Category: MLB

There was a time on Sunday afternoon where the fates seemed to be doing just about everything they could to push the Cincinnati Reds to yet another improbable victory.

That wasn’t true of the Top of the 1st. Reds starter Rhett Lowder was tagged for three hits and a walk in a 30 pitch inning to begin his day, the big swing being a 2-run double off the bat of Kerry Carpenter that nearly cleared the bases. Cincinnati, despite coming into this one with a chance for a series sweep, was immediately in a hole.

Trailing, though, is something that just seems to be part of what this team has become in 2026. Falling behind early and working their way back in gradual fashion is now just part of their ethos. And, once again, Sunday saw them grind their way back with single runs in the Bottom of the 2nd, Bottom of the 4th, and Bottom of the 5th to eventually claim a 5-2 lead as Lowder settled in and once again looked like the budding rotation cog that we know he can be.

Problem was, though, that Lowder’s early grind meant he reached 94 pitches after clearing 5 IP, and that turned things over to the Cincinnati Reds bullpen. Despite their brilliant work to begin this season, Sunday simply was not their day.

Brock Burke managed to scatter a trio of Tigers on the bases without allowing a run in the 6th, though Sam Moll wasn’t quite so lucky when he was tagged for a homer by Hao-Yu Lee that flipped the scoreboard. It was Lee’s first career dinger, but wasn’t the final big blast of the day for the Tigers by any stretch of the imagination. Spencer Torkelson homered for the fifth straight game with a blast off Pierce Johnson in the 7th only for Gleyber Torres to put the game completely on ice wit his 2-run blast off Jose Franco in the Top of the 8th.

That put the Reds in an 8-3 hole that they would not climb out of on the day.

Other Notes

• Nick Lodolo breezed through 5 scoreless frames on his first rehab start with High-A Dayton on Sunday. He was originally slated to only through 4 IP, but was so pitch efficient that they rolled him back out there for another breeze of an inning. If his blistered finger can hold up for another five days, methinks he’ll potentially only need one more rehab start before returning to the Cincinnati rotation.
• Nate Lowe homered again, his fourth of the three-game series. He’s good, the Reds are better off when he’s in the lineup, and I suppose that’s a good problem to have.
• JJ Bleday made his Reds debut in this one with a start in LF. He homered and walked before being platooned with Dane Myers, but his efforts were good enough to take home today’s Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game. Welcome to Cincinnati, JJ!
• The Reds have a day-off at home in Cincinnati on Monday before opening a three-game series in GABP against the Colorado Rockies. Chase Burns will start the series opener, which is set for 6:40 PM ET.

Home plate umpire Ryan Blakney seemed to be in his feels after Brett Baty didn’t appear to like a call that ended the fourth inning.

The Mets’ third baseman was called out on strikes on a pitch that caught the bottom of the strike zone and tossed his bat in frustration as he walked out of the batter’s box. 

After he took off his batting gloves and helmet, Batty looked back in the direction of the plate and appeared to shake his head, prompting the umpire to shout at Baty. 

“Then challenge it,” Blakney said. 

"Don't look at me"

Brett Baty has a back-and-forth with the home plate umpire following a strikeout pic.twitter.com/naRGIg5Fyl

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 26, 2026

That comment prompted Baty to turn and tell Blakney that “I didn’t say anything to you,” which would appear to be supported by the mics that picked up the sequence of events. 

Blakney then shouted back to Baty, “you didn’t need to.” 

“Don’t look at me,” the testy ump barked back at Baty. 

Baty repeated that he didn’t say anything to the umpire and added that it was the umpire who instigated the situation, which Blakney denied despite the fact that the mics picked up him being the first person to say something after the strikeout call.

Eventually,  Mets third base coach Tim Leiper moved Baty away from the area and back into the field for the start of the fifth inning. 

It was certainly an odd moment for Blakney to instigate the argument, though he could have been frustrated after three of his calls were challenged in the first inning alone, including the first pitch of the bottom of the first. Two were overturned.

The introduction of the automated ball-strike system has largely been praised since MLB instituted it during this year’s regular season, but it has also led to some embarrassing moments for MLB umpires. 

C.B. Bucknor has found himself on the wrong end of a number of challenges, and on Saturday, he had six of eight calls that had been challenged by players overturned. 

In an article published last month by the Associated Press, former major league umpire Richie Garcia complained that it was “embarrassing to the umpires that are calling the game.”

“Nobody likes to be humiliated in front of 30,000, 40,000 people,” he said. “What Major League Baseball is saying is: I don’t trust the umpire’s strike zone, so I’m going to use something that’s going to be operated by some computer geek that knows nothing about baseball, and he’s the one that’s going to measure this and measure that because he’s got a Ph.D. in physics or whatever the hell he’s got a degree in.”

The Dodgers took the three-game series from the Chicago Cubs on Sunday, as Justin Wrobleski and the bullpen held the Cubs silent in a 6-0 shutout win.

For a second straight game, Nico Hoerner led off the game with a base hit, and the Cubs put two men on with only one out against Wrobleski. The left-hander got Seiya Suzuki to strike out swinging and induced a ground ball out from Carson Kelly to get out of the two-on, two-out jam.

The Dodgers had runners at the corners with one out in the bottom of the first inning after Shota Imanaga walked both Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernández, setting up an RBI opportunity for Andy Pages. A sacrifice fly gave him his 25th RBI of the season before Kyle Tucker and Miguel Rojas both connected for a pair of two-out doubles to plate a pair of runs and give the Dodgers a three-spot in the first.

Chicago responded with a leadoff double from Michael Busch in the top of the second inning, followed by a pair of walks to Matt Shaw and Pete Crow-Armstrong to load the bases with only one out and bring up the potential go-ahead run in the form of Hoerner. Wrobleski got him chasing at a high fastball on a full count for the second out and got Alex Bregman swinging to leave the bases loaded and keep the Cubs scoreless.

It was a laborious start for Wrobleski compared to his other starts in April, as he had a pitch count at 51 over his first two innings. He settled down over his next two innings, only allowing a two-out baserunner in each while tossing a combined 21 pitches. Wrobleski had just five strikeouts over his last two starts, yet managed to strike out five over his first seven outs on Sunday.

Wrobleski later put the leadoff man on in both the fifth and sixth innings, but managed to work around both baserunners to complete another six shutout innings. His four walks on the game are his most in a start since his first of the year against Toronto, but he registered a season-high six strikeouts on a career-high 109 pitches, the most by any Dodgers starter this season.

Craig Counsell decided that he wanted Imanaga back out for the bottom of the sixth inning after keeping the Dodgers silent since the three-run first inning. The decision backfired as Pages and Tucker reached on a double and a walk respectively, and Dalton Rushing picked up his second RBI single in as many games on pitch no. 100 from Imanaga to make it a four-run game and knock the Cubs southpaw out of the game.

Left-hander Hoby Milner took over for Imanaga, and his very first pitch got away from Carson Kelly. Kelly tried to get Tucker napping off of third base, but he sent the ball into the left field allowing him to score and make it a five-run game.

Shohei Ohtani added a sixth run for the Dodgers with an opposite field home run against Miller to begin the bottom of the seventh inning. It was his first extra-base hit in six games and his first home run since he took Jacob deGrom deep on April 12. After having recorded two hits over his last 19 at-bats dating back to Tuesday, Ohtani’s three-hit game marked his first multi-hit game since Monday as well.

Edgardo Henríquez and Jack Dreyer made their second appearances of the series, both working around a leadoff baserunner while keeping the Cubs off the scoreboard. Kyle Hurt came in for his second consecutive appearance, and he needed all of five pitches to send the Cubs to their 13th consecutive scoreless inning at the plate and give the Dodgers their second shut out win over their last four games.

Game particulars

• Home runs— Shohei Ohtani (6)
• WP— Justin Wrobleski (4-0): 6 IP, 4 hits, 0 runs, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts
• LP— Shota Imanaga (2-2): 5 1/3 IP, 6 hits, 5 earned runs, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts

Up next

The Dodgers welcome in the Miami Marlins as they begin a three-game series at home on Monday (7:10 p.m. PT). While the Dodgers have yet to announce their starter, Chris Paddack goes for Miami.

SAN FRANCISCO — Casey Schmitt did it again.

The day after giving the Giants the lead with a late blast to left field, Schmitt showed off his clutch gene to the Marlins’ bullpen for a second time in as many games.

Schmitt launched a three-run shot to left in the seventh inning that broke a tie and gave the Giants their first lead in an eventual 6-3 win to secure the three-game series.

The heroics ensured the longest start of Landen Roupp’s career didn’t go to waste.

Roupp took the mound to start the eighth inning for the first time in his career and was serenaded by a standing ovation as he walked back to the dugout with two outs.

The walk that ended his outing was only the fourth Marlins batter to reach base against him and snapped a streak of 18 retired in a row.

The only blip on Roupp’s pitching line came in a 29-pitch second inning, when he allowed the first two batters to reach. It looked like he was going to work out of the jam, but after getting Graham Pauley down 0-2 with two outs, the Marlins’ No. 8 hitter punished a curveball over the brick wall in right field that cashed in their only baserunners until the eighth inning.

It appeared the early 3-0 lead would hold up as the Giants stranded runners in scoring position twice in the first five innings. But Rafael Devers woke up with an RBI double to get them on the board in the sixth, and Schmitt did the rest the following inning.

What it means

The Giants earned their second come-from-behind win in as many games to finish the homestand 4-2 and win their third series in a row. San Francisco had been 2-13 when its opponent scored first before prevailing the past two games.

Who’s hot

Roupp put himself in position to win his fourth straight start — tied for the second-longest active streak in the majors — by breezing through all but two of his innings on 10 pitches or fewer.

The 27-year-old right-hander lowered his ERA to 2.55, the best mark in the Giants’ rotation and tied for 12th among National League starters.

Jung Hoo Lee moved into the leadoff spot for the first time since the opening series of the season and kept on raking with his fourth multi-hit effort of the six-game homestand.

The Giants weren’t able to capitalize on his triple off the brick wall in right field to begin the game, but Lee came around to score — the 100th run of his career — after an opposite-field single in the third inning. He led off the seventh with his fourth hit and watched Schmitt’s home run leave the yard as he rounded the bases.

Altogether, the Giants outfielders combined to bat .367 over the course of the homestand, with seven extra-base hits, including home runs from Lee, Heliot Ramos and Drew Gilbert.

Entering the homestand, San Francisco’s outfielders had been the third-worst group in the majors, measured by FanGraphs WAR.

Who’s not

Willy Adames got his first day off this season. Together with Monday’s day off in Philadelphia, manager Tony Vitello is hopeful the downtime can snap Adames out of an 0-for-21 funk.

San Francisco managed to take four of six games on the homestanddespite getting almost nothing from the three bats expected to anchor the middle of its lineup. Devers’ double that drove in Schmitt and made it 3-2 in the sixth was the first RBI of the entire homestand from himself, Adames or Matt Chapman, who combined to go 8-for-61 (.131) with 23 strikeouts.

Up next

The Giants are off Monday before beginning a six-game road trip against the Phillies and Rays. They took two of three from the Phils when they visited San Francisco earlier this month, kicking off a 10-game losing streak that Philadelphia just snapped out of this weekend.

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Following their 7-4 loss to the Houston Astros on Sunday, the Yankees optioned right-hander Luis Gil to the minors after he struggled on the mound once again.

Outfielder Jasson Dominguez is being called up from Triple-A, according to multiple reports. (Dominguez's call-up could be the corresponding move for Gil, or could be related to Giancarlo Stanton's injury status, as the Yanks said they would make a decision on whether the DH needed a stint on the IL ahead of Monday's game against the Rangers.)

Gil lasted just four innings in New York’s series finale in Houston and allowed six earned runs on five hits, including two home runs, three walks and a hit by pitch. 

“His velocity was there, his pitch movement was there, but, unfortunately, we missed locations and those guys in the other clubhouse didn’t miss,” said catcher J.C. Escarra. “Two big home runs there with men on base.”

Through four starts this season, the 27-year-old is 1-2 and owns a 6.05 ERA (1.34 WHIP) with nine strikeouts in 19.1 innings. Gil has also allowed the most home runs (six), walks (11) and earned runs (13) among Yankees starters despite pitching 12 fewer innings than anybody else on the staff. 

“Just been struggling to get consistency with his, I think, delivery and fastball profile,” said manager Aaron Boone. “Again, we’ve seen flashes of it. It feels like it’s getting better in some ways and then the secondary: some good, some miss.”

The 2024 AL Rookie of the Year began the season with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre despite having no injury designation but failing to impress the organization enough in spring training, where he had a 4.66 ERA in six starts and allowed 20 hits, including six home runs, in 19.1 innings. 

In one start for the RailRiders, Gil went 4.2 innings and allowed three earned runs on four hits and four walks. Still, the right-hander was called up on April 10 when he made his season debut against the Tampa Bay Rays and allowed three earned runs in four innings during that outing.

Since then, aside from a strong start against the Boston Red Sox, Gil has been the weak link of a very good starting rotation that ranks second in the majors with a 2.90 ERA and who has reinforcements on the way with aces Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon nearing returns from injuries.

“Just gotta pass the page on this one and concentrate on the next one,” Gil said through an interpreter after the game.

HOUSTON — Luis Gil was already on the clock, but the Yankees sped it up after his clunker Sunday afternoon.

Deep in the heart of Texas, Gil got deep-sixed against the Astros and then got sent packing for Triple-A after a 7-4 loss at Daikin Park, as the Yankees decided not to wait around until Carlos Rodón returns from the injured list early next month.

Gil, the weak link in what has been a strong rotation, gave up six runs in four-plus innings with plenty of loud contact, including a pair of two-run homers that put the Yankees (18-10) in an early hole and helped snap their eight-game winning streak.

Equally as troubling as the hard contact was the lack of swinging and missing. The Astros made contact on all 22 of Gil’s four-seam fastballs they swung at. He generated only three whiffs overall on the 34 swings they took.

“It’s tough when you’re falling behind and you’re not consistent with the secondary or that consistent velocity and profile of the fastball to get them off some of the secondary,” manager Aaron Boone said before Gil was optioned. “A combination of not quite good enough command, the stuff not being as good at is when Luis is at his very best. Add that up and you struggle to get that swing and miss.”

With an off-day coming Thursday, the Yankees do not need a fifth starter again until May 5. If they stick to their original plan with Rodón — who is expected to need at least two more rehab starts, the next one coming Wednesday or Thursday — that would likely mean needing a spot start from someone like Elmer Rodríguez. They could also turn to Paul Blackburn or Ryan Yarbrough, who have served as long men in the bullpen, and carry an extra reliever instead.

Gil, who started the year in the minors because the Yankees did not need a fifth starter out of the gates, posted a 6.05 ERA across four starts. His best one came against the lowly Red Sox on Tuesday, when he tossed 6 ¹/₃ scoreless innings, but even then his stuff was not very sharp.

On Sunday — the first start of Gil’s big league career in which he did not record a strikeout — his fastball velocity actually ticked up a bit but still lacked effectiveness. He described the lack of swing and miss, which was a central part of his standout season in 2024 as the AL Rookie of the Year, as “frustrating” and likened it to a “bad slump.”

“That’s what we’ve been working on, to be more consistent executing a good fastball with good velo,” Gil said through an interpreter. “We’ve been working on all that stuff together, to be better at that. When you have a little more velo, you can create more swing and miss. But little by little, I think I’m getting there. Just got to keep working.”

Now, the 27-year-old right-hander will be working on that back at Triple-A.

Gil’s rough start snapped a strong stretch of starting pitching that had fueled the winning streak. The six runs he allowed nearly matched the number of earned runs (seven) the Yankees had allowed in their past eight starts combined.

“Just been struggling to get consistency with his delivery and fastball profile,” Boone said.

Christian Walker crushed a two-run homer off Gil in the first inning — on a changeup down the middle — before Isaac Paredes clobbered a sinker for another two-run shot in the third. Gil gave up a walk and a double to the first two batters he faced in the fifth before Boone decided he had seen enough, with both of those runs eventually coming in to score against Blackburn.

The Yankees, meanwhile, mustered only three hits in seven innings against Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti — one being Aaron Judge’s 10th home run, a solo shot in the sixth inning on his birthday, to make it a 7-1 game.

They later mounted a two-out rally in the ninth to push across three runs, but it proved to be too little, too late.

Despite a terrific outing from Sean Burke, the White Sox couldn’t hit the ball this afternoon, collecting just four singles over 10 innings. Both teams carried zero runs into extra innings, and the White Sox fell to the Nationals, 2-1, in the 10th to collect the series loss.

Bryan Hudson, who opened for Burke, had a clean first frame for the second straight game. Chase Meidroth started with a leadoff single, advanced on a balk, and stole third on a wild pitch with two outs. Alas, it was all for nothing for one of the few White Sox hitters to make it to third base today, as Everson Pereira struck out.

The game moved on at a quick pace, with neither offense mounting any rallies, or landing anything for extra bases. As Burke continued to shut down Nationals batters, Foster Griffin was doing the same for Washington.

However, while Griffin worked at a solid starters’ efficiency (91 pitches over seven innings), Burke again shifted into super-efficient mode, pitching to contact and trusting his defene. Burke threw just four pitches in the top of the seventh, and pitching into the eighth got three outs with nine pitches. Overall, Burke went 7 1/3 innings using just 76 throws. That may have yielded just four strikeouts, but in stifling the Nats to just two singles and a double, who cares?

Nasim Nuñez started the top of the ninth with a single off Burke. Nuñez, who is known for his speed, stole second and advanced to third when Drew Millas flew out to center. Manager Will Venable collected his pitcher, but not before a standing ovation for an incredible outing.

Sean Newcomb came in to face the top of the order with a runner on third and just one out. Wood was intentionally walked, which worked out in favor of the Sox, as the last two Nationals both managed pop-outs to end the threat.

The White Sox ended up having just as frustrating a ninth inning. Everson Pereira singled with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Richard Lovelady, now pitching for the Nationals, tried to pick off Pereira but instead threw the ball away, allowing the runner to advance to second. After Tanner Murray walked, it came down to Derek Hill with two outs, but he struck out on three pitches and sent the game to extras, 0-0.

Seranthony Domínguez stepped in for the Good Guys, but faced a runner on third with just one out after a productive ground out by Jorbit Vivas to start the frame. CJ Abrams screamed a liner to left-center, which Murray made an incredible diving catch for the out — but a run scored to put Washington up, 1-0. (Murray left the game after a shoulder injury from the catch.) Coming in to pinch-hit, José Tena destroyed a center-cut fastball on 3-1 to put the Nationals up, 2-0.

That insurance run would prove valuable to Washington, as Tristian Peters had an RBI single to send ghost runner Hill home with one out, making it just a one-run game with one out. But Chase Meidroth and Miguel Vargas both went down on strikes, giving the White Sox 13 total by game’s end.

Offense was thin on the ground for the Mariners in their series finale against the Cardinals, but once again the bats were able to produce just enough for a 3-2 win, neatly bookending the 3-2 win from the series opener with a wild, potentially season-altering one sandwiched in between. As Victor Robles would say: sorry ‘bout it, that’s a sweep.

As was the case in the series opener, the starting pitching and bullpen teamed up to hold down the Cardinals offense, although it took Emerson Hancock an inning or so to lock in. After getting a first pitch flyout, Hancock labored through the rest of the first inning, falling behind hitters and giving up some hard contact on the ground and in the air, as well as walking Jordan Walker in a 3-1 count. But Hancock escaped without damage, able to bail himself out of trouble with an inning-ending strikeout on the changeup. Hancock used his changeup heavily today as well as his cutter, backing off the sweeper, which seemed difficult for him to harness. A shot on the broadcast of Hancock being tended to for the team trainer for a blister or torn fingernail might explain that.

Hancock’s stuff might have been too crafty for the Cardinals hitters, as they BABIP’d him to death with a bunch of little low exit-velocity hits. Behold this curséd image:

However, the only damage the Cardinals hitters were able to make out of that was off a solo home run from JJ Wetherholt, who tattooed a Hancock sinker at the top of the zone over the right field fence. Said fence now bears an outline of Luke Raley, who made a heroic yet unsuccessful attempt at the kind of home run robbery that has tortured the Mariners so far this season:

Ahhh you’ll get ‘em next time, Luke.

Meanwhile, the Mariners also struggled to get their hits to add up to anything off Cardinals starter Michael McGreevey, who completed six innings with a season-high six strikeouts. The only damage he allowed was a solo home run to Cal Raleigh, making the curious choice to serve Cal a changeup, a pitch he slugged .500 on last season. Thank you, I guess?

The Cardinals would go ahead in the sixth on a home run from the very annoying Nathan Church, who got ahold of a Hancock changeup he was able to drop the barrel on and smoke (110.1 mph EV) for a solo homer. But that was all the damage against Hancock today, who gave the Mariners and their tired bullpen a solid six innings. It’s especially impressive considering Hancock was working without one of his best weapons in the sweeper, and a testament to his ability to limit damage by limiting the free passes he hands out; last year, Hancock walked 8.1% of the batters he faced; this year, that number so far this season is 3.8%. As long as he can keep batters off the bases ahead of those solo homers and keep the weak-contact hits from stacking by not making things worse for himself, that’s a very different Emerson Hancock from previous years – and one who pushes the Mariners into interesting decision-making territory when Bryce Miller is able to return.

After McGreevey was finally out of the game the Mariners were able to tie it up against Matt Svanson in the seventh. Connor Joe brought some of that BABIP luck back the Mariners’ way, poking a little hustle double into left field, and Cole Young brought in the tying run with a nice piece of two-strike hitting.

This was especially nice for Young, who had been having a bit of a rough game offensively – he recorded the Mariners’ first hit of the day, but was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double, and then in his next at-bat, he struck out on three pitches in a largely noncompetitive at-bat, stranding a runner, and looking very frustrated with himself. Kudos to Young for shaking that off and coming up clutch, in addition to providing a steady hand at second base.

Also deserving kudos: the bullpen, which provided three scoreless innings between Gabe Speier, Eduard Bazardo, and José Ferrer, allowing no hits and not letting the Cardinals have any breathing room. Special kudos to Ferrer, who earned his first save as a Mariner, stepping in for Andrés Muñoz and not making the moment look too big for him.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals bullpen couldn’t do the same for their starter, save for former Mariner Ryne Stanek, who magically found pinpoint command and struck out all three hitters he faced. But the tax the Mariners offense put on the Cardinals bullpen showed up in the ninth, as the Cardinals turned again to lefty JoJo Romero, who had a 12-pitch outing yesterday. Romero wasn’t sharp, but somehow got ahead of pinch-hitter Rob Refsnyder 0-2 thanks to a disastrous first-pitch strike call from home plate umpire John Bacon. Bacon went to punch out Refsnyder on a changeup that was even further outside than his first blown strike call and Refsnyder challenged immediately, turning a strikeout looking into a 1-2 count. Ref kept battling in the box, taking pitches that were well off the plate and fouling away the one that was close until he got a sweeper right in his happy zone that he crushed for a go-ahead homer.

I wish this clip had the full broadcast video because it’s endearing for so many reasons: Justin “Champ” Novak the bullpen catcher, who catches the ball; Cooper Criswell popping up over the bullpen fence like a wacky waving inflatable arm man to celebrate; Refsnyder forgetting he’s supposed to take the trident; and how happy the whole dugout looks for him. Refsnyder, with his positivity, high baseball IQ, and leadership, has been a quick favorite among his peers, and you can really see how much he’s valued by his teammates by the warmth of his reception. Postgame, Refsnyder gave credit to all his teammates and especially called out Cole Young for his game-tying single while also calling him the best defender in baseball; he also said yesterday’s game felt like a special win for the team. Could this be the lightning moment this season has needed? The Mariners head to cold, rainy Minnesota tomorrow to find out.

The Texas Rangers scored a run but the Orion Arm Athletics scored two runs.

No doubt about it, the Rangers made some mistakes today.

First of all, they played a baseball game while up only one game above .500. As we know, that’s a guaranteed loss. If you’re asking me, given the circumstances, they probably should have just skipped this one.

Secondly, they got a few runners in scoring position here and there, and even had some dreaded bases loaded opportunities. As we know, that only means those potential runs were guaranteed to not score as they did in all but one of nine attempts, with the one success coming on a bunt single that didn’t even score a run. When they loaded ‘em up with no outs in a one-score game, they went strikeout, strikeout, flyout.

Third of all, they had Josh Jung in the lineup which wasn’t great because when Josh Jung doubled twice Josh Jung couldn’t follow Josh Jung because Josh Jung was already on second base so without Josh Jung at the plate, as we know, the Rangers had no hope of doing damage.

Player of the Game: Ironically, the person who perhaps made the worst mistake of the game (outside of Chris Young for signing Danny Jansen) was also probably the team’s best performer today (outside of Jung but he’s been in this space pretty much exclusively over the last few weeks).

Kumar Rocker started the game with two quick outs on four pitches and then walked the next two batters on nine pitches to bring up Carlos “Barry Bonds” Cortes.

Despite me never having heard of this person just weeks ago, Cortes has torched right-handed pitching this season and has feasted on Texas pitching in the seven games they’ve played in the season’s first month so of course, after working the count full, Cortes hit a two-out, two-run triple laser over the head of Evan Carter to score Not-Oakland’s two runs.

From there, however, Rocker settled in nicely and gave the Rangers six innings of two-run ball for an otherwise quality start marred by a bit of wildness or pacificity allowing the wrong guy at the wrong time up to do damage in what would ultimately be the game’s fateful moment.

Up Next: The Rangers will next welcome the New York Yankees to town for the last leg of the current homestand. RHP Jack Leiter is expected to pitch for Texas in the opener opposite LHP Max Fried for New York.

The Monday evening first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 7:05 pm CDT and will be aired on the Rangers Sports Network.

HOUSTON – As good as the Yankees looked during their eight-game winning streak, they ended it on Sunday with an all-around stinker.

Deep in the heart of Texas, Luis Gil got deep-sixed while his previously red-hot offense did not come alive until the ninth inning, resulting in a 7-4 loss to the Astros at Daikin Park.

Gil, who only has a few more guaranteed starts in the big leagues before he is likely to be the odd man out when Carlos Rodón returns from the injured list, did not do much to help his case on Sunday.

The right-hander gave up six runs across four-plus innings with plenty of loud contact, including a pair of two-run homers that put the Yankees (18-10) in an early hole.

Equally as troubling as the hard contact was the lack of swing-and-miss. Gil did not record a single whiff on the 22 four-seam fastballs the Astros (11-18) swung at, and only generated three whiffs overall on the 34 swings they took. 

Gil’s clunker snapped a strong stretch of starting pitching that had fueled the Yankees’ winning streak. The six runs he allowed nearly matched the amount of earned runs (seven) the Yankees had allowed in their last eight starts combined.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

Aaron Judge, meanwhile, provided the only offense in seven innings against Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti, who allowed just three hits. On his 34th birthday, Judge crushed a solo home run, his 10th of the year, to get the Yankees on the board in the sixth inning, cutting the deficit to 7-1.

The Yankees mounted a two-out rally in the top of the ninth, with RBI doubles from Paul Goldschmidt and J.C. Escarra and an RBI single from Ryan McMahon. But it proved to be too little, too late.

Gil’s day got off to an inauspicious start, when he walked leadoff hitter Carlos Correa on four pitchers. Two outs later, he threw a 3-2 changeup down the middle to Christian Walker, who clobbered it for a two-run shot that came off the bat at 109.8 mph.

In the third inning, Gil got two quick outs before Yordan Alvarez smoked a single and Isaac Paredes followed by crushing a 95 mph sinker off the left-field foul pole for another two-run homer that made it 4-0.

Then in the fifth, Gil gave up a walk and a double to the first two batters, at which point Aaron Boone decided he had seen enough and went to the bullpen.

Paul Blackburn entered and immediately fell behind 3-0 to Paredes, who got the green light and roped an RBI single.

Walker followed with a double to the gap that drove in two more runs for the 7-0 lead.

Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss announced after today’s 6-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies that rookie starting pitcher JR Ritchie will get his second major league start on Wednesday against the Detroit Tigers.

Weiss also confirm that former right-handed starter Reynaldo López is heading to the bullpen to work out some mechanical issues that are framed as the culprit of his last two sub-optimal starts.

Ritchie made his MLB debut on April 23, picking up the victory after tossing seven innings of two-run ball. The righty struck out seven against the Washington Nationals.

López, pitched in only one game in 2025 after a sterling first season in Atlanta in 2024. The 32-year-old has made five starts this year for the Braves, logging 21.2 innings. However, he allowed a combined seven earned runs in his past two starts – including four in a single inning of work on April 21.

Rehabbing starting pitcher Spencer Strider pitched five strong innings for Triple-A Gwinnett today and could be activated off the IL within the next week. The Braves have not yet announced if Strider will make an additional minor league start.

Ritchie will make his home debut, weather permitting, as the Braves take on a Tigers squad looking to win the American League Central Division.

After a promising 10-8 win over the Minnesota Twins last Thursday, the Mets’ offense appeared to regress back to the doldrums of their 12-game losing streak on Sunday afternoon, falling to the Colorado Rockies 3-1 in the first game of a doubleheader.

The numbers weren’t pretty. The Mets had just four hits off of Jose Quintana and the Rockies bullpen, they went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position, and they left six men on. 

In both the first and eighth innings, the Mets loaded the bases with one out. But both times, they came away with nothing.

“It’s frustrating, obviously,” said manager Carlos Mendoza. “Not having good at-bats and then we had an opportunity with the bases loaded right away and couldn’t’ cash in. Every time you get an opportunity like that, we’ve got to be able to capitalize there, and we haven’t been able to do that. 

“We’ve got to get going.”

Mendoza was asked, point-blank, if the offense is fixable.

“Yes. We’ve got to do something,” he said. “That’s not a good showing. We’ve got to fix it.”

Nolan McLean, the Mets' rising star on the mound, was electric in the early going, facing the minimum through the first three innings. He ran into trouble in both the fifth and sixth innings, and ultimately was pulled with the bags full in the sixth. 

All in all, he allowed two runs (one earned run) on five hits, striking out seven and walking two. 

McLean took the tough-luck loss in Sunday’s first game, but said afterwards that he and the entire pitching staff believe in this Mets lineup.

"The way we see it in the clubhouse is, 'any minute now.' We look at the lineup going out there each day and we know how hard they're working,” McLean said. “It's just a matter of time. We know how good those players are who are in the lineup for us.”

Box Score

Kyle Harrison turned in a brilliant performance, and the Brewers capitalized on a five-run fourth inning to snap their four-game losing streak and avoid a sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The win puts Milwaukee back over .500 ahead of a Tuesday matchup with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Neither team scored until the bottom of the fourth, when Milwaukee broke through against Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski. William Contreras led off with a single, and Jake Bauers followed with a ground-rule double that likely would’ve scored him had it stayed in play. Gary Sánchez then grounded out to second, but Contreras came home from third to give the Brewers their first lead of the series.

Garrett Mitchell then struck out for the second out, and Sal Frelick quickly fell behind 1-2. Frelick fouled off the next pitch, but Joey Bart was called for catcher’s interference, sending him to first. From there, Mlodzinski unraveled. Luis Rengifo singled to knock in Bauers, David Hamilton doubled off the right-field wall to score Frelick, and Brandon Lockridge singled to clear the bases.

When the dust settled, the Brewers were up five runs, and Mlodzinski was walking to the dugout. Evan Sisk came in to face Brice Turang, who hit a tailing line drive to left field that hung in the air just long enough for Pirates outfielder Jake Mangum to make the catch.

Mlodzinski couldn’t make it out of the fourth inning, but Harrison was nearly untouchable through six. He pitched like an ace today, and the results showed it. Harrison threw 101 pitches over six innings, striking out 12 while allowing just one hit (a ground-ball single off the bat of Marcell Ozuna) and one walk. The more he pitches, the more promising he looks.

Trevor Megill got into a little bit of a jam in the seventh inning after allowing a leadoff double and a walk, but he bore down to get back to the dugout without allowing a run. In the eighth, Aaron Ashby loaded the bases on two walks and an error by David Hamilton, but also escaped with a scoreless frame. Abner Uribe struck out two Pirates in a 1-2-3 ninth inning to give the Brewers their first shutout win of the season.

Some of the issues that have plagued the Brewers early in the season are still present. The bullpen hasn’t been as dominant as in years past, and Milwaukee managed just two hits after Mlodzinski exited the game.

Still, today’s win felt like a step in the right direction and a reminder of why the Brewers have won the NL Central in four of the past five years. Quality pitching and timely offense are a winning formula, and today, Milwaukee got both.

The Crew will get a much-deserved day off tomorrow before welcoming the Diamondbacks to American Family Field for a three-game series. First pitch for Tuesday’s opener is set for 6:40 p.m.

Right as I hit send on a tweet questioning the logic of Blake Butera pinch hitting Jose Tena for Jacob Young, Tena blasted a solo homer in the 10th, which proved to be the difference in the game. It was a pitchers duel, with no runners scoring for either team in the first nine, but the Nats managed to get two runs across in the 10th to win it.

This game felt very different from most of the 2026 Nationals games we have watched so far. Most Nats games this year have been very high scoring, and even when they are not, teams are threatening. However, both pitching staffs shut down dangerous offenses this afternoon.

It was a true pitchers duel between Foster Griffin and Sean Burke in this one. Despite the White Sox using an opener, Burke still managed to toss 7.1 scoreless innings. Burke befuddled Nats hitters with his rising fastball and big overhand curveball. He looks like a real nice arm that could slot into the middle of the White Sox rotation for years to come.

Foster Griffin was matching Burke pitch for pitch though. This was Griffin’s best outing as a Nat, which is saying something because he has been solid each and every start. The crafty lefty threw 7 shutout innings with 8 strikeouts and just two hits. He was masterfully wielding his seven pitch mix today, with the cutter and sweeper being the stars of the show.

Griffin’s deep bag of pitches makes him so unpredictable. It just felt like White Sox hitters were guessing wrong all afternoon. Griffin’s ERA is down to 2.67 on the season. He is also just so much fun to watch because of how smart he is as a pitcher.

With Burke and Griffin rolling, offense was tough to come by. There were hardly any rallies to speak of. For a while, it just felt like the Nats were speedrunning their at bats. The White Sox made Griffin work a little more, but that was mostly because of how much they were whiffing.

The 9th inning was the first time either team felt like they threatened. In the top of the inning, the Nats had a man on third with one out due to Nasim Nunez getting a single and working his magic on the bases. However, after James Wood was intentionally walked, both Curtis Mead and Daylen Lile popped up to end the inning.

In the bottom half, the White Sox threatened thanks to an Everson Pereira base hit and an error by Richard Lovelady on a pick off attempt. Lovelady got out of the jam by getting two huge strikeouts. He was fired up after getting out of the jam. Lovelady is a real character, and looks to have found a home with the Nats after bouncing around a ton over the past couple years.

It was the 10th inning that proved decisive though. The Nats manufactured the first run. On an 0-2 pitch, Jorbit Vivas did a nice job rolling one over to the first baseman and getting the runner to third. Then CJ Abrams got robbed of a hit, but still got the sac fly. That opened the scoring, but the Nats needed more to feel comfortable.

That was the moment where Blake Butera made the gutsy move to go to Jose Tena. On a 3-1 pitch, Tena unloaded on a fastball that caught the heart of the plate. He knew it was gone and watched his 100th career hit fly. It was an insurance run that was desperately needed.

After being recalled today, Paxton Schultz came on to close the door. While he allowed the Manfred runner to score, he got a pair of massive strikeouts to end the ball game and improve the Nats record to 13-16.

The Nats were playing baseball everyday for a while. They had 17 straight games without an off day. It was a run that the Nats navigated quite well, going 9-8 in that span. That is a great job from the boys, who have a much deserved off day tomorrow.

Now, the Nats will head to New York to try and extend the Mets misery. The Mets snapped their 12 game losing streak a few days ago, but now they just dropped a series to the Rockies. Hopefully the Nats can continue being road warriors and keep the momentum rolling.

A weird weekend of baseball ended in a frustratingly conventional way. Kyle Bradish had an uneven day on the mound, Grant Wolfram struggled out of the bullpen, and the Orioles bats lacked punch in a 5-3 loss on Sunday afternoon in Baltimore.

This was a laborious start for Bradish. He made it through five innings, but none of them were clean, and many of them required some serious help from his defense in order to survive them.

In the second inning, Ceddanne Rafaela led off with a double. He attempted to tag up and advance to third on the Marcelo Mayer fly ball that followed, but a strong throw from right fielder Tyler O’Neill and a slide that popped Rafaela up off of the base instead gave Bradish two outs.

In the Red Sox side of the third inning, Bradish issued two walks and uncorked a wild pitch to put two runners in scoring position with two outs. That’s as far as they would go, Bradish striking out Roman Anthony to escape the jam.

The fourth inning saw Bradish issue another walk, this one a lead-off base on balls to Wilyer Abreu. But the runner would be quickly eliminated when he got too eager to advance on a missed bunt attempt by Rafaela at the plate. Samuel Basallo fired over to first, behind Abreu, and got him scrambling back to the bag.

It was in the fifth inning where Bradish finally succumbed to his struggles. Caleb Durbin led off with a single and then stole second base. An Andrew Monasterio single brought Durbin in for the first run of the day. A few batters later, Willson Contreras launched a two-run bomb to left-center field for a 3-0 lead.

Bradish finished up the fifth inning, and that marked the end of his outing. The righty gave up the three runs on four hits, four walks, and three strikeouts. It wasn’t a disaster, but it was also far from what we normally expect from the 29-year-old. His stuff seemed to be lacking across the board. Spin rates were down. Velocities were down. And whiff rates were down. Maybe it was the colder temperatures. Or maybe it’s just part of the process that comes with building back up after missing most of the 2025 season.

It’s not as if the Orioles offense was doing much to support him. They struggled to handle Boston’s starter Connelly Early. The young lefty tossed four shutout innings to begin the game, scattering two singles and walk in that time.

The Orioles first run of the day came in the bottom of the fifth. Basallo led off the frame with a solo homer to right field, his fifth long ball of the season.

Boston answered right back in the top of the sixth inning. Grant Wolfram had come on in relief of Bradish, and immediately got smacked around. Abreu led off with a single, then came in to score on a Rafaela triple to center field. Mayer followed that with a base knock to bring Rafael home and make it 5-1.

That was all for Wolfram. He faced three hitters and failed to retire any of them. Yennier Cano came on and did an impressive job to get out of the inning without allowing any more runs. That was despite the first batter he faced, Durbin, reaching on an error by Jeremiah Jackson. Gunnar Henderson helped out with a nice snag to get the first out. Cano got the next out on his own, fielding a Monasterio ball back to the mound and then tagging out Mayer as he tried to get home. The final out of the inning came when Basallo nabbed Monasterio trying to steal second base.

Henderson followed his nice glove work with a solo homer in the bottom of the sixth inning. His ninth home run of the season came off the bat at 105.3 mph, but it counted for just one anyway. The Orioles trailed 5-2.

In the bottom of the eighth inning the Orioles would score again. Colton Cowser pinch hit for Blaze Alexander and reached base on a single up the middle. A dribbler in front of the mound advanced Cowser to second with two outs. And then it was Henderson that came through with an RBI single to make it a 5-3 game.

That is as close as it would get. Aroldis Chapman came on for the ninth inning and made quick work of the O’s lineup to secure the 5-3 win for the visitors.

What a bummer. This series had started off so well on Friday night. And given how poor the Red Sox had been playing coming in, paired with their Saturday evening/Sunday morning drama, it felt like a chance for the Orioles to get division play off on the right foot. Instead, they wilted today.

The 5-3 scoreline feels kind to the Orioles. The Red Sox went just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, Rafaela got thrown out at third base because he (just barely) popped off the base, and Abreu was picked off at first base because he didn’t wait for a bunt to get down. They could/should have scored more.

The Orioles bats had just two extra base hits (the two home runs) and worked one walk. It was a bad showing against a young pitcher.

At least the Orioles bullpen, minus Wolfram, was good. Cano, Anthony Nunez, Rico Garcia, and Andrew Kittredge combined for four scoreless, hitless innings. They each have ERAs under 2.00 on the year.

The Orioles are off on Monday. They will then wrap up the month of April with a three-game set at Camden Yards against the Astros. That’s another under-performing team that you would like to see the Orioles beat. It has to happen eventually, right? Right!?