felt like I was in a good spot. It kind of helped my confidence.”
What exactly triggered the improvement remains a mystery, even to a generational hitter with a career .301 average.
“I don’t know what changed,” Freeman said last week. “I’ve been doing the same routine, the same thing. That’s why you can never figure this game out. You just gotta ride it out.”
But suddenly, what began as a slow opening month has transformed into one of Freeman’s hottest-ever starts.
Never before has Freeman maintained a batting average even close to his current .376 mark through the first 30 games of a season (his previous high was .336 in 2017). And only in that 2017 campaign, when he belted 11 home runs in his first 30 contests, had his OPS been better this far into the schedule.
“I looked up the other day and saw he was hitting .360, I had no idea,” Roberts joked. “Like I said, he's just been relentless."
Freeman’s current 16-game heater also has few personal parallels, representing just the second time in his career he has batted .475 or better over a stretch that long (he hit .477 from July 16 to Aug. 3 in 2023).
“Just seeing strikes and hitting them,” he said when asked why he’s been so hot. “I wish there was more I could give you. I do the same routine every day, try to hit strikes. And they’re just falling right now.”
After gradually eliminating his cut-swing problems over the last few weeks, Sunday’s four-hit performance felt like Freeman’s coup de grâce.
He started the day with two doubles against Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen: the first on an outer-edge fastball he blasted the other way, the second on an inner-half cutter he pulled down the right-field line. In the seventh, he recorded his ninth home run and 33rd RBI of the season, barreling a curveball from left-handed reliever Joe Mantiply into the Chase Field pool in right-center field. In the ninth, he added a superfluous single against another left-handed reliever, Jose Castillo, knocking his down-and-away slider through the right side of the infield.
It was four hits, on four different pitch types, to four different areas of the field.
And the only time he didn’t reach base, Freeman still lifted a fifth-inning sacrifice fly 356 feet to straightaway center.
“I do feel that he's seeing the baseball well, swinging at strikes like he does,” Roberts said. “And I think he really understands how his body's moving right now, with regards to his swing."
These are all things Freeman struggled to do repeatedly before his single against Skenes almost three weeks ago.
But ever since, such results have been coming seemingly on demand, even despite the continued limitations of his ankle.
“He's already got a simple swing, simple approach,” Roberts said, trying to identify the roots of Freeman’s recent dominance. “But this might be something where, because of the right ankle, he is being more mindful and not trying to overswing or do too much — maybe."
The one thing the manager knows for sure about his superstar first baseman right now:
“It's been a while [since] I've seen him this consistent."
Eric Samulski
